Richjoxyz

I can see the Jewel from our hotel window right now. We are boarding in just a couple hours!

These ships are nicely finished. The craftsmanship is high end. They are elegant, and have great views.

On Holland America they serve the midnight buffet at 4:00 PM!:D

One of my most memorable nights cruising was in St. Maarten at Christmas. There were 9 ships in port. Had a wonderful day at the beach and then cracked a bottle of champagne on the back deck of the ship. It was sunset, and most of the ships were anchored. One by one they turned and exited the harbor. We were one of the last to leave. We saw everything from the Oasis to an NCL ship with the fancy paint job. It was awesome.

If the cruise is at Christmas time stay away from Aruba. Aruba has bad weather every Christmas.

You know, this is actually a pretty good idea! LOL, why didn't I think of that! I guess I was eager to just use the darn thing in fear of it sitting in the drawer for ever.

Nonetheless, there is not enough incentive for me to buy one again, especially considering the terms and restrictions.

We purchased a future cruise last year while on the Jewel. We paid $100 deposit and were promised $100 OBC.

We recently decided to go on Jewel again and used our future booking. (We leave in one week!) However, when we booked, about a month ago, RCI was offering a $200 OBC. We were told that we cant have both the OBC's! We had to select either the $200 or the $100.

I will never purchase another ever again. This left a bad taste in my mouth.

70,000 ton to 110,000 ton, that's our range. (Some in the 110,000 to 130,000 have been okay too.)

Voyager class and up feel like being at the mall during Christmas.

The smaller ships have an older more matured crowd and are a bit more polite. They provide a more relaxed cruise in our opinion.

We are in our 50's.

My parents who are in their 70's, LOVE the huge ships!

If you search Jewel balcony pics you can see the balconies on deck 7.

Please elaborate. What is significant about deck 7, foward balcony cabins?

How much "motion of the ocean" are we talking? How much loss of privacy?

Concerned. :(

The balconies are larger, but the balcony dividers are the same as the rest of the ship resulting in a foot or two of railing extending from the divider to the main exterior railing. If someone is standing on the corner of the balcony I suppose they could easily look into your stateroom if they decided to.

We are social people so we are not too worried about getting to know our neighbors. We actually look forward to the spacious balcony.

The front of a ship usually has a little more motion than the center of the ship, but again, not a huge difference. I prefer the motion of the front over the vibrations of the aft. Mid ship low is generally the best ride.

I've not seen Royal go to Turks & Caicos in my memory.

We sail on the Jewel in two weeks! Please tell us more about your trip. How was the entertainment?

This is our schedule for our trip:

St Martin: Cab to Little Divi Beach. It’s the next beach to the downtown beach. It is very close, very short cab ride. Nice little beach bar, calm water always, and pure sand with a gentle slope into the water. We swam out to the floating tiki bar where they have the underwater walking course with the dive helmets. Cab back to downtown have a beer on the boardwalk while wife shops. Walk back to ship.

St Kitts: Cab to the Marriot. Walk through the lobby straight to the beach. Swim and snorkel all day. Cab back and sit at the cruise terminal bar and have a beer or two while wife shops.

Antigua: Cab to Valley Church Beach. Beautiful setting and great for swimming. Nice little beach bar. Cab back to town. Have a beer at the terminal area bar while wife shops.

St Lucia: Cab to Rodney Bay (Reduit Beach). Perfect Caribbean beach. Clear water, soft sand pretty setting, nice beach bars. Cab back to cruise ship terminal. No shopping for us in St Lucia as shops are not near the ship. They are a long walk, or short cab ride away. ALTERNATE: Might do the Ti Kaye Resort day trip snorkeling tour. (Best trip in Saint Lucia for those that have already seen the Pitons and Marigot Bay, etc.) Must have a Pitons Beer.

Barbados: Cab to Carlyle Bay Beach (Boatyard and Lobster Alive area). Nice pink sand, calm water, nice beach bars. Cab back to port. Must have a Banks beer.

We sail the Jewel in two weeks. We have a forward balcony on deck seven. We know about the larger balconies. If you have sailed in one of these, how is the ride? We usually stay mid-ship, but we are way up front this time!

Would like to hear experiences in these cabins, good or bad. Thanks

Hello, my name is Richard, and I am a cruisaholic!!!

God, grant me the wisdom to accept the things I cannot change, the serenity to stay sane until my next cruise, and the wisdom to book another one SOON!!!!

Jewel of the Seas in TWO Weeks!

Carnival Liberty B2B at Christmas!

We always grab a case of water, tape on a luggage tag, and have the porters deliver it to the room along with our bags. It's nice to have cold water in the room, and cold bottles to bring to port each day.

We clear out the fridge and put everything in our empty luggage before placing the luggage under the bed for the week. The fridge is full of nice cool water, and the bar is full of nice cold beer!:D

Jewel of the Seas...23 DAYS!

Carnival Liberty B2B...119 DAYS!

Not sure why eating is the 1st thing folks want to do on a cruise...but yes...if you get there early, the WJ isn't crowded at all.

Is there something else to do on a cruise? What have I missed!

Jewel also has the Seaview Cafe (on one of the top decks at the back). That's where we went last year. Going back again in September. They have fish and chips, salads, and other hot foods.

We purchased a future cruise last year while sailing on the Jewel. We paid $100 deposit and were told we would receive $100 OBC when we decided to select a cruise at a future date.

Well, we recently decided to go on the Jewel again this September. When we booked the cruise RCI was offering a $200 OBC. We were told we could not combine our $100 OBC with the $200 OBC, and we had to pick one or the other.

I wont buy another one ever again. I feel a bit ripped off with regard to what they offered vs what they delivered.

I agree to some extent, but RCI ships are some of the most elegant ships afloat with higher budgets spent per ship than other cruise lines.

Still no cabin assignment. It's 10 PM and I sail tomorrow. I called Carnival and they said not to worry, I will be assigned a cabin tomorrow.

I don't think it will be a suite because they are all booked, and they gave me the impression that none we held back for unassigned passengers like myself.

I booked an ocean view.

I ate so much one day that I stretched out the hull a little bit on the Imagination, that's why it's bigger!

I would describe it as relatively minor, but it is a slightly erratic vibration rather than a smooth motion. I prefer smooth motion over erratic confused vibration. All in all it is not that big of deal, and of course it varies from ship to ship.

nope, hoping they give me one of the suites that is not yet booked

but, good idea, i will call tomorrow

My cruise on the Imagination leaves on Thursday and I still don't have a cabin assignment!

If you are doing the three day weekend cruise, the Imagination ends on Sunday morning vs Monday morning on the Inspiration.

I choose Sunday Morning traffic in LA over Monday morning traffic any day.

The freeways are dead on Sunday mornings, makes the drive home nice and quick.