CGBCruiser

On 12/9/2019 at 8:06 PM, kruzerci said:

His comment is appropriate. Galveston’s infrastructure and traffic patterns can barely/can’t handle the smaller ships that sail from there now. We’ve sailed out of about 10 ports and never experienced anything like the disaster that is sailing from Galveston. It’s great that it is convenient to the middle of the country, but that’s about it. It’s rough. 

The new port will be closer to the Gulf than the two currently are...pretty sure it's going to be close to John Sealy Hospital area as it will be needed to accommodate larger ships than currently sail out of Galveston. 

Flew domestic last month didn't have any changes to precheck. Didn't take anything out of carry on or backpack.

I fly quite often and haven't noticed any changes to the TSA Precheck.

Baytown: Nope..no local support..ie, parking, hotels, restaurants, entertainment...plus the long time it takes to get down the ship channel. Galveston: strong infrastructure, destination already, and, almost more importantly, the support of the island population and politicians.

But we all speculate, and hope, at this point in time, only a potential plan.

And my guess it would be Oasis class, not one of the newbies.

I heard it was Oasis.

With a perfectly good terminal and pier in Baytown, why don't they sink a few million in that and build it up. Just a little ways up the bay and no problems getting from the airports in Houston over there.

 

Such a waste.

I think it also has something to do with absolutely nothing around Baytown. Nobody wants to go there.

Seem to be inching closer to a deal to build a 3rd cruise terminal fueling speculation that an Oasis class ship will home port in Galveston! :cool:

I have actually heard this from a travel agent who got the scoop straight from RCCL. Guess we'll wait and see! ;)

NOT a cruise line issue! Blame the air carrier. Schedules are "adjusted very 3 months, sometimes by a minute or two, sometimes, total chaos. Of course JetBlue will blame the cruise line. And yes, since it is booked thru a third party, they have to have you work with the cruiseline. If there was a "cruise critic" for alirlines", that is where this post would belong.

Exactly! This is not Air2Sea that changed your flights. It's the airline.

Our have shown up a few days after the e-mail acknowledgement. We also print out of the confirmation...never had a problem but waiting for the day I get the blank stare from customer service onboard when they try to say, "sorry sir, we have no record of that. I lack trust.

I always sweat it out too! Never had a problem but I do check it often and make sure it's there!

I used 75,000 to reduce my cruise by $750. Then after the cruise was paid off I redeemed another 50,000 to get onboard credit. I used it to purchase cruise tours and dinner!

$10 per night! :eek::eek:

I would say no more than $5 per night is very acceptable!

Back up the stairs we went, which was even harder this time around since we were so stuffed, and then to our room.

 

It was extremely hot in there. There was a sign on the door saying that if you are not going to be in the room to conserve energy and keep the a/c off. So the minute we came back on it went!

 

 

Um...On??? I couldn't get it to do anything. I went out to tell the front desk. He came to our room. He couldn't get it to work either. He said he would have to call maintenance. We opened up the windows and the door to try to get a little bit of air circulation going, but it didn't work too good. He later came back and said they were going to "reset" the a/c in our room (like kick a breaker or something is the way he explained it).

 

YIPPEE! It came on.....

 

 

....for about 5 minutes and off it went again. UGH!

 

Back to the front desk I went to let them know. He would once again call maintenance to reset it.

 

It came back on and shut back off and NEVER CAME ON AGAIN after that. Oh just great. By the time I went back to the front desk, he had already pulled out 3 fans and was getting prepared.

 

Now came the excuses...

"That's weird, we've never had a problem with the a/c before".

"That room has never had any issues" <--meaning what? Others do?

"Well at least you can open the windows all night for some air" Are you serious? I'm not leaving my windows open all night for bugs to fly in, pigeons to fly in and possibly mosquito's as well. I remember last time we were here all they reported was the West Nile virus going around and with the recent hurricane and dampness...I'm not chancing that! Then remember there was a restaurant/bar in the alley across from us. With the windows open, you could hear everything. With them closed, not so much.

