Guarantee-d To Have a Suite Time - 11/30/2024, Mariner 5 Day

[melmar02]

We took my MIL on a cruise for her 70th birthday, and while onboard, she graciously offered to watch the kids so DH and I could take one by ourselves. We happily headed to the Next Cruise office and booked a 5 day cruise just 3 months down the road... for May 2020.

We finally got to thinking about rebooking that "just the two of us" cruise this past May, and we realized we were only 9 points away from Diamond Plus. If we squeezed in a 5 day cruise in a suite this fall, we would get the extra benefits on our cruise with the kids in the spring which is an 11 day. I'm looking forward to the BOGO specialty dining since that is a longer cruise than we typically take. We're ok with a JS, so we thought why not roll the dice and see what happens with a GTY. The worst thing would be we sail in a JS, which was the plan to begin with to get the points. 

I received the Royal Up email on October 1, and the minimum bid for a Grand Suite was $75. We bid $100 pp with very low hopes of winning. I've been obsessively checking the app and website daily, sometimes more, to see our room assignment. Finally, at 15 days out, we received our room assignment today. We are  in JS 9534 which is the forward most JS on the port side. Just in case there's a chance, we raised our bid to a whopping $125 each. 

It has felt weird not having a room until this close to the cruise, and I finally feel like I can start packing. Like it's official now because I know where my bag will be.

 

Here are the details:

Mimi is coming over for Thanksgiving and will bring her pup and stay until we get back. Our dogs all get along well, so Yay! We can spend the money we would have spent on boarding them on excursions instead. 

5 days on Mariner, and we will drive down to Galveston from Dallas on Black Friday. That night, we are staying at the Hilton NASA in Clear Lake. We'll make the 40ish minute drive Saturday morning, and, like always, we are parking offsite at Lighthouse.

Day 1 Embark

Day 2 Sea 

Day 3 Costa Maya

Day 4 Cozumel

Day 5 Sea

We're driving straight home on Thursday. DH will have to work Friday, and I'm teaching a class at our homeschool co-op Friday too.

We're really looking forward to this vacation. DH's work has been crazy, and I am just coming out of wedding season for my business. I had two wedding cakes last weekend, and just a couple birthday cakes before we leave. I finally got smart, and I'm not working up to the day we're leaving this time!

 

[asquared17]

yay!! time for a cruise!!!

[Ampurp85]

Whoo congrats on making it to D+. I definitely use my D+ perks more than when I was just diamond. Also it will be mice to cruise with just the two of you.

[melmar02]

17 hours ago, asquared17 said:

yay!! time for a cruise!!!

Yes! Hopefully DH can fully unplug and relax!

17 hours ago, Ampurp85 said:

Whoo congrats on making it to D+. I definitely use my D+ perks more than when I was just diamond. Also it will be mice to cruise with just the two of you.

Thanks. I agree. We really see value in the BOGO dinners and a second day of free internet. The extra drink voucher is nice too, but to be honest, we'll probably use it on sparkling water. If it weren't for the Freestyle machines, we wouldn't even need to get soda packages for the kids anymore.

 

Cruise planner purchases:

Excursions - we're not sure what traffic will be like on the drive down since it is the day after Thanksgiving, so we have no plans for that day. Get to the hotel, dinner, and relax with our traditional night before the cruise bottle of red as we put the luggage tags on the bags. 

Costa Maya - Mexican Salsa Experience and Beach Break. We have done this one with the kids previously and really enjoyed it. You make two kinds of salsa and a guacamole, they offer a tequila tasting/sales pitch, and then you do some very basic salsa dancing. Afterwards they take you to one of the local beach clubs (I don't remember which one…Blue Key maybe) for an hour or so. We both like to cook and love to dance, so we thought this was a good one to repeat. Plus, without the kids we can enjoy the tequila tasting we skipped previously with them in tow. 

