50 Years of Cruising on Royal -- Share Your Memories!

[oneputt18]

Ten years ago today, I watched the Oasis of the Seas arrive in Port Everglades, what an awesome site!

Then we sailed on her inaugural cruise. I remember the feeling when we boarded on the Royal Promenade!

Edited November 13, 2019 by oneputt18

[roadburner]

My parents gave us our first ever RCCL cruise on Legend of the Seas to Alaska in June, 1996 for our 25th anniversary. We had a starboard cabin  on deck 6 OV (pre-balcony days).As we were sailing through the Inside Passage and preparing for formal night, a movement along the shore caught our attention.  It turned out that a family of sea otter were romping and playing near the shore. We both stopped what we were doing to watch their antics.  We watched and laughed until they were pretty much too far away to see.  As we turned away from the window to continue dressing, our eyes fell to the bed tables. There in plain sight, unused but on the ready, were both our still camera and movie camera!😂

 

Kay (& Steve)

[Candocruises]

On 3/1/2019 at 12:17 PM, Bootman4U said:

My unfavorite memory: the Oasis and being told to expect dinner in the MDR to take at least 1.5 hours at a minimum

      A meal taking at least 1.5 hours is called "Dining", a very special event and not readily available or possible in this day and age..  "Eating" is what you do every day and is usually accomplished while driving, watching a sporting event or television, yelling at the kids, etc.  

     My most unfavorable observation is that RCI has chosen to encourage and accommodate those who choose to "eat" in the MDR verses the dining experience they once provided decades ago when we began cruising.  

Edited December 2, 2019 by Candocruises
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[SF Cfan]

First cruise overall and first cruise on RC, 4 day Baja out of San Pedro on the Viking Serenade, October of '90 or there about.  Catalina Island, San Diego, and Ensenada calls, the cost was more expensive in real dollars, seems like $360.00 per person inside cabin.  Service and food were terrific.  Disco in the Viking Crown Lounge was terrific.

[NordicPrince]

Shipshape Dollars!!!! Having to take an outside stairway to go up into the Viking Crown Lounge!!! Midnight buffets. people stuffing themselves with potato salad at midnight!!! David the English Waiter!!! List of all the Passengers!! Skeet shooting off the stern deck!!! Shuffleboard!!! Horse racing by the pool!!! Fixed to the floor beds in cabin!!! Cabin not big, touching knees sitting opposite on beds!!!Ship yawing bow to stern in tail wind, minimal stabilizers!!! Real teak all around the ship!!! 

 

Nordic Prince to Bermuda 1990!!! Docking at St George and Hamilton!!!

Edited December 10, 2019 by NordicPrince
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[norcruiser82]

 My favourite memory - so far, have to be our Transatlantic cruise with Independence of the Seas in April 2017. Even though it wasn't my or my wife's first cruise, it was the first cruise we were on as a family, together with our daughter. She loved it, and we made a lot of amazing memories!

Now I'm looking forward to the first cruise we can go on - as a family of 4, with our newborn daughter 🙂

Picture of Independence in Labadee, April 2017

Edited December 15, 2019 by norcruiser82

[cruiselvr04]

Our first cruise was in 1989....hard to believe that was over 30 years ago.  I remember a lot of the same things that have been mentioned.  Passenger lists, skeet shooting and golf off the back of the ship.  We watched a video over Christmas of that cruise. We also had flaming baked Alaska delivered to the table on the waiters heads.  Our cabin was the size of the Empress inside cabins.  We didn’t even have a chair.  We were on deck 2 all the way forward and heard the anchor dropping at our heads. While I still love the formal nights and am sad at the informality of the MDR other things have vastly improved over the years. We now have more options of things to do, more places to eat and larger cabins.  Cruising is still a great way to see the world in comfortable surroundings.  

 

There are are so many things we’ve seen and done while cruising. One of my favorites is still sitting and watching the wake of the ship.  

[amberngriff]

[Bery]

Hi,  24 years ago (1996) we first sailed on Song of America in a tiny inside cabin.  A small ship with a great Crow’s Nest bar and great food and  a fun vibe.  The food was more than great - on lobster night, the waiter served a whole lobster and cracked it for us at the table - yummy!  We sailed to Bermuda,  3 years in a row, because we loved S of A and Bermuda so much -  but especially the Crow’s Nest with its waiter who served hot delicious hors d’ouvres.   In June 1997, we sat in the CN during a tropical storm and enjoyed watching massive waves lap the pool deck as we sailed.  During the rough seas, the dining room was quite empty and paper bags were available at every elevator station.  We have sailed many cruises since but Song of America remains our favorite ship - no bells - no whistles - no slides or ice skating - just a great tiny ship with a great crew and great food and Bermuda! We are sailing to Bermuda this year on The Empress which is small enough to dock in St. George and Hamilton.  As Mark Twain famously said, “.  ...Heaven.”  See you there!

