Airbear232

But, if smaller ships mean better itineraries, new ports and more world cruises then a lot of us are happy.

Sorry, read your reply and had to reply. I think it’s everyone’s personal choice what they tip. I wouldn’t call anyone out. If it was that critical to the health of the corporation, it would be baked into the fare. [we always tip extra but I don’t believe anyone has a right to call anyone out on tipping]. My apologies if I’ve hijacked the conversation.

RC is a great place to see shows. We especially enjoyed Mamma Mia on Allure. You can’t go wrong as the show price is in your cruise fare. Enjoy whichever you choose!

Congratulations, I’m sure you’ll have an absolutely wonderful trip. We’ve done this trip several times. Here’s my 2 cents: 1- Fly in early, Barcelona is a beautiful city. If you can, I’d suggest getting a hotel on La Ramblas. You can walk to many locations from there. Barcelona is a very walkable city and has great public transportation. 2- There are picket pockets. I always use a packsafe pouch that goes over my head and under my shirt. It has a wire cable that can’t be easily cut. 3- consider booking flights and transfers with Royal’s Air2Sea. This protects you in the case of any unforeseen circumstances (once on a cruise out of Rome, my luggage didn’t reach the ship in time, Air2Sea made sure it was sent on to Athens and to the ship. I don’t know what would have happened if we hadn’t booked with them). 4- Most ports you can do on your own either by arranging something at port with a tour guide or getting ride into port. Or, as others have mentioned you may find an online group with your cruise and make arrangements with others for port excursions. 5- Some suggestions: Palma - a day walking about the town or taking a Taxi to the Mountain town if Valdemossa, great place to walk about, shop and have lunch. Marseille - taking a taxi to the old port and walking about is a good day, otherwise, a drive in the country is beautiful. Naples - a day trip to the Amalfi Coast or Capri is unforgettable. If you stay in port, da Michele Pizzeria is reputedly the home of pizza. It’s quite good but be prepared to wait a while to get your pizza. Naples also has great shopping, the E.Marinella tie shop is a short walk from the ship. Rome - if you’re mobile, it’s very easy to take a train from port to Rome Termini station. You can easily walk from the station to most of the major sights in the city. Alternatively, at Rome Termini you can make arrangements with a taxi driver for a tour around the city. La Spezia - you can arrange great day trips to either Cinque Terre or Florence. If going to Florence, I’d suggest skipping Pisa. It will take too much time and, IMHO, you can never have enough time in Florence. 6- These cruises are go, go, go. Pace yourself and enjoy yourself. 7- booking with Air2Sea with a transfer at the end of the cruise removed all stress at the end of the cruise. 8- lastly, if you like shopping, consider bringing an extra bag to hold you finds. Have a great trip!

At this point, unless we’re staying extra days in port, we book our flights through Royal as well for earliest departure. It just makes life easier after the cruise.

The naughty line is not that big a deal. DW and I like to dress up for evenings, much better with a steamer than without. As some others pointed out, not much risk difference between a flat iron, steamer hair dryer or even a CPAP machine. Most people in the naughty line are there for booze and not steamers.

Include a small one in a carry on with other electronics or metal items you pass through the scanner. Usually works, if not you collect back at end of cruise. Have a great trip!

The Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed this morning after being struck by a container ship. The bridge is part of i695 and spans the Patapsco River. There was excellent visibility at the time of collision. Multiple vehicles were on the bridge on the time of the collapse. A dreadful event. God willing there will be survivors. Cruises into Baltimore will be suspended.

Yes

As others have noted, getting off early is a big help. This is especially true with the water park, where kids can go on the slides with more ease. As well, you have a Cabana and there is a limit to the number of tickets for the waterpark, so you are good. Enjoy!

Sorry, I know a lot of people are passionate about their CD, but does it really matter much anymore? A long time ago, the CD was integral to the trip and there was a lot of interaction. On the larger ships of today, we’ve gone through many without even seeing the CD. I know they play a role behind the scenes but we just don’t interact with them the way we once did. I’d be interested in whether anyone tracks the Hotel Directors and compares that to the overall ship experience.

We previously enjoyed Vision for itineraries Royal’s big ships don’t do such as Arabian Gulf. It was great to be off all day exploring and then to come back in the evening for dinner and entertainment. The smaller size made it easier to get about. We really don’t mind smaller ships with great itineraries. I don’t know if we’d choose for transatlantic or Caribbean/Bahamas where you might spend more time on ship.

Gosh, makes me think of the "old days" when most people would settle their on-board accounts with cash. Have to say, I'm happy with the present time. That being said we bring about $500 for tips above and beyond the normal ones they take.

Thank you

My DW was always concerned about things like this. She was always cautious and would never let the kids go out alone at night or even be in the cabin by themselves for fear of something like this. The ship is a mini city and you still need to be careful.