 

...last but not least...(I'm still rolling my eyes at this one)...

 

"Your room ONLY is on an entirely different a/c system and not the same as the rest of the hotel. I'm not sure why. But the rest of the hotel a/c is working fine. It's just your room." SERIOUSLY? Why in the world would ONLY ONE room in the entire hotel of 3 floors be on a different a/c system? :eek:

 

Of course they said they were fully booked and couldn't offer me another room. He told me that the manager comes in at 7am and I should talk to him about it.

 

He provided us with 3 fans, 2 of which were on a timer of 60 minutes and you had to wind it up every 60 minutes...which means that after 1 hour of falling asleep, you wouldn't be getting any air from those 2.

 

This was not going to be a good night. A hard bed, the thought of bugs and no a/c. I headed off to take a cold shower to prepare myself for the night.

 

After the shower, time to try to relax...only how? There's NO T.V! Say what? The description online said tv. The room even said if there's a problem to call the front desk. Guess what? No phone either! It would be an early to bed night for us.

 

Sakari finished her drawing and I'm not sure at what point she headed to bed. I was too busy tossing and turning while rolling in my sweat. :(

 

Reminds me of a trip to Florence, Italy...staying at the Hilton Garden Inn. It was really hot in our room because it was 85 outside. Well, I went down to the front desk to complain and was told they don't turn the air conditioning on until after May 5th due to government regulations. They said they would bring us a "personal ventilation device." Yep...it was a fan. Miserable night!

JEWEL OF THE SEAS

 

I have cruised with Royal Caribbean only once and it was back in the 90's (or it might have even been in 2000), on the Majesty of the Seas. So, basically I'm a "newbie" to Royal again I guess you could say. I've always wanted to try them again, but their prices are just so outrageous every time I've looked. I did some research (since we always cruise at Spring Break) and found that the Jewel, cruising out of Puerto Rico, was a price that I just couldn't pass up! FINALLY! I would get to try out Royal again. I booked and was super excited!!!!

 

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We'll start with the "formalities" and get that out of the way. (Mostly copied from all of my other reviews, because things don't seem to change too much) with any updates we might have added/adjusted.

 

PLEASE NOTE>>> My reviews are LONG...as in VERY LONG, with a lot of details, A LOT of pictures and this is the experience of my family on the cruise, sorta like a blog.

 

*So, if you are not into long reviews and want something short, sweet and to the point...this review is not for you.

 

*If you expect this review to be done quickly and you don't like to wait...this review is not for you.

 

*If you don't like personal details of our daily activities, this review is not for you.

 

*If you expect me to sugar coat everything, this review is not for you.

 

*If you think I tell you about something that wasn't appealing or I didn't really care for or seen happen and you consider me "complaining" or unhappy...this review is not for you.

 

I'm open, I'm honest, we have a good time no matter what, but I report everything I see. It doesn't make or break my cruise or experience and I always manage to have a great time no matter what.

 

It's sad I feel the need to say these things with my reviews now due to certain people who like to come on a be rude in the past.

 

However, if you like to laugh, get a chuckle every once in awhile, think of our family and some of the things we do that could be pictured on "the people of Walmart" and want details and pictures of places...you have come to the right place.

 

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ABOUT MY FAMILY AND WHO CRUISED THIS TIME:

 

This cruise was myself, my husband and Sakari (pronounced just like it's spelled Sa-Kar-ee, our now 9 year old daughter who will be turning 10 next week). This time, my 3 adult children would remain home (Kenny-31, Kendra-29 and Kolin-23).

 

Kendra, usually tries to cruise with us (pulling along my grandson B, sometimes her fiance, and the last cruise her daughter Kam). But she bought a house last year and they completely gutted it and made it "brand new" and they have been working diligently on trying to get it finished the week we were gone so that they could move in this month. Although it was a hard decision to make, she decided to sit this one out.

 

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My Cruising Experience:

 

As you can tell from my signature line, we mainly cruise with NCL and I have been trying to cruise the entire fleet but have been adventuring out over the last few years with Carnival.

