Neaxan

We've done two 14 nights (Canaries and Baltic Sea), one 7 nights (Med) and one 5 nights (Metal event cruise). We prefer the longer cruises, albeit usually with many port days. Up to this cruise we thought sea days were a necessary evil. Guess this view will change - this is the first time I had to make a spreadsheet for a cruise so we won't be bored.
On another note, with cruise fever finally starting we decided to pack today. I can report we have been successfull - after a bit of reorganization (and sorting out an abundance of clothes) all lugagge is below or at the weight limit. All I can say is I have no idea how I managed 3 months in London with a limit of 88 pounds a few years back ?

After more than a year of lurking in the forum, vacation time has finally arrived! With all the help I got from this board and all the live blogs I read to live vicariously through, I decided to return the favor. This will not rival Twangster’s quality live blog, but we’ll try our best and offer a new-to-Royal perspective. I’ll do the typing and hubby will provide the pictures. If you’ve got any questions, I’ll do my best to find the answer. So without further ado...
 
Who are we and why this cruise?
Kerstin and Michael, in our mid-thirties, from Germany (Bavaria to be exact) and on our first TA, first Royal cruise – and first time out of Europe. We’ve cruised before – 3 times with TUI Cruises (German cruise line, joint venture with RCI), once with AIDA. We usually cruise for the itinerary, but made an exception for this cruise. After a brilliant video of Harmony from our favourite German Youtuber – the Schiffstester – we knew we wanted to try Oasis class – and that really experiencing it would take more than 7 days. We’d originally planned to book a Med B2B and not leave the ship, but the price on the TA was just too good – YOLO! I hate flying so to make it worthwhile, we added a 14 night Caribbean cruise on Caribbean Princess (RCI itineraries just weren’t to our liking).
 
Cruise preview – Barcelona to Miami
Ports of call: Malaga (Day 2) – not sure if we’ll get off the ship, maybe just for a stroll; Port Canaveral (Day 12) – Kennedy Space Center Guided Tour with Royal to avoid the long lines for immigration
Food & Beverage: we both got the deluxe drinking package and 5 night dining package. Additionally reserved Izumi Hibachi and Jamie’s as we plan to check out all the options.
Entertainment: all shows reserved, we’ll participate in a few CC events (Meet & Mingle, mini golf tournament, pub crawl, scavenger hunt). We’re also planning to book the all access tour.
Cabin: 8411 - inside stateroom at the fore
 
Pre-cruise & post-cruise
We’ve already prepared everything we want to pack and will pack tomorrow. Friday morning, we’ll drop off the boys (our five coonies) at the cat hotel, rush home, throw the luggage in the car and drive to my parents. They’ll drop us off at the airport Duesseldorf for our evening check-in, we’ll stay at the airport hotel as our flight is at 6.45am on Saturday. We’ll stay at Hotel Catedral in Barcelona and have booked a walking tour of Barri Gótic for the afternoon.
Post-cruise we’ll stay at Sense Beach House in South Beach until we board Caribbean Princess on 11th. It’s our first time in Miami, so we rented a car to get a good overview and do the essential shopping – I might pillage the Disney store as my sister is expecting her first child on November 23rd.

@Neaxan...all this time and I did not know that this was going to be your first Royal cruise!  How exciting to start off with the newest and brightest of them all!  Looking forward to following along...the more blogs the merrier!

Following.

Your coons are beautiful! Looking forward to following along.

I have not been brave enough to go past 7 days on a cruise so I look forward to your blogging. Have an awesome time!
I am leaving from Miami on the 29th of October but on Carnival. I booked it before I really knew much about Royal Caribbean. I will still have fun I do pretty much wherever I am

Wow !  That’s quite an itinerary !  Thanks for bring us along with you.  Have a great time !

After more than a year of lurking in the forum, vacation time has finally arrived! With all the help I got from this board and all the live blogs I read to live vicariously through, I decided to return the favor. This will not rival Twangster’s quality live blog, but we’ll try our best and offer a new-to-Royal perspective. I’ll do the typing and hubby will provide the pictures. If you’ve got any questions, I’ll do my best to find the answer. So without further ado...
 
Who are we and why this cruise?
Kerstin and Michael, in our mid-thirties, from Germany (Bavaria to be exact) and on our first TA, first Royal cruise – and first time out of Europe. We’ve cruised before – 3 times with TUI Cruises (German cruise line, joint venture with RCI), once with AIDA. We usually cruise for the itinerary, but made an exception for this cruise. After a brilliant video of Harmony from our favourite German Youtuber – the Schiffstester – we knew we wanted to try Oasis class – and that really experiencing it would take more than 7 days. We’d originally planned to book a Med B2B and not leave the ship, but the price on the TA was just too good – YOLO! I hate flying so to make it worthwhile, we added a 14 night Caribbean cruise on Caribbean Princess (RCI itineraries just weren’t to our liking).
 
