Cruiscs

27 minutes ago, Panda Monium said:

The stern looks great so far.

📷 ?

 

 

 

So that is how the deck 5 lifeboat & walking path area ends before the turn into the stern. 🙂 

 

Will it be a kind of waterfront promenade for this class of ship? 

9 hours ago, prmssk said:

Time of year makes a huge difference.  Personally, we prefer a few less kids and so avoid summer and school breaks.  Pre-pandemic, our early December cruise on the Harmony of the Seas had very few children and really was quite a nice cruise.

 

As for the difference between Celebrity and Royal, I don't think you can go wrong with either.  We have had great food, service, and experiences on both lines.  Personally, I think the food and experience is a bit more elevated on Celebrity but food especially is very subjective.  We also like Celebrity's Always Included fares that include the beverage package, wifi, and gratuities.  We prefer Celebrity because it is a more relaxed vibe and we like the smaller ships but don't hesitate to book Royal when Royal has a cruise that interests us. 

11 minutes ago, bonsai3s said:

Sounds like you had a great time..just hoping less kids. As you said and if you can...

- Cruise when kids are in school.

- Longer cruises = less kids.

- Spring Break = older, livelier kids.

 

Back in the day, cruising was mostly for us old people...fast forward to today and ships are multi-generational.  Grandparents, parents can enjoy the ships with their children and grandchildren.  Oasis class ships tend to attract a much younger crowd...even in the Caribbean.

 

You are young and it was your first cruise...you'll have fun trying many of the other cruiselines. That's what we did when we were much younge...we loved Celebrity. (Crazy to think that we sailed on Celebrity Mercury 4 times...beautiful ship, great service and great food.) When family, friends, and relatives started cruising with us...we started sailing with Royal Caribbean.

 

* Years from now, those of us that cruised immediately after the re-start, will fondly reminisce about the less than full capacity sailings...sigh.

 

We had a great time! As my partner said when docking next to celebrity silhouhette in Naples: that ship looks much quiter. It wasnt that bad but would  love to cruise Royal when kids are in school for comparison. 

1 hour ago, gumshoe958 said:

If you don’t want to sail with hundreds of kids, why on earth would you choose a family-friendly cruise line in the middle of the school summer break?

 

If you want a younger adult crowd with no kids allowed, try Virgin. Celebrity is fine but definitely much older.

As I said- our first cruise. How would I know? I have been to many family friendly hotels/resorts in the middle of the school summer break. It was never that busy around the pool.

7 minutes ago, alyssamma said:

This is probably the best, and most straightforward answer.

 

I would only add that I find food to be much better on X.

Thanks! We are fairly young (in our mid 30s). We like late night entertainment etc but can do without all the kids. Probably over 1000 on this cruise

Hi! 😊
Just came back from our first cruise in the western med on Wonder ( first week in august).

The good things: ship was amazing- there was so much too do. Entertainment was top notch and music was playing everywhere. Service was fabulous even with 6400 people onboard. We had 3 night dining package and dined at chops, wonderland and giovannis. All very good and intimate but kinda regret it because the  complementary food was just as good. Getting off and on at each port was very easy, no lines at all! Very impressive. The ship didnt really feel crowded-only on the pooldeck and windjammer. More on that later…

My favorite place was CP as it was so peaceful at night. Almost felt that you were the only person there. 
 

The not so good: pooldeck was a OVERcrowded all the time. Add it with screaming kids and loud music it was not very relaxing. Had to go to the upper decks in the front to get some relaxation. I get it at seadays but this was the case also when the ship was in port. Skipped Rome as it was too far and was planning to relax by the pool-guess we were not the only one thinking that. The chair hogs were in full force early on and not one single sunbed by the pool were available. 
The adult solarium was not that busy so that was nice. 
The staff in windjammer tried their best to clear tables and we were always able to find a table- but it was very very busy no matter what time you went. We tried the solarium bistro but it was the same. 
At night kids were running in the halls and elevators. 

So my question is how do Celebrity compare with Royal? Should we consider Royal again but in off season to avoid too many kids/noise? 

