Ret MP

All of those are available at the Coke Freestyle machines which are in limited location. Bars and entertainment venues don't have near that much selection/variety. But yes, the Freestyle machines are included in the soda packages but you have to have the special tumbler to make the machine work.

They became "unkewl". Too bad really, they sure were convenient.

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/specialty-dining-package-gratuity Are there any gratuities included in the dining package? A Gratuities are included in all dining packages that are purchased via Cruise Planner. Dining packages purchased onboard will have an 18% gratuity added to the purchase price. Guests who have a reservation with payment may also contact 1-800-398-9819 for Pre-Cruise Planning Assistance.

It would be interesting, at least to me, to read your review of that cruise. Good luck!

Subjective, for sure. But, that's your preference. Can't/won't argue that. I happen to enjoy Johnny Rocket's better, for a lot of reasons, not just for the quality of the burgers. Guy's burgers, assuming that you are talking about Guy's on Carnival, are good, but I like Johnny's better even though Johnny's are at a cost.

Yep. Our Travel Agency OBCs were not available until onboard because they, the TA we used, applied a credit to our account the day we boarded the cruise. Our Royal Visa OBCs were available pre-cruise after I requested the Credit from BoA's website. I don't remember but I think the Royal Next Cruise Desk OBC was available pre-cruise.

I went through 3 cards on the Ovation last May

I take a whole punch of my own. It takes a little effort to put the hole in the card but it can be done. Someone posted a picture, in a different thread a while ago, of a high intensity light/flashlight behind the card and you can see the electronic stuff inside, punch where there is no evidence of electronic stuff.

I second that! However, I never wear a lanyard when off the ship/port of call, except Coco Cay and Labadee.

🥺

As a retired LEO and a rule follower, I'd do the same! No tolerance for rule, law, policy breakers, not one bit. Also being retired from the Customer Service/Hospitality Industry I don't have patients for complainers either. At least not the ones that complain just to complain or to get something for nothing.

No matter how you feel about it, it doesn't change the fact that it is the Cruiser's responsibility to follow ALL rules/regulations/policies/laws. Why? Because it is the Cruiser that ultimately pays the price for their actions or lack thereof.

I quite smoking a couple decades ago. But, I don't have an aversion to it. In fact, I kind of enjoy being around smokers (BUT, I DON'T FIND FAULT WITH THOSE THAT DO, I just don't like the nastiness of some peoples comments about "smokers". But, that's just me. ). It took about 12 to 15 years for me to stop the daily craving for a cigarette, especially after eating and during drinking adult beverages. I'm completely over it now. But, like I said, it doesn't bother me to be in smoking areas.

A little off topic but it has something to do with their ID. On my last sailing, Oct 31, Independence, Canaveral, my wife and I were booked, paid for, extra packages booked and paid for, etc etc etc. We get inside the Terminal to check in and I don't exist. My wife's booking is just fine. I have an app with my wife and I having the Boarding Pass and so on and so on. We have to go to a "special" agent who eventually finds my booking and give me an actual "Set Sail Care" to enter the ship with. No problem, right? Wrong, when we get to Security, I have to verify my ID and take a picture again. We enter, go to Johnny Rocket's, get Milk Shakes and my wife signs a 0 balance, I'm presented with a receipt for $, I don't remember how much the Shakes are. I tell the guy that I have the Refreshment Package. He says that it doesn't show up in the computer but credits it back to my account anyway. I go to the Guest Relations desk and they didn't show it either. They go in deeper into the system, I guess my receipt doesn't mean anything, and the eventually find it. They put a little sticker on my card and say it is all taken care of, the sticker is the same as that that they use when people but the beverage package on the ship. I ask if everything else is back to the way it should be, YEP, everything else is good, I'm told. Well, we go to our cabin to view our account on the TV. Nope, they don't put accounts on the TV anymore. So, I go into the app, which I hate to use, and I notice that my $1,500.00 OBC isn't there. I go to Guest Services AGAIN and after a long ordeal and many conversations, they say that they found it but couldn't put it on our account for 24 hours. Okay, that's the best they can do and at least they found it. 24 hours later, nothing. I go to Guest Services again and I'm told, again after many minutes of looking into the computer that it will be on our account no later than 5:00 PM. Okay. 5:00 PM comes and goes, nothing has changed. I'm then told that it will be added after midnight when the big data down/up load happens. Check again in the morning. Get up at about 8:00 and nothing. I eventually go back to Guest Services and ask the original guy that I talked to, what answer he is going to give me as I've been told 3 times by 3 different people what time to expect the OBC to show up. His answer was, and I quote, "Just go and enjoy the cruise, it will show up, don't worry". My answer, "I'm on a tight budget and the OBC is an important part of my spending on the ship and I don't feel too confident about getting my OBC at this point. So, how can I enjoy my cruise and not worry about it?" He said that there is nothing else that he can do and that I had to just wait for it to show up. I walked away in a huff and telling him and the manager that I was going to complain to the "mother ship" about it. Mysteriously, within a few minutes, the OBC showed up in my account.

