whitsmom

I want a fall break here! No such thing where my wife teaches.

The Lavazza pods they provide are a little strong for me since I drink my coffee black so I just run the machine twice and get a full cup rather than the espresso cup and it works out much better.  I also do not care for what they provide so I researched Lavazza pods and bring my own.
 

10/20 Jewel

10/20 Jewel

It really doesn't bother me with what everyone wears (such as PJ pants, shorts or similar) in the dining room, shows and such places.  Once they set down, you don't really see that anyway.  It doesn't change how much a enjoy my meal or the show. 

It really doesn't bother me with what everyone wears (such as PJ pants, shorts or similar) in the dining room, shows and such places.  Once they set down, you don't really see that anyway.  It doesn't change how much a enjoy my meal or the show. 

One of our favorite things to do!  Sometimes hubby will come off with a "I can't un-see that!" or maybe even "I need new eyeballs!"  (Our youngest granddaughter coined the "new eyeballs" saying 🤣

One of our favorite things to do!  Sometimes hubby will come off with a "I can't un-see that!" or maybe even "I need new eyeballs!"  (Our youngest granddaughter coined the "new eyeballs" saying 🤣

One of our favorite things to do!  Sometimes hubby will come off with a "I can't un-see that!" or maybe even "I need new eyeballs!"  (Our youngest granddaughter coined the "new eyeballs" saying 🤣

We have done the Key several times which makes it so nice that they put our bags in our room before we are allowed in there.
 

One of our favorite things to do!  Sometimes hubby will come off with a "I can't un-see that!" or maybe even "I need new eyeballs!"  (Our youngest granddaughter coined the "new eyeballs" saying 🤣

I think we are just in a different era of time. 50-60 years ago people got dressed up to go anywhere. Men wore suits outside of the home most of the time. 25 years ago most workplaces still had very strict dress codes. Now, a lot of successful entrepreneurs and/or CEO's under 40 wear only hoodies. Things change and that's just the way it is. 
I still dress up somewhat but not to stuffy. I care more about someone's attitude than what they are wearing. I'd rather be cruising with kind hearted, fun loving onsie pajama wearing folks than a bunch of suits treating staff and fellow cruisers like crap.

I don't even notice what people are wearing in the MDR 95% of the time.

It really doesn't bother me with what everyone wears (such as PJ pants, shorts or similar) in the dining room, shows and such places.  Once they set down, you don't really see that anyway.  It doesn't change how much a enjoy my meal or the show. 

It really doesn't bother me with what everyone wears (such as PJ pants, shorts or similar) in the dining room, shows and such places.  Once they set down, you don't really see that anyway.  It doesn't change how much a enjoy my meal or the show. 

It really doesn't bother me with what everyone wears (such as PJ pants, shorts or similar) in the dining room, shows and such places.  Once they set down, you don't really see that anyway.  It doesn't change how much a enjoy my meal or the show. 

It really doesn't bother me with what everyone wears (such as PJ pants, shorts or similar) in the dining room, shows and such places.  Once they set down, you don't really see that anyway.  It doesn't change how much a enjoy my meal or the show. 

We stayed here also.  My friend was on a knee scooter so walking was out so they hotel let his airport shuttle driver take us and drop us off for $25 cash.  That worked for us and he got to keep the cash himself.  Win-win for all involved 😉

If you're booked in a suite, drinks in the suite lounge don't count against vouchers.

We just booked a National Park (Out West) land tour for next September and it is way more expensive than a cruise.  However, we are trying to get bucket list ($$$) trips out of the way before we retire while we are still working.  We will be retiring in 2-3 years then we can travel more leisurely with our "big" trips already done.  We prioritize saving for our trips.  We also want to do our bucket list trips while we are in good health.  I have heard too many stories of people that waited to do their bucket list travel after they retired and health issues made it impossible to achieve.

Ours was cancelled because it was too windy.

