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Just booked this one and didnt see a roll call posted so I thought I would start one.... Girls trip with my two adult daughters. Very excited! First time out of Galveston!

We will be sailing on Symphony June 21-28. Who is joining us? This cruise is just intended to be a relaxing getaway for us and we plan on enjoying the ship as much as possible. We don't have anything planned for excursions yet, except The Original Cozumel Bar Hop. It is one of my favorite excursions ever! It's so much more than a bar hop. It takes you to the side of the island that is away from the hotels, etc., so you see some beautiful scenery and unique spots. What does everyone else have planned?

Roll call for the 9-night sailing out of Galveston from Feb 7-16, 2026. This will be our longest family cruise, visiting one of our favorite Caribbean destinations in Grand Cayman. I am working with a local tour company in Grand Cayman on a Stingray City plus Snorkel excursion. Please let me know if you are interested.

Who is going with us?

Hello Sail away Friends and welcome to the forum as we countdown to what is going to mark the best cruise of the 2026 year! Be sure to check back on here for any updates going on or theme night information. As the title says here come the ducks. We have already started in stocking up on ducks to hide aboard the ship and look forward to hiding over 2500 ducks on the current largest cruise ship in the World. For those that are new to cruising and don't know what I'm talking about their are many of us that enjoy hiding ducks aboard cruises for others to find we are called Quackers. It really helps past the time while on the cruise and if you are traveling with small ones they really enjoy it as well. I look forward to posting more on this forum and speaking to others attending this cruise. Until then Happy Cruising!!!

Does anyone have additional details on the new 4-night Western Caribbean sailing for Utopia?? The only date available is May 5, 2025, but I haven't seen any articles or any other details online about it...

This will be my fourth cruise, my wife's second, and the first for our two sons. We are all really excited! I booked two adjoining interior rooms a couple of weeks ago. I loved the balcony on my last cruise, but I decided to go for a lower price this time.

Shout out to anyone going with us on this trip! We're from Kansas City. For those who've been to Cozumel before: what do you think of the city tour excursion? Is it worthwhile to just go wander into town on your own (no excursion)? We're wanting to just do some shopping and casual sight seeing this time; our previous excursions in Cozumel have all been water-centric.

I rebooked for Apr 7. - 14 2024 Wonder OTS, so don't expect me to write back on this.

