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Name: Lynette Rake
Email: DocRake@MSN.com
Age: 35
Occupation: Telecommunications
NumberOfCruises: 1
TravelAgent: No
Ship: RoyalCaribbean-Splendour
SailingDate: 3/18/98
Itinerary: 10 Night Grand Caribbean
FoodDiningRoom: 90
CruiseDirector: 90
CabinComfort: 90
FoodRoomService: 90
CruiseStaff: 90
CabinAmenities: 90
FoodLidoDeck: 85
DiningRoomService: 95
CabinQuietness: 95
FoodMidnightBuffets:
CabinSteward: 99
ShoreExcVariety: 89
FoodVariety: 90
DeckService: 89
ShoreExcValue: 90
GoodForHoneymoon:
CasinoStaff: 90
PrivateIsland: 97
GoodForFamilies:
LoungeService: 80
TenderService: 90
GoodForSeniors:
BeautySalonStaff:
EntertainmentLounges: 92
WheelchairAccess:
ExerciseFacilities: 95
EntertShowLounge: 95
OverallPortsofCall: 85
BeautySalon:
EntertainmentPoolside: 85
CruiseActivities: 93
Casino: 90
AirSeaProgram: 95
MedicalFacilities:
ShipCleanliness: 93
EmbarkDisembark: 90
DiscoNightclubs:
DeckSpace: 90
Stabilization: 95
ShopsOnBoard: 89
SpaceRatio: 91
OverallCruiseValue: 90
Submit: Submit Review
Date: 06 Apr 1998
Time: 00:25:15
Remote Name: 153.35.105.169
Remote User:
Comments
This was the first cruise for my husband and me. Hopefully my comments will help all of
the first time cruisers taking the April 7th sailing. First, a little
background. I am 35 and my husband 42. Our trip was arranged by an agent specializing in
cruises. We chose the pre-night package offered by
RCCL. Remember to pack an over-night bag as your carry on since you won’t see your
luggage until you arrive at the ship. They made all of the flight
and hotel arrangements. Our travel agent apparently had not control over what airline,
schedule or hotel. (I’m not sure what benefit is received by
going through an agent, since she didn’t have much control over anything). Depending
on your departure city and connections, I’m not convinced
that the extra vacation day is worth it. If you can get a flight arriving Miami by 1 or 2,
you could get transported straight to the ship and be sipping
your first pina-colada by 4. We left Milwaukee at 7am, connected in St. Louis and arrived
in Miami early afternoon. An RCCL representative greeted
and transported us to the Hyatt. This was the first of many observations of employees not
getting along.
We walked to the Biscayne shopping area
(Hard Rock, etc.), shopped, ate dinner and taxied back to the hotel. It’s not a real
safe area, so walking after sunset is not recommended. We later
heard that South Beach is a short taxi ride with nice dining. This is a good opportunity
to pick up any items you may have forgotten along with a 6 or
12 pack of your favorite beverage - a can of Coke is 1.50, bottled water is 2.50 and a can
of domestic beer is 2.95 on the ship, conveniently waiting
in your room when you arrive! Wednesday morning we were instructed to meet in the lobby to
be transported to the ship. Quite organized - we were
on board by 11:45. The crew appeared to still be getting ready for the flood of
passengers. First order of business - check out the cabin (the door
was open) - perfect - and our luggage was there! Make sure everything is tagged with your
name, ship and cabin number. We were in 7624 which
had a balcony - well worth the extra $$. The only downside was a cleaning apparatus
hanging outside our balcony the entire cruise. Our room also
included a refridge and safe. The safe is free of charge and operated by a credit card.
Your room keys will be in the room, so take them with you
before you leave or risk having to wait for a steward to let you back in later. Next order
of business - check out the ship - beautiful - and get signed
up for the Super Charge card. The process is quite painless (the pain comes at the end,
when you see your bill). Keep this card with you at ALL
TIMES along with your room card. I had already read over the shore excursion material and
knew what I didn’t want to take a chance on missing out
on. We had heard about signing up early, so we filled out the form and dropped it in the
box knowing we could make adjustments later. Our tickets
were in our room the next morning.
Time to eat. People were still boarding. The Windjammer Café looked like the place to
go. The food was good,
but the atmosphere was spoiled by much chaos and staff members arguing over whose job was
what. Dinner (2nd seating-8:30) in the King & I
dining room was good, but also somewhat chaotic due to everyone (staff & passengers)
trying to get acclimated. Day 1 - At Sea Sleep in! There’s
nothing open until 8:00, including the Ship Shape center (which by the way is very nice).
This was the only day there was a mad scramble for a chair
on the deck. Don’t over-do the sun, or you’ll look just like a tourist in your
formal portraits! Speaking of formal portraits, filters and subdued lighting
might make for better quality pictures ($20) Speaking of formal…Someone snuck a 3rd
formal night into our sailing and forgot about the ‘Smart
Casual’ nights until the end…beware. This is a good day to review your shore
excursions by either watching it on T.V. or going to one of the
seminars or talk to someone at the desk.
Your cabin steward(ess) will turn down your bed sometime after you leave for dinner (so
they’re in your
cabin at least twice a day). Ours did a fantastic job! She would tidy up, replace towels,
ice, etc. An interesting touch ladies ~ I left my nightgown out
and Roma arranged it differently each night! Cozumel - To each his own! We did the 2 hour
snorkeling tour - a good value for the beginner. We
heard (from people who own horses) that the horses used for the ruins tours were pathetic.