 

In the 80's and 90's I also sailed with NCL and Royal Caribbean. So, this will actually be my 2nd RC cruise.

 

This will make my 21st cruise, my husband's 19th cruise and Sakari's 18th cruise...I think? After awhile, things are starting to run together.

 

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ORGANIZATION FOR THE REVIEWS:

 

People always ask how I organize for my reviews and it takes A LOT to put together a review like this. Once I decided to post how I personally organize for my reviews and if you are interested, it can be found HERE-1ST HALF and the 2ND HALF HERE.

 

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CAMERAS:

 

I am constantly questioned about what type of camera's I use for my reviews.

 

Several years ago I decided to purchase my first Olympus point-and-shoot camera (not by choice, but because I had one of my many "bloopers" with my Canon cameras). I have loved the Olympus since that purchase that we actually have quite a few of them.

 

This entire review was shot with my Olympus Tough TG2 & a few with the 620. I take my model 620 & 830 along with me for back up because you never know what might happen and I would be devastated if I was without a camera. Last Christmas, we also purchased Sakari her own camera (the 620 model) and she uses hers as well.

 

I'm a photography FREAK! Always have been. I do have a DSLR with tons of equipment, lens, and so on, but I find that I just don't want to lug it around with me on a cruise...and of course it's not waterproof.

 

When I process my photo's, I do take it in to PS (I have to get my watermark on there somehow) and I have an "action" that resizes the picture for a more appropriate posting size, and sharpens for web and I put my stamp on it. Every once in awhile I'll get a really crappy picture that just needs something (like white balance) done to it and I really want to share it and I might white balance it. For the most part, I don't do much of anything...no one has time for all that with the thousands of pictures I take!

 

I take thousands of pictures on vacation and I do a lot of walking and snapping. Yes, I may get some outstanding photos and quality, but for every good picture I get, there may be 3 bad ones. You win some, you lose some. I've been known to stand in a spot and take 3-5 pictures of the same thing, using different settings on the camera, just to get what I'm looking for to share. That's just me.

 

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ABOUT MY REVIEWS:

 

I am a very open and honest person. Everyone has a different expectation and experience, but I report how I feel during mine. You may or may not agree with my thoughts or views, but that's the beauty of it...everyone is different and all thoughts and comments are welcome.

 

We are a fun loving and outgoing family that, for the most part, don't get upset about much and roll with the punches. We've had a lot of "bloopers" (especially when the kids come along=Kendra lol), but it is what it is and I have learned over the years that getting mad or upset doesn't solve the problem and only takes away from the fun, so I try not to dwell on bad things (although I will always report them...not to be a Debbie-Downer, but to show this is the experience I had and how it contributed to what was going on at the time) and I move on.

 

We are BEACH people. So, if you are the touristy type of person that likes historical stuff, seeing the sites, or likes to do the land tours, this review might not benefit you too much as far as the ports. If there's a beach, we will be there! I have to drag Sakari the Mermaid out of the water every place we go. So, to the beach it is for us.

 

Sakari decided in 2016 that she wanted to "be a scuba diver" and took classes and became a certified PADI Seal that year. In December of last year, she finished all the PADI classes and became a MASTER PADI SEAL!! I think she was one of the first at her scuba shop to complete the program. They made quite a big deal over it. Now, she is just going to class monthly and repeating the classes for the fun of it.

 

So, you will find us doing some scuba diving in reviews as well.

 

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LAST BUT NOT LEAST: WHY I DO THE REVIEWS

 

My reviews are meant to be helpful to others looking for information. I'm a "picture" kinda girl and if I'm looking for information, give me a picture to help me understand and it will go 10x further in helping me with a decision. So many of you wonderful cruisers have helped me decide places to try out, shared your experiences with me, and even cruised with me....and this is my way of thanking you and continuing to help others the way they have helped me.

 

I'm keeping this "opening" a little shorter than normal. Most people around here know me and I hate to constantly repeat things...so if you want a more detailed "opening" statement, you are welcome to click on one of my other reviews (in my signature line) and it will give you more info on us.

