jam19872016

Things could always go wrong but last day has decent odds to not go sideways like last time....good thing since @princess76021 has not showed up with the button yet....here's to an uneventful last day Jessie's girl 🎶

+0.4 today 🙄

It's now $14.99, prices have jumped dramatically since the last time I sailed. That is probably the closest to a full meal I will be able to get now and while I will probably be satisfied, I won't be getting value. I used to enjoy the three cut signature combo but it is now $21.99. Two cut is $16.99 but the description does not mention any sides or dressert, which doesn't seem correct so if it comes with the two sides and dessert still, that will be a nice option to have. Anything a la carte will quickly put me over $20. I have a pretty big appetite, as one would expect from someone purchasing an unlimited dining option 😁. It would be like selling someone a drink package, but not raising the price limit each time you raise the price of the drinks. Oh yea, and you can only order from each bar once a day. But somehow I will make it work, even if it means stopping at Johnny Rockets for dessert because really the highlight of Portside is their meats and sides although the brookie did make a nice late night snack.

That's not good to hear. I hope to be there closer to 10, 10:30 at the latest, but it's always been a breeze. I think one time the line at security inside was starting to get backed up, although still very well organized, but nothing crazy and no trouble getting inside. I can't say the same for how Carnival handles things in Miami, typically very crazy but at least I have a priority line with them. Keeping my fingers crossed for the best. I have to start getting my money's worth out of UDP immediately 😅.

Thanks for following along! Lucky you that you got to use Wonder, I would have loved to try that one out, especially since Port Canaveral is my favorite port. So easy. Lots of blackout dates this year, I tried twice to book Harmony before she left Florida and was not allowed. The second time it was not even on the blackout list that I had but the agent said it was a no go 🙄. I've already scoped out the instant rewards list for the points I plan to earn this trip and Wonder is on it. I would like to B2B it with my prime for next year but I'm worried Wonder will be excluded again. Symphony is also an option, but then I'm back in Miami. I will wave, but don't take it personal if I look grumpy, my vacation just ended 😅 Thanks for following along! If there is anything you're curious about to help you decide to book her, ask away and I will see what I can find out!

You're most welcome.

Oops 🤣.

I took this picture just in case someone was curious and never did post it. Glad I have it now cause my memory is a little fuzzy . Looks like I missed the paperwork with the other events. Let me see what I can remember. Happy hour was every night except the first night. Set menu not whatever you like bit unlimited. It will be available at most bars if you ask, I also posted it somewhere in this review. I never made it to the Elite breakfast I'm not usually awake before it closes at 10 and when I am I'm not hungry yet. It looks like a nice spread though. They also use it as a departure lounge on disembarking day, but it is just a place to sit, no priority walk off so a bit pointless to me especially as they don't offer breakfast although they did have an assortment of pastries. I don't remember the time of the Captains club mixology but I think it was during HH. If there was one night I drank too much, it was that night, no worries of the two events overlapping. The wine tasting and backstage tour were held at the same time at 11am on the last sea day. You could do one or the other because of the scheduling. Rsvp required and as I did not want to tie up a spot and then not be up for it I decided to skip it. We had a Captains toast one night, that may be the officers party you're referring to. I believe this event was held outside of HH but included Pre-made drinks from the HH menu so a little bonus happy hour. I enjoy being able to order whatever I want on Royal but I did find this unlimited drinks thing to be a nice tradeoff. Any more questions feel free to ask away and I'll do my best to remember 🙂

150 is hands down my favorite and usually a very quiet atmosphere. On Harmony I would probably throw in a couple trips to Wonderland just because I've only been one time. I also enjoy Sabor even though it's not a crowd favorite. I'm gonna make the journey into Labadee this time. Those pictures posted earlier looked lovely.

Perfect! Spicy does not bother me. It's the things that happen in my stomach when I lay down after eating it. And of course, I am always careful of the orientation of my pineapple so nobody gets the wrong idea 😱

What about a pineapple? Or would that be too acidic?

I've never been too picky about what time of the day I eat foods. Breakfast is a time of day to me, not type of food. I have had to learn to be careful about spicy foods late at night, which is a shame as I LOVE spicy foods.

I seem to recall also enjoying your Brussel sprouts 🙂

Nice! I hope to be able to check that out. My schedule is tightening up but if I find room for it I will certainly keep that in mind. I love a good piano bar. BTW my all time favorite piano man is named Eden, so the name of the venue made me smile 🤓

Thankfully I don't work overnight full time. I did for many years in my 20's but it certainly gets harder with age. I am not sure how some of my former coworkers in their 60's and 70's did it. I would be worried about being too tired that first day to enjoy myself, especially since I usually need a nap as it is that first day. But if that allows less vacation time, and thus more vacations, I'm sure it will be a fair tradeoff! Enjoy your trip! I loved my time on Reflection.

There was an 80's party that I saw a lot of people dressed up for. That was the only one I recall seeing people dressed up. There was also an Abba party and a Queen party but I did not see anyone dressed for the occasion. Silent disco was a favorite of mine! There will be some kind of party each night in the Grand Foyer, but if it is at 8PM you need to arrive early if you want a good spot. The 10pm events seemed to be passed enough people's bedtimes that they were not too crowded if you got there 5-10 minutes ahead of time. Enjoy your cruise! Reflection was a wonderful ship!

