RFerrington

Dan finally gone a couple of crappy 4 and 5 night offers. Still nothing for me.

This is my guess…

The last Suites Concierge letter I received also did not mention the 11-11 beverage service. I was also concerned but the 11-11 service was working just like always. My guess is they don’t mention it in case they decide to end it in the future. Won’t surprise me in the slightest…

We always use the laundry perk and have never had any issue with shrinkage or fading. I never use that limited list; I send out anything I want laundered and use the longer list that is normally used for paid laundry service. I put a big X through the charge and write NC D+ in big letters. Never had an issue and never been charged for anything.

We cruise between 2-4 times per month. Haven’t had an offer since March. Luckily we booked a bunch back when we were getting offers so we’re nearly booked solid through the end of the year. After that though….not much.

AMEN !

🥰

Yes

This is my hypothesis as well

Wow ! Looks like the balcony is the bargain of the day !

😯😵

Congratulations !!! The OS is my favorite cabin on non-Oasis class ships. Really nice upgrade ! Yes, you will still get 2X cruise points since your original cabin was already eligible for double points. You will have 24 hour access to the Suites Lounge and your drinks during Happy Hour will be complimentary. However, no other alcohol or sodas will be complimentary outside of the SL so if you were originally going to purchase the DBP, you probably still want it. Only the Oasis class ships offer 11-11 complimentary beverages. As you mentioned, there is no suites restaurant on Mariner so there is no complimentary specialty dining EXCEPT for breakfast. You will have access to a specialty restaurant for breakfast (most likely Chops but I'm not sure which one Mariner uses). This is a wonderful perk. It's one of my very favorites. If you want to have specialty restaurant [evening and lunch] dining, you will need to keep your UDP. Enjoy the OS ! You will be spoiled.

I think you are absolutely on target. We [older, long-time clients] are no longer their target audience. It's ok with the cruise line if they lose us - they are targeting the young family crowd who will (presumably) stay with Royal for THEIR cruising lifetime.

Don’t forget that the UDP includes specialty dining on sea days plus the package is [for the most part] unlimited meaning you can visit multiple paid venues per day. When you factor all of those meals in, the UDP is most definitely less expensive, per meal, than buying a la carte.

Interesting. Is that a "Galveston" thing ? I have never heard of a "western" night. Should be fun !

Actually, I feel confident that they would prefer to have more people purchase the more expensive, individual meals.

The Concierge letter has been coming 5 days prior for us, recently. Shouldn't be less than 5 days.

Depends on the ship. O has 4 more Star Class than their newer sisters (the owners and grand panoramic suites and the 2 ultimate panoramic suites on the front of the ship). Allure has 2 more (the owners and grand panoramics but not the ultimate panoranics). Wonder and Utopia are the worst as they have removed the SC Loft suites completely.

No. The alternating pattern indicates that 12714 would have the bed by the bathroom. 12712 is the "right" orientation so the room next to it (12714) would be "wrong" meaning the bed is near the bathroom. Remember....you must start your orientation/alternating from the HALLWAY.

Thanks for that little piece of intel, Ken. I never knew this !!!

Worth it ? Yes. Likely to happen ? No.

Totally agree that the naming convention and the changes they made to try and clarify them, have done nothing but add more confusion. You really have to research and be SURE you know what you are getting, We have stayed in both the "side-facing" and "rear-facing" Grand Loft Suites on Anthem. In Feb 2019 we did a B2B and stayed in the middle (rear-facing) suite (8724) on the first leg and the "corner" (10720) on the second leg. Personally, I would never ever recommend the corner GLS (the one with the 3 balconies) to anyone who is paying for Star Class. Perhaps in the case of Alaska they provide some unique viewing options but otherwise, they are definitely inferior to the center (aft-facing) suites. The upstairs area in the corner lofts are tiny...we couldn't even fit all of our hanging clothes into the tiny closet upstairs. The entire "dressing area" of the center suites is missing on the corner suites. IMO these [corner suites] are fine as Sky class lofts but do not meet the level for SC. If you have a choice, I highly recommend the center suites on deck 10. The noise from 270 is slightly less up on 10 and I think the square footage on 10 is very slightly greater than it is on 8. The noise on deck 8 GLS is very VERY loud during 270 performances.

There was a post recently on the blog that indicated that those who stay in the Ultimate Family Suite receive a complimentary cabana + water park tickets for everyone in the suite. I had never heard this before and cannot personally verify it or even find where that amenity is documented. I do not know if it is true...but it might be !.

I always take pill organizers and have never had any issues. My meds are pretty "meh" so I'm not particularly concerned. I have LOTS of supplements though. I think taking photos of the pill bottles makes a lot of sense. I am going to start doing that.

Thanks ! We never bother with Izumi teppanyaki anyway so it will just affect Hooked. Seems like an odd exemption to me. I guess we will just use Hooked as one of our 3 for the 3 night plan and do one of the others as our BOGO. That helps in the dinner lineup planning !!