Cozumel – Normally we go to Paradise Beach, but we have also done Chankanaab with and without the dolphins, the sea turtle rescue, and scuba. We wanted something else cooking class related this time since it’s just us. We booked the Mexican Cooking, Tasting, and Beach Experience which is held at Playa Mia. We have not been there before, so we can scope it out to see if it is something the kids would enjoy later too.

We bought an Evian package, internet, and a 10 photo package as well as Flowrider lesson for each of us. I am finally getting DH to try it! Well…

Long story short, I tore a meniscus recently, and we will be cancelling the lesson as soon as we board. Since we were past final payment, I didn’t want to deal with the potential “you now have a balance due on the cruise fare” issue, and we’ll wind up with about $100 in OBC to play with. No pun intended there, but it will go to the casino. I’m really bummed about this one because we got summer passes to a place with a Flowrider near us, and I nailed my 360’s in both directions sitting, kneeling, and on my stomach. I was looking forward to learning a new trick or two. I may still do a couple sessions, but I think the lesson would just be wasted, so I'll stick to what I'm already comfortable with. 

[melmar02]

We've decided to go light on the packing and not really do dressy formal night this time around. I typically wear slacks and a nice top every other night anyway so we can go from dinner to straight to dancing. This way I won't have to head back to the room to change out of my dress before we find a dance floor for the night. Sorry @asquared17, no fun new purchases for this one. Unless we are talking about a knee brace.   

I did get an upgrade in my toiletry kit recently though. Over the summer I took my daughter and MIL on a girls' trip to New Mexico, and I mentioned to MIL that I wanted a new one. The one I had been using I think I got in college - almost 25 years ago. It was basically a cylinder with a zippered top. No compartments, no organization. Just pull something out and everything else mixes together so the next thing you want is always at the bottom of the bag. Only enough room for shower gel, toothbrush/paste, face care stuff. So I also packed a separate bag with make up, and another for hair stuff. MIL got me a new one for my birthday, and it is worlds better with 3 compartments and a separate bag too. Zipped up, it's about 8"x10"x3". 

If it weren't for my hair dryer and curling iron, I might be able fit everything in a carry on size suitcase this time. Maybe we can do one big bag and one carry on size. Not that we have to worry about the luggage for flights, but we will probably self disembark, and my big suitcase is starting to have wheel issues. Dear Santa..

[asquared17]

i LIVE for a new toiletry kit!! how fun!! pattern is great

[Ampurp85]

I was just coming to say the new toiletries bag is so cute.

[melmar02]

5 hours ago, asquared17 said:

i LIVE for a new toiletry kit!! how fun!! pattern is great

 

21 minutes ago, Ampurp85 said:

I was just coming to say the new toiletries bag is so cute.

Isn't it great! She said she got this one because of the tropical pattern and thought it would be perfect for our cruising. I may be my MIL's favorite kid.

[melmar02]

We're doing the single digit happy dance here! 9 days till we board!

Usually we only take the week of Thanksgiving off of school, and DS finished up all his assignments today. He is now off for Thanksgiving break until December 9. We have our last regular co-op day tomorrow. All of our son's classes are fun, elective type classes (stop motion, survival skills, improv, etc) so his co-op days are over tomorrow. DD is taking 2 high school credit classes in addition to her fun classes though. Her electives end tomorrow, and she will have Thanksgiving week off. However, she will need to read her Chemistry and US History books while DH and I are gone as she has a couple more classes in December for those two "they're going on her transcript" subjects. 

I have been teaching cooking and baking classes to the middle and high schoolers as well as co-teach other classes at our co-op for the last 3 and a half years. Every Friday I haul half my kitchen up to the church where we meet. Well I've decided I am retiring from being the head kitchen teacher, and this is my last class that requires all the crazy prep like making 24 creme brulees and a lasagna on a Thursday night that my family isn't even going to eat. It feels good to step back and let someone else take over - I feel like my vacation begins tomorrow at 2:40! Next semester, I am only teaching social dance so I will only need to bring my phone and a little speaker. I'll co-teach classes, but someone else gets to prep and bring everything! Woohoo!

