RIcruiseGuy

Is it just me?  I find that that $40pp fee to register with Bermuda for Covid vaccination proof is pretty ridiculous.  Yet I can't find anyone else whining about it on the boards other than me!  lol  

We have to show proof of negative Covid prior to boarding with our cruise lines, so it's safe to say that anyone arriving in Bermuda by a cruise company that enforces vaccination requirements is assuredly vaccinated and testing negative.  Why does Bermuda need a separate confirmation of their own that is just the exact same information the Cruise companies already have already collected?  Do they not trust the cruise companies?

And the $40 fee?!   In the overall cost of a cruise vacation this is a minor expense, but I resent having to pay it!  I understand it underwrites the cost of Bermuda having to administer this program, but surely the costs don't come to $40 per traveler, and the whole thing feels like a cash grab.

I'm in San Juan now for a Vision of the Seas embarkation tomorrow, Saturday, March 6.

I'm surprised to see Freedom here docked...Shouldn't it still be on it's March 1 itinerary in progress, and not docked in San Juan?   

Is it me or have more and more itineraries moved to Sunday embarkations?  

As someone who always has important work to do on Sundays, these itineraries are impossible for me unless miss two Sundays in a row, which would likely get me fired.  lol That leaves me with Saturday embarkation itineraries, and they are getting to be fewer and fewer, and with unappealing itineraries.  I no longer have ANY options for sailing out of San Juan.  :(

I suspect it's because it's better for the cruise company on a Sunday because passengers are more likely to come on Saturday since they don't work, and therefore are less likely to miss the ship?  

I was thinking of a sailing on Jewel of the Seas out of San Juan, Puerto Rico for January 26..and all the sailings have disappeared!! Anyone know why? I am deciding between that..Freedom of the Seas..and Celebrity Equinox out of Miami..but an wondering where did those Jewel sailings go??

I was booked on Jewel out of San Juan for March 2019 and got an email from RCCL today:

"Dear Guest,

I've been checking every few days to see when the 2019 itineraries would be available for March. Itineraries for the Oasis class ships came out earlier in the month, but just today I checked back and see that there are finally itineraries for other classes and their regular assortment of Caribbean Cruises.

I'm looking to book March 2 or 3 and am surprised to see the limited availability on deck 10 for JS and Spacious Ocean View Balconies.

Does anyone know when these itineraries opened up, and if Royal Caribbean only releases so many cabins at first? I haven't checked EVERY DAY, but pretty regularly and am surprised when I just found the new itineraries, they are largely booked on deck 10.

I'm also surprised that Jewell is so much more expensive! I can get a Grand Suite on Freedom March 3 for less than a JS on Jewell sailing March 2, and they're both sailing out of San Juan on a 7-night itineraries.

"for $125...."

...for the whole cruise, or are you sure they didn't mean $125/*day*?

Here's the thing. YOU enjoy wearing a suit or tux to dinner. So go right ahead and enjoy yourself. Others feel rather uncomfortable in a suit and tie, why shouldn't they be allowed to feel comfortable and enjoy the same meal. It doesn't detract from your delight in dressing up. Other than perhaps detracting from your enjoyment in watching others eating uncomfortably.

My post was mostly in reply to the another post suggesting that no one would pack pants on a tropical cruise, and that the MDR wasn't fine dining; not so much an argument against bad dress!

Well for the sake of argument.....if people should be permitted to do as they like to be comfortable and enjoy the same meal as you say, then why should it bother anyone else if people were to belch, fart, swear, eat with their hands...or eat their meat with the salad fork. haha

I'm being funny and using an extreme example of behavior that no one would do (I hope!) regardless of dress, but the point is that we all have an idea of what is socially appropriate or not and how it affects us. That varies from person to person, and it's rather arbitrary who "decides" what's appropriate, but wrong or right I guess it comes down to traditions, majority, and, in this case, clearly stated policies. I can't imagine a comparable restaurant on land allowing tee shirts and shorts, so I don't fault RCCL or any establishment with an upscale dining venue for having the same standards of dress.

It's about going with the flow. If someone's expectation for comfortable dress is different than the policy for the MDR, Royal Caribbean (and I suspect on any other cruise line) works hard to accommodate them in other venues on the ship to still get a good meal. When in Rome, do as the Romans, right?

Now EVERY suite is sold out! Whoa! Like almost a year in advance.

