cr2000

Couple other observations between Wonder and Icon, the total pool square footage appears to be greater on Wonder than on Icon. Perhaps the assumption is Icon's waterpark will entertain a larger % of kids, thus keeping them out of the pools? Eitherway, it seems like a shortcoming given Icon is pitched as a bigger/better ship.

Also, suite access appears to be wide open to anyone on the ship, that is, the elevators will not be able to restrict access to decks 16/17. Another huge fail in the suite design on Icon.

Last the smoking area located right above the kids area (Thrill Island) seems just poorly placed.

I've also seen concerns about noise pollution with the open design of the promenade, Large portions of Decks 7/8 may not get much sleep if they turn in early.

It'll be interesting when we start getting some real reviews from paying passengers that have travelled on both ships. Right now, I'm thinking Wonder of the Seas is the better of the two ships, which is disappointing given the premium we've all paid to get on Icon...

5 minutes ago, cruise1957 said:

Who is doing the cooking and cleanup in the 9 bedroom villa everyday?

The private butler, chef, and maid service will handle all that, and you'll still come in at $30k less than a family suite on RC.

41 minutes ago, BecciBoo said:

Matt said on his dot com...and I quote...The 1772 sqft family suite costs over $80,000 and is SOLD OUT FOR ALL OF 2024!

 

Why anyone would pay that is beyond me. You could rent a 9 bedroom private beach front luxury villa in the Cayman Islands for half that... I guess some people don't get out much.

16 minutes ago, Plum Happy said:

Excuse me, wasn't this ship designed with families in mind?  The larger rooms for families without having to book 2 rooms?  I think some of you all need to go back to the beginning and refresh what was said about the ICON class of ships.  I believe they know who they are competing against with this class of ship.  Hint...Disney.

No doubt the majority of Icon cruises will resemble something of a Disney cruise with lots and lots of kids, certianly not a couples retreat or honeymoon vacation! They didn't build that water park for adults. 🙂

1 hour ago, Newcruiser215 said:

You dont like the suite space on Icon. It’s not as nice as the suite space on Wonder. I think we get it. You don’t have a suite booked, but yet you keep ranting about the same thing as if it effects you in some way. 

There are a number of things I don't like on Icon, the suite space is perhaps the biggest miss, and I think in time reviews will bear out that opinion. I've also noted a number of other things I think RC got wrong as well, but also plenty that looks fantastic. I don't plan to hang out in Surfside, but I happen to think they nailed it for kids. The infinity pool in proximity to the kids park and eating venues is very thoughtful and the entire space looks whimsical and fun, that's one place where they nailed the color scheme and design, exactly in tune with the target audience. I should haven't to stay or use a particular area to have an opinion. Let's wait until reviews start getting posted of actual paying customers, then we'll know how people feel. Remember the influencers get free vacations for being complimentary, and do so on your dime and mine. Enjoy your cruise!

6 hours ago, JemzRoo said:

I booked Sky Jr Suite for access to the suite area thinking this will be Royal's first decently done suite concept. The more footage I see the more disappointed I am. I'm really, really annoyed about Cloud 17. I was annoyed when it was announced we'd get no Solarium, but figured Cloud 17 had the potential to be a decent replacement. I have absolutely zero excitement for Hideaway. None. The child free area is now 10 decks above the children screaming in the surfside neighborhood? Fun. Awesome. 

Looks like Matt just posted an update on the Suite Neighborhood with some positive spin. Coincidence? 

In fairness it's a huge space, which is a plus, looks to be ample seating. But the whole thing looks uninspiring, sterile, - hardily luxurious/exclusive. Perhaps it's the furniture, colors, textiles... something just isn't right. It almost looks like it was furnished with pieces from Target or Homegoods. Major step down from Wonder of the Seas imo. The outside bar also seems meh, and on the smaller side. The pool, what on earth were they thinking?! It's sized for about 8-10 adults tops. Also the additional pictures of the suite lounge confirm it's nothing separate/exclusive just a waiting area for Coastal Kitchen with a bar - the even have a makeshift privacy divider to separate the area, what? And not even a single ocean view from anywhere in the entire space?! They should've had the designer that did 1400 Lobby Bar (now that's beautiful) handle the suite deck design and furnishings.