Cruise preview – Barcelona to Miami
Ports of call: Malaga (Day 2) – not sure if we’ll get off the ship, maybe just for a stroll; Port Canaveral (Day 12) – Kennedy Space Center Guided Tour with Royal to avoid the long lines for immigration
Food & Beverage: we both got the deluxe drinking package and 5 night dining package. Additionally reserved Izumi Hibachi and Jamie’s as we plan to check out all the options.
Entertainment: all shows reserved, we’ll participate in a few CC events (Meet & Mingle, mini golf tournament, pub crawl, scavenger hunt). We’re also planning to book the all access tour.
Cabin: 8411 - inside stateroom at the fore
 
Pre-cruise & post-cruise
We’ve already prepared everything we want to pack and will pack tomorrow. Friday morning, we’ll drop off the boys (our five coonies) at the cat hotel, rush home, throw the luggage in the car and drive to my parents. They’ll drop us off at the airport Duesseldorf for our evening check-in, we’ll stay at the airport hotel as our flight is at 6.45am on Saturday. We’ll stay at Hotel Catedral in Barcelona and have booked a walking tour of Barri Gótic for the afternoon.
Post-cruise we’ll stay at Sense Beach House in South Beach until we board Caribbean Princess on 11th. It’s our first time in Miami, so we rented a car to get a good overview and do the essential shopping – I might pillage the Disney store as my sister is expecting her first child on November 23rd.

After more than a year of lurking in the forum, vacation time has finally arrived! With all the help I got from this board and all the live blogs I read to live vicariously through, I decided to return the favor. This will not rival Twangster’s quality live blog, but we’ll try our best and offer a new-to-Royal perspective. I’ll do the typing and hubby will provide the pictures. If you’ve got any questions, I’ll do my best to find the answer. So without further ado...
 
Who are we and why this cruise?
Kerstin and Michael, in our mid-thirties, from Germany (Bavaria to be exact) and on our first TA, first Royal cruise – and first time out of Europe. We’ve cruised before – 3 times with TUI Cruises (German cruise line, joint venture with RCI), once with AIDA. We usually cruise for the itinerary, but made an exception for this cruise. After a brilliant video of Harmony from our favourite German Youtuber – the Schiffstester – we knew we wanted to try Oasis class – and that really experiencing it would take more than 7 days. We’d originally planned to book a Med B2B and not leave the ship, but the price on the TA was just too good – YOLO! I hate flying so to make it worthwhile, we added a 14 night Caribbean cruise on Caribbean Princess (RCI itineraries just weren’t to our liking).
 
Cruise preview – Barcelona to Miami
Ports of call: Malaga (Day 2) – not sure if we’ll get off the ship, maybe just for a stroll; Port Canaveral (Day 12) – Kennedy Space Center Guided Tour with Royal to avoid the long lines for immigration
Food & Beverage: we both got the deluxe drinking package and 5 night dining package. Additionally reserved Izumi Hibachi and Jamie’s as we plan to check out all the options.
Entertainment: all shows reserved, we’ll participate in a few CC events (Meet & Mingle, mini golf tournament, pub crawl, scavenger hunt). We’re also planning to book the all access tour.
Cabin: 8411 - inside stateroom at the fore
 
Pre-cruise & post-cruise
We’ve already prepared everything we want to pack and will pack tomorrow. Friday morning, we’ll drop off the boys (our five coonies) at the cat hotel, rush home, throw the luggage in the car and drive to my parents. They’ll drop us off at the airport Duesseldorf for our evening check-in, we’ll stay at the airport hotel as our flight is at 6.45am on Saturday. We’ll stay at Hotel Catedral in Barcelona and have booked a walking tour of Barri Gótic for the afternoon.
Post-cruise we’ll stay at Sense Beach House in South Beach until we board Caribbean Princess on 11th. It’s our first time in Miami, so we rented a car to get a good overview and do the essential shopping – I might pillage the Disney store as my sister is expecting her first child on November 23rd.

After more than a year of lurking in the forum, vacation time has finally arrived! With all the help I got from this board and all the live blogs I read to live vicariously through, I decided to return the favor. This will not rival Twangster’s quality live blog, but we’ll try our best and offer a new-to-Royal perspective. I’ll do the typing and hubby will provide the pictures. If you’ve got any questions, I’ll do my best to find the answer. So without further ado...
 
