DragonOfTheSeas

Us virtual cruisers are having a good time reading all about the WC--but, not nearly as much fun as you all have had sailing it. 😜

I am going to miss Island lady.

Love the magnet and the alien. --Ha ha ha!

I am sure that is the same tour we had. I am glad they still offer it. Here is my not very clear picture of the butterfly.

We stopped at PA in Costa Rica on a Panama Canal cruise. It was several years ago. Since it was Easter week, we were told that many families take off work that week. The beaches were busy and the roads were jam packed. Our buses were late picking us up to start our excursion [almost 2 hrs]. It was a ship tour, and we were told we might be late getting back and not to worry--and we were late. It was a very unusual tour that took us to the rainforest and to see the crocodiles. In the park we traveled on aerial trams. We were seated on the tram and it was attached above the ground on what looked like a zip line. Each tram had an operator/tour guide that narrated the tour and pointed out the things to see. They could speed it up or stop. Sometimes we were in the canopy and other times pretty close to the ground. We walked through some exhibits first and then took this tour. Afterwards we went to the river. We saw lots of animals. They fed the crocodiles chicken to make them come closer. Sorry--I could not find the name of the tour. However, if anyone sees a tour that includes these features it was excellent. It was hot, but did not require lots of walking in the heat. Also, on the trams we got a little bit of a "breeze" from our movement.

Likely wants to know if BOGO applies for lunch.

This was Fort Lauderdale and the desk was outside, but under an overhang.

We had a similar transfer when we had a 3-day sail on Liberty and then we moved to the Vision. I did a live review. this is What I wrote at the time. "Our transfer was fairly easy. When we were ready to leave the ship, we got our luggage and then went all the way down the front of them terminal to a shuttle desk right beside the suite entrance. DH needs disembarking assistance, so we got to that desk at about 8:25am. (Timing was up to wheelchair assistance.) Other guests eventually arrived. There were 12 of us total that took the shuttle. It arrived at 9:45am. We had benches, it was in shade and an OK wait. It ended up being a 55 passenger bus. It was about a 5 to 10 minute drive just around this one inlet. And they let us come into the terminal immediately. We are in a junior suite so now we’re in the suite lounge but others that were in regular cabins were permitted in as well. It was a pretty seamless process. I would do it again."

We had to leave a cruise because of injury, so did not get a final bill. We waited for an email and never got one. We used the link on the website to ask for the folio to be emailed to us. We needed this for insurance purposes. Finally, we had to call the Crown and Anchor number and got it before I was off the phone. Give them a call.

We were on the Liberty OTS in April. There were two very long tables all pushed together near us. Our MTD time was 7:15 [so not early or late dining] Shortly after we arrived a staff member brought a group of 14 women to one of the tables and a few minutes later, 15 people arrived for the second table. We assumed these were arranged by genies. Are you in a suite?

That is a shame. We were on the Harmony first TA. I really enjoyed the escape room. As an added bonus it was a free activity.

We sailed the Celebrity Beyond about a year ago. She was their newest ship at the time. At 1,071 ft for the Beyond vs 1,184 ft for Symphony of the Seas there is not that much difference in length. So I would avoid this class if you like smaller ships. I did not really care for the Beyond. I love the martini bar on the S class, but do not like the way they made the martini bar into a very large three tier centrum. The Eden area was very unique. However, we were not able to get a dinner reservation. [We visited at other times.] Our loyalty status allowed us to sign up for events held there. However, we tried to do this immediately when we got the invite but got replies that all slots were taken. The larger ship had more people but most venues were not that much larger. JMHO

If you are Diamond on Royal you would be Elite on Celebrity. [there is no singular reward account] While I do not feel their loyalty benefits are as good as those with Royal, they still enhance the experience. We do not sail with them often because of distance to embarkation ports and price, but they do provide more overnight stays and experiences, etc. Have you taken a one-way cruise from Quebec City on Royal? Those a fairly small ship cruises and we feel Quebec City is a great place to spend a few days before you embark. There is so much to see and do in a city that makes us feel like we are in Europe.

On Jeopardy! last night one of the answers was the rockhoppers. Thanks for helping me know the correct answer. 😁

DH and I were on a cruise that stopped in Grand Cayman a few years ago with Celebrity. We decided to stay onboard to use the Persian Gardens since we got to use it free for one port day. I love the heated loungers and do not like tendering. It had been a very nice, hot and sunny day until just about an hour or so before we were due to leave the island when a storm blew in. Tendering slowed down because it was more difficult to get pax back on the ship, etc. People had to wait in the rain for tenders to return and pick them up. The last tender of the day was a group of women on a Celebrity sponsored trip. [around 20] Their tender tried to get to the ship, but the swells were higher. So, the small tender went back to the shore and the women were put on a larger tender. They were drenched, cold and scared by this point. One of them refused to get on the new tender. They told her this was the only way she was getting back to the ship. So, all boarded the new tender and were told to put on the life vests. They said they were dirty and in very poor condition and the ride to the ship was bumpy. They were half pulled into the ship from the tender. X gave them each a bottle of wine. I think of this every time we have to tender somewhere.

I have always felt the various ships should state that pax can only use tables in food venues during lunch hours for eating. [could limit this to 11:30-1:30pm] On one of our cruises the ship had a small section of the MDR set up with tablecloths and pax could go there to play cards, etc. JMHO

I would think they would have to rethink this policy for TAs.

I am very sorry to hear that. I am booked on Oasis for a TA in October and will be disappointed to not have MDR lunch. We have many sea days. [which I enjoy] DH has some mobility issues and WJ can be problematic for him. I know there are other venues. However, most are very casual.

I am not sure that the average figures hold true for this cruise. While RCL included many items for full WC and 1/4 segment cruisers [drinks, grat, etc], the cost of the cruise was substantially more than typical. . . . and as some proved you could buy the segments and the add-ons and save money. Also, they are going to lots of ports that passengers are not familiar with. If you pay this much for a cruise around the world, why would you skimp on excursions? There have been numerous comments by pax that while they usually DIY excursions, they do not feel comfortable doing it in some of these places. Some of the excursions have been very spendy. i.e. the $1600/person for the trip to the falls from Buenos Aires. Pax that took independent tours to the falls said theirs was much less. I feel comparing this cruise to typical cruises is apples to oranges. JMHO

1st Prize for "Best Post of the Day".

I can't wait for you to get to Antarctica. That has always been a dream of mine.

Sounds like you had a fun dose of local culture.

His ribs have healed after the surgery. He still has PT. Thank you for asking. We have a cruise in March. I have my fingers crossed all will be well. . . . . Sorry to digress from New Year's Eve. DH fell on our last cruise and I was doing a live thread. Every now and then I hear from a fellow passenger. People on CC are very caring. It is going to be very crowded in the Harbor. That makes it a little scary and exciting at the same time. What a great way to ring in the new year. It seems to me that this trip has already been the trip of a lifetime. I am not sure how RCL will keep this up. But, I look forward to following along.

Ha Ha Ha--I didn't know when it was announced.

I was thinking of something similar. The 3/4/5/7 night cruises--especially in the summer are full of families. I am sure they are big money makers. However, late fall and winter does not have that many families. DH and I took our first 3 night cruise from FLL last spring. We booked it to match with another cruise that left the day that cruise ended. [a side to side] The ship was full of adults getting their money's worth from drink packages and children everywhere. We won't be taking one of those again. 😜 It was the RCL regulars that kept the company afloat [pun intended] during the recession in the 2007-2009 and Covid timeframe. RCL needs a diversified demographic for the long run.