wannabecruiseexpert

La Bamba looks delicious! That's on my to-do list for next time we sail from there. Happy cruise day!!!

Congratulations! Everything has looked soooo amazing so far!

I completely agree. The rocking and swaying is one of the things I miss most when I get home

Glad you made it on quickly! Enjoy the rest of your trip!

I sure do LOVE a positive attitude! Enjoy your pedis tomorrow!

I'm trying to decide between these two cabins. Are there any pros or cons for choosing one over the other? This would be my first time on Navigator (have been on Adventure).

I was just thinking about this blog and hoping recovery is going great!

If you have a “party”, at least take pictures of the food!

I’m pretty sure I could have asked for a specific one, but looking at the map, I thought #1 would be perfect for us so that our little one could play in the sand easily. That part worked really good. But now, knowing what I know, I will ask for #10 or #11. We have a sky class suite in April and I’m kind of excited to see how it compares. I’ve apparently done this in the wrong order

Random thoughts I left out - Since we had an unvaccinated child, we had to meet at Studio B for all of our excursions, get a sticker to wear, then go meet on the pier. I understand the staff needs to make sure you’re on a ship sponsored excursion, but the card scanner thing alerts when you get off so I don’t understand the point. DD6 loves to write notes to her teachers, friends, etc. Well she wrote one to Smitha and gave it to her at dinner that night. Later on, I get a message and it’s Smitha telling me she put it up on her board. Made my daughter’s day As a first timer in star class, we really didn’t know what to expect. I was worried it was going to be too much. I’ve read about the phone constantly ringing and doorbell always going off. We didn’t experience that. Our laundry was usually delivered when we were getting ready for dinner, but other than that, most things happened when we were gone. I did expect to see the genie more often. We always went to the dinner she scheduled by ourselves and I think just the first 2 nights she came and checked on us while at dinner and that was it. We saw her at the shows when she walked us to our seats and she walked us outside on our excursion days. We didn’t see her at cococay like I see other genies doing. Didn’t bother me at all because we’re extremely low key but it wasn’t what I was expecting. All in all, I do think star class was worth what we paid, if for nothing more than the great room (got a ton of steps in) and the laundry! Speaking of laundry, do they hide those little tags I’ve seen people talking about here on the blogs? I found 2. I specifically went looking for them on various clothing items but only found 2. There must be a trick to finding them

I looked daily waiting for the price to drop because I would have cancelled and rebooked. It never did get any lower. At least we know next time to stay away from #1. I would say MAYBE 30/35. There are a ton of long benches set up on both sides and on different levels of the boat and not one time was there another family sitting on the bench we were on. When the pirates would do a part of the act, most people would go down to the lowest/main level to watch but even then it wasn't crowded at all! Like I said earlier, they pay a lot of attention to the kids (who want attention) and it ended up being maybe 5 kids who really participated. I can't say enough good things about it. I wished I would have voiced my opinion like steeltitan. Looking back, I should have - not so much for my trip but for future people who go.

You might be right. I was there last week and we were the only ship. It appeared all of the floating cabanas were booked (at least all on my half but I didn't notice any with no people). I could still see all of the options on the cruise planner up until we left as I was checking daily for price drops. Seems the only difference between last week and this week was there being 2 ships.

We ended up staying as late as we could - I think around 4 - and when we got back on the ship, I think all of the food and sun was getting to me as I had a huge headache. We had reservations at Giovannis but I didn’t feel like going so I messaged Smitha to cancel. The 4 big kids went to Coastal Kitchen, DH took the little one to get a salad then dropped her off at adventure ocean and we got room service. I hate that I missed it though Bevis it was one I was really excited to try. There’s always next time! Once I started feeling better, we spent the rest of the evening packing and going to our favorite bartenders to say goodbye and have some last drinks. Then looked through our photos choosing 100 and headed back to get some sleep. Getting off the ship was just as bad as getting on. We must have the worst luck. It was a huge mess. We had flights to catch at MCO at 12 and Smitha advised us that leaving at 8:00 would give us plenty of time. At exactly 8:00, Smitha showed up with the porter. They loaded up all of our luggage and my daughter was finishing getting her shoes on. There was some miscommunication because I said we were ready but she didn’t hear me. We’re just standing there waiting and I assumed she was talking to the porter. A few minutes go by and I ask DH what are we waiting on. He didn’t know either. Looking back, I should have said something. Finally, DH asks her if we’re waiting on our number to be called or something and she’s like….I’ve been waiting on you. She didn’t hear me say we were ready so we were waiting on her and she was waiting on us. She told us we needed our seapass card and should keep out id for DD6 because sometimes the facial recognition doesn’t work well with shorter people. She takes us down and hands us off to one of the ladies at the terminal and had to go get another family. She asks if any of us are using a birth certificate instead of passport and that’s what one of the girls friend had. She said make sure you have it. Well we didn’t know that so it was packed in a suitcase. The lady gave us major attitude (this was probably something I should have known but we are inexperienced cruisers and were just going by what Smitha told us. I assume she didn’t know one of us didn’t have passport. The lady was able to track down our luggage cart (not without mumbling under her breath and giving us not so nice glares) and we went through facial recognition with no issues and the one came through and we were on our way. We ubered to the airport ($126 for UberXL) and got there with plenty of time. Next up - miscellaneous things I forgot to mention and final thoughts

