wdwkings

The ships are sister ships as mentioned, while there may be some differences it wouldn’t come down to that for the decision.  Itinerary might help but you said that doesn’t matter to you.  
 

The key would be price.  In the OP post the cost difference was only $60.  Getting two more days at essentially the same price, that is the easy decision for me.  Why by 3 tires when you can get 4 at the same price, why get a small coffee when you can get the large at the same price, etc. The dollar per day charge is the better value with the 7 day.  

In my experience, based on the details you gave, I would not opt for the drinks package if it was me.  .  
 

The Oasis class suites will have beer and wine available in the suites lounge/coastal kitchen area during the day.  They will also have coffee/coffee machine for specialty coffees and teas available.  During the evening happy hours mixed drinks/cocktails will be available.  
 

Not sure how the party is booked but I’m guessing that everyone in one room with a person that might benefit from getting the package would have to get the package

The only reason to get the drinks package is if the party is planning on having more than what is offered “free”.  Then you have to balance that cost for the whole group.  Wonder does have a slight difference in the layout of the suites area/lounge from other Oasis class ships so that might play a role.

This caught my eye since we will be boarding in less than a month.  Haven’t checked our info to see if there are any changes but they look like they are next to each other.  Maybe one of the locals can give info on the parking.  

I have been able to work with the VPN on my old and current company’s laptops while on the ships.  We have Zscaler and Cisco VPN on the current work laptop and last cruise was February.  Not  sure when our IT added Zscaler but was in place for at least the last two cruises.  
 

Things can be a little slow at times but I can do pretty much what I need to do.  Usually things are network or file size issues not the VPN.   For video calls I usually use my phone for Teams calls as that seems to work a little better.  

20 hours ago, Jetdriver787 said:

Why? That money is already in the bank! You are now looking to maximise NEW additional ancillary revenue from unsold and returned inventory. One cabin at the top of a chain might potentially generate the “bid” revenue from 10 cabins further along that chain. 

This whole thread is based on speculation on what is factored into the equation and how the process works.  
 

That said it is not hard for data scientists to get data and work it into the equation.  The initial room payment would be easy to add.  Your initial room rate (full or discounted) plus your bid would be your overall bid amount.  So if two like category rooms have the same Royal Up bid the tie breaker, could go to the higher initial charge.  Likely the most important other factors are the bids below your cabin category so that other “winning” bids could be added revenue.  
 

There are huge amounts of data being shared already (thank Hank Asher for that) so even C&A and Casino levels could be included.  If RCI allows the access to the data, it could easily be added into the algorithm, but likely a much lesser factor.  It is likely way more complex on how the algorithm works, so pure speculation.  Safe to say that the actual bid amount is only a small part of what matters.

The rules and application of the rules do have to allow some flexibility.  There is food/snacks in some of the bars, trivia (including some more younger focused like Star Wars and Harry Potter) at many bars and other entertainment that a family might come to enjoy.  Therefore a complete restriction on anyone under 21/18 will not likely be applied. Playmakers is probably the most "family oriented" bar in the fleet.  Some venues will not be quite as family friendly, but as long as the group is primarily adults/family and not causing an issue it will likely be allowed.  When entry is actually banned, or age restrictions enforced, like the comedy show, the staff will not give any leeway. 

13 minutes ago, joepeka said:

The images are quite similar but the verbiage is different, e.g. "Bid Now' vs. "Bid Status" and "Bid on the stateroom..." vs. "View, change or cancel...".

Sorry, using a small screen, once I zoomed in it was noticeable.

3 hours ago, sasset said:

We’re booked on Constellatio in a new Sunset Suite in October. I read this on Cruise Critic and emailed a contact in Celebrity’s Executive office. She confirmed it.

Thank you for your email. 

With regards to the lounge chairs all the verandas are now set up with regular balcony chairs . Due to safety reasons, the lounge chairs have been removed from the balconies. I hope this answers your questions. Enjoy your day.
 

Thanks for sharing this verbiage.  As mentioned, the most risky situation is someone standing on anything and going over the rail.  I'm guessing that they might have a different perspective.  Surely they realized that someone can stand on a chair and go over the rail also. 

Guessing that there are more instances of people tripping and falling or injuring themselves trying to maneuver around in limited space on a balcony when a lounger is in place.  Odds are there are more reports of falls on the balcony compared to falls overboard.  

Not sure how much space is on a Sunset Suite balcony but if it is closer to a normal veranda, i could see they still might not allow loungers.  Large suites with large balconies, this would be very disappointing.  Our last sailing was in a 2 bedroom Aquatheater (i know Royal not Celebrity) and I would be surprised if they use the same logic there.

