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schwpaul

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Posts posted by schwpaul

    Am I crazy, or has Windjammer improved immensely?

    in Royal Caribbean International

    Posted

    Okay, I have to resurrect this thread from last month. After a few less than stellar Windjammer experiences, I had high hopes that this thread was accurate. After our 10/7 Jewel cruise, I am happy to report one of the best, if not the best, Windjammer experiences ever. Strip loin, beef brisket, and lamb were available almost every night. There was also a nice rotating selection of other main courses. The desserts were greatly improved from the gelatinous mess that seemed to have become the norm in Windjammer dining. On several nights fresh crepes and waffles were available with ice cream and many toppings. An ice cream cart even wandered the Windjammer and fresh sundaes were made table side on a couple of nights. We liked the experience so much we only made it to the MDR one night of a nine night sailing. Hopefully, these experiences were not just due to European sourcing for this cruise.

     

    Paul

    All Things Jewel of the Seas

    in Royal Caribbean International

    Posted

    What toiletries are still provided in a balcony room?

     

     

    We are fresh off of the Jewel this past Monday. There was only the single dispenser of the gel/shampoo combo and a bar of soap. The bar was replaced every three days.

     

    As a side note, this was one of our best cruises ever. The Jewel is a fantastic ship. The food in the Windjammer seemed to be better than any other Royal cruise in the last several years.

    Allure of the Seas May 15-22nd review and vlogs!

    in Royal Caribbean International

    Posted

    Hi everyone!

     

    We just got off the much covered Allure Western Caribbean sailing May 15th-22nd. Shoutout to the other ladies covering the cruise too!

     

    My DH and myself did a vlog for our youtube channel of the entire trip and I just posted the first video day 1 onboard. It’s definitely going to be the longest video of the trip as we did a little walkthrough of the ship for those who have never been on her.

     

    I will be posting days 2-7 in the following days, we have a lot of footage and photos to go through which I will try to post on this thread. We also have family visitors over to our home so my editing time is cut short a bit each day, but I will post at least a new video each day of the cruise.

     

    We had a really good experience aboard Allure with some minor hiccups. Our room was very hot throughout the cruise and we weren’t alone as we talked to some other guests who experienced the same thing. For day 3 our section of the ship was without water plumbing/flushing for a few hours, but that was resolved easily.

     

    Dining room was a bit of a disappointment. We were confirmed for a table for 2 (we emailed weeks prior and got a confirmed response) but were sat a table for 6. They tried to move us to 830 but we declined. On the day of our anniversary they switched us to a table for 2 but it was right across from our old table which made the situation a bit uncomfortable but we made the most of it.

     

    For those wondering about the drink package rumour that they were limiting drinks, I can assure you that they certainly were not. DH had 21 drinks in 1 day (…yes 21!!) and he was fine…it was very humid on one sea day, which probably helped.

     

    Any questions? I will be glad to answer them!

     

    Link to Day 1 video, stay tuned to day 2-7 in the coming days:

     

    Subscribe to our channel to get notified of when we post next!

     

     

    Thank you for posting the video. I really enjoyed the video and I am eagerly awaiting the next.

     

    Paul

    guarantee cabin

    in Royal Caribbean International

    Posted

    I switched my May cruise from the Oasis to the Allure last Friday. By Tuesday, my cabin had been assigned. I wasn't crazy about the location, so I called and switched to another cabin in that category. I love it when they have great rates on guarantee cabins.

     

    Paul

    Schooner Bar on Anthem

    in Royal Caribbean International

    Posted

    We are going to be doing the T/A on Anthem, and wonder if anyone knows the name of the piano man who will be holding down the Schooner Bar on the crossing.

     

    Thanks

     

    I have already requested information from web_reservations@rccl.com. They usually respond within a few days time. I usually receive an answer somewhere between 3 and 7 days. I will post the information on our roll call as soon as I receive it.