We really want to try the Caribbean next time. How are the oasis class ships in off-season? Still loads of kids and full capacity? What is the best time to cruise the Caribbean? 

 

3 hours ago, Fairsky84 said:

Looking closely at the plans, Icon definitely has a split/open superstructure like Oasis-class. We already knew that. Unlike Oasis which has two open spaces (Central Park and Boardwalk), Icon appears to have one large opening running almost the entire length of the ship. How they will manage this structurally is going to be interesting. 

doesnt look look like one open superstructure

I share the same toughts. Impressive ship, amazing food and service. I regret buying the speciality dining because the free food was so good. 
The only negative was the crowded pooldeck-even at portdays. And the ship is loud, not easy to find a quiet spot. Too many kids running around late at night. 
 

37 minutes ago, Itchy&Scratchy said:

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/472-mediterranean-eastern-western/

Thanks 

Hi. My first cruise next week. Will be on Wonder in the Med. Question about shuttle/taxi from the port. In Palma, does anyone know how much for taxi to palma nova beach? I know it is 10euro for a shuttle to city center but planning a beach day.

In Marseille is it correct that for a shuttle to center is 20 euro pp? Is this only one way or return? Also,  are there free shuttles in La Spezia? How long to city center from cruise port?

Thanks

13 minutes ago, BND said:

Nowhere does Royal say 48 hours.  Everything says 2 days.

In some Facebook groups people have said Royal said 48 hours. Even my TA recommended me to do it within 48 hours. 

Hi. Departing from Barcelona on a sunday. Does that mean you can take a PCR/antigen test anytime on friday? Have heard some say 48 hours before boarding time, while others  say 2 days. Which are correct?

Thanks! I forgot to mention that this is a «wellness check». Guess it is the same as boarding time?

14 minutes ago, Preziosa said:

I would Go early. If They let you board early it would Be a shame not to to Be there. We have always board early and No one did stop us. You have also payed for the first Day. Have a great Cruise. 

Im just a little bit worried as we have purchased dining package and are afraid it will be fully booked before we board. Same about shows etc… 

would be great to hear from people that have actually boarded in Barcelona if the boarding times are suggestions or enforced

11 minutes ago, Canadianmama3 said:

If you got 1pm then go at 1pm.  There will be people that got an earlier time then you.   They may let you check in before your time.   But you don’t know for sure, and you are given a time for a reason.   It’s not really fair to those who say got an 11:30 time, if everyone else gets in line with them.  

Thanks. First time cruiser here so appriciate all input

Those that have sailed from Barcelona. What is the earliest you can board the ship? The earliest option when completing on-line check in was 1pm. But I have heard people who board earlier than that. Not flying in on boarding day

25 minutes ago, twangster said:

Symphony's Central Park also looked "young" when it first launched.  It takes time and lots of TLC for a Central Park on a ship to grow into the lush setting that the established Central Park's appear to be.

 

On the Wonder inaugural I ran into Laszlo the man who oversees all Central Park installations across the fleet.  He's well known and Royal gives him a lot of leeway to manage the plant life we all love in all the Central Parks across the fleet.

 

Wonder's Central Park was installed based on the ship going straight to China.  Once it was determined they would redeploy the ship first to the US then to the Med Laszlo knew not all of the plants chosen for China would thrive or survive in the US and the Med.  Some will and the Central Park on Wonder has some species you won't find on any other ship. 

 

He told me he wasn't going to rip out live plants and install new ones just for the sake of making Central Park suitable for the US.  He would cycle in new plants known to handle the US climate better as some of the plants chosen for China faded. He showed me areas in March where the process was already taking place.  Some species just couldn't handle the weather and were starting to die off.   It's a process that will take time but it will also cost money which isn't exactly in abundance right now.  

 

In a few years Wonder's Central Park will flourish and be just as lush as others in the fleet.

Thanks for the input! Just hope that there are a lot of faded plants during my cruise next month😅

Is it me or does the CP on WOS look sparse compared to other oasis class ships? I can't see any large trees like on the other ships. Or does it take a while to grow? It is no many flowers or colored plants, only green plants.