BaikG

I'm not sure about Indy but I know some RC ships have the Illy iperEspresso capsule coffee machines in the suites with both regular and decaf capsules.

17 hours ago, Sydney32203 said:

Does anyone know if the Chinese Cruise director and captain will still be on the ship when it comes to Sydney in November for the summer? 

The only Asian CD with Royal is Fang Lixin and he is stationed on Spectrum and Quantum from mainland China. I think TheAsianCruiser was talking about the AM who was Chinese. If your sailing is November of this year, you will have Michelle from Brazil as your CD (do not miss her Zumba classes in the Royal Promenade) and Alex as your AM. The captain should be Captain Wu Huimin from China. Do not worry about the ship being Chinese, as outside of the HK sailings (especially the AU sailings), everything is very English oriented and activities, menus, and headliner entertainment will be targeted for the Aussies. 

They recently changed all of the tables and table setups to include more 2 tops and 4 tops so I don't think it will be an issue to be seated as a group of 3. Furthermore, the MTD deck changes sailing to sailing, but this past July, traditional was on Decks 3 & 4 while MTD was on Deck 5. As for a table by the balcony, you could talk to the Maitre 'D as soon as you board, but they usually assign every table in traditional beforehand, so you may have little luck.

32 minutes ago, Ethanol95 said:

Phillippines is actually notably closer to Shanghai than Singapore. Would work well witha year round deployment where it's not too cold in winter. Also, even though HK is relatively near, that's not going to happen if political unrest continues. Developing a perfect day in Japan might not work out weatherwise (it's too far north) unless it's somewhere like Okinawa.

I meant that the Philippines might be a more likely destination if the ship was homeported in either Singapore or HK, but not Shanghai. Also, both Quantum and Spectrum from Shanghai were exclusively going to Japan (or Korea before the political disputes) year round and RC has already claimed a property in Kumamoto so it is certain they will develop something there. It might not be a beach property, but something.

I’m not sure about the Perfect Day in Philippines. It would take too long from Shanghai. It would be more practical from Hong Kong or Singapore but I’m not sure if they are Oasis class capable. Also in June, Royal Caribbean released a statement wherein they said they would develop their own destination in Kumamoto, Japan so that would be more likely for a Perfect Day or Royal Beach Club as they would be able to do the routine 4 night and 5 night cruises from Shanghai.

On 10/25/2019 at 7:51 AM, twangster said:

Very informative post.  I've been curious about changes in China and Spectrum specifically.

 

I've read elsewhere everything on board is still $USD.  How has Voom been?  Fast like O3b ships in the West?  

 

Other reviews have mentioned early bedtimes, low bar utilization and cheap drink cards - much less compared to North America, Australia or Europe.

 

It seems that they have unbundled a lot of things.  A lower base fare is offered but a lot things like iFly and North Star cost extra.  From what staff on Ovation told me that model works better in Asia.  Does that sound right or bad information?

Everything onboard in in USD. On my sailing, Voom was great and fast throughout. They only have one type, not the Surf/Surf+Stream.

For drink cards, they had two types always available. The DX Drink Card which was USD 59 + 18% gratuity for any 12 drinks covered by the Deluxe package and the RR Drink Card which was USD 33 + 18% gratuity for any 12 drinks covered by the Refreshment Package. 

Also, one thing I noticed was that there weren't many bars on the ship. Even in the Royal Theatre, they didn't have a permanent bar but a roll-in bar with limited drinks during the shows, and in the Solarium, there sometimes wasn't a bartender so the pool attendant would get one from the Sky Bar. On the contrary, the Leaf and Bean Cafe and all of the specialty dining venues were very popular and full, but Ellen was always able to get us in last minute. Overall, there isn't a lot to do on the ship after the late show in the theatre if you aren't into shopping or gambling. 

