cbnsoul

Jaullram,

Did you happen to notice if there is any form of transportation near to the Chill island cabanas?  We are hoping to book one for this fall and my dad has mobility issues.  It sates it is a 5-7 minute walk from the pier which could be an issue as I would imaging a fair bit of that distance is walking in sand.  Thanks!

We haven't been but have researched Sapphire Beach a fair bit as we are staying there in July.  AS far as I know, there is a beach bar/restaurant and that's it.  It's supposed to be good, though, and the beach/water beautiful.

I was wondering if I am able to change to a different room category or type on the same ship and sail date if I initially booked a guarantee room?

Thanks WAAAYTOO.  It must have been your recent blog post where I saw Jamie’s mentioned.!

Not sure if this is better posted on the Dining board but since it’s more The Key related, Inthought I’d post it here.

We are going on the Navigator in July and are going back and forth about getting The Key.  I thought I’d seen somewhere that at least on some ships they were offering The Key embarkation lunch at Chops or Jamie’s but I’m not sure if that is true.  We’d prefer to go to Jamie’s for lunch and go to Chops at dinner so having the option would be nice.

Seems like Jamie’s is kinda light on tables - awful lot of open space

18 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

This is currently raining on my happy dance...

Sorry about that.

Been waiting for the “actual” cruise blog to start for weeks now - hope you have a fantastic time!

Twangster,

Have you seen many (or any?) kids in the Bamboo Room?  My 12 year old son is really into Polynesian culture so would love to go but I wasn't sure if it is too adult oriented.

Great “live” blog.  I can’t share your enthusiasm for Columbus, though.  We thought it was easily the worst show we’d ever seen on a ship.

Can't belive they haven't found SOME use for the vacated Rita's space

36 minutes ago, WannaCruise said:

cbnsoul, I'm not OP, but thanks so much for sharing.  Looks like a great place.  A bit of a logistics question...we're coming with our 2 kids.  I won't go on the slides and I doubt DH will either.  For your first picture with the big slides, is it something you can let your kids go up by themselves and we wait at the bottom?  Or would we walk them up?  It seems like a long ways up.  Also, obviously you felt safe?  Some of those slides are mighty steep. (Or you commented you mostly stayed at the kids area)

We mostly just stayed in the kids area and around the regular and cenote-style pool.  My wife did one of the slides while my son and I waited.  You actually take an elevator up to the top of the slides which I thought was interesting. There’s a nice lazy river that we did together.  The line got really long as they didn’t have a lot of innertubes though it made for a nice, uncrowded ride.

I know this doesn’t directly answer your question but thought I’d chime in. We went to Tabyana and loved it.  It’s a pretty basic facility but the beach was beautiful and the best snorkeling is directly in front. The food was included and very good - burgers, BBQ chicken, etc. drinks were extra but good (although a little string for our taste!). There is Security to prevent the locals selling goods from coming onto their property so they stroll back and forth along the shore.  The highlight of my whole trip was walking the beach and watching the vendors come by!

We went to the water park in November 2018 while on Symphony.  It’s very nice with several slides and pools and is in excellent condition.  We got there early and beat most of the lines (except for the locker rental in the main building which was S-L-O-W). We primarily sat by the pool and kids splash area. Food options appeared to be limited to one buffet restaurant that was expensive so ,we ate back at the cruise terminal. Overall we spent about 3-4 hours there. We will do it again in our next trip but pair it with the zip lines, at least for my wife. 

29 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

At noon we went to watch the Belly Flop by the pool and I was once again reminded of how much better it is to watch at the Aqua Theatre on OA class ships. Some might disagree but the crowds at one small pool, no instant replay, not broadcasted on the big screen, make it for a less enjoyable experience.

Huh, we have watched the competition on both the Harmony and Symphony and both were at the Sports Pool.  I didn't know they ever had it at the Aqua Theater.