Who are we and why this cruise?
Kerstin and Michael, in our mid-thirties, from Germany (Bavaria to be exact) and on our first TA, first Royal cruise – and first time out of Europe. We’ve cruised before – 3 times with TUI Cruises (German cruise line, joint venture with RCI), once with AIDA. We usually cruise for the itinerary, but made an exception for this cruise. After a brilliant video of Harmony from our favourite German Youtuber – the Schiffstester – we knew we wanted to try Oasis class – and that really experiencing it would take more than 7 days. We’d originally planned to book a Med B2B and not leave the ship, but the price on the TA was just too good – YOLO! I hate flying so to make it worthwhile, we added a 14 night Caribbean cruise on Caribbean Princess (RCI itineraries just weren’t to our liking).
 
Cruise preview – Barcelona to Miami
Ports of call: Malaga (Day 2) – not sure if we’ll get off the ship, maybe just for a stroll; Port Canaveral (Day 12) – Kennedy Space Center Guided Tour with Royal to avoid the long lines for immigration
Food & Beverage: we both got the deluxe drinking package and 5 night dining package. Additionally reserved Izumi Hibachi and Jamie’s as we plan to check out all the options.
Entertainment: all shows reserved, we’ll participate in a few CC events (Meet & Mingle, mini golf tournament, pub crawl, scavenger hunt). We’re also planning to book the all access tour.
Cabin: 8411 - inside stateroom at the fore
 
Pre-cruise & post-cruise
We’ve already prepared everything we want to pack and will pack tomorrow. Friday morning, we’ll drop off the boys (our five coonies) at the cat hotel, rush home, throw the luggage in the car and drive to my parents. They’ll drop us off at the airport Duesseldorf for our evening check-in, we’ll stay at the airport hotel as our flight is at 6.45am on Saturday. We’ll stay at Hotel Catedral in Barcelona and have booked a walking tour of Barri Gótic for the afternoon.
Post-cruise we’ll stay at Sense Beach House in South Beach until we board Caribbean Princess on 11th. It’s our first time in Miami, so we rented a car to get a good overview and do the essential shopping – I might pillage the Disney store as my sister is expecting her first child on November 23rd.

After more than a year of lurking in the forum, vacation time has finally arrived! With all the help I got from this board and all the live blogs I read to live vicariously through, I decided to return the favor. This will not rival Twangster’s quality live blog, but we’ll try our best and offer a new-to-Royal perspective. I’ll do the typing and hubby will provide the pictures. If you’ve got any questions, I’ll do my best to find the answer. So without further ado...
 
Who are we and why this cruise?
Kerstin and Michael, in our mid-thirties, from Germany (Bavaria to be exact) and on our first TA, first Royal cruise – and first time out of Europe. We’ve cruised before – 3 times with TUI Cruises (German cruise line, joint venture with RCI), once with AIDA. We usually cruise for the itinerary, but made an exception for this cruise. After a brilliant video of Harmony from our favourite German Youtuber – the Schiffstester – we knew we wanted to try Oasis class – and that really experiencing it would take more than 7 days. We’d originally planned to book a Med B2B and not leave the ship, but the price on the TA was just too good – YOLO! I hate flying so to make it worthwhile, we added a 14 night Caribbean cruise on Caribbean Princess (RCI itineraries just weren’t to our liking).
 
Cruise preview – Barcelona to Miami
Ports of call: Malaga (Day 2) – not sure if we’ll get off the ship, maybe just for a stroll; Port Canaveral (Day 12) – Kennedy Space Center Guided Tour with Royal to avoid the long lines for immigration
Food & Beverage: we both got the deluxe drinking package and 5 night dining package. Additionally reserved Izumi Hibachi and Jamie’s as we plan to check out all the options.
Entertainment: all shows reserved, we’ll participate in a few CC events (Meet & Mingle, mini golf tournament, pub crawl, scavenger hunt). We’re also planning to book the all access tour.
Cabin: 8411 - inside stateroom at the fore
 
Pre-cruise & post-cruise
We’ve already prepared everything we want to pack and will pack tomorrow. Friday morning, we’ll drop off the boys (our five coonies) at the cat hotel, rush home, throw the luggage in the car and drive to my parents. They’ll drop us off at the airport Duesseldorf for our evening check-in, we’ll stay at the airport hotel as our flight is at 6.45am on Saturday. We’ll stay at Hotel Catedral in Barcelona and have booked a walking tour of Barri Gótic for the afternoon.
Post-cruise we’ll stay at Sense Beach House in South Beach until we board Caribbean Princess on 11th. It’s our first time in Miami, so we rented a car to get a good overview and do the essential shopping – I might pillage the Disney store as my sister is expecting her first child on November 23rd.