Some of the worst cruise behavior I have ever experienced. For example, watching on the outdoor big screen from the Viikng Crown Lounge, no audio but still a great view and snacks too.  Others had the same great idea but they took the cushions off the chairs to make their chairs extra cushion-y.  So you had to watch , sitting in a chair that was designed to have cushions, but didnt, and just sit on the frame.  

I'm sure the OP will be back at any moment to clarify.............
 

TLDR; Mariner still has it, great ship and a great cruise.
This is my first trip report and I tend to ramble so apologies in advance.
Travel/Embarkation
(TLDR cake)
We drove to Orlando from NW Fla.  Stayed at the Comfort Suites Orlando Airport. Good stay, unremarkable. Used points to book, felt safe, clean, shower hot, included breakfast was ok. This was our first cruise in a Junior Suite.  We were parked and in the suite lounge area in minutes, and tho I didnt check exact time it felt like we boarded very shortly after our 10:30 check in.  Absolute breeze. MDR
(TLDR breakfast was amazing dinner was hit/miss service was good to great and attentive the 2 nights we ate there and for breakfast)
We ate breakfast every day there. It was really good, and often great.  we tended to get there at or shortly after opening I had the express breakfast (2 scrambled eggs, sausage, hash brown, wheat toast) 4 days, the market vegetable bowl 1 day (it was not as good as Harmony last year) and the best was the omelet which I inexplicably waited until the last day to have. The wife (who is decidedly not a breakfast person) had the cheddar cheese grits with bacon which she enjoyed). We ate here first two nights. The southern fried chicken is an abomination. I advised my wife not to get it, but there was nothing else that interested her. The only thing worse than the way it looked was how it tasted. As a life long southerner I am personally offended they call this 'southern' fried chicken. I had the spaghetti bolognese first night. It looked at tasted JUST like hamburger helper spaghetti. Here is the thing, I don't mind hamburger helper spaghetti. It was hot/fresh, and took me back to middle school where the lunch room spaghetti tasted just like it. The peanut butter wafer/cookie thing for dessert was shockingly great. Description is not good and it looks basic, but it was amazing. One thing I need to mention. EVERYONE noticed my wife didnt eat the chicken and asked her about it. She was polite and didnt say it was terrible. Both servers and the head guy offered to get her something else. Second night in the MDR we had the beef tenderloin and it was pretty good.  Hot and cooked as we ordered. Mashed potatoes were good, not great.   Portions were noticeably smaller but that is fine with me. We don't tend to eat huge portions and the servers always asked if we wanted more. we were in/out in an hour or so both nights. Never felt rushed nor like it was taking too long. I will strongly consider eating in MDR every night on our Mariner cruise in Oct based on our experience here. It was solid if pretty unremarkable. Specialty dining
(TLDR, good sometimes great)
We ate lunch in Jamies on embarkation day and it was ok. I did it mainly to have a calm lunch and it was that. I was not worth fifty bucks plus additional tip. We ate Chops 3rd night (Labadee) and it was pretty unremarkable. It seemed very busy. The steak was not as seasoned as I recall. I always get my steak rare and the filet I received fit that bill. Not much of a char and it was rare. Jamies was 4th night (Falmouth) and it was also unremarkable. Wife had Lasagna which she enjoyed and I had the chicken parm.  Service and food was good not great. Izumi was 5th night (sea) and it was very very good. Food good, chef good, service and everything. I have eaten at Izumi on Harmony, Independence, and Mariner 3 times and this seems to be a pattern.  The Izumi on Mariner is very good. Chops was 6th night and was as remarkable as the first visit was unremarkable. Steak was rare but had a great char, and was seasoned perfectly. Maybe the best steak I have ever had on RC. Fantastic visit. Excursions
(TLDR terrific)
