The Fun Researcher

Yeah, I understand how hot tubs and pools can make some folks do mental gymnastics about the possible yuck factor. However, I look at it like this... Of all the things that could cause me harm, a public pool or hot tub is veeeeeeeery low on that list. When I'm on a cruise I take precautions where I can but I want to enjoy myself. I've never been sick from a pool or hottub in my 50 years, as far as I know...

And we bring hand sanitizer into the buffet with us and apply it after sitting down and unwrapping (but before touching) our silverware. The washy washy helps some, but doesn't do a single thing for those that cough, rub their nose or mouth, etc after they have entered and then proceed to touch serving utensils, surfaces, etc...

Agreed. 👍 The more transparency the better, especially like you say for first time cruisers. I do love the change as it at least takes out the question of taxes and port fees, which vary so much sailing to sailing. Happy sailing

With how much you sail and post here, not sure if this is a serious question or not. Pretty simple to go to Royal Caribbean's website and type "gratuities" into the search bar and it takes you here: https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/onboard-service-gratuity-expense Pretty much grade school math after that, and it doesn't change. It's determined just like I said above, Number of passengers, night sailing, and what the cabin category is. Gratuities are optional, unlike taxes and port fees. They can't roll that into the displayed price, since you can opt out. I too hope that Royal would do away with daily gratuities and would roll them into the cruise fare. To be more transparent, I would suggest with the new pricing strategy that they state the pricing something like "$799 plus gratuities"... but I doubt that will happen.

Agreed. However the gratuities are MUCH easier to add on top of the advertised cruise price. You know ahead of time exactly what they will be for the number of guests, nights you are looking at, and the type of cabin you are looking for. Currently for a 7 night cruise I know I'm looking at $252 for gratuities for an inside, ocean view, or balcony. That doesn't change when I'm looking at different dates and itineraries. The taxes and port fees vary for every sailing so it's AWESOME that they are implementing that change at least. Love it.

Not to sound harsh, but just like anything else, I suggest some research. Watch YouTube videos on prospective ships or cruise lines. Weigh that versus your budget, itinerary, clientele, etc and come up with your own decision. It’s not really our job to “entice” you

Yeah the fixed 5pm-5:15 is the problem. just too dang early. Still full from lunch when you are sitting down for dinner. We ran into this on the quantum in Alaska last summer. Lunch venues did not open until noon so you got done with lunch around 1 PM and they wanted you right back into the main dining room at 5 PM. It was ludicrous .

OK, thanks. Doesn’t hurt to ask. I thought I had read that 16 or more ships were already practicing this. We will talk to the Maitre d when we get on the ship to see if the liberty is trying it out and if we can make adjustments from our early fixed dining time. Not a huge deal either way I guess. Happy sailing

With Royal rolling out the new mid third fixed dining time, has anyone had any luck switching over to it prior to the cruise? We sail June 6 on the liberty and would love to have that dining time as it suits us perfectly. Thanks in advance Dan

Ah ok. Like how they tack that on with the beverage package on top of the advertised price. The sale mentioned by the OP has it wrapped into the advertised price. Thanks

I thought the gratuity has already been included for a long time now? Do I need to go back and check on my two specialty lunches on the Liberty next month? Never mind, I checked. The gratuity is listed as a separate line item on both confirmations and already paid.

Royal really keeps up their ships, better than other lines we've sailed IMO. Don't dwell on the nay-sayers. The Liberty is a wonderful ship. Yes, the permanent furniture in the rooms (closets, drawers, desktop) are the older style beige/peach color but it's not decrepit. We'll be on the Liberty to Bermuda next month and CAN'T WAIT!

Same. Was a wonderful way to have lunch, especially since it tended to be light, which was great on sea days before lounging at the pool

Sorry to resurrect this from a few months ago... but just thought I would comment... They have downgraded the menu since we did this on the newly AMPED Navigator in 2019. Back then they had a wonderful spread, and even included a cheese and cured meat spread, filet mignon on the menu, etc.... Now what I'm seeing is eggs benedict, strip steak, or a seafood linguine maybe. Not terrible, but nothing to write home about. Having said that, I'm o.k. with a dumbed down menu. I booked this for $39.99 on our upcoming Liberty sailing in June. For us it's about seeing the galley and how they prepare the dishes, and just doing something interesting. (I primarily booked this because my parents will be with us, their first time doing the tour). Is it worth $40? Perhaps. Perhaps not. It's something to do and we're not expecting anything extravagant. We'll be spending some fun time together making memories and that's what matters.

On Liberty in early June. Do you know if there is any way, precruise, to shift our early seating to this 6:45 slot? I'd much rather have that time slot. ...or maybe even see the maître d once we're onboard?

I've been working on that every cruise... to pack just enough for what I need. I've ALWAYS had extra items. It used to be a lot.... shorts, shirts, underwear..., but this last cruise was down to only one pair of socks that weren't needed. I'm getting there... LOL

I agree, they are still far more bland than they should be, but it's hard to believe it's been an improvement over the years 🤣 I think back to when we first sailed in 2012. I remember looking at all these amazing desserts (and I'm not really much of a dessert person) and thinking, This is Amazing!... until I bit into them. Massive lack flavor. I couldn't find one that really impressed me like all the other food on Royal

UFO sounds far more exciting. I vote for UFO.

Working on it. 😉 With reciprocal benefits on Celebrity this past December, we had the benefit of a free bag of laundry for each of the five in our family. Never used it once, but it was nice to know we had the option!

Interesting how, after 35 cruises, ONE bad experience draws the broad conclusion that food "has gone downhill fast". There's always the chance that things aren't going to be up to norm. Even within all our Royal sailings, some have been noticeably better than others, some below average. I wouldn't draw conclusions from one bad experience and am always willing to give it another try. I will say that there are a few things that have been removed or scaled back on recently that bother me in particular. The sandwiches in Café Promenade used to have more quality/costly fillings like roast beef, salmon, etc... on the last two cruises on Anthem and Quantum if was either veggies, bologna, or tuna salad. ...and I do miss the lamb chops in the MDR.

If you are hell-bent on no checked bags then just pony up and pay for Royal to wash your clothing if needed.

Early is 5:15pm on the upcoming sailing and late is 7:45pm. Not sure what time they are slotting in MTD currently.

Short answer, NO. Getting off the ship the morning of your last day sucks enough, no reason to make it even suckier. 🙂 Too much risk and stress on top of a bummer of a morning

Not disagreeing. There are cabin locations that have far less foot traffic past them, so have less chance of hallway noise. For example, far forward, far aft, or a middle hallway for inside cabins. Those cabins have far less chance of folks walking by. I'm not saying there are problems, in general, with cabins by the elevators. It does increase the risk of hearing people being loud just because more folks are passing my your cabin door. For instance, take deck 8 forward on the Liberty for example. Cabin 8244 will have FAR more foot traffic past it than 8214 since everyone going to their cabins both forward and aft will be passing by coming from the stairs and elevators. 8214 will have hardly any foot traffic since there are only a few cabins forward of it, so no reason to pass by

As others have mentioned, being near an elevator you will not hear the elevator itself but moreso (if anything ) the foot traffic that passes by your door more frequently in that location. On many ships, suites are in those locations so it can’t be that noisy. Otherwise there would be some major complaints for spending that much money on a suite only to have noise outside your cabin