Boarding Empress 

Well, my cruise day finally arrived! I could not have been more excited to get back on Empress of the Seas.

As I mentioned I flew in from Tampa, FL to Miami, FL today. The flight was on time and I landed in Miami at 8:30AM. With nothing else to do in Miami, I decided to head straight to the ship! I took an Uber ride from the airport to this ship. The ride was $15 and very easy process, pickup and drop-off were seamless.

I had some friends getting off the Enchantment this morning so as my face was all smiles, theirs was no so much. I chatted with them for a bit and then headed over to my terminal.

It was around 9:45AM and there were about 20 people in line to check-in. The security process does not open until 10AM, so we just waited in line until then. I checked in and their Loyalty Ambassador recognized me from a previous cruise and invited me into her suite lounge to wait.

This was a very nice lounge with water, coffee, and small sandwiches. Another perk if you are in a suite, is this lounge you get to board first, she took us right on board at 11AM. 

On board 

Believe it or not, I was the first person to board Empress of the Seas today. Pretty cool experience, reminded me of being on board for a back-to-back.

Once I was on board I headed straight to the Windjammer for lunch. I am going to make bold statement here, the mac-n cheese might have been the best I have ever tasted before, all I can say is wow!

Lunch was outstanding and so fresh; I walked out with a smile that is for sure.

Now that I had a full belly I had to put my Select Drink Package to work. I had pre-purchased the drink package online prior to Royal changing their new drink packages. This package only allows me to get beer and house wines. When I cruise alone this package works well for me, because I get my 3 free Diamond drinks at night between 5:30-8:30. I talked to new friends at the poolside bar until our cabins opened at 1PM. 

Cabin – Ocean View #7000 

For this cruise, I am sailing in a standard ocean view cabin #7000. This cabin is all the way forward facing a little private walkway.

I wanted to try a different cabin that faced forward. On larger ships having a cabin all the way forward might cause some long walks to and from the cabin, but on Empress it iss a very short walk. The cabin can sleep up to 4 adults, so if you notice from my pictures there are two beds that hang on the walls. These beds make it very difficult to get in and out of the bed from the sides, because you have to bend over. I have been getting in from the bottom of the bed, pretending I am a child again.

Other than the extras bed kind of in the way, the cabin is nice and everything on the inside feels new from her recent dry dock. 

Sail away 

The muster drill was at 3:30, and we set sail at 4:30. I have learned over the years not to arrive at the muster drills early, it can get hot standing on the side of the ship.

Our drill was very fast and did not take more than 10 minutes. After the drill I headed up to the top deck and wanted to get a close look at the Enchantment of the Seas. She is my favorite ship and it was excited for me to see her again. But I do have a cruise on her next month.

Once we set sail I headed to a top tier event for Diamond and up guest or suites. They usually host private events on Empress since there is no Diamond/Suite lounge.

The event was nice, with live music and all the officers attending, including the captain. They served fish and shrimp kabobs, which I do not want to share how many I had… 

Evening On board / Dinner 

Tonight, I headed down to the Schooner bar to use my Diamond drink coupons, which are pre-loaded to my SeaPass card before dinner. I grabbed a window seat and just watched the ocean go by, that view just never gets old. I had made reservations for Chops Grill when I first got onboard for 7:30PM tonight.

One of the Crown & Anchor benefits for Diamond Plus is a BOGO specialty restaurant. Since I am cruising along I paid the cover charge tonight $35 and tomorrow is free. The staff in Chops all remembered me from last month, so that was fun to see them again. I laughed because I ordered without even opening the menu. The restaurant was almost full, but do not feel like you need to reserve online before. I asked my waiter to speed the meal up because of Monday Night Football and since I was dining alone. Overall a great meal and I look forward to going back tomorrow night. 

Shortly after dinner I decided to get some rest, day 1 is always a long day and I was ready for bed. 

