Cruising89143

Keep the perks and points cruise line specific. We cruise between both lines and have for many years. We’re not chasing status and I would hate to see the current perks diluted due to combining.

Agree. Found the exact same issue on the Norwegian Bliss. Once outside of the Haven, it was a madhouse.

https://www.seatrade-cruise.com/shipbuilding-equipment/royal-caribbean-orders-lucky-no-7-oasis-class-ship https://cruiseindustrynews.com/cruise-news/2024/02/royal-caribbean-group-signs-agreement-with-chantiers-next-oasis-class-ship/

Royal Caribbean has had something very similar in place for a while. It’s called the “Key” and it printed on on your boarding pass and Set Sail card. Celebrity will catch on to this quick.

If Celebrity interests you then I suggest checking them out. We booked the Silhouette in the retreat to Bermuda out of NJ for seven nights and it ends up being a better value than what the Liberty would be on a per day basis as it includes the premium drink package and premium WiFi. This was for the May 2025 time period.

Next week.

The OP stated that they expected to be “sailing on a new ship”. The ship has not been revolutionized and my bet is that it will not be. Also, a two week dry dock only gives time to take care of maintenance and maybe some new carpet.

Icon has been on some of the offers that we received. Was very surprised. Just not interested in that ship or any of the Oasis class in the future.

Interesting thread. I think most of us who have cruised for a number of years have stories to share about watching others actions on a cruise. I feel for the crew that has to deal with them. They have to keep quiet and take it. As a fellow guest, we do not.

The Infinity and Connie are both twenty plus year old ships. While they both were due to be revolutionized, I think that ship has sailed due to the amount of debt racked up during the pandemic. IMHO I don’t see RCG putting extra money in either ship other than just standard maintenance to keep them in service. Focus will now be the S class moving forward.

Used to love this magazine. Well before the internet I would anxiously await each edition. The good ole days.

Read the exact same type comments when the Oasis entered service. Took a while before prices dropped. A long while. People paid it then and they’re paying it now.

The cruise lines have caught up with cruisers like this. There was a person who used to post here on CC and she and her family always complained to the point where RCG banned them for life. Last I saw she had become a MSC cruiser.

Agree that it’s not just on cruises but I have witnessed this behavior on just about every cruise line and not just the suite area. The worst has been on Royal Caribbean in the now Crown lounge by Crown and Anchor guests who felt their importance. Guests talking down to crew members, snapping their fingers and ordering them around like they were their personal servant. Very sad. It’s one reason that we avoid the past guest and suite lounges at all costs. There will almost always be a few that are trying to one up another on who they know and how many cruises they have taken with said cruise line. It’s disgusting.

We now cruise between the two. Our last few X cruises have not been what we experienced in the past. Especially the Retreat. IMHO RCI has better perks for the past guests. Since the restart, I would rate the two lines close in service with RCI being ahead of X in entertainment. Both are great cruise lines which is why we go back and forth between the two.

Not going to read this entire thread. I have read of “one” incident where RCI had to turn guests away which was in Australia. Booking a ship at over 100% capacity is not the same as overselling. Many ships go out each sailing at over 100% capacity since many third and fourth berths are booked. Other than the Australia situation, I have not read of any other situations. I guess when it comes to choosing your own stateroom, is the glass half full or half empty? I look at it as paying less for allowing the cruise line to choose my stateroom. If a person has an issue with any business then they should take it up with that business and if they’re still not satisfied then in fact move on. Read any of the cruise boards here and cruising has and continues to change. Some good and other areas perceived as being not as good. When the time comes that I no longer enjoy the product then I will choose to find something that we like better.

Glad that you enjoyed the NV. One of our favorite ships. Love having her close to home.

Agree that prices vary by ship and itinerary. The drink package on our TA is $55.99 per day.

We loved the Oasis and Allure right after they entered service. Cruised on the Symphony last year and it felt so much more crowded. We have decided that the O class ships are too large for us. We love the size of the Voyager class of RCI and Celebrity’s Solstice class. The Icon looks amazing for someone wanting that type experience. I don’t see us cruising on it. We’re currently booked on a TA and our first river cruise doing the Christmas markets. Being fully retired we now book most of our cruises closer in.

We have looked at Viking for river cruises but I don’t like their final payment policy. We booked a Christmas market river cruise and chose Avalon after looking at all of the choices. They have a much better final payment system as well.

The Icon is not much larger than the Wonder. More staterooms that hold three and four guests versus the Oasis class. Personally, I no longer have an interest in the larger ships but we found the best entertainment hands down on the Oasis class and it looks as though Icon is turning up the volume in this area as well. We enjoy the Voyager class on RCI and the Solstice class on X. RCI is rumored to be working on Project Discovery which will be around the 130-140,000 ton size to replace the older ships in the fleet such as the Vision and Radiance class. RCI will never build the smaller ships in those classes again and we can expect the same from most of the Carnival brands. Princess is going larger with their new Sun Princess. Recent rumor has Carnival Corp. new buildings exceeding the 200,000 ton range. Of course their new Excel class is already packing them in like sardines. Even NCL found out that the new Leonardo class was too small and continues to upsize. I won’t be surprised to see X go a little larger with their next class.

I think that the Haven experience is much better than that of what Royal offers but once outside of the Haven, it was a complete zoo. We cruised on the Bliss and enjoyed everything the Haven had to offer but again once we left that area the rest of the ship felt tight and busy. The Icon doesn’t interest us at all. We enjoyed the Oasis class when the Oasis and Allure first entered service. Last year on the SYM cured that. Our tastes have changed over the years. We now prefer the size of the Voyager and Solstice class. I think the Icon will be great for cruisers who are looking for a more active cruise but that’s no longer us. 🙂

I have been cruising with RCI for over twenty years and I have never witnessed a ship in as bad shape as the photos are showing and I cruise on ships older than three or four years old. At one RCI cared about ongoing ship maintenance. Right now it’s paying back those loans. We cruised on the NV just after the Covid restart. The large pool side screen was distorted with a green hue. I spoke with one of the officers and he said that corporate would not approve the funds to replace. It took a year to get the screen replaced.

When I was planning our cruise the option to prepay was there. On the day that we booked it wasn’t. It’s now back.

The photos show me that this is a ship that either needs to be refurbished or retired from the fleet. I recall a number of years ago Richard Fain stating on an earnings call the Vision class of ships days in the fleet was numbered. Of course Pullmantur’s demise and Covid happened and RCI needs to pay off loans so they stay in the fleet. It’s a shame that this ship is in this condition.