LillCruiser

We also live in Ohio, just a little east of Cincinnati. With the discount airlines available from CVG now its so much easier and cheap to fly from here compared to just a few years ago and we can be parked at the airport in about 40 minutes. I drive a lot for my work and part of my vacation is NOT to be driving....especially to Florida where we are taking Adventure from next March. Its at least a 17-18 hour drive non stop and the flights are 2 hrs so yea.....Im good! I didn't mention, I loved your review and pictures......very good job!!!

I can totally understand that perspective! I don’t mind driving but I think the big bonus to driving there was not having to worry about my luggage weight and carry-ons and all that. I’m sure we will leave from Florida eventually, but this next year will probably be Bayonne again because of the different ship options.

And thank you! Glad you liked it.

We live in New Jersey, and last weekend, we were driving to a baseball game. As we are getting closer to Bayonne, my wife says: "This is the way to the ship". Yes, it was. Less than an hour drive for us. We will be on Anthem in December. You might look into booking Anthem. Bigger ship, different things to do, For us, it will be an 11 day cruise, so lots of time to unplug. Love and Marriage, and The Quest are both tons of fun. Adults only, but we have participated in both. Had a blast. Glad you had a great time.

 

Regards,

Mike

I am definitely looking at the other ships for next year out of Bayonne. I’d love a few more days as well. Thanks for the advice.

We're taking our granddaughters on Adventure in April, 2020. It'll be their first cruise. They will be 13 and 15. One is artsy and the other athletic. It sounds like there will be plenty for both to do. I haven't read your entire review yet but so far it's great. One question and if you cover it at some point I apologize - did you get internet access for the kids? I'd like them to be able to update their friends during the trip but I worry about them getting bogged down online and missing the fun.

I do cover it but no, we did not get it. We were very very happy that we did not get it. The kids can make it an entire week without it. Especially if you are in a port that they can get WiFi. We had it once in Port Canaveral and then not again until the end of the cruise. They were just fine. Honestly, no one complained.

Hi! Just like everyone else I loved your post! I have a specific question because our son is worried about what comes after Adventure Ocean. I know, I know - first world problems. Here's his worry. He LOVES Adventure Ocean and this will be the last year he can do the organized activities because he's 11. Can you give me any ideas of what your 12 year old son did? Was there anything organized or is basically all on them to make friends. What all can they do? Thanks so much for any ideas!

LOTS of activities! Some as simple as dedicated times for teens only to be at the ice rink, or flowrider. They had many games they would play and had a few dance parties. Like everything else he would want to do some and then skip others. Usually he really enjoyed the evening activities, especially once he made a few friends. They had a “who dunnit” type of mystery game one day and both of my boys really enjoyed that. Some games where physical and sometimes it was video games. I’ll look for the teen schedule and post a picture in just a minute!

Great job, I always say I can get something out of every review, but it wasn't hard with yours. We didn't start cruising till we became empty nesters, our first ship was the same class of ship back in 2006. BTW, since you are interested, this thread is a group of Buckeye Cruisers = https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1446505

Thanks, I’ll check it out!

I'm coming to this late, but what part of Ohio did you drive from? We make 1 road trip cruise a year and haven't sailed from Bayone yet.

We live near Akron.

So glad the review is being enjoyed! Thank you for all the wonderful comments.

So you took I-80, beautiful country, not much traffic until NJ. Hope you have better auto luck when you drive in to take a nine day on the Anthem. The kids will love it.

Thanks! Not quite sure what ship is next but that one is on the radar for sure!

Could you tell us where in PA you had your tire trouble? Were you on the PA Turnpike or Route 80? I used to hitchhike to Pittsburgh from Kutztown, PA.

It was in Clarion.

Another Buckeye here :)

What an awesome review & pics!

How long was your drive?

Well it should have been 7 to 7.5 hours but with the tires it was significantly more! Hahahah!

I was following along as I love to read reviews from other Ohioans. I've been on Adventure before but it was before the water slides and multi-level golf course (it just means I need to go back).

 

Great review - it was nice to re-live some of the adventures I've had in the past.

 

And as for cruising while living in Ohio - it just means we have more choices as we need to travel to a port anyway. If you can swing it, I would say check out the sailings out of Florida. You gain so many more options in ships and destinations starting out being farther south. And my other tip - if you do check out Florida flight costs, toss in San Juan, PR as well. Some times during the year, the flights are just slightly more expensive than flying to Florida (YMMV).

