Honeycruising on WoTS - Eastern Caribbean 10/29/23 - 11/05/23

[HollyQueen]

After over a year of planning, it is almost time for (future) dear husband and I to depart on our honeymoon and first ever cruise! This forum has been a great help in planning this trip, and I hope it lives up to the other awesome live blogs I've enjoyed in that time. We are obviously very excited, but I am more so excited for DH because he has never been out of the country, much less traveled a lot within the US at all. This was more of a "him" trip than for me as I've had my "big" trip to Paris several years ago. Cruising was on both of our lists to try one day so I thought, go big or go home. Wonder of the Seas has more than enough for us to do and if we never have the chance to cruise again, I want to experience it all if possible. We depart three weeks after our "big" day. <3

Pre-cruise: We'll be driving to Port Canaveral from Central Mississippi a couple of days before, with a pit stop in Alabama to visit some family. Altogether about a 12 hour road trip with the plan to arrive the Saturday night before to rest up. Staying on Port Canaveral and have a fun little meetup with a FB cruise group at Fishlips that night. 

Who - Me (Holly, 31) - travel bug, type A and pina colada enthusiast and Dear Husband (DH 32), ADHD techie who still thinks we're going to St. Lucia (even though I've told him the destination 5 times)

Itinerary 

10/29 D1 Embark

10/30 D2 Coco Cay

10/31 D3 Sea Day

11/1 D4 St. Thomas

11/2 D5 St. Maarten

11/3 D6 Sea Day

11/4 D7 Sea Day

11/5 D8 Cry off the boat and drive home

Room - Ocean View Balcony on Deck 12, Midship. We managed to find what we thought was a decent price on an ocean view balcony room during black Friday last year. 

Excursions/Extras

• Champagne, Strawberries, and 24 pack of water. We're not big drinkers so I'll problem bring the allowed wine on board, but I wanted to splurge on Evian if that's still what they're stocking. It's so cheap in Paris and I honestly got hooked on it after that trip. 
• Beach bed on South Beach at Coco Cay. I know we wouldn't have had an issue finding chairs on Coco Cay, but we liked the idea of having a designated home base that we wouldn't risk losing if we wandered around the island. Being a little more secluded from the lively areas also appealed to us and it comes with the coolers with water. 
• 150 Central Park Night 3 - We debated doing Chops plus one and using the plus one for 150 CP, but we're not really steak people so we just booked it by itself. We weren't thrilled by the menu for Night 3 (Taste of France) so we specifically booked for that night. This will also be Halloween.
• Day 4 St Thomas - Skyride, Drake's Seat, and Magen's Bay. Since we're only in St. Thomas for 8-hours we didn't want to risk being rushed or waste the time there. Booked through Royal on sale during Black Friday

We've debated on booking Wonderland for Night 4 since we'll miss our reserved dining time of 5:15pm. We don't have anything like it here and we know we'll either love it or hate it, but life is about experiences. If not we'll just wing it that night. 

Booked all the shows, even the ones that sound a little cheesy. We're mostly looking forward to inTENse and TapFactory. 

Check in starts next week, hopefully we are the lucky ones to get those coveted early slots. We definitely want to take advantage of every minutes on this ship. Aside from this being our Honeymoon, this is a much needed vacation overall as DH has had several surgeries this year, long hours at work, promotions for us both (yay), and overall wedding planning is just stressful. We are easy to please people and simply can not wait for this adventure. Hoping this first time cruisers perspective makes you giggle at what I find fascinating.  

[asquared17]

first off, congratulations!!!!

second — i love your plans already

deck 12 is a great location esp mid ship for a balcony, and one of the decks we usually go for — i do not think you’ll be disappointed. 

also st maarten!! YAY! you may want to purchase water taxi passes (like $6-8 per person) and then head over to shops or beaches. we like to rent passes at the holland house for the day @ $25 for 2 chairs, umbrella, internet, and shower usage. 

wonderland is… interesting. i feel like it’s something everyone should try once HOWEVER i personally would not pay full price for it since it’s such a niche experience, and one we didn’t love. you do have the option of going to the bar and trying their drinks before or after dinner — i know you mentioned you’re not big drinkers, but even the drinks are fun to watch being made. 

big yes to the evian!! paris sounds amazing

i hope this trip is relaxing and celebratory and WONDERFUL for you both

[MLH]

Good choice on Cp150.  I like it much better than Chops and bonus is other non Oasis class ships do not have it,incase you get the cruising  bug and go onother ships.

