MaryS

So, I will continue with this thread for the fifth and final leg of this saga.  We boarded Wonder today (5-5).  This is our Pinnacle cruise.
Drove up from Port St Lucie.  It’s about an hour and fifteen minutes’ drive.  Got to the terminal right at 9:00, which is precisely our target for terminal arrival.  Getting into the parking garage was the same madhouse that it always is.  After about 10 minutes of inching along we finally got to the luggage drop area and then circled around to the parking lane.  There, our luck got better as we immediately found a handicapped parking space right by the elevators on level 2.  🎉
We were the first in line for the Suites/Pinn line and entrance into the terminal area began at 9:45 sharp.  We waited a bit in the Suites/Pinnacle lounge area and boarding began at 10:15.
We did our muster drill as soon as we boarded and then went straight to deck 8 to retrieve our Seapass cards from the door.  They were there !  We had a heck of a time getting to deck 17 !  The elevators wouldn’t go up to 17.  There must be a secret of which I am not yet aware.  We finally went to 16 and switched elevators which finally took us to 17.  Then we had to trek around to find the entrance to the SL/CK.  It’s 180 degrees backwards from the design of the other SL/CK !
Finally….seated in the SL, we waited for the CK maitre’d to show up so we could make dining rezzies.  SO glad we did that first thing b/c by 11:00 the maitre’d kiosk at the SL was a madhouse !
We got all of our rezzies the way we wanted them so all is well.
We are going to Mason Jar for lunch in 5 minutes !  Woohoo !

Hey Guys! 
Back from a fun day of pasta cooking and shopping to recap yesterday, Friday, our second full day in Rome.
Yesterday was another cold and rainy day. The first half of the day we took a semi private tour of the Vatican and the second half of the day we had a walking food tour. We started our day with breakfast at the hotel. While it was very civilized for hotel breakfast, the coffee was self serve at a crown lounge/suite lounge-esque coffee machine and not good according to both my parents who are coffee drinkers (I am not so I would not be the one to ask), and the food was just ok (this I can confirm myself). I forgot to catch pictures but needless to say we are not going to be doing it again. 
We then ordered an Uber and headed on our way to the Vatican and the meeting point for our Vatican tour. One quick note about Ubers in Rome: there is only Uber Black offered, you can also use the Uber app to order a cab but we haven’t tried that, we have stuck to Uber black as well as traditional taxi stands when they are convenient for us. You can’t just hail a cab in Rome, you have to go to a Taxi stand and in some cases that additional walking to find a taxi stand is not great for my mom. Anyways, after about a 30 minute ride with some traffic, we made it to our meeting point for our tour, the Caffe Vaticano, and it seems most tours meet outside of there so it was quite hectic. That combined with that fact that it started down pouring rain shortly after we got there provided for some interesting challenges. We were also a bit early for our meeting time. Anyways, after a short time the LivTours check in person arrived and we checked in and were pointed to our guide, Monica. 
The tour was just us and one other couple for a total of 5 guests. We headed across the street to the Vatican Museum. The entry times had gotten backed up, not entirely sure why but we waited a bit with our group (in the down pouring rain) before we were allowed to enter. Once we entered, we went through security. Security was very simple, you had your bags go through an x ray machine and walked through a metal detector. I had read online that they didn’t like reusable water bottles so we opted not to use ours as we didn’t want them taken away but the other couple in our group had theres and had no issue so in retrospect we would have been fine but your mileage may vary. It also looked like there was a bag check for oversized bags. Not entirely sure the rules there nor how you would be able to get them back since you don’t end the tour at the starting point so probably a good idea to look at the size restrictions on the Vatican website. My dad had a classic Jansport backpack with some jackets and umbrellas in it and had no issues, and same with my mom’s and my crossbody Travelon bags.
Once through security, our guide had us take a brief pause to use the facilities and also dry off a bit. There was literally a line for the hand dryer in the women’s restroom but I managed to use it to dry off my jacket and it was better than nothing but I definitely did the tour pretty drenched. Speaking of my Travelon, it was also completely soaked including all the contents. I just had to live with it for the duration of the tour. We then re-grouped and were given radios to wear throughout the museum, even though our group was small, our guide Monica didn’t want to have any issues since it was extremely crowded. We then entered the museum.
We spent about 1.5 hours going through the museum, after losing the first half hour of the tour to the wait outside as well as security, etc. It was very busy but Monica did a great job of keeping the group together as she talked us through each gallery. She shared loads of anecdotes about each room and I don’t know what we would have done without a guide in there. It was truly overwhelming between the crowds and the sheer magnitude of it. I think I took close to 100 pictures in the museum. We then spent about 15 minutes in the Sistine Chapel. Before the Sistine Chapel, she talked us through what the different paintings on the ceiling were and what they represented and prepped us where to meet her after our 15 minutes were up since she wasn’t allowed to guide us through that part. Then, we exited the museum, and had to turn back in our radios as they were the ones owned by the museum. From there, we proceeded directly into St. Peter’s Basilica. The biggest advantage of doing a guided tour was that we directly entered St. Peters from the museum and did not have to wait in the general entrance line. As someone who has waited in that line multiple times before, I can confirm this is a great perk. Once inside St. Peters, we spent the last half hour of the tour going through the highlights of the property. All in all, the tour was 3 hours long. Monica also gave us some advice about where to go while in Rome at the end of the tour. She really was a great and thorough guide and we were extremely impressed. 
As I said earlier, the tour was operated by LivTours and I purchased it through Viator. It was called “Rome: Skip the Line Vatican, Sistine Chapel, St Peter 6 PAX Group”. It was pricey, but definitely worth it and a lot cheaper than a completely private tour, even after factoring in the cost to Uber there (the private version of the tour offers a hotel pickup). The was my 3rd time to the Vatican and St. Peters but I definitely got the most out of it doing a guided tour. It was also our first time going into the Vatican museum and the Sistine chapel so those were both very neat experiences. Probably the closest thing I have to compare it to was when we did the hermitage museum in St. Petersburg in 2016 in terms of how crowded it was (I know, probably a terrible comparison), but I got a lot more out of this thanks to how small our group was and the truly fantastic guide.
Here are some photos from the experience (I took a ton so this is just a few to give you an idea):

