MightyMike

I can definitely empathize. We were stressed when the Covid test for 1 passenger was delayed. When we landed in Miami, we saw a line stretching across the entire American Airlines terminal with people trying to rebook their cancelled flights. I heard it was either an air traffic control staffing issue or SpaceX launch that cancelled about half the flights into Miami. However, once you have your feet on the ground and are just a cab ride away from the ship, it is totally worth it.

From some other threads, this sounds like what they usually say right before it gets cancelled.

You might just get your chance!

I'm not sure this argument makes much sense. The expense was 100% covered for us. Yes, there was some stress and worry, but the alternative is for asymptomatic people (or selfish people who are too concerned about losing their money and board sick anyway) to put numerous others at risk.

This isn't specifically related to checking in to the muster station, but I received an email from Royal Caribbean before the cruise to report to Guest Services and redeem the old "Dine, Drink, Discover" perk I was grandfathered into (due to multiple Lift & Shifts). Royal Caribbean had staff stationed at the Guest Services line whose sole purpose was to kick people out of the line. Their job was to shorten the Guest Services line by forwarding people to other places if they could be more efficiently handled there. Soooo.... Even though my letter said specifically to report to Guest Services, the person kicking guests out of the line thought that I would be better served by the Beverage Sales staff. So I was sent to that line. As you can probably guess, the Beverage Sales staff had no idea what to do. After consultation, they decided the best place for me to go was to the Dining Sales line. I have no idea the logic they used in coming to that conclusion--other than perhaps to get me out of their hair. That was a really long line, and once people got to the front, they each took their time scheduling and rescheduling dining times to best fit their plans. Finally, I got to the front of the line and presented the email. His response? (Wait for it.) "You need to go to Guest Services." So now I am back in the Guest Services line approaching the same person who kicked me out before. I refused to even talk to him and stayed in line. Once I got to the front, all was resolved. So yes, I am another person who has encountered some particularly annoying Royal issues that simply shouldn't exist.

Book early. You can always reprice if the price drops. You can't lock in what you haven't bought.

My next cruise is spring break and I'm worried that flights one day ahead are not enough anymore. Could two days early become the new normal? Earlier this year there were technical glitches on Southwest and American the day before our cruise and many did not make it. If there is a flight disruption on your airline, even a one-day buffer might not be enough.

How far in advance is the booking? Probably the best you can do is to make regular mock bookings of rooms in the exact same category as what you have to see if anything opens up. Your travel agent should be able to easily move you between rooms in the same category. Given enough time, you might be able to find ways to get everyone closer together again.

We had the furthest aft Boardwalk balcony on Symphony of the Seas last spring and will have another on Wonder of the Seas next spring. Keep in mind that Wonder of the Seas has a large movie screen that will be visible (and audible) to many Central Park balconies.

We were on Symphony of the Seas spring break. Oasis class ships have such a variety of things to do that I honestly don't think it will be a problem. I assume there were long lines at the flowriders, rock-climbing walls and waterslides--but I don't know for sure because we were rarely near those things. The Solarium was still pretty much empty evenings--plenty of room in the hot tubs. Entertainment (Studio B, Royal Theater, Aquatheater) always had empty seats (albeit not prime seats). Kids were all over the place at embarkation and Coco Cay, and the buffet was sometimes busy, but other than that, we really didn't cross paths much.