     

    Paul in Jax, FL

    Cirgarette Purchase onboard

    in Royal Caribbean International

    Posted

    My girlfriend smokes and she only takes enough on board to cover her needs until the general store opens. Usually we buy a 5 carton pack, but on our last cruise in May the 4 carton deal had a lower per carton cost. Think under $3 for Marlboro products. You will be able to take your purchase with you. We have also found, that when customs asks, if we answer honestly they don't care that we are leaving the ship with an extra carton per person.

     

    Paul

    RCL Slot Tournament Winners?

    in Royal Caribbean International

    Posted

    My girlfriend won a free cruise in the slot tournament about 4 years ago. The winners cruise was a 5 night on the Navigator. At that time, the least you would win even as a loser was $100. All of those not in the top few positions picked an envelope. Hers had $300 in it. It wasn't exactly the cruise we wanted to take, but all in all, the value to us was about $700. If either of us play in the slot tournament now, I always hope there are not enough players for the free cruise. I would rather receive cash and take the cruise we would like to take.

     

    Paul

    Day Rooms before late flight

    in Hawaii

    Posted

    I have called HHV, the Marriott, and the Outrigger hotels and none of them do day rates anymore. It's a shame since so many people want to do that with the late flights. When we were there 4 years ago a lot of the hotels did it. We are going to take our chance with late checkout. I may call some more hotels, if I hear anything I will def post it since no one seems to know about day rates.:)

     

    I would appreciate it greatly if you keep us informed. We have an 11pm flight after the end of our cruise and would love to have a day room.

     

    Paul

    Food Preferences - what would you like to see improved????

    in Royal Caribbean International

    Posted

    Add me to the list of people who think the desserts need major improvement. The windjammer desserts were basically the same every day and were either gelatinized or moussed. The items looked and tasted cheap.

     

    The cream soups seem to have become more watery to me also. Cost cutting is obvious.

     

    So much of the food could use a major overhaul. Just think, if they feed us now for $10-$11/day, what kink of difference could another $5 a day make?

     

    Paul

    Travelling Freedom of The Seas with 7m twins

    in Royal Caribbean International

    Posted

    Hi! My husband and I are seasoned cruisers, 18 and 23 cruises respectively, and this will be the first time with our babies. They will be 7.5 months at time of sailing. I have compiled a great packing list by combing through the family threads, but still have some questions.

     

    We are booked in FO 8200, the largest FO on the ship. I have had these types of rooms in the past and know the layouts can vary. There will be 6 of us in total. DH, the twins, 83 yo FIL, friend, and myself. First, is the sofa a full size? My FIL prefers that to the sofa being pulled out into a bed. Will there be room for 2 PNP? RC website states that only one can be reserved per cabin, which makes no sense if you have 2 babies. Anyone get 2 PNP through RC?

     

    Strollers - I see lots of talk about strollers, but not this specific question. We have a Double Snap and Go frame that holds 2 car seats in tandem. Would we be better off with a compact side-by-side umbrella such as the Citi Mini or Combi? My husband wants to bring a jogger, but I feel it will be just too big.

     

    I thought I had read that there is time you can take the babies into the nursery to play with them and now I can not find it. Is this true? My friend is going on a free cruise in exchange for a few hours of babysitting a day.

     

    Dining room - Is this doable at all with baby twins? This is a family cruise with 2 other cabins of family so we would like to dine together occasionally. We had read about special request for pureed meals (not baby food) and were given a hard time by our Costco booking agent. She said Royal Caribbean required to know which passengers this was for as RC does not make baby food. As my FIL is 83, we indicated the pureed meals would be for him, figuring that we could just switch plates.

     

    Did you go back to the cabin for every diaper change? As we are in the very front of the ship, would prefer not to do that. I see there is a diaper changing station by the H2O zone. Any others?

     

    Any other tips? I am sure I will thank of more questions later.

     

    TIA!

     

    I suggest that you drop off one of the children with their grandmother and one with their uncle. ;-)

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