CarpeCerevisi

To the OP - I understand that the Quantum class of ships are full of flavor, that from top to bottom they are full of charm, yet also have their own strangeness to them.

Coco Cay

I asked the same question on another thread and from what I understand the traffic pattern hasn't changed from what it was with the old parking lot. I'll be using the garage in April, so I was curious, too. I only use carry on bags so I was hoping to avoid the drop off traffic line.

I think the biggest difference is that they have expanded the facilities to allow for two ships to be there at once. There are now two complete food areas, and many more loungers, especially on Barefoot Beach.

The most noise you will hear is during the day coming from the pool deck four decks up. In the early evening they may have a musical act in Central Park outside the Park Cafe area, usually a guitarist or keyboard, not too loud. After that it is usually very quiet in Central Park.

As to seeing into cabins across the way, that can be true at night if the light are on and curtains open. During the day if the scrim curtain is closed it's doubtful if anyone can see in. At night, just make sure the heavy opaque curtain is closed when changing, etc.

Hello CarpeCerevisi. I don't think this is correct. On Vision Class I've never seen access on the Promenade deck around the front of the ship ever. Have have several pictures of the various Vision Class ships I've been in on with closed gates and "Crew Only" signs at the entry points to the bow. Maybe you're thinking of Sovereign Class?

You are correct, they are almost always closed, but I have seen it open on a couple of ships. The deck just continues around to the other side as it does on the Empress. The Empress' promenade deck has always been open all the way around and since there is no full sun deck above the pool people use the promenade deck for jogging.

It's very much like the Vision class ships. The promenade deck wraps around the whole ship, including forward, but the forecastle area is closed off. When I was last on her several years ago there were stairs that went up to a deck outside of the forward facing cabins which offered a nice view. I didn't see any restriction signs when I went up there. Of course, one needs to regard the privacy of people in those cabins if they have their curtains open.

Once in the port, as your heading towards the ship, stay in the left lane.You'll need to make a left, right before the road curves to the right for luggage drop off. You'll also see someone directing traffic exactly where you need to make that left hand turn, just tell them you want to go directly into the garage.

Thanks. It sounds like it's the same traffic pattern as it was with the old parking lot. It really would be nice if they had a way of getting to the garage directly and thus avoid the traffic. I can't be the only one who only takes carry on luggage.

My question is when driving to the terminal area is it possible to go directly to the garage and bypass the line of cars waiting to get to the drop-off area? The last time I sailed out of Cape Liberty I was stuck for 20 minutes in the traffic line before I could get to the turn-off that went to the parking lot since that turn-off was very close to the drop-off area.

I had that cabin on the Jewel twice, latest being last September. Great cabin, great location. I've never had noise issues with hump cabins on that class of ship.

I was in JS 8686 once. If I remember correctly, it was a long and somewhat narrow with the bed was at one end (the left side as seen in the deck plan) and a lot of open space. The balcony, however, was huge, about 18 feet long. The only down side of the balcony was the occasional soot particles from the diesel exhaust.

I can add my own comments to those from others that were also on this cruise. I was in cabin 11327 Boardwalk balcony. The cabin was great as was the cabin steward. I had no problem with the bed but it did have an egg crate pad on it that I didn't even have to ask for.

As for bartenders, I had the Premium Package and had mostly good service in the bars I frequented, including the Solarium Bar, Wipeout bar, On Air and Rising Tide. I sometimes put a dollar tip on the slip but not always.

As for food, breakfast was the Park Cafe egg sandwiches, lunch was mainly pizza and/or a sausage from the Dog House. Dinner was the Windjammer where I was always able to find something I liked.

After leaving Falmouth the winds were quite strong but fortunately we had trailing seas and wind all the way to Cozumel so the ride was pretty smooth. Going back we had to sail directly into those seas and wind. At one point the the apparent wind across the deck was around 60 mph.

I, for one, will definitely sail on the Allure again.

Also currently on the Allure. The only place I didn't have to sign the slip was on Labadee and that was only a couple of times. It seems to me to be up to the bartender.

The Empress was originally being built for Admiral Cruise Lines when Royal Caribbean merged with Admiral. She was originally named Nordic Empress and had the Viking Crown and Windjammer to fit with the other Royal ships at that time. I sailed on her several times, mainly to Bermuda, and had an aft balcony twice. One of them was rated as a JS, a long cabin with a lot of empty space with a balcony the was 18 feet long that took up a third of the width of the ship. The other aft cabin on that deck was a full suite.

