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  1. Just saying a quick hello here, first time in about four years. I just booked the 12-night Odyssey sailing in Jan 2025, which is an itinerary I've been wanting to do kind of since I first started sailing with Royal in 2018 and learned about it. Seemed like a nice way to celebrate turning 55. To everyone I haven't spoken with in all these years, hope you've been well!
    27 points
  2. "CRUISE BIG, OR GO HOME" – OA 3/10/2024-3/17/2024 There once was time, many blogs ago, where I said, “Dreams…that is how many things begin; that is how this adventure began. But with every dream that comes true, there is always a journey.” Anyone remember that blog? It was the one where many claimed I corrupted them (I’m looking at you @GregD lol); it was also truly a dream come true for us. Since that 2019 sailing, we have been blessed beyond measure, and we never take any sailing for granted. But in the midst of all this, there was also a greater dream, a greater wish, that started way before 2019, or even 2016 (when Royal started their Royal Suite Class program) for that matter. This was a dream that began over 14 years ago, in December 2009, when Hubby and I sailed on Oasis of the Seas for her maiden voyage, and I realized that there was a cabin, way up on Deck 17 (this was my pre-suite snob days), corner starboard side, that I wanted to be in one day…#cruisegoals The journey to get to this sailing, in this cabin was a long one. I know I have said it before, but we were not always suite snobs. We have done our share of interiors, ocean views, balconies, etc. Even when I turned into a suite snob, this particular cabin was always out of reach for us. Either financially, or the pandemic took it away, or it wasn’t available, or @Rags1 would not adopt me. What I am trying to say, is that it is not lost on me the road it took us to get here, and how grateful I am that we now have this opportunity, and how this likely will be the only opportunity for this cabin. We are committed to treasuring every moment of this. I have tracked the price of this room over many years. For the times of the year that we can sail (March, July, August, December), March is always the best price for this room. This sailing is also beyond bittersweet. It is more than being able to check off a cruise bucket list item for us and the journey it took us to get here. It’s our final March Break sailing with our oldest. We have been sailing with the girls over March Break for years and there will never be another March Break sailing with all 4 of us together. This is it. That is the main reason why we had to take the leap and do this now. I knew back in December 2009 when I first heard that such a room existed, that I wanted to do it, but not without both kids. With D17 graduating this June, and the uncertainty of her university and life schedule (she will not have a March break that is for certain), it really is now, or likely never. Like a wise @Baked Alaska recently said, “Time is like a thief.” Life is too short; it’s about seizing the moments we have, it’s about not having regrets, and we never want to look back and say, “We wish we would have done it.” With that in mind, Hubby and I decided that YOLO, it’s going to be now, to “Cruise Big”, really big, and then go home.
    22 points
  3. That’s a wrap for us. The end of an era for our family and our March Break sailings as 4. I will leave you all with a few pics. Our very first March Break sailing on Anthem of the seas. Our very first star class March break sailing back in 2019. Our last March break sailing this week as a family of 4.
