rudeney

I have not used one yet, but here are three that I have heard of with no reports of being denied by RCCL: https://onpoint-testing.com/ https://rapidtestandtrace.com/ https://www.azova.com/

Back in the good old days, we did this at WDW - gave them Disney Dollars to spend and you should have seen the justifications for buy/no-buy of each and every purchase! Now with it being on a card and not in "cash" it makes it much harder for kids to understand.

The soda package is just fountain drinks or Freestyle. The Refreshment package and DBP would include cans/bottles. The D/D+ vouchers are essentially a single-serving of anything the DBP covers.

I totally agree. I think the risk of death or requiring priority medical care on a cruise ship is far greater from accidents, food, angry spouses, etc. than COVID. As much as I want all COVID restrictions removed, I do realize that part of this was because of the ship's limited ability to treat serious illness. Now that COVID current infections seem to be mostly mild and need little if any treatment, these restrictions are just not needed.

It makes me wonder how they know this. Unless they took a valid ransom sample of the population and tested them every day AND checked their "droplets", there is no way to scientifically figure this out. And they could take a purely random valid sample, because they people have to consent to daily testing, which negates its randomness. As others have said, I am waiting to see what happens in Europe with their suspension of testing requirements. I suspect that if they have no increase in on-board serious illness requiring treatment, it won't be long before the entire industry suspends testing worldwide.

Royal IT at it again!

A big fat long tipping thread - just another sign that things are getting back to normal!

😜 I'm in my 60's wife is 70. We both still work (in technology jobs) and are very well-versed in using smart phone apps, etc. So it's not an issue for us. I'm a "paperless" type person. We have very little paper in the house with everything being either electronic in the first place, or, if it arrives as paper, it gets scanned and stored in "the cloud". Yet for some reason, when on a ship, I love to have the physical paper Cruise Compass to peruse.

Check the MDR menu for each night in the app (you can do that anytime before your cruise). The nights were they serve "Roasted Beef Tenderloin" or "Broiled Lobster Tail" will be the "formal" nights. While they recommend that you dress nicely for the MDR on these nights, you won't be turned away as long as you meet the bare minimum requirements so as not to be "indecent". It will be up to you how comfortable you feel with whatever clothing you choose.

My favorite thing to do to exercise my suite benefits is to go into the Suite Lounge in my dripping-wet bathing suit for coffee and snacks, and of course to wear it into MDR on formal nights. I paid for a quite - therefore I am entitled! 😜 Seriously, I have been known to slip into the SL for coffee after an early-morning swim. But I do dry off thoroughly and my swim trunks look like nice shorts, and I always ask for permission from the concierge who says no problem since the lounge is empty that early in the morning.

I believe they also automatically distribute them to older guests - maybe 65+? I guess they figure old folks are too technologically-challenged to handle those new-fangled smart phone apps!

If your child would be with you for all shore excursions, but they just need the SeaPass card to access the room, you could keep their cards with you, and get an extra room key from GS - it won't work as ID or charging, but will open the door.

You are 100% right about that! DCL totally screwed it up for us. We had booked a balcony room to take our granddaughter over Spring Break. But then they moved and the new school district break was different. When I called DCL to change it, the ship was full that week, so we had to look at alternative dates, and switched to her fall break. The price we paid for a balcony over Spring Break was more than a 1BR suite in October. That seemed like a no-brainer, but in hindsight, it has cost us so much more money over the years to cruise in suites!

For us, it's nicer cabins. We both still work, so our schedules are not totally flexible. I think if we lived closer to a port, we'd cruise more. The shortest drive would be 9 hours to PC, so we pretty much have to fly. With crappy connections in and out of B'ham, it takes all day to get anywhere. So we end up cruising about once every 2 years in a suite. My wife won't go any other way. We do have other options for vacationing (a condo in Destin and the occasional trip to other cities) so we're not really depriving ourselves, but we really REALLY enjoy cruises. And we enjoy going in style.

