Blogger Michael Poole is on Royal Caribbean's Brilliance of the Seas and is sharing what he did today. Enjoy!

Morning on board

I can’t think of a better port to visit in the Caribbean than Cozumel, Mexico. 

I woke up at 7am and it was still dark outside, so I grabbed my Starbucks coffee and did a little blog work.  I happen to turn my cell phone data on just to see if it work, and it did!  I’m an employee for a wireless company so I was able to use my employee plan and do morning Periscopes of the Independence of the Seas docking in Cozumel, next to us. 

At 8am, I decided to head back to the cabin to shower up for a full day in Mexico. 

Day in Cozumel, Mexico

They were already letting passengers off the ship, so it appeared we were a half hour ahead of schedule.   I didn’t realize getting off, but Cozumel, Mexico is on central time.   

I pre-booked an all day beach day called Nachi Cocom, if you have never heard of this place I did a full blog post on what all they have to offer.

It costs $55 per person and it includes all the food and drinks.  

I arrived at Nachi at 9am ship time, but it was 8am there and most of the staff was not even there.  The nice lady, who always takes your pictures, just told me to make myself at home. 

About an hour later other guests started to arrive and that was when they came and collected my payment.  When you make reservations it’s $11 deposit per person online and $44 cash per person when you arrive. 

I noticed a few changes since my last visit in November.  First, when you arrive (during opening hours) they hand you a glass of champagne. 

Also, they added a new bar area behind all the beach chairs. 

This helps the staff bring you drinks faster, but also if you want to go grab one yourself or sit in the shade at the bar.  

For lunch, I ordered their ever so famous guacamole and I’m going to be honest with you, I ate it all!  I also ordered a chicken quesadilla, which also disappeared.  They had plenty more options, but I was just too hot to eat a large meal. 

I would also recommend ordering as soon as you can, since almost everyone places his or her order at the same time.  The food service started at 10am local time, and goes through the afternoon, in case you need lunch #2 (Matt’s style). 

Approximately, 3pm I was ready to head back to the ship, they will call a taxi for you and they always arrive within 5 minutes. 

The taxi ride takes 10-15 minutes to get back to the ship and cost $17 each way.   

Back onboard

I headed back to my room to drop a few items off and noticed I had a paper on my bed.  

It was the information explaining the back-to-back process. 

They have two options, one explains if you want to get off and explore Tampa or stay on board.  I’m not really sure why anyone would want to get off a cruise ship.  But based on the information we will meet at 9am, and will walk off together then right back on. 

They did leave a customs form for me to complete, so hopefully it’s a painless process.  I’ll be sure to take my camera and document as much of the process as I can. 

I don’t think I mentioned this but there were six ships docked in Mexico today. I noticed they had them docked together by cruise line, which I loved so I could get a close-up look on the Independence of the Seas. 

She is a larger ship than the Brilliance, so I was looking up on her.  The one thing I enjoy about the Freedom class ship is they have an H20 zone for the children to have a blast in. 

Evening on board

Tonight I enjoyed some live music in the centrum for the first time.  They were playing mostly country music, which I love being from Tennessee.  However, I’m more used to the bands playing a mixture of all types of genres. 

When the band took a break they played battle of the sexes.  I’ve never seen this type of event in the centrum and it had a little “adult theme” in the games. 

Dinner in Windjammer

So at this point, I’ve been having dinner each evening in the Windjammer and that held true tonight.  I thought I would talk about meals in here in a little more detail for you. 

If you have ever been there for breakfast you will notice almost all the options are repeated on both sides of the Windjammer.  In the evenings for dinner they have a sections with themed food items. 

They are making sure they have a different variety for everyone’s liking.  You can also find them making a unique bowl of stir-fry with the ingredients you wish.   

I won’t be dining in here for the next cruise, but I’m happy to have learned of all their options if you want a simple-casual dinner. 

Dancing under the Stars

Tonight was the pool deck party, called Dancing under the Stars. 

The party started at 10:30pm and goes until people just keep dancing.  They had the light up cups to purchase, I’m sorry I didn’t look at the price. 

The Cruise Director, Ricky Mathews, got the party started off with some the standard line dancing songs, I’m sure we have all heard before. 

It then turned to more fast pacing dancing; as much as I love to dance I sat this one out.  I noticed they had a table set-up with fruit kabobs, it was a beautify setup that went fast.

Well friends, at this point in the evening I decided to call it an evening. 

