Carolin

Over the years, I have learned that it is not a line but length of cruise. I prefer 7 days or longer.

I have never picked up anything on a cruise. Plane/office from co-workers yes so my last week before leaving on my trips, I work from home. lol :D

Please make sure there are no strings attached. You don't have to listen to a sails pitch etc.. And just a heads up, if you choose to accept this, you will have to pay taxes on it as well. :)

You do not need to purchase an excursion to go there. Just catch a cab. We had a great time there. Beach was very nice. clean restrooms and the food was not the best but interesting.

I picked up the basic drinking package on my last cruise. Was it worth it? That depends on how much you drink while on a cruise. Each drink costs around $7 to $8 ... basics like house wine, rum and coke, beer. It can add up. The package makes it so easy to not have to worry on what the final cost will be. no brainer.

buy the best travel insureance you can afford. Why? You never know when your going to need it. I got lucky. I was home from my cruise one week when I had a seizure.. out of the blue. I was in the hospital for a week and will have to go back in to get everything fixed. I can't even imagine how this would have played out at one of my ports. Heck.. I watched a person get air lifted out of Labedee while we were there. That could have been me. That is one expensive trip to a hospital. I don't even know where the person got air lifted to. Just saying.. that extra $200 dollars could save you thousands of dollars if needed. better safe then sorry is my motto.

if you can swing it and your paying double occupancy anyway, have your teen bring a friend. Its a sure fire cure to them being "bored".

Just a heads up. I've done this many times. my post cards always end up ggetting to the people Iv'e sent them to months aftere I sent them

I would call special needs department with what you need.

You will not have any issues. They are both valid and not expired.

I just got off. Can confirm that the pool in the adult area was fresh. :D

Rock the Boat played light rock for the most part. One night in one of the lounges, they took requests and played harder stuff. They were quiet enjoyable.

If you like caribbean music, there was another 4 person band that played on the lido deck. I think the name was Caribben Spice. I know I have the name wrong. They were also very good.

Oh.. I just remembered something. We went to the ice show. We enjoyed it very much.

A little setup first. My boyfriend and I sailing with another couple. We had a great time. A few little hickups along the

way but that didn't ruin our cruise one bit. I'll split up this review into categories rather then day by day.

Embark/Debark - Other then the parking being away from the terminal, it was pretty smooth.

Cabin/Steward - I booked an inside cabin. Plenty of space for two people. I was surprised that the bed

was made up with a egg crate pad without asking. Normal? Don't know but it was very comfy. Our cabin

steward's name was Choky. Awesome. The cabin was always tidy and he worked real hard throughout the cruise.

Did I miss out on not having a balcony? Nope. I slept like a rock. btw.. Loved that the shower had a door

rather then a curtain.

Ship - Lovely decore and easy to get around. It did take me a bit to get use to how the ship was laid out.

I liked the interactive screens near the elevators. I spent most of my sea days in the adult pool area

dangling my feet in the water. I tried to check out the entire ship and think I succeeded but I should

have taken a check list with me. hahaha I did like the promenade but preferred to be outside. Thats just

how I am.

Entertainment - Our group is nuts for trivia. I thought it was very well done. I enjoyed the live bands

in the various venues. My boyfriend loved the band Rock the Boat. We went to a few shows and enjoyed them.

We tried to watch a movie on the big screen but it was over run with teenagers. We bolted. LOL

Venues - Schooner bar was our destination most days for trivia but we loved the server Victoria from the

Ukrain. Ali from the adult pool bar always had a smile on his face. I stopped into Vintages for wine

tasting or an occasion glass of wine.

Food - We ate most of our dinners in the main dining room and were pleased with our meals. We ate breakfast

in the Windjammer as well as the main dining room. I enjoyed both places but my boyfriend preferred the

Windjammer. He likes to dine and dash. hahaha We had lunch at Johnny Rockets. Nice burger. On the last

night of the cruise, we ate at Giovanni's. Loved the dishes and dining experience.

Ports - I had been to St. Martian and Puerto Rico before and enjoyed both of them. We did spend some time

on Orient beach. My bad for forgetting bug spray. I knew better but it slipped my mind. I'm still scratching

from the "no seeums". Please take and use your bug spray when walking on the beach. We had lunch at the

Lazy Lizard which is on the boardwalk within walking distance from where the ship docks. YUMM. Nik the

owner was very attentive and the wait staff friendly and great. We took a cab in St. Kitts to Frigates bay.

Glen our cab driver was great. While most people stayed at the resort beach, we took a walk along the

shore. I had never seen black sand before. It was amazing. When we walked back to meet up with Glen

again I mentioned the black sand to other guests and they didn't even know it was there. So heads up..

take a walk and see the black sand. My biggest surprise was Labadee. I knew it was a private port for

Royal. It was so well kept and I could use my drink package. It was a hot day (duh LOL) so I spend some

time walking around and stayed in the shade. There was a group who performed dancing, fire eatting and

acrobatic tricks. That was fun.

Surprises - While checking out the ship, I was tapped on my shoulder and SURPRISE!! My boyfriend's mom

and stepdad were there. They booked without letting us know. It was a great surprise. We had been asking

them for years to join us. My boyfriend didn't know until after dinner the first night when we arranged

a surprise meet at the schooer. He was beyond delighted. First day of the cruise I ordered a drink and

was telling the rest of the group about the beverage package rules. Well the waitress over heard me talking

about it and let me know the policy had changed. I could order it just for me. My boyfriend doesn't

drink so this was great. I purchased it right away and it was so great and easy.

The not so fun surprise for me happened one afternoon on the lido deck. I walked out of the windjammer

doors and was headed to the right to walk up to the adult area. I hit a slick spot on the deck and down

I went right on my knees.My ankle turned a bit but not bad. I was wearing sandles that do have grip so

that surprised me a bit.After that, I tried to avoid wet spots whenever possible.

Overall - Great cruise.

I didn't even try to do everything on the cruise. I know better. hahaha I