Random observations

• The ships does not feel full at all, there is never any wait at the bars.
• My Crown and Anchor VOOM coupon was not loaded, so I had to have them apply a manual credit. However, the VOOM is working great!
• The gift shop now has the ship models for $32.95.
• The air conditioning is now working in 90% of the casino. 

 Stay tuned, tomorrow we are in beautiful Key West, Florida! If you have any questions, feel free to comment below and I will respond.

Hi blog readers, its Michael Poole here and I’m headed back on board Empress of the Seas.

If you recall, I was recently on Empress of the Seas July 28th and did a live blog on that sailing too. I enjoyed the ship so much, I’ve decided to head back and take you on another live blog adventure.

This time I’m cruising solo, so I’ll be going in more detail of the Empress and all she has to offer. 

Itinerary 

This cruise is a 5-day sailing, so one extra day than my last time on board. We are headed back to Key West, Florida on day two. Day three is a sea day, followed by Cozumel, Mexico and ending with another sea day.

For my time in Key West, I’m sad to report there will be no bike tour this go around. I was thinking about all my recent visits to Key West and how I’ve never actually had in Key Lime pie there, so I’ll be on the search for some pie.

In Cozumel, Mexico I’m thinking about just exploring around and see where I end up. I had thought about going back to Nachi, but I’m looking to explore and just see where I end up. 

Cabin Type 

When I originally booked this cruise, I booked the lowest cost cabin type, which was an inside on the lower decks.

Over the course of a few weeks the cruise dropped a lot in price, since I was past final payment there is nothing you can do about the price. However, I was able to move up to an Ocean View cabin for no additional cost. Now I’ll be staying on Deck 7 forward, cabin #7000. This cabin over looks the secret walkway all the way forward, so I’ll be sure to include some pictures. 

Travel Plans to Miami, Florida 

My plan was to just drive to the port since I’m around 280 miles away from the port (4 hours). But after thinking about parking cost at the port $20/day puts me at $100 parking cost, plus fuel. So I ended up finding a flight for the same cost as parking and I’ll be flying in the morning of the cruise. I know that’s generally not a good plan, but worse case I’ll just jump in my car for a fast road trip. 

Well friends, I’m really excited to share another live blog with you. As always, feel free to comment below if you have any questions or would like pictures of something. Be sure to follow me on Periscope for 2-3 daily live scopes from on board too! @mpoole3

The final day of the cruise as already come, these shorter sailings go by so fast.

Today we were docked in Key West, Florida from 7am-4:30pm. Whenever you leave the United States and come back you always have to enter customs, and this includes the port stop in Key West.

This morning they had suite guests go through the process at 7am. The customs agents come on board the ship, this morning it was in the theater. You simply show them passports or birth certificate and on you go. This process doesn’t take very long, but my suggestion is just go early, regardless of what cabin you are in. 

Morning in Key West 

This morning, we decided to get off at 10am; we were in no rush to get off. Most of the ship was actually already off and about. We did a little shopping at the pier, typical t-shirts and key lime pie shops.

I did notice that most of the restaurants didn’t service food until noon, but they were all serving drinks. I didn’t have breakfast on board so I was ready to eat. We found a little pub that we had a pint at while we waited for Sloppy Joes to open.

They opened up at noon and you really need to be there right when they open to grab a seat. I went with their famous sloppy joe’s sandwich and I’m glad I did, hands down the best one I’ve ever had. We enjoyed some live music and drinks before our excursion at 1:30pm. 

Bike Tour Excursion 

Today we had booked the bike tour through Royal Caribbean excursions desk. The tour started at 1:30pm and lasted until 4:30pm.

We walked over to the bike shop, which is very close by, then geared us up. We visited a few places around Key West and our tour guide was very knowledgeable about the island.

I learned a lot about Key West that I would have never known. About halfway through the tour we asked our tour guide if we could speed things up, as the heat was starting to get to all of us. We still went to all the locations, just didn’t stop at them to hear the history behind what we were seeing.