 

Welcome to the cruise addicted club!

Thanks for the welcome! We will check it out for sure. Bayonne has some big ships for next year so we may be back, it’s nice to save that airfare on a family of 5, but Florida and Puerto Rico are still on our radar. Thanks for the tips!

I hope you all have a wonderful Adventure and I’m glad you enjoyed the review! Thank you!

I'm curious what you've "read about power surges" that makes you think it's unsafe to plug your electronics into the ship's power supply?

 

 

 

Everything that I've ever seen chengkp75 post on the subject basically says that surge protection isn't needed on a ship because of the nature of the ship's electrical system.

You know, now I’m not sure. I could totally be wrong, it was something I remember reading along the way while researching. I am by no means an expert at all, if someone else knows better than please disregard what I said.

My kids are slightly older but we did not do the drink package and it was totally fine not to have it. The occasional extra beverage, Virgin Pina Coladas and the like, cost about $5. Very easy to handle that in the budget.

One of the best reviews I have read in a long time. Thank you so much for sharing. Such a beautiful family!!!!

That is so very kind! Thank you!

Wow, amazing review and awesome pictures! So glad you and your beautiful family had such a great vacation! Thanks so much for sharing!!

 

 

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Thank you for following along!

Lil Turano - I can hardly wait until YOUR next cruise! It was so interesting following along with your family's "Adventure" and reading your blog! I can't wait until the next one begins. Any thoughts about when you might try it again? Did the kids enjoy it as much as you and your Hubby seemed to? Best Regards.

The kids absolutely did. Everyone has the cruise blues this week. We’ve laughed a lot remembering moments and I’ve even shed a tear over the lack of creme brûlée. (Ha!)

We discussed next summer and they are totally “onboard” with another cruise. We enjoyed leaving out of Bayonne and are looking at dates, ships, and itineraries now.

Thanks for the great trip report!

My pleasure, literally. :)

Yes, that middle one is tough - she did well to get the other two done. The next time you can challenge her by having her use only one color of hand holds.

It’s so funny that you said this! By the end she was saying “What color Mom?? I’ll just go up blue handles only this time!”

Ahhhh, such a great start. Can't wait to read the rest.

 

I remember the feeling of awe we had when stepping onboard for our very first cruise. And it was the "little" Majesty of the Seas. We still get butterflies when taking that first step off of the gangway and onto the ship.

 

Dan.

That gives me great hope that it will always be that way for us as well!

As the lead "cast member", you left something out of your description----great author! Beautiful writing and beautiful family! Looking forward to the rest of your review.

Thank you for this! I really enjoyed writing it all out.

Your posts have been so tremendous, thank you so much for sharing!!! I just posted earlier on a new thread about how my son and I drove to the ship today to get a sneak peek at her, 2 weeks before we board! We are all super excited, and you gave us all tremendous insight and tips, looks like we'll be at the WJ the last night too!!!! Glad you had a great time, and I can't wait to share our family's experiences too!

Oh my gosh how cool to get a sneak peek!!

Thank you and I hope the tips come in handy. And I hope you love the WJ for that final dinner. We were there pretty early so I can’t say what the seafood looked like after a few hours, but going early meant we had an amazing amount of choices.

I have to agree that making friends with the staff on the rock wall and flowrider has always been something my boys have done. My younger one is also big on the rock wall and it's one of the reasons he enjoys the walls on ships other than Oasis class. Those ships use belaying ropes, so you don't get that interaction from the staff and all the cheering and direction you get when someone is at the bottom. On one of our trips, he was there so much, they gave him a toolbelt and told him to go up the wall and start tightening the handholds!

 

 

 

Your redheads are beautiful, as is your middle son, and your pictures are lovely. Your enthusiasm came through in your report, and I'm sure you'll be back on a ship soon.

 

 

 

I really enjoyed your trip report. It makes me sad that we had to cancel our August trip on Adventure, but a new roof is pretty important when living in NJ LOL!

Thank you. I’m so sorry you had to cancel, but yes, real life stuff like a roof is really important.

I’m so glad to hear that you experienced the support from the staff too. It really makes it fun for everyone. And how cool with the tool belt!

We are already talking about next year, so I’m sure you’re right. We will be cruising again soon.