I wanted to share my experiences with a set of reviews on my back to back on Mariner recently Getting There I used GoPort's full service hotel and transfer package out of Orlando Airport. After booking a stay at the Holiday Inn at the airport, I contact them to change my pickup date to the end of the second cruise. This went very smoothly. When I arrived in Orlando, I followed GoPort's instructions and contacted the hotel for a shuttle pickup expecting a long delay. I was pleasantly surprised to see the hotel shuttle show up for me about seven minutes after the call. I was at the hotel in another five minutes. The hotel was fine. It has a nice pool area with good food options including a regular Cuban food truck nearby. The trip to the port could have been smoother. We were given an hour window for our motor coach to arrive and it did right at the end of the window after waiting outside for its arrival. We picked up other cruisers and were at our ship within fifty minutes. Rating 8/10 Boarding went extremely smoothly as I had completed my check in process earlier. I was on board within ten minutes. Rating 10/10 Our first stop was in Cozumel where I pre-booked a photo tour with a local photographer, Tati Biermas and German/Dutch ex-pat who has been living on the island the last 18 years. She offers several types of photography services from wedding, real estate and photo tours and coaching. I enjoy various types of photography and wanted to get out of the manual slow down mode. Her advice helped me feel more comfortable with how and when to choose aperture and shutter priority rather than fully manual. I also refined some composition techniques through her coaching. Tati is pictured in the right most photo below. All images can be found on the IG @highseasnomad. All images below are snipped from that IG page. A requirement of the full island tour is to rent a car. I did so through ISIS Car Rental in downtown San Miguel. I received a manual transmission Nissan Tiida which is similar to a Sentra. It had cold AC, and that was important. The full experience was quick, efficient and inexpensive despite the check engine light being on. It was fun driving on Mexican roads. Our first stop was the food market where locals buy produce to seafood to clothing. The Hacienda Punta Sur and the Eco Park We made a 12' long friend which I had fun editing later Rating 10/10...highly recommend Some images around the ship... Costa Maya I have become quite attached to the staff of Jaime's Blue Reef and the amenities in Mahahual, so this is my go to choice when I am there now. I have been twice with many more to come. My only wish is for early arrivers that they offer breakfast on their menu. Their tamarind margarita is quite frankly amazing with the tanjin rim salt. Rating 10/10....they really take good care of you On the second leg of the back 2 back, we stopped in Cozumel. After debating whether I wanted to go third party, I opted for a Royal Caribbean SCUBA excursion which was handled by Sand Dollar which is located next door to the Mexican Coast Guard building. The benefit was the pickup at the pier. the drawback was that there were too many people on the little dive boat. There were two divemasters. Mine was Reuben, and he was really good and very safety conscious. Our first dive was a gentle drift dive on the reef a little north of Mr Sanchos. We saw a large sea turtle, an eagle ray, a nurse shark and several very large lobsters along with teeming life on the reef. We went through a really cool coral swimthrough mid-way. There were also at least a half dozen dive operators with boats nearby. A lot of people were on the reef that day. The second dive started just north of the Mexican Coast Guard building, and ours was the only boat, which was nice. It was a drift dive as well, and there was a VERY rapid current. At first it was disconcerting, and we just went with it while we kept Reuben the dive master in our view the whole time. It may have been a five knot current, as we ended up surfacing about a mile north of where we put in. You just have to go with it and not fight it. We saw a large barracuda and a lot of life on the reef. I learned more about how to relax and handle myself on such a dive as it is easy to get exhausted. When we surfaced, the current diminished as we ascended and the boat met us with the dive master's marker. While things were ok with this dive operator, I will not use them again. I think booking scuba with Royal is hit or miss, and of the three I have booked with them, I only really liked one of them. I expect that I will go third party exclusively when I cruise. Rating 5/10 The shows were really good, especially the Ice Under the Big Top skating show. I decided to practice some sports photography with my lens which was limited to good light environments. Still, I took some images that I really liked and am excited to share the raw files with some of the skaters who noticed the pics from Instagram. Rating 10/10 See @highseasnomad on IG for better resolution of these images.

Starting the thread for May 15th departure from Galveston, TX!! Who is in? Have you cruised on Voyager before? What's your favorite thing about cruising? I am a NEWB! And the ocean is my element. I cannot wait!

Can I use my drink package in Cozumel?

We have an upcoming cruise on Harmony in late August and are staying star class. First time on RCCL (we have sailed DCL) and first time on Western Caribbean itinerary. It’s just me and my 9 year old son. He doesn’t like the beach but loves swimming in pools. I love lying around getting served frozen drinks. We will be getting off at coco cay and at Costa maya (to zip line.). I’ve considered getting a resort day pass in Cozumel but am also considering just staying on the ship in both Cozumel and Roatan. It seems kind of silly to disembark to go somewhere to pay for food, drink and pools when we have all of that already on board. But does the ship really empty out on port days and/or if we stayed onboard for 2/4 port days will we regret it? I’m also super concerned about safety - as we will be traveling without my husband. So any advice? Is using the ship’s pools on a port day with less people and enjoying our star class perks just as good as snagging a day pass for a resort? Thanks for any advice!

The US State Department issued a warning today to avoid tourist ferries in Mexico. RC is/has cancelled all excursions involving tourist ferries. This was attached to our door this morning.

