Hoopster95

What do you make of this @chengkp75? Marinetraffic has Radiance at 15.5 knots "arriving" at Astoria at 11:30pm this evening. I don't understand if she keeps going down the river right to Portland and into Vigor's drydock.... surely not with passengers on board?? Do they perhaps first inspect the ship (divers) overnight in Astoria before deciding on repairs in the drydock? I guess I'm asking what the process may be, especially arriving at 11:30 at night Personal opinion.... if this requires drydock, maybe they may limp to Vancouver to complete the sailing (way cheaper than forcing 2000 passengers off in Portland), then sail her back down to Vigor drydock for a few days or whatever time is needed. I feel this will likely play out kind of like Brilliance last month with at least one upcoming cruise cancelled for repairs.

I immediately thought of this. I remembered that Radiance was drydocked here in 2016. There are some interesting photos here to give everyone an idea (Stabilizer, props, etc) https://vigor.net/projects/radiance-of-the-seas

Totally wrong. Name ports in the Med that Voyager Class or Quantum class do not go to compared to other mass market lines like NCL, Princess and HAL only.... if you want to compare oranges to apples, we can compare Azamara, Oceania and others at triple the cost of Royal, with obviously smaller ships and much much less passengers, but we cannot do that here. THIS 100%. Royal wants Utopia, Wonder and other 6000 passenger ships to go only to CocoCay, Labadee, and coming soon a fake man made Bahamas private Beach and a fake man-made private St Thomas Beach. I feel any new class will mimic Oasis, Q and Icon classes as an "internal" stay on the ship, the ship is the destination type of resort. There will be little value to cruising for the ports imho to "experience" culture and new places in the world You know, Royal is brilliant. They've got it so right. They see tens of thousands of people buying time shares, or going to all-inclusives and just sitting within the compound, week after week, month after month, and then year after year. Obviously the majority of the cruise market does not want to see the world via cruise ship either. Those that do can easily River Cruise or go on cruise lines with smaller ships. It's that easy of a decision. The majority of mass market cruisers seem to want the all-inclusive resort experience however on cruise ships... especially for families. No way a parent will bring a 4 and 7 yr old, wake them up at 6am to get off in Civitavecchia to walk around Rome for 10 hours. These families, Royal's target market, want to wake up and go to a private, safe, secure private beach where their kids can play (at a massive price), they can all sit in their over priced $1000+ cabanas, and drink all day for free (ahem... at $80 per day per person on a drink package). Unvbeleiavble return on their investment compared to dropping a couple of 60 years olds off in Civitavecchia (insert any port in the world here) so that those cruisers "leave" Royal to spend their money elsewhere for the day. I wish I had bought more Royal stock. Seriously, they are totally brilliant and I cannot blame them one bit for this approach.

Ah ok... got it. Thx Ourusualbeach

Maximizing berths on ships to maximize revenue from as many cruisers as possible Stock holder returns What's the building cost of each ship vs. profits over 20-25 years capital cost depreciation? The above is all that is important, nothing else. If a building less than 100,000 gross tonnage ship with max 2000 passengers is more profitable than an Oasis or Icon Class, then I agree Royal will build them. I truly doubt it. You may be right...I may be wrong. We'll see in 2030.

I repeat for the millionth time on this forum, Royal Caribbean calls this a "gratuity", however it is part of the the employees wages. Royal, under maritime law, pay their staff an incredibly low base salary... the employees are contracted to work at this "base" salary PLUS the contract stipulates that they earn portion of the tipping pool which makes up their total wages. If the tipping pool does not reach a minimum amount, then Royal Caribbean has to pay the employee the shortfall under their contract. Calling this a "gratuity" is a gross misrepresentation by the cruise lines. At very bare minimum, it should be called a "service fee" or "resort fee" like you have all over the United States in hotels or restaurants. More transparently and honestly, it should be included into the cruise fare up front.

You meant Adventure of the Seas

Yes. Brilliance overnighted in Dublin in 2018. I do not know how many more years this lasted. On Jewel last year, this year & 2025 Dublin is no longer on Royal's itineraries

I'm on this cruise. Ridiculous pricing beyond belief, however months ago I scored the final cabin of a group rate through my TA for an OV which was reasonable. There were plenty of balconies remaining, so bid the min. Now after final payment... as is almost always the case, and is the only time I book unless it's a group rate.... the prices plummeted, so all those poor people who paid extreme dollars pre-final payment now shelling out more money even for an upgrade. This is the RCL way. Anyways, last week I cancelled my upgrade bids, called my TA, and upgraded myself from OV gty to balcony gty for $80 total as the prices have dropped so much. In comparison the min bid online was $210 per person. Better yet, the $50 OBC from a "group" booking now increased to $275 from my TA as it's now a "regular" booking. Always Always Always check the going rate for the cabins before your upgrade gets accepted. Upgrading through your TA may be much cheaper than sitting around for weeks after final payment waiting for the upgrade email

Unless standing up directly at the railing there is no way to appreciate any show or ocean view from this cabin, even though it's the very farthest back neighborhood balcony. You can see in the first photo if seated in the chairs the aft view is blocked by the white solid/translucent divider (to the rock wall) as well as the Abyss slide.

Sitting in YYZ airport as we speak awaiting my connection to YVR… just returning from my 15 day Gate1 “Discovery” small group tour within Morocco. $5000US taxes in for two people, also included CFAR insurance within 72 hrs of departure, all breakfasts/ 10 lunches/ 12 dinners. All tours (think excursion dollars) everyday, dedicated concierge tour guide travelled with us throughout. I stayed in a 5 star Riad in Fes, 5 star Sofitel in Casablanca, great accommodations etc etc. also includes free time on many of the days to Explore on our own. So what is the cost for 15 days on any Royal suite these days for 2 weeks? Be sure to add internet costs, insurance, specialty dining, etc…. And you never get to actually experience sitting in the Sahara Desert to witness the sunset in a cruise. I’ve been posting for a few years now that the RC has been Nowhere close to the best value for a vacation experience. Really glad you and others are seeing this as well.

From experience.... Deck 3 zero issues. However don't book far aft (I sensed a "humming" sound in the evening when really quiet, I assume engine? propellers???) or far forward (bow thrusters and noise from dropping anchor), stay more mid-ship as possible. Deck 4 don't book any cabins within 4-5 doors from the centrum, and again not at the very front of the ship. I love deck 4 midship on Radiance Class.

Just went from G to A in November. Yes shuttle was provided by Royal. The concierge lined it up. I met up with someone onboard who tried to walk it. Too much construction and closure to walk per that person... you'd end up walking on the actual lanes of traffic. edit: It's now 4 months later, may answer above is probably wrong.... different ship, different concierge, maybe less road works, maybe less closures, maybe different shuttle company, maybe different everything... who knows what answer you'll get RCI = Really Consistently Inconsistent

I'm May 30.... I have a great itinerary coming up: Voyager May 16-27 Barcelona - Athens, 2 days in Athens, 1 day in Amsterdam, then board Jewel for this Arctic Circle sailing. 😃