Someone ought to be fired for the mess up on deck 17/18, the whole thing looks like an afterthought, which is a shame for suite guests who are probably paying crazy $$. If I had a suite booked on a future sailing, I'd cancel it for sure. Why pay a premium to have access to space that isn't nearly as nice/luxurious as the rest of the ship.

5 hours ago, JemzRoo said:

I booked Sky Jr Suite for access to the suite area thinking this will be Royal's first decently done suite concept. The more footage I see the more disappointed I am. I'm really, really annoyed about Cloud 17. I was annoyed when it was announced we'd get no Solarium, but figured Cloud 17 had the potential to be a decent replacement. I have absolutely zero excitement for Hideaway. None. The child free area is now 10 decks above the children screaming in the surfside neighborhood? Fun. Awesome. 

Coincidence? Or did Royal put Matt on the case to get some pictures posted with postive PR spin?

https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2024/01/15/icon-of-the-seas-suite-neighborhood

In fairness it's a huge space, which is a plus, looks to be ample seating. But the whole thing looks uninspiring, sterile, - hardily luxurious/exclusive. Perhaps it's the furniture, colors, textiles... something just isn't right. It almost looks like it was furnished with pieces from Target or Homegoods. Major step down from Wonder of the Seas imo. The outside bar also seems meh, and on the smaller side. The pool, what on earth were they thinking?! It's sized for about 8-10 adults tops. Also the additional pictures of the suite lounge confirm it's nothing separate/exclusive just a waiting area for Coastal Kitchen with a bar - the even have a makeshift privacy divider to separate the area, what? And not even a single ocean view from anywhere in the entire space?! They should've had the designer that did 1400 Lobby Bar (now that's beautiful) handle the suite deck design and furnishings.

Someone ought to be fired for the mess up on deck 17/18, the whole thing looks like an afterthought, which is a shame for suite guests who are probably paying crazy $$. If I had a suite booked on a future sailing, I'd cancel it for sure. Why pay a premium to have access to space that isn't nearly as nice/luxurious as the rest of the ship.

1 hour ago, BecciBoo said:

Nothing but negativity from certain posters if you get my drift.  There are always some.  Unfortunately, they make their own angst.

I think a lot of people try to justify what they spent and can't look objectively. They will sing Icon's praises regardless perhaps to soothe their wallet, I do think it's fair to be critical where appropriate. I think they really screwed up the suite neighborhood and I think the reviews will reflect that in the next few weeks (and pricing will plummet accordingly). The overall ship deck space looks very problematic, when they are at or near capacity. They messed up with the adults only situation, how's that fair to people who booked with an understanding of having a quiet relaxing area on the ship? The beverage package excludes milk shakes (they priced the drinks at the ice cream place just outside the $14 limit). Then they market basecamp as the place for kids to fuel up after the water slides, but up-charge for burgers and sandwiches? Of course they appear to have done things right as well, the rooms look great, they added some nice family suite concepts, the waterpark looks absolutely incredible and sure to be a big hit with kids. The venues along the promenade seem well thoughout too. I really like the Pearl Cafe and layout in that area, looks beautiful. Net-net, I don't think it'll be worth the premium they are trying to collect over sailing on Wonder.

26 minutes ago, JemzRoo said:

I booked Sky Jr Suite for access to the suite area thinking this will be Royal's first decently done suite concept. The more footage I see the more disappointed I am. I'm really, really annoyed about Cloud 17. I was annoyed when it was announced we'd get no Solarium, but figured Cloud 17 had the potential to be a decent replacement. I have absolutely zero excitement for Hideaway. None. The child free area is now 10 decks above the children screaming in the surfside neighborhood? Fun. Awesome. 