As the tour was coming to an end, a member in our group had a minor accident on the bike. This took around a half hour to help them get a ride back to the ship, but it was 4:15pm and all on board was 4:30pm.

By the time we made it back to the ship it was right at 4:30pm, and the ship was blowing the horn. We never really got worried about missing the ship because we had a Royal Caribbean excursion desk. So things do happen and sometimes knowing the ship will wait on you goes along way. 

Dinner – Chops Grill 

Tonight our group had Chops Grill at 6:30pm for our last group dinner. Again, we had the select menu since we had over 20 people eating.

I went with the NY strip for my main course and really enjoyed the steak.

The service tonight was outstanding and they were always filling our water and wine glasses. If you happen to sail on Empress of the Seas, I highly recommend Chops Grill. 

After dinner we just explored the ship taking in the last few moment we have on board. I noticed that Guest Services had a rather large line, so try to take care of any issues you may have prior to the last few hours.

There was a farewell show at 9pm, but we decided to pass on that and get some rest for our drive to Tampa in the morning. 

 Random Thoughts:

• Voom on board comes and goes, you also have to sign in every time you use it.
• A/C in cabin works great, yes it’s hot during sailaway but it will cool down rather fast.
• Everything is new on board, from the sheets to the towels, pool towel, you can just tell it’s all very fresh.
• The food on board is outstanding, from windjammer to chops grill, it’s all outstanding.
• Cuban coffee shop never had cream for coffee, so I drank it without and enjoyed it.
• Crew on board is like family just after 4 days, really great job all around.
• Cruise Director Carlos does a great job and very personable if you get a chance to talk to him. 

 I hope you all enjoyed the Empress of the Seas live blog. I know I really enjoyed sharing this unique trip with all of you. Until next time, see you sea…

Live Blog Index

• Pre-cruise
• Day 1 - Embarkation Day
• Day 2 - Coco Cay
• Day 3 - Sea Day
• Day 4 - Key West

Today we spent the day in Coco Cay, and if you have ever read any of my past live blog’s this is my favorite place to visit in the Caribbean.  I like Coco Cay because it’s very peaceful and such a relaxing day.

Morning Onboard

This morning, I woke up at 6:00am and decided to go explore the ship and take some photos.

I know I’m on vacation and waking up before the sunrises.  I really enjoyed the sunrise and if you haven’t woke up early on a cruise before I really recommend it.

 At 7:00am we had scheduled to have room service delivered to our cabin.  

The fruit was very fresh and by far the best scrambled eggs I’ve ever had on board any cruise. They have breakfast cards behind the cabin door you fill out and place on the outside door handle the night before with your order.

Coco Cay

We had a large group scheduled to take the first tender boat over to Coco Cay at 8:15am.  We met at the Schooner bar and were quickly walked to the tender.  

The ride over to Coco Cay is 5 minutes and it’s really a great time to take some ship photos.  

Once we arrived in Coco Cay we headed over to the Cabana area.  These Cabanas are available to rent for the day at $250 and you can bring up to six guests.  When we arrived they had large Evian water chilled for us and beach towels.

This was my first time in the Cabana area and I was very surprised how nice the experience was.  

At 11:30am, they had a special lunch for us in the cabana area and it was an upgrade from the standard lunch they serve.  

They had salmon, shrimp, salads, and trays of endless fruit.

Snorkeling in Coco Cay

This afternoon we had planned to snorkel, in all my trips to Coco Cay I’ve never snorkeled here.  

We were treated to some very nice snorkel gear and the staff assisted us putting it all on.  Our group was 8 people and we headed out to a see the ship and plane wreck.  The tour lasted an hour and was very entertaining if you enjoy snorkeling.

After an hour of snorkeling I helped the production team film a spot with my snorkeling equipment.  They have a full team traveling with us doing all kind of shoots of Empress and Coco Cay.  After filming we decided to head back to the Cabana.  

By this point in the afternoon most everyone had headed back to the ship so we enjoyed some relaxing time on the island before heading back.

