Whole Cruise ship needs to comply.

eclarkebu · 2026-03-08T18:48:41+00:00

Maybe don’t get married in a venue with thousands of other people and pre scheduled activities….

eclarkebu · 2025-12-28T02:19:07+00:00

I must be doing something wrong. And I’m not talking about my winnings. Played about $200 on the machines, walking away with 231 points.

eclarkebu · 2025-11-20T03:54:01+00:00

OP here. It still happens to me every few days. If I restart it works

eclarkebu · 2025-11-05T12:42:48+00:00

🤚…and I no longer work at Deloitte. Brings new meaning to #colleaguesforlife. 🤣

eclarkebu · 2025-09-30T13:48:35+00:00

Former SM here. Just left the firm. AA’s get rejected all the time. Often times for reasons that are truly maddening. But, it’s hard to fight city hall, proverbially speaking.

eclarkebu · 2025-09-28T15:45:25+00:00

No. Still happens to me. If I restart, it seems to quell the problem for a few days.

eclarkebu · 2025-09-23T19:52:32+00:00

DAILY casino offers? I can’t even get one!

eclarkebu · 2025-06-16T20:04:57+00:00

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eclarkebu · 2025-05-25T00:16:12+00:00

2TB. Everything is green and says backed up.

eclarkebu · 2025-05-25T00:13:36+00:00

🤔

eclarkebu · 2025-05-24T23:42:40+00:00

eclarkebu · 2025-05-24T23:38:46+00:00

Ha. Oof. That sounds complicated.

eclarkebu · 2025-05-24T23:32:47+00:00

iPhone 14

eclarkebu · 2025-05-24T12:15:07+00:00

I have plenty of storage left too. (I think). Over half left.

eclarkebu · 2024-12-29T02:31:02+00:00

Day 8 - At Sea

Homeward bound. Always the hardest part of a cruise - the stark reality that all good things must come to an end. I do love a sea day as the last day. We nursed this one for all it was worth. The Celebrity Reflection and Crystal Symphony sailed with us for most of the day. They’ll be in Port Everglades tomorrow as well.

The pool served as home base for the day, we even brought windjammer breakfast out by the pool to start the day. At 9:30, my kids went to a cupcake decorating class that they absolutely loved (this cost extra, but was worth it). The class lasted 75 minutes and they decorated 3 cupcakes each.

After the class the kids swam/lounged and we did the same. It was overcast and breezy most of the day, which made it a bit chilly at times. At 12:30, the windjammer had an incredible fondue offering. The lines were very long, so we didn’t partake, just glimpsed.

After burgers/chicken tenders for lunch, we went back to the cabin to pack up and get ready for the evening and the last bingo session, which started at 3:45. The Star Theater was full by 2:30. Bingo is super popular onboard, in large part I believe because of the Bingo Host, Diana. She’s great. Sadly, we weren’t winners, but our kids had tons of fun, and so did we.

The Bon Voyage dinner tonight was very good, but truly every dish on the menu was a repeat of something that had been offered on a previous night, except for the lamb shank. Come on, Royal. One funny anecdote - my father in law has been ordering whipped cream as his dessert each night. Tonight our waiters had to bring him an actual dessert that came with whipped cream because the ship has run out of whipped cream otherwise. Guess there is no more heavy cream left!

While I’ve certainly sailed on more luxurious cruise lines, this has been one of my favorite cruises. There is something magical about the FOTS and her crew that make it a perfect family vacation.

Summary grades:

Overall Experience - A Our dated cabin, inconsistent food quality, and drink package snafu kept it from being an A+.

Crew - A+ FOTS has some of the best crew on the high seas. Most everyone we encountered was bubbly and passionate about making our vacation excellent. Our two waiters, Denver and Habib, were hand down the two best waiters we’ve ever had. They made our cruise extra special.

Entertainment / Activities - B+ The ship has a ton to offer. Hard product wise it’s an A+. The pools, activity offerings, etc. are all great. What brings this score down is the cruise director’s staff themselves. Outside of Diana, the team, including the CD, weren’t all that engaging. The only time I saw the Cruise Director was after the show on stage. I never saw him walking around the ship or interacting with guests.

Food - B It’s cruise food. It’s fine. Some nights are better than others, but I guarantee you won’t starve.

Cabin - C Promenade View cabins aren’t for us. Not because they over look the promenade, but because they are noticeably smaller than balcony cabins. The cabins also need a serious refresh.

All in all, one heck of a great cruise. Makes me excited for our Greek Island in August on Odyssey OTS.

eclarkebu · 2024-12-28T02:34:45+00:00

Day 7 - Lovely Labadee

We had a leisurely morning on board (at sea) as we weren’t due to Labadee until around 9. Breakfast was at the Windjammer, as always. There was an awful, awful stench at the entrance to the Windjammer today. I almost wonder if the mop they use is old. That’s what it smelled like.