Day 7 (CocoCay) started really early. On day 4 or 5 we had a notice on our door that we needed to schedule DD6 for another covid test. We purposely picked 6:50-7:00 as our time because I thought I read on here that you had to have the results back before you could get off the ship. So I take her down to deck 3 and surprisingly there is no line. I scan her card and they handed me a piece of paper and then was directed to a different room where they had several nurses administering the test. It was, again, the short swab. Very simple and we were sent on our way. I had previously told Smitha we wanted to get off at 9:00 (making sure to give plenty of time for the test to come back). At about 8:50 she messaged me to let her know when we were ready. I told her I didn’t have the results back yet and she said it doesn’t matter and that we should get an email by 6:00 that evening (I ended up getting it about 4). We met her at our elevators and she took us down (both this day and the day she took us to medical, we walked across I-95. I’ve never done a ship tour so found that interesting. She took us to the trams and we waited a few minutes to get on one going to the Beach Club. We booked an over the water cabana a while back and the price never dropped. When we first arrived at the Beach Club, we were given a tour and then taken to our cabana. Matt has a map here https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/perfect-day-cococay-map From the maps I saw, it looked like there wasn’t a bathroom close, but there are 2 bathroom “trailers”, 1 on each side at the cabanas. We had cabana #1 and I thought it was going to be perfect for us since I knew DD6 would want to play in the sand. I was wrong. More on that later. We had 7 people and found there is plenty of room for everyone. I loved having the radio. We were able to use our phones to connect to it or you could choose from a few select “stations”. We had 2 very attentive attendants who made sure we always had a drink in our hand. And food. Lots and lots of food. We started with cold appetizers of hummus and tzatziki, ceviche, shrimp, veggies and pita bread Not too long after, they brought hot appetizers consisting of chicken wings, cheese sticks, chicken fingers and fries For lunch, they explained that with large groups they recommend bringing an assortment of all of the lunch foods instead of everyone ordering something specific. We could have ordered If we wanted to but we just took their recommendation. Please ignore all of the feet. I kept making everyone move so I could take pictures but apparently I wasn’t quick enough for this one. This was soooo much food! I tried a little of everything and other than the mac & cheese, everything was great (I’m a southern girl and we know how to make mac & cheese ) Not too long after lunch, one of the many lifeguards told us that at high tide (around 1:00) we may see some stingrays and sharks but don’t be alarmed as they wouldn’t mess with us. We saw 3 different sharks and 2 stingrays. They were very close to us! If anyone was there that day, even on the ship, and heard screaming, that was my daughter I could not believe how close they kept coming to us. They would stay in the Water between the cabanas and the beach and then it would occasionally swim under our cabana and then go back again. It was so neat watching them then watching other people on the beach see them and scatter. Speaking of other people, it got soooo crowded around our cabana. There were frequently people floating on mats right at our steps and at the slide. I got annoyed, but I mean the cabana was right in front of “their” beach. I just wish for the price we paid, we had a little more seclusion. We even had someone come up and ask us to slide down the slide. It just felt awkward. One off my daughters was walking down the path on the way to get a funnel cake and apparently was asked by one of the attendants if she needed something. She told him where she was going and he said no, he’ll get it. I knew that we could ask them to get stuff from outside of the Beach Club but it was so close that we didn’t mind getting it ourselves. Regardless, a few minutes later we had dessert and 6 funnel cakes delivered. All in all, we had an amazing time but I’m not sure I can justify spending what we did. The food was great, but I think all of the other food is really good too. Maybe if we had a different cabana I would have felt different. We never made it to the pool.