After St. Peters, we headed out to the Vatican and found a side street where we were able to order an Uber to pick us up and take us to our hotel. Thankfully the rain had stopped and the weather was starting to clear up. One good thing we have noticed is we have had an easier time finding Uber pickup points on side streets here than in other cities such as London. We had originally planned to spend some time shopping and exploring independently then but we were all a bit tired from the Vatican between the crowds and the weather along with the walking and many steps. The tour is definitely not handicap accessible, which we knew going into it, but I don’t think we realized the amount of walking for my mom. Thankfully, she was a trooper but we definitely all needed a siesta after. We opted to skip lunch as we knew our food walking tour later would have enough food to suffice for lunch and dinner.
After an afternoon siesta, we once again took an Uber from our hotel to our meeting point for the 5:45pm walking tour. It was about a 15 minute drive from our hotel to the Piazza Mattei, the starting point for our tour. We had gotten in the habit of leaving early for tours to account for crazy Rome traffic (I could literally go on a diatribe about how crazy people drive in Rome but I won’t, I will just say I am constantly amazed I have not seen an accident here) so once there, we stopped in a bar so my dad could get some coffee. Many of the bars here also have espresso machines so you can order cappuccino, americano, espresso, etc. We then headed out a few minutes before the meeting time when it became obvious that other people were there waiting for our tour and our guide Andrea arrived promptly on time. We had a group of 10 people for this tour and it was a really great mix of people in our group. 
From there, we headed into the Jewish Ghetto where we started our tour covering some of the Jewish history in Rome, including the history of the Jewish Ghetto and saw one of the only synagogues in Rome, lots of Kosher restaurants that were closed for the sabbath since it was a Friday night, as well as one thing I remembered from Amsterdam last year: Stumbling Stones aka Stolperstein. They are these metal cobblestones in front of properties where people who were sent to concentration camps lived prior to World War II. They contain inscriptions with the names, birthdates, and other details about the people who lived there. It was truly sad to see so many of these again especially when you think about how only a handful of Italian Jews who were sent to concentration camps survived and the unfortunate parallels with current events. Most of the Jewish population in Rome still lives in this area and we saw numerous Israel flags outside windows and a very sad Bring them Home banner, none of which were things I anticipated seeing in Rome.
Our guide Andrea then took us to our first stop. It was a Kosher-style restaurant. Here, we ate "carciofo alla giudìa" which are artichokes fried and salted. They were actually really good, quite the unexpected gem of the tour. Our guide talked about how over time the Jewish people had become good at taking cheap ingredients and making them taste really good, and frying anything makes it taste good. Our next stop was another Kosher Style restaurant where we had a sampling of 3 different appetizers: roasted zucchini, roasted tomatoes, and anchovies. These were all a bit unexpected. After that stop, we headed out of the Jewish ghetto and got a taste of two different types of Roman style pizza: Pizza Marinara and Pizza Margherita. Roman style pizza is a square pizza that is a bit thicker than Neapolitan style pizza but it is cooked at an extremely hot temperature so it gets really crispy. It is also sold by weight so you literally tell them how much you want and they cut off a piece and weigh it for you. We enjoyed the pizza with some Peroni beer.
Next, we headed to Campo de' Fiori where we learned the history of this square, went on a little quest for a Virgin Mary, and then headed to our next restaurant where we sampled some pasta dishes. The restaurant was a very unique location with some literal ruins in the basement. At that restaurant, we sampled 3 kinds of pasta and an eggplant dish. My favorites were the cacao e pepe and the eggplant dish (kind of like lasagna made with slices of eggplant, I think they called it eggplant parmesan but it was definitely different than the fried dish with that name that I have had before. We also had a choice of a glass of white or red house wine at this location. My dad says he has not found a bad house wine in Italy yet and he is finding lots of great, inexpensive wines here so he has been happy (heck, the 3 bottles he bought on Thursday for the cruise were combined cheaper than many single bottles he buys at home, granted he does have expensive taste). Next up we headed to Piazza Navona for some Tiramisu. From there our guide talked us through the history of the square as well as explained one of the Baroque fountains to us. Finally, our last two stops were for espresso and gelato. Once again, I am not a coffee drinker and it was both too late for my mom to drink coffee and she also only likes her coffee heavily polluted with cream and sugar but my dad partook in the espresso and he continues to rave about it. He is comparing his shot of espresso to a milkshake in consistency… take with that what you will but he loved it. Finally, we headed over to a Gelato place and got a choice of a cup or cone with two flavors. I personally had Hazelnut and Cream in a cone and it was really good. I haven’t had bad gelato here yet, and the same story with tiramisu.
From there the guide Andrea wrapped up our tour. All in all it was about 4 hours long. My parents and I definitely enjoyed this tour as well. It was the second year in a row of great food tours abroad for use as we also had a great one in Amsterdam last year. This tour was called “Jewish Ghetto and Campo Dè Fiori By Night Food, Wine and Sightseeing Tour” and it was operated by Food Tours of Rome purchased through Viator. I would also like to add from a walking standpoint that it was definitely less walking than the Vatican tour in the morning and the walking was more spread out in terms of being a slower pace with longer stops. My mom had no issues other than needing some assistance from my dad on some steps.
Here are some photos from the food walking tour:

After the tour we Uber’ed back to the hotel to get to bed after our longest day out in Rome.
Thankfully, today the weather improved and we were finally able to enjoy some time outside independently. I will try to get in a post about today tomorrow sometime but tomorrow is probably going to be a busy day as we are finally boarding the beautiful Odyssey of the Seas in Civitavecchia. Also, I promise I will do a thorough hotel review in the next few days.
Thanks again and TTYL!
- Ashley

I always print mine out too.  No need juggling whatever I’m carrying to get my phone open.  Hand the papers over…all set. 👍🏻 

Transatlantic zoo 

Our last sunset

Final dinner pictures

Got my nails done today, went with a nautical theme in one of my favourite shades of blue. 
Also got the last of my cruise cash - some more euros and some dollars for tipping on the ship. Picked up a couple of last minute items - some make up wipes and another bottle of sunscreen.
Unfortunately, I've just had an email from our tour provider in Naples. Due to not meeting the minimum of 5 people, our tour has been cancelled. So I've text Jamie, and am frantically searching the web for options. I wanted a small group tour as, having a disability, smaller groups are easier as they can tailor things to the group. I am so sad - the tour covered Pompeii, which I have visited before but Jamie hasn't as he's never been to Italy, Sorrento and Positano, neither of which I've been to but was so looking forward to seeing. 
Ah well, I guess it's better to know now than this time next week, but still, kinda stinks. 

