gumshoe958

Have to say I’m now very nervous about keeping money tied up in VV so am minded to go down the refund route. With anecdotal reports on here of very low loads on Scarlet Lady out of Miami, cruises on Valiant Lady out of Barcelona being practically given away this summer and now this, I’m now genuinely worried for their future. I hope I’m wrong but my instinct says trying to disrupt the industry by launching four brand new ships right off the back of a global pandemic that shut down cruising and scared off many potential sailors may prove to be unwise.

That is simply not true. A few minutes yes, but certainly nowhere near an hour for short haul.

I’m assuming you’re booked on the Vueling flight VY6229 from LGW to FCO. If so, this does indeed depart at 1000 on Sunday. However on Saturday it departs at 0930 so if your itinerary says 0930 please double check the date of the flight in case they’ve booked you on Saturday instead of Sunday. If you are flying on Sunday, that flight doesn’t arrive until 1335 which feels far too late to comfortably make a 1700 sailing, even with no delays.

GBP = Great British Pound (£)

It’s The Dukes again, same as last summer.

@Merion_Mom Thanks for the tip-off! I had a $557 final payment due this Thursday, now Royal owes me $20! Call was answered instantly at 9:30AM EST so don’t automatically assume you’ll spend hours on hold. Now roll on August!

There is no testing on the ship or at the pier. It’s either eMed while on board or find somewhere in Barcelona. The airport would be easiest obviously but there are other places.

No, they don’t publish schedules in advance. At the moment events start appearing on the app a few days before you sail but the main headline shows may not appear until boarding day. Of course that may all change by April.

No, since the restart you can only book entertainment via the app once you’re connected to ship’s wifi, or in person or by phone once on board.

I was on the first sailing out of Southampton (2 nights to Le Havre). We Will Rock You was cancelled last minute, entertainment staff said it would be replaced by The Gift but in the end it was a Beatles tribute band. Spectra’s Cabaret was on as normal in 270 but I didn’t go. The other theatre headliner was Frankie & The Dreamers - personally I found them annoying but they seemed to go down well. I ate in Coastal Kitchen both nights and it was excellent so no complaints about the food.

Yes it can sell out, and it can also reappear at any time if people cancel so keep checking back.

I’d have thought you put your home address. They couldn’t care less where you are when you actually do the video call. I haven’t used DocHQ but with Qured the details that appeared on the certificate were name, date of birth and passport number so make sure they’re correct.

TA OBC typically only appears once on board (and even then not always immediately).

A year ago this forum was full of people demanding the return of cruising with no masks or restrictions. They’ve (almost) got what they wanted, and this is the result. Bottom line - Covid will find its way on to almost every sailing on almost every ship. It’s up to you to decide whether that’s a problem. If it is, don’t cruise. If not, go! But don’t complain if you get it. That’s the risk of spending a week in a confined space with 4,000 other people.

14 for a drink in Europe. And that 89 doesn’t include VAT or grats.

So $114 a day with tax & grats for the DBP. That’s a break even of 9 drinks. Wow.

Quest has never returned since the pandemic.

YMMV but I always find it easier to buy a proctored lateral flow test in the UK, take it with me and book a video call from my hotel the morning before the cruise. Qured, DocHQ and others offer proctored tests for under £20 which are happily accepted by Royal just as they are for entering the USA.

Yes, on Anthem you can get the kümmelweck sandwich at Cafe 270 (it’s pretty much the same menu as Park Cafe on Oasis class). I too loved El Loco Fresh for lunch - especially the burritos and quesadillas.

It doesn’t. It’s just a certain element of the clientele that still seems to think they’re mandatory and looks down at anyone who’s not wearing one.

Ah ok, that clarifies things! If you’re booked on ITA (Alitalia), you’ll definitely be going from Heathrow - but presumably the day before as they don’t have any flights on the 5th that would get you to Rome in time to board in Civitavecchia. There are flights from Gatwick on Easyjet on the 5th that would get you there in time, so it’s possible you’ll be booked on one of those. Or the early BA flight from Heathrow.

Oh I know - I’m just struggling to think of any realistic routing from London to Miami that involves Alitalia. That’s a minimum of three legs and an overnight somewhere en route.

How do you mean not in use? Broken?

I’m baffled - I can’t think why Royal would book you on an Italian airline, presumably involving a change in Rome, for a flight from London to Miami - a route served non-stop by multiple airlines several times daily. I’d talk to your TA ASAP and read them the riot act.

Doesn’t surprise me in the least. Royal are offering to reimburse up to $250 a day for hotels and $100 for food if you test positive on board and have to isolate on land. Staying on board probably costs them less than 20% of that.