Tomorrow is our last day on the cruise and it’s a sea day.  I’m doing some first time activities for myself on a sea day and I can’t wait to share it with you.  

Michael Poole is live blogging from Royal Caribbean's Brilliance of the Seas every day of his cruise. Enjoy!

Pool Deck

Today is our first sea day, and honestly these are some of my favorite days on a cruise. 

I woke up at 7AM today, and got my Starbucks coffee ($3.54) for a large.  I was enjoying my coffee and I over heard a family talking about how they needed to hold some pool chairs.  Then I remember, oh the chair hogs are going to be in full-force.  I made it to the pool deck by 8:15am and sure enough almost every chair had personal belongs in them. 

Being a solo passenger, I was able to find one chair open between couples.  The pool deck was coming to life, they had zoom class going followed by a kids movie on the big screen. 

Around noon I decided to head inside for some lunch. 

Lunch at Rita’s

In the backside of Windjammer they have a Mexican restaurant called Rita's Cantina. 

This restaurant is priced a la carte, but the prices are very low. 

The restaurant just added two large TV’s at the bar, where they were always playing ESPN, these were added two weeks ago. 

The view is honestly the best part of this restaurant, just open air and looking at nothing but the ocean. 

Now, let’s talk about the bad.  For starters, my service wasn’t that great, honestly I felt like I was trouble for the waiter for being there.  I actually had to go track him down to pay, but it doesn’t stop there.  

They give you chips and salsa, and the salsa well was like nothing I’ve ever tasted before.  Let’s just say I gave it two tries and that’s when I pushed it aside. 

I ordered a chicken Quesada and it was fine, kind of small to be honest.  

That being said, if you want to come here for beers or drinks, it’s a great spot.  But I recommend you eat in the Windjammer first. 

Afternoon onboard

After lunch, I just explored the ship, made a walk through the casino, but no donation’s yet. 

I grabbed a pint in the pub, and they have the best service in there, I love it. 

I managed to catch the belly flop contest hosted by our Cruise Director, Ricky Mathews.  He recently got on board from the Oasis of the Seas and just filling in for her remaining sailings out of Tampa.  He did the best belly flop contest I’ve ever seen, just so joyful and dancing. 

I recorded the whole contest and will put on YouTube once I return home. 

Evening Hours – Formal Night

Tonight was formal night around the ship, but it didn’t really feel that formal.  Most of the passengers are families and it looks like they didn’t want to get dressed up this evening. 

I decided to explore  the Schooner Bar, since I have not spent anytime in there.  They were playing music-trivia when I arrive around 5:30pm. 

This is a classic bar across the fleet, and just like Vision-class, they have a full row of glass windows from ceiling to floor, oh I love these views. 

They did ask for my photo ID at the bar, and this has now happen to me three times.  

I later decided to head up to the Diamond lounge at 8pm, and it was empty.  But no worries about it being empty, sometimes less is more. 

I should talk to you about all the bars around the ship being empty.  In all my cruises, I’ve never seen the bars across the ship just always empty, every chair empty and no wait time.  There is just not a lot of drinking on this cruise since it’s mostly families. 

Drink Package Check up

Well my friends, I decided to finally give in and purchase the Select drink package today.  

I was by the pool and wanted to enjoy some Stella’s and decided I’m getting the package.  I paid around $120 for the last three days of the cruise.   I was able to purchase the package poolside without any issues. 

So those of you who had bets on the package, you win!   

Tomorrow we are in Cozumel, Mexico!

Blog writer Michael Poole is onboard Brilliance of the Seas for back-to-back Brilliance of the Seas cruises this week, and he is LIVE blogging all of it right here. Enjoy!

Hi friends, my cruise is finally here!  I woke up early and watched the Brilliance of the Seas dock in Tampa on the webcam.  Over the past year this has become a morning tradition of mine. 

Embarkation – Port of Tampa

I arrived to the port at 12:00 on the dot and my first thoughts were there are no signs that tell you where to go. 

The Vision of the Seas was beside us, so I could imagine first time cruises, not knowing which ship/terminal to pull up to. 

Once we pulled up, security asked us which ship we were sailing on, I suppose people get it mixed up often.   Once I arrived to the Brilliance terminal, there were lines out on the sidewalk.  Yikes, it was so hot and we were just standing outside. 

This was the line to go through security; it didn’t take too long approximately 20 minutes.   Once you get through security you are then asked to complete the health form, prior to approaching the check-in desk.  The only line at this point was the non-crown and anchor members, all others were wide-open. 

