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6 minutes ago, Lionesss said:

Allure has a hot tub on suite deck?

 

Really, 

 

That's new since 2017.

 

Safe travels.

Im sorry I meant that Allure didn't have a hot tub in 2010, so I assumed that since Symphony added a hot tub, the sun deck would be more crowded. 

45 minutes ago, sisocialworker said:

we just got off harmony..and while not the same ship, we used the suite sun deck....this is on port days...the bar opens at 1pm, it is a hot tub..very hot with bubbles.....cabanas and chairs always available....all the people we met up there were very friendly 

Thanks so much for taking the time to share your experience. 

3 hours ago, John&LaLa said:

 

Probably because it is way under utilized. 

So you're saying you think it's empty often? I used it in 2010 on Allure and it was a ghost town most days but I assumed with the addition of the hot tub and the fancy seating that there would be more people using it. 

6 hours ago, Cel_cruise said:

Tonight we saw both the Family and Adult comedy shows.

 

 

 Do you need tickets in advance for the Family Comedy Show? I didn't see it listed on the schedule you posted, how did you know about it? App? Cruise Compass? Thamks!

I'm surprised there is so little information out there for this topic, I have been looking quite a bit online. 

What are the hours of the suite sun deck on Symphony? I read somewhere that the bar is rarely open. Is the hot tub “hot” or cool. Is it hard to get a cabana or lounge chair? Can you use the hot tub at night? Any info would be great. 

Same FB group, same day. 🤦🏻‍♀️

Has anyone heard of the minimum bid on some of the categories dropping as the cruise gets closer? Its 1000$pp for a CL and 900$pp for an OS Thats a bit too high for me. 

28 minutes ago, Tree_skier said:

 

It seems the new program has more questions than answers.

 

well said

1 minute ago, island lady said:

 

TA cannot, for many years now, offer cheaper pricing than RCI direct at the time you book.  Unless the TA may have pre-booked a bank of cabins at a cheaper time of which they have had to plunk down deposits to cover them...hoping to sell them before final payment comes along..  Mostly what you get with a TA is extras they pay for and OBC they set up and pay for.  

Many TA are with HUGE host agencies that have large blocks of rooms on every ship allotted to them that they can pull from, and those rooms are quite often much less expensive. 

You should really use a travel agent. It doesn't cost you anything and the prices are normally less than on RCCL and they tend to offer up a small on board credit! Let them do the work for you! 

27 minutes ago, Mikew0805 said:

How is this an actual problem? How many dinners does a person need? 🙄

 

Not directed at you... just the idea of this.

Im so disgusted by this. Seriously. 

(not the OP, I read this earlier today and was just grossed out) 

 How long before your sailing were you notified of your upgrade? 

https://www.maritime-executive.com/article/oasis-of-the-seas-involved-in-casualty-at-grand-bahama-shipyard

Yes! I do it. The attendant takes it down sometimes, but I just put it back up! 

1 hour ago, zdad59 said:

 

I'll add my concurrence too.   We've tried Chops on two different ship, and weren't impressed both times.   And the OPs comment about the meat not being seasoned was spot on.   Not a bad meal, but not great either.   Best specialty meal we've ever had was at Jamie's Italian on Harmony.   Off the chart.

 

I think some peoples expectations seem a bit skewed when it comes to Chops. I'll eat dinner and lunch at Chops while on board. I'll enjoy it, for sure. But in no way am I trying to compare it to any high end land based steakhouse that we have in our area. There is no way we would pay to go to Chops if it were on land. Onboard, however, the service and the food are far superior to that of the MDR, so we choose to go there instead. We get the UDP so we have a variety of options other than the MDR, I could't enjoy eating in the same restaurant every night for 7 nights. No way. I just set my expectations to "this meal is going to be way better than the MDR" and I'm always pleased with the meal. I can't wait to try Hooked and Wonderland this upcoming trip. 

Oh ok. So you go to a website to  check your own bid?

I assumed you just made your bid and walked away.

People are posting things like 

“I leave is 3 days, how do I know if my bid has been accepted”

So why don’t they just check the website?

I should probably just wait and see if I get the letter, I’m just in the pre cruise obsessed stage. Plus there are SO many cabins available on my June 01 sailing, (so confused by that too) it’s got me convinced they must want to get people bidding, not sure why they’re waiting so long to send out the offer letters. 

Thanks for indulging me. I’ll stop now. 

17 minutes ago, Biker19 said:

You don't need to get another offer - just keep checking the site - the prices are dynamic, they may go up or down with time.

Can you explain further? Isn’t there a minimum bid? I haven’t read all of the thread so forgive me if I’m repeating past posts, do you mean wait to place your bid? I haven’t experienced the Royal Up process yet or dealt with it on Celebrity either. Thanks!

1 hour ago, molly361 said:

I've read about people getting offers with new higher prices but has anyone gotten a second offer with LOWER prices?

This is a great question. Does anyone have any experience with this?

I'm sailing in a 1C on Sympohony on June 01 and I have the UDP and UBP so i'm not sure if the upgrade to a JS is even worth bidding on. If its 400$+++ PP to bid on a GS I doubt I'll do it, just because its a trip without my husband and he'd probably get aggravated with me, the cruise is expensive enough with the fare + drinks + food for the 3 of us, close to 5k. 

There are so many suites still available still, close to 50, it's seems like they will have to start the Royal Up process soon?

I have had lunch at Chops with the ultimate dining package on embarkation day in the past so I assumed it would be included on Symphony Of the Seas in June. I guess I will find out soon enough. I am hearing conflicting reports. 

I have ultimate dining package, is lunch day 1 included? 

On 2/5/2019 at 11:24 AM, martini_guy said:

 I'll just go back to cruising with Carnival 

 The reason most of us will never sail Carnival. Once was enough for me, what a huge mistake. 

Looking at the cruise planner, trying to decide on the photo package. It shows a photo of a kid at the flowrider. Are there photographers outside on deck now? I only remember there being photographers around the inside of the ship and on the gangway when you get on and off. I had annual passes at Disney last year and it included photos everywhere which was awesome, so I'm wondering if it's kind of like that now? 

2 hours ago, tinmantim said:

No need for the paper version. Boarded Symphony in Miami last February using our phones and it was really slick. 

Thats fantastic. I’m used to using apple wallet traveling internationally with no paper so it’s great to hear RCCL is embracing the whole no paper thing. It’s very helpful with kids to pull everything up on my watch. 

1 hour ago, rt1092 said:

We were on the Symphony just after Thanksgiving last year. It took 3 minutes from the time we got out of the shuttle, till we were standing on the ship. Amazing

wow. thats what ive been hearing, I cant wait