Coco Cay Upgrades

So right away I noticed things seem different in Coco Cay today.  

I noticed the map they gave us had sites that said closed for remodel, which I thought was strange.  However, once I got on to the island I could quickly tell what they are adding, in the water cabanas like Labadee.   It looks like they just recently started construction on them; it is the second cove when you enter Coco Cay.

Also, they have a new bar in Coco Cay and its out in the  ocean.  

This bar actually floats out in the water, meaning you have to literally swim out to the bar.  This was added around two weeks ago the staff said and it is located right where the South Beach / barefoot beach sign used to be.   

Royal Caribbean continues to push the limit, and here is another perfect example.

Afternoon onboard

This afternoon was very relaxing on board; honestly I think most people were taking naps.  

I decided to go have some of their famous Cuban coffee.  They open at 7am and stay open throughout the day.

With our drink package, the coffee is included so didn’t have to worry about paying here.  I usually just go for the standard black coffee, but they do not carry cream here so it was all black and strong which is what I needed anyway.  

We moved on to the shops and they were having their $10 table sales, buy 4 get the 5th on free.  I ended up getting my blue coffee mug and a T shirt, however they do not sell ship models yet, which is a bummer.

Dinner Chops

Tonight we decided to enjoy dinner in Chops Grill, again.  

This time was going to be different since it is just the two of us.  The steakhouse was packed tonight, almost every table was occupied, so the service was not like the night before.  

I went with the steak, onion soup, and bacon.  The meal was outstanding; again a perfect steak and I ate every bite.  However, our service was less than what you could expect, our waiter as serving the Captain’s table.  The headwaiter noticed we had empty water and wine glasses and actually invited us back tomorrow on him!  Outstanding service by Royal Caribbean once again, they know we left there with a less that perfect experience and want us to come back on them.  

I did use my Diamond Plus coupon valid night 1 or 2 and its buy one get one cover charge free, so I paid $35 for both of us.  

After dinner we decided to call it a night, that is right... we were in bed before 10pm.  We had a really long day and the sun drained us so a good night sleep was calling our name.

Tomorrow we have a sea day.  A lot of actives planned, stay tuned

Live Blog Index

• Pre-cruise
• Day 1 - Embarkation Day
• Day 2 - Coco Cay
• Day 3 - Sea Day
• Day 4 - Key West

Michael Poole is LIVE blogging all this weekend from Royal Caribbean's Empress of the Seas. Follow along for the updates!

What a day I have to share with you on this live blog.  I started out my day in Tampa, Florida and drove to Miami at 6:45am.  Nothing really exciting about the drive other than it is really long, around 300 miles.  

I arrived to the Port of Miami around 11:00am, and we were dock in terminal “G”.   The parking at the terminal is $20/Day and you pay once you leave.  I must say I have never parked so close to a cruise ship in all my cruises.

Going through the pier was so easy, there were zero lines on both suite and non-suite side.  

I was handed my SeaPass card and excited to see I had the drink package sticker loaded on my card.  I have the ultimate package that includes coffee and fresh juices, along with all the cocktails and beer.  They had already started boarding so I walked right on board.

Lunch On board

 At 11:30 the Windjammer was open and we made our way to lunch.  

The first thing I noticed is they have hand washing stations once you walk in.  This was something different I have not seen on any other Royal Caribbean ship, but I really liked that home feeling.  

For lunch it was the typical lunch with burgers, fries, grilled fish, and ribs.  I grabbed a seat by the window, but boy was it hot.  That seemed to be the theme for today, just hot on the upper decks.  The décor in the windjammer was all brand new with very modern finishes.

After lunch we explored around the pool deck, the room was not open until 1pm, so we really took advantage of our time around the ship.

They had pre-arranged a photo in the Centrum at 1pm.  Shortly after I headed to my cabin, which is a Jr. Suite 9122.  

The cabin is what you would find on a standard ocean balcony across the fleet, but remember the ship is 26 years old.  I was actually very impressed with the cabin and the space it offers, again with all new décor.