The ship

The ship itself is in great shape, everything still looks new from the dry dock she received two years ago. 

When you walk on, you have to walk through the shops to get to the Centrum.  The Centrum on the Brilliance is much larger than those on the Vision class.  I did notice the R Bar was a little smaller than the one on the Enchantment. 

The Next Cruise desk is now a full venue on deck 5 with the beautiful new décor.  I also noticed they have six desks in there now, so they must be seeing a lift in their on board bookings. 

The pool deck was full of passengers already enjoy their first day in the sun. 

However, there are a lot of kids and I’m talking in the masses.  But you just have to expect that around this time of year, it does make me miss the kid’s pool on the Freedom/Oasis class ships. 

My Cabin – SI Solo Cabin 4583

Since I’m sailing solo on this leg of the cruise, I booked a Solo cabin.  There are only three of these cabins on board and they were added during her last dry dock.  

First, let’s start out with the location of the cabin, it’s on deck 4 beside the centrum.  I really love having easy access to the centrum, it’s about four steps away and I’m there.  I was a little worried about possibly hearing music or the R Bar from my cabin, but so far I’ve heard nothing. 

Okay let’s talk about the cabin, it’s around 100sq feet with a twin bed.  I was expecting the cabin to feel much smaller than the standard inside cabin, however it doesn’t at all.  In fact, I feel like there is more space to walk around the cabin. 

The closet is much easier to access since it’s not beside the door when you walk in.  I would recommend this cabin’s to all solo cruisers, and will likely book them again. 

Sail Away

Almost sail away time, we had the mandatory muster drill at 3:15; they shut down all the bars down at 2:45 to prepare for the muster drill. 

As everyone knows, this is the worst and best part of the cruise.  Worst, because they pack you on the outside decks very close to others.  But best, because when it’s over you are officially on vacation!  It was over around 3:30, and I ran up to the pool deck, and yes I was almost running. 

They had a poolside lunch with hotdogs and hamburgers to enjoy during sail away. I also saw little mini bars set up all around the pool decks, I’m sure they needed these two weeks ago on college spring breakers. 

I met a bartender who said they were hit really hard with college crew for the last two weeks, but none on this sailing.   We sailed before the Vision of the Seas so I was able to take some great pictures of her.  I must be honest, seeing the Vision really made me miss the Enchantment; I just love that class of ships. 

Sunshine Skyway Bridge

After sailing for around two hours out of Tampa you get to pass under the Sunshine Skyway Bridge.  If you have never gone under a bridge on a cruise ship, it’s a really fun experience. 

I was actually enjoying a cocktail in the Diamond lounge and ran outside, just in time to see it.  We had 2-3 feet clearance from the top of the ship, so everyone was clapping once we passed. 

The captain also blows the horn as we are going under, so be sure to experience this from the outside decks. 

Dinner

For dinner tonight, I decided to do something different, this is starting to seem like the theme of this cruise.  But I dined in the Windjammer for the first time for dinner. 

I was actually surprised for two reasons.  One they have so many options and two it was very full of guest.  I enjoyed some grilled fish and 1 or maybe 2 cuts of prime rib, and maybe grabbed some pasta too!  I liked being able to sample a little of everything and leave when you wanted. 

And sadly, this is where day 1 comes to an end, after dinner I decided to get some sleep and call it a night.  After a full day on board it just finally caught up to me.  Tomorrow we are in Key West! 

Drink Cost Vs Drink Package Check – Up

As I mentioned in my first post, I didn’t purchase the drink package on this sailing.  I tried to enjoy myself just as I did have the package, and order at will. 

I ordered 3 beers before sailaway/during for a total cost $22. 

In the evening time, I used my diamond cocktails perks pre-loaded to the seapass card.  For those unaware, once you reach diamond level you get three drinks per evening at any bar from 5:00pm-8:30pm. 

So for day 1 looks like a saved a few dollars by buying them at bar price, but I didn’t enjoy post dinner entertainment. Let’s see if it holds true tomorrow… 

Our writer Michael Poole has some fun facts to share today!

With all the excitement around all the new ships being built, ships changing homeports, and some even getting a full makeover in dry dock, I thought it would be fun to share some random facts about Royal Caribbean that you may not have known. 

5.  Johnny Rockets at Sea

In 1999, Royal Caribbean introduced the very first Johnny Rockets at Sea on Voyager of the Seas. 

Back when it was launched, the American-style burger restaurant was completely complimentary with the cruise fare.  This quickly created problems with wait times pushing over two hours, as everyone wanted to dine here for lunch on sea days. 

