Majestic-NJ

Ok so here’s a summarized report of my findings.

Before I start let me recap that there were 5 cabins in our group. 4 of those cabins had 2 GoTenna devices. I had 4. One of mine was dedicated to be a relay which I hung out on my balcony.

I had instructed everyone to upgrade their units to the latest code before we left. This would hopefully avoid us having any problems.

The ship I was on is Royal Caribbean’s Freedom of the Seas. She is 1,112 feet long, 209 feet high, and can accommodate 3,634 passengers and 1,300 crew on fourteen passenger decks.

Our cabin, 9598, was located MidShip on the Port (left if you are at the back looking forward) side of the ship. We had a balcony with our cabin. The group of 5 cabins total were all pretty close to each other on the same side of the ship. We were all on Deck 9.

Stateroom to Stateroom: We never had problems. Worked perfectly for the most part. I say that because one party in our group had constant problems with their GoTennas. In the end, one of them didn’t update properly and the other kept losing connection to the phone so they never got messages. When I realized that one wasn’t updated they tried to do it and I thought it worked. We were able to chat with that party for most of the day but then that night, the unit died and wouldn’t power up. Their other unit would receive but not send messages. Definitely not good with their units. Not sure what happened there.

Throughout the Ship: I think the general consensus was that the GoTenna’s worked great throughout the ship. We were “regularly” relaying through one or two nodes so I am sure that the fact many of us had a GTM helped. There were some times where the message would not go through at all. I personally recorded successful messages from Deck 5 Midship to Deck 9 Midship, also from Deck 5 Forward to Deck 9 Midship and usually through one or two relay nodes, and from Deck 3 Aft (dining room) to Deck 9 Midship. The last one being a stretch considering all the steel the messages would have to go through.

On the Islands: I’d say the only island I can remember using mine is St. Maarten where we communicated with some of our friends who were further down the beach from us and also one person communicated with his wife on the ship which was over a mile away from us. I also used mine while I was in the port area in St Kitts to chat with my wife who was still on the ship. Most often those messages were relaying but I did get a few failed messages. While we were in Barbados we used the GTMs to chat with each other on the beach a bit but mostly when one of us was getting drinks to see what the others wanted.

In all, I am pleased with the performance we got and can only see things getting better from here. I am keeping mine and looking forward to the next adventure where I can use them.

Let me know if you have any questions.

If anyone is interested in purchasing reach out to me via private message and I can get you a code to save $20 in your first purchase.

Haven't sailed yet. Been doing testing in my office in downtown Manhattan with them though. We've easily been able to communicate with solid results for over 10 floors in the building. Consistent solid results. Then, we've done up to floor 30 with some messages going through and some not with mixed results. I can't say I'm disappointed right now.

The plan on the cruise will be to have one mounted on our balcony on a 38 inch temporary mast in a Pelican box. This device will act as a relay. We are on deck 9 so the higher you go the better. If the way the ship docks my balcony is facing the island I am confident we will do fine with this setup.

Remember, the more people that have them the better off you are getting messages to go through.

Anyway, I should be back after the 15th of August and will be happy to share my results here. If you don't see anything please post a message in this thread just to remind me to do so. :)

Fred

Just realize that on a cruise ship the range will be drastically lower than anywhere else - where will you install them?

For optimum results we are going to wear them.

Some guests that used them on explorer of the seas were able to communicate with each other between the Crown and anchor society lounge and the theater on deck three. That’s pretty darn good.

We are sailing with a bunch of other people and I was hoping that they might pick up a set for them as well which would only make it better but so far no interest. They are on the costly side I’ll admit.

We just ordered a set of 4 GoTennas for our cruise next month. The reviews I've read seem good and I'm hoping this is not only a good way to keep in touch on the ship but also at ports of calls when needed. They have become pretty popular. If you look at the imeshyou.com maps you will see that there are many people that have even setup permanent relays. Look at Puerto Rico. They are all over the place since Hurricane Maria.

We booked the Hyatt Place San Juan/City Center for the pre-cruise night stay. It's really close to the port. A short cab ride away.

