Presbycruiser67

For some reason I could not submit this on the main site, so I am sharing it here FYI:

 

I treated myself to a birthday cruise in October, 2022.  The Elation is based within a decent driving distance from my home, and the price was right, even with the double charge for a solo cruiser.  It was that cheap.

Embarkation was very easy, and the port crew was very pleasant and efficient.  

My cabin, an ocean view with two small portholes (priced more closely to an inside than a "regular" oceanview with a large window) was modern (remodeled recently?) with plenty of outlets for my various electronic devices.  There was a surprisingly large TV.  The bed was very comfortable and I slept great!  But inexplicably, there was no easy chair or loveseat to sit on, or a coffee table, which discouraged me from eating anything in my room.  It seems like none of the staterooms (with the possible exception of suites??) had any furniture other than the bed.  I asked my room steward about this and his "explanation" was that the Elation was a small ship.  Uh, don't "small" ships have enough room for furniture??  

Otherwise, the steward provided very good service ... no complaints.

Speaking of good service, the Main Dining Room staff was outstanding and they seemed to really enjoy working on the Elation.  

The food was not as good, however.  Some dishes were fine (like a very nicely prepared beef tenderloin one evening).  But the prime rib and NY strip steak were quite poor, the worst I have had on any cruise.  They were cooked to order, but the meat was thin and did not seem like a good grade of meat.  

The buffet was OK but kind of limited, and between the crowds and the garish, ugly decor, did not excite me.

I did eat some pizza from pizza pirate, a sandwich from the deli, and quite a few burgers from Guy Fieri's, which were good.

I drank way too much from the MANY bars onboard... I had purchased the beverage package and made sure I got my money's worth and then some.  I tried drinks I never had before.   On a couple of days I hit ten drinks, which I never do at home, but as I spaced them out over several hours, and made sure to eat, I did not get really drunk.

Entertainment was OK.  There was one rather unfunny Cuban comedian, and another guy whose name I forget who was much funnier.  

Disembarkation was more of an ordeal than embarkation had been.   I got into a loooooooong line that stretched around the entire deck it felt like, and it took an hour to get through everything, at least.  

For me, the high points were the wonderful service and spending some time away from the crowds at the adults' only section at the back of the pool deck.  Food was so-so.  Drinks were good.  

I don't think I even visited the ports because I had been there before.  But it was fine either way.

Atlanta, this may strike you as a strange question, but ...

does your stateroom have actual furniture aside from the bed?  I cruised on the Carnival Elation in October, and while my stateroom was nicely maintained, it had NOTHING to sit on other than the bed and a little stool in front of the desk/dresser.  There was a large empty space where an easy chair or sofa should have been.  And that was the case for almost everyone!

On 8/21/2022 at 1:07 AM, pc_load_letter said:

Meh, you get drunk enough, it all tastes good

OK, I will definitely be purchasing the Cheers package now. 

Oh I had another question about dining.  Did they set up the tutti salad bar and pasta bar for lunch in the MDR?  Those were not available when I sailed in early January.

Kyle,

I would be curious to get your reviews of the specialty restaurants.

Thank you!

12 hours ago, matj2000 said:

I never put dirty trays outside or our room.

 

I carry them down a few doors and put them outside someone else's room..

Hey, thanks for the idea!  Next time I cruise ....

I was going to get it for my recently-completed cruise, but:

a., the Key seems most useful if the ship is going to be crowded.  Our cruise was under 50% capacity.  There was no major issue with waiting for activities, entertainment, etc.

b. with the testing protocols for my unvaxxed daughter, AND with embarkation times being pushed back by 90 minutes anyway, there did not seem to be any point to "priority boarding."
c.  I purchased an internet package anyway.

d.  The Black Friday price still would have cost both of us about $40 per day.  So that would have been $24 more than the internet package.  $24 for each cruise day seemed like lot for the two benefits we would have indisputably gotten:  the Chops Grille menu lunch (which is greatly abbreviated compared to their dinner menu); and a more leisurely breakfast and departure.

Having said all of that, if the next cruise I booked is more like a "normal" one, I might spring for The Key IF I can get the low sale price.  I still would not purchase it for $27.99 or $29.99 per day.

Nursing Home of the Seas.

47 minutes ago, xpcdoojk said:

I think they were making an analogy.  Not saying they ordered prime rib but were served a cheeseburger.  IE they bought a cruise with lots of ports, shows, and experiences (prime rib) and got a lot of sea days and Coco Cay (Cheeseburger).🤪

That actually makes more sense.than my interpretation.  For one thing, you dont pay extra for.Prime Rib.

Wow these bad experiences are a shame.  I guess I lucked out on Mariner.  I would be pissed if service and food were lacking.

My unvaccinated daughter and I had to eat at a set time on the "unvaccinated" level of Mariner's three tiered MDR.  We chose the late sitting (8 pm).

It was like having the restaurant all to ourselves!  Only a handful of.tables were occupied and they were nowhere near us.

The ship was less than half full which made a difference.  Even so, our level was so empty at 8 pm that I think we would have been in good shape even if we sailed at full capacity.

I am just not into panic porn anymore.

36 minutes ago, Shamrock Girl said:

We were on Mariner for the same 5-night sailing. It was a great cruise. The concierge told us there were 1,529 passengers on board.
 

