Re: Has anyone gone on a cruise lately?

Posted by windyweather21

Posted by NervousNell

Posted by KarenK122

Posted by NervousNell

Posted by BargainMama

Posted by KarenK122

Posted by BargainMama

Posted by KarenK122

Posted by BargainMama

Posted by KarenK122

Yes we used emed. Super easy.

How was your cruise? Oasis, right? Ours is sold out, so dreading crowds.

We were on the Adventure. We do Oasis in a few weeks.

I think we were at full capacity and it didn't feel that crowded. The first day was a ton of lines but that is usually the case but after that it was fine.

The Adventure is not my favorite ship, I only went on because it was a family trip and it wasn't my choice. The buffet was disgusting and it was difficult to find something for breakfast or lunch. The main dining room food also wasn't the best. The apps and desserts were good but the entrees were not good. My biggest issue is that there is nothing to eat after 9 PM except the pizza. Since that was the only thing open, there was always a long line which was annoying. The good news is that the pizza was excellent! I think they changed their recipe or something. We tried room service 3 times and they never showed up.

The good was the staff was excellent. Happy and all did great jobs. The ship was clean and they were constantly cleaning around the ship. The casino was small but fun and always had a good crowd. We didn't go to the shows but the promenade parties were fun as well.

We are looking forward to the Oasis as it is my favorite!!

Ugh, that's frustrating about the food. I honestly have low expectations in terms of the food. But, I'm still trying to lose 5lbs, so if the food is gross, less to eat

I do too lol. I go thinking Applebees and it wasn't even as good as that lol. Oasis will be better because there are many more options. All my daughter was looking for was yogurt in the morning and all they had was peach and they had no milk in the little cartons. They were letting you take from pitchers and you know people are gross so I was like no thanks to that lol.

Oh that's so gross! My son drinks so much milk, I'm hoping for little cartons for his cereal!

So they make you be vaccinated and test before sailing but their sanitary protocols on the boat are still disgusting? Shared milk pitchers? Yeah makes sense.

I thought they were pretty clean actually. They were always cleaning. Some food at the buffet is handed out so everyone isn't grabbing, but half is back to the way it was. There were hand sanitizers everywhere. The milk was just odd. Unfortunately though, 4 out of the 10 of us that traveled just came down with Covid today. I think it was from the casino. That was packed with no masks. I'll wear a mask in the casino next cruise.

I have always, always skeeved buffets. I have seen gross things go on at buffets .
I can't believe they are even allowed again with all the Covid paranoia and protocols of today

Honestly we might not even bother at the buffet as there are so many more choices to have breakfast and lunch.

Re: Has anyone gone on a cruise lately?

Too long to quote haha

But, I hate buffets also, they skeeve me. I always make my kids alcohol wipe after touching the utensils and before touching their food. It's great they make you wash your hands before entering, but then people are picking their noses, asses, and whatever else before touching the buffet tongs I'm hoping to avoid any buffets. Although, I'm more worried about Norovirus than Covid. So I'm packing the anti runs meds We had Covid a couple of months ago, so hoping that means we are good for a while!

As far as Coco Cay, I have no idea either, but will report back. I studied the map and so far Chill Island near the cabanas looks like a good place for us to park. I didn't pay for any extras like the waterpark, and everything else is sold out. I do hope a beach bed opens up. I'm banking on people having to cancel after their Covid test 2 days prior to boarding, so we'll see.

Sorry, Karen....I've read so many coming back with Covid from their cruises. But better to come home with it than be on the cruise with it I guess!

Has anyone gone on a cruise lately?

Spin-off: has anyone heard anything about cruise lines dropping the vaccine requirement in the future?

Re: Has anyone gone on a cruise lately?

Posted by BargainMama

Too long to quote haha

But, I hate buffets also, they skeeve me. I always make my kids alcohol wipe after touching the utensils and before touching their food. It's great they make you wash your hands before entering, but then people are picking their noses, asses, and whatever else before touching the buffet tongs I'm hoping to avoid any buffets. Although, I'm more worried about Norovirus than Covid. So I'm packing the anti runs meds We had Covid a couple of months ago, so hoping that means we are good for a while!

As far as Coco Cay, I have no idea either, but will report back. I studied the map and so far Chill Island near the cabanas looks like a good place for us to park. I didn't pay for any extras like the waterpark, and everything else is sold out. I do hope a beach bed opens up. I'm banking on people having to cancel after their Covid test 2 days prior to boarding, so we'll see.

Sorry, Karen....I've read so many coming back with Covid from their cruises. But better to come home with it than be on the cruise with it I guess!

Re: Has anyone gone on a cruise lately?

Re: Has anyone gone on a cruise lately?

Re: Has anyone gone on a cruise lately?

Posted by MaZz

Posted by windyweather21

Posted by MaZz

Spin-off: has anyone heard anything about cruise lines dropping the vaccine requirement in the future?

Nope, nothing yet. Think you have a better chance of the testing to stop first.

