Mum2Mercury

Decision made. THANKS.

Yeah, I have several portable chargers. Bringing them is a good idea. Appointment to check in? Oh, my -- I wasn't aware of that. Thanks for the heads-up. Now that I have the app, I saw a note about when my digital boarding will "open". I'll write that on my calendar. THANKS.

Hopefully I'll have good things to share about these ABC islands after our September sailing! I'm trying to avoid paying anything to get the test done. THANKS.

Good info. I've been pretty serious about Covid safety -- being in a small room with 35 students will give you pause -- so I certainly will bring masks just in case.

Big take-aways from this story: - If your ship's going to sail at 4:30, you should plan to walk up the gangplank at 2:30. Not start packing your things up and start back, but be at the ship two hours ahead of time. Time can help a lot of problems. - Have some cash and a credit card -- money can help a lot of problems. - Let other families do what they're going to do, but don't allow your own family to split up on the islands. Having everyone in one place can help a lot of problems. - Have a plan for "if things go wrong" -- like a meeting place -- that doesn't rely upon cell phones, which can fail you.

All good information. THANKS.

Okay, I wouldn't have thought we'd need to bring our vaxx cards ashore -- but, knowing, it's not a problem. I guess we should pack a box of masks. THANKS for helping me prepare!

We like the powdered drink mixes, and I'll probably pack Stevia packets for tea as well. I'm glad I asked about bringing drinks onboard. I was fully prepared to pack up a cardboard box of drinks like I've done in the past /dump it on the porters. Now I find I AM the porter! THANKS.

Orville, you've confused me. FIrefly, no more $1-2 beers? You're breaking my poor husband's heart! Hasn't he suffered enough lately with the stroke? We will probably stick to "included in the ticket" food, and -- trust me -- we won't feel ourselves hard pressed. As for steaks, I ruined a good steak the other night -- still beating myself up. I downloaded the app -- I think we'll really enjoy it. Yes, thanks for the reminder to put it on airplane mode. My phone's getting old, and the battery isn't what it used to be. Getting off the ship -- they still rely upon your Ship ID? THANKS, ALL. You're giving me so much good information. I'm starting to feel like I'm well informed again.

Ouch. That's expensive. Plus we have three island stops on our cruise, and he's always been the type to ... um, shall we say "take maximum of the $2 beers near the dock"? So that's three days when he would not use the drink package to its full advantage. Yeah, I'm committed to adding some OBC to our account when the time draws nearer, and we'll treat that as our drink package. It makes much more sense for our needs. THANKS.

I downloaded it on my phone and my husband's -- wow, this'll be useful. I'm just about to write "begin online cruise check in" on my (paper) calendar. Thanks -- this is an example me not knowing what I don't know.

No, I'm not a Floridian, but maybe that was the thing I remembered from way back. Looks like I'm going to have to pay for parking. THANKS.

I'm feeling secure about the Covid requirements now. I do have a scanner on my phone. Good to know that's how it works now. What's the app? Is it just the one I see in Google Play now that I'm looking?

And we upload that pharmacy info to the boarding document? I'm just nervous about this because it's new, and it's essential that we "get it right". I probably just remember something wrong from years ago on the parking. Hmm, conflicting info from the last poster -- maybe we should bring the little powdered drink tubes we use at home /pour them into water. Being a low-carb family, we try to avoid drinking sugar. Do you know what the washing-bag price is now? So room service is always a fee now -- except for continental breakfast? Yes, I'm seeing lots of "workers are tired" threads. This is disheartening. THANKS.

Yeah, I just made our ressies official, and I see that the alcohol package is $73/day/person. That's out the door. Instead I'm going to get us some OBC -- it'll be our personal alcohol package. I'm settled on this. Two people are telling me the soda-carry on is enforced. I'm a believer. Good to know the "included drinks" are available in sugar free. Bummer on spin. Sounds like things are more casual. THANKS.

Good to know these details. I'm guessing that they're trying to get people to bring aluminum cans rather than 20-oz plastic screw-top sodas, which are easier to fill with alcohol. I used to pack a cardboard box (like a paper box brought home from work) with our sodas, water, sunscreen, and other "consumables", and I'd have it delivered to the room. This is a serious no-go now? THANKS.

We love self-disembarkation. Well, that's not true -- we don't actually love anything about leaving the ship. It's too early, it's too rushed, it's just icky. But we definitely prefer keeping our luggage and carrying it ourselves. Even with my husband recovering from a serious illness, as long as the suitcases are on wheels, I can manage two. And we don't pack heavy.

Those of you who've had trouble boarding in Miami, what time did you arrive? Anything you can see that people could do to move things along? Is it connected to the checking-Covid tests? Just trying to put together a pattern of how to approach boarding efficiently. Thanks.

We can recognize something's not ideal /we can be disappointed about something ... and still be excited about going on our cruise.

Agree. We as passengers can help a little by going out of our way to be kind and undemanding. Ask them for minimal service in the room?