Even then the price of The Key seems to be just a few dollars more than Voom Surf & Stream, it may be more than that. First, it's only a few dollars more than buying a SINGLE Voom S&S. If you buy a multi-device Voom S&S, then the price difference to step up to The Key is even more. On top of that, Surf is fine for social media, wifi calling and texting and email. You may not need Stream, so now price difference between a multi-device Voom Surf and The Key is even greater.

I don't see where she calls it "RCI cruises". I see her refer to RCI, which is an abbreviation for Royal Caribbean International, which many people use in the forums. I use RCCL because that's what I'm used to calling them from the old days. She said she used a bookmark, and did not type in the the URL. I really would like to hear what information and or resolution she gets from writing mbayley.

I usually lose weight on a cruise. With the flexibility of choices in the Windjammer, and choosing my entrees and sides in the MDR and restaurants, I can pass on the empty carbs and go for the savory proteins. I don't drink "fru-fru" cocktails or beers. I stick to carb-free mixed drinks. I eat enough appetizers, sides and entrees to avoid dessert. But I haven't cruised since COVID and the COVID has not been kind to me. I've put on 15lbs in the last 2+ years. I have no excuses, because I've been WFH for the last 5 years. I even stopped drinking for a month to make sure it wasn't the Scotch (it wasn't). So I guess I just need to start training for the belly-flop contest. I guess I should be good at something.

Exactly! I have encountered some FANTASTIC servers in places ranging from Waffle House to The Palm. I can't say what their situations were, but they truly seemed to enjoy their jobs which in turn makes me enjoy my dining experience resulting in a larger gratuity.

She also drinks Michelob Ultra. I call that "beer-flavored water". I probably need to keep teasing her. She may make me cruise by myself. Then again...double points! 🤣

We've always cruised in October and never had an issue with hurricanes. We've had a few cruises with rough seas, but luckily never missed a port. Chances are very low that a hurricane would impact your cruise.

That's about all the wine my wife will drink. She did find some sort of horribly expensive limited-edition white wine that she also likes, but there's only one store in tow (actually a town 20 miles away) that sells it and to me, it tastes like cheap, flat "champagne". I'm not a wine-snob, but white zin is "Kool-Aid" flavored wine.

I agree - we definitely have to be very careful these days, and even so, sometimes the bad guys still find ways into our computers! But if you look at the screen shot Janie posted, it shows the secure "lock", so it's very unlikely she was hacked that way. It's nearly impossible to fake an SSL connections since it uses a 3rd party to verify it. I'll be interested to see what they find out. I tend to believe that there is some funny business going on here. These days, few people actually type a URL into a browser address bar - most use bookmarks or search links. Janie said she used a bookmark to access royalcaribbean.com. She also said the website looked EXACTLY like RCCL's usual website. Had she types that other URL, it looks totally different. Personally, I think that RCCL's IT system did something weird and crossed-up her booking with one through the TA.

The thread was deleted because it mentioned a TA. That is a no-no on CC. I think this incident is a fairly important one, though, and if I were in charge, I;d have at least just redacted the TA's name and let the thread stand - but I am not in charge, so we play be the rules we have. If you chose to book direct with RCCL by visiting their website or calling their phone number, you should NOT be handed off to a 3rd party unless they at least inform you of that. Personally, I'd cancel and get my money back - and if they say it's a non-refundable deposit, I'd dispute with my credit card.

You are right - I did only partially quote you because I was talking about the odds of needing it. Also, I had already mentioned in this thread how I personally just don't lose things. My wife doesn't either (unless you count her misplacing one of her 18 pairs of reading glasses around the house). Really, I'm not trying to argue what you or anyone else should or should not do with regards to carrying a passport. I just want to make sure that all points of view are covered so that others can make an informed decision that's best for them. Personally, I like the security of knowing I have my passport with me. I am used to carrying it with me whenever I travel. Case in point, back in 1999, I worked for a global IT company and was representing my division at a Y2K prep meeting in DC. During the conference, I was invited to join a few others to speak at the European prep meeting later that week. Having my passport with me, I was able to do that.

Not infinitesimal, but I agree the odds of actually needing your passport off the ship are extremely small. The odds that I'd get sick or injured on a cruise ship or in port and need to be "extracted" are also very small, but I still buy travel insurance and make sure it included pre-existing conditions.