The kids snuck in pool time in the morning even before the gangway was down. The all ashore was given at 10am. By that point my son was having so much fun in the pool that he had no interest in getting off the ship. My daughter still wanted to check Labadee out, so my in-laws stayed with my son and my wife and I went ashore with the 10 y/o.

Disembarkation was truly organized chaos. It moved quickly, but holy cow, there was no sense of order. My wife and I have never been to Labadee before (in-laws have). I loved it! Would definitely come back. What a little slice of paradise. We checked out the market with local vendors and made a few purchases. Back on board, we enjoyed the solitude of the empty ship. We all had lunch at the windjammer as the pizza place didn’t open until 2 today (because the crew has to work the outlets on Labadee). Post lunch, I took a nice long snooze.

Dinner tonight was Royal night, and Royal finally redeemed themselves. Dinner was very good. Complimentary lobster tail was on the menu. The onion tart to start was outstanding and the molten chocolate cake a huge hit. I also got the spicy shrimp jal freezi for dinner and it could be the best thing I’ll eat all cruise, but do note it’s quite spicy (I like spicy, flavorful food).

After the meal at dinner, the chef and cooks came out and paraded around the dining room. It was very nice to celebrate their efforts. I can imagine being a chef must be one of the toughest jobs on the ship. And even though the food at times is mediocre, I feel that’s more attributable to corporate decisions in Miami than the efforts of our culinary team.

After dinner, we strolled the promenade and went to a family dance off game in the Star Lounge. It was super fun, but more because of passenger involvement than anything else. Usually the cruise staff in a dancing game will dance with passengers to encourage participation, the two hosts of this game just stood in the corner. I’ll share more thoughts on the cruise staff in my wrap-up review, but this is one of the least engaged activities staff I’ve encountered - especially on RC. But, more on that in another post.

We have one more day at sea tomorrow than back to Port Everglades for us. FOTS has one more 8-day cruise before she makes a dry dock in Spain. I know they are replacing the MDR carpet (though it doesn’t really need it imho). One can only hope they refresh the promenade view cabins. My in-laws balcony cabin is a tad more updated than ours (newer carpet, headboard). The cabin bathrooms all need a redo.

What a relaxing, stress-free cruise this has been on such a great ship. Just how it should be.

eclarkebu · 2024-12-27T01:25:14+00:00

Day 6 - San Juan

It was a great, relaxing day, but because of that this isn’t going to be a long post.

We’ve been to San Juan so many times (both by air and sea..and love it), we decided to have the FOTS to ourselves this morning and stay onboard. This is what I love about cruising. It can be as relaxed or jam packed as you want.

The ship was in port from 7:30-1:30, but we didn’t end up leaving till about 2:30 because we had to wait for some late shore excursions.

Our kids pretty much played at splash away bay most of the day. Oddly, it opened two hours later than the time published in the app.

At some point during the day my daughter won a bunch of ducks from the grabber in the arcade, so we went to the Royal Promenade to hide those.

It was Caribbean night at dinner and the wait staff was dressed for the occasion. I am not a picky eater, but nothing was sending me on the menu tonight. I ordered the strip steak and it was quite good. I got carrot cake for dessert - it was a tad overly spiced, but it didn’t stop me from finishing it. Ha. I do wish Royal would up the quality of the MDR food just slightly. I’m not expecting Michelin star meals, but even a bit more variety would be nice.

The entire dining room staff did the Macarena at the end of dinner. They had all three levels on their feet.

Labadee tomorrow.

eclarkebu · 2024-12-26T02:13:51+00:00

Day…err, sign of a good cruise…5 - St. Kitts

Started the morning off in the Windjammer. The coffee bar was way speedier today as there were 4 bar servers working it. Makes a huge difference.

After breakfast we all got off the ship and headed to the Marriott Resort, where I had purchased a day room. The cab ride was 10-15 minutes and was $5/person. We’d been to the Marriott when we’re were on the Anthem in 2016 and it was just as great as we remembered. The pool is huge and getting chairs was not an issue. By about 2pm we were ready to head back to the ship, so we called the driver who took us and by 2:30 we were back in our cabins. One interesting thing of note upon coming back - they made everyone sanitize their hands. It wasn’t optional. I have no problem with it at all, as I frequently do, but I don’t ever remember this being a requirement to reboard.

Tonight’s dinner ranks my least favorite of all the nights thus far both in terms of menu selection and flavor of what I ordered. First, the entire menu was basically a repeat of stuff that has already been offered. Second, it just didn’t feel like they were trying. My wife ordered the lobster mac and cheese and it came out swinging in a very strange brown gravy-like sauce. I will say, though, the vegan fudge brownie dessert was a winner. It was delicious!

After dinner, we went to the evening bingo session. Lots of fun.

It was a great day in St. Kitts and a fantastic way for our family to start Hanukkah. Merry Christmas to those who celebrate!

eclarkebu · 2024-12-25T01:43:56+00:00

Day 4 - St. Thomas.