I was starting my second Stella as my daughter and I walked through the door on deck 8 of Empress to the forward patio/observation area. I was excited for the quick 4 nighter to Cozumel and back. I was really liking this ship already after a not so perfect boarding experience due to some delays. I started a Periscope for sail away (@DunkelBier_Jay), and had some fun conversations with people as the ship dropped lines and we entered the channel. To our right was the now famous (or infamous) @mpoole3 pad and the mainstay American Victory ship. Tampa Harbour is really cool in that direction. In the other, its all industrial. It is a great sailaway into the Tampa Bay and eventually the Sunshine Skyway Bridge about an hour away. I wanted more of this port! *save your money* As we entered the Bay, we walked down the hallway behind us and to the stairs to deck 5. From there, we walked aft, and I had my first lavalflow in the Schooner Bar... But you're asking...the title says Brilliance, and he's writing about Empress...I'm getting there! The two beers and the lava flow were talking after we finished and started walking aft. What's behind the Schooner on Empress? *Next Cruise* *YOLO* The booking agent was there all alone, and I couldn't let her stay there all lonely like that. So, I booked a Fall cruise on Empress to Cuba with my wife. In the end, it didn't work out schedule wise, so we ended up changing it to the Brilliance January 6 sailing for five nights to Grand Cayman and to Cozumel. So, this coming Friday, January 5, we will board a plane for Tampa where we will spend the night at the Tampa Airport Marriott and then rideshare to the port as early as possible. This itinerary has two sea days to go along with the ports, and it is on a class we haven't sailed before. My goal is to sail every class before 2020. First Port -- Grand Cayman The plan is to rent a car and drive to the North Side and tour Crystal Caves and the nearby rain forest. Following that, we will drive to Rum Point for lunch and some beach time. We will stop by Cayman Brewery on the way back to turn in the car and then tender back to the ship. We chose this because we have been on diving vacations to the Caymans a couple of times, and just didn't want to do the same old thing. We're saving that for the next port. Second Port -- Cozumel I flip flopped a lot on what to do, and I even had Chichen Itza booked for a while after a cruise planner sail, but ended up changing it to a day at Nachi Cocom so that we could go into San Miguel to sample some food and fun before the ship leaves. So, my next posts will show whether or not we pull off these plans, and will show you some sights and sounds that are sure to excite one and all...woot *thanks for reading this far* Briliance, here we come!

We recently visited Nachi Cocom during a Empress stop in Cozumel. We disembarked and walked through the cruise port to the taxi stand and immediately took the 15-20 minute $17 US drive south to the day resort. The cost was $55 per person with an $11 per person deposit. We received a confirmation upon booking which we printed out and took to the resort. Our driver dropped us off at the entrance and we were warmly greeted by the staff member who took our picture and briefed us on the process. We were then directed to the reception area in the restaurant where we paid the remaining balance and were introduced to our waiter for the day and taken to our palapa not far from the pool. We had two beach chairs, and the option to buy some extras. We chose the floating beach mat for $7 for the day. Later I purchased a massage in the nearby massage tent for a much more reasonable cost than on the ship we were sailing. The complimentary drinks were cold, delicious and plentiful. Our waiter, visited us often and took great care of us. Our ship was set to sail at 6:30, so we left a little before 4 in order to do some souvenir shopping in the port. To get a cab, all we needed to do was let our waiter know what time we wanted to leave, and he handled all the details. I left him a generous tip, told him we would be back and thanked him for the great service. I am certain there are other spots on Cozumel where once can have a great experience. We chose Nacho Cocom because of it's reputation as a quieter and more low key destination.

Hey everyone! I wanted to provide you with a review of my recent Brilliance sailing. Please check it out HERE.