Ehh… I’d def like to cruise again in the future… I’ll just stay hopeful that they’re just waiting to see what this next winter brings, and then things can loosen up in a year or so. Fingers crossed! It’s one of my fav vacations

Re: Has anyone gone on a cruise lately?

Has anyone gone on a cruise lately?

They just released this today so I hope that testing is gone.

As of July 18, 2022, CDC’s COVID-19 Program for Cruise Ships is no longer in effect and this page will no longer be updated. New guidance for cruise ships to mitigate and manage COVID-19 transmission will be available in the coming days.

Has anyone gone on a cruise lately?

A friend of mine just cancelled a cruise at the 11th hour (him and his family were going on princess)
First it was a covid test 3 days before. Ok. They did it. No biggie. The day they were set to fly to AK on the way to the airport they got a call that the cruise line went mask mandatory and they now had to test a day before the cruise. They said “F this” and the cruise line gave them credit for a future cruise.

Re: Has anyone gone on a cruise lately?

I heard and hoping they drop the testing before we go :)

Re: Has anyone gone on a cruise lately?

We are going on a European cruise soon on Azamara, and today they announced that you no longer need to test, but vaccines are required. They said certain embarkation places still require testing (like Athens and Australia).

Has anyone gone on a cruise lately?

i just heard of friends of friends that were on a cruise (iceland, norway, sweden area)-- they were randomly tested midcruise, tested positive (no symptoms at all) and mandated to stay in their cabins for 5 days. when they reached final port for disembarking, they were told to get on a bus to take them to a hotel to isolate for an additional 5 days. they somehow convinced the cruise workers they got their own taxi to the hotel and hightailed it to the airport to fly home. From my understanding, not everyone on the cruise was tested and others in their party (but different rooms) weren't tested- they have no idea why they were chosen. are they random testing on all cruises? I'm not sure what line they were on.

Re: Has anyone gone on a cruise lately?

Re: Has anyone gone on a cruise lately?

Re: Has anyone gone on a cruise lately?

Re: Has anyone gone on a cruise lately?

Re: Has anyone gone on a cruise lately?

Re: Has anyone gone on a cruise lately?

Re: Has anyone gone on a cruise lately?

Re: Has anyone gone on a cruise lately?

We just got back from our cruise on the Oasis, and posting while it's fresh!

We used Onpoint for proctor testing ($14.99), easy peasy. Used an iHealth gov't test. Showed PDF printout at check in.

To preface, we usually sail Disney, and their level of service, their rooms the amount of storage and the fact that they have two bathrooms, larger rooms, more family friendly activities, other nice perks (like cold towels upon returning to the ship after a port) etc. set the bar VERY high. But, we have also paid a premium for those cruises. I had low expectations with Royal, and I felt like I got what I paid for, which was far less than a Disney cruise.

There were over 6,000 people on board. Many of the venues are too small for the amount of people. We had a balcony room overlooking Boardwalk. Nice to people watch. 3 of us. Shoebox. I can't imagine being in those rooms with 4. No where to put clothing. Not nearly enough drawers or shelves, and we had 5 hangers. Half had to stay in bags. When the couch bed was made up, we literally couldn't walk in the room. It was awful. Could barely get to the balcony. I had asked for the king bed to be split into twins, was noted on my confirmation (hate sharing a bed), wasn't done when we arrived so they fixed it. Not a big deal, but I expected to not have to track down someone for the little things. Luggage wasn't delivered to room, had to walk down the hallways to find it all. The water doesn't get cold or even cool in the shower FYI. This is the standard on this boat. So after a hot day on the islands, you have to jump in the adult pool. Only cold water place on the entire ship! Our host was okay. Nothing great. Had to keep asking for things. For instance, we are a family of 3. We only had 2 towels, washcloths.

We didn't do the drink package or even soda package. I can't imagine having to carry around a bulky cup to get a drink all day long. So weird and a huge complaint of many other people I was chatting with! We just paid as we went, but not a huge drinker, and my kids really just had shirley temples and some milkshakes. The food was terrible. I'm not a foodie by any means, but our main dining room meal on the first night was just gross. The breakfast buffet was awful. We did have a couple of decent nights in Windjammer with dinner. We liked the Park Cafe the most. It was quiet. We did breakfast and lunch in there a lot. Lots of salads, sandwiches, boxes of cereal (they have bags of chips...it's a secret). Pizza place was good for a late snack. We also like El Loco Fresh for tacos and nachos for lunch. No shared milk that we saw, they had cartons of it, which was good. We did room service one day, which was okay.

Pool area is jam packed on a sea day with every chair taken by 8am. Plan on getting up early! I loved the little hut type chairs that are colorful and next to the paid for casitas. If there are no cushions, you can get them yourself in the top deck of the Solarium area. Most people didn't know that, and sometimes they didn't put them out. Solarium adult area is nice but HOT since it's like a greenhouse with glass. I thought checking out the towels would be annoying, and while it was, it was better than I anticipated. They DO remove belongings from unattended chairs. They flag them, and if you don't come back after a certain time, they remove the stuff and people were MAD, which is ridiculous. Says you can't save them. The main pools are like Coney Island, but that's how a cruise is. I recommend the towel clips from Amazon, etc. so your crap doesn't blow away! The adult pool was jam packed, but we tried to go at off times. One night everyone went to dinner and we went to the pool and slides. Was awesome with no crowds!