Probably the only salad I will eat next week. Salad is not a good description but I suppose it makes people feel healthy to order it. It's mainly finely chopped beets and goat cheese. It is so amazing though but if you don't like beets (or goat cheese) it would not be something you enjoy. As @exlondoner will confirm, I will be happy to eat your portion. Just set it next to her eggs and fisherman's pie 🙂

You are limited by the number of venues to choose from. I hit them all at least once. 150 Central Park is my favorite so I hit that one three times. Some ships have more options, but most have less which is another reason why the price I got it for on this ship was worth the price. Some ships only have three choices total 😮

I didn't commit it to list, but I did that too 😅 Mushroom risotto and filet for lunch with chocolate hazelnut cake for dessert. For dinner beet salad and short rib starter, pan seared halibut, then either fried cheesecake or peanut butter tart for dessert, maybe both if I have room. And two urban garden martinis.

Weight today came in at -0.2 which doesn't sound great but I truly expected a gain. I used all my calories yesterday as I was home all day, and I had a big loss yesterday so to post another loss, even a small one, is fantastic. Steps were not good, I'm allowed two rest days a week and I took one.

I've never really been the "make a list" type. I prefer to mostly wing it, sometimes to my own detriment. It's not a fancy spreadsheet type list, but I did make a tentative plan for my meals throughout the week. I will admit, I even enjoyed making the list.

I am not certain, but I believe the pineapple thing started on Royal. I certainly remember reading about it here before anywhere else. I have packed my pineapple shirt just in case 😅. Lots of exclusions indeed. It used to be called Ultimate Dining, then they changed it to Unlimited and it truly was almost completely unlimited with only a few minor exclusions. Some of them had workarounds, like the $20 limit at playmakers (when it was honestly difficult to order $20) you could simply close your tab and start a new one. Now it is one visit per day so no cheating that rule. Slowly it has lost its value while the price for it has gone up. I would not get this every time, the value has just been eroded, but for the occasional treat I do enjoy the indulgence! That is correct. And on this class of ship there are a few other options for included dining which I will peak into throughout the week. Purely for inclusion in the review, I won't be using up valuable stomach space 🙂

Some of the exclusions don't match up in practice to the official verbiage. I have always been able to dine at a specialty any time it is open, not just on sea days as the terms say. There is some question if that is still true on another thread, but I will be testing that out and reporting on both that thread and this one. I hope it is still the case as that is an important factor when determining value. I have also never had a "courtesy reservation" but make a point to make all my reservations as soon as I board the ship. I have never had a problem getting what I wanted but I do book early and prefer to eat early anyway. The $20 food credit at Playmakers and Portside BBQ will be tough. Playmakers I think I will be ok, the food portions are insane and I can make it work. Portside is going to be a challenge. I don't find much I would be intrested in under $20. Everything I would order as a combination totals just over the limit. It may not be able to stand as a meal on it's own, time will tell. The sushi prix fixe menu is plenty of food, even though some of the rolls are now only served as half rolls to those on unlimited dining. I was offered more if I was still hungry but I was good, and I am not a light eater by any means.

Someone on this board once summed it up pretty nicely. For those who want an elevated food experience on a mass market line, this gives them an option to pay a little more money for their cruise and enjoy better food while still allowing those fine with the basic offerings the chance to enjoy a lower cruise fare. I'm paraphrasing and probably misquoting, but that was the general point of the comment and I could not agree more. I do like their new menus and think it is better than the old ones, but of the cruise lines I have sailed, I would rank included food on Royal to be 2nd to last only ahead of MSC. Specialty dining is much better, but overpriced when you consider that you have already paid for your food in your cruise fare. I love the idea of an unlimited option that is at a better price point than paying individually. I'd love to see Carnival come out with something similar, I would be interested if the price was decent. My price point used to be $30 p/d. If it went over that, I didn't buy it. Needless to say I stopped buying it for a while. I got it again last year when it was at about $32 (on Oasis coincidentally). I was prepared to spend $35 maybe even as much as $40 to enjoy it again this week because I really wanted it and I have not sailed with Royal in a while. It was priced at almost $47 a day and there was just no way that I could justify that so I figured I would make do with the included options. Royal constantly runs "sales" but not really. I still check and I found one that claimed to specifically be a sale on dining options. Low and behold we had a real sale and I found it for just under $36 a day. Still a little high, but I went ahead and pulled the trigger.

Unlimited Dining Plan: Copy and pasting the official verbiage for the uninitiated then I'll follow up with non technical speak Overview Savor the savings with the Unlimited Dining Package. For one low price, enjoy specialty dining every night of your sailing. And as an added perk, this unlimited package also applies to lunch at specialty restaurants on sea days. A courtesy reservation will be made for Day 1 or 2 of your sailing. Please see Important Details and Advisements for more information. Highlights Enjoy a discount of 40% off bottles of wine under $100 and 20% off bottles above $100 while dining in specialty restaurants. What's Included Specialty dining every night of your sailing and lunch on sea days. For restaurants with a la carte pricing, you’ll receive a $20 food credit, which can only be used once a day. For ships with this venue, Izumi Sushi is a prix fixe menu or $39.99 food credit. For ships with these venues, Teppanyaki/Izumi Hibachi is included, with a $15 surcharge, and Chef's Table is included, with a $49.99 surcharge. These will be charged once onboard. For applicable sailings, Holiday Celebration Dinners are included with a surcharge. Important details and advisements Beverages are not included. Child pricing applies to children between the ages of 6-12. Children ages 0-5 are complimentary. Children must order from the kids menu. A courtesy reservation will be made for Day 1 or 2 of your sailing. All additional reservations or changes to your courtesy reservation must be made once onboard at any specialty restaurant. Not valid for: Wine Pairing Dinners, Taste of Royal, Culinary Activities, and Main Dining Room premium items.