    22 points
  4. Intro I don't normally start blogs early since I don't have any flights, hotels, or packing shenanigans to share. We live an hour's drive from PC and I finish packing the morning of the cruise but here goes anyway. BTW, while this intro post will be long, I do plan to try my best to keep my reports from the ship much shorter and spread out rather than long daily recaps. We'll find out how successful I am when the time comes. We sailed Wonder last June with family and absolutely loved the ship... but it was not our usual cruise M.O. as we were freeloading in Sky Class and spent A LOT of time in the suite neighborhood with the fam. Semi-live blog here if anyone hasn't read it and wants to: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/boards/index.php?/topic/41233-semi-live-trip-report-wonder-june-4-11/. Cabin Since it's just me and my wife, we're back in one of our beloved caves... err... interiors on deck 10. We like being somewhere in between the higher and lower decks to avoid elevators in either direction when possible so 10 seemed to fit the bill. We actually have three more Wonder cruises booked after this one and they're all in roughly the same area, deck 10 forward near the elevators. I chose forward after noticing from YouTube cabin videos that many (all?) aft interiors don't even have the small couch, just a tiny chair with a strange layout. I may not need a fancy room but I do like the little couch so forward it is. Food Anyone who reads my posts knows I like to eat and do so off and on from the early AM throughout the day and into the evening. Between frugality and my picky wife, the only specialty dining we have planned is Mason Jar brunch on day 3 (LOVED it in June and it was 40% off during the Black Friday sale) and one dinner in Playmakers b/c we love the burgers and garlic parm fries there. Breakfast and lunch could be wherever (likely not the MDR) and our other dinners will mostly be in the MDR (early seating). We didn't step foot in the WJ for dinner last time b/c we were always busy going from CK to a show. We will definitely pop in there this time, even if it's after the MDR, and if my wife finds something appealing, we could wind up skipping the MDR for a night or two and just heading there (@Lovetocruise2002's worst nightmare, I know). Shows We saw every show offered in June (including the now retired Tap Factory) so this time around the only shows we will definitely see are the ice show (our new favorite) and adult comedy b/c obviously that changes with the comics. We will probably see InTENse (aqua show) again just for the heck of it and if there's a headliner and it's an act we feel like seeing, we could go to that. The app shows singers on the last couple and next week's Wonder cruises and that's not something we'd bother with. I'm actually looking forward to not having plans every night so we can just find something random to do... game show, music at a bar, watching Karaoke, etc. Ports Day 2: CocoCay - We'll be parked at our favorite spot by the Oasis Pool making frequent trips to the nearest Snack Shack and Chill Grill while using a few Diamond vouchers. We could have tried Hideaway Beach for $19.99pp, which I know is a very low price, but other than the additional food options (of which my wife would eat none unless she wanted plain pizza), it held no appeal to us and I'd rather spend $40 at Playmakers or Mason Jar. We've always been very happy with the included food on CocoCay. Day 4: St. Thomas - No plans as we don't dock until 12:30pm and finding an afternoon excursion wasn't appealing to us. We may just stay on the ship unless we decide to take a quick walk around the port. Day 5: St. Martin - We're going back on Captain Bob's powerboat snorkeling tour after loving it 7 years ago. If you're not familiar, I highly recommend it as it has a little bit of everything... fun fast boat ride, tour of the island by sea, a couple snorkeling stops, a couple beach stops, a stop near Maho Beach to see the planes, plus lunch and beverages (mostly beer and soft drinks) included. Bob and his kids are from New York and moved to the island a long time ago. His son, Brett, was our boat captain in 2017 and I requested to sail with him again. Here's their website if you're interested... https://www.soualigadestinations.com/most-popular-tour-for-cruise-ship-visitors/. Like many things, I first chose this as something we could both enjoy. My wife is far more into snorkeling than I am but I can handle it in small doses and I'm content to chill on the boat with a drink if I get tired of it before she does. I also like that it has multiple stops. The only time I park myself on a beach is if there's shade and food/drink included (like CocoCay or a beach club). Milestone I almost forgot, we will be turning D+ on this cruise, woohoo! Shipmates @GatorCruiser will be on this cruise and has promised to pop in with his own commentary. He'll also be posting from the luxurious trappings behind the (rarely) locked glass doors of deck 17. @Matt will also be onboard with his kids for spring break (same as my teacher wife's as we live very close to him) and he's more than welcome to drop in if he wants to grace us with his presence. At the very least, I hope to run into him just to say hi but I'm an introvert IRL and I don't want to impose since he'll be with his family. Not sure I'll have much to share between now and then. I don't think this intro was TOO long-winded by my standards and, again, I will truly try to keep my posts from the ship shorter and more spread out. Looking forward to bringing you all along as I definitely feel more like a part of the community since I've been posting so much over the past however many months.
    21 points
  5. I think we definitely got the “genie special” this afternoon! I have to say, I am not easily surprised but I did not see this one coming! When getting drinks with @recogneyes, she asked me if we had been to the pub. I said no and that we are not huge fans of the pub in general. She said we have to at least pop by for a visit to see the pub signer because he is really good. Later then evening, we ran into @recogneyes again at playmakers, and Stephen, the pub signer was there. She introduced us and we said will try to find time to see him. If you are wondering where I am going with this, keep reading… Today is a sea day, and Shane overheard us saying last night that we might do El Loco today. He suggested that we do a delivery because it might be busy and our kids never get anywhere early. When we came back to our room to eat, this is what we found.
