bouhunter

22 hours ago, Beth and Bailey said:

Planning a trip for spring with a bunch of girlfriends to the Caribbean. 

I was on the Symphony a few cruises after she first came out in 2018.  Magnificent ship with so much to do.  We had a blast!. 

So the Harmony is an option (vs MSC Seascape built in 2022).......She is now 8 years old and I don't see where there has been any drydock or refurbishing done.   

So hoping to gain some info from those that have sailed her in the last year.   Is she showing signs of wear..

Thoughts?? 

If "showing wear" is a concern you should stick to new ships.  Seriously, RCCL takes good care of the ships, I wouldn't worry about that.  We still sail many of their 10-20 year old ships and have no complaints.  In fact we love Grandeur and I believe it was built in 1996 or 1997.

On 9/2/2024 at 10:43 PM, Panel said:

Hello I'm just planning ahead and wondered if the WiFi on the Serenade of the Seas  was good.My son may have to work a couple days so hopefully it's fast enough.Do they offer any group rates?

Thanks

Gary

Group rates?

14 hours ago, dsvd79 said:

I agree the filet at Giovanni's is much better than Chops.  That is what I was going to post!

Yep, we've felt the filet at Giovanni's is better than Chops for years.  Doesn't really make sense why, but it seems to be true 🙂

On 10/30/2016 at 10:29 PM, GuavaTechAngels said:

So, this is the warning they have on their page for uploaded photo requirements:

 

 

What if you upload a photo that isn't of a white background? Will they make us take it again at the terminal?

We go on 7-10 cruises per year, have never once uploaded a photo.  We let them take it at the port and it takes approximately 2 seconds.  A lot quicker than messing around taking and uploading at home.

On 8/4/2024 at 11:15 AM, NickinNY said:

 

 

 

 

 

 

When it was busy, the elevators were an issue. Many people, us included, ended up also choosing floors one above or below where they were going, to try to get another car to stop, which just mucks up the system and defeats the purpose. Look, when it’s busy there’s always a wait for an elevator whether you’re on a cruise ship or waiting to get up to the pearly gates (so I’ve heard). This isn’t any kind of black mark for Royal in general or Utopia specifically. But other people had written about the elevators on Icon like they were some revolution in vertical conveyance, and A) that really only counts when it’s busy, and B) these were not. It’s just that going from the Promenade on 5 to WJ on 15 is a lot of stairs…. 

 

The point of this homily is that - for us non-newbie cruisers - our takeaway was that this class of ship is wasted on a 4-night cruise, and that can only mean it’s that much more wasted on a 3-night cruise. I suppose if you live in FL and are an experienced cruiser, this is still a more-fun way to spend a weekend than playing in the canasta tournament with the blue hairs at the club, again. But for us, we never got to the point where we felt settled in and could just lock into vacation mode, like we do on 7-night cruises, for example. Maybe that’s us, but that’s how we felt. We love the Oasis class ships because the massive amount of options for stuff to do becomes a “Jesus and the Entertainment Director take the wheel” moment where we decide to just float around and engage in whatever looks fun at that moment, with no FOMO agita. But, on such a short cruise, the vast amount of options became a point of anxiety - “We can’t go back to Trellis Bar yet; I still have to try a bunch of other bars!”

 

If that wasn’t your experience, that’s great. But, if it was, then you’re not alone. We weren’t disappointed with Royal or Utopia. It just made us decide we won’t do another short cruise on this caliber of ship.

Agree it's odd they've selected a huge new ship for 3-4 night cruises.  Staff must hate it changing out the rooms ever few nights.  We'd rather spend 9-10 nights on Grandeur or Explorer or others.  🙂

18 hours ago, BillOh said:

If the OP was referring to the Coke Freestyle machines, then it  was 15 minutes the last I saw. if you get a refill at a bar, then no wait.  

 

I remember two incidents that reminded me of the 15 minute wait.  1.  On Freedom, tried to get a Coke Zero, the flow started and after less than a second, that machine ran out of Coke Zero and stopped. Even though I barely got any drops I had to wait 15 more minutes since I started dispensing.

 

2.  I was standing behind the world's dumbest cruiser which coincidentally had a Michigan Footbal jersey on.   We walked fast to get to a machine on Allure before I did.  When he put his cup up to the machine, it said he had to wait 3 more minutes.  He pulled the cup back and I thought he would give me a turn, but he kept putting the cup back to the machine every 5 seconds.   I started casually talking to him to see if he spoke/read English.  He was oblivious, i talked to him for the entire 3 minutes to see if he would keep doing that.  He did. 

That's a Michigan fan.....  🙂

10 hours ago, GTO-Girl said:

Your 4 drink vouchers are loaded onto your Sea Pass card every day.  We always let the bartender know we are using one of our D+ vouchers so there is no confusion.

 

also at the end of the evening if we have not used all our vouchers we will get some bottles of water or some sodas to take back to the room.

Perfect summation!

19 hours ago, compman9 said:

Royal no longer have a formal night.

 

Every night is wear what the hell you want night, 

Yep!