Glad to see that you also enjoyed the Gold Suites on Spectrum. I sailed on her in July in a Golden Junior Suite (JS with Gold perks at an amazing price) and Ellen was an amazing concierge. I personally loved the Seafood Extravaganza buffet and the food and service in Gold Dining, but was disappointed that there was only one menu for the whole sailing. 

Alex Schmidt is the current AM on Voyager

Michelle is back on Voyager

5 minutes ago, Ethanol95 said:

If Wonder is based in Shanghai, she can't be there for Winter, cause she's not built for the cold. So perhaps Singapore/Shanghai homeports? I don't think Hong Kong because of the political instability, and unlikely Australia if Wonder is being built specifically for the Asian market. 

Wonder does not appear to be like any of the other O-class ships and we cannot assume that she won’t be a cold-weather ship.

Wonder of the Seas will be the 5th Oasis-class ship and the largest cruise ship in the world when she launches in 2021 and she will sail from Shanghai. Her announcement is in conjunction with RCCL China’s 10th anniversary.

2 hours ago, twangster said:

My December bookings say that CATS is 2h 30m.    

 

How long was CATS before?

 

I keep hearing this rumor of a shortened version but does anyone have a verifiable source for this rumor?

That hasn't been updated yet. According to a cast member in rehearsals for the new production, RCCL turned Cats into a one-act 90-minute show.

9 hours ago, Winesome said:

Okay so cruising from Shanghai to Shanghai 7 nights going to 3 ports in Japan, will be flying into Shanghai 2 days ahead.  So spending 2 nights , flying to Tokyo day cruise ends.  Flying in from Canada direct, out to Tokyo direct, then direct to New York

What is my scenario?

You will be fine. Inbound, you use the 144 hour visa-free transit as you are going from Canada-China-Japan and outbound, you use the 24 hour visa-free transit. For the 24 hour transit, it doesn’t matter what country you are going to next as long as you exit Mainland China.

Michelle Oliveria is currently on vacation. Not sure who the current VY CD is. For Spectrum, Fang said that he would be on until the end of the year then going on vacation.

5 hours ago, SherriZ366 said:

Is the Gold Lounge the same as the Diamond Lounge on other ships or is it the same as the Suite Lounge?

Because there aren't a lot of CAS members in China, the Gold Lounge is the 'suite' lounge not necessarily for GS and above, but for the Gold Suites which include a couple balcony cabins and JS with full suite perks and the Silver Lounge is for all normal Silver JS and Diamond and above CAS members but I don't think there is a concierge for the Silver Lounge.

Got off Spectrum a couple weeks ago. The concierges in the Gold Lounge were Ellen, Romana, and Silvia and they were all great. I was also surprised to see a concierge in the terminal personally assisting Golden Suite guests check in. They personally escorted us off the ship at the ports of call in Japan and also for disembarkation all the way through to immigration which was great. The Golden Suite Class in China with the Suite Club on Spectrum was just amazing and so different to RSC.

Just now, Host Clarea said:

 

Thanks for the update.  So Anthem and Ovation are the only two ships left on IQ?

Yup. Anthem should be on this week and Ovation soon after. 

Just now, Host Clarea said:

 

I didn't realize that Quantum made the transition to the RCI App.

It transitioned a couple weeks after Spectrum launched.

Just now, Host Clarea said:

 

Odd that Harmony is the only ship to have made the transition from IQ.

Don’t forget Quantum

1 minute ago, Paulette3028 said:

I take it you sailed on Spectrum with her, so what was the experience like?

It was a short cruise with mostly Chinese guests thus the majority of the events were in Mandarin so we didn’t attend, and the few English events were hosted by Fang, the CD. We saw her only on some of the morning shows and during the Captain’s Reception where she was the English-Chinese interpreter for the captain and officers. I’m not sure if Bonnie Bai is due to replace her soon, but I did see her onboard several times during the cruise with no name tag.