Afternoon on board

After muster drill, we headed to the private crown and anchor top tier party and suites.  They hosted this party in the aft of the ship on the open decks.  

They had a live band, plenty of food options, and drinks, very nice party.  In fact, the Captain even showed up and was quite nice to talk to.

Dinner

Tonight our dinner was in the Chops Grill specialty dining.  They charge a cover charge of $30 per person, and everything is included.

Tonight we had a limited menu since our group was over 21 people.

However, they had the favorites on there, such has onion soup and filet.  The restaurant was closed off to our group, but had around 20 tables with ocean views.  

I went with the French onion soup and filet, which was outstanding.  

They bring the sides out family style for everyone to sample and refill as needed.

Thoughts about Empress of the Seas

Wow, this ship is truly beautiful, on the inside and out.  I could not believe how nice she was, with the décor all brand new.  

The air conditioning works great all over the ship, yes it was hot this afternoon but it broke 100 today.  

The Voom Internet seems to be working fine and the staff all seems very happy.  Honestly, I cannot think of any reason I would not book Empress of the Seas for a future cruise.  

If you are the type of person who enjoys the smaller ships, you will love the Empress of the Seas.  Now the questions is, where is she headed in 90 days…

Tomorrow we are in Coco Cay.  We have some fun adventures planned there!

Live Blog Index

• Pre-cruise
• Day 1 - Embarkation Day
• Day 2 - Coco Cay
• Day 3 - Sea Day
• Day 4 - Key West

Hi friends, Michael Poole here again for another live blog!  This time I will be sailing on the newest ship in the fleet - Empress of the Seas.  Well, she is actually the oldest ship in the fleet, but the most recent addition to the fleet.  Empress of the Seas was recently added back into the fleet in May 2016 from their sister company, Pullmantur Cruises. 

There are many speculations on why Royal Caribbean brought Empress of the Seas back in the fleet, to soon be their Cuba sailing ship. 

Why Empress of the Seas?

To be honest, since Royal Caribbean first announced they were bringing Empress of the Seas back into the fleet I have wanted to sail on her.  In fact, I almost changed my March back-to-back cruise over to the Empress, but I decided to stay on the Brilliance. 

Empress of the Seas is a smaller ship, which I tend to enjoy more.  The décor on the ship is all brand new from her recent two-month dry dock.  The ship offers daily brunch in the Main Dining room with complimentary mimosas or bloody marys. Empress of the Seas is going by the slogan: Party. Chill. Repeat.   

Invite by Royal Caribbean

Three weeks ago, I received a phone call from Royal Caribbean extending me the invite for this sailing.  They have also invited some of their top-tier Crown and Anchor members, along with some social media bloggers. 

Needless to say, I was absolutely ecstatic when I heard the news!  Anytime you get to cruise with Royal Caribbean it’s exciting, but to sail with their social media team too!  They have some pre-arranged events during the cruise, but I want to keep those a surprise! 

I just know this is going to be a very special cruise, and I’m so excited to share it with you. 

Itinerary

For this cruise we are sailing to my favorite stop in the Caribbean, Coco Cay.  This island is owned by Royal Caribbean, and offers a relaxing beach day. 

Next we will have a sea day, followed by our final stop in Key West.  Key West is a great port to visit, so much live music and restaurants.  Now the question is, will I go back to Sloppy Joe’s for a third time…

Thanks for joining me for another live blog; I’m truly excited to take you all along with me again.  I will be conducting daily periscopes of the ship, so be sure to follow @mpoole3   If you have any questions about the ship, or during the live blog, please comment below and I will respond. 

See you at sea!  

Live Blog Index

• Pre-cruise
• Day 1 - Embarkation Day
• Day 2 - Coco Cay
• Day 3 - Sea Day
• Day 4 - Key West

Today is my last day at sea, so my plan today is to enjoy the ship and take it all in.