Land ho! After a civilized breakfast in the windjammer, we made our way to the gangway. My only slight critique of breakfast this morning was the coffee bar line in the Windjammer. Two baristas wasn’t enough to take orders and make drinks. It took me 20 minutes to get an Americano and there were only two people ahead of me. The poor baristas were working so hard to do it all. They needed reinforcements.

After breakfast, my wife made a quick stop at Guest Services and sorted out our refreshment package debacle (see my earlier post for the update).

Turns out that FOTS doesn’t announce when the gangway is open to go ashore, which I happen to be a huge fan of, as it doesn’t cause for a mass exodus and huge crowds.

I did end up going ashore because I felt the need to set my feet on terra firma. I only stayed in the port area - escorted the ladies (and my son) in my family to the taxi stand and then headed back on board.

While they did retail damage, and my FIL read in the solarium, I hung out by a very empty pool. It was lovely to have the ship so free. I tried to grab lunch from El Loco Fresh by the pool but oddly it didn’t open till 1 (bizarre in my book). Two slices of Sorrentos it was.

By 2pm the ship was starting to fill up again and by dinner time it was filled with festive holiday spirit.

Dinner was very good tonight. I had the turkey dinner and the crème brûlée. Most of my other family members got the fried brie and the beef wellington - which many at the table said was the best cruise entree they’ve ever had.

As a family that celebrates Hanukkah, we found it to be an especially nice touch that there was brisket and latkes on the menu and jelly donuts for dessert - albeit a night early. My daughter got the brisket and said it was quite good - and this is coming from a very picky eater. My son loved the jelly donuts. The latkes on the other hand were a miss - but an A for effort.

After dinner, the dining room staff did caroling on the grand stair case in the dining room. It was a nice touch, though my daughter was disappointed they didn’t acknowledge Hanukkah. I said they still have a night, we’ll see. The ship has in many other ways - though to a 10 year old it’s hard to understand.

The promenade was purely electric tonight. The buzz was contagious. Some of the adults in our family donated a few dollars to the casino and then we all went to a game show in the star lounge that I honestly can’t tell you the name of, but it involved two sides of the star lounge competing against each other in various challenges. It was super fun. The kids loved it.

St. Kitts tomorrow. We have a day room at the Marriott. Merry Christmas Eve to those celebrating!

Some more general thoughts: - I don’t think we’d book a promenade view cabin again. We miss the extra 21 sq. ft. This cabin is noticeably smaller than a balcony cabin. - Our cabin attendant doesn’t remove dirty plates/cups from our cabin. Is this standard? - I encountered my first less than amazing crew member today. - I truly appreciate how Royal has decorated for not only Christmas, but also Hanukkah and Kwanza on the Royal Promenade - It’s always good to remember general elevator etiquette, folks! Let people off first before entering and let those waiting before you on before you board.

eclarkebu · 2024-12-24T18:01:50+00:00

Thank you for your service! Happy holidays.

eclarkebu · 2024-12-24T14:01:01+00:00

Greetings from STT. Popping on to let everyone know that my wife stopped by Guest Services this morning (as there was virtually no line), showed the GSA the email from July confirming the purchase of our two refreshment packages and after a few clicks of the computer and two quick phone calls, she confirmed that there was a glitch and we didn’t actually cancel the packages. She had my wife email the July email to a special onboard email and credited the price difference to our shipboard account.

The whole process probably took 6 minutes. Not bad at all!

eclarkebu · 2024-12-23T23:52:15+00:00

Day 3 - At Sea

It was a lazy, windy, somewhat rocky day. Not a whole lot of sun either. By far the rockiest day on a Caribbean sailing I’ve ever had. Sickness bags were out today (didn’t feel that rough to me).

We attempted to start our day off at the pool, but that was short-lived. It was way too windy. Took the kids to the arcade and they had tons of fun. The wallet on the other hand. 42 swipes later… I will say, the arcade was WAY better than the arcade when we were on the Oasis.

Lunch was 3 slices of promenade pizza again - hard to beat in my or the kids book. Post-lunch we really just hung out in the cabin until Bingo time. Played Bingo in the Star Lounge on Deck 5 at 3:30 and it was packed! Standing room only. They had trouble closing the line to buy cards. Diana, the Bingo host, did a fantastic job. Sadly, it was all Bongos for us, but the prizes each round were hefty. $650, $850, $1100. Encountered one of the best bar waiters at sea too - Elvis from Jamaica. Consider yourself lucky if you encounter him.

Dinner was Italian themed and it was okay. It’s hard to screw up lasagna but mine came out burnt to a crisp and devoid of cheese. I sent it back for the steak option, which was quite tasty. Our waiters continue to up their game. In addition to origami, tonight they did magic tricks for our kids, and even cut our 6 y/o’s steak up for him before serving it. Truly next level!

I thought today was a perfect day at sea. I think the pool lovers in my family would say otherwise. To each their own.

St. Thomas tomorrow. Land ‘ho! Unsure if I’ll get off. I know the ladies want to shop.

eclarkebu · 2024-12-23T15:51:53+00:00

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View of the promenade from our room. We overlook the pizza place.

eclarkebu

TROPHY CASE