SplashOfWater

I won $1,600 on Serenade of the Seas last year on either a $0.40 or $0.80 cent bet. It was on the machine with the Koi Catch Bonus. I got into the wheel-spin bonus and it landed on the Regal Bonus. I wasn't playing the max so I wasn't eligible for the progressive but I was certainly happy with the win!

Ship - Utopia of the Seas Deck - 9 Stateroom # - 9668 Stateroom Category – Oceanview Balcony 2D Starboard or Port Side - Starboard Quiet Stateroom? (With comments on problems) – Pretty quiet except for an issue with the bathroom. We could hear loud drainage sounds from the drain in the sink and shower. It seemed like our cabin was near a main drainage pipe. We did a B2B and our second cabin did not have this noise. Was stateroom a connecting stateroom? - No Balcony View (Give comments on view, noting if location of any obstructions was an issue) – No obstructions. Balcony Size? Normal or oversized for class? - Normal Was wind a problem? - No If an aft cabin, was soot a problem? - N/A Any specific problems with this cabin? - Not other than the noises from the bathroom. Any other comments? - No.

We have a Pride GoGo Sport 3-wheel that we bring on cruises. We've had no issue storing it in a regular balcony cabin. We make sure to select a cabin configuration where the sofa is near the bathroom. We park the scooter next to the sofa leaving enough room to get around the cabin. If the bed is near the bathroom there may not be enough room to maneuver the scooter around the foot of the bed to the balcony side of the cabin. If you have one of larger scooters it may not fit through the doorway. In that case you may need an accessible cabin with a wider door.

It seems Celebrity is making their casino program more like Royal Caribbean's. To earn 1 point you need to play $5 in slots or $10 in video poker. Points earned on table games are less obvious. https://www.royalcaribbean.com/experience/cruise-casinos/rewards

Yes, based on the points you earn on that cruise .

That is correct. You have to earn one of these offers on a July cruise before your can book one of the listed cruises.

The list for July if you are on a 6+ night sailing is: https://www.royalcaribbean.com/content/dam/royal/resources/pdf/casino/offers/2407C.pdf The list for July if you are on a 3-5 night sailing is: https://www.royalcaribbean.com/content/dam/royal/resources/pdf/casino/offers/2407A.pdf You can see from the PDF name that the first four digits are the YYMM. The letter at the end designates whether the lists apply to instant rewards earned on a 6+ night ("C") cruise or a 3-5 night ("A") cruise.

We actually find it more difficult to earn points for each other on the "tap" machines. If you change machines you have to be sitting near each other tap into each machine. On the older ships (where you insert the card) you can go to the host desk and ask them to create a second card for your account that your spouse can use.

Same for us!

Some of the newer NCL ships have designated their main casino as non-smoking and have created a smaller smoking casino behind glass doors. We've seen this on the Prima, Joy and Encore.

Royal Caribbean's Oasis-class ships have a separate small non-smoking casino. This is in addition to the main casino which has one side smoking and the other side non-smoking. Icon of the Seas has a separate section of the main casino as non-smoking. The ventilation in the smoking side is very good.

Icon and some of the Oasis-class ships have several video poker machines at the bar (which is non-smoking). There are many variations to choose from. I played 25 cent Jacks or Better on Icon last week and it was 7/5.

Yes, it's typically open for lunch on sea days.

1. The pre-paid price includes your choice of either one or two proteins. Ignore the price difference...it's for people that pay at the time of the meal. The menu has four 2-protein choices, but you can choose the two you want. For example, I had beef tenderloin and sea scallops. 2. The sushi offerings are an upcharge. 3. Allow plenty of time for your meal. The chef won't start until all parties are seated at the table. We were at a table for 8 on Wonder for lunch and two people never showed up. We waited at least 20 minutes before the chef came out and started.

We were on the June 1st cruise, and I don't recall that particular show being offered. We did, however, see some or all of the orchestra playing during the Wizard of Oz production show.

It's on the plans, Deck 5 between the pub and guest services.

We ran into him once last week on Icon. Younger guy, really nice.

There is a main show in the evenings, and a show aimed more for children one afternoon. You need to make a reservation to get into the show, but seating is open. We went to the Starburst: Elemental Beauty show one evening. It's a very good show. The rink is an oval rather than square like on the other ships. This allows the skaters to build up more speed. Doors open 45 mins before the show. The place really started to fill up about 15-30 mins before the show. There are reserved areas for suite guests. You enter the show from Playmakers on Deck 6 and go down stairs to the rink on Deck 5. There is a lift for disabled passengers. Restrooms are on Deck 6. Here's the shows schedule from our recent Eastern Caribbean itinerary:

Not available yet for my Jul 22, 2024 cruise. No entertainment to book either.

Ship - Icon of the Seas Deck - 12 Stateroom # - 12245 Stateroom Category – Central Park Infinite Balcony Starboard or Port Side - Port Quiet Stateroom? (With comments on problems) – Some rattling sounds on windy days. It might have been the decorative shutter outside the window. Also loud "thuds" at times. Not sure if it was coming from the cabin above or if there was a crew storage area there. Was stateroom a connecting stateroom? - No Balcony View - Give comments on view, noting if location of any obstructions was an issue. – View of Central Park. There is a decorative shutter outside the window, but it doesn't cause any significant obstruction. Balcony Size? Normal or oversized for class? - Infinite balcony creates more interior space. Was wind a problem? - N/A If an aft cabin, was soot a problem? - N/A Any specific problems with this cabin? - No Any other comments? - 1) The bathroom feels small, but the shower is larger than other ships and includes a seat. 2) There is room for a mobility scooter in the cabin, although this cabin seemed narrower than on the Oasis-class ships. We use the Pride GoGo Sport scooter with the armrests removed. We were not able to turn the scooter around in the sofa area. We were able to maneuver the scooter manually around the end of the bed into the infinite balcony area and turn it around there. 3) We weren't sure if we'd like the infinite balcony versus regular balcony, but it turned out we liked it better! It's air conditioned, has a couple of comfy chairs, a table and ottoman, and it keeps out the rain. We used this space much more often than we used a regular balcony.

We moved over to Royal Caribbean, and only pay port fees and taxes on casino comp cruises.

We are both Signature, but we had a least a dozen casino cruises booked before Jan 2024 when we were both still Prime. Most of the comp cruises are from the onboard Instant Reward certificates. A few from direct Club Royale offers.

We have 17 upcoming casino comp cruises booked with Royal and are still getting offers from Club Royale every week or two.

Ship - Wonder of the Seas Deck - 11 Stateroom # - 11651 Stateroom Category – Central Park View Balcony Starboard or Port Side - Starboard Quiet Stateroom? (With comments on problems) – Very quiet at night. During sea days though the sound from the band on the pool deck was very loud. Was stateroom a connecting stateroom? - No Balcony View - Give comments on view, noting if location of any obstructions was an issue. – View of Central Park. Could see a bit of Chops Grille and the structure of the Rising Tide Bar. Balcony Size? Normal or oversized for class? - Normal Was wind a problem? - No If an aft cabin, was soot a problem? - N/A Any specific problems with this cabin? - No Any other comments? - Plenty of room for the mobility scooter in the cabin. Typically we store it alongside the sofa, but the bathroom is designed differently on Wonder allowing us to park it at an angle by the desk.

We left our fall cruising schedule open in anticipation of this cruise, with fingers crossed that it would be out of Florida. Sigh. Now we'll have to price out flights and one night pre-cruise hotel, and see if it's worth it.