[Lovetocruise2002]

Congrats! And I fully endorse using your honeymoon for your first cruise! 

That's how Hubby and I started long ago. We wanted our honeymoon in St. Lucia. Sat down with our TA and it was way out of our budget. Then she suggested we take cruise that includes St. Lucia as one of the stops. We ended up on Adventure of the Seas. This was in 2002. I don't need to tell you what happened after that. lol

Enjoy, and I hope you fall in love with cruising!

[OCSC Mike]

5 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

Congrats! And I fully endorse using your honeymoon for your first cruise!

Seconded... that was mine... 21 years ago... damn I'm getting old.

Enjoy Wonder! We had a great time on her in June and looking forward to going back (several more times).

[Lovetocruise2002]

12 minutes ago, OCSC Mike said:

Seconded... that was mine... 21 years ago... damn I'm getting old.

Add us to the getting old list lol

[PPPJJ-GCVAB]

Haaa if you think you’re getting old now…wait until you hit your mid sixties!  Actually, when I think about it… I never felt I was getting old…just everyone else was!     But now that I will hit 67 in just 3 more weeks a bit of reality has creeped into my outlook.

However, on the plus side…my age has granted me:

• the enjoyment of seeing my 3 children grow into beautiful and loving adults…
• awesome years and memory making with my grandchildren…
• wonder and excitement when I realize I still like and love my husband of 44 years…
• enjoying retirement…
• and just loving life in general!

[OCSC Mike]

11 minutes ago, PPPJJ-GCVAB said:

wait until you hit your mid sixties

Nope, I'm stopping at 49.

To be clear, stopping COUNTING at 49. Jeez that came out morbid at first.

[Lovetocruise2002]

3 hours ago, PPPJJ-GCVAB said:

However, on the plus side…my age has granted me:

• the enjoyment of seeing my 3 children grow into beautiful and loving adults…
• awesome years and memory making with my grandchildren…
• wonder and excitement when I realize I still like and love my husband of 44 years…
• enjoying retirement…
• and just loving life in general!

My mom always tells me the exact same thing!

[HollyQueen]

I can only hope dear husband is ok with me catching the cruising bug..on purpose. I may or may not already be looking at Alaska itineraries for 2025 

[Xaa]

12 hours ago, PPPJJ-GCVAB said:

Actually, when I think about it… I never felt I was getting old

I get this for sure.  I still, for some reason think of myself as I was at 25.  I'm often shocked when I pass by a random mirror even though it's an image I see everyday in the bathroom mirror.

I officiate for USA swimming and did a state championship meet a few years ago.  I was watching the video for a particular swim and couldn't figure out who one of the officials was for the life of me.  It was me.

Anyway, @HollyQueen, you are going to have a great cruise.  Looking forward to the blog.

[LandstromCruise]

13 hours ago, HollyQueen said:

I can only hope dear husband is ok with me catching the cruising bug..on purpose. I may or may not already be looking at Alaska itineraries for 2025 

On my first cruise is 2018 I stopped at the Next Cruise desk the last morning and had an Alaska cruise booked for 2019. Went in mid July which was an awesome time of year to go! 

[Lovetocruise2002]

17 hours ago, HollyQueen said:

I can only hope dear husband is ok with me catching the cruising bug..on purpose. I may or may not already be looking at Alaska itineraries for 2025 

Book now, ask for permission later.  it's still working after 21 years of cruising and marriage

[OCSC Mike]

1 hour ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

Book now, ask for permission later.  it's still working after 21 years of cruising and marriage

I book all of ours (frugal trips to the Caribbean/Bahamas, often with last minute deals over the years, as you know).