On Spectrum the AM was a young Chinese lady named Rafael or Raphael (I didn’t catch the spelling of her name on the morning show)

56 minutes ago, DELTABLUE said:

ADVENTURE:   Drew Devine #1027
ALLURE:   Jimmy Rhodes, Mike Hunnerup returns in August # 1108

 

ANTHEM:   Mitch Merucci until July 13. Then Dan Whitney #1223.  Mitch returns Augugst 29 #1051 to January 5, 2020
BRILLIANCE:  Rob McNally #1169
EMPRESS:    Elvis Pinto #803 through early July #907
ENCHANTMENT:  Bobby Broughton until September #1158
EXPLORER:  Graham Seymour until mid July then Cleo July 21. #1204
FREEDOM:   Patricio Honores as of February 24 #848
GRANDEUR:  Cory Rogers until  August 8 then John Blair until November 30 #1194
HARMONY:   Marc Walker until July14 (back on 9-29 #1097), then Dennis Charles for 2 months to cover Marc's break.
INDEPENDENCE:   Mark Rous as of 5-18 due to Jamie taking ill #1126, Cuddy Cudsworth as of June 11 for 4 months #1151
JEWEL:  Andrea Oliviri returns March 13 #878
LIBERTY:  Brian Leavitt new CD through August 11 #893                 

 

 MARINER:  Marcelo Alvarado #1192
MAJESTY:  Mickey Urrutia as of 4-27, #1115
NAVIGATOR:  Hugo Arenas #849 
OASIS:   Mike Whitte as of May 12. #1201
OVATION:   Joff last name please as of 6-21 #1217
QUANTUM: Paul Rutter (until when?)
RADIANCE:   Susan Adams #1053, Cuddy to return approx 6-28 #1114
RHAPSODY:  Michele Scarpato #1109
SERENADE:  David Bradshawe #1086
SPECTRUM: Fang last name please as of June 13 #1213  any update?

 

SYMPHONY:  Mike Szwajkowski until August 17, then Ricky Matthews to cover vacation #1123

 

VISION:    Cecy Del Razo #925 Steve Davis as of May 6 #1147
VOYAGER:  Michelle #1141  last name please

 

For Spectrum, CD is Fang Lixin (https://royalcaribbeanproductions.com/node/248) and is onboard now and for Voyager, CD is Michelle Oliveira (https://www.instagram.com/michellecruisedirector/).

For the China sailings on Spectrum and Quantum, the VIP Two70 Shows, North Star, iFly, Sky Pad, and Laser Tag carry a fee. All shows are all still free, but they sell a VIP package for the Two70 shows with front section seats and a cocktail, usually for those who weren't able to reserve the show onboard. China is a very specialized market and especially for Spectrum, they are experimenting with the prices right now as on my sailing, the price for Laser Tag has been anywhere from USD 5 to USD 40 per person and Sky Pad is just a ridiculous price of USD 45 for the VR and USD 25 for the non-VR. They are trying to get as much revenue, which is why they replaced Boleros with Star Moment where they charge USD 100 an hour for the private rooms, replaced the non-revenue gym with more suites, included an extremely overpriced Japanese Pharmacy, and have their own version of The Key called Royal Premier at USD 50 per person per day with no free lunch or free internet, but just access to the Solarium and a free WOW Band you can get for USD 5.

Does anybody have any information on the concierges for Spectrum and the Gold Lounge email?

If you read Mandarin you can check this: https://www.rcclchina.com.cn/Rccl.CustomPage/Faq/Detail/152?shipCategory=海洋光谱号&shipSubCategory=上海出发

I can't read it but I put it in Google Translate:

"Mainland guests taking part in the voyage of Shanghai to the home port of Shanghai:

You do not need to apply for a Japanese visa. On the day of arrival, please make a face-to-face check at the designated place of the ship and receive the “Japan Onshore Sightseeing Landing Permit”."

When I was on Quantum on a Shanghai RT, all passengers were just given a PLP (Provisional Landing Permit) which is a sticker put on the photocopy of your passport, so I assume that visas weren't required.