About half way between Vancouver and Hawaii the Captain in his noon report said that the depth beneath the keel was 24,000 feet or about 4.5 miles. It makes one realize just how small one is.

I would like to look at it as having lots of options of things to do, including nothing at all. That said, if one want to just sit back and enjoy the sea, that can really only be done from an outer cabin balcony or from the outside decks. But then that can also be said about any of the larger classes from Voyager on up. If you're looking for a quieter place outside rather than around the pools or the Solarium there is the area behind the Aquatheater on the same deck as the running track or the sun deck above the bridge on deck 14 that can be accessed from the port side passageway forward. Unfortunately, they took away the "secret" balconies all the way aft to make more suites.

If you go directly to the garage it should be much quicker. The back up was for the drop off area. For our next cruise we plan on parking in the garage and then walking back to drop off our luggage.

That's exactly what I want to do. The problem last year was that the road to the parking lot didn't split off from the main road to the drop off area until just before the drop off area, thus requiring a long wait in traffic before being able to get to the parking lot. If they are no longer using the old parking lot it would be nice if they created a cutoff lane that went directly to the garage.

When I read the title of the thread "Pool Hogs" I thought we were in for something different. Visions of hogs in the pool or hordes of Cruisers taking over the pools. Nope, just your typical Chair Hogs.

Or maybe a motorcycle gang riding their Hogs through the pool.:D

Aw, c'mon people, I think the OP is just having a little fun while enjoying his/her time in the Solarium. Just passing some time reporting on the obvious chair hogs for our entertainment.

To those who have used the new garage, have they made the traffic flow any easier for those who want to go directly to the garage and not drop off luggage? When I sailed out of Cape Liberty last year I was caught up in 20 minutes worth of traffic all going to the drop off area before I could branch off to get to the old parking lot. I usually only have carry-on size bags so I don't need to drop any off.

As a software developer for the last 35 years all I can say about the latest version of the cruise search and booking engine is that it is a piece of ... well, let's just say it is bad, very bad. The German site others have mentioned is the model I'd like to see used, at least for cabin selection.

She is outgoing and loves playing basketball' date=' as much as she loves cheerleading and dance. She has mastered the art of shopping already, so I am sure she will have her dad in all the stores. Thanks so much for the suggestions. They all sound like things she will love.[/quote']

 

 

Oasis has a full size basketball court. At times it will be used for organized activities such as soccer and volleyball as well as basketball. When not in use for those activities it is open for free play. There's usually a few basketballs laying around on the court. There are also ping pong tables on the same deck.

RCI would not offer drink packages if they didn't think they would make more money from them than from people paying only by the drink. They are counting on most people who buy the packages not getting their money's worth.

I'd recommend the Amtrak train as well. I've sailed out of Baltimore several times and have always taken the train down and back from New York. The train takes 2 1/2 to 2 3/4 hours from Baltimore Penn Station to New York Penn Station (not to be confused with Newark Penn Station:)) and is very comfortable, has a cafe car, and includes free wifi. You can get a taxi from the Baltimore port to the train station for around $20 with tip. I've always been able to get a train around 10AM after the cruise. I would recommend pre-purchasing you ticket as the prices are usually cheaper if you book early.

We have the premium drink package and I'm pleased to say the drinks are generous and strong, however the cocktail list is limited (compared to FoS in August) and the bars are woefully understaffed. We haven't encountered any roaming waitstaff so be prepared to queue (often for some time) when you want a drink.

 

On that subject, one thing we have noticed is that the crew are for the most part very efficient, but they lack the friendliness and wow factor of other ships. I wonder if they are overstretched, as for example in the windjammer there have been many uncleared tables and just one frantic staff member trying to clear up, whilst fetching drinks and replenishing items at the counters. Service has also been slow and somewhat lacklustre in the restaurants, and it's obvious that the staff are working hard, they just appear to have so much to do that there is little time for the niceties.

 

It sounds like Royal Caribbean hasn't learned from their Quantum experience. A common complaint the first few months was that the ship was understaffed, especially when it came to wait staff. They added staff and the complaints dropped. Maybe they thought they could get away with it a second time.