borntobehappy

Thank you all for the replies. Definitely have a feel for the area where I didn't before. Cheers!

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Hello NCLers! We are setting sail in Feb for a 3 day on the Sky. Flying in the morning of the cruise and wanting to meet an old friend for lunch before we board. Looking for recommendations/suggestions for a nice place for lunch near the Port OR on the way to the port from the Miami airport.

We are quite excited for our Adult only getaway in the warm weather.

Cheers!

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Oh no, the link is down! Anyone else have recent Western Carribean compasses from Oasis?

 

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Updated link:

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/65alayvp5rsy0f0/AAC-vuFO-B10GE47OXN69R7wa?dl=0

Have fun.

Happened to us as well. It took about a week for the Cruise Planner to straighten itself out.

Bummed us out bc we were looking forward to relaxing Labadee day at the end of our cruise but all worked out in the end

Congrats. Have a great Honeymon.

Do the Western compasses pretty much remain the same for cruises in the next month or so?

I had one from March & it was pretty much the same as the ones I just posted.

Cheers!

Thanks for the terrific review! Glad your trip was wonderful!

 

2 questions. Did you prebook your Izumi reservations online? I want to book mine but the hours available are crappy. Would they let you change them once on board? Also, was the Amazing Race an RCI sponsored excursion or did you book with an outside vendor?

Amazing Race was booked independently. RCL does not offer it as an excursion.

Actually did Izumi on the phone with RCL. Call & if no luck, make reservations at crappy time & check in there the first day you are on board.

Have fun!

Here is the link for the Compasses, Kids Compasses, Schooner Bar Drink Menu & Room Service Breakfast Menu.

I am seriously so obsessive about cruise planning that I LOVED reading the compasses before I boarded.

Cheers everyone!

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/80gym92g0mv15im/AAAEQK-VGawOcq2n4t8UTnxca?dl=0

WIFI: Hubs & I both had the surf option & it was practical & useful. I did some periscoping in the mornings & evenings & he did work stuff. The 2nd sea day was the only day where the Internet was not great but that was mainly during the day & returned to normal at night.

Also forgot about Savannah Jack - the Headliner. Sort of a rockabilly band that was sort of cheese-ball but way fun. My kids were out of their mind dancing to every song. The lead singer was talented (if not a bit sweaty) and a very engaging performer.

The link to my Dropbox Folder with Compasses, Kids Compasses, Schooner Bar Menu & Room Service Breakfast Menu is here;

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/80gym92g0mv15im/AAAEQK-VGawOcq2n4t8UTnxca?dl=0

Let me know if you have problems with the link.

Cheers!

Warren Zevon Fan? Love the title.

 

 

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Maybe my uncle was a Warren Zevon fan - he used to say "I'll sleep when I'm dead" a lot. He's sleeping now - RIP.

Great review! I look forward to seeing the Compasses posted on Monday. :)

 

Can you tell me more about the White Party?

It was on Day 6 & listed under Music & Entertainment on the Cruise Compass. It was a dance party led by the Cruise Director staff. They sell neon stuff before but I had read about it so I bought stuff on Amazon before we sailed (neon rings, glow bracelets, etc. . ..). Not a ton of people were in white & to a ton had neon stuff. But everyone danced & had a great time. It was packed. 9:45 start time & lasted for about an hour. On the Promenade. Highly recommended.

We really did try to do everything and accomplished most of what we (I) set out to do.

Cheers!

Thanks for a great review. Glad you & your family had a wonderful time. I have to admit, I was exhausted reading about all your activities. You really accomplished a lot in one week. Now I get your title! :)

 

I had not heard about paying $50 p/p to go to barefoot beach in lieu of renting a second cabana. I wonder if it's new.

We could have rented one cabana and then paid $50 pp for anyone beyond six. So we would pay one cabana plus $350 for the extra seven. We didn't need two cabanas as we spent the vast majority of the time in the water. Does that make sense?

Cheers!

Great review. Thank you! I hadn't heard about the Amazing Race in Cozumel. Sounds perfect for us in March with teen son (17).