We'll be going and we can't wait. It'll be our first cruise with Royal but thanks to this wonderful blog I think we're prepared. Drink package, 5 night dining package plus Hibachi reservation, shows and escape room are booked, setsail passes and luggage tags are printed. I'm only missing the all access tour but I guess it'll be available on the ship. No RCCL blog events that I'm aware of but we've signed up for a few on the roll call (Meet & Mingle, Pub Crawl, Mini Golf and Scavenger Hunt).
Maybe see you on the ship!
 

Dropped pup off last night and passed out on the couch before 9. I haven’t been sleeping all week. 
This is my first time playing with the camera and Luna is my favorite subject. It only took a half hour to figure out how to get the picture from my camera to anywhere else.

11pm - 80's party in the Promenade

I'll refrain from adding a couple of photos from Playmakers that I can't recall taking or explain how I got them on my phone after this.  At some point after midnight I decided I needed to start packing.  These short cruises suck.   Packing under the influence sucks worse.

The main snorkel area for Cococay is closer to the end of the island where the ship is closest.  I had never snorkeled here and since I had brought my mask and snorkel fins (travel fins) I decided I need to learn more about this area.  
You enter from the beach where people are swilling.  Buoys mark underwater features they have aded to attract marine life.  Swimming platforms are available to rest on.  Two life guard towers mark the extent of the snorkel and swim area.   
At first the water is cloudy from the swimmers and folks wading in shallow water,  Further out it clears up quite a bit.  


I spotted more rays.








With this complete I headed back to the ship.


Cococay remains a favorite stop of mine.  
The construction from the pier and/or Perfect Day had no impact on my day here either from Mariner on Thursday or Enchantment on Sunday.  

One benefit of visiting Cococay from a small ship is the easy tendering process.  
I had just been to Cococay on Mariner on Thursday and on that occasion I did the certified scuba dive.  After the dive on Thursday I was in the area near the floating bar wandering around in knee deep water with my camera.  A beach assistant called me over and told to watch for various marine life including lemon sharks.  They aren't a threat and will swim around you as you walk the sandbars.  With tide just switching and starting to come in that was apparently good time to see them.  
With that fresh in memory from my Mariner visit I decided to make this a snorkel day at Coccocay.  I had my own gear from diving so it made for a cheap day.  
I found a lounger in the second row in the shade of a palm tree and claimed it as mine.  With a small ship like Enchantment there were a ton of loungers available so that wasn't an issue.  Tide was still going out which isn't typically great shark timing according to a lifeguard I asked but you never know.  So off I went.
It didn't take long to find one.  At first I though I was walking towards a submerged rock in two feet of water.  The rock kept moving away.  Hmmm.

I donned my mask and laid down in just enough water depth to snorkel and saw my quest.
There were also the occasional jelly.





 
I wasn't the only one.  Several other people were walking around in the knee water and seeing them.


There were at least three or four swimming and occasionally resting in place until a human scared them them into motion.  The closest I got was maybe four or five feet.  The super wide-angle GoPro lens makes it look so far away.  It was pretty cool.  
I also spotted a stingray.  

Like the sharks they were quick to move on when approached.  
Since I was in the neighborhood it was only appropriate to stop at the watering hole.  


From the floating bar this is the general area where I was 'sharking'.

While at Cococay bar service is done by ship bartenders.  Supplies come from the ship. 
While visiting on Empress a few weeks ago, the floating bar had a very limited menu and only one bartender.  No frozen drinks, no CocoLoco, basic mixers and cranberry juice.  Everything was paper tickets. 
On Enchantment they had a much a much better bar menu and they had brought a point of sale terminal operating in offline mode that could swipe cards and provide a standard printed receipt.  A laminated bar menu was available. Cocoloco was available from a cooler (no blender on the floating bar to make other frozen drinks).  In a different cooler they had pre-made jugs of Bahama Mama, Margarita mix, etc.  Liquor was added at they poured the drink it so virgin versions are available for those who don't want alcohol.  

Since I had the drink package...

I let this wear off a bit before heading to the 'official' snorkeling area closer to the action of Cococay.

Am I reading this wrong, but ..... call me suspicious
1)  Why does the OP make a post like that, then disappear?  It's as though you have to question the validity of the post to begin with.
2)  Since when is it RCL's responsibility to remind you?  It clearly states on your paperwork when Final Payment is due -- it's your responsibility to read it.
And as for a grace period?  Why?  To give you one wouldn't be fair to everyone else.  That's the beauty of the way you can pay for cruises, book way far out then make payments .... if you're unable to afford it, don't book it, or, downgrade to a less expensive cabin.  I know what my wallet tells me. balcony?  would love to but I have to live within my means, it's Inside or OV for me for the time being.  It's ok to have Mercedes tastes, but don't live it if you have a Hyundai budget.