If you can get past the animal abuse, I guess the tours
were ok. Carlos & Charlies (in town) is a MUST! It’s a ‘pub’, but what
a fun place for everyone from kids to seniors! Good food - great drinks - lively
(that’s putting it mildly) atmosphere. Cheaper to taxi straight from your tour to
town, rather than back to the ship, then to town, so take your $. You’ll
waste a lot of time trying to make a phone call to the states from the bank of pay phones.
The connection time is very long, IF you get through.
Looking for beer? Good prices at one of the pier shops. Grand Cayman - Snorkel with the
stingrays! Great experience! If you’re looking to see a
variety of fish, forget it, but the stingrays are worth the trip. You really don’t
even need snorkeling gear. Take your water camera. The water is
shallow, warm and clear. Follow the instructors guidelines & you’ll have a great
time! Shopping afterward.
Ocho Rios - Consider yourself lucky to be
there on a Sunday. Typically, the shops are closed, but are open just for Splendour. This
means you’ll be hassled much less. Follow the ships
guidelines about taxis and going out on your own. Our trip to Dunns River Falls was
adventuresome. We took the early tour (9:00am) but the ship
added a 10:30 which would have been better since there wasn’t much sun when we went.
We heard rave reviews about beach horseback riding
from several who took the tour. We also had the opportunity to see the San San Luxury
Yacht -inside and out- VERY NICE. Spent some time at
Soni’s. no great bargains. Our taxi driver was a pleasant surprise (after all the
horror stories we heard about Jamaica). He took us directly to Soni’s
and waited until we were through shopping. Nice car too. The shows on board were quite
well done, even if they don’t sound interesting. They’re
well choreographed and a nice change of pace. One event we wish we would have made time
for was the Country night. Apparently you don’t need
to be a country fan to have fun. We heard it was an absolute riot! St.Thomas - Too bad
RCCL couldn’t skip Ocho Rios and spend 2 days here! Too
much to do and not enough time! Christine, your shopping port lecturer will tell you all
you need to know on shopping. You can catch her on T.V. or in
person during one of her seminars. For the most part, she knows her stuff. If you’re
in town, do take advantage of the services offered by RC Crown
and Anchor Club. Clean bathrooms and telephones along with a place to drop off your
packages (for holding) before returning to the ship. Warning:
There are many ‘barkers’ on the streets which is what you might expect in
Jamaica, but not here. They’re annoying, but harmless. My husband
golfed Mahogany Run much to his enjoyment. Leaving port is quite picturesque. S
an Juan - Another port RCCL could consider removing from their
itinerary. Unless you’re into history…Narrow streets, quite poor and run down.
Much of the architecture is interesting however. Another Crown and
Anchor Club - very nice. The trolley is free, but it’s also easy enough to get around
town by walking and you’ll probably get where you’re going
faster too by walking. You’ll know what I mean, after you see the streets and
traffic. RCCL took the Bacardi Rum tour off their excursion list. I now
know why. Unless you really need to see how they make rum, skip it. Yes, you’ll get a
few free ‘rum and…’, but their prices aren’t that great (6.20 a
liter) and after paying for the ferry and taxi, not to mention lugging the stuff around,
you’re better off spending your time doing something else. If
you’re in the market for last stop for booze, a better bet is the duty free shop
right there at the pier. Huge selection and good prices. Did I mention,
the shows were good. We had Charo as the headliner this night. In spite of everyone’s
preconceived idea of her, she put on a fabulous show!
Hoochie Coo! She looked great too!
Labadee - The captain told us that there was a strong possibility of not being able to
go there, due to weather.
As it turned out, the weather was great. This is what I expected the Caribbean to be all
about. We couldn’t have had a more perfect day. Beach
volleyball, juggling, floating in the water, laying on the beach, walking the island
and…shopping in the open air market, it was all wonderful. The
natives in the market aren’t the ‘pushy aggressive’ types you find in
Jamaica (they’re scary!), but rather impoverished. Even though they’re all over
you, they’re harmless. You can bargain them down to a couple of bucks for anything,
but I felt guilty doing so. Oh, also make sure to check out the
‘Dragon’s Rock’ - very cool. Beware of the ‘worker’ watching out
for your safety - he’s selling money! As far as dining, the food was good and
waiters are very attentive, once they get to know you. This also goes for the wine
stewards and head waiter. My only complaint is the ‘frenzied air’
atmosphere. Everyone seems to be under such incredible pressure and in fear of losing
their jobs. Night after night the staff rushes around like a
bunch of chickens. I was exhausted just watching them! One evening, we asked the asst.
waiter to take a picture, and he got yelled at for ‘standing
around’. You’ll find the tipping guidelines broadcast on your T.V. different
from what is printed in the brochure. Plan on at least $75 more for 2 if you
follow RCCL’s recommendations. From what I hear, the bingo jackpot always goes to the
last day - $10,000. Disembarkation - All I can say is listen to
your cruise directors speel on the T.V. the day before and you’ll have no problems.
Your luggage MUST be out in the hall by midnight, so plan ahead.
There’s no sleeping in either. We found it very helpful to have all of our luggage
easily identifiable by color coding with bright ribbons since finding
your luggage is like trying to find your car in a massive parking lot when you get off the
ship. We will be better 2nd time cruisers, knowing what we
know now, however, that may be a few years. I found the time in ports too restricting. We
prefer to leisurely explore things, without feeling like we
missed something - a self induced pressure. All in all however, this was a nice vacation.
I would enjoy hearing from you and your experiences on this
cruise.
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