On the packing front, I have tweaked and printed my packing list. I also sorted all my supplements into a pill holder. It's a start! Since we are going so low key this trip, it really should go quickly, and I'll probably start thinking about what to take in earnest Saturday night or Sunday. I have a birthday cake to deliver Saturday morning and I'm getting my hair chopped off with burgundy low lights added on Saturday afternoon. My last cut was before our last cruise in May...I'm just a tad overdue.  

 

[asquared17]

20 minutes ago, melmar02 said:

I also sorted all my supplements into a pill holder.

A GAME CHANGER RIGHT THERE!!

enjoy your haircut!!!

[melmar02]

I just posted in the main forum - our RU bid has disappeared. When I click on the bid status link in our cruise on the website, I am taken to the original RU website when they first send out the emails that explains what RU is, how to bid, etc. and lists all the rooms that you can bid on - not the bid status page that shows my bid and that it is "submitted". Glitch? Likely... Should I rebid? Probably... Did we win? Probably not... 

[DonR]

13 hours ago, melmar02 said:

 our RU bid has disappeared. 

I think this supports my "Drunk monkeys throwing darts" theory of how Royal-Up really works! 

[melmar02]

So I have tried to rebid on our royal up, and I keep getting an error message that they couldn't process the request and then the screen flashes an oops we're out of rooms page for just a second before taking me back to the bid page. With us just placing a barely over the minimum bid, I'm letting it go.

Haircut - I cut off about 5-6 inches. Like I said, it's been awhile. My usual girl left the salon and I tried a new place. Probably should have stuck with my old salon because I love the color, not so much the cut. It just needs a little blending on one side, and it is fine curled. Plus I can still get it into a ponytail. It's fine, just not fab. 

Amazon may be delivering a thing or two after all. I ordered a new swim suit in two sizes (hopefully one works), and I'm eyeing a sequin top for our not-so-formal formal night.  

[PPPJJ-GCVAB]

4 hours ago, melmar02 said:

Amazon may be delivering a thing or two after all. I ordered a new swim suit in two sizes (hopefully one works), and I'm eyeing a sequin top for our not-so-formal formal night.  

Too funny.  For about 3 or 4 weeks before our cruises in September there were deliveries EVERY DAY!  My husband kept asking how many more packages would be coming…I couldn’t give him an answer…literally every single day something arrived!  Many were returned…but not all!    Now I leave this coming Saturday for my Freedom cruise and I am still waiting for just one more package.
My husband ??? just shakes his head!   
I just LOVE Amazon (otherwise known as Bezo’s).  

[asquared17]

59 minutes ago, PPPJJ-GCVAB said:

about 3 or 4 weeks before our cruises in September there were deliveries EVERY DAY!  My husband kept asking how many more packages would be coming…I couldn’t give him an answer…literally every single day something arrived!  Many were returned…but not all!  

THATS HOW THEY GET YOU!!! the struggle is so real!!!

59 minutes ago, PPPJJ-GCVAB said:

I leave this coming Saturday for my Freedom cruise and I am still waiting for just one more package.
My husband ??? just shakes his head!   
I just LOVE Amazon (otherwise known as Bezo’s).  

we love bezos it’s our downfall!!

 

5 hours ago, melmar02 said:

Haircut - I cut off about 5-6 inches. Like I said, it's been awhile

do you feel FREER though!!! 

i am sorry it wasn’t what you were hoping for but glad it will still be able for you to pull back and out of your face if need be. good color is an art

[melmar02]

@PPPJJ-GCVAB  I just remembered I need to order some more reef safe sunscreen too.

[melmar02]

Just now, asquared17 said:

 

do you feel FREER though!!! 

Absolutely! I cut it all off a few years ago because I got to the point that I was just throwing it up in a pony tail every day. When it's short, I have to fix it.