My husband was totally lukewarm on the Race but ft the first clue and IT WAS ON! We both share a mild competitive streak so I knew he would be into it as soon as we got going. My oldest son said it was the most excited he had ever seen Dad. Lol. It will be perfect for a group of three - eight was too many. Have fun and good luck!

Excellent review. I am really tired after reading all you managed to do in a week and will need a rest. I enjoyed reading abouty all the great family time you and yours shared.

 

Will be on Oasis in December but will have a limited schedule of things to do but did enjoy it thru your eyes. Did Allure a few years ago and needed a vacation when we returned home.

 

Thanks for sharing.

We definitely left it all on the field. We enjoyed our relaxing time on the beach but everything else was go go go.

Have so much fun. If it was just me & DH, it would me a much more relaxed affair.

What kind of sauces were at Izumi? Do they have the "east Coast" Yummy yummy sauce?

It was teriyaki, sweet chili sauce & one other but I can't remember. He didn't identify it as East Coast. I was so freaking full by the time the actual meal was cooked, that I don't have much to say about the meat.

Cheers.

Glad to hear about Burwood beach. Were there a lot of people at this beach? Do you recall taxi cost and did you choose a taxi outside the port area because it was cheaper?

Burwood Beach was not crowded it wasn't empty but it wasn't crowded. It's a local beach so lots of Jamacian families. There was one other family from the ship but that's it. Yes we went outside of port to get the taxi. Then my BIl's family came shortly after and got a much cheaper taxi than ours. We try not to begrudge the money too much. Certainly our driver needed money more than us.

Depending on how many people, you can probably get a cab to Burwood for $10 for 2 or 3 people. We also decided to do the hair braiding outside the port because it was a bit cheaper.

Thanks for reading.

Thanks for taking the time to review! How was the weather this week? Chair hogs in full force? Any "don't miss" recommendations?

 

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It was HOT!! We went so early to the pool we did not experience too much chair hogging. The saltwater pool has umbrellas in the sitting area & it seemed highly coveted. We got our bfast at 7 & were in the umbrella chairs by 7:10 and the whole area filled by 7:30. We eventually chose to move to the Sports Pool because it had better shade for all of us.

I wouldn't miss any of the shows - the talent is so amazing.

Cheers!

Just off Oasis & thought I would return the favor of a small trip report. *I'm a bit of a lurker on these boards but I couldn't have accomplished cruise planning and a wonderful trip without the collective wisdom of this group. *So thank you.

Our Crew: *Thirteen in all; 2 grandparents; 3 sons & two wives, six grandchildren. *This is our third cruise as a family with the first two on the Disney Dream & Fantasy. *

Embarkation Day: We flew in the night before and had a brief stay at the Renissance Hotel near port. *We had arranged for a shuttle to pick us at the airport and then transportation to the port & then back again the following Saturday. *Renissance was fine - clean & quiet. *Some of us ate at the restaurant for breakfast and some of laid in bed & ordered room service. *All satisfactory. *Our shuttle arrived at 11:45 to take us to the port & we arrived shortly thereafter. *It took us about an hour from start to entry on the boat & that mainly had to do with switching the credit card we wanted to use on board. *Groups of 13 sometimes seem unlucky in terms of checking in to places. *Bwahahahahahhaa.

Embarkation photo complete, we entered the ship. *My daughter remarked to me "is this a mall?" *Heh. *The Promendade really does have a mall-ish feeling to it. *We took some pics by the car & then went our separate ways for lunch. *Our family had Boardwalk Dogs and then went to check out the room. *Muster Drill & then getting ready for 6:00 p.m dinner occupied the rest of the afternoon. *We were in the Grande Dining Room on 4 - right across from the Casino. *

They had set a table for 13 near the back of the restaurant and right next to the windows. *It was a great table. *Miesso & Iwayan were a pleasure to see every night. *My husband got a little annoyed with the asking for high marks but aside from that, our every need was meet. *They were sweet & played with the kids and got us our food and drink timely & correct. *We saw them many mornings in Windjammer & they always said hello.