After a few years, Royal Caribbean added a cover charge to this venue to help with the crowd control for a nominal fee. 

At the time of this post, you can dine there for $6.95 per person, which includes gratuity. 

4. Nine Ships in six years

In 1999 the very first Voyager Class ship launched, changing the way we know cruising today.  Voyager of the Seas was the largest cruise ship in the world at 137,308 gross tons. 

But it didn’t stop there; between 1999-2004 Royal Caribbean launched nine new ships, marking the largest growth in the company’s history. 

But did you know Jewel of the Seas is newer than all the Voyager class ships? 

Jewel of the Seas launched in 2004, and the Voyager class was complete in 2003.  All of the ships are still in the fleet today, and we have all grown to love each of them over the years. 

3. Enchantment of the Seas stretch

In 2005, Enchantment of the Seas underwent the largest dry dock project in the company's history. 

In fact, they cut the ship in half to insert a new 73-foot section, to make her the longest ship in her Vision Class. 

This stretch is very noticeable by the suspension bridges on the top deck.  Her sister ship, Grandeur of the Seas was scheduled to receive the stretch, but the project was canceled due to the high cost of the project. 

So now we have one-of-a-kind in the Vision class, the really long Enchantment of the Seas. 

2.  Eight Retired ships

Royal Caribbean began as a company in 1968 and since then, we have said goodbye to eight cruise ships.  But the good news is one of these retired ladies is coming back to the fleet next year after a major dry dock, Empress of the Seas. 

Current Retired ships:

• Song of Norway
• Nordic Prince
• Sun Viking
• Song of America
• Viking Serenade
• Nordic Empress / Empress of the Seas (coming back in 2016)
• Sovereign of the Seas
• Monarch of the Seas

Have you ever sailed on any of these retired ships?

1. Project Genesis

In 2006, Royal Caribbean launched a new project called "Project Genesis" and at the time, we knew very little about this project. 

Royal Caribbean started leaking some information to tease us about their new class of ships. The excitement for this project was unlike anything I’ve ever experience with the launch of a ship. 

In 2008, they announced Project Genesis would be its next cruise ship, Oasis of the Seas. 

If you happen to sail on Oasis of the Seas today, you will see a man in the Royal Promenade washing away graffiti of Genesis. 

Hello Royal Caribbean Blog readers, its Michael Poole here for another live blog, but this time from Brilliance of the Seas. 

This is going to be a very special cruise, because I’m staying on board for two sailings! 

The first sailing is a five-night cruise headed to Key West, Florida and Cozumel, Mexico.  The second sailing is a four-night and only has one port day, back to Cozumel, Mexico.  I can think of worse places to visit twice in one week!  

The dates to my sailings are March 26th and March 31st, which is a total of nine days on the Brilliance of the Seas.

Background on the Cruise

In February 2015, Royal Caribbean came out with their WOW Sale and I was searching around for great deals.  I came across the Brilliance of the Seas in March 2016, which is when I usually like to cruise. 

I decided to book three sailings in the same cabin, but later dropped one sailing, so I could add the Allure of the Seas this summer. 

Cabin Type

Up until a few weeks ago, I was in the same cabin for both legs of the cruise.  I booked a Solo Cabin – SI category on deck 4 (4583). 

During the dry dock a few years ago, Royal Caribbean added three solo cabins, which are at a discounted rate for solo cruisers.  However, a few weeks ago I talked a friend into joining me to the four-day sailing (leg 2). 

On that sailing I’ll switch cabin’s to deck 8 in an Ocean balcony (8544). 

I’ll be sure to provide detailed pictures of both cabins. 

Drink Packages

Ever since Royal Caribbean launched the all-inclusive drink packages, I’ve also bought one.  Sometimes I go with the select package, since I’m a beer snob and other times with the premium package when traveling with friends. 

On this first leg, I’m going to pass on the drink package, but for a few reasons. 

On embarkation day, I do not plan on getting onboard until after 12:00, I have a few plans that morning with a local friend.  Then on day 2 we are in Key West, so I’d like to explore some local bars there and not feel guilty about spending money on drinks.  

Also, since I’m a diamond member I have a few options in the evening for free drinks.  Let’s see if I actually hold out and not purchase the package. 

On leg 2, when my friend Hillary joins, I will be purchasing the $49/per day premium package. 

Ports of Call

For the first leg, I’ll be visiting Key West and Cozumel. 

My plans in Key West are to revisit Sloppy Joe’s restaurant. 