    21 points
  6. Room tour! Main entry Downstairs bedroom and Bathroom Main living area Upper level Balcony
    20 points
  7. Veteran cruisers know to store their suitcases under the bed, thus eliminating space for stateroom attendant to hide.
    20 points
  8. Hello, We just got off Icon earlier this morning. Thought I'd provide a quick review while we're waiting for our flight back home... About Us - Me (49), my wife (48), and our two boys (13 and 15). Embarkation - Our boarding time was 11:30 AM. We arrived at the pier at 10:20 AM and we were onboard by 10:30 AM. I had a drink in-hand by 10:35 AM. LOL! Royal has the embarkation process down perfectly! Hats off to Royal! We were super impressed! Capacity & Crowds - A crew member told me there were 2,400 kids on our sailing, and the ship was at roughly 85% to 90% capacity. The crew member said they're going to 100% by the March 30th, 2024 sailing. The ship didn't feel too crowded to me, except for a few areas on the pool decks. We sat at Cloud 17 the whole week, since they have padded loungers up there . We never had to wait more than 5 minutes for a drink. On the other hand, Coco Cay seemed very crowded. We arrived at South Beach around 10:15 AM and all the loungers were taken. We should have gotten off the boat earlier, but no big deal. We went back to the ship by 1:00 PM and had the ship to ourselves and went on a bunch of the slides. I think next time, we'll stay on the ship . Food & Dining - We had the Unlimited Dining Package. I was able to lock in all our reservations right when we got on the ship at Izumi. The process took roughly 30 minutes, since the people in front of me were taking forever. Once it was my turn, I gave the lady my print up of all my desired reservations (used Google Calendar). She loved the print out and quickly locked in all my options. Only bummer was Hibachi only had 9:00 PM available, other than that, we were able to get all the times we wanted. We did not eat in the Main Dining Room at all. We ate at all the Specialty Dining venues except for Pier 7. The food was great! And the service was great, too! Only place I would not go back to is Hibachi. Guess it's more for the show, but we agreed the food was not very good . Way too much butter and salt (at least that's what we thought). My wife and I also did Empire Supper club and it was spectacular! What a great dining experience! Room & Accommodations - My wife and I had cabin 14756, and our boys were in an inside cabin 14747. Our room was on the aft of the ship, directly below the Hideaway. We had an unbelievable view of the back of the boat (please see pic I took from our cabin). My wife did not like the rattling and shaking feeling in the cabin. She said she would not want the same cabin again. There definitely was a lot of rattling and shaking going on, but I was ok with it b/c of the view. We also heard them moving around chairs each morning around 7:00 AM - 7:30 AM presumably cleaning the deck above us. We also noticed we felt the ship moving a lot more (overall) than we had expected. For comparison, we were on the Wonder of the Seas two years ago and we did not feel that ship move at all. On a scale from 1 to 10, I'd say Wonder was about a 1 or 2 while Icon was about a 6 or 7. My boys were also complaining about it. One of the crew members also said she was surprised to feel the boat move so much and agreed it was more than Oasis class ships like Wonder. But overall, our room was fantastic! Shows & Entertainment - We saw Wizard of Oz on the second night and it was excellent! We were super impressed! We also did Starburst and the headliner show. Both were good, but Wizard of Oz took the cake! The comedians were also very funny! Disembarkation - Getting off the ship this morning was a breeze. We walked off with our luggage around 8:45 AM. However, complete chaos ensued when we got outside the terminal to hail a taxi, Uber, Lyft. People all over the place trying to hail their Ubers, Lyfts, etc. It took about 30 mins to finally get a Lyft out of there and then 20 mins to the Miami airport. The airport is also crazy busy, with very long security lines. It took us almost 1 hour to get through security and to our gate. We are on Southwest. That's all I can think of right now... Hope this helps! If you have any questions, please give me a shout! Thanks! Matt
    19 points
  9. Got my first sea day T-shirt ready for action.
    19 points
  10. Excited to share with you all the CREW NEIGHBORHOOD onboard the Icon Of The Seas! This is an exclusive first look into our home away from home, whilst we work onboard the ship!
