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Itsy Bitsy Yellow Polka Dot Bikini! Wow, that brings back memories of my youth 65 years ago. Jim

The Lincoln Center music was my favorite venue on a couple of HAL cruises. I will miss them. Jim

I heartily agree about the Casino smoke, my only complaint from our Rotterdam cruise in December 2021. Jim

In the early 1960s, I spent four years at Colby College in Waterville. I love Maine and will be there in June for my 60th reunion. If it had not been for the winters, I think I might have stayed in Maine forever. Instead I ended up near Seattle, about the same distance north but with much milder winters. Climate change is wreaking havoc with that now. Jim

Yeah, I am an 80-year-old with a landline as well as a cell. I do not give out my cell number.

What a great conversation. As I now approach my mid 80s (age wise), these are great things to think about. We are planning three trips in the next year, two land based and one cruise. Before embarking on those trips, I am going to institute a travel plan that incorporates many of these ideas and circulate them to my family. Thanks for all the great tips. Keep them coming. Jim

Hi, kazu, Thanks for your always good adice. Jim

Hi, Archipelago, There are two assigned seating times as well as Any Time (My Time, your choice of seating time, etc.). I can only assume that solos are included since I have never cruised as a solo. Jim

I hear that Celebrity will match some, if not all, Royal perks for Crown/Anchor members.

Hi, OCSC Mike, The reason I prefer the MDR over Windjammer for dinner is not the quality or quantity of the food. I find both very good quality. It is because I prefer a sit down dinner with individual service as opposed to self service. Jim

...few men possess.

Here is my take on Anthem of the Seas food for an October 2023 transatlantic cruise. The main buffets are always extremely busy on Boarding Day so we had decided in advance to try something different. We went to the Solarium Bistro (also a buffet). It had both hot and cold main courses, salads, and desserts. It was not busy when we sat down. We had our choice of tables. By the time we were done around 1 PM, it was a lot busier but still had tables available. In addition, it was relatively quiet and less hectic. Very civilized. The food selection was varied and delicious. That did not surprise me. On our previous cruise on Royal Caribbean in 2008, the food was always good. According the Hotel Director, whom we met one night at Jamie’s Italian, since the cruise began in England, there was no unsweetened ice tea mix onboard, a European thing. Fuwei and Hara brewed us fresh tea every night we ate in this dining room and added ice to the pot. As for the food, it was on a par with any midrange (4+ star) land-based restaurant. I would expect to pay at least $35-$45 US/person in such a restaurant. There were several choices each night for each of the three or four courses. There were vegetarian, gluten free and sugar free options. The food was excellent and well prepared (medium rare was medium rare). We could have been in and out in an hour but preferred a more leisurely experience. Even then, we were rarely there more than 90 minutes. Well done RCCL! BREAKFASTS: SILK DINING ROOM/WINDJAMMER BUFFET We ate breakfast at 9 AM most mornings. We split our meals between SILK DINING ROOM (opposite the AMERICAN ICON GRILL) and the WINDJAMMER BUFFET. SILK was much quieter and usually less crowded than the WINDJAMMER BUFFET (the main buffet). It also had seats that were more comfortable with cloth-covered tables, making it feel more elegant. Although the buffet at SILK was not as extensive as in the main buffet, it was more than adequate. There were hot and cold main courses: various cereals, assorted meats and cheeses, fresh breads and pastries galore, ingredients for a full English style breakfast, lox and bagels (my favorite), premade omelets (no omelet station) and more. The hot dishes were hot and the cold were cold. The servers brought coffee, tea and juices to the table. That was a nice touch. In a land-based restaurant, I would expect to pay between $15-$25 US per person for the variety of food available and the service. LUNCHES: MANY VENUES TRIED We varied our lunch venues to a few different places. WINDJAMMER BUFFET, CAFÉ 270, JOHNNY ROCKETS, SOLARIUM BISTRO and SORRENTO’S PIZZA. Except for JOHNNY ROCKETS, they were all included in our cruise fare. They were all buffets or counter service. None had tableside ordering options. As I mentioned earlier, we tried the Solarium Bistro for our first lunch on boarding day. We ate dinner there once or twice; we had breakfast there once or twice and maybe another lunch or two. It was never crowded; the staff were prompt with drinks and offered any other assistance we might need. The food was always very good and there were ample selections for varied appetites and diets. I would recommend trying it out yourself. My wife and I, due to diet restrictions (carb intake), do not eat pizza crust but we scraped off the toppings at SORRENTO’S and it was more than adequate for a meal. I did taste the crust a couple of times and it was very much in the New York style (thin, very well made and tasty). The toppings were awesome. I would expect to pay about $10 – 15 US for these pizza slices. As for a star rating, I think 4-stars is about right. We ate here two or three times. JOHNNY ROCKETS is an a la carte priced burger restaurant and partially outdoors. I say partially because it was enclosed on three side with the fourth being open to the pool deck. It is an extension of a 1950’s themed land-based restaurant chain that we liked long before our first RCCL cruise in 2008. It had a couple of booths but mostly regular table seating options. The burgers were much better than a Burger King or McDonalds but not gourmet. I would say they are a par with the Dive-In on Holland America. The fries were tasty. The best part were the Cookies and Cream milk shakes. A full meal with burger, shake and fries was about $12.50 US in 2023. This pricing is less than what you may pay on land (website pricing $30.95 as of December 27, 2023). We thought the price (reasonable) and the meals (very good) were worth the extra cost. Four stars for value and taste. CAFÉ 270 is located next to the entertainment venue 270 at the stern (aft) of the ship. Daytime, it had great views of the ship’s wake. That was where the closest seating was if you got lunch in the café. It was buffet style dining with salads, sandwiches and desserts plus beverages. There was more than enough food to satisfy our lunch demands. The view was to die for! WINDJAMMER BUFFET - This is the main buffet style-dining venue. It is open for long hours for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. It is divided into many individual stations, each featuring different types of food. Even at the busiest times of day, you could get your food quickly. You have to find your own table; that might take longer than getting the food. Plenty of windows from which to view the world around the ship, whether at sea or in a port. Whatever food we tried in WINDJAMMER, it was excellent and at the correct temperature. You decide on your portion sizes and you can eat as much as you want. My only complaint is that beverages were not delivered to the table at lunch or dinner. Breakfast time saw juices, tea and coffee brought to your table (some of the time). I would rate this as 4.95 stars (lack of unsweetened ice tea prevents five). Before entering the buffet dining area, there are handwashing/sanitizing stations. USE THEM TO HELP PREVENT/CONTROL ANY SHIP BOARD ILLNESSES! SPECIALTY DINING – tried three counting Johnny Rockets On our first cruise on a Royal Caribbean ship in 2008 (Navigator OTS), we ate at two specialty restaurants including Chops. At that time, we felt that although the food was excellent, it was not worth the extra fees because the Main Dining Room and Windjammer Buffet food was so good. On this cruise on Anthem OTS, the food in the American Icon Grill/Windjammer was also excellent. As we were celebrating birthdays this time, we decided to have dinner twice in specialty venues. Our first meal was in CHOPS, the steakhouse, on my wife’s actual birthday. We had the filet steak and it was perfectly cooked (medium for my wife, medium rare for me). It was delicious and tender. The staff made a big production about singing Happy Birthday and had prepared a special dessert for her. Well done RCCL! A few days later, not wanting to stop celebrating, we dined at JAMIE’S ITALIAN RESTAURANT. We ordered two Chicken Parmigiana. Once again the chef did it right, pounded thin, crusted, with cheese and sauce. Momma mia, it was one of the best ever. More singing and desserts added to the festivities. Kudos RCCL! Jim