If you recall from my Majesty of the Seas Live Blog, I ran into this place and fell in love with it.  I’ll also explore around Key West and enjoy the day. 

The only downside is we are only here from 11:30am-5: 30pm, so not a lot of time to explore. 

In Cozumel, Mexico, I’ll be headed over to my second favorite place in the Caribbean (Coco Cay is my first) Nachi Cocom for day.  If you have never been here I encourage you to read the blog post I wrote on Nachi.  

On the second leg, I originally planned to try something new, the Cozumel Bar Hop.  However, I asked my friend what she wanted to do and she said Nachi Cocom, so I didn’t say no to that! 

Okay friends, it’s time I get ready for my cruise coming up this Saturday.  I’ll be doing full ship tours on periscope on both sail away days, and again in Key West, FL.  I’ll also try my best to include the cost of my drinks without the drink package vs if I had the package. 

Next time I report it will be from my new home for the next 9 days!  

My third and final day of the cruise is here already; these three-day cruises go by so fast. 

Today we are scheduled for Coco Cay, however the ship could not stop there.  The weather this morning was so bad due to the storm forming off the east coast.  We are experiencing very high winds and waves around 10 feet.  The upper pool decks were closed, so I wasn’t able to go outside and take photos. 

The captain made the announcement at 8am that we would spend the day at sea.  The cruise director Marc (Bing Bong) came on with an update on all the activities for the day. 

I started my morning off the same as every morning at Starbucks.   I enjoy their coffee a lot and it’s $3.50 with tip for a large cup of brew.  They also serve the free coffee in the Diamond lounge. 

Since we were in no rush for any daytime actives, my group decided to have breakfast in the Windjammer.  Well I think this was the same idea as everyone else, because the Windjammer was packed. 

That’s one thing my brother mentioned being on this ship for the first time, is how much smaller the Windjammer is compared to the larger ships. 

After breakfast they started some of the scheduled events on board.  They had cake-decorating class in the centrum, trivia in the Schooner bar, and bingo in Boleros. 

Still with all the actives going, the ship just felt a little crowded.  This was the first time on board this ship, where I felt that way. 

But the wind was so high; there were no actives on the top deck. 

I headed over to the Schooner Bar for a few pints of Goose Island. 

This is the only bar on board that sells the Goose, and I also found this to be the case on Majesty of the Seas. 

For lunch, we decided to eat in the main dining room, since we were indoors all day. 

This is a great option if you are looking for a longer dining experience during the day. 

Typically, I like to grab something quick and head back to the pool, but it was a nice change.  They had a salad bar set-up in the middle of the dining room, with a lot of toppings to choose from. 

For my main course, I ordered grilled fish and it was very good.  I noticed they didn’t have any grilled fish during lunch at the Windjammer this cruise. 

Since it was Super Bowl Sunday, we headed to the theater to watch the game. 

They had table’s set-up with nachos, hotdogs, and hamburgers to eat during the game.  I was wishing for wings, but the nachos were fine. 

It was a lot of fun watching the big game in a large setting like the theater.  At halftime, we decided to leave because the ship was rocking so much and we needed some fresh air. 

They also had the game playing on the pool deck, but it was very windy and cold to watch out there.  

Since it was 8:10pm I decided to run down to the dining room for one last meal. 

The dining room was empty, as everyone was watching the game.  It was kind of nice, because the service was so good, since they were not so busy. 

I ended up going to the Quest to wrap up my cruise.  If you have never been to the quest, or don’t know much about it, you must attend.  I don’t want to share a lot of the details of what it is, to keep it a surprise, but don’t bring the kids. 

Well friends, that’s going to wrap up my three-day cruise to the Bahamas. 

I’m sad we didn’t get to stop in Coco Cay, but we made the best of it and enjoyed our day.  I did have a cabana booked at $250 and they refunded it back to me. 

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask! 

See you again in 47 days for my next live blog on board the Brilliance of the Seas.  It’s going to be an extra long blog, because I’m doing a back-to-back sailing.  

Live Blog Index

• Live blog introduction
• Day 1 - Embarkation Day
• Day 2 - Nassau
• Day 3 - CocoCay

Hello from beautiful Nassau! 

They were calling for rain and not the best weather, but we got lucky because the weather was perfect. 

Before we get started I thought I’d talk a little about my cabin and Internet.  For my cabin I booked an Inside – N, on deck 3. 

