Questions first timer

[4 mickey]

Hi
cruised many times on dcl
looking at an 8 day cruise on Royal
a few questions
do all Royal havs dine anytime dinner option
soda packages do you buy ahead or onboard ?
lounge chairs at pool deck hard to get ?
nightly shows how does this work ? Do you have to reserve ? Only one représentation ?
tv in stateroom I am a night owl ( read here insomniac a few nights a week
do they have films on demand on them ?
anybtips or feedback appreciated
thanks

 

[FreeTime]

They do have my time dining options

There may be shows that need reserved in advance, but not all or always. They are twice a night and sometimes on multiple nights.

Buying the soda package in advance gives you a discount

We could usually find a lounger out of the way even on sea days

There are paid movies on demand on the stateroom TV. I don’t recall free ones

 

[FigmentSpark]

We just got back from an 8 day that we booked 2 months before sailing. We were down for the 5:30 seating, but somehow got changed to "my time" dining, which starts at 6:45, I think. We were eventually accommodated on the 5:30 seating, which was our preference, but if you want 'my time' it didn't seem to be a problem. We did see line ups of people on our way out of our seating, but I don't know if they were all hoping for a table or if they'd made reservations earlier. Also, when we were still in flux about our dining time, we were told to come at 5:45 and they'd fit us in, so it did seem like they were flexible about their dining times.

You can buy the packages on board, but if you have the time to wait for sales before your sailing, do that. We got ours during the Black Friday sale. Same with our internet packages. They were cheaper than getting them on board.

We found lounge chairs on deck were commandeered by people with towels and towel pins holding them there. There were many empty chairs, but very rarely was there one without a towel and certainly not in a prime space. That was a real pet peeve of ours, but I think it's a problem that crosses all lines.

Our sailing (Odyssey) was showing "The Book". We got tickets for that as soon as we were able. It books up quickly. That said, I think you can walk in after a certain point without tickets. So if you have tickets, get there early enough to claim your spot... and earlier than the ship staff recommends. They never told us the right information.

There were other shows every night, but in another theatre. We didn't go to all of them, but again, if you can get there early, you'll get the better seats.

I didn't use our in-room TV, but I was on deck later in the evening a couple of times and there was a movie showing on deck (once it was Ariel... go figure!). On the Odyssey, the adult section is open all night, but the pool shuts down at 8pm and the hot tub stops 'bubbling' at midnight. We liked going for an 11pm soak. It was quiet at that time.

One other thing, since you said it was an 8-day. Ours had 2 formal nights. Day 2 and 6. Not sure if that would be true for all 8-day sailings, but it's something to think about if you're into that or want the photos and the photo packages.

 

[starvenger]

I didn't use our in-room TV, but I was on deck later in the evening a couple of times and there was a movie showing on deck (once it was Ariel... go figure!).

They did that on Regal Princess as well! Actually, they showed A LOT of movies on the pool deck (plus football), day and night. I wasn't a huge fan of that - I like it better when they have music via house band or piped in.

 

[4 mickey]

Movies that you pay on tv anybody have an idea of pricing ?
on those stateroom tv is there regular channels ? Shows ?,

 

[scrappinginontario]

Hi
cruised many times on dcl
looking at an 8 day cruise on Royal
a few questions
do all Royal havs dine anytime dinner option
soda packages do you buy ahead or onboard ?
lounge chairs at pool deck hard to get ?
nightly shows how does this work ? Do you have to reserve ? Only one représentation ?
tv in stateroom I am a night owl ( read here insomniac a few nights a week
do they have films on demand on them ?
anybtips or feedback appreciated
thanks

After 4 DCL cruises, we just completed our first RC Cruise over NYE.

We had anytime dining as we could only get early dining. It was okay but I would choose a set dining time to avoid the lines and we also like consistent servers. It took us 3 days to get things settled but we did end up with the same serving team and they were amazing.

Lounge chairs could be challenging to find, especially if you want more than one. I was always able to find one but it could take a lot of hunting on sea days. It was far less of a challenge understandably on a port day. We were a group of 3 and only once during our entire 7 day cruise could we find a group of loungers together but we also did not make it a top priority each morning.

We were on the Anthem and only required reserved seating for 1 show and honestly we left after about 20 mins as it just was not our preference. Other shows we arrived 30 mins early and found a seats together. I would not arrive any less than 30 mins early if you have a group you wish to sit together. Their main show, in our case, 'We Will Rock You' showed twice a day for 2 days in a row.

I did not find a lot on the stateroom TV the few times I looked for something to watch. I would highly recommend downloading onto your person device, other things you may wish to watch. Some movies are available to purchase but they were pricey in my opinion.

We enjoyed our first RC cruise. It was not DCL but, for half the price we're looking to book our next RC cruise as we're pretty much priced out of DCL unless we save for years and years.

 

[4 mickey]

After 4 DCL cruises, we just completed our first RC Cruise over NYE.

We had anytime dining as we could only get early dining. It was okay but I would choose a set dining time to avoid the lines and we also like consistent servers. It took us 3 days to get things settled but we did end up with the same serving team and they were amazing.

Lounge chairs could be challenging to find, especially if you want more than one. I was always able to find one but it could take a lot of hunting on sea days. It was far less of a challenge understandably on a port day. We were a group of 3 and only once during our entire 7 day cruise could we find a group of loungers together but we also did not make it a top priority each morning.

We were on the Anthem and only required reserved seating for 1 show and honestly we left after about 20 mins as it just was not our preference. Other shows we arrived 30 mins early and found a seats together. I would not arrive any less than 30 mins early if you have a group you wish to sit together. Their main show, in our case, 'We Will Rock You' showed twice a day for 2 days in a row.

I did not find a lot on the stateroom TV the few times I looked for something to watch. I would highly recommend downloading onto your person device, other things you may wish to watch. Some movies are available to purchase but they were pricey in my opinion.

We enjoyed our first RC cruise. It was not DCL but, for half the price we're looking to book our next RC cruise as we're pretty much priced out of DCL unless we save for years and years.

Thanks neighbor { I see your in Canada )
love your informations
as I mainly up to now cruises with dcl
as I’ve done quite a few of dcl it seemed like home ( didn’t have to search for anything ,,knew just about anything about dcl but not much on Royal
going on another cruise line seem a bit more complicated
ill need quite a bit of research and reading before my sept cruise

again thank you

 

[FigmentSpark]

Thanks neighbor { I see your in Canada )
love your informations
as I mainly up to now cruises with dcl
as I’ve done quite a few of dcl it seemed like home ( didn’t have to search for anything ,,knew just about anything about dcl but not much on Royal
going on another cruise line seem a bit more complicated
ill need quite a bit of research and reading before my sept cruise

again thank you

I felt that way, too... DCL was "home", and it took a couple of days even on the ship for RCCL to feel like home. To know how things worked and be comfortable. But you'll get there.

 

[tidefan]

Movies that you pay on tv anybody have an idea of pricing ?
on those stateroom tv is there regular channels ? Shows ?,

When we were on Oasis, the movies on the TV were $11.99.

On DCL, Princess, and Virgin, they are included. Not sure about CCL…