A lot of people, including me, are grousing about the bogus BOGO "sales" but apparently they're working! lol

complete nonsense. Who packs pants for vacation to a tropical destination??

 

The MDR is not fine dining. You are eating food that is cooked in bulk, on a boat, in the middle of the ocean, for a massive amount of people.

I bring the pants and jacket I wear on the flight to the embarkation port, and pack french cuff shirts, ties, and a tux. My friends and I enjoy looking nice and dressing up every evening for dinner even though most nights have become "casual" dress code except for formal nights.

Others don't like to and that's just fine, though I do feel a little indignant on formal nights when I'm dressed in a tux and like to see how elegant others look in nice clothes, and I see a table of people in tee shirts. haha I'm rather glad to hear that a dress code is being at least minimally enforced.

No, the MDR isn't a 5-star restaurant, but I think they do an amazing job preparing the "bulk food for massive amounts of people." The dining room is beautifully appointed, and with few exceptions the food is good to excellent, as is the service; and yes, you are at sea--which is a wonderful thing!

I doubt that many of the people on board eat out every night of the week, if ever, at comparable restaurants on land. And if they did, I would certainly hope they had sense enough not to show up at a restaurant like that in shorts and a tee shirt.

The experience is what you make it. Just because I'm on vacation doesn't mean I don't dress for dinner. Dinner each night is a highlight; I spend at least two hours enjoying it at the late seating, and for me it is fine dining. If anyone wants a different experience, the Windjammer serves a great variety of good food just an elevator ride away a few decks up, and you'll feel right at home dressed however you like.

There are 9 available on my travel agent's site. You need to call RCI.

Interesting! Thanks for the info, and as I suspected, something's not right somewhere. I'll call tomorrow for sure.

There are quite a few D2 balconies on deck 10.

I'm looking on the RCCL website, and though there ARE D2 balconies on deck 10, none are available to book.

Yes there are, but I'm looking for a balcony on deck 10, or a junior suite.

I was going to book a cruise out of San Juan knowing that because I would have to work on the day of embarkation and could only take a flight that would arrive at 6:45 for a cruise that left at 8:30.

My plan was to go for it and if I missed the cruise, just take a quick puddle jumper flight to St. Thomas, the first stop, and meet the ship the next morning.

But before I booked the airfare to San Juan I thought I'd better call RCCL to confirm that I really COULD get on in St. Thomas and not just assume. I got a "maybe" reply from customer service. Then I called my AMEX travel agent and RCCL again to get a more definite answer and got a definite NO and and absolutely YES, no problem. So I got no, maybe, and yes. haha I booked a different cruise...wasn't going to take the chance.

Then while on board I booked with the future cruise consultant the first cruise I had wanted to do knowing I would face the same problem, but asked him if he could give me a definite answer on that question. He said definitely, no problem, I could get on on the first port of call, St. Thomas, after the ship had embarked from San Juan, a US Port. Based on his assurance (I took his business card!) I booked, but I made the ship so it was a non-issue.

The reasons stated the previous year for the definite "No" answer were some maritime/customs law I forget the name of concerning vessels that leave domestic ports and travel to foreign ports.

So I have no answer to the question, but that was my experience.

Just got Adventure on Sunday. We always book our next year's cruise while on the ship and, while maybe our ideal cabin/location might not be available, we've always had no trouble booking a great cabin for the next year. We always sail the first week in March.

This year I was shocked to find out that Adventure on March 5, 2016 only has OWNER'S SUITES and above, and balcony staterooms on decks 6 or below. We have to have a balcony and the Owner's suite is wayyy too expensive, and we don't want to be down on deck 6.

I asked the future cruise consultant why everything was so sold out and she only wryly smiled and said "what can I say...business is good!"

What gives? haha I can't believe the ship is that sold out a year in advance? Maybe some company has booked a block of a bunch of rooms?

I will be on OAS in March and was trying get an idea of where I'd like to be seated and the dining room layout.

My friends and I have always enjoyed sitting at a table on the bottom level in the center so we have all that open space above us! Our past cruises on RCCL had dining rooms with a grand staircase and we had a table at the base of the stairs which felt really glamorous! haha

Not sure if this is the case on OAS. None of the pics I've searched show any staircases. Is there one? Does anyone have a table schematic layout for the dining room? I've seen a few posted on here for other ships, but none for this one.

Thanks, everyone for your help! Can't wait to try out this phenomenal ship, it'll be my first time on Oasis class!