1 hour ago, joepeka said:

If your bid was accepted, under "Upcoming Cruises" on the web site, under your reservation, it should look like first image below. If your bid has not been placed (or the system thinks it hasn't been placed) the second image below is what you will see.  I don't think there's any way of knowing if the default bid is the current lowest among any others who may have bid thus far (if I understood your question correctly).

 

ETA: If your bid was successfully placed, you will receive an email from "Royal Caribbean - Royal Up" stating the bid was received.

It looks like the same image.

@Queencorkle you will login to the network when you first access the ships wifi.  You will set your sign-in info  with that first access on the initial device you are using.  You account will be limited to one device but you can switch.  To switch you can either log out on the device that was in use and then sign-in on the second device, or if you just go to the second device and sign-in it will ask you about switching devices.  You will have to go the same when you go back to the other.

Some of the other perks are nice, probably the lunch on embarkation being near the top of the list in my opinion, but most of the others are just nice to have not really a need to have sort of thing. 
 

Happy cruising!

58 minutes ago, PhillyFan33579 said:

How is it a no brainer? I don’t understand how spending more money for a cruise to get perks worth less than the cost of a cruise makes sense financially. 

Not all that hard to understand.  There are many diamond perks and some can be associated to a specific dollar amount, others may not have a dollar amount but could add value to someone.  If the person feels the Diamond perks are worth it, it is moot, but there is also the probability that the cost is offset.
 

Going back to the Diamond drinks for the OP’s 12 night cruise.  If they paid out of pocket, they would be paying for 4 drinks at $14 a drink for 12 days totaling $672 per person.  If they take a cruise similar to the one below they are coming out ahead.

The cost of the cruise is less than they would pay for the 12 days of drinks.  Your statement that spending more to get less is not accurate for every situation.  (Usually it is but not always.)

While there are other perks that come with diamond, I think you keyed in on the main one the drinks. A three day cruise to achieve diamond is a good option if it’s something you could take advantage of on the 12th night cruise.
 

Jusy doing some basic math, and this is not scientific at all, here’s where the dollar amount land. If you do 4 drinks at $14 each for 12 days, your total is $56 a day or $672 for the cruise in drinks.  You could add specialty coffee from the lounge to further justify the “drink cost”.  
 

Not sure you can get a three day cruise for less than $672 per person but if you can your in the black on drinks alone. 

9 hours ago, snaefell said:

 

Has this been reduced,we sailed on Quantum some years ago & there was a serious sun bed shortage during the cruise,there always seemed  plenty of free ones on Anthem,could just be a different make up of passengers that didn't like sunbathing!

 

Just to muddy the waters somewhat we did experience quite serious delays with lifts on Anthem which didn't happen on Quantum,the lifts on Anthem seemed to go 'Out of service' with annoying regularity at busy times!😮

Not sure that these two items are great metrics to judge capacity or number of souls on board a specific sailing.  

You did not mention when or where you previous sailing took place but that could be part of the difference.  @snaefell you did mention that you just recently sailed on Anthem.  Taking that perspective alone.  Sailing or any vacation in mid-May are likely to have less people, particularly from a US perspective.  It is after the spring break/easter holidays and before the true summer break so much less family vacations are happening.  Throw in finals and graduations and the trips that do happen have a different focus.  

It is likely that those traveling on a cruise in mid-May are retired, empty nest-ers or single or couples without children.  Not saying there are no families just slightly less.  That demographic will likely skew less towards pools and more towards elevators (just kidding but there likely is some truth there.)  Honestly there are probably many more cabins occupied by couples instead of families (3+).  That is give teh perspective that there are less at the pools and more at the elevators, regardless of other factors like weather, out of service lifts or other things that might be day to day.  

With less than a day it would be pretty limited things to do other than settle in, get some dinner and organize to head to the port.  The bonus of Miami is that there is less travel the day of the cruise. 

@Vacuum49 you stated your cruise departs on Monday.  You can run into traffic any time and any day in south Florida, especially between Miami and Fort Lauderdale but a Monday morning it will be very likely especially heading south. 

There are a few spots in the Miami area but i would probably do something near the port or at the Blue Lagoon area.    

Assuming you are referring to this area.  That is a staff or crew area of ship infrastructure.  Since it is near the stairwell it could be a crew staircase that might be used for guest in emergencies.  It could be open during boarding since staff might be using that area for turn over day activities, including guest bag movement.  

1 hour ago, Billy Baltic said:

I’m no expert but I don’t know if one bite would be enough to cause a day of vomiting. Maybe with chicken but again I have no expertise in this. 