[melmar02]

Ok, so when I washed, dried, and curled my hair on Monday, it was really cute, and I got lots of compliments, so I feel much better about it.  Now if I could only get it to hold the curl all day. The odd thing is, my hair is naturally wavy/curly, but if I dry it and heat style, the curls are flat in a few hours. Like the hairs all want to revert to their you-just-dried-us-straight state of being. Oh well, as long as I can get from the cabin to the photographer for pre-dinner pictures, I don't really care. I'll be on a cruise!

Swimsuits arrived, and by some miracle, the smaller of the two I ordered fit. It's been washed and placed in the pre-pack pile. That new top I was considering has shipped, but I'll feel a whole lot better once the tracking status changes to out for delivery. I justified the purchase because the front is all silver sequins, and we have a Christmas party on the Saturday just after we get back that I can wear it to. As long as it arrives before then I'm good. If the delivery is delayed, it may not be delivered on Thursday with the holiday, and I'm not waiting for it on Friday. Or maybe Mr. Bezos pays holiday overtime and it would be delivered on turkey day? 

Speaking of, we have hosted the last several years. This year, my sister's and DH's brother's families have other things going on so it will just be us and MIL... who does not eat leftovers. So we are going non-traditional with the meal. I'm making lasagna and DD is helping me make rosemary bread and creme brulee. DS wanted canned creamed corn and DH wanted broccoli rice casserole. Because...Thanksgiving. I'll add a small salad because I want something green yet not covered in cheese. I feel like I just need popcorn and jelly beans, and I'll have the Charlie Brown Thanksgiving meal. 

I have one more run to Wally World or CVS today. Almost forgot the sunscreen.

[melmar02]

My sequin shirt arrived yesterday, and I love it! DH is just along for the ride. When I tried it on he smiled and through gritted teeth said, "It's pretty, but it's a lot."

Packing has finally started, and I have loaded my new toiletry kit. I will be thanking MIL again for it when she gets here. It's amazing!

 

[Ampurp85]

31 minutes ago, melmar02 said:

My sequin shirt arrived yesterday, and I love it! DH is just along for the ride. When I tried it on he smiled and through gritted teeth said, "It's pretty, but it's a lot."

Packing has finally started, and I have loaded my new toiletry kit. I will be thanking MIL again for it when she gets here. It's amazing!

 

Is it the sequins that change color when you rub them? Or is it just bright?

[asquared17]

I LIVE FOR A CASUAL SEQUIN!!!!!!!!!!

this is DELIGHTFUL

[Cactus527]

Sequin top? Ooooooo

[melmar02]

7 hours ago, Ampurp85 said:

Is it the sequins that change color when you rub them? Or is it just bright?

No, it's all silver though. Hopefully I don't blind myself.

[asquared17]

40 minutes ago, melmar02 said:

No, it's all silver though. Hopefully I don't blind myself.

now you’re making me second guess pulling my silver sequin pants out of rotation

[SMOKEY0202]

We need a picture of sequin top

 

[Ampurp85]

2 hours ago, melmar02 said:

No, it's all silver though. Hopefully I don't blind myself.

Oh, that sounds pretty, I love sequins in green, silver and of course purple .

[melmar02]

1 hour ago, SMOKEY0202 said:

We need a picture of sequin top

 

 

I'm wearing it with black pants.

[asquared17]

I LOVE IT!!!!!

[Ampurp85]

It is beautiful, I don't know why your husband had that reaction .

[asquared17]

sometimes (not ALL the time) they don’t understand the ~vision.

[melmar02]

4 hours ago, asquared17 said:

sometimes (not ALL the time) they don’t understand the ~vision.

Right! I'm having a hard time styling it. I'm between two sizes so I went with the larger, and it feels like it needs to be tucked in. There is so much bulk with all the sequins that I don't think it looks right on me tucked in though. Oh well, I'll be so shiny that no one will notice anything else.

Bags are all packed, and a couple of last minute things have been taken care of... like buying waterpark tickets for CocoCay for October.  Now we are just killing another hour or so before we hit the road. 

DH in passing asked MIL if she was ready to go on another cruise, and she said yes. Time to research! 