The suite area is an absolute disaster given the premium they are charging. No view outside (actually looks very closed in) - the "lounge" is a glorified waiting area in Coastal Kitchen (interesting the lounge isn't even listed on the deck plans, almost like they forgot about it), the color/furnishings look about as cheap as you get both inside Coastal Kitchen and out on the sundeck. The "pool" isn't much bigger than a small jacuzzi. Have you noticed RC has been limiting photography up on that deck the past couple days? They know they've got a problem. Kinda late to change the furnishings, they could probably reconfigure the lounge space a bit. One way to address the abysmal suite deck pool would be to claim Cloud17 as the suite sky/star class pool (it's already doored access at the aft end). That would at least give suite guests an actual premium pool, but given the screw up with Hideaway they already have customers fuming. Pictures speak volumes, look at the space on Wonder (below), then go look at the limited pictures coming out of Icon. Wonder (below) looks like a premium experience, Icon looks like they ran out of budget and creativity by the time they hit the suite deck.

10 hours ago, Twenty2020 said:

After watching Matt's video I'm not really that excited about going out and booking this ship. It looks like basically a glorified Oasis class ship. And to be honest Boardwalk looks better than Surfside and Central Park looks nicer on Oasis class ships. I also don't think the Solarium trade off for Aquadome is a positive. 

 

Only positive additions I see are the increased number of casual dining spots, such as the food hall. Which basically is copying ideas that have already shown up on other lines.  The Pearl and Promenade area look really good. The rest of the place looks like a Margaritaville resort. Down to the fake palm trees. 

 

 

Agree, I think there's a lot of disappointments on this ship compared to how it was portrayed in the renderings. We're already booked and will make the best of it. On multiple fronts they have issues, the adult only situation in Cloud17 was a royal (no pun intended) screw up. Lots of guests were promised a quiet secluded area and that was taken away from them. There's questions about overcrowding given how much of the deckspace is covered by stuff (furniture, decorations, etc.). Items people thought were included (basecamp) is not - you have to pay extra for a chicken sandwich by the pool, really? The main dining room  looks like it's something out of a ship from 20 years ago with the color pallet (cranberry and mauve, seriously?). Meanwhile the suite area doesn't have a lounge (it's and afterthought inside coastal kitchen) with no views, and the suite pool deck has a small bath tub for it's pool, not sure why suite guests would pay a premium for that experience (compared to what's offered on Wonder). In time Royal may have to make some changes on this ship as reviews come out and bookings fall off, time will tell.

7 minutes ago, SUgwoz said:

The Hideaway is a larger space overlooking the aft, with its own bar and a larger seating area that includes pool loungers and dry seating couches/chairs. 

 

Doesn't exactly sound like the shaft.  It also seems like it would be easier to police an area at the end of the ship as oppose to a pool area where people would use the walkaway alongside it to get to coastal kitchen, suites all day long. 

Indeed, also (and I think RC/Jason will never say it publicly), this change and the proximity of Cloud 17 to the suites on 16/17 gives suite guests/families an additional (semi-exclusive) pool. This helps address the shameful size pool/bathtub they put up on the suite deck - frankly a huge miss on the part of RC.

13 minutes ago, erby2283 said:

Yeah, not really happy about that. While knowing this ship would attract mostly families, I booked this itinerary with Cloud 17 in mind knowing we'd have a really nice adults only area away from the noise of the kids. I'll roll with the punches and I am sure I'll find a nice spot that will make me happy but of all their changes, this makes me sad.  I'm gonna need Jay Schneider's email address and in the words of Jack from Titanic "send a strongly worded letter."...lol... Not that he'll care. 😃

I think if you're traveling outside of Holidays (Thanksgiving/Christmas), school vacation weeks (Feb/April) or over the summer (May-August), you'll be fine. Otherwise, the way the ship is designed and marketed makes it very much a family oriented cruise (lots and lots of kids - think Disney), which is not ideal to couples or honeymoon travelers. I know it's unpopular to say, but when the majority of kids on the cruise equals or exceeds the number of adults (i.e. mostly families) couple/singles travelers are going to be hard pressed to have any "adult-only" rules enforced. Just have to roll with it...

On 1/13/2024 at 9:08 AM, BecciBoo said:

..supposition and speculation don't hold water.  The whole idea is absurd.  They have had no trouble enforcing "No children under 16" for many years. Cloud 17 was designed for adults only, I don't see that changing.  There is a bar right there and no word sanctioned by RCCL about this speculated "change".  As for the Hideaway pool, there isn't room for kids etc.  There won't be any kids up there, no attraction to them.  They'll either be at the slides or Surfside. As for a Solarium, it looks like the Overlook area is meant to take that place and children certainly would not want to frequent that area even without a pool. Not worried at all.  And again, lots of critical glass half empty folks around and they haven't even been on the ship...sheeeeesh. 