The location of the cabin is great and it’s one of the newer cabins they added during the stretch on Enchantment of the Seas.  My room is 3623 and I highly recommend the room for location, and one of the newer cabins. 

The Internet is $20 per day for one device.  With my Crown & Anchor Society Diamond discount of $40 off, the weekend package is only $20 for the whole cruise. 

For the most part it’s worked really well, we have found it does not work on the pool deck well. 

Sea Morning 8am – 12pm

I like to call this morning a sea morning, since it’s the only time at sea on this cruise. 

I did my very first casino slot pull at 10am.  We had 12 people and each put in $15 into the slot machine.  We each did 3, $5 bets for max payout, sadly there was no max payout. 

It was fun meeting some new friends and us all pulling for each other.  Thanks to Nick for putting this group together and hosting the pull. 

Next I moved to the pool deck for some sunrays before we dock in Nassau. 

I have some sad news to report about poolside lunches.  The Enchantment of the Seas has always had a big bbq lunch as we dock in Nassau.  I noticed around 11am they had not started setting up for the lunch. 

I went over to the Cruise Director Marc and talked to him about the lunch.  He let me know they are no longer aloud to set up any food poolside anymore across the fleet.  He said, something about health codes and wind blowing on to the food. 

Once we docked at noon we did a little walking tour around Nassau.  We headed over to the Queen’s Staircase.  This was about a 15min walk over to the staircase and was absolutely beautiful. 

It’s free to walk through the staircase, but there are tours that will take you here for a charge.  After the staircase we walked through a few other places, but the highlight was the Jim Watling’s rum distillery. 

This is also a free tour and last about 10mins.  Once you arrived they give you a free sample of their rum, which is great. 

After the tour you end up in their bar area, and it’s 2 drinks for $18. 

Once we finished up with the rum drinks, we headed back to the ship for some afternoon fun on the pool deck. 

But on the way, we decided to stop into the Hilton resort. 

I have passed this resort for years now, and never went inside.  They offer day passes here at Resortforaday.com for $60, but you get $40 back in food/bar credit. 

It was a beautiful setup and I’ll be spending the day here next time I’m in Nassau.

Evening Hours – Formal Night

Tonight was formal night and the Captain’s reception.  They were handing out free champagne at 7pm – 8pm. 

The captain did a little speech about the passengers onboard and where everyone was from. 

After his speech they turn the event into a parade of flags around the world.  They talk about where all the crew are from and then they dance with their countries flags. 

Dinner

Tonight we had dinner in the main dining room, also known as My Fair Lady dining room. 

They have filet of beef on night 2 of just about every cruise.  We all mentioned how great the meat was, and that we enjoyed it more than Chops Grille. 

I know that’s hard to believe, but it was so tender and full of flavor.  Our waiter actually brought out a little extra cut for us to eat, which we didn’t turn away.  They also brought out a few other plates for us to sample, which in a large group is always nice. 

Post Dinner

Tonight is the pool deck party under the stars, as we sail out of Nassau. 

They have a DJ playing live music for some dancing fun.  The turnout was great and the weather was perfect.  The turnout was much larger than I’ve seen in the past, which made for an even better time. 

That’s a wrap on a full day in Nassau.  We are headed to Coco Cay tomorrow, so stay tuned!  

Live Blog Index

• Live blog introduction
• Day 1 - Embarkation Day
• Day 2 - Nassau
• Day 3 - CocoCay

Hello friends, my long awaited cruise is finally here. 

My group woke up early from Valdosta, GA and headed south around 7am.  The drive from there was 250 miles and this my friends is where I started to get really excited.  There is just something about the morning of a cruise, which only us addicts can explain.  

Before we got on the Enchantment of the Seas, we decided to meet some friends at Grills Restaurant. 

This is a local restaurant at the port, and offers the best views of Enchantment, Freedom, and soon to be Oasis of the Seas. 

No one ate any food, so no feedback there, but for a few drinks and the view it’s perfect. 

Now it’s 12:30PM and you know what time it is… Time to board the ship! 

We parked at the brand new terminal 1 parking.  The cost for 3 days was $60 and you pay for parking as you enter. 

Honestly, this was the latest I’ve ever boarded a cruise, so I didn’t know what to expect.  Surprisingly there were zero lines anywhere, walked right up to check-in. 

We had a Diamond Plus member with us, so we went into their check-in line, but wasn’t even needed.  Once thing I’m curious about the new terminal is how they will seat everyone once the Oasis comes into town. 