[melmar02]

Did you know it is Black Friday? We couldn't find our little wireless speaker. So we thought, "let's just run by Best Buy". An hour later, and we were on the road. Should hit the hotel around 7. Bucees stop? It's behind us.

[melmar02]

I completed our health questions while we were in the Buccees parking lot and we scored Express check in. At the same time DH checked us into the hotel. I jokingly asked if he upgraded us to the penthouse and he said, "no, but I did upgrade us to a corner lake view room for $20." Woohoo! He then made reservations for us at Pappacito's (tex mex) for 7:30.

The hotel has Christmas decorations up and a giant gingerbread house right in front of the door. 

There was quite a bit of traffic due to an accident, and Houston traffic was extra fun. We pulled into the hotel at 7:10, dropped off our bags, took a quick look at the room, and headed to dinner. After a spicy margarita and too much queso, we are back relaxing in the hotel. I'll get pictures of the view in the morning when it's light out. Ready for tomorrow! 

 

[asquared17]

ITS CRUISE DAY!!!!!!

[PPPJJ-GCVAB]

Happy cruise day.  I am currently on plane heading to FLL for my cruise tomorrow!  
Congrats on Express Boarding.  I am going to complete my health questions now to see if I have your luck.   Oops I have to wait until noon!  

[melmar02]

So sad, but so expected.

 

I did something new this morning, and went to the gym while on vacation. I'm trying to strengthen my knee before surgery. The plan is to go a couple times on the ship too. At least the view was nice. 

We plan to leave the hotel between 9-9:30.

 

[GregD]

Happy cruise day!!!

19 minutes ago, melmar02 said:

The plan is to go a couple times on the ship too.

There is a gym on the ships!!?? Who knew!!

[melmar02]

Ready to go!

 

1 hour ago, GregD said:

Happy cruise day!!!

There is a gym on the ships!!?? Who knew!!

Thanks! I knew, but only because I tried to walk on the treadmill on our first cruise. There wasn't in the middle facing straight ahead; there were two splitting the center of the ship so neither was looking straight ahead. That's when I realized Dramamine was my BFF on ships in addition to amusement parks!

 

View from our room this morning. Safety briefing complete. We're packing up the wine we didn't drink last night and leaving now. Should be at Lighthouse Parking in about 40 minutes. 

[Ampurp85]

Its cruise day!!!!

The haircut looks great actually. But that is probably due to your styling of it. Let us know how express boarding works in Galveston. I loved it in Miami, I was on the ship in like two minutes. 

[melmar02]

1 hour ago, Ampurp85 said:

Its cruise day!!!!

The haircut looks great actually. But that is probably due to your styling of it. Let us know how express boarding works in Galveston. I loved it in Miami, I was on the ship in like two minutes. 

Thanks!

So the shuttle pulled up to the terminal just before 10:30 and it was a ghost town. There was an express sign on the lower level suite side which we were going to anyway. Upstairs looked empty and the express lines were set up right next to the suite check in entrance. Since there were no other passengers, we went to the suite side, but it would have been a breeze in express too.

At check in, we were told there was an itinerary change, Costa Maya is being replaced with another day at Cozumel due to anticipated wind. Windy app shows the ocen a lovely shade of purplely-pink 10-15 ft waves maybe? 

Anyway, we walked right on the ship at 10:30, and headed to muster in the Star Lounge. Then we decided to walk the Promenade and were thinking about a specialty lunch when we were approached by the dining people. Jamie's is open so we went ahead and booked it for lunch. Then they offered bogo for Chops or hibachi tonight. Chops it is! I feel like it's a preview of our upcoming D+ benefit. 

Now were in the Bamboo Room waiting for our lunch reservation Bloody Mary and Cozumel Sunrise in hand, and we just booked Paradise Beach for our bonus day in Cozumel. I guess one of the benefits of always going to the same stops from Galveston is that you know what's available! That's our usual stop anyway, so we aren't mad.