BND

And as I had said before when we cruised from there (T1) on Nov 28 for our b2b we were told that they were booting cars that hadn't paid for the entire stay. A couple of others who were on the same b2b said they were told the same thing. We were in the lot right adjacent to the full garage which has machines but also there were 2 people manning it.

Well, T1 on Harmony last Nov/Dec we paid for both weeks on entry. They did the first week on the machine at the entrance to the parking lot (garage was full) and then used a handheld for the second week's receipt. We prepaid online for one cruise out of PC. It may have been Freedom in 2011. But, you'd think since PC is one large port, that there would be consistency. We've paid on entry and exit on different cruises. In Baltimore, you pay as you enter. No machines. There is a covered area with two lanes and a small building where you pay as you drive up. We paid for our 20 night b2b and they gave us a different tag that showed we had paid for both. It works very well. They used to take cash as well as CC, but now only CC's.

What cabin category are you currently in? That determines what the minimum is for a category. For example, we're in a JS on EN in July. Min bid for a 1 br GS is $150/person and each category higher goes up in price. It was the same for our April b2b cruises on EN also.

I would just bring disposable bibs.

That's so weird that they handle it differently than T1 does where you pay as you go in which makes so much more sense.

I just went back in my email and the requirement for 12 and up to be fully vaccinated was in the Healthy Sail Protocol email we received on Nov 10, 2021 and our TA was notified on Oct 25, 2021. We have received the protocol email for all four of our cruises (2 b2b's) Nov/Dec and April. Anyone who isn't getting emails needs to check their profile on Royal and make sure their email address is there. We use a TA and we are notified for each cruise, as is our TA. I also regularly look at the protocols to see if there are changes, plus checking CC.

That's typical. As I said, people cancel and then they can move bidders up. I've seen posts on here and on FB where people don't understand how it works. It can be funny. Sometimes people win with minimum bid. But, it really can be luck of the draw.

Have you ever emailed Michael Bayley? We have and it gets a response.

We've done 2 b2b's since restart. Some were approved quickly, some not. But, either way, it's not a big deal. Just bring your card with you (everyone should anyway).

An email to Michael Bayley, which is obviously not read by him but his team, can get action. BTW, comparing a cruise line to the Fed is weird.

On our EN July cruise, no suites or balconies are available, but we could have bid on every category above our JS. They don't have to have availability because they're only offering up for bid if something opens up. RoyalUp is definitely a program where categories above what you have show as open for bidding. So, for us, GS 1br and above show up. For someone in an inside, oceanview and above would show. Where'd you get the idea that they have to be available to bid?

People do cancel last minute which can open up certain categories. And, more likely on larger ships. We put in a RoyalUp bid for a GS from the JS we have even though all balcony and suites are currently sold out for our July 22 cruise on EN. Do we think we'll get it, not really, but it's always possible.

Hmm, I read this same exact question on FB earlier today.

I have read lots of reports from people who did it from last year on and very, very few had more than a few minutes wait, even in Dec/Jan.

Not an issue at all. Normally we just put it on the floor nearby. Last cruise on EN, they had us put it on the chair at the empty table next to us. It's never completely full so there are places to put it. They expect people boarding to have carryons with them. We always book a specialty for boarding day lunch. Much more relaxing and less chaotic than WJ. We did Jamie's on HOTS and Chops on EN. It does vary by ship class.

DH retired from the US Navy 11 years ago so I haven't really paid close attention to the current DOD Covid restrictions, but even before Covid we saw less and less military dress. The war in Europe would have no impact/restrictions on cruises in and out of the US and more than likely Europe either as long as there are no port stops in specified countries. It's not uncommon for certain Gov employees to be restricted from specific countries as I experienced in my career.

In April on EN we saw several tuxes and gowns. More than I've seen in a while. What we haven't seen since restart is military dress uniforms. There used to be at least one or two on every cruise, but we saw none of either of our two b2b's. DH takes his navy blazer with his mini SWO wings on the lapel along with a ribbon (pin) but I don't remember which one. He went from tux to suit to blazer over the years.

Lobster means formal? LOL. Lobster is what used to be fed to prisoners, servants, apprentices, children and slaves because it was cheap, plentiful and considered less than upper class. I know that changed in the 19th century, but I still find it so funny. Anyway, his reason was kind of dumb, but whatever.

No, you'll be too far to have a connection. We've cruised from Baltimore to PC and once you leave the Bay after an hour or so, there is no signal. In fact, in a lot of places along the Bay, there is no service. You don't cruise close enough to land to even see it when going down the coast out of Bayonne after you're at sea for a bit.

Our stewards all have approached us about our b2b and their preference to do the major clean the day before. And, we book well in advance so we can get the same cabin. We don't want to change cabins, so you do you. I do love how some people think using "LOL" makes something less snarky.

Our stewards have always known and what they tend to do is change our sheets the day before so all they have to do in our cabin is make the bed and and change out towels on turnaround day. We only do b2b if we can get the same cabin.

Probably should say tomorrow. Our July 22 cruise has said 7 June all along and it opened today right on schedule. Yours should probably say 8 June (45 days out is the norm).

I just checked in this morning for our 22 July EN cruise. I do all of it on the website except for uploading the vax card since the only place that can be done is on the app. I was able to do it all this morning no problem including photo (I have photos saved on my laptop that we have used for several cruises) and vax card. I couldn't get the app to take the photo of my vax card. For some reason it wouldn't do anything when I hit the button. So, I just snapped a photo on my phone, cropped and saved it and then loaded it from my photos instead. I literally did everything in about 15 minutes for both DH and myself. Oh, and we got earliest arrival time, 10 am.

We've done two b2b's since restart and they still do lunch, not always in the MDR. Depends on the ship.

3 b2b's on three different ships. Each one handled it a bit differently, but the gist is you meet up in the morning, they hand out new cards (twice before we got off, once after before we reboarded) and walk you by customs agents with passports in hand and then back onboard. Usually right back onboard unless there's an inspection or something. We then went to a b2b lunch. Twice in a specialty restaurant (Oasis and HOTS) and once in the MDR (EN). No excursions.