One thing to take note of... if you have been to San Juan on a cruise the cruise port in Old San Juan is NOT the one that cruises typically originate from. Royal usually originates from across the river at Pan American Pier 2. I called Royal and confirmed this for our particular sailing. Note that there are no shuttle busses due to union agreements / restrictions and Uber cannot pick you up at your hotel directly. A cab is the best way to go. Hope this helps.

Hey everyone! We are sailing RCCL out of San Juan / Pan American terminal in August and thinking of these two hotels for a pre-cruise night stay.

Does anyone have experience that can help us settle on one of the two other than on price alone?

I know that both don't offer shuttles (It's a PR thing) and even though they are really close we still need to take a cab from/to the Airport and to the Cruise Port.

Thanks in advance!

Fred

I think the question brings more questions.

Are you traveling solo or with a partner? Are there kids? Do you like snorkeling and calm waters?

To me Horseshoe is a beautiful beach but it can be crowded depending on the time of year you are going. If you don't like crowds I would check out Elbow beach or one of the many other beaches. A lot depends on whether you need facilities and food nearby as many of the beaches do not provide those conveniences. Tobacco looks nice but kinda small to me. It is somewhat enclosed so calmer waters inside the little inlet. If you are coming in via cruise at the Royal Dockyard then Tobacco is also the farthest away.

This post may have posted twice but the address for day passes at cocoreef is deals@cocoreef.bm you can also message them on their Facebook page

I spoke with someone at Coco Reef today and was told they no longer allow reservations or purchases for the day passes directly through the resort. They directed me to a third party company that manages day passes for many islands and resorts. Am I missing something?

The third party advises that towels are not included although the resort rep said they were. The third party advises that lunch is a 3 course lunch but the person on the phone said it was 2 courses.

Reviving this thread because I am looking for similar information. I called the Elbow Bay Beach club today and was told that the cost is $100 and that includes two beach lounge chairs and an umbrella and towels plus access to other amenities. I did not ask on the phone if that included access to the pool but I've read elsewhere that it doesn't. The representative told me that the cab ride from the Royal dockyard is approximately 45 minutes and should cost $35-$40 each way. He also told me that Mickey's is the only casual restaurant right on the beach which you can access.

I emailed the Coco reef resort and I'm waiting for them to get back to me. Will post an additional follow up if I hear back but I might just call also.

LOL those are my compass scans from my cruise. :) Funny to see they are still being shared.

Thanks for sharing your cruise with us.

Makes me look even more forward to our 29th sailing. :)

I was told by a royal Caribbean representative over the phone today that the perks mentioned on that page are now reserved only for ships that are Royal suite class. For example, I was curious about being able to order off the restaurant menus and having them bring the food to the suite. I was told that this is no longer offered on ships that are not part of the Royal suite class.

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Anyone book or stay in a two bedroom grand or royal family suite on Adventure (or other voyager class) recently that can tell me what perks it includes?

I'm told that many of the privileges have been stripped and are now limited to Royal Suite Class ships like Oasis and Quantum class.

Looking for feedback before I book. Thanks!

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Wow I need to consider taking this tour on our April 29th sailing.

I've read quite a few complaints that the beds are really hard on Anthem- have you found that to be the case? Does anyone know if the crew can alleviate that somehow? I have back issues and hard beds make me feel like I'm 102. :/

We were on Anthem last August and I thought the bed was firm but not hard by any means. I slept like a rock in it. :)

Also, I have one other question if you don't mind: how far ahead of time do you recommend we get to activities in the seaplex (bumper cars, trapeze, roller skating) in order to be one of the first few groups to go? Do people start lining up an hour in advance, or is it more like you should just get there a few minutes before the scheduled time? Thanks so much!!!

We were in line an hour before Trapeze school and there were sometimes people there before us. I'd get there early. This is a limited person activity. Both of my kids loved it.

Bumper Cars are also popular especially on the first few days of sailing. Towards the end of the cruise its easier to get on. They usually do like 4 or 5 groups I wanna say.

There is a washing station before you enter the WJ? I love that! Is it visible from when you get ready to walk in?