When we were walking back to our room, I was stopped by spa employees selling a package. I’ve never been to any spa on a ship before. The package was $129 for 75 minutes including: various massages and facial. I signed up, just to be able to experience it. I loved every minute of it other than the sales pitch at the end. Scalp massage and feet/leg massage tie for my favorite. We didn’t have any dinner planned so we split up and had a “do your own thing tonight” night. We had the a headliner show scheduled at 8:00. The 4 big kids sat in the lower seating while DH, DD6 and I sat in the balcony due to her being unvaccinated. Kevin Johnson (ventriloquist) was very funny and even DD6 laughed out loud multiple times. Next up: Beach Club and sharks

Day 6 - Nassau I know that a lot of people don’t like Nassau. I’ve been one of those people. This day was great though! Very busy but one of my favorite days. I’ve found that picture taking slows down as we go. We had our usual breakfast from Johnny Rocket’s. The 4 big kids went snorkeling for the first time and DH just went shopping. DD6 and I did Blackbeard’s Pirate Revenge excursion and it was both of ours favorite thing we did. I HIGHLY recommend it for younger kids. It left right at the pier so no long walking. The pirates were so great with the kids and have them tons of attention. I won’t spoil it so you can enjoy it too. There was an open bar with water, punch for the kids and alcoholic drinks for the adults. We got back on the ship about 3, enjoyed another round of delicious snacks and drinks from Smitha, rested for a few and then 3 of us had an ice skating session from 4:30-5:00 (big kids were still on their excursion) it was our first time ice skating and none of us liked it. I thought since we can roller skate we’d be decent at it. I was wrong! Gave me a new respect for the skaters in the show. When we got back to the room, the kids were back and they all had a great time. They said there was about 50 people on their boat and well over 100 people snorkeling. Seems like too many people to me but I’ve never been snorkeling either so wouldn’t know what to expect.

Day 5 was our last sea day and started with our usual breakfast and Starbucks. We didn’t really do much other than enjoy the pools and the most comfortable beds ever for much needed naps I seriously want to buy their mattress and bedding! We went to the ice show, Ice Games (based on monopoly) and we all loved it! Very entertaining! Then we had Chops for dinner. I think I’m all steaked out by now.

Day 4 dinner was at Izumi. Most everyone knows now that the hibachi side is for vaccinated only. And like I said earlier, my little one couldn’t go to the kids club. So one of us decided we were going to not go and stay with her, but Smitha had better plans. She worked some genie magic and created a plan for all of us to go. I’m keeping that between us but let me just say, she is so great and anyone who gets the chance to have her, you will not be disappointed! Izumi was awesome. My favorite out of all of the specialty dining. We eat at hibachi grills at home frequently and have never had rice as soon as Izumi! DH & I both ordered the same steak and chicken but he got the thick filet and I got the flat ny strip. Not sure what happened but not worth complaining. I just ate some of his. He also ordered some saki and when they bright it to him, they said they were out and if he wanted more he’d have to buy the whole bottle. That was weird. After dinner, we watched the Aqua show from our balcony. I would have liked to watch it from the seats in addition to from the balcony but we barely had time to do the things we have done! So many things, not enough time!

Agreed. It’s the cutest one we’ve ever had! It also had mini stuffed animals set up like “students” Breakfast has been my favorite! We had Coastal Kitchen delivered once and Johnny rockets every other time. Their cheesy bacon lovers is soooo good! When we first booked this, for 4 people was less than $8,000 and like you said later, each person added since was a little over $700. I don’t think that’s bad at all considering we paid right at $5,000 for 2 balcony rooms on Adventure in June. No worries at all! The only reason I booked this is because I saw other conversations on here about pricing and some deals!

On this trip we’re celebrating my oldest daughter’s college graduation. We arrived back to our room with this She loved it!

