jules815

Arrived at the Residence Inn in Port Canaveral the day before sailing, ready to spend an afternoon poolside, when our 19 year old daughter informed us, in tears, that she'd forgotten to pack her bathing suits! Good thing we flew in the day before!

Thank you. Just trying to avoid a view like some of the balconies on the Carnival Dream class ships have.

Jules815, fellow Chicagoan here. How about that winter we just had?! Yikes!

 

We did the Southern Caribbean out of San Juan on the Jewel last July. Flew American out of O'Hare. The flights were $535 pp but when I checked about a month before leaving they were like $800! We stayed at the San Juan Marriott Stellaris Casino & it was the BEST way to start our vacation. Walked out on to the beach so my daughter & little cousin could go in the ocean. Ate in their resort restaurant for dinner & breakfast buffet the next morning. Very good.

The Southern Caribbean was everything I thought it would be & more. Beautiful islands. We did a ship sponsored excursion every day except St. Croix where we went to Sandcastle Beach. It was like having a small private resort to ourselves. If you can try to do this itinerary. You will have a wonderful time.

That sounds wonderful! And I'd cover two items on my bucket list in one cruise.

Worst Winter EVER! And I'm a pet sitter/dog walker. :eek: You'll note I don't have Alaska on my list! And while I know an Alaskan cruise can't be compared to a Chicago winter, if I'm going on a vacation, I want to be able to wear shorts and a bathing suit, and smell the aroma of suntan lotion! (I have a Yankee candle that smells like Coppertone!) Steel drum music while sipping a margarita. I want to go NOW!

I've been obsessing about our cruise on FOS in September, and was looking at some pictures (again) on the RC website, which lead me to look at the deck layout again.

We're booked for both weeks in 7664, and I'm not sure, but I think we might be over the area that bows out over the dining room. Has anyone been in that area of the ship before, and did it bother your view looking down into the water?

I'm sure it will be perfectly fine, and this is just me picking apart every little thing!

Bear in mind that in Freedom class (or certainly on Indy last year) only the actual pool and whirlpools are adult only, kids love the swing seats along the side and it is a passageway from the forward elevators to the main pool so not particularly quiet.

What are these swing seats you mention?

Can you get a mimosa with fresh squeezed OJ in the Windjammer? :)

1. Back-to-Back. (Actually doing this in September!)

2. Freedom of the Seas (see 1)

3. Allure or Oasis (or both!)

4. Sail on a Radiance class ship (because people here really seem to like that class)

5. A southern Caribbean itinerary sailing from San Juan.

6. Mediterranean!

Yes, I know. But we want coffee, water, etc included in our drink plan. So if I were to upgrade to the premium package, I would lose that option. Thank you for your input. I appreciate it :)

Doesn't the higher level beverage package include both water and Seattle's Best specialty coffee drinks?

Great pictures! I'm so happy we're sailing with RC again. I really missed having a nice area like this when we cruised with Carnival last time.

We've grabbed a price drop on most of our cruises and this is exactly what they did.

Same here, and as recent as last week. I've never had my reservation canceled and rebooked due to a price drop. They just make an adjustment.

Thanks for your report and pictures.

We'll be sailing on FOS in September, and our eastern itinerary also makes a stop in San Juan instead of St. Thomas. Really looking forward to our cruise.

I know, "Save the Waves" and all that (+ microchip), but am I the only one who has a problem with having to carry around and reuse the special cup? Thinking of packing a small bottle of dish detergent, or just ordering from the bar if I want a soda pop.

What a nice gift! :)

When my parents were still alive, I would often gift them with casino credit for the slots on Holland America.

We sat in that area every day. When the Windjammer would be full at lunch there was always empty tables up there!

Noted! :)

5 cocktail drinks over the course of the day and a couple of waters and you're already ahead.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

This is exactly why we're getting it. It would be easy to do 5-6 spread out throughout the course of the day. Add bottled waters, specialty coffees, the fresh squeezed oj and smoothies. Plus, now we won't be getting the wine package we normally would purchase. (I know the beverage package is for wine by the glass, but we're perfectly fine with that too.)

Question about the bottled waters. Do you get the bottled water from bartenders? Does this include the water they sometimes have when you're leaving ship on port day?

Does it also include sparkling water (Perrier and Pellagrino?) at bars or at dining venues?

Would it cover wines by the glass in Vintages?

Other than not having it added to your Seapass account, are there any advantages to ordering the drink package online in advance? Higher sales tax in port, or anything like that?

There are two versions that look identical. If you need to charge an iPad type device, get the higher rated 2.1 amp version.

Based on your photo and this post, I've just ordered the 2.1 amp version on Amazon.

Thank you all for sharing your expertise and advice, I think you sold me on The Navigator and sailing from Galveston. Roatan, Belize and Cozumel here we come!

Sounds great. I would go for an E2 balcony on "the hump." E2s are a good price, and that location is really nice.

Great review and pictures. Thanks!

Thank you OP for asking this question. I was just wondering about this same thing as we are doing a future B2B.

No problem! The last thing I want to do is plant fear with any new future cruisers. I obviously love cruising, and even a bout of noro on our last cruise isn't stopping us from going again.

This will be our first B2B though, and with other noro threads talking about deep cleaning procedures on debarkation day, it made me wonder what happens with the back-to-backers.

The B2Bers would definitely not just be confined to their cabin for the second leg if they were ill. My sister and her husband were visited by a medical team in their cabin (knock on the door but unannounced) the night before the end of the cruise. The medical team wanted to check that they were not ill before allowing them to stay on the ship for the next leg. The medical team was very nice but said that, unfortunately, some people do not report an illness and lie about being sick.

Was this a trip where the first week there was a noro outbreak, but they didn't get sick at all, and the medical team was just making sure they were okay?

Are there certain times of the year when noro is more prevalent?

What happens with the B2B cruisers on disembarkation day if the ship is being deep cleaned due to noro? Would they make them get off the ship for a few hours, or would there be areas of the ship that would be okay to use?

I have to admit, since actually having noro on our last cruise, I'm a leeeetle nervous about it happening again. I keep reassuring myself though, that with 7 cruises under my belt, it's only happened once.

Still very excited for our upcoming cruise on FOS!

Just reading this great review again. My husband and I will be doing a B2B on FOS in September, and can't wait.

Noticed you've got another one coming up, and hope you'll do another great review with pictures! :)

I get butterflies watching this! I can't wait to cruise again. :D

listening now and sounds like a little kid splashing in a bath tub...what is it?

I hear the same thing! rooftop pool?