Good morning!
Oh, and @WAAAYTOOO will love this!  😃
We will be keeping our eyes 👀 open for 3 very important "subjects"... both human and canine!
Capt. Henrik (aka "Capt. Hottie" per my wife 😳), Rover, and Chris (@CHRIS WONG)!
 

 
Capt. Henrik and Chris should be relatively easy to find during the course of the cruise, but Rover is the wildcard!  🤣
On our Facebook group established for this sailing, I suggested we create a real-time "Rover Alert" 🐕‍🦺 ... it's gaining traction with tons of likes and comments! 
I'm starting to feel the "pressure" to book Star OTS! We also have to meet Sailor! 🦮
We'll see how many of these "icons" 😆 we can see or meet on this sailing!  😎

Phew! All done! The most stressful part of committing to a live blog is naming it!  🤣
@Lovetocruise2002 sets the bar so high! I waffled between “ICON Sea Clearly Now” and “ICONic Anniversary Cruise”.  I hope I made the right choice!  😀
Once again, starting the blog a little early to get a head start. We set sail in 7 days! It’s so crazy how time flies… we booked this cruise almost 19 months ago back in late OCT 2022 when they first opened up the bookings for Icon!

 
My wife (Christine) and I (John) will be celebrating our 20th Wedding Anniversary 💒 🍾 a little early on this cruise. Our actual anniversary is June 4th… the not so clever “6404” in my screen name!  😆
It will be just the two of us this time since none of our cruising cohorts could make this sailing due to scheduling conflicts (both couples booked, but had to back out early on… they are soooo jealous! 😉). Our last “solo” couple cruise was back in OCT 2021 on Oasis shortly after the return to cruising.
There will be a number of new experiences during this vacation both on land and on the cruise. Of course, Icon is completely new to us! So excited and ready to go!
This itinerary has eluded us to date. We had booked this itinerary on Harmony prior to the shutdown. Harmony turned into Symphony (moved us as Harmony’s planned dry dock was moved up at that time), but when Covid hit, that sailing was of course cancelled. This will be our first visit to Costa Maya and Roatan!
 