What ONE trip does my wife plan? Alaska including 10 days on land before cruising southbound. Her one might have cost about what ten of mine do, lol.

It's a good thing I absolutely loved it.

[HollyQueen]

Cruise check in begins late tonight. Going to hit up Starbucks to try and help keep myself awake, hopefully we’ll get an early time! Unfortunately I’m working overtime this week so it will give me maybe 5 hours of sleep before getting up for work.

DH is very happy I encouraged him to get his first ever passport for this trip (just in case). Hope to actually add some stamps to these in the next few years  

 

[HollyQueen]

Clutching my coffee hard this morning. My late night cup didn’t manage to keep me awake and I dozed off somewhere between Wheel of Fortune and 8pm… DH made sure my alarm was set and all of our documents were together for me to get us checked in at midnight. Managed to get us 10:30 for embarkation! It was a little glitchy on the app for a few minutes there, but glad the have that secured. 

Now to make it through Thursday, which is actually my Friday. I’m being kidnapped by my bridesmaids tomorrow for a bachelorette weekend. 

 

[asquared17]

10:30 slot!!! THE BEST

[OCSC Mike]

57 minutes ago, asquared17 said:

10:30 slot!!! THE BEST

Agreed... and fwiw, check-in started well before 10:30 and boarding even began before 10:15 when we were there in June.

Obviously this will vary but PC and the Wonder crew seem to do one heck of a job getting the ship turned around.

[FireFishII]

2 hours ago, HollyQueen said:

I’m being kidnapped by my bridesmaids tomorrow for a bachelorette weekend. 

Congrats on that 10:30 slot.  The earlier you get on board, the sooner the party can begin.  

Enjoy your bachelorette weekend.  

[HollyQueen]

Cheers to two weeks before ‘I do’ and a little over a month from sail away! Went ahead and booked Wonderland for night 4 after talking with DH. I told him it was a “love it or hate it” experience, and he’s all about doing things outside of the box sometimes. I will say I’m looking forward to it now after watching a few vlogs of pros and cons. 
 

We are slowly collecting our cruise necessities. SPF 100, magnet hooks, hats, card holders etc.

Work for both of us has been insanely stressful the past few weeks. It’s like they’re making us earn our vacation.

[Rags1]

On 9/9/2023 at 8:17 AM, Lovetocruise2002 said:

Congrats! And I fully endorse using your honeymoon for your first cruise!

Agree. My first honeymoon cruise on the Mayflower was very memorable!

 

On 9/9/2023 at 1:19 PM, PPPJJ-GCVAB said:

I never felt I was getting old…just everyone else was!  

I agree.  But now at 72, and after 14 months of physically doing the work to remodel the restaurant, I’m feeling a tad beat up and old

[HollyQueen]

The week came with its chaos of course, but it all came to pass and we had beautiful weather for the best day ever.  DH is officially stuck with me now! 
 

We had a few relatives give us Royal gift cards thinking we could use them on our cruise. Oh well, guess that’s extra excuse to book Alaska? 

[Lovetocruise2002]

Congrats!

[WAAAYTOOO]

Congrats +1

[LandstromCruise]

43 minutes ago, HollyQueen said:

The week came with its chaos of course, but it all came to pass and we had beautiful weather for the best day ever.  DH is officially stuck with me now! 
 

We had a few relatives give us Royal gift cards thinking we could use them on our cruise. Oh well, guess that’s extra excuse to book Alaska? 

Congrats on the wedding.  And I like your line of thinking on that Alaska booking.  You won't regret it.  

[asquared17]

congratulations!!!

[PPPJJ-GCVAB]

Best wishes on your marriage!  Let the honeymoon begin!  

[Xaa]

18 hours ago, HollyQueen said:

The week came with its chaos of course, but it all came to pass and we had beautiful weather for the best day ever.  DH is officially stuck with me now! 
 

We had a few relatives give us Royal gift cards thinking we could use them on our cruise. Oh well, guess that’s extra excuse to book Alaska? 

Congrats!  Can you not redeem the gift cards for OBC?