Once we were on board, he headed right over to the drink package table to purchase the package.  I know, Matt and I always say, “Buy the package online to avoid this line” what can I say…  The line was around 5-6 people long, so not awful, but this can delay the fun for 10-15mins.  The cost on the drink package is $56 per person / per day.  This includes all the beers, bottled water, and top shelf cocktails.

After the purchase we went to Park Café for some much needed lunch.  As always, they have pork roast out day 1 on Enchantment and not roast beef. 

Not really sure why they do this, but the good stuff comes out for the rest of the cruise.  They also have salads, fresh fruit, and pre-made sandwiches here.  This is a completely free option on board and often goes over looked, I think due to location. 

You can find the Park Café in the back of the solarium pool, so as far aft on deck 9 and you can find the best food at sea (free food). 

Once lunch was over we explored the ship, and I also did a full periscope tour with all of you.  I hope you enjoyed watching as much as I enjoyed sharing.  The ship looks great; the only sign of wear I’ve seen is a few chairs with tears in them. 

At 3:30, they started shutting down all the bars around the ship to get ready for the muster drill.  This is the only part about the Enchantment that isn’t so much fun, they require you to stand on the outside decks.  This doesn’t last very long, but you are packed in tight, so make some new friends!

Once the drill is over, that’s when the ship really comes to life. 

My suggestion is going straight to the pooldeck for sail-away.  In fact, I’d put this in my top 5 things to do on Enchantment of the Seas.  It’s a lot of live dancing, drinks, and fun as you sail out of port. 

One of the local restaurants, Fishlips, has a webcam set ip on it to give anyone a view of the cruise ships in port. My good friend Emmy got with the operators of the webcam PTZTV and had them zoom up on us at sailaway. 

This was so much fun, even Matt happened to be watching and got to see me on cam.  

Dinner – Chops Grill

For dinner we wanted to enjoy a nice dinner at Chops Grill. 

On the Enchantment the cost is $30 per person, but on night one, they offer a 20% off sale.  I would recommend making reservations on board with the discount. 

The restaurant was actually full, I’ve never seen the Chops on this ship even half full before, so the discount must be working. 

I ordered my favorite soup, the French Onion, and if you haven’t tried this soup it’s a must, you can thank me later! 

For our main course they just brought out all the sides, which was fun to sample everything.  Since our group was 6, some of the sides were all gone and they just fill them up as needed. 

I ordered the classic filet and you can’t go wrong there.  

My friend Shawn ordered the NY Strip and it was huge, so if you are really hungry that might be something to try. 

To wrap up my meal, I went with the cheesecake and a specialty coffee.  The coffee was no charge, so not sure if that’s usually included or not, but I loved it. 

The service was great, they were always filling our wine but that’s likely because we were ordering Caymus. 

After dinner we played in the casino, well I watched since I’m not much of a player.  It’s just as much fun for me to watch everyone than it is to play.   A little before midnight, I called it a night. 

Okay friends, that's a wrap on my day 1.  Tomorrow we are headed to Nassau, so more to come!  

Please let me in the comments below if you want to know anything about the Enchantment of the Seas or if you want any pictures.  

Live Blog Index

• Live blog introduction
• Day 1 - Embarkation Day
• Day 2 - Nassau
• Day 3 - CocoCay

Hi Royal Caribbean Blog readers, its Michael Poole here for another live blog from Enchantment of the Seas.  This is going to be a short three-day cruise, but I’m excited to take you along with me. 

As many of you already know, Enchantment of the Seas is my favorite ship in the fleet, and this will be my 7th time sailing on her. 

This sailing is going to special for a few reasons, she is headed down to her new home in Miami this year, so I’ll likely visit Majesty of the Seas more often.  Also, I have some Royal Caribbean Blog fan’s joining me on this cruise! 

Finally, this cruise is going to be over Super Bowl weekend, so I’ll be able to watch the big game while at sea! 

The Group

For the past year, I’ve been active on twitter with Royal Caribbean Blog and started conversation with some other blog readers.  Since then, we have always talked about doing a cruise together, but never really found a time that works. 

Well, my friends we have finally found that time!  I’ll be going with my brother, Jason Poole and his husband Caleb Jones.  From Florida our good friend Nick Vitani, who can be found on the Enchantment a few times a month!  Also my good from Atlanta, Shawn Wallace and his wife Michelle are coming along; Shawn also has a deep love for the Enchantment. 

I will mention my brother Jason and Caleb have never sailed on any cruise less than 7 days or a smaller ship, so I’m excited for their feedback as well. 

