taglovestocruise

We are a fan of the big ships, Oasis Class. We have sailed on most Royal Ships and most have been great. Last year we did 17 nights on Quantum and Ovation. The most boring 17 nights we have ever cruised. Ship seems much smaller than it actually is. Shows were lack luster and not much to do. Food on Quantum was about the worst we have ever had on any Royal ship. Had a balcony on deck 11 forward and it was very quiet and nice. Try for the Grande Restaurant, it is the most elegant of the four. We are in our 70s and said never again on a Quantum class ship. I am sure there are plenty with the exact opposite experience.

10 is about as big as they get. Link your reservations and you would likely end up with 2 tables for eight. You can email Royal dinning two weeks before sail date and ask that your tables are next to each other. If you are set up with MTD then see the host as soon as you board to be set up next to each other every night.

We have done 4 transatlantic in the fall. Barcelona to FLL, Rome to FLL and Southampton to FLL. Weather has been great for all of them. A little cool until you leave the Med then shorts and t shirts every day. Seas have always been calm even in a slight rain burst. We have done one Eastbound and it was cold and windy every day. Our favorite is on a Oasis Class. Remember if you get a balcony that the sun never sees the Port side eastbound or the starboard side west bound.

Agree with sitting outside at Chops in the evening. To the OP, Don't rule out Wonderland. Food and ambience very different. Symphony has a great Wonderland compared to Quantum Class. If I remember right if you sit by the window you get a view of the Aqua show.

Only way would be to book and pay full price through the cruise planner. Once on board head straight to any specialty and switch out the reservations for BOGO. We have done this in the past with other family members, I have also seen a few posts recently that say it is becoming harder to do. Any difference in price is returned as a OBC. It does seem to be ship by ship. We have also been able to reserve and pay on day one but reserve for later in the week.

And to add more stress, some have received the upgrade or the denial while waiting in the checkin line.

No one has mentioned this but once your cabin has been assigned you can switch to any other cabin on the ship in the same category. Never mention GTY, just ask to switch cabins. Do a mock booking so you know what cabin is available and just ask to switch. Side note, most royal up cabins come from no shows or last minute cancelations. Has nothing to do with cabin location. Also Royal has no part in the royal up offerings, they are all done by a third party company.

The sweet spot is 2-3 weeks before sail date.

Be careful picking your seats in 270. As you walk in there are a group of sunken seats that seem perfect, they are not, you will not be able to see anything on bottom floor level. In the main show room there are great balcony seats reserved for D+ and Pinnacle, 10 minutes before showtime the seats are opened to anyone. Just as a side note, the Dog House has the best dogs on any royal ship I have been on.

Just a little FYI to others. Many times it is a much better price booking two one way flights instead of a round trip to Europe on air2Sea.

They are very good about fixing last minute flight problems. We booked LAX to Rome on American Airlines with one stop at JFK. Day before our flight American canceled the flight due to problems at JFK, Hurricane Sandy, One phone call to Air2Sea and we were rebooked on Air France from LAX direct to Rome. We were put up on the second level economy plus, no extra charges and it went as smooth as silk. Have used Air2Sea six times for oneway to Europe. Round trip fares are not as good and domestic flights are overpriced.

We never take our passports off the ship unless it is a requirement of that country. Only once in 25 years of cruising, that was for Tunis. Had to give our passports to cruise staff once in a port stop in Chile.

This is Symphony Halloween.. Parties, parades, costumes, haunted house in studio B.

Sharing is banned, it is thievery and evil. We may see you on YouTube walking the plank. That being said our granddaughter always ends up with the soda cup from the UBP, no one seems to care. As others have said the coffee is not bad at all.

Same goes for your cruise price. If you find your cabin category on sale at a lower price your TA can get the new price if you are before final payment date. We have had as many as 4 reprices for a single cruise.