We stayed on (in the same stateroom) for a 4-night B2B… This morning we were supposed to dock at CocoCay at 7:00 a.m., but it was too windy. We finally docked around 10:00. Unofficially, we were told that there are 1,100 passengers on this cruise.

Ghost town!

But great for the passengers who did show up.

I am just worried we have been spoiled by these low passenger cruises and will be unable to enjoy a full ship.

Took a pleasant cruise on Mariner of the Seas with my youngest daughter.

Drove down from southwest Georgia to Port Canaveral on January 5.  Stayed overnight at Country Inn and Suites (they had a special going on).  For an extra $70 you can park there for the duration of your cruise and a shuttle to and from the cruise terminal is included.

Embarkation was easy, even with dear daughter needing an antigen test.  No crowds, which is a nice byproduct of sailing with 1,700 guests as opposed to full capacity.

Boarded around 1 pm, had a quick lunch in the Windjammer, did the "safety drill" which required watching a short video and reporting to one's muster station.  Amazingly, several passengers had to be reminded over and over again to complete the drill, which has never been easier.

Rooms were ready at 2 pm, and luggage was there waiting for us.  Food was excellent (I had a salad and a chicken curry which was nicely spicy).

Nice balcony cabin on deck 6, starboard.  Shower was underwhelming and the toiletries were Wal-Mart grade.  Best to bring your own.  And there were only two electrical outlets ... next time I will bring a power strip.  But the beds were comfy, there was a sofa as well.  Also a safe and cooler.  And sitting on the balcony with a cup of coffee in the morning was pleasant.

Wonderful room steward who was very attentive.

Windjammer and Main Dining Room had overall excellent food and service.  Our waiter and his assistant were very attentive to my daughter.  She spent most of her time in our cabin as her way of relaxing is to have a lot of private time.  Anyway, when she did not come to dinner a couple of nights, the waiter had room service take her the dinner she would have ordered!

Good snacks in the Cafe Promenade (including some delicious thin crust pizza), and we loved the Bratwursts from The Dog House.

Daughter and I were quite tired and slept a lot.  I was a little more active than she was, spending time in the adults-only Solarium, their pool and hot tubs.  Those hot tubs were a lifesaver for my aching back!!!

I had a few cocktails but at the outrageous prices they charged, not many!  I think I averaged one alcoholic beverage per day.  But I doubt I would have drunk enough to make the Deluxe Beverage Package worthwhile, even at the lowest sale price I saw before the cruise (over $60 per day, NOT including tax).   I did get my money's worth from the soda package, which I obtained on Black Friday for $5.99 per day.

I would say 99% of the people I saw wore masks inside.  Most of the crew were double-masked.

A handful of crew and passengers tested positive for Covid but the rest of us shrugged at the news.  We were just happy to be on board!!  Daughter was given an antigen test the day before our return.

I got off the ship briefly on Coco Cay but did not stay long since I wanted to look in on my daughter from time to time.  

Overall, the ship was in excellent condition, but there were a few signs of wear and tear.  The hallway carpet on Deck 6 was worn in a couple of places, and several chairs in the Windjammer had peeling seat backs.

And, the service was excellent as well, although the upselling by the dining room and windjammer staff was annoying.  

Disembarkation was easy.  Eat breakfast and then wait in your cabin until your group is called.  Of course, the relatively low number of passengers contributed to the swiftness of our departure.

Overall, it was a relaxing cruise on a beautiful ship.  Really glad I went and got to spend time with my daughter.

CDC Delivers Good News for Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Cruise Industry - TheStreet

Ship - Mariner of the Seas

Deck - 6

Stateroom # - 6290

Stateroom Category – Balcony

Starboard or Port Side - Starboard

Quiet Stateroom? (With comments on problems) – Yes

Was stateroom a connecting stateroom? - No

Balcony View - Give comments on view, noting if location of any obstructions was an issue. – Clear, no obstructions.

Balcony Size? Normal or oversized for class? - Normal.

Was wind a problem? - No

If an aft cabin, was soot a problem? - N/A

Any specific problems with this cabin? - Shower was somewhat unimpressive, with an el-cheapo dispenser with combined shampoo and body wash.  Shower head was small.

Any other comments? - Nope

Darn, I thought they were offering free money to loyal.passengers.

I received my notification yesterday, two days before sailing.  So dont worry yet.

7 hours ago, Bailey & Sophie said:

 

Pretty much sounds like my house.

Pretty much sounds like ME.

Well, I am a happy man today.

My $100 total bid for an upgrade from an oceanview on deck 2 to a balcony (on deck six) was accepted!  And I got the oceanview for a really low price to start with!

Now all my daughter and I have to do is test negative for Covid ...

I would be bothered if there were pigs attached to my balcony too.

Nothing wrong with a mixture of sacred and secular music during the Christmas Season, IMO.  It would be a shame if there was no sacred music, even if just the tunes, like Hark the Herald Angels Sing, etc.  But to each his own.

As a Protestant pastor, I may just volunteer to lead worship on my solo cruise in October.  

1 hour ago, Ocean Boy said:

And they want everyone to quarentine for 5 days after getting home from a cruise.

More time off work!

I asked my TA.  She said my Mariner cruise sailing on Jan 6 is currently 45%.  She also said she was "shocked" to see how low it is.

Given that the CDC had just issued its announcement when we spoke, I would expect a lower percentage by next Thursday.

Amazing how small Mariner looks next to Symphony ...