Food in the MDR was just fine - not out of this world but totally palatable and visually pleasing. *The coconut shrimp & carpaccio get best appetizer. *The Prime Rib was really good the last night. *

We told Miesso that we had to be in & out for dinner as we had reservations for the 7:30 water show - Oasis of Dreams. *We got there early enough to get prime seats - kids in the splash zone with the adults a couple of rows back. *Waiters were coming by for drink orders. *All was good with the world. *The show was amazing as well as all the entertainment on board - totally amazing & first class. *

Drink Package Evaluation.* *Three of our thirteen party had a drink package. *Two Ultimates & One Premium. *My husband & his brother both drink coffee so they had the Ultimate and I had the Premium. *I had read every pro & con about the package & the math & it seemed best for the three of us. *I certainly drank my 4.5 drinks a day and then some. *The only day I didn't meet the minimum was the last day when I had switched to water. * I loved the Pina Coladas in the morning; the "Collins" drinks in the Schooner Bar & the Sierra Nevada Pale Ale in the casino. *Overall it seemed easy to get a beverage & we were pleased with the package. *Not sure if I would do it again but it definitely worked for this trip.

After the show, we went for a swim & then to bed. *We also checked out kids & teen clubs but it didn't arouse much interest for my 14, 12 & 10 year old. *My oldest ended up spending a couple of afternoons at the Teen club playing dodge ball & some other games but for the most part, we didn't are part in the children's clubs. *No big deal as there is plenty to do. *

First Sea Day: My day got started early (around 5;30 A.M.). *Woke up & took a stroll around the pool & Sun deck (14 & 15). *Of course there was hardly anyone else up but I had some company. *I went back to the room to get my swimming suit & some other stuff for the morning. *So I sort of woke up my husband - twice. *From then on, I would pack my backpack at night with my clothes ready to go in the bathroom. *That way when I was up, I could make an exit with as little noise as possible in the morning. *

The night before, I highlighted what I wanted to do for the day including the zip line & boogie boarding early. *Around 8:45, I went back to the cabin & woke everyone up - "You can sleep when you're dead - but not today!" *We skipped breakfast for the moment & went right for the zip line & boogie boarding. *Early morning bingo and then lunch. In the Windjammer. *Only made it to Bingo at that time. *It is pricey! *I'd rather a go at the Video Poker machine than bingo. *And the bingo host kinda sucked - way too much talking & sort of insulting. *He was the only member of the Cruise staff that bugged - the rest were fun & amazing.

I had my hair done at 3 & it was very pretty. *We really wanted to take a nice family pic. *Totally reasonable $50 for the hair & the pictures turned out fantastic. *We met at 5:15 on the Promenade all in our Sunday finest. *We were second in line for the staircase pic in the aft. *We got a pic of the 13 of us & then went our separate ways to get pics with the individual families & then some with grandparents & grandkids. *These pictures all turned out AMAZING!! *I mean like the best pic of our family ever. *Just really beautiful & well done. *And we didn't do much waiting at all. *We made it to dinner at 6 & enjoyed another yummy meal. *The show tonight was Cats but my husband & I skipped in favor of the casino. *Everyone enjoyed the show & said it was totally amazing if not a little long. *After some time in the Casino, we headed up the pool deck for a late night swim. *Delicious. *

Disney Pools v RC Pools.: *Couldn't believe the size of the Oasis pool deck - it keeps going and going. Four pools & numerous hot tubs. *The Disney Pool deck has two very small pools. *The only upside of the Disney pools is the nighttime movies where you can swim & watch. *We loved that feature. *But the generous amount of space & pools on the Oasis more than made up for it.*

Day Three - Labadee

I was again up early roaming the boat. *I had made plans to meet my BIL at American Icon for breakfast & then we would get off the ship to Ladabee. *We had rented two cabanas and I wanted to get there early to get our pick. *After the day was finished, we decided two cabanas were not necessary. *We could have rented one & just paid the extra $50 per person. *But we did love the cabana & what it offered. *When we checked in, I ordered my first Labadoozie - oh wow - wonderful. *Refreshing & tasty. *I was going to try to stay out of the water until after we had done the Dragon Zip Line but that water was far too tempting. *I jumped into the empty cove & soaked up the gorgeous water & sun. *Our cabana had this perfect view of the Ship as well.