We just did the Tabyana without snorkeling excursion last week and had a great time.  The groups left on separate buses with those with snorkeling going first. Our bus left maybe 10-15 minutes later and by the time we arrived, those with snorkeling were already in the water.  It appears that they have one guide from Tabyana take 3-4 people out at a time and show them the highlights.  You are also free to snorkel on your own whether or not you booked the snorkel option.  There are rental locations on each side of the beach and through Tabyana as well. My wife was considering snorkeling and a Tabyana guide ended up coming to us in our chairs and asking if we would like to go.  She ended up deciding to do it (at no cost other than tip) and it was just her and the guide and she said the snorkeling was fabulous. The beach is very nice and you can easily walk down to look at the other beach clubs, many of which have excursions through RC. There are vendors but security at Tabyana (and seemingly the other beach clubs) prevent them from leaving the shoreline.  I thought it was quite entertaining watching the different vendors come by and was actually a highlight of the trip!

Lunch was supposed to be 11:30-1:30 but they pretty much try to get everyone to come at 11:30 when it opens. Departures from Tabyana were roughly every 30 minutes starting at 1, I believe.  The buses they used are the "mini" sized, holding about 15 people and would often fill quickly.  We just missed the 2 pm bus because it was too full so waited around for the next one. Even people arriving 15 minutes early missed the 2:30 bus since ours was so full.  Just something to keep in mind. 

We just signed up to be on the Symphony for Thanksgiving week (so excited that I might get to see Matt!). I was wondering if there is a "special menu" (ie turkey) on the Chops menu, for either lunch or dinner, on Thanksgiving day?  I have looked but can't seem to find an answer anywhere.Thanks

Been to a lot of ports in the Caribbean and I’d say the entire town is “shady streets”. I wouldn’t recommend going out alone.

So, prior to our last cruise in March, I was given the option prior to choosing a room or category (can't recall which) to choose either a non-refundable or refundable deposit.  Now all I get is the non-refundable option.  I assume that's all anyone is getting meaning I have to call if I want the refundable deposit?  Thanks

Looking to book a flight out of San Juan for an upcoming Freedom cruise and the portions are either 11:45 AM or 7:15 PM. I'd really prefer the morning flight and was wondering if we'd have enough time to get to the airport if we did express walk-off option taking our luggage with us.  I have heard that security and check in at SJU can be really slow so that makes me a bit concerned. I can't find any Cruise Compasses posted for Freedom from San Juan so am not sure when debarkation occurs or if taking luggage off yourself is even an option as it is in Port Everglades. Any help is appreciated!

1 hour ago, annabede17 said:

Hi all, I'm desperate to see the swimming pigs in the Exumas but that is not a shore excursion formally offered by any cruises. I've found lots of day trips from Nassau but they all leave at 8am. There is one company that departs at 9am but they won't wait for me or give me a refund if I am running late. For anyone familiar with the docking/disembarkation process in Nassau- if the boat (Mariner of the Seas) is scheduled to be in port from 8am to midnight, how soon can I reasonably expect to get off it after it arrives? The tour operates out of Paradise Ferry Terminal, which is either a 30 min walk or ten minute drive from the cruise ship pier. Are the streets too crazy to try to get anywhere in a car in a hurry when the ship is offloading? Thanks!

The Paradise Island Ferry Terminal would be a LONG walk though the 10 minute drive time is probably ly about right.  You can also take a water taxi but they operate on less of a schedule.

We were on the Harmony in a Boardwalk room last month.  Theres a letter in your room that you are supposed to show the wait staff that informs them you are in a Boardwalk room so are not charged.  JR does t take reservations.  Although it was mild to moderately busy at times, I only saw a line to check in once which was at lunch on the first sea day.

Boarded Harmony today and the price was up to 9.95 as well.

We took the tour to Tulum in June and crossed in what I’d say are mild to moderate seas and several people were either vomiting or looked like they were going to.  They passed out barf bags on both trips.  Good advice is to be by the window downstairs or outside upstairs 

Thanks for the update.  We are on the Harmony in June and, at least as of now, we can get the all day pass.  I was watching some videos about Labadee and saw a sign saying something to the effect of "coaster booking" so figured that on-island reservations may be an option but wasn't sure

We are considering riding the Dragon's Tail but are not sure if we will have the time and/or desire to do it once we are there.  Is it something you can pay for on the island rather than having to purchase ahead of time?