* Time for some trip details…
Cruise Details:  
Icon of the Seas, 7-night, Western Caribbean & Perfect Day itinerary Out of Miami, FL 5/11/24-5/18/24 Itinerary:
Day 1 (5/11):    Miami, FL Day 2 (5/12):    * At Sea * Day 3 (5/13):    Roatan, Honduras Day 4 (5/14):    Puerto Costa Maya, Mexico Day 5 (5/15):    Cozumel, Mexico Day 6 (5/16):    * At Sea * Day 7 (5/17):    PDCC, Bahamas Day 8 (5/18):    Miami, FL Cabin Details & General Plans/Stuff:
Ocean View Balcony Stateroom (Deck 12, Midship, Starboard side) Selected Traditional Dining (5:00 PM) Purchased the Deluxe Beverage Package Purchased VOOM Surf+Stream Package Purchased 10-Photo Package Purchased a-la-carte specialty dining lunches (Chops Grille, Hooked, and Izumi Hibachi) Purchased Chef’s Table... wanted to try Empire Supper Club, but the $472 charge for the 2 of us was a little too steep this time around! Purchased the Day Pass to Hideaway Beach (CocoCay) Purchased “Semi-Sub Glass Bottom Boat and Monkey & Sloth Park” excursion in Roatan (Christine insisted) Purchased “Chacchoben Extreme Tour” through Native Choice in Costa Maya Purchased admission to Nachi Cocum in Cozumel Purchased Crown’s Edge for both of us (Note: Christine is terrified of heights, but insisted on joining me when I booked it! 😳) Booked all major entertainment via Cruise Planner (The Wizard of Oz, Starburst: Elemental Beauty, Aqua Action!, Headliner: Adam Kario, The Effectors: The Origin Story, Adult Comedy LIVE! (x2) What did we skip this time?
The Key… we do not feel it’s worth it right now with all of the changes and price increases. We’ve purchased it 4 times since 2019 – very familiar with the changes to the program over the last 5 years. It’s also been holding at $49.99/day pp for our sailing! Unlimited Dining Package… tried it for the first time last OCT/NOV on Wonder. We enjoyed it, but we don’t feel it’s necessarily worth purchasing every cruise (our decision will likely be based on cost and itinerary). Will try it again down the road. Currently selling for $420.99 pp! We traditionally purchase the 3 Night Dining Package, but also skipped it this time and elected to go with specialty lunches and Chef's Table for a change. Miscellaneous Stuff:
Flight on Southwest Airlines out of Islip/MacArthur Airport (ISP) on Long Island (NY) very early 🥱 on FRI (5/10) morning to Ft. Lauderdale (FLL). Taking a shuttle (SAS Transport Service) from FLL directly to our hotel. Staying overnight at the InterContinental Miami (booked a Bay View room). Plan on exploring Bayside Marketplace and some other local areas as time permits. Our current plan is to use Uber or Lyft from the hotel to the port on SAT morning. We booked the earliest boarding period available (11:30-12:00) for our sailing (completed check-in right after midnight). We likely will arrive a little earlier just in case! We love to start our vacation and exploration of the ship ASAP!  🚢🍹🧉🍷  * Oh yeah! We'll finally be Diamond after this sailing!  🥳 🎉 🍾
 
I think that’s it for the synopsis... now we just need to pack this weekend! 
*** As always, please let me know if you have any questions or would like me to post pictures of something you are interested in... I'll do my best to keep up throughout the sailing!
 
My current iPhone lockscreen… always a pic of the next ship we’ve booked!
Having at least one in the hopper, even if it's a year away, helps soften the pain of disembarking the ship! 

 
Have a good night everyone!

Ok, recap of the last night.
We had dinner at Izumi sushi.  It was really good this trip!
Seaweed salad.

Various rolls and some nigiri 🍣 


 
After dinner they had to bring in a wheel barrow to haul us out of there.
We may not have to eat for a week.
Once recovered, I managed to play 3 card for a bit and came away a whole $25 richer.  I'll take it.  Came away up quite a bit over all. 😉
This morning we were off by 7:30 and at the airport by 8.  We board in just about 2 hours.
Final Thoughts:
It’s going to be hard to go back to Oasis.  We liked it that much.  The ease of movement, the new layouts and venues. The hideaway, swim and tonic. Just incredible!
My only complaint was playmakers.  It’s bigger than oasis, but we didn’t spend any time there because it is constantly loaded with teenagers playing air hockey and various other things.  (It’s right next to the teen club). Also, the ice show crowds.just make it not a good vibe.  They seem to be aware of the issues but may not be something they can fix until second generation of icon class.
Really that was our only gripe.
Other than night one we didn’t spend much time in coastal kitchen or the grove. For no other reason than just so much to do and explore on that ship.
We have Utopia up next in A1 ATS.  After that, we are going to Try Celebrity and have an Edge Villa booked on The Excel when it comes out in 2026.
Cheers all and thanks for putting up with our shenanigans!

Our last night dinner will be at Chops. When we arrive to Barcelona we will be leaving the ship at 7am heading directly to the airport for flight  back to USA. We should arrive in Atl around 3:30pm. Our final flight should arrive at about 9 pm. So I’ll try to catch up on Monday.

Dinner last night in Coastal kitchen

Our excursion today was very interesting. I highly recommend if ever in this area.