    19 points
  11. 17 points
  12. We leave on Friday for our 8-night Southern Caribbean cruise. I will be very busy Thursday - Saturday of this week, so I'm starting now in hopes that it will be easier to keep up with some smaller posts as we begin our travel. This will be our first time on Symphony - I'm super excited to cruise on this ship! There will be six of us: me, DH, DD (just turned 17) and DS (14) plus my parents (more below). Our itinerary is - Day 1 Cruising from Fort Lauderdale/Port Everglades Day 3 Labadee (I'm fairly sure we won't stop here, but haven't heard yet what we'll have instead) Day 5 Aruba Day 6 Curacao I'm bummed about Labadee. The last time we were here was in 2014 (kids were 4 & 7) so we were very excited to do all of the adventure activities this year - superman zip line, coaster and jet skis - and bought them all on Black Friday special. Hopefully we'll have some sort of stop since they've had two weeks to figure it out. With an eight night, spring break (crowded) ship, I'd prefer for 3 of the days to be in port. We're flying from Newark, which is not our home airport - it is about 2 hours away - but was half the price. We also have a mix & match flight: JetBlue to FLL on Friday night and United back from PBI on Sunday. I've prebooked a parking space at a private location. My parents are cruising with us for the first time. The company my Dad works for used to charter ships in the 80s so they have cruised before, but nothing like what they'll experience on Symphony. They are retired so got a good flight deal by going down on Wednesday. They are renting a car and have a great price for the three nights for a room in a condo complex (offered as an add on to their Southwest flight). They will be picking up a bottle of wine, some bottled water and maybe a few other things since they'll have so much time. We don't get in until 9pm so essentially just sleeping, breakfast and an Uber to the port. We have an 11:30am check in but plan to get there around 11am. They originally booked a GTY ocean view, which was the same price as an interior at the time. I caught a sale and upgraded them to a GTY ocean balcony, they were assigned 6th floor really early, and then our fabulous TA moved them two doors down from us on the 8th floor. On our last cruise, we did a Discover Scuba for the first time and loved it. So we decided to do our PADI cert over the summer and our OW dives in a quarry in October - that was not fun at all - but we're fully certified and have a dive planned for both Aruba and Curacao. We also rented a car in Aruba. We have a very late day there (9 or 10pm) so we'll dive in the morning and then plan to drive around sightseeing for the rest of the afternoon. We rented from Top Drive and added on the chairs/snorkel/cooler package so my parents will hang out at Eagle or Palm Beach while my family dives. On Curacao, we will dive, my parents will snorkel, we'll change and grab lunch back on the ship and then we plan to just do a self-guided walking trip to the bridge, etc. I also want to check out the artist that @FionaMG mentioned and maybe pick up a print or two. We have all the shows reserved, Escape room booked, specialty lunch at Giovanni's on boarding day, and a meal at Wonderland booked to celebrate my daughter's birthday. I also got the birthday package for her, with the room decorations and cake. Have to run, but more to come!
    16 points
  13. Crisis averted. @GatorCruiser was kind enough to offer to grab my wife some chocolate croissants from the SL but they were out in the CL today.
    16 points
  14. @OCSC Mike here is photo evidence that I do like tequila. But it has to be Patron. Again, apologies for the quality of the photos. We took them from videos. @recogneyes’s Hubby was warned by Andrew that he might show up on social media. He asked what we would call him. I told him we would call him @recogneyes’s Hubby
    16 points
  15. Hello PDCC! This is how I like to visit…from a distance
    16 points
  16. We are on board! Well we were actually on board a while ago. Got here around the same time as Andrew and Lisa and we all boarded together with Shane. That was just before 11am. Our luggage arrived just after us, so very quick. Less than 30 mins after we arrived in our suite. The room is awesome! Just finally getting a chance to sit down now and soak it in a bit as I write this. Yeah, I am not leaving this room for the next 7 days. Kids said this room doesn’t even feel like we are on a ship. Lunch was at Portside BBQ. And best part? Shane had time to join us for lunch! Off to Next Cruise now. Will post room pics when I return from there. Get ready for a massive photo dump.
