alfaeric

Bulk. Just like they seemed to turn Buffalo Trace to an easy to get brand (especially Blantons) to one that was allocated.

I would think vintage would have a major impact on various costs you see. Something that is older and rarer will be a lot more expensive vs something newer (and normally more abundant). This even applies if the old wine has over aged- part of the gamble getting a 30+ year old bottle of wine. But even for the less expensive wines on board, we have thought the bottle deals have been pretty darned good. Somewhere between what we can find in stores vs. the same bottle in a restaurant. It helps that RCI buys in much bigger bulk than most restaurants. edit- for fun, I looked up Opus One at a really large retail wine store- and found a 2019 Opus One for sale at $390, a 2012 at $790, and a 2016 Magnum (1.5l vs. 750ml) at $1100. The "cheap" one us the Overture Blend by Opus One at $145. If that info helps... (that's our local Total Wine)

Not quite a tent in the woods, but we very much camp a LOT now. COVID got us into trailer camping, and it stuck. Now that we are retired, it's pretty much a different season to our cruising time. But for that article, it's not an OR for the camping vs. cruising- just like it's not an AND for all of the things that are on the ship- we don't do them all at once. I would suggest that a newbie try things they've never done, but don't over do it. The only think we've not done on an Oasis cruise is the zip line- but other than that, we've done every thing that one can do over our many Oasis cruises. I agree that it's fair, other than that. I fully accept that cruising isn't for everyone (and if it were, it would be considerably more expensive). Just like I accept that camping isn't for everyone. Or going to Europe isn't for everyone, or going to races, or going hiking or going to shows..... Heck, the appeal to cruising is really different for everyone. Can't wait to get on the Allure in February. But I'm not taking the cowboy hat. Unless it looks like a Panama hat.

Can't say I'm surprised, but at least they implemented the most reasonable solution by adding the drinks to any bar. We've heard about the limits in the past to access the lounges- and given the size of the lounges, it really makes sense. And with the massive numbers of cabins that are sailing every single week, the numbers are just going to rise. Our previous solution to avoid lots of high level C&A cruisers was to sail on expensive cruises, which commonly happened over holidays- we were once top cruisers as D+ on a NYE cruise. Now that we are retired we look for cheap B2B's to sail on, which means we will be top cruiser in 30 more years of sailing.

We are on anthem now, and could get in the last two weeks as P, as there are less than 100 sailing As for Ps over the holiday, it depends on the cost. If the cruise is cheap, there will be a lot of Ps on board. But in my experience, holiday cruises are expensive.

So you would be ok with the same increase across the board for all cruise fares, then.

So people complain of the lack of service, being so hard right now to attract crew, and then complain about the rather obvious solution. welcome to cruise critic.

Checking the various sources, it looks like the launch was delayed a day. That happened not too long ago.

Sorry about losing the tour, but thanks for the heads up for the launch!!!! We will be out on the top deck to watch for sure!!!!!

This morning was better than yesterday, but we are in rain now. Hoping that Monday this will all clear out. We stay on for next week. Still smoother than last Monday, which wasn’t *that* bad.

Because seeing someone else’s picture is exactly like seeing them in person. Not. geez. And you won’t see our pictures.

I should have known that the Debbie downers of CC would try to lessen my mood. Oh, well, thanks to confirm why we keep to ourselves. BTW, we are in the Atlantic east of North Carolina. Shockingly cool to see in a surprise spot.

So there we were, having a birthday breakfast on our balcony when I heard a sudden splash, very different from the waves. We look out over the sea to see what it was, and see a group of dolphins dancing along side the ship!! They were not following us, just jumping out of the waves in different directions. Had we not been out there, we would have totally missed it. Happy birthday, indeed.

No, those bars are closed, too. Just to make sure alarmists don’t cruise. what an amazing assumption you make. Let alone the bars you go out of your way to ignore. I’ll suggest to find a different place to sail.

The most important thing is to avoid that person who has a cold. Happened to us on our last cruise- one person had a bad cold, and still went out. So the morning we got off the ship, one of us was sick- and then the other got it during the trip home. So we will mask up for big crowds on our next cruises.

Can you have them take you to lunch and return later?

If you say so. It's certainly not my cruise that is bothered by other people wearing whatever, that's for sure. There are a ton of "not good looks" for me, but I really don't care if other people want to wear it, and I'm certainly not going to comment about that.

It matters to you so much that you are here telling people to not wear them. The simple fact that you call them "questionable fashion choices" points out that you notice and get bothered by other people choices. Deny it all you want, but you are putting the words out there. It bugs you. And I find that hilarious that it matters to you so much that you would post about it.

Threads like this reminds me of the main reason I wear a lanyard- to ruin other people's vacation... It's so awesome that so many people are bothered SO MUCH about how other people carry their seapass card, just amazing. You spend $1000 on vacation, and my free lanyard ruins all of that. Gotta love it. OP- never had an issue with a hole punch on non RFID ships, but carry a clear pocket for ships that are RFID. Bonus, with RFID, you never take the card out of the clear pouch. I think within a few years, I'll be wearing socks with my sandals. Especially flip flops. Dark ones, so that they are obvious. Maybe add a speedo as I get even older.

Normally, we would dress up. And given the celebration on our next cruise, we will probably will do so again. But we are starting to take B2B cruises, so space is more of a premium. So... That being said, dress up!!! I enjoy seeing other people dressed up, and they all look so great. As many have said, it's your vacation, if you want to dress to the 9's, you should.

thanks for checking- we were concerned that it was something on our end. But sorry that you are having issues, too.

For some reason, when we look for next cruises on the Royal app, nothing is showing up. They all show up via the website- just the app is not working. Actually- sometimes they show up for a brief moment, then then all go away.

So you can freely cross state lines. That doesn't mean that a community can't control the flow in and out of their locations. They do in multiple ways- road size, number of hotel rooms, number of bar licences, number of restaurant licences, and- as we are seeing here- number of cruise ship passengers. None of those restrictions have been challenged via your SCOTUS law. Just sayn. All that ruling really means is that the states are not considered independent countries that have immigration controls between them. If you want to go up to Bar Harbor and start a lawsuit, I fully encourage you.

We'll be on the same cruise, and the one previous, too. 270 is a really cool venue, especially since it's a really nice relaxation place during the day. Spectra's is the big show there, but there have been virtual concerts there during the evening, too. As well as tech demos of what it can do. And once in a while, there are real concerts there- the orchestra did a show there once- although most music events are held in Music Hall (which is also a great venue). It's been many years since we did Wonderland, and it's a real experience- we plan on eating there Saturday before the turn around. Kinda sucks that Ifly and North Star have a fee now, we managed to do them both when they were free, and loved it. The 60 seconds you get in iFly is a really long 60 seconds. Maybe you can find times when they are free. Haven't done bumper cars yet- maybe this time. If you like Queen, you will like We Will Rock You- the actual story is not all that strong (and one that is repeated many times in Pop Culture) but the music is really great. The Gift is the other show- we think it's ok- at least see it if you have time. See you on the ship!

As much as you don't think so, they do have control over other traffic. If the city cut the number of hotel rooms available in half, it would also cut the road traffic. Let alone there are controls of the number of cars based on the road widths and traffic control. Controlling number of hotel rooms is close enough to controlling the number of passenger ships in port to me. And I really don't see a constant summer of people flooding the town the same as the handful of items that are in Daytona each year. IIRC, there have been some attempts to reign in spring breakers. But if you don't have an issue with that, awesome. Don't get angry at people who DO, though. BTW, which Amendment gives you the right to free travel? Must have missed that one in civics class.