rudeney

Voyager of the Seas does not have that room. Looking at its deck plans, there are no GS's connecting to anything but another GS. Now, on Navigator of the Seas, which is a "Voyager Class" ship, it does have that GS 1586 connecting to balcony 1588 you referenced.

I agree. Drink prices on the ships are about what they are in restaurants and bars on land, so people just need to budget accordingly. The big difference between being on land vs. on a ship is that if you want a cocktail in your home (or office or resort hotel room), you have the option of buying a ~$35 bottle that will make 10-12 drinks. On RCCL, you can't BYOB except for two bottles of wine. So those 10-12 cocktails will cost you over $100 plus tips. I think where most people get aggravated with drink prices is when they see that the DBP costs more per-person than the cruise fare. Sometimes the DBP costs more for one person that the entire cruise fare for all passengers in a discounted cabin. But that's just he way it is. If you don't like it, either don't drink or don't cruise.

That might cost more. Dad will pay 2x the cruise fare for his room (but only one charge for port fees), them mom and kid #1 each pay their fare, but kids #2 and #3 have to pay as 3rd and 4th passengers in that room. Of course the "kids sail free" may come into play, and it won't make a difference on port fees. It might be worth pricing it out.

Assuming the dividers are moveable, I don't see why not.

I don't believe there are any GS cabins on Voyager that connect to any cabin except another GS.

So it shows the price. Also, you might want to check it on a computer as opposed to the mobile site - it might look different. And there are different version of Cruise Planner, so yours may not look like mine.

Since you already purchased, it will look like this: Just click the photo to see this:

The only risk with that is if you don't have good Internet access or if your phone dies. Since I have to carry my COVID vaccine card and test results, I'll just carry the printed Set-Sail Pass.

No, don't yell at her! Find the nearest crew member and report the theft! Have her thrown in the brig! 🤣🤣🤣

FYI, that was my screenshot that I just took in the ArrivCAN app on my phone. I downloaded the app, created an account and started entering data. You can do this, too, if you want to verify the options. Even though we are told that we can cruise to most ports in Canada and The Caribbean with just a BC and ID, I always keep our passports current and carry them with us in port "just in case". If something unexpected happens and we need to fly out, a passport is required.

Official RCCL-hosted Meet and Mingle has been suspended indefinitely "because...COVID". These other activities are all unofficial and up to the participants to manage. Some roll calls are having their own unofficial Meet and Mingle events by scheduling a time to get together at a designated location. There won't be any official RCCL involvement (so no freebies) but all of these are still fun ways to meet fellow CC members and make some new friends.

As mentioned, call RCI to verify!!! But... Per the US State Dept.: Entry into Canada: Canadian law requires that all persons entering Canada carry proof of citizenship and identity. A valid U.S. passport, passport card, or NEXUS card satisfies these requirements for U.S. citizens. Children under 16 only need proof of U.S. citizenship. A certified copy of a BC and a driver license or other government-issued photo ID would seem to meet the requirement. Note that ArriveCAN is all about COVID vaccines and not citizenship. And it has a place to select Birth Certificate:

I don't think you're ever going to see DBP for $50 except may Black Friday. We're on the Oct 2nd sailing of VotS and got the DBP for $65 during the Memorial Day Sale. I've seen it as high as $75, but never lower than $65. I thought I might have seen $62 right after we booked, but I can't swear to that. I check every day and it's holding at $70. I am guessing that the July 4th and Labor Day Sales won't be any less than $65, but if they are, I'll re-buy.

They will offer to have it framed, and the prices are higher than what you can get at your local hobby store. I think they charge around $35 to ship it in a tube (one shipping charge for all that you have "won"). We have a few tubes of "free art" collected at the auctions. I did buy one small item at auction. It was a 5x7 hand-drawn Mickey Mouse sketch signed by a somewhat known Disney animator. It was mounted and matted, but no frame. They handed it to me the last day as it was small enough to carry.

So you are planning to share a single drink package between you and your wife? That's against the rules, but in practice, I doubt you'll get caught.

To get the most from the drink package, drink a lot! 😜 Seriously, take the pre-tax price of your DBP and divide by 9 (that's about the average price of drinks, ranging from $3.50 sodas and bottled water to $13 wine/cocktails). That's about how many drinks you need per day. Make sure to grab bottles of water to take back to the room (or on a shorex), fresh juice at breakfast, etc. The wines-by-the glass tend to be things like Kendall-Jackson, Robert Mondavi, Estancia, Castle Rock, etc. I won't judge anyone's tastes as to whether those are good or cheap crap, but I don't think anyone would call them "excellent" wines. If you wife likes wines, you can get 40% off bottles up to $100 with the DBP. If you don't finish the bottle in the restaurant, they will hold it for you and bring it out at your next meal. The dinner package is a personal choice. Our next cruise is on Voyager which only has 3 specialty restaurants, but I bought the UDP anyhow. As long as we eat about 5 meals, it pays for itself. I think we'll eat all dinners in specialties, and may do a lunch. But it also includes the ability to order multiple entrees, and I may do that, too. Basically, any of the pre-purchased dining packages - Chops +1, pick 3 or UDP - are going to be a better value than paying per restaurant on the ship.