 

With that said...I hope you enjoy the review.

Following!

Port Canaveral is an hour or so away from the airport in Orlando.

Nobody really complains about that and calls it a hassle...

Civitavecchia is at least an hour from Rome and much more expensive to get to than from Houston to Galveston. Everybody still goes, including me. ;p;p;p

We stayed at the Catalonia Barcelona Plaza Hotel on Plaza de Espana. It wasn't far from the beach and in a neighborhood with lots of restaurants and shopping. Right next to Arenas de Barcelona Shopping Centre. Watch your belonging while in Barcelona. It is full of pickpockets! Especially in Las Ramblas.

We did a Mediterranean cruise on Jewel last year.....Amazing!

 

Sent from my VS995 using Tapatalk

We are going to cruise the Greek Isles on August 26th! Plus we are going to Rome a few days early and do some exploring before we sail!

We did a Mediterranean cruise on Jewel last year.....Amazing!

 

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We're doing this cruise in August! Can't wait!!!

Following along!!! We are booked on a Greek Isles Cruise from Rome on 8/26/18! Never sailed on Jewel but have sailed on Radiance twice. Hope she's in better shape than Radiance was two years ago in Alaska.

This is awesome! Every once in a while we would love to do a short cruise ( and usually shorter notice) we can drive to but refuse to do Carnival anymore. Whoo Hooo!

Same here! Carnival has definitely held the market here on short cruises with three ships sailing out of Galveston and the only line that has 4 and 5 day cruises. :D

One other thing...and something I did not include on my letter. When we boarded the ship, our cabin was beautifully clean. However, the balcony was extremely dirty and had paint chips all over it, apparently from work that had been done overhead. Could not walk out there in stocking feet until it was cleaned the next morning. Later in the week, we also had a note left on our stateroom door that maintenance would be done on our balcony...and arrived back on the ship to find our balcony again covered in paint chips. Minor, I know, but it was just another annoyance.

I sailed on Radiance the week before you. I agree that the service was great on the ship. Our cabin steward, Sheryl, was wonderful as was all the waitstaff and all others we encountered. I will say that the ship itself is getting a little shabby. We had a JS and the chair in our cabin was badly in need of new upholstery (as well as many others on the ship) and it was definitely time to redo the bathroom! The Solarium is in bad need of a refurb. Hand rails had chipped paint with large sections missing paint, tiles need to be replaced, etc. Just really general upkeep. Even my husband noticed all the things that need to be redone. I have sailed on other older ships with RCCL and none were in need of a refurb like this one. So, that as a disappointment to me. Time for a total refurbishment.

They did a little more than marine maintenance. Here's a report from a news station covering the employment story on Radiance refurb.

http://koin.com/2016/05/12/dry-docked-ship-brings-jobs-money-to-portland/

Is there ingo available on all the changes that were done during dry dock which was just completed?

Here's a link to the news station that did a report on the ship. You can see that they actually did quite a bit.

http://koin.com/2016/05/12/dry-docked-ship-brings-jobs-money-to-portland/

Not yet! Sailing on Radiance this coming Friday! Will let you know how it goes.

Read somewhere that there sometimes is a good discount for first night at a specialty restaurant.

 

Would we need to go to the restaurant early in the day to request this?

When we were on Oasis we were in the Viking Crown Lounge and someone came up to us offering discounts at a specialty restaurant, but we didn't have to go the first night. We went a couple of nights later.

Does that mean that we arrived until 11:00?

It means boarding begins at 11:00 a.m. which is really early! They usually post boarding time at 1 p.m. in Galveston.

Oasis was the easiest ship we've ever been on for getting on and off in ports. Very organized with security screening done in buildings before you back on the ship.

I heard that it's also getting some worn out furniture/carpet replaced also. Someone that just sailed from Alaska said they had already started doing some repairs before they got to Vancouver. It's been 5 years so I'm sure there is some wear and tear.