[OCSC Mike]

Congrats! Don’t wait for your 5th anniversary to cruise again like we did (if you can).

[FireFishII]

Congrats.  Here is hoping Hubby loves cruising.  

[HollyQueen]

On 10/12/2023 at 6:34 AM, Xaa said:

Congrats!  Can you not redeem the gift cards for OBC?

I've sent an email but have heard conflicting stories on if they'll actually let you redeem it for onboard credit or not. We're fine with whichever - would be nice to have it on our account though to not worry about any small extras. 

[Jax]

Just catching up.  Congrats and look forward to following along.  

[HollyQueen]

Looks like we are in for a windy week on the first few days of our cruise. We are officially in packing mode and overly exited to head down to Orlando. There’s also a Starlink launch apparently Saturday night and DH is super exited to see that. 
 

Also if anyone is interested, these were our Royal Up bid prices. I did have a number in my head I’d be willing to throw at a junior or even grand suite, but these unfortunately were a bit over what I felt was worth it. One day I’d love to experience a grand suite at least. The suite neighborhood looks fantastic on Wonder. 

[OCSC Mike]

53 minutes ago, HollyQueen said:

Looks like we are in for a windy week on the first few days of our cruise.

I should be on CocoCay Thursday when the winds are currently forecasted to be a bit higher than that depending on what site/app I look at.

As long as we can dock, I don't care how windy it is, the food will taste just as good and we'll have a great time as always. Also, fortunately neither my wife nor I get sea sick if the ship's a rockin'.

Hope you get to see the launch! We can see the flame and trail from our house (roughly 70 miles away) but have never gone over to the coast for one. There was a launch scheduled for the day we boarded Wonder in June and we were looking forward to seeing it from the ship but it was scrubbed.

[HollyQueen]

DH has been given strict instructions to pack himself today while I'm at work. "Oh yeah, now worries there. How many shirts do I need? Four?" 

The man has never traveled farther than Florida, so I'll forgive him this once. I will possibly be packing for two tonight though. 

The wind and rain forecast have changed probably three times since I last looked at it. Supposedly CCC was closed yesterday and today. Currently looks like we'll have perfect weather that day, but again everything can change. Hoping for the best is all you can do. I know they'll make every attempt to dock since they have so much money there. 

 

[OCSC Mike]

20 minutes ago, HollyQueen said:

Hoping for the best is all you can do. I know they'll make every attempt to dock since they have so much money there.

We’re in the same boat now… err… you know what I mean. Hoping to dock there Sunday with our new itinerary but the wind doesn’t seem to want to let up. I thought we were in the clear when they moved us.

Wishing us both good luck!

[HollyQueen]

Two checked bags, two carry on backpacks, and enough sunscreen to sponsor Beach Addicts Anonymous…or 7ish days for me. Irish skin problems. 
 

Covid tests negative.  I work in healthcare so it was for our peace of mind. 
 

Driving half way down tomorrow to the Alabama countryside, where the worlds best potato soup awaits at Mamaw Janns.  

[HollyQueen]

Dropped off the pupper and made it halfway to Orlando! The excitement has doubled and we’re so ready to get on the boat. 

[JohnK6404]

On 10/11/2023 at 12:59 PM, HollyQueen said:

The week came with its chaos of course, but it all came to pass and we had beautiful weather for the best day ever.  DH is officially stuck with me now! 

We had a few relatives give us Royal gift cards thinking we could use them on our cruise. Oh well, guess that’s extra excuse to book Alaska? 

Congrats!!!

Funny you say that... we're eyeing the Western Mediterranean or Alaska for Summer 2025!

Just in case you did not see it yet... here is the release schedule for 2025 Alaska, etc... 2025-2026_Deployment_Opening_Schedule.pdf (rccl.com)

Alaska is supposed to be released while we're sailing on Wonder next week! 

[HollyQueen]

7 hours ago, JohnK6404 said:

Alaska is supposed to be released while we're sailing on Wonder next week! 

Oh yes, I’ve been impatiently waiting for them to release it ever since we found out. Gotta practice my convincing skills with DH to visit the Next Cruise desk while we’re on board.