I just made reservations for our first cruise since all the Covid madness began, and I am trying to get my head around just what's expected in terms of testing. This thread looks like a good resource -- especially the video on the first page. But I have questions -- thanks for helping someone new to boarding in a pandemic: - We're vaxxed and boosted. Have cards to show. No problem on that front. - I have a supply of at-home tests. I have government tests, and my insurance gives me 8 tests per month. Being a teacher to teenagers who largely aren't worried about Covid, I've tested myself more times than I'd like to recall over the last year and a half. I was only positive once, and that was just after our school went mask-optional. My adult daughter had to test just last week. Anyway, I HAVE TESTS in the linen closet. Several name brands. - I understand I need to test within 2 days of boarding the ship. Okay, so common sense says we should be very careful in the weeks before the cruise. Mask protocol 101. - The woman on the video signed up for an account with NAVICA -- but she also bought $60+ tests. I don't want to pay for more tests, when I already have them. If you use this online proctor thing, MUST YOU buy their tests? I'm unapologetically cheap, and I'd like to pay nothing for this process. - Going to Walgreen's is appealing ... I know my insurance will pay for the test (I pay hundreds a month for this insurance, and most months I get zip in return; I will not feel guilty in the least at using their services for a vacation test), and of course I'm going to go out to the grocery store just before a vacation. Obviously I need to pick up snacks for the car ride, bottled water, sunscreen, etc. - If I go to Walgreen's, they email the results to me? And then I upload it as a part of my ahead-of-time check-in? - Anything I, as a new-to-Covid-cruising person, am not anticipating? I'd really like to feel on top of this new requirement. THANKS.

For our upcoming cruise, a drink package for a single person would cost almost as much as the cruise ticket for the two of us. That's outrageous. Specific thoughts: - I accept that drinks must be expensive on ships. It's not the same as me buying a 12-pack of beer down at my local grocery store for $15-20: when I buy a beer on a cruise ship, I'm also paying someone to order /maintain a supply of many brands, someone else to transport it to the ship, pay for a place to store it and keep it cold, and finally a bartender to serve it, clean up the bottle afterward, return the bottles to recycling on land. But these prices should cover all that ... and more. - Royal Caribbean, like many other cruise lines, has adopted a low-then-high price model. They want you to see the LOW price and emotionally commit yourself: "Yes, sailing in September!" By the time you add in -- at the minimum -- port taxes, other taxes, tips, insurance and more ... well, you're probably at 3Xs the low price that brought you in. - After cruise tickets themselves, alcohol is the #1 money maker for cruise lines. They're trying to make money ... but these prices feel avaricious. - Buying OBC for yourself ahead of time seems like an ideal solution: it means you can have the convenience of "paying ahead" and no sticker shock later. You could even make yourself a little punch card to keep yourself "on plan".

Everywhere I go I see "HIRING NOW" signs. Why should cruise ships be any different? How did we as a society get into this situation?

So we've been away from cruising for about a decade. First we were putting our kids through college, then Covid hit us. Now we're retired and are looking to "make up for lost time". I just booked a cheap cruise for September -- I'm going to love being able to travel any time! But we've been away for some time, and our lives are somewhat different now. I have some very specific questions before we cruise. THANKS IN ADVANCE to anyone who can help us.- I understand we need to prove we are Covid vaxxed. No problem -- just had a booster; my arm literally still aches. - But we ALSO need to have a test within two days of boarding? The lengthy Covid document provided by RC contradicts itself at least twice. Is the easiest choice to go to Walgreen's and have a rapid test two days before? Then bring a negative print-out from Walgreen's? Walk me through this, please! - We'll be cruising out of Miami. I sort of remember that they have -- had? -- free handicapped parking at their terminal. This didn't apply to us years ago, but now my husband has some mobility problems, and we do have a handicapped tag on our car. Any information?- My husband likes to drink beer, and the drink package might be a wise choice for him -- but $73 per day? Ouch. Thing is, I'll drink 3-4 cocktails over the course of the 8-night cruise; I don't drink fancy coffees or juice. I'm not trying to cheat anyone, but is it possible to buy the package for him and let me pay "as I go"? Or do they still demand that everyone in the room has a package?- RC allows two bottles of wine ... per person or per stateroom?- Will I have any problem bringing soda cans from home?- We like the lemonade and fruit punch that they used to serve in the Windjammer -- but we're now a diabetic family. Do they offer sugar-free? I never noticed before.- What are they charging for Spin Classes now?- Do they still offer the wash-everything-in-this-bag for one price mid-way through the cruise?- How do people tend to dress in the main dining room for dinner? I know the stated expectations -- I'm asking what's done.- For a while Room Service was charging a delivery fee after X:00. Still true?- Any advice on shore excursions on these islands? I've been poking around a bit online, and I don't see anything particularly exciting. Kralendijk, Bonaire ... Wilemstad, Curacao ... Oranjestad, Aruba- What might I find surprising about RCCL having been away for a while?Again, THANKS for any help y'all can give.