We met the rest of the family at 9:45 at the Dragon Flight Zip Line starting line. *Everyone save 3 of us signed up for the zip line. *The rest just went to the cabana to relax. *Zip Line was fun - I actually think the one on the ship was fun too. *It was fun to go all at once together. *Maybe a bit pricey but I think everyone enjoyed it. *Wish we could have the option of facing down as we went down - might be cool to see the ocean that way. *

Back to cabana & then to the buffet for lunch. *The chicken was terrific! *Part of our crew headed back to the ship for a nap but most stayed until 3:30 or so. *We loved the swimming & the sandcastle building. *What a day. *We loved the Disney equivalent - Castaway Cay & wouldn't mind a cruise ship that visited a private island every day of the cruise. *

Back at the ship & after a shower, we went ice skating. *Showed up about 25 minutes early & were slotted in for the last skate of the day. *The kids looked like they were having fun. *

Dinner was fine as usual in the MDR, *I also discovered the Lemon Drop Martini - I think I am in love. *Yum. *

Day Four - Falmouth Jamicia

Day Four started with a late arrival to Falmouth Jamicia. *We were going to Burwood Beack - a local public beach. *We walked out of the port area to catch a local cab. *Paid too much on the way there but they agreed to return for us at two different times so it worked out. *Burwood was a bit rustic but they couldn't have been more accommodating. *Chairs & entry to the park was about $60 for all 13 of us. *There was a guy sitting on the wall selling beer & a little shanty restaurant serving lobster & fish. *The food & cold beer were delicious and the beach perfect. *Fine white sand with clear blue water. *Hard core sand castle building ensued while some of the adults enjoyed the water. *Totally gorgeous beach and we enjoyed our time there. *We went back to the area outside of the port to have my daughter's hair braided. *While there we had some Red Stripes with the locals. *If we were in the market for pot, we would have been in business. *Offered to us about 13 times while there. *Did a bit of souvenir shopping and then back to the beach & some Sorrento's Pizza. *

I'm a fan of the pizza. *I had such low expectations because the pizza my kids were having at dinner did not look good. *But the pizza was hot & delicious. *Sadly it was the only time we ate there & I never got the chance to "make my own pizza."

Dinner that night at Grande and then a cabaret show with the singers from Cats at the Opal Theater. *Wow - can they sing. *

Day Five: Sea Day

We went to the pool early and enjoyed our time from 8-10 a.m. Tried the "Guess the Celebrity Challenge" in the Schooner Bar. *I got mine in about 20 seconds (Christian Rinaldo). *Fun to watch & participate. *Scavenger hunt & then family karaoke. *When I sing, the audiece's favorite part is when it's over! *Heh. *Tonight was hibachi for my husband's bday at Izumi. *They weren't able to sit all 13 of us at one table so we ended up with 10 at one grill & 3 at another. *Wish I would have gone there earlier in the week to straighten that out because it looks like our situation could have been better. *

Food & entertainment was excellent at Izumi. *I had the lobster & steak & knew early on that I had eaten too much of the fried rice. *We were able to take it to go but never got around to eating it. *Frozen In Time was the show tonight. *Can't believe all that is happening on the ice WHILE THE SHIP IS MOVING!! *A very talented cast with creative use of the small ice rink. *We caught the last 2 hours of the new Star Wars movie in 3D at the Opal after.

Day Six: Cozumel

Breakfast at Central Park - a bagel & cantelope. *Central Park is absolutely charming. *Fun to sit & just people watch. *Our group was parting ways today while five went to the Dolphin Swim excursion & the remainder went into Cozumel for the Amazing Race. *I was part of the Amazing Race team and it was so so so much fun. *My 80 year old father -in-law & mother-in-law also participated. *I won't tell you we would have won first place without them BUT WE PROBABLY WOULD HAVE!! *Second place was fine. *We raced around Cozumel with all sorts of clues & seeing spots we never would have otherwise. *Ended at a restaurant with a cool drink & some hot food. *It was definitely an exhausting day.