Our tour was the Chacchoben Mayan Ruins and Bacalar Lagoon. So we’re about 2 hours late for a 7 hour tour. Gangway up is 3:30 and it’s 9:30. The tour guide said it’s no big deal and we would just shorten the stops by a little and we should arrive back by 3:10. He told me let him do all of the worrying about time. The drive to the ruins was full of information about the locals and Mayan history. I found it very interesting. We get to the ruins after about 1 1/2 hours or somewhere there abouts. Told us to load up with bug spray and sunscreen and we started walking. Lots and lots of walking. We were told we could take photos but if we wanted to take video we needed to pay a fee. The little one probably enjoyed the ruins more than anyone else! She was practicing her Spanish with the tour guide. She walked up ruins I didn’t even go up due to being exhausted. After seeing all of the ruins we ended at a shop which only took cash. I wasn’t prepared for that and had cash for tipping so unfortunately we didn’t purchase anything. That’s been my only regret of the trip so far. We got back on the much needed air conditioned van and headed for the lagoon. Pictures looked amazing. It was anything but. It was like a dirty lake. When we first got there, there was 1 big bus full of people. We went to the buffet of chicken (good), steak (not good) and fruit and veggies that were good. There was an open bar and the staff made sure we always had a drink in hand. After we ate, we realized we were the only ones there. So that part was really nice. The had kayaks but we didn’t use them. The young teenagers were being grumps so they took naps on the chairs while everyone else changed into swimsuits and relaxed in the water. Very rocky so if you ever go, make sure to have water shoes! We left about 2 to head back to the ship. Everyone, including the tour guide, took a catnap We arrived back at the port right at 3:10, just like he said. The way back to the ship was VERY confusing. We would follow a sign that said back to ship and end up at a dead end to a pool. Or a bar. We were so confused. We were in a rush due to time and I still wasn’t able to get a souvenir from any of the shops. We try to get a magnet and shirt from every new stop. We will be back in April so at least I can get one then. We finally find our way of the crazy maze and see a third ship, Carnival Breeze. I forgot to mention earlier that we were at Cozumel with Liberty OTS and a couple from the dolphin excursion told us they’d be in port with us at Costa Maya too. We step on the ship at 3:31. Not too bad for being 2 hours late and practically getting lost on the way back.

Yes, Starbucks is included with all star class suites.

Day 4. Our first time to Costa Maya. We have a 7 hour excursion scheduled. At some point throughout the night, DD6 started coughing more than usual. Like she needed mucinex. About 6 in the morning she “got sick” and was acting pretty whiny. 7:00…. still acting whiny. I understand a cough and throwing up isn’t abnormal for a little kid but in these covid times, I’m not taking any risks of us being responsible for getting someone else sick. So I messaged Smitha a little after 7 and told her what was happening and that I was going to call medical. By 7:20 I was off the phone with medical and they were sending a nurse to give her a covid test. 7:30 Smitha told me she had contacted shore excursions and told them what was happening. 7:35 test was done and we were told we’d get results in 45-60 minutes and for everyone to stay in the room. Now I’m not exaggerating when I say this but by 7:45, little one was 100% back to her normal self. No coughing. No whining. It was like someone flipped a switch. 8:33 she messaged me to see if I heard anything. Nope, still waiting. Since it has been an hour, she called medical. 8:37 she told me they have the results and would call me (if they had the results, what were we waiting on??) 8:42 they called and said it was negative but I needed to take her to get checked out. Smitha met us with an elevator at 8:47 and took us to medical and told us it’d be really quick and then left to go get the rest of my family so we could all go on the tour. When we walk into medical, there’s a few people who appeared to be filling out paperwork and waiting. She’s triaged immediately then taken to a room. Doctor comes and explains to me that their typical swab test tests for 4 things….covid, influenza a, influenza b and rsv and that DD was negative for all. Told me not a gastro issue and that she seems phlegmy from allergies and needed to take benedryl and also that she needs to stay out of kids club today and tomorrow (days 4 and 5) After making sure there’s no issues getting off the ship, we went to the elevator lobby where Smitha was waiting with my family. When we scanned our cards to get off, DD6 flashed red and said she couldn’t get off due to being unvaccinated and not having a ship sponsored excursion. Smitha talked to them and we got off. At this point it’s 9:30, almost 2 hours late. She handed us over to the shore excursion manager who walked us down the pier to meet our tour guide. Next up: the tour and being scared we were going to miss the ship

Day 3 dinner was at Samba Grill, located at the Solarium. I absolutely loved the space. It was right at sunset and absolutely gorgeous in there! It’s the first sunset we saw. The food received mixed opinions from my bunch. These are some of the prepared foods from the buffet area and appetizers. Sorry I have no clue what anything is called.

I’ll get caught up with day 3 dinner and evening soon but here’s a spoiler for day 4…… It involves a sick kid, medical center, covid test, a very pricey private journeys tour that was scheduled at 7:45 (while we were quarantined to our room)