GetToLivin

This post was pure CC brilliance. Kudos to the OP 😁

My soul would leave my body if this ever happened to me 🤣 Glad it worked out and you happened to have the BC.

Usher still got it!

Beats NYE "specialty" seat pricing 🤣

It is very easy, I agree with OP that the new terminal layout and facial recognition had us off the ship and through customs within 15 minutes as well. I also agree that they DO make it sound like you simply can't self-disembark if you have more than one piece of luggage per person, but really, what are they going to do about it once it's time to go? Anyway, the new terminal is very nice and easy to navigate, just be prepared for your walk of shame to the elevator if you're handling more than one piece of luggage 😉

Exactly, they don't exist in the Galveston terminal: there are only escalators or elevators. To your point, I understand why they would enforce this as falling luggage could hurt people, obviously, it's not worth hurting anyone. We experienced the ramps you are speaking about in the Orlando terminal which was awesome, kept everything flowing!

We experienced this in January - we are young and able to handle more than one piece of luggage so I don't know why this is a "thing" and we did it anyway. DH did get "redirected" to the elevator v escalator once in the terminal though, since he had 2 bags. My guess is someone, somewhere, at some time, had an 'oopsie' on the escalator with more than one piece of luggage so now there's a rule (I surmise, since it wasn't like this the last time we sailed from Galveston). Glad you had a great trip and thank you for taking us along!

Thank you for sharing! I still can not believe how huge the promenade looks compared to Oasis class.

Following! Thanks for taking us along 😀

So I'm not the only one 🤣 I will leave my suitcase before I will leave my documentation!

Ugh, I am so sorry you weren't able to go on your trip.

We used https://www.cruisecontrol-transportation.com/ for both legs, very reasonable prices, on time, great communication, etc. I have pics in my Mariner review.

I feel hungover after reading this 🤣

I just noticed it on the homepage where there's a banner, then if you click on "Shop Now", it lists a bunch of sailings to sort through with the perk. I'm just glad something like this is back, at least I haven't seen anything like it...but I've only sailed from the USA.

Per my usual morning routine, I visit the RCI site to see if my upcoming cruise has had a price drop. Noticed the Onboard Credit banner, remember a long time ago they would offer these things, then switched to onboard bookings only, or use of a TA, AMEX perks, etc. Maybe a sign of an attempt to offset the higher cruise prices? I was glad to see it.

It's such a great feeling winning a RoyalUp, congrats!

Hey, are you really on vacation if you don't have at least one "recovery" day? 😉

DH and I were on her in October, I wrote a review about it. If you expand my signature and click on the link it will take you right to the review 🙂

This is so interesting, I had no idea such a big ship wouldn't be able to get herself away from the dock!

I'm definitely priced out of Icon, so my little self thought to do a mock booking on Utopia, you know, being 3-4 nights it'd need to be less expensive, right? I was wrong! Essentially the same price with less time 🤡 I'll be sailing the "oldy" Oasis Class ships for my foreseeable future 😉

Oooo thank you for sharing, looks like I'll get my first one on my Sept cruise!

I always find it humorous that I can run 4 miles or cycle 10 miles but the STAIRS on any ship leave me questioning my cardiovascular health 🤣 I'll chalk it up to doing so many throughout the trip, haha, but usually mid way through I seem to do a little less huffing and puffing. I too will take the elevator as a reward when necessary, no shame 😉 Glad you liked the Aqua Show, I've been on Harmony and Allure and it is my favorite piece of entertainment and I think the athleticism of the performers is very motivating!

For our Dec 2022 cruise, I bid at the top of the "weak" level and went from a Junior Suite to a 1-bedroom Aqua Suite. Since RoyalUp came out that's been my only successful bid.

I've been really curious about this: in the photos/videos people have posted I thought to myself the couch looked to be half the size of a regular couch, thought at the most that room would fit two adults and a teenager, or a couple small kids, due to the couch size.

Oh absolutely, heck, what I pay in groceries now versus a year ago isn't even in the same ballpark. Overall cost of everything is higher and so we adapt. I think people vent about pricing (which is okay to do) because they're frustrated feeling like they are being priced out of cruising or a particular brand, in Royal's case. I love RCI's product as they appeal to my demographic (career stage of life, teenager in the house, want the best of both worlds for the whole family), and I don't want to sail another brand because I feel like I would be disappointed, plus I like what my status gives me. That said, I'm not loving their prices because instead of sailing twice a year the way I want to, I might only be able to do it 1x a year. First-world problems, I know. Yes, we have started cruising in suites more regularly which definitely adds another layer to the budget. We are both in our (young) 40s, career stage of life, have a business on the side, and teens at home, so when we get the chance to vacation we are okay paying for the experience of Sky Class. For example, in the last two years I was able to book Sky Class for under 10k for the family. Now, that same category is 18-20k and I just can't swing that. Of course, I realize I can sail in a different category, but for me, it just won't provide the same experience that I want, so unless I can grab a "deal" (in my eyes), we might have to forgo a Holiday cruise (but I'll be checking it like a hawk every single day until the last minute, lol).