Hi, Jacqueet, "kazu" answered the question before i could. I use the terms "My Time Dining" or "Any Time Dining" interchangeably to signify that my wife and/or I are dining at a time we want rather than what the cruise ship specifies ("Early" or "Late"). It is only used in relationship to any Main Dining Room location, not the Buffet or Specialty Dining venues. i hope that helps. Jim

I always ask my travel agent to book MDR times before we leave home (most often at time of booking the cruise). Usually My Time. I do not book tables for two as we want to meet new people. We try for a total of 6 or 8 people, tops. On our recent RCL transatlantic, we had met up with another couple precruise so dined with them most nights. Although we had booked My Time, it was the same time (6:45) every night at the same table with the same servers. Of the fifteen nights, we ate there twelve times. On our Rotterdam cruise, we were traveling with cousins but had My Time dining at a table for 6 so two others joined us. Same table and servers every night we ate in the MDR. Four nights of eleven we ate in specialty spots.

Hi, Mike07, I sometimes use ship excursions knowing that they are more expensive than they need to be. I sometimes use my own initiative and book with locals. I use ship trips if the shore location involves long time/distance travel. If the activity is close by, I use the local options. I have never been disappointed in either case. In Honolulu, I would go local to visit Pearl Harbor. To the Polynesian Cultural Center, I might go local if the cruise involves an overnight stay. Otherwise, I would use a ship tour. Jim

Hi, Haljo1935, If you are here (Seattle) for more than a few hours, we would be happy to be tour guides. Jim and Madie

Thanks, Haljo1935. Happy you got home safely. Your commentary has been wonderful to follow. I hope our paths will cross. If you ever get to Seattle, let me know. Jim

Blackduck59, My Jan. 2025 cruise on Koningsdam has an overnight stay in Honolulu so there will be time to get to the Polynesian Cultural Center, on my own. I have been there before as well as its gift shop was another of my accounts. Thanks for the reminder. Jim

Back when I was employed, I used to visit Pearl Harbor three times a year as I used to sell books to the Gift Shop there. I agree that it is worth the effort to get there. I would prefer to do it on my own not with an excursion. Another "Don't Miss" is the Polynesian Cultural Center on the North Shore. That, too, I would do on my own, if time is no issue. Jim

Before moving to Pearl Harbor, the Missouri was berthed for many years in Bremerton WA across Puget Sound from Seattle. I took my son and wife there a couple of times when he was younger (now 52+_). I miss being able to visit this historic ship so conveniently. Jim

Hi, Haljo1935, You are a trooper and a lot more patient than I. I would have gone to management a lot earlier. I think you should follow up with both HAL and CCL directly. If you go to their websites, you can find the names you need. Send them copies of the appropriate posts in this stream. I hope you have a GREAT New Year and Happier cruises. Jim

packercruising, From what I gather from the You tube Cruise Bloggers, the movement activated night lights are off until you move about. I have carried night lights that plug in and are on until you unplug them. We leave the bathroom door slightly open to light the way. There are also night lights that turn on like a sunrise for inside cabin use. Everybody have a great New year. Jim

We worry about tripping over stuff on our way to and fro. I am going to look into motion sensor night lights that a lot of You Tube Cruisers mention. You can reach me at BOOKSFORLESS@prodigy.net Thanks for the great stories. Jim

We may stay at the Wyndham Bayside in January 2025. Jim

We will be on Koningsdam in January 2025 (the 28th). Originally, I had booked cabin 1140 like my Rotterdam cabin. But a deal came along and changed to 7001, forward facing right under the Bridge. Jim