    16 points
  17. Some good news to report. While we were waiting for the freeloaders to get ready, Hubby and I ventured down to the front desk again. A different manager was on duty so we asked to speak with him and hopefully get another perspective. Oh my, talk about night/day difference! This manager was awesome! After we explained the situation to him, he asked to see the voucher in my app, and that was it. He said he will remove the charge for the second night, no problem. We were stunned. Hubby and I were like, “This is exactly the way it should have played out yesterday!” Anyway, still won’t be totally relieved until we see the bill tomorrow, but I am pretty sure it’s resolved. But the manger this morning told us not to worry, it will not show up on the bill tomorrow.
    16 points
  18. White night & formal night table pictures. I have a funny smile in the white night pic because the lady at the next table took it and didn't really tell us when, so I got smile fatigue. And my son's eyes are closed for the same reason.
    15 points
  19. Mason Jar Brunch Another Mississippi Moonlight Chicken from the sandwich minus the bread with mashed potatoes & a biscuit Peanut butter stuffed French toast Chicken n waffles Blueberry johnnycakes with pulled pork Chicken pot pie Bread pudding Go Bananas Fried oreo
    15 points
  20. Might have been heat stroke. I have no explanation. MDR Italian night was unexpectedly good. Arancini (forgot a pic) was crispy & tasty, lasagna actually had meat & wasn’t mushy, & even my wife loved the chocolate hazelnut cake. Neither of us tasted any hazelnut. It was very similar to the molten chocolate cake which she loved on Allure. Thanks for the recommendation @FionaMG ! Apologies for the missing bites. Waiting for Name That Tune: 80’s and trying a “Metalliquor”
    15 points
  21. After the show, we headed to Playmakers. By this point, it was already past 9pm, which we consider really late for dinner. Best part of dinner? Our waiter from JR yesterday happened to be walking by. He was joking around and asked us which place is better; Playmakers or JR? We said the onion rings were definitely better at JR. Next thing we know, he’s back with 2 plates. By the time dinner was done, we were all tired and stuffed. No one could handle eating cake at this point. So @Jax, this is why I cannot tell you what kind of cake it is yet. We might eat cake for breakfast tomorrow morning instead
    15 points
  22. While Hubby and the kids were gone, Shane was working his genie magic.
    15 points
  23. By around 4pm, everyone was shopped out, and tired, so we headed to La Bamba!!! Best part of the day. I tried something different tonight. I got the fish tacos and really liked it. Usually, the chimichanga is my go to, but I wasn’t feeling it today. Thank you to @LandstromCruise and @AGSLC5 for leading us this way. The family sends their thanks as well.
    15 points
  24. Royal is partly to blame for this incident on Symphony as the crew member requested his contract be for Voyeur of the Seas.