Looks like the switch is official: https://www.cruisecritic.com/news/royal-caribbean-icon-of-the-seas-news

35 minutes ago, BecciBoo said:

..supposition and speculation don't hold water.  The whole idea is absurd.  They have had no trouble enforcing "No children under 16" for many years. Cloud 17 was designed for adults only, I don't see that changing.  There is a bar right there and no word sanctioned by RCCL about this speculated "change".  As for the Hideaway pool, there isn't room for kids etc.  There won't be any kids up there, no attraction to them.  They'll either be at the slides or Surfside. As for a Solarium, it looks like the Overlook area is meant to take that place and children certainly would not want to frequent that area even without a pool. Not worried at all.  And again, lots of critical glass half empty folks around and they haven't even been on the ship...sheeeeesh. 

 

There's video around of the chief information officer noting the change that cloud 17 will no longer be adults only, that has shifted to hideaway.  And logically that makes more sense, as the suite area on 17 is just outside cloud 17. No doubt you'll have kids in that area as they make their way back to their room from the sports court. Regardless, the vast majority of travelers on Icon will be families - school vacation weeks and summer time, so enforcement of adults only areas is simply not going to happen. Icon was never designed for couples/single travelers, it's a family cruise ship (hence the largest waterpark at sea). If you're expecting a relaxing adult only experience, you've selected the wrong RC ship imo.

2 hours ago, Jumping Cruiser said:

I’m going with the fact that Royal haven’t updated their website. We all know how there IT department work! 🙄

 

It was a Cruise Critic news article that quoted RCI’s Chief Innovation Officer, Jay Schneider, during a press trip yesterday. I would think that this is pretty reliable. 

The reality is that here will NOT be an adult only pool on Icon, who's going to enforce that? The ship was designed with families and kids in mind, if you're traveling as a couple during any period when school is out, you're going to be out numbered with kids. Families are going to want to be together on the ship, that means kids stopping in and out of whatever pool their parents might be using. 

The suite deck and Coastal Kitchen lounge look uninspiring compared to Wonder of the Seas. It really looks like RC cut corners both in furnishings along with the venue size and layout. Take for instance the lounge, it's like an afterthought - a sitting area attached to the bar with no ocean views, even the furniture looks cheap. The suite sundeck has a very small pool (compared to in water loungers on Wonder) again with cheap looking furniture. The only argument you might make is that the proximity of the suites to Swim and Tonic and Cloud 17, would suggest that RC assumes suite guests will claim these spaces as their own "suite space" before the rest of the guests on the ship make their way up to those decks, and therefore put little effort into a dedicated suite space. The Coastal Kitchen itself looks pretty decent, almost like a mini-main dining room, I guess if you time it right you can catch the aqua dome show while having dinner.  Maybe I'm missing something, but I wouldn't pay the premium for a suite, least not on Icon. Very disappointing how they cut so many corners here.

20 minutes ago, swoopy2110 said:

 

Won't be the last thing not ready either. The reviews from the Maiden voyage will be fun to read 🙂

Anyone traveling without Sky or Star class on the first few sailings are going to have a real issue accessing amenities, shows, dining, venues, etc. Way too many people competing for two few resources, this cancellation of The Key is RC acknowledging that they are over committed. Maybe look into upgrading to a suite or reschedule your cruise to a later date? Wouldn't surprise me if RC has a wave of customers rescheduling after the first reviews come out. Sort of a shame they didn't limit bookings for the first couple months to ensure a positive customer experience and build some momentum. 

Does anyone know if the Grand Suite has a curtain/separator between the King sleeping area and the sofabed/sitting area? It looks like there is one in the Infinite Grand Suite, but I can't tell if that's also the case for the Grand Suite. Thanks.

Is it me, or does the suite deck on Icon appear small? The pool up there looks even smaller (more like a kiddie pool). Anyone seen it in person that can comment? Seems like a real miss by Icon designers.