This was our first visit to Labadee and it was great. We had a beach bed on Adrenaline Beach and the service was great. The drinks were very meh (something I will touch on later) but the view was nice and the bed was a nice base. we were in the water and saw some people wander into the bed area and make themselves at home. If you ever wonder what would happen if you tried that, they did not stay there long). We did the Chukka/Good Hope Estate excursion thru RC in Falmouth. I considered cancelling due to a number of reasons. We went and I am glad we did. It was a chill day by the pool area there. We climbed the water fall and went down the water slide. I didnt take enough cash on this excursion, but the gift shop area took cards. We got a South Beach bed at CocoCay and thats it. Absolutely perfect day (pardon the pun). I will have a hard not doing that the next few times we go there. Just a great beach day. Calm, quiet, amazing. The crispy chicken sammich is curiously great. My wife only like Chik fit A chicken sammiches, but she got one and was blown away.  Bar/service
(TLDR meh)
I think this is the first cruise I did not get value from the DBP Only a few bars had Buffalo Trace, most were out of it The quality of the drinks was wildly inconsistent. I always try to stick to ordering certain drinks from certain bars, but based on the person making it there was not telling what you might get. This went for tenders at the same bar. Some would make drinks differently leaving out ingredients.  Club soda for example. Gavin in the Schooner Bar was my far the best on the ship. I was sitting at the bar waiting when he came back in from not being there a while and several people broke out into applause. The Viking Crown Lounge remains one of my favorite spots on any ship we have been on. Just a great spot Entertainment
(TLDR high and low)
This to me is where the Voyager class ships fall far short of the Oasis class. Gallery of Dreams needs to be replaced The comedian was hilarious in the welcome aboard show. I really wanted to make the adult show with him but we didn't.  Ice under the big top was really fun to us. I think I have seen people say otherwise. Nothing to be said about the skaters that hasnt already been said. Amazing talents. Trivia in the Schooner Bar was fun Cabin
(TLDR wonderful)
As mentioned earlier this was our first time staying in a Junior Suite. I got a great price on it, and figured the only benefits would be priority boarding (not a huge one for us) and double points. I was wrong. The closet was astonishing. The extra room and the 'side' window that was great for extra light changed how we used the cabin.  Some afternoons instead of hanging out elsewhere we would nap in the cabin.  The only thing worn on the ship I noticed was the balcony railing. It looked like it was sanded then left. Almost seemed too uniform to be wear. It was this way as far as I could see both ways on deck 9. this will almost certainly change how I approach booking cabins in the future, it was that enjoyable. I cannot say we have ever had anything below a good steward, but Levy was great. The best we have ever had.  9558 was quiet, clean, in great shape. Accessories
First time with a sound machine and we LOVED it. The cabin was quiet but this made it seem more so. cordless fan was great. Too bad I am an idiot and didnt take a micro usb cable to recharge it. So once it was past initial charge it was a paperweight. It worked great for that. Magnetic hooks are must do. It seems like each cruise we find more ways to use them European outlet adapter. Great, yes, get one for these older ships Packing cubes, meh whatever. Maybe we just dont know how to utilize Assorted
Motion. The water was pretty churned up and the first 3 full days the ship moved as much as I have ever felt on move. We didn't get sick but I understand many did. I had some pretty crazy videos of water shooting 10 feet in the air out of the pool. They postponed the belly flop contest because of it. Fellow passengers. It seemed we noticed more Brits on this trip. Fewer kids. I heard many complaining about the behavior of other passengers but didnt notice any myself. As always, we met several wonderful couples and had great conversation. Sorry for the length and scattershot nature of this. If you are still reading and couldnt tell we love Mariner. We never felt crowded, the sea views are great, the value it there, and we will see her again in October. 
Brad

I just noticed this apparently new sailing update page: https://www.royalcaribbean.com/notices/travel-updates  I hope I don't need it, but I will look there if a future sailing is delayed.  Perhaps it will be better than the email and app updates.  Would love to hear from anyone on Serenade or Vision about how they were first notified of their changes.