Bryan Posted August 13, 2015 Report Share Posted August 13, 2015 My wife and I splurged and are finally going on the honeymoon cruise we have waiting over a year to execute. We were married last summer and are cruising with RCL on the Jewel for the Nov 8th, 7 night cruise out of San Juan. The Grand Suite should be a nice addition since neither of us have stayed in a cabin larger than a ocean view in the past. The ship leaves port at 8:30 at night and we are flying into San Juan arriving around 1:30pm. My concern is that we won't be able to enjoy a nice dinner or much at all after the ship leaves port since we are leaving so late in the evening. Should we get on the ship early say around 3 so we can arrange a nice dinner at one of the specialty restaurants? What about the early dinner time we selected of 6:30 each night? Should that be changed to Any Time dining? Matt 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted August 13, 2015 Report Share Posted August 13, 2015 We did the same sailing as you on Jewel of the Seas out of San Juan. It's a fabulous itinerary. First, we got onboard around 11am. So the earlier you can get on, the better. You paid for the vacation, so you may as well get all the time out of it that you can! We did early seating for dinner and had no issues. The nice thing about the late departure is you will either have a nice view from the main dining room leaving or right after dinner, you can go out on deck and enjoy the view. I would not feel obligated to book a specialty restaurant on night 1 just because of the departure time. It shouldn't matter really. Bryan 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocLC Posted August 14, 2015 Report Share Posted August 14, 2015 You can book online before the cruise for specialty dining the first night if you're concerned; however, I've yet to be on a cruise where they're sold out the first night, which is why they offer a 20% discount. Also, keep in mind that Chops doesn't even open until 8:30 on the first night, so you'll be onboard well before you're out of any dining options. You'll even be onboard before first seating if that's what you've elected in the main dining room. Enjoy your cruise; I loved the Jewel and her sister ship, the Brilliance, wasn't too shabby either. Matt and Bryan 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryan Posted August 14, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 14, 2015 Thank you both for the input. I really want this cruise to be special and certainly don't want any unexpected surprises especially on the first day! Matt 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jticarruthers Posted August 14, 2015 Report Share Posted August 14, 2015 We did the Jewel out of PR back at the end of March. Had a great time. We flew in around 11 and were onboard and at lunch by 1230. Early dining time so we were done by the time sailaway kicked off IIRC. One question for you, what time zone are you flying in from ? Might make a difference with "perceived" dining time vs dining time onboard ship for example. Bryan 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryan Posted August 14, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 14, 2015 We live in Dallas so this will be a couple of hours later than we are used to. How did you get from the airport to the pier? I've heard it is a 45 minute drive. Did you get a taxi or maybe a limo? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocLC Posted August 14, 2015 Report Share Posted August 14, 2015 I'd say it's 20-25 minutes. Taxi is fastest and easiest and probably about $25. Bryan 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jticarruthers Posted August 14, 2015 Report Share Posted August 14, 2015 Traffic was bad for us but we just took a cab, I think it was about 30 mins and something around $20-$25. There was a line of about 50 cabs and no passengers waiting for them when we got out of baggage claim so it was an easy cab ride. In regards to timezone, IIRC they stayed on eastern time the whole cruise so that 830 dinner slot is going to feel like 630 for you in terms of "stomach" time so its probably not a big deal. For the first night its always a bit less formal in the MDR so if you wanted a special first night, I would go ahead and do a specialty booking for 900 or so, shouldn't be hard to get .. Chops looked like a graveyard every night on our cruise so they will probably be happy to have you :) Bryan 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted August 15, 2015 Report Share Posted August 15, 2015 We live in Dallas so this will be a couple of hours later than we are used to. How did you get from the airport to the pier? I've heard it is a 45 minute drive. Did you get a taxi or maybe a limo? As others noted, take a cab DocLC 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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