 



Valencia city of flowers excursion 

Maybe I jumped the gun on taking her off moderation. 😂

I normally use something like this for my liquids bag (and definitely fit a lot more in it than a zip top bag, you can also find cheaper ones on Amazon, I just got this one when I had container store rewards): 

https://www.containerstore.com/s/travel/makeup-toiletries/rezip-zippered-travel-quart-bag/12d?productId=11022247
From my experience in Heathrow this trip, this definitely would not fly as they were stopping people with reusable bags and making them transfer their items to the zip top bags Heathrow provides, although I know that rule will be going away soon there. Also, based on my research (no direct experience on this yet), a reusable bag would be fine in FCO, they have the new scanners and have stopped having you take out your liquids bag like Heathrow still has you do. So really our only problem child was Heathrow. Of course these are fine in the US thanks to TSA pre check, and I don't think they are that picky when you have to take them out either.
Our Vatican Tour today was booked through LivTours and the guide was absolutely wonderful! Anyways, the golf cart tour stopped numerous times, we got out to take pictures of the Colosseum, Circus Maximus, etc. We were in the Borghese Gardens when it was still raining so we didn't stop and get out but I think normally you would. The guide also parked at the 2 churches we went to and guided us through some things inside them (he was really into optical illusions in some of the art and stuff 😂). We all enjoyed our golf cart tour so I am sure you will have a blast!

 

Edited as Mrscalvink669 is technically challenged after a few drinks

Back on board, Marla has asked the helicopters And search and rescue dogs to stand down.
Had to stop at rye and bean for a pick me up 😜
Expresso Martini

Chai Old Fashioned

Woohoo! Made it to the weekend and we're in single digits for the trip! 
Feeling slightly overwhelmed - it feels like I have a lot left to do, but then I wonder if I'm making more work for myself than necessary. 
Do I need paper copies of anything? Or can I get by with having everything on my phone?
My current to-do list is:
- Get my cruise cash (my lovely mum has gifted me some too)
- Get my nails done (do I go cruise themed?? :D)
- Finish the seemingly never ending packing now all the Amazon orders are here. I have one Temu order but not holding out hope that'll arrive by Thursday. Currently debating whether I take make up or not. 
- I have a couple of work things I need to clear when I'm in on Tuesday and Wednesday. 
- Potentially print paperwork, if it is needed. 
We've arranged transport to the airport hotel, so I'm being picked up around 3.45-4pm on Thursday. I am already mentally in Barcelona - it's going to be SO nice to just breathe for a little bit after a couple of really chaotic months at work, and a really tough year last year. 
 

Hideaway Beach is where it’s at if you’re not traveling with kids! 

The hideaway vibe at Coco Cay is pretty lit!

IMG_7092.mov  



😎😎😎

Recap of last night:  we lounged most of the day until finally heading out around 4pm where we headed back to the hide away which was at full party mode 😜



We had aqua action at 6pm.  Ok, they just switched over to a new cast and it was short and underwhelming.  The couple Ariel dance was missing and the robot lights wasn’t in the show.  He did have a girl doing an incredible balancing act, which I hadn’t seen yet and they had skate boarders which were Meh.






 
Dinner was at hooked and I failed on pics.  It was ok, I had oyster shooters which were good as were the baked oysters.  For main I had surf and turf and while the lobster was good, the filet they had with it I doubt would even be categorized as “choice”. It was pretty bad and chewy for a filet.
After dinner, I made a donation the the casino and then headed to bed.
Today is Coco Cay.

We have a cabana which is nice.

and the current view😜

We’ll see what we get into here today 😉.

i used to travel with a light up travel mirror to combat this… but i decided to leave that out of the secondary duffle, in favor of other things 😂 

Just checking in with the girls.
The cabin mirror still does not suggest that I tweeze my eyebrows. I’m convinced that once I get home I will have to elicit the help of my lawn guy instead of my wax girl.
That’s it for now. 

I gotta say, my step Husky is the best dog I’ve ever owned and he seriously doesn’t take a lot of maintenance! He gets groomed 3 times a year and otherwise I brush him randomly (maybe like every 3 months?) when he looks a little fluffy. He is the calmest and sweetest boy. On walks everyone is barking and going absolutely apes%&* when they see us and we just trot right by smiling! 😂
Your Alaskan packing list sounds perfect! Happy to see binoculars made the cut, I spied on a treetop filled with 4 eagles with mine! If you can squeeze a mini one in, I’d recommend an umbrella too. 

Lunch in Coastal kitchen


lobster pie

swordfish