I woke up a little late, so I decided to pass on breakfast and just sit on my balcony a bit. I’ve realized I didn’t use my balcony this cruise much at all, but I’m going to say it’s because I was in a group. I did decide to pack my room up before I headed out today, just wanted it out of the way.

I noticed the ship felt very crowded today, it seems as everyone was out and about.

They had all kinds of sales on the Promenade deck; if you want something I’d recommend waiting until the last day. I saw the Michael Kors shop have some big sale and people were lined up waiting for them to open. 

Lunch at Johnny Rockets 

Today I had lunch at Johnny Rockets right when they opened at 11:30am.

Johnny Rockets has a cover charge of $6.95, but everything is included (minus the milkshakes) and comes with a soft drink also. When you sit down they bring a plate of fries and onion rings to the table while you look over the menu.

I ordered the smoke house burger, which is a double on the menu, but I asked for just one patty to save room for desert.

For dessert I had their apple pie and ice cream, which might be the best desert all week. Within about 20 minuets of opening every seat was taken and they had a line to get a table.

I thought in years past they would give you a pager, but everyone was just standing in the heat on the boardwalk deck. Overall it was a great lunch and fun times at Johnny Rockets.

When I left the boardwalk I saw a passenger band playing by the carousel, I’ve never seen anything like this before.

Many of the guest were taking pictures and sticking around to listen to them. 

Afternoon on board 

For my last afternoon on board I wanted to spend as much time as possible by the pool.

I went to the Solarium first to let all my lunch settle.

I noticed so many opened chairs today; many were in the sun but no troubles finding a pool chair. After an hour or so in the solarium I moved over to the beach pool.

The beach pool is my favorite pool on board; they have the umbrellas for shade, which is nice.

The pool also has water running off to the first row of chairs, so pick up those pool bags. The beach pool water was so warm today, I’ve never been hot in the pool before but it was. 

Dinner 

Well friends, I think I have a problem; dinner tonight was back at Sabor.

This is my 4th time eating here this week, and couldn’t be more excited to be back. In my previous visits here it’s always been very busy, but tonight the restaurant was empty.

Our table ordered four guacamoles to get us started with some starts. We tried this Jalapeño stuffed chicken starter and it was absolutely amazing, we then ordered two more!

For my main course I went with chicken taco’s just to try some thing different.

The taco’s were great, but I was so full from all the appetizers I could only eat one. It was a fun way to end the cruse as a group, we said goodbye to our friends and toasted farewell. 

Wrap –Up 

After dinner I headed down to the pub again for one beer before bed.

Again, the pub was packed for the singer, he did such a great job. When I headed back to the room I saw all the bags in the hallways, this always makes me so sad to see, unless I’m on a back-to-back of course. 

The Allure of the Seas is a great ship, she still looks brand new and I never saw any signs of wear.

The ship felt a lot more crowded than I remember Oasis class ships feeling, we were a completely full ship. There are so many options for every type of cruiser, entertainment is great, so many pools, bars of all options. T

The Allure is also great for children they made this ship with the largest kids pool in their fleet, called H2O.

As far as the Internet goes, they have two types of Voom now, I did the voom + stream package. I was able to FaceTime and Periscope on my balcony so it really works everywhere. Only twice did the voom go down, but was back up within 15 minutes. 

Occasionally, I had to remind myself I was on a cruise because there are very few locations with views of the Ocean. Also, the ship never rocked because the ocean was so calm. 

Disembarkation 

I opted to do the express walk off option leaving the ship. They put luggage tags in the cabin but if you want to do the express just ignore them.

The express departure started at 6:30AM, and I go in line around 6:20am. Getting off the ship was very organized and customs line was a breeze. I was at the airport by 7:00am for my 10:30am flight; next time I might book earlier flight on Oasis class ships. 

Well friends my cruise has come to an end, I’ve really enjoyed taking you along with me. My passion for cruising is so strong but so is sharing it with others, I think it helps building the excitement for your next cruise. Until next time, I’ll see you at sea!