bcarney

This has almost happened to us - THREE TIMES - because RC's brain-dead check in people have no idea what a Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative-compliant ID is. In Michigan and several other border states, we have drivers licenses and underage IDs that are WHTI compliant - this allows us to travel to/from neighboring countries on land without a passport, and on closed loop cruises (departing and returning to the same port), without any additional ID like birth certificates since the background check was done at the time of application for the DL/ID. Because the IDs are WHTI compliant, we do not need the birth certificates to board...unless the untrained monkeys at the port insist you do, and you are denied boarding for over an hour while they get their act together, as has happened to us three times - once in Tampa, and twice in San Juan. My advice: despite officially not needing any additional documentation, bring it along anyway. You never know when you might need it.

These bad boys are the poppy seed things I was referring to. (photo courtesy the Royal Caribbean Blog)

Disembarkation in San Juan: For background, our flight wasn't until 2:20pm, so we were in no rush to get to the airport. We were assigned to group #15, but we lingered at our waiting area in the MDR until it was suggested we should leave. Getting off the ship and finding our luggage took less than 5 minutes, as most of the luggage in our group was taken already. After seeing huge lines getting through customs, we flagged down a porter since we've use them in the past and had faster service with them. He put the luggage on the cart and looked over to the porter line which was kind of long as well, and said follow me. He took us to the Pinnacle/Consecutive Sailing area, spoke to the RC guy there for a moment, and was let through. We got to the customs guy who quickly took our form, and without really looking at it stamped it, and we were off to the taxis. We were on our way to the airport in less than 10 minutes from leaving the dining room. The lesson here is GET A PORTER. It's worth the tip.

NO savory bites on Adventure, just the rolls. I miss those little poppy seed things.

Music: This was a southern Caribbean cruise, but all the music in public spaces was pop-slop from the last 24 months. I wish they'd play some local music, at least at times, to bring you into the local culture. Taylor Swift and Katy Perry 24/7 was like walking around a Target or Walmart. Boleros played Latin music, including one live tune that had everyone in the area singing along with. It was a song where part of the refrain was the music Auld Lang Syne, but it wasn't the entirety of the song. I wish I knew what it was because it meant to much to everyone there. It was a moving experience.

I'm the same, but I also use Windows machines. I also like that if necessary I can view my OneNotes via a web browser. (I also don't trust Apple's ability to run cloud services well, but that's another discussion).

Yes, there is a pair in the promenade, and another near the Windjammer. There may be more, those are just the two pairs that I noticed.

I use Microsoft's OneNote on all my devices so I have it with me at all times. :)

Martinique. Save your money and make it a beach day. Leave the ship, hang a right, and walk down to the ferries. Ask them for the one with the beaches, and take that for $7/pp round trip. Skip the first stop and get off at the second one, the beach looked a lot nicer there. We got off at the first stop. It was just OK, but the kids loved it.

If you are a rum drinker, go to Bolero’s, and they have a decent selection there, including Zafra 21 and Atlantico, among others. They also had Selvarey Cacao rum which was an interesting treat.

On the 'corporate cutbacks' end of things, the assistant waiters no longer come around with a tray of bread for you to select from. Dinner starts with bread already on the table, consisting of a couple of rolls and no savory bites.

If you prefer Caribbean food, keep an eye out for that night in the Windjammer. I found the jerk chicken and other dishes to be fantastic! I’ll be eating there that night from now on. Sadly, no photo.

Like Indian food? Ask your waiter for it in the MDR. They’ll provide a vegetarian and non-veg dish – or more likely both. If you are in the Windjammer for dinner, go all the way to the back of the line, and there will be several Indian options each night. The two nights we ate there, they had four dishes to choose from, including a veg curry, Dal, fish curry, pork curry, pappadam, raita, and a few chutneys. . All were great! Another night I had a butter chicken that may have been the best I’ve ever had.

Did you know that Royal’s website doesn’t work on your iPhone or iPad? Try doing a search – none of the dropdowns work. Skip even trying and just go to the NextCruise desk if you are looking for info on a future cruise.

Last year when we sailed, Voom had a problem where you had to log in every single time you used your device. They’ve since fixed that issue. The internet is still incredibly slow, though; I wasn’t able to watch any Periscopes or Facebook Live videos onboard, at any location. EDIT: Wifi calling did not work either; I tried calling my parents to wish them a Happy Thanksgiving, and was unsuccessful in having an audible call.

Speaking of beer, if you like craft beer there is a place right at Port Seraphine in St. Lucia called Antillia Brewing. They have a great IPA and a stout worth trying.

If you like craft beer from bottles, go into the pub (Duck and Dog on Adventure) and go all the way to the bar. Look to the right and you will see a little hallway that goes to a staff area. Look down that hallway, and on the left will be a chalkboard with the names of all the off-menu beers available on that sailing. Note, however, that many won’t be available on the first night, as luggage has distribution priority over the beer. I managed to enjoy Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA several times during the sailing (though it did run out by Thursday).

Just got off Adventure. Rather than write up a full review, I’ll post some thoughts here as I remember them.

I just got off Adventure on Saturday. Right now she's sailing out of Puerto Rico, as she's done every fall through spring since 2002. I'm actually sad that she's moving to the North East; she's my favorite ship thus far, and we've sailed on her 6 times out of my 16 cruises. Was hoping for one more cruise on her for our 140 point crystal ship cruise, but the NE itineraries do nothing for me (I'm Caribbean-oriented) so it looks like next year's 11 day on Serenade gets that honor. The ship is fine; the last refurb was interrupted by a hurricane, but it should be finished in January IIRC. I was on it last November right after the refurb, and there were a lot of half-finished projects on board. All of them have been completed and much of the carpets etc in public areas have been replaced. The staterooms kind of need a refresh, though. Seafoam blue and pink carpets, coral colored doors, etc. make it look a bit dated. If you enjoy the ports you're sailing to, I'd say go for it!

I'm a rum collector, and just returned home with 5 bottles of rum (and 2 bottles of a special-to-me beer that was obtained especially for me by a friendly staffer on catamaran Fan-Ta-Sea in St. Kitts). We just wrap the bottles in tightly with the clothes, and pray. Haven't had an issue yet, and have been doing this ever since we stopped being allowed to bring it home as our carry-ons. If you buy from the local stores instead of on the ship, some will pre-pack them in boxes for you, and you can put the boxes in your luggage. You kind of have to trust the gods when you are packing a $600 bottle into your luggage, but the alternative is not being able to bring any home...

I'd be happy with either, but speaking as a northern mid-westerner NoLa has a much stronger draw for me, even though it's a 140 mile longer one-way drive for us.

If it's true either Cuba is more popular than RC expected and they need a larger ship, or it's much less than anticipated and it's better to just unload the ship again.

I wonder if Rhapsody has been sold or will be moving as well? I don't see Brilliance, Majesty, AND Rhapsody all sailing from Tampa.

I wonder why all the hate for New Orleans from RC?

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