Royal IT! What else can I say!!!!

I'd like to have been able to compare a Steamboat Round Roast on X to a Steamboat Round Roast on Royal. But, I can't. And it really gets back to personal preference. Which is what my original premise is all about. Just because you/someone prefers the MDR on X more than on Royal, doesn't mean that everybody else does. It's not a fault, it just a preference. Someone used the word that I was trying to find in my aging brain, "SUBJECTIVE". AND, if I could make a comparison between X and Royal, which I can't, I'd guess that comparing Ruth's to Applee's is a bit of a stretch. But, that's my opinion based upon having been to both, Ruth's and Applebee's several times. The best I can do is compare Applebee's and Ruth's is to put Ruth's somewhere a little above Chops and Applebee's somewhere between the WJ and Chops, at least Applebee's doesn't let their steaks sit on a steam table for who knows how long. Again, JMHO, my preference, a subjective opinion, my experience. One day I may sail on X and then I can give an informed "opinion" that nobody else cares about but will comment upon anyway. Lastly: I prefer Royal, not just because of the food, although that is a big part of the experience. I prefer Royal because of the whole package, the entertainment, the casino, the selection of various restaurants, the crew, the activities for the gkids and adults, and top of the list, for us, is the Star Class experience (although we don't always go Star Class, we have to save up for that experience) and what it includes.

Being retired from the Customer Service and Hospitality industry I can, without a doubt, state that customers lie and lie a lot. I could tell you stories for hours about the customers in Airport Parking lots/garages, high end hotel valets, and arenas. Some people will lie just to save a buck or get a buck back, even if it means the attendant or cashier loses his/her job over it. As far as this thread and the OP is concerned, I am always suspect of a post of such length and initial introduction to the media site and nothing but complaint. I've waited to say this, but it looks like after about 5 pages of comments, the OP was a one and done/hit and run. As always, I could be wrong. But, the OP still only has one post in CC.

I would guess that that could be very much a possibility. I just though that they both, Royal and X, are under the same umbrella, that it would be "mix and match". But, I'm not into international business law. I have a Granddaughter that is and one of these days, I'll ask her, if I think about it. But, thanks for the none aggressive or argumentative response. seems to be a rarity around here.

I don't know. Maybe because the OP's first post was like this, "We are sailing on Navigator next October & was hearing that the food was not as good on this ship as it is on a Celebrity ship .Is that generally true". I just don't know how I could confuse liking the food in one location vs. another as not being likes or dislikes. Liking one cruise line's food over another. Maybe because that is what they were asking. And my response was about "personal preference", maybe, eh. And the OP never mentioned anything about the entertainment on one line or the other. I just don't understand why when someone says or has a premise that the taste of food is a personal preference, not a referendum and then you get all bent out of shape for saying so.

You are the rich one. I never compared Royal to X, I compared situations and people's individual likes and dislikes. Read man, read!

I haven't read every post in this thread, especially the last 3 pages. But, I get the sense that some folks think that just because some of us know not to trust the "Phone Answerers" at the mother ship, we are giving them a pass. Nothing could be further from the truth. I wish we could calls and get accurate information. But, the fact are the facts and the bottom line is that most of us are willing to be self-reliant and get the information from other official sources. Believe me, I'm not quiet about the "Phone Answerers" at the mother ship. I do what I can to inform Captain Kirk and Dr. Spock of the issues with the "Phone Answerers", call and ask for management, emails, surveys, etc. Hasn't changed one bit. So, we need to do our best at being self-reliant until things change, if ever, and my hope level isn't peaked, at all.

And a McDonalds has a better playground than BK or BK has a better milkshake but dirtier restrooms than McDonalds. It's still a matter of personal preference about the food, which is to topic of this thread. If a person chooses his/her cruise because of the taste of the food, it doesn't matter what the entertainment is or vice versa. I choose BK over McDonalds not because I don't like their playground, but because I like the Whopper a lot better than the Big Mac (cardboard). This isn't worth arguing over. Obviously, your milage may vary! Bye!

Can't agree more! But, when you get a good one, a professional one, a fully trained one, and a caring one, it's almost impossible to talk to him or her again. I'm guessing Royal's, et al, turnover rate is high! For me, it's all about the on-board experience and I have very little complaint about the on-board service.

I wouldn't disagree or agree. I've never been on an X cruise so I can't compare taste and quality of food. But, I'm not quit sure what there is to disagree with. The premise of my post is, "It's an individual preference". That is all!