We loved the activities like the Abyss, Flow Rider, Waterslides, Rock Climbing, Zip Line, ice skating, trivia, the Aqua show is AMAZING, loved it! The ice skating show was great also! Wasn't a fan of the illusion show, and I don't love Cats in general, but it was a nice production. The adult comedy shows were freaking hilarious!!!! Loved the Globe and Atlas live music. Love the Blue Hawaiian drink. Central Park area is AMAZING. Love the green space!! Did the Rising Tide Bar..neat but one and one. Casino was busy! Didn't win much, super smoky, but got my fix in

For Port Canaveral we got off and took an Uber to Ron Jon and then walked to Cocoa Beach behind it. Uber was like $15, way less than the cruise shuttle, and better to be on our own time. It rained, thundered, lightening and the cruise people were standing there in the rain waiting for their bus. I honestly feel that is a waste of a port, but it is what it is.

Nassau we did Margaritaville. We liked that! Felt it was too short, but it was nice to be off the boat. Kids liked the cliff jump, lazy river, the beach was just okay. It's next to the public beach, which is PACKED like crazy! Margaritaville you can do on Resort for a Day or ResortPass. Was a HOT walk there. And took about 20 minutes. Wasn't too crowded, and since you arrive late, people leave and then you can get a chair.

Coco Cay was AWESOME!!! LOVED it there! We got off pretty much first, got a chair at Breezy Point, which I thought was a perfect location. We rented a floating mat, I would do that in advance. Everything was sold out on our day and people were turned away. We saw huge fish, a HUGE stingray and just had an amazing day there!!! I did have to practically beg for a snorkel vest for my daughter to wear (we packed our own gear). She said put a life jacked on...that doesn't work for snorkeling too well. Again, coming from Disney, they MAKE you wear a snorkel vest just for visibility purposes! And they have jetskis going through the swimming and snorkel areas with lifeguards, so you would think they want the snorkelers to be visible. That was my only complaint there. Their pool there is AMAZING and HUGE. We didn't do the waterpark...someone said the lines are always long, and we had two ships in port there. So no way.

Overall we had a fun time. We went with a group of friends who I think I was pickier than. But that's because we have only ever cruise on another line, and that's all we could compare it to. I think we will try another line next time to see what else is out there! Hope this helps!

Also, ETA because I know Karen has a child with Autism...I had called RCCL to let them know my son has Autism, so we could qualify for priority embarkation and disembarkation. We utilized that at Nassau, where we met in Bolero's (no one told me this, my friend had the Key, so I just guessed that's where we go). And then he escorted us down to get off before the rest of the passengers. On the Coco Cay day they don't offer that for anyone (not even Key), but we were allowed to wait at the front of the line in the wide open space, and she just filtered us in (the line wraps down those SUPER narrow corridors, and goes on forever, and that's just way too much for my son).

Message edited 7/22/2022 1:34:25 PM.

Re: Has anyone gone on a cruise lately?

Thanks so much for your review

We have sailed on Oasis once and Allure 3 times so this will be our 5th time of this sister class. We have loved it and hope it is still up to par from years ago.

It is hard to compare and we have done so with NCL which is a good line but I am picky about some things too that I felt was not up to what RCCL does.

Sounds like you had fun overall

Re: Has anyone gone on a cruise lately?

Posted by windyweather21

Thanks so much for your review

We have sailed on Oasis once and Allure 3 times so this will be our 5th time of this sister class. We have loved it and hope it is still up to par from years ago.

It is hard to compare and we have done so with NCL which is a good line but I am picky about some things too that I felt was not up to what RCCL does.

Sounds like you had fun overall

Message edited 7/22/2022 3:49:34 PM.

Re: Has anyone gone on a cruise lately?

Posted by BargainMama

Posted by windyweather21

Thanks so much for your review

We have sailed on Oasis once and Allure 3 times so this will be our 5th time of this sister class. We have loved it and hope it is still up to par from years ago.

It is hard to compare and we have done so with NCL which is a good line but I am picky about some things too that I felt was not up to what RCCL does.

Sounds like you had fun overall

Ahh so you know what to expect! We did have fun, I just wish we could have stopped at Coco Cay twice! That would have really made it!

Oh, and the positives for Covid are all rolling in within our cruise group on Facebook. Bound to happen with that amount of people, but I would make sure you are diligent about hand washing, etc. I honestly wouldn't care if I got it after getting home, but a couple people said they had to quarantine in their rooms, which would totally suck!

Re: Has anyone gone on a cruise lately?

Testing ending on 8/8 for cruises less than 6 nights.

Really ridiculous as you know, you can't get covid if 1 day less than most cruises that people take.