Pre – Cruise

My group of six will be leaving Atlanta, GA. Thursday night and staying at Holiday Inn in Valdosta, GA. 

This is only three hours south of Atlanta, but due to work, and others traveling from Tennessee, we won’t be hitting the road until 8:00PM Thursday night. 

I’ve stayed at this hotel a few times over the years, and I’ve never had any issues.  The rates here are also very reasonable, usually a little under $100/night. 

Friday morning

Our plan is to be on the road by 7:00am, from Valdosta, GA.  We have around 4 hours to be on the road before we arrive in Port Canaveral, Florida. 

Before the cruise we have planned a small meet and greet at a restaurant beside the port. 

We have a few friends that live in the area, which can’t join us, so we are going to visit with them until noon.  I picked the restaurant Grill’s because it’s right beside the Enchantment, and we can look at the ship while enjoying some morning mimosas.  They also have a great patio on the water, and often have live music in the afternoons, but we will be on board by then. 

Port’s of Call

Our first stop Saturday is in Nassau, Bahamas from noon until midnight.  I enjoy this day the most, because you have a sea morning, poolside bbq lunch, and then a full day in Nassau.  It’s like the best of both worlds all in one day. 

I don’t have any plans here yet, might walk over to Junkanoo Beach for a few hours, and then stroll over to Starbucks to use their fast wifi ($3.00) to upload my Day 1 blog post! 

Sunday we are in Coco Cay, which is my favorite port of call in the Caribbean.  I love Coco Cay, because it feels like paradise to me.  I’ve cruised here during this time of year a few times before and often miss Coco Cay, so my fingers are crossed that doesn’t happen. 

That wraps up my preamble for my 3-day Cruise on Enchantment of the Seas! 

Be sure to follow me on Periscope, Instagram, and Twitter for up to the minute updates.  I’ll be doing a full ship tour on Periscope and uploading pictures on Instagram all weekend. 

I hope you enjoy the post all weekend and feel free to ask any questions you may have on the Enchantment of the Seas.  

Live Blog Index

• Live blog introduction
• Day 1 - Embarkation Day
• Day 2 - Nassau
• Day 3 - CocoCay

If you have an upcoming western Caribbean cruise, chances are you are visiting Cozumel, Mexico. 

 Royal Caribbean has been coming to Cozumel for decades and it has recently become one of my favorite stops.  There are so many options for beach days, excursions, and hotel’s for the day; it can be a little overwhelming.  

I’m going to share with you about my recent experience at Nachi Cocom. 

What is Nachi Cocom?

If you have never heard about Nachi Cocom, it’s an all-inclusive beach day that you can reserve online prior to your next Royal Caribbean cruise.  

The cost for the day is $55 per adult/$35 per child. When you make the reservation, you are required to put down a $11 deposit per person and the balance is due on check-in which is cash only.  

If you are interested in booking you will need to book direct through their website, as it’s not offered through Royal Caribbean.

Why book Nachi Cocom?

One thing that makes Nachi Cocom stand out compared to other local beach break places is they only let 100 people per day visit.  

With that being said, once they have 100 reservations they are sold out for the day.  To me if gives you more of the exclusive feel when you are here, because it never feels busy.  

I’ve been here three times now and the one thing that just keeps me coming back is their customer service is always outstanding.  

I have seen the bar staff running drinks over to ensure their guest don’t have to wait too long. 

What’s included in the price?

They provide each guest with a nice beach lounger and an umbrella as soon as you arrive, in fact they walk you over to it.  They also include unlimited alcohol and bottled water in the cover charge, which always makes for a fun day.  

Lastly, they include menu service delivered right to you on the beach, or they have sitting area.

I’ll mention most beach break places I’ve seen before are buffet style lunch, but at Nachi you get everything fresh and made to order.

And the food is absolutely outstanding; I usually order a couple of rounds of their fresh guacamole!  

Some other things that are included in the price are cabana’s poolside, hammocks, swimming pool, and swim up bar hot tub. 

What’s not included in the price?

Transportation is on your own when visiting Nachi, but not to worry taxi’s are $16-$18 each way.  Most of the time I take one alone going there, but have found new friends and split the ride going back.  

When you arrive a lady will take a picture of you and the group and later bring it to you for $12, I usually say no thank you since it’s just me.  

They also offer snorkel equipment, and beach massages for an extra charge.  I have not done either; so I don’t have any feedback, I’m always just looking for a lazy beach day. 

Have you ever visited Nachi Cocom before?  If so, please comment below and let us know what you thought.