    15 points
  25. Well we are just off Anthem today on a 7 night cruise to Coco Cay and we just absolutely love Anthem. The crew is amazing off the bat. Drink service can be a bit slow here and there but crew was amazing overall. Cape Liberty is a mix of good and bad. Royals side excellent, 10 minutes and on but the security screening is not good. The lines they say up are odd and take longer than they should. I'm not sure I understand why it's set up that way. Anthem itself is in excellent shape, looks just as good as we sailed on her a few years ago. The elevator situation which thankfully I take the stairs is terrible. It's a combo of too much use and rude people. My wife with the baby take the elevator everywhere. It was just not great. The food I'd say is hit and miss. I'm not gonna be a cheerleader and I LOVE Royal Caribbean but I'm not gonna be a cheerleader. The food is just hit and miss. MDR, some things were good and some ok, and some not so good. I got lasagna one night against my better judgement and honesty I wanted to see what they consider lasagna as I am Italian. It was um not great. It was to be kind, not good and not what I consider lasagna. Windjammer is the same, hit and miss. Breakfast actually really good. Lunch which we did once was ok to be nice. The burger was almost awful which I don't get because on Coco Cay the burger was much, much better. The Mac and cheese was extremely bland. The fries were excellent though. Cafe 270 was excellent, everything was excellent. Oh the doughnuts and pastries at all places we ate were excellent. The chocolate doughnuts were extra good, small but plentiful and so good. Sorrento's pizza serves it's purpose and it's ok. It could be better but still not bad. It's a good quick bite. Desserts pretty much everywhere were excellent we thought. Some better than others of course. Jaime's we loved but the chicken Parmesan is not what I consider good but that's from an Italian that has eaten that so many times I could not count. It was on, edible but not great. Apps amazing though. Wonderland is so much fun. It may be going extinct and odd but I love it. We love it. It's an experience and I like the food. It's just interesting and fun. Chops too upscale for me but food was excellent, like definitely a step up in quality. I don't like steak so I can't speak on that. Branzino was awesome. Now Coco Cay, that island is pure magic. Period, pure magic. The water was cold, not going again in winter but still a freaking ton of fun. We only do the free stuff and it's just a blast. With 2 boys, 10 and 2 it's amazing. Plan to go back again and again just not ever in winter. What is the earliest for Coco were the water is warm? May? That's my take and will add more when I think of more stuff.
    15 points
  26. Last food pic (although I brought home enough ranger cookies for a few more days, lol)…
    14 points
  27. WJ shrimp & ribs for lunch. Really not bad by WJ standards. Now sitting in a very windy & empty ELF for perhaps my last tacos of the cruise.
    14 points
  28. 14 points
  29. Excursion today was plane spotting at Maho Beach. It was really cool seeing the planes come in overhead and Sunset bar and Grill was really cool. We then hit front street where I went to my favorite bourbon place in the world Guhlomars and purchased some bourbon and cigars.
    14 points
  30. 14 points
  31. On the 12th day before cruising, my live blog did begin... It's almost cruise time! I'm starting this live blog to control my excitement and keep track of all related things. I'll try to update daily before the cruise, and then as things go once onboard. Being my first live blog, I have no idea what's going to happen here. I'm Cactus. I've been cruising sporadically since 2005, both solo and with family, mostly on Royal Caribbean. While I live in the desert, I love traveling and have gone as many places as I can throughout my life. This cruise is a 4-night Perfect Day at CocoCay and Bahamas cruise out of Miami. Port schedule shows Terminal A, so I'm super excited for my first trip out of Miami (how have I avoided this up until now??!?) and out of Icon's terminal. It's a bit of a wonky cruise for me because I have to pack for this trip AND a conference that starts on Saturday after I disembark on Friday. Thank goodness for Southwest's two-bags-fly-for-free policy. Day 1 Miami Day 2 PDCC Day 3 Nassau Day 4 At Sea Day 5 Miami My family calls me two things: The Ruler of Red Lights (when driving) and Overpacker Extraordinaire. I'm hoping the latter doesn't get me in trouble while packing for both cruising and conferencing. I booked a balcony guarantee for this solo cruise because my MEI travel agent had an awesome price for it. I was on Independence in a junior suite in September and absolutely loved the ship/room/location of room, so I had no hesitation in booking Indy's sister ship. The balcony I was assigned was okay, it would have worked, but I went ahead and did a Royal Up bid for both a junior suite and a spacious balcony. The JS failed, but the spacious balcony went through! And, lo and behold, the spacious balcony is in a similar location to where my JS on Indy was. Score! Counting down is killing me - 11 days until I fly, 12 days until the cruise. Of course there's a bazillion things to do in the mean time, including getting over this nasty cold I currently have. Healthy and happy cruising coming soon! ---Cactus
    14 points
  32. Hooked tonight. apps: oysters Rockefeller and raw oysters me: blackened captains platter Wife: surf and turf interestingly the filet here was better than Chops
    14 points
  33. It’s a mere grand suite. I can’t keep up with the star class ballers on here like @Lovetocruise2002. It’s cabin 1714 a few steps from SL/CK. We booked it back in December 2022 at next cruise. The balcony is quite large actually. The room is gorgeous. My kids don’t deserve this but you can’t leave them at home, I guess.