In my booking confirmation Royal clearly stated that there would be no reminders for final payment so I planned accordingly - put my own reminders in the calendar and paid with a bit of error margin to account for possible transfer delays. I can't see any fault with Royal here, their terms and conditions clearly state they're allowed to keep the deposit if you "cancel" with x days left - not paying the final payment equals cancelling. Blaming Royal for your oversight seems a bit unwarranted. If you need help keeping up with your payments you can always use a TA.

In my booking confirmation Royal clearly stated that there would be no reminders for final payment so I planned accordingly - put my own reminders in the calendar and paid with a bit of error margin to account for possible transfer delays. I can't see any fault with Royal here, their terms and conditions clearly state they're allowed to keep the deposit if you "cancel" with x days left - not paying the final payment equals cancelling. Blaming Royal for your oversight seems a bit unwarranted. If you need help keeping up with your payments you can always use a TA.

In my booking confirmation Royal clearly stated that there would be no reminders for final payment so I planned accordingly - put my own reminders in the calendar and paid with a bit of error margin to account for possible transfer delays. I can't see any fault with Royal here, their terms and conditions clearly state they're allowed to keep the deposit if you "cancel" with x days left - not paying the final payment equals cancelling. Blaming Royal for your oversight seems a bit unwarranted. If you need help keeping up with your payments you can always use a TA.

In my booking confirmation Royal clearly stated that there would be no reminders for final payment so I planned accordingly - put my own reminders in the calendar and paid with a bit of error margin to account for possible transfer delays. I can't see any fault with Royal here, their terms and conditions clearly state they're allowed to keep the deposit if you "cancel" with x days left - not paying the final payment equals cancelling. Blaming Royal for your oversight seems a bit unwarranted. If you need help keeping up with your payments you can always use a TA.

In my booking confirmation Royal clearly stated that there would be no reminders for final payment so I planned accordingly - put my own reminders in the calendar and paid with a bit of error margin to account for possible transfer delays. I can't see any fault with Royal here, their terms and conditions clearly state they're allowed to keep the deposit if you "cancel" with x days left - not paying the final payment equals cancelling. Blaming Royal for your oversight seems a bit unwarranted. If you need help keeping up with your payments you can always use a TA.

Oh my, you do have a talent to part people with their money. First the dslr and corresponding photography courses and now I'll have to look into Alaska cruises rather sooner than later ? Pics and blog are brilliant as always!
Btw is the accumulation of bear photos a nod to a naughty bear  in a certain FB group?

The blue sky was too much for me and I had to ask.  How much for a do-over on the zip line?  The girl gave me a break on the price and my 1pm zip line time was set.  She warned me it was the last zip of the day and they need a few more guests to operate it.  They guaranteed my return to the ship well before the 2:30pm all aboard.
1pm arrived at the waiting area in the building and I counted more than six.  Houston, we have lift off.

The bus drive this time yielded much better views, both near the port and in the mountains.  


Our driver spotted a deer and stopped the bus.





A fellow victim zip rider.







Video, of course:
 
What a ride!  What a view!
Time 1:55pm.

The restaurants have free wifi that is limited to one hour.  My phone had 3G coverage which was fine for most needs, except scoping.  So I scoped from the restaurant:
https://www.periscope.tv/thetwangster/1ynJOYOdPZkKR
After my early lunch I made my way back to get some pictures with the blue sky.


These are private residences.  Maybe grounds keepers for ISP?

The wooden pillars have small Inukshuks on top of them.  I couldn't resist taking some pictures of them.



What a difference on a clear sunny day makes.




There is a short nature walk that starts near the Adventure Center and runs through the woods then along the water in front of the ship.  It's well packed and accessible.  I did see a guided tour was available that I presume uses the golf cart type shuttles that are used on the pier.  That path is very wide.






Inside the main building you first enter is a small store.  

Its quite nice inside and also serves as the excursion meeting point for some of the excursions.  

The ladies in red shirts are the excursion desk.  Just in front of them are a series of tablet stations where you can sign waivers electronically and have a copy emailed to you.  Very professional. 
The pier walkway is covered in case it's raining (it's Alaska, it rains).

They have a shuttle for those that need it with a covered waiting area on the pier.

All in all they did a great job on the 2016 renovation.