Brilliance of the Seas – Monsters of Rock Cruise Feb. 2-7 Most likely if you have been hanging around Matt’s daily Periscopes lately you have heard me boasting about my wife’s and my annual pilgrimage to sunny Florida or Los Angles for the Monsters of Rock Cruise. This will be number 5 for us. For the first time ever, it will be held on a Royal Caribbean ship, Brilliance of the Seas, and I figured I’d share with everyone for a couple of reason. First of all. it is a RCCL cruise. Second it is a 100% buyout/charter so things are run a little different, and third and most importantly (to me) it is an 80’s rock n’ roll cruise. Being a charter you will not find any dress code. It’s a sea of black concert t-shirts and hiked up mini shirts in the MDR. BINGO will not be played, port shopping seminars won’t happen and the sexiest man and Belly flop competition are the furthest things from anybody’s mind. We came to rock out! Even the drink package is ‘worked differently’ (more on that later)! My wife and I will be flying to Tampa from San Antonio the prior like all good and well behaved cruiser should. The cruise happenings will actually start the night we arrive at a club in downtown Tampa a stone’s throw from the Port. Vince Neil, the front man of the 100 million record selling band Motley Crue will perform this Pre-Cruise Party. He will also perform on the ship. Our itinerary will be: Wednesday - February 1, 2017 - Optional Pre-Cruise Party Thursday - February 2, 2017 - Depart – Tampa, Florida 4 pm Friday - February 3, 2017 - Day at Sea Saturday- February 4, 2017 - George Town, Grand Cayman - 7 am - 3 pm Sunday - February 5, 2017 - Cozumel, Mexico - 11 am - 6 pm Monday - February 6, 2017 - Day at Sea Tuesday - February 7, 2017 -Arrive – Tampa, Florida -7 am Who doesn’t love 80’s rock? From the cheesiness of teased hair to the heart pound sound coming from their interments, it’s always ‘nothing but a good time’. The listing of bands to perform (each at least twice) are… as of today†Vince Neil Cinderella’s Tom Keifer QUEENSRYCHE NIGHT RANGER STYPER TNT KIX SLAUGHTER DANGER DANGER D*A*D SOTO (JEFF SCOTT SOTO ~ TSO, MOVIE ROCK STAR, YNGWIE, BRIAN MAY BAND) Y&T LYNCHE MOB (GEORGE LYNCHE of DOKKEN) KILLER DWARFS SAIGON KICKS ELECTRIC BOYS THE ANSWER BEASTO BLANCO INGLORIOUS BLACK N’ BLUE FASTER PUSSYCAT TORA TORA GIRLSCHOOL JOHN CORABI (MOTLEY CRUE, THE SCREAM, UNION) KIP WINGER (WINGER) JOEL HOEKSTRA (FOREIGNER, WHITESNAKE, NIGHT RANGER, TSO, MOVIE ROCK OF AGES) HEAVEN’S EDGE PARADISE KITTY (ALL FEMALE GnR TRIBUTE BAND) Hosted by EDDIE TRUNK (NY DJ AND EX RECORD COMPANY A&R GUYS COMEDIAN DON JAMISON COMEDIAN JIM FLORENTINE & LUC CARL XM RADIO DJ, FITNESS BUFF, AND LADY GA GA’S EX As usual, we will barely sleep!! Some days the shenanigans start at 10 AM and goes well past midnight…..for 5 days !! In a way, this is a Super Bowl Cruise! Being that the SB will be played in Houston while we are sailing around the waterways of the Western Hemisphere. We had custom made football jerseys with our name on the back that replicate the logo Monsters of Rock is using this trip. The MORC folks have set up theme night which we tend to ignore. Themes in the past have been Prom Night, Pajama Night, Pimps and Hoe’s…. Yeah I know…what are we 10 yrs old!!! A few people get into it, but it is not our thing. We are busy watching the musical acts!! Our stateroom is going to be a junior suite. This category and above are considered VIP staterooms and come with several perks a standard stateroom will not afford you. With VIP you get special check in that is considered different than the Crown & Anchor check in on traditional cruises, but essentially the same thing. You always get a balcony stateroom even with the lower category VIP staterooms. You get Early Access to all theatre shows so you can have first choice of being against the stage or any seat in the theater. On the Monsters of Rock cruises, there are meet and greets for every band where you can rub elbows with each band member and take pictures and an occasional autograph. VIP lets you get to the head of the line which is great because you can be standing in line for hours to meet your favorite rock star on board without it. We go for the VIP just to make life a little easier. Many band members will also be very laid-back and hang out in the Windjammei’r, on the pool deck, in the Centrum, or even Casino. Most of them have had their Hay Day and have checked the ego at the door. Last thing I will talk about in this post is the special drink package that MORC has arranged with Royal Caribbean. For $360 you get 60 drink tickets. These can be split like my wife and I do, or even given away to anyone you wish to buy a drink for. NOT everyone in the stateroom is required to purchase. Each ticket can get you a cocktail or adult beverage up the value of $12. If you go over $12 they will just ask for two drink tickets. I did the math on this one and there is no doubting that it is an excellent deal ...$360.oo/60 tickets is $6 each drink. It’s hard to find a deal like that on land. Almost makes me mad that the regular price a drink package on traditional cruisesare so much more. Well, that is all for now. I will update as my vision sees fit. I will post more posts and pictures during the trip thanks for reading. @Motleybrue AKA Mike Taylor www.MonstersofRockCruise.com

Who, besides mpoole3 and me, is on the Briiliance of the Seas four night cruise to Cozumel March 31?

Can anyone recommend a good beach for swimming in Cozumel?

Why are there only a few of the many excursions from the RC brochure listed when I log in to reserve for the 5-31-15 sailing? Will more be added?