    14 points
  34. For the record, I also went to Park Cafe but didn’t get anything. And I had a ranger cookie on my way out of WJ. Cabins were ready at exactly 1:00 and our luggage was waiting for us! We also met our cabin attendant within minutes. He quickly introduced himself & said he’d be back at 3:00. We told him no rush but asked if he could bring us extra hangers when he returned. He knocked on our door 5 mins later with a dozen hangers. Great first impression!
    14 points
  35. You’ve already been to the WJ AND ELF ? OMG….youre going to explode before the ship leaves the dock !
    14 points
  36. Final thoughts on the Royal Loft Suite: I don’t know how I am going to come back from this cabin. But I will have to find a way to. We cherished our time in our room this week. The hot tub was used every day, we spent time on the balcony every day. It was so awesome to have all the space, most times I would shout something to the kids and they would not even hear me. There was almost too much space in that room, but that is not a complaint lol I loved everything about that suite, but if I was to point out two things that I did not like, it would be the noise from the back sports area, and the master shower. You can hear everything from the basketball area, FlowRider, even Aqua80 if you are out on the balcony. This room has pretty much helped us decide that that we would never want a crown loft that faces the aft. Way too much noise. The master shower area is not that private. When we were parked next to Carnival Mardi Gras in Nassau, I really felt like I had to duck because the upper decks of that ship are almost as high as oasis. Next to Freedom in PDCC I did not feel as visible. However, if one is in the shower at night, and someone else is in the hot tub, well let’s just say they will most definitely get a very well lit shadow puppet show if you are using the shower closest to the window.
    14 points
  37. Insane clown duo ready to cruise !! They have their embarkation gear on as well.
    14 points
  38. Genie's Special = VIP Table in WJ
    14 points
  39. First of all, this is only my experience, and my opinion... I have pretty severe arthritis. I have some not-so-good days, and some better days. I don't know when or why some days are so totally different than other days. I don't use a wheelchair or scooter, but I have to be deliberate with every step I take. On my last Navigator cruise, I asked for a cabin 'closer' to an elevator, and explained the reason. The rep put us in an accessible cabin. When I attempted to argue out of it, he insisted and said that's exactly what accessible rooms are for. And once in the cabin, although I did not need the extra room, I surely appreciated the absence of thresholds to step over.
    14 points
  40. Finally made it home. We left ship around 730ish with wonderful Norman and Kenny concierge escort. On road before 8am and arrived home after 500 plus miles of driving around 430pm. I’m smoked and have added joy of work tomorrow. Did I mention I wish I was retired? awesome week with getting to meet @OCSC Mike and his lovely bride and seeing matt briefly twice. Wonder is just an awesome ship. Crew killed it as always. Royal for the win! Next cruise is icon in August. y’all thanks for following our posts.
    13 points
  41. Lost internet for a little while. Storm seems to be letting up but now the Solarium has become a mild flood zone, lol. Not sure where the water is coming from but there’s almost inch-deep water flowing in front of our loungers by the windows. Saw at least one flip flop float by.
    13 points
  42. Playmakers for lunch. Was busy as hell. We got lucky and got good service. Others around us? Not so much. Me: wings wife: poke nachos. Pics below drinks: sauv blanc, new Belgium IPa and of course a goalpost marg #deluxebeveragepackage
    13 points
  43. Yesterday. Thanks for remembering. Mason Jar pics coming later. My wife took over (she has a better phone & takes better photos than I do) so I have to get them from her & I’m too stuffed right now.
    13 points
  44. 1st drink, Mississippi Moonlight from Mason Jar bar. More moonshine, less lemonade this time, still good.
    13 points
  45. We were supposed to go see adult comedy tonight but we decided to cancel it and do family movie night instead. Time spent with our girls is precious.