Back to port for some shopping for Mexican vanilla and then back on the ship. *Dinner at Grande and then Come Fly With Me. *It was absolutely my favorite show. *The talent was unbelievable & we all sat with our eyes half covered fearful that the aerlists would fall. *It was just sweet & fun. *We were all decked out in our neon gear for the White Party on the Promendade and danced almost every song. *Shout out to the guy who was leading the dancing. *That was some workout & he had to do every song! *At least we got a chance to take a break. *Bed time for me & the kids while my husband gambled with his father.*

Day Seven:*

This was the first morning where I didn't wake up before the sun. *Was able to sleep until about 7 & went up on deck. *Still a bit dark because we went through a thunderstorm. *Kids & husband up at 9:30. *Breafast & then rock climbing. *Johnny Rockets for lunch - yum the bbq burger was the bomb. *Although I had a bunch highlighted on the Compass for the Day, we ended up not doing much other than roaming the ship & napping. *Final Dinner at Grande where we bade our watiers a fond farewell. *We went to check out the Parade on the Promendande & saw many of the performers from the previous shows - loved that.

We had ordered the photos CDS the day before so we were able to pick those up & then get tucked in for bed. *Boo hoo - the cruise was over.

Deembarkation: Was a total breeze. * *We ate breakfast at WindJammer & then departed off the ship. *From start to finish, it was maybe 30 minutes from picking up luggage to exiting the building. *Well done Fort Lauderdale.

Photos: *So impressed with the quality of the photos taken. *Seriously better than our other two Disney cruises. *Less impressed with the staff at the Picture Place. *We had six cabins among thirteen people. *We bought two room CD's and then asked them to throw in the other two pictures from the other rooms (seriously 2!) and they wanted us to pay an additional $50. *It was ludicrous. *We ended up skipping those pictures (from Dragon Breath Zip Line). *But what a bummer. *

Room: We were in a balcony cabin on six right near the entrance to the lobby area. *Totally silent. *6270 & 6272. *I never heard anyone or anything outside of our room. *We hung out a bit on our balcony but not a ton. *Our room attendant was Michael & he was brilliant. *Asked for two copies of the Compass every night & ice in our room every day & never had to ask again. *He was sweet & accomodating. *

Tipping: We prepaid the tips but felt that both waiters & stateroom attendant deserved more. Hate that there isn't a more clear answer on what to do. *We ended up giving the stateroom attendant $100 and the two waiters got $200 each ( they were waiting on 13 people every night). *I wish I knew for sure that the prepaid tips would go to the staff & that RC doesn't take a cut. *I dunno - we definitely talked about it a lot before we came to the amount. *

What we missed: *Never saw anything about the Silent Disco. *Missed the Central Park tour. *I really wanted to do some trivia but that never happened. *I really wanted to play poker (for the free cruise) but they never had enough people to get a game going. *I wanted to go to the Towel Folding class. *But we managed enough for sure. *

I love Cruise Critic - thank you so much. *We could not have done all that we did without the information from this board. *

Any questions?

P.s. I will post all the Compasses in PDF format on Monday.

Cheers!

Rec'd this email from Royal:

Checked in cruise planner & got this:

Called Royal & they said he "thinks" they are changing Ladabee to Day 3 (originally scheduled Day 6) and Cozumel to Day 6 (originally Day 3). He said we should know in the next 24-48 hours.

It's going to affect our Cozumel excursion as we did not book through the ship but it's probably going to be fine.

Does this happen often? I must say I'm a little surprised.

Means I get my first Labadoozie a few days early - no complaints!

I just booked Oasis western for June 4, 2017. Tried to book a cabana on Labadee but they are not open for booking yet. Does anyone know how much in advance of a sail date they open the cabanas up for booking? RCCL on phone no help there.

We reserved two in January for our upcoming August 6 cruise. I was getting on the cruise planner every day & it popped up so we jumped on it.

Good luck.

Fantastic! Thank you!