 

Sorry edited: I see it now...an opening before you go into the windjammer. I'm glad they added that!

The last time we were on Anthem many people were walking in and skipping the washing. They would squeeze past the people that were washing their hands. Pretty sad. These are real sinks by the way not just washy washy with hand sanitizer.

So glad I found this review Anthem has been on my list for awhile. Great start!! loving the videos Anthem is going my next cruise I book. Right now booked on Breakaway to Bermuda May 14

 

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Sue there is a 7600+ word review in my signature that I did of Anthem when we were on her last July/August. We are going back on her 4/29 for 7 nights.

Will it be fixed in Cocoa Cay?

My guess is they need time to get parts in and the delay to PC gives them some of that time? It may also be cheaper to troubleshoot and such while tendered at Coco than it would be to stay longer at PC? All just guesses but make sense to me as possibilities.

Hello!

Thank you for the wonderful review! Where else did the 6 hour tour on Bermuda take you?

We did a private tour of the island. Stopped at the beach and saw lots of nice sites including the business district and a lighthouse and a fort. Lots of great views. Also went paddle boarding. We used GAR tours and will use them again.

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Thanks for the great review! I actually saved it along with your cruise compasses. I am on a 9 night cruise next year (new England/Canada) and wonder if it will be similar so thank you!

 

 

 

I do have a question for you. I have seen a couple of reviews describing Anthem as more "closed off" than other ships. I have been on the Freedom class ships and Voyager class ships with the royal promenades. Does Anthem have a royal promenade or is it set up differently? I loved the pub on Liberty and being able to hang out and watch folks walk by. Just trying to get a vibe for how Anthem is set up. I haven't really seen pictures of the 4th and 5th deck. Thanks :-)

It does have a promenade just not like the freedom class ships.

It definitely doesn't have as much room and zigzags a bit. The shops are also very pricey. Seems like they are looking for different clientele on this ship. You can hang out at some of the pubs and watch people go by as well. When there are watch and jewelry sales it will be tough to pass by there due to the crowds.

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A great review. We will be with you in April of 17. Really looking forward to that cruise.

Did you join our group discussion for that sailing?

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Once again, thank you and one more question: Can you smoke every night in the casino or do they restrict it on formal night?

 

And yes, even smokers can be a PITA with smoking. Cigars and pipes don't bother me.

Wish I could be certain here but I'm not. We never went to the casino on our last cruise. The next one in April is just myself and my wife so I am guessing we'll hit it then. From what I heard it is a no smoking casino but again, I can't be sure.

Fred

This is exactly what I needed to read.

 

Booked Anthem yesterday for February and was having second thoughts until I read this. I was actually looking all over the deck plans to find "indoor smoking"and was hoping for a cigar bar (LOL).

 

Which deck is smoking permitted?

 

I'm planning on this cruise as a solo and hopefully won't be overwhelmed by the size of it all.

 

Thanks for posting!

There is a smoking area on Deck 5 but it is closed in a bit. Some people like it because it is quieter down there. I chose the other one on Deck 14. It's right by the pool just outside of the entrance to the Solarium. Funny thing is how people smoking didn't care for my coffee infused cigar and acted like I didn't belong there but...whatever. Made a few friends who were smoking cigars as well and bumped into them a few times. I preferred evenings there but I'll warn you, if the movie is playing by the pool you might want some headphones to tune it out. :)

The ship is really easy to get around. Wander around a bit on boarding day. You'll see. We used decks 3/4 and deck 14 a lot for end to end ship movement. We were on deck 8 Midship.

Elevators are slow and often packed but then again, that's most every cruise we have been on.

Majestic-NJ,

YOU JUST SAVED ME THOUSANDS!!! I feel like I was on your cruise. Lots of fun to read. Thank you for taking the time.

 

Also, a fellow NJ'yite

 

 

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I'm really glad you enjoyed the review. That's exactly why I like to spend the time doing them.

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I will be on Anthem next Sept. 9 nt Canada/NE cruise...can't wait to explore this beautiful ship!

In case anyone is interested check out the fairly detailed review from my nine night cruise back in late July into early August. Link is in my signature.

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