    13 points
  46. A quick stop at Barefoot Beach before it was heavily populated with suite guests for the day. Next over to Nellie's Beach. And on to Columbus Cove. A short stroll through the artisan's market. Then over to Adrenaline Beach. It's an absolutely fantastic day here at Labadee.
    13 points
  47. Well, it is finally time for another cruise! Yes, we are sailing from Brisbane on a 7-night cruise to the Pacific Islands with 2 port stops: Noumea and Mystery Island on Quantum of the Seas. On this cruise, we are in a Grand Loft Suite on deck 10. We chose Quantum primarily because it is less expensive than Ovation and is better value for us. We also wanted to cruise again with Hailey, who was our Royal Genie last year on Quantum. We have sailed from Sydney many times, so we are not concerned with the scenery on the sail away; it gets dark quickly anyway. I think this blog will be a mini-blog, as the itinerary is similar to the one I blogged last year, so there will not be too much new information to impart. We flew into Brisbane from New Zealand yesterday morning and are staying near the airport at the Novotel. It is a convenient location for getting to the cruise terminal in the morning. The hotel is clean and quiet, despite being near the airport, and there is an outlet mall around 100 metres away that also has a few places to eat. We spent the afternoon wandering around the mall, and made a few purchases— who can resist a bargain? After a good night’s sleep, we took an Uber to the cruise terminal at around 10:30am, which is about a 15-minute trip and cost around $30 AUD (approx $20 USD). It is important to note that there is no public transport to the port, as it is in an industrial area far away from any amenities. There is parking available at the port if you have a car, though I do not know how much this costs. Our genie, Hailey, had an unexpected medical issue and is returning home prior to the start of our cruise. We were very lucky to bump into her outside the cruise terminal before she left for the airport. It was great to see her again, and even though we are sad not to be sailing with her, Hailey’s health comes first. We are happy she is returning home and will be able to get the care she needs in Korea. So now for this cruise, our genie will be Wilfredo (Willie), who was the concierge for our last sailing on Brilliance in November. This is his first time as a genie, but we are not demanding, so he will be able to ease his way into the job. Getting onto the ship as a Star Class guest is very quick and took no more than 15 minutes. We were escorted every step of the way by a lovely pier genie as she expertly handled a guest who complained to her that, as she had purchased the key with priority boarding, she should be receiving the same level of service. At the end of the gangway, which is actually quite a long walk, we met up with Willie, who escorted us straight onto the ship. We went right to the assembly station and completed the final step of our muster drill. The gangway from above Our cabin was already ready, so Willie took us up to our cabin. It felt similar to the royal loft suite we had last year, just on a smaller scale. Perfect for the two of us, though I will miss the hot tub on the deck. After settling into the cabin, the food started arriving on a regular basis, but we headed up to the CK for a light lunch. I just had some scallops and bread, which was just enough considering all the food we will be eating on this cruise. After lunch, we spent some time refamiliarising ourselves with the ship before heading back to the cabin for some R&R. We left Brisbane just after 4:30pm in glorious sunshine and calm seas, now we have 2 sea days and a clock change before we reach our first stop in Noumea. After watching our departure from our deck we heading up to the suite lounge for some nibbles. The lounge was not overly busy and there were plenty of seats available. While there we caught up with Willie and made a few changes to our daily schedule. Then it was off to Coastal Kitchen for dinner which was quite busy. We had organised to sit at one of the tables at the very end in the partially walled off area which was a bit quieter than the main restaurant. The food was very nice, I had the chicken leg as a starter, a dish I have not had before, but enjoyed very much. For the main we both had shrimp crusted pollack with rice which was also fabulous. The meal was rounded off nicely with vairhona chocolate bar dessert. After a quick wander around the shops and an order of Starbucks coffee it was back to the cabin to relax and retire for the evening. Some quick observations 1) Fish and Ships has changed back into a Dim Sum noodle restaurant. 2) Royal has learned the correct way to spell theatre, now if only they could learn we have holidays, not vacations. 3) We received star class wow bands. Wow bands where not in use last year. See you tomorrow for the next installment.
    13 points
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