As long as the bacteria, virus, parasite or whatever has a way into your body, it can cause illness.  One bite could be all that it needed to get inside.  There are other factors (viral/bacterial load, host susceptibility, etc) but the first step is gaining entry.  

The timing of the symptoms seems very likely that this was related to the description that you gave.  Just looking on the phone, the pics are pretty small so can’t comment.  
 

Only one pork related disease was mentioned but with most food that is pre-packed, shipped, cooked especially processed meats that may have multiple touch points in manufacturing there could be lots of sources for the illness.

https://foodsafety.osu.edu/resources/causes-and-symptoms

While it is possible, it could have come from something else, doesn’t seem as likely given the circumstances.  Hopefully he is feeling better.  Notifying the staff was a good decision.

Plane scheduled to land at Orlando (MCO) at 1pm on Sept 7th.

Fixed the first line of the itinerary you laid out.  

Overall your plan looks fine.  As i put with the correction, flights may get delayed.  Overall it is not all that common but there is probably something like a 25% for some sort of delay.  

I’m guessing if they are a true pier runner and miss the ship, the crew don’t say anything, they might wave as they sail away.  

3 minutes ago, leaveitallbehind said:

Really? If it is a stated rule it should be respected as such.  Just because it may be difficult to enforce doesn't mean it can be ignored.

My ducks don’t care to bring a suit or tux, can they just wear a nice shirt?  (No pants, obviously!). 🤣

It really is what appeals to you more than what others think.  What do you see yourself doing more - going up to the pool and suites lounge area or heading down to deck 5-6 for bars, shopping, activities or even down to the casino?  
 

If it was an option to choose deck 17, that would be an easy choice.  Since it is not an option with the owners suite you probably should look at where you will be heading to the majority of the time to determine how high or low of a deck you want.

I'll add that the Symphony has one of the highest possible guest counts for CK/Lounge access without pinnacles factored into the equation.  Compared to the other Oasis class ships, that would be 412 guests.  That is if every suite is booked at its capacity.  (It is not likely but still gives a good, representation of how many might have access, especially at peak family travel times.) 

Compared to the sister ships, Symphony has 2% more guest for Harmony that have CK access, 14% more guest than Allure, etc.  The guest counts above are Star Class rooms first and their total, then Sky class.  That way JS can tell how many above them might be trying to get into CK. 

(The Wonder is different due to the suites neighborhood and the lounge/CK area is also different.)  The other three have a more similar layout and guest capacity of that area so more direct comparison.  Based on those details the chances for a JS might be a little tougher just because it is a Symphony sailing.  There are many factors, like actual occupancy of each suite, number of Star Class doing specialty dining, number of Pins, etc.

Good Luck.

As mentioned by @twangster the best bet is the ships ESPN feed(s) .  Since the Caribbean ESPN may have games that are on other channels on the mainland.  You can check any bar that has a tv screen and in the room since one may have different programming. Do  channel surf your in room stations, since I recall one game was on a different channel than I anticipated.  If you know when the actual puck drop time is for your location it will help.

Found most games (but not all) available during the playoffs somewhere on the ship, Quantum from Honolulu to Vancouver last May.  Only had to use internet/stream one or two games in like 10 days.

I can’t seem to find the piece of information. Was looking with the search feature because I know some of this has been discussed before hoping someone can assist since the results I’m getting aren’t helping.

We are doing a Southampton close loop itinerary, but one of our traveling party is likely going to have to leave early. For example, if they decide to disembark at Barcelona before getting all the way back to Southampton, are there any issues? We know that the rules related to close loop cruises in the US are one thing. In Europe, the same rules don’t quite apply. We would realize that notification to the cruise line would be necessary so that we’re not waiting around in Port for a missing guest. But are there any other considerations, are there other factors since the UK is not part of the EU.

Thanks in advance for any information you might be able to share.

While the topic of missing the ship is valid and even possible in Nassau, with this itinerary it really would be hard to miss the ship.

There are only 3 opportunities.  If you miss initial boarding it is sad but not a logistical problem, just go home.  Royal will not leave you behind on Cococay, even though many of us wouldn’t mind that situation.  
 

That leaves Nassau and in reality you can get from one side of the island to the other in 30 minutes so you really have to not be paying attention or have extenuating circumstances to miss the ship.  So the OP should not really have too much to worry about.  Also the ship has a short trip from Nassau to Coco, so if the ship would have to delay departure it isn’t as pressed for time to get to the next port.  
 

In general discussion about missing the ship are valid.  Realistically, with this itineraries, the risks are low. It would really take poor planning or just disregard for your timetable to miss the ship.  Port times do change so the only reliable source for actual Archer time would be the listed time as you depart the ship the day of.