Costco is unique in how it obtains its liquor. In most states, liquor has to at least go through the "alcohol beverage control" board to be approved and taxed. Where I live (Alabama), our ABC board actually requires ALL liquor to be purchased from them. All restaurants, bars, clubs, etc. must buy from ABC just like us consumers. They pay the same prices - with the same case discounts we get. Costco is unique, though. It's nationwide network of stores all purchase from the same suppliers and they negotiate their own discounts. In Alabama, they are required to sell that liquor back to ABCX, and then re-purchase it from ABC at retail prices. But Costco's retail liquor prices are always a few pennies less than our ABC stores. They do this by getting rebates from the distributors and wholesalers. I guess if RCCL were willing to make deals like this in all the states where they sail from and purchase liquor, they could get the same pricing and maybe even the same steady supply. My guess is they probably go through more liquor sales than Costco. But it would likely take a full time department to manage it, and that would be an additional cost, which might offset much of the savings. So all they'd get from it is a better supply. But I don' think they need a better supply. They are probably making plenty of money selling DBP's and individual drinks since customers keep paying, so they have no incentive to change anything. I've said this before: If I pay RCCL for something and I don't get an appropriate value, I will ask for a refund. If I buy the DBP and I find they are missing the top 3 or 4 brands of Scotch that I drink, I'll be asking for a refund.

It may not be legal for a reseller (restaurant, bar, resort, cruise ship, etc.) to buy alcohol from Costco - they may be required to buy from the state or a state-licensed wholesaler. There is a supply-chain issue with liquor because there is a shortage of glass bottles. A large amount of glass comes from China.

There's really no need for clean clothes. Just being extra perfumes and how yourself down with that! 😜 Seriously, some people from other countries do not adhere to the same hygiene practices we are sued to in the US. They don't use deodorants and don't bathe daily. We used to run into this a lot at WDW - humid conditions can really create some unpleasant BO, and combine that with that different levels of hygiene and we sometimes just had to get out of a queue line so we could breathe!

We're on the same itinerary the week after (departing Oct. 2nd). I also had a hard time finding something to do in Sydney. The main attraction seems to be a 7-hour bus ride on the Cabot Trail. We have a full schedule of excursions for the other ports, and don't care for that much time on a bus (I know there are stops), so we may just get off the ship and walk around a bit on our own. I understand there's not much to do in town, so this may end up being a quick peek, and then back on the ship. I booked us a couple's massage in the spa that afternoon. Here's more info on Sydney: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/search/?q=sydney&quick=1&type=forums_topic&nodes=9

Unless you have UDP: "Savor the savings with the Unlimited Dining Package! For one low price, you can enjoy multiple entrees and visit multiple specialty restaurants every night of your sailing. And as an added perk, this unlimited package also applies to lunch at specialty restaurants on sea days. Plus, enjoy a discount of 40% off bottles of wine under $100 and 20% off bottles above $100 while dining in specialty restaurants."

You can do that. You just have to call. She will have to get a drink package (soda or refreshment). But, one advantage to you both having the UDP is that you can take both of your cards to the bar and get two drinks at once. So if you feel the pours are a bit short, get a drink and a shot and problem solved.

I am not Catholic and I don't follow The Pope (though I have great respect for the religion and its leader). I wasn't posting to say that the reason is right or wrong or that I agree with it or not - I just posted what I have learned in reading about why many very religious persons won't get vaccinated (and not just COVID - any vaccine). Personally, I get all vaccines recommended except flu. I never get the flu (or maybe I do and I just think it's a bad cold). The last few times I got a flu vaccine, I had a bad reaction, so I take my chances with that one.

My understanding is that many people who claim religious reasons for not being vaccinated base that on the fact that tissue from aborted fetuses is used in their production. I'm not making a political statement one way or the other about it - just that it seems to be the reason for religious exemptions and not some sort of crazy "they are coming for us" type ideas.

If you are factoring in Voom S+S to see if The Key is "worth it" to you, just keep in mind that you need to compare its total cost for the cabin to buying a multi-device Zoom package to fit your needs. It's always cheaper to buy a single "X"-device Voom package than "X" 1-device Voom packages. Also, you may not need Voom for everyone in the cabin. When you buy a multi-device Voom package, that's the maximum number of devices you can use at a time. Some couples get by with a 1-device package, and some families of four get by with a 2-device package because not everyone needs to be online at the same time. Also, if you are just using Voom for texting or basic web browsing, the cheaper "surf" packages might be sufficient.