[compucruiser]

In September of 1994, I took my wife on a surprise Western Caribbean cruise on board the Majesty of the Seas for our 15th anniversary.  It was also our first cruise ever.   The entertainment was phenomenal - in this one week we saw Mary Wilson and the Supremes, Herb Reed and the Platters, plus the usual show dances/signers/comedians.  We had such a great time with our waiter Raul, who served us with such flair, we booked a European cruise the next year on the Song of Norway.  Would you believe the same waiter served us on the S of N the next year?  He remembered all of our table mates names, which we forgot.

 

[cruisinrg]

Honeymooned on the Song of America in 1984, it was their biggest ship of the fleet - all 35,000 tons of it. We thought it was huge and loved every minute of that cruise. We've been cruising ever since and are D+ on Royal. I'll never forget how fabulous the customer service was back then. My husband ripped his tuxedo pants at our wedding and we were leaving the next day for our cruise, he was bringing the tux with him. Our wonderful cabin steward took his pants to a tailor off the ship and had them repaired, we thought that was amazing. Also, I had seen an amethyst ring at one of the shops but didn't buy it, the shopping person on board saw me in the shop looking at the ring. A day or so later after we obviously left port, she asked me if i bought the ring...I didn't and I regretted it. She said she remembered the ring and she could get it for me if I still wanted it. Sure enough, she called the shop and had them ship the ring to me. The ships are bigger than ever and we still love cruising, and so do our kids who are adults.

[BytheC]

In 1997, I escorted my widowed grandmother on her first cruise for her 91st birthday. We went on a 4 day cruise on Sovereign of the Seas  in January to see if she really liked it. ( My granddad rarely traveled). I studied and studied the ship layout in case of emergency or any of her wants. 

We got aboard and looked around the ship and low and behold wound up in the Crown Lounge. Of course we enjoyed a Manhattan straight up and my mixed drink.  A good start. 

Day one - Nassau. We cabbed to town but she didn't want to go on any tour. We took a cab back after 1.5 hours. Done. 

Day two - Old Coco Cay. We settled in the first cove area, dipped our toes in the water .Of course we got two Coco-Locos.  I moved a lounge down out of the shade while keeping an eye on her. Ten minutes later she was gone. I sprung up to go look and finally found her emerging from the woods looking flushed, barefoot and weary. She hadn't found the rest room. So I sat her down, ran to get some lunch and tried to recover, glad she was safe. 

We made it back to the ship, got to experience some new things for her (food and the casino), and enjoyed the rest of the cruise. 

Two years later after she had suffered a stroke,  family and I visited her in the hospital for Thanksgiving. She said she wanted to go on another cruise and pointed to me and said, "But I want to go with this guy again." I couldn't have been more thrilled. She never got to go but, boy, were my siblings and cousins GREEN. 

[Jillbus]

in 2015 I proposed to my wife on our balcony on the Liberty of the Seas!  We LOVE RCCL!

[crusinpsychRN]

I remember watching Univ. of Florida and yelling "interception" at one point. UF did intercept and won the game. Can't remember opponent...People teased me I fixed the game.

[GTVCRUISER]

My cruises on the Radiance of the Seas ......... https://youtu.be/a0WaHEdM24k

 

[SJ1_]

On my birthday one year we were sailing on the Freedom of the Seas.  After a great day on Cozumel we were outside

watching the movie.  Was a perfect night and I went over to the pool bar and ordered a corona.   The bartender looked

at my sea pass card , saw it was my birthday and said "It's your birthday, drinks on me"   was caught off guard by his comment.  Not the biggest thing that e.ver happend but was a very thoughfull thing to do and made a great way to spend a birthday just that much better

[tonyweir]

We sailed on our first cruise in Feb 1986 for our honeymoon. It was on Song of America. We liked it so much that we went back (with our frozen wedding cake top) for our first anniversary on Song of Norway.

 

Back again for our 10th anniversary on Viking Serenade.

 

Then we started really cruising! We sailed with RCI 7 more times. Princess got 4 and Carnival got 1 of our trips.

 

Our last 3 were all Royal Caribbean. It's like coming home! There will be more RCI cruises in our future!

[GTVCRUISER]

Song of Norway July 11th 1981

[GTVCRUISER]

Song of Norway July 11th 1981