Chairs only, no "loungers".

2 hours ago, smokeybandit said:

Food is good, same as every MDR on every ship.

Agree, MDR food these days is pretty consistent across the fleet.  As for quality, it's nothing special but OK in our opinion.  We go to MDR for dinner maybe twice on a 7 night cruise.

Can't vouch for what's available, but yes there are no freestyle machines.  First ship we've been on that doesn't have them.

1 hour ago, dunrobbin said:

Basically anything worth stealing, and anything we would badly miss if our luggage was lost.

Perfect way to sum it up 🙂

3 hours ago, mil76 said:

  I'd rather the DW do that than go to one of the Colorado gaming towns and come back with nothing but a hole in the wallet.

 

Yeah, our local casino in Michigan might offer a 30.00 food discount if one is lucky 🙂

1 hour ago, little britain said:

At $5 per point assuming you hit a run of back luck your potential outlay cost for “free” drinks is $4960… isn’t it cheaper to PAYG?!? 🤷‍♀️

 

I also don’t understand potentially laying down $12500 to get a “free” cruise?!  Where do you draw the line and stop 🎰?

Correct it doesn't make sense to gamble just to get a free cruise.  Most people are there simply because they like to gamble and can afford it (hopefully).  We've pretty much broken even the past year, and will be going on 5 comped cruises in the next 8 months.  The perks are nice 🙂

15 hours ago, taglovestocruise said:

One of the first stops we make after boarding is a trip up to the MDR to see exactly where are table is.  Easy to make a table change if you do not like the location.  At your dining time since you know where your table is just walk past the crowds and line and seat yourself.  

Exactly!

14 hours ago, NotADopey1 said:

We use specialty dining on the first day because of several reasons. 

4). When we do go to the MDR, we are very positive and make friends with the staff.  
 

Why is being nice to MDR staff a reason to use specialty dining on day one?

No reason for "regrets", unless it's because you can't pick your room.

On 7/1/2024 at 9:27 AM, Mum2Mercury said:

And I feel the same way about jewelry and watches purchased on cruises.  

"Paintings" on a ship are entirely subjective and unknown.  Brand name watches or quality jewelry are nothing like that.  Apples and oranges, your comparison is pointless.

On 7/2/2024 at 12:30 AM, MaryZ said:

although I see absolutely no reason to do this, the instructions are on the rccl site  After you send the money you have to follow thru and tell them you sent it so they can make sure you receive it when you board.  
Why would you even do this?  Use a credit card, bring cash, open a line of credit. 
First you should call the casino department and make sure what is posted online is correct.

 

Have to agree, what is the point.  Unless maybe OP is planning to gamble a LOT of money and needs to have it available onboard.

1 hour ago, jalves said:

Despite the comments above, why not actually go ahead and get passports for them?  It will bring you piece of mind and they may come in handy for their travels in the next 10 years.  

 

Also, although not strictly necessary for the OP's cruise it's very helpful to have a passport with you in case you are stranded in a foreign port, perhaps by a medical issue.  

Agree, if one can afford it get passports.  Not only a good idea but the kids would be excited to have one.  One note, depending on age the  passports might only be good for 5 years for children.

1 hour ago, island lady said:

 

Huh???!!!  Wasn't this your post #67?   🤔

 

There is absolutely nothing in Falmouth that would ever make me want to venture outside the gates for.

Many great things to do in Jamaica, but agree we have no interest in wandering the town of Falmouth.  Of course some people would say the same for Ocho Rios and MoBay and we have many fond memories of port stops there.  Our first Caribbean vacation was a week in Ocho Rios mid-90's, it was a fantastic vacation. 🙂

The 270 show is OK, nothing special.  FYI don't worry about getting up front on level one.  Best seats are on the second level.  Everyone was early grabbing the seats up front on level one and they were not the best seats! 🙂

On 10/14/2023 at 9:39 PM, bren61 said:

Thank you all for your replies, you've made me feel better about just going to relax. Afterall, that is what vacation is all about & my husband will love that...I always have a full list of things to do & places to go not wanting to miss anything, lol!

 

We always love to go to the card room, have a few cocktails while playing cards or a game.

 

Do they do 70's disco night? Just wanted to know because I will take my get up if they do.

Every RCCL ship will do the disco night.  We loved Grandeur last winter.  It's a perfect ship to relax and enjoy.  Loved it so much more than Symphony after that.  I think you'll love it.

On 5/24/2024 at 2:46 PM, Sonic2012 said:

Does anyone know what they are substituting for Labadee on 5 night cruises with Dominican Republic? Cruise is end of March 2025. I have received no emails about changes. They are still selling the same itinerary. I wish they would give the option to cancel since they know they aren’t going to Labidee in advance.

You would cancel a cruise just because it isn't going to Labadee?

On 6/24/2024 at 6:59 PM, steveru621 said:

You can book on the app and let them know when you arrive that you are using BOGO.  There is no need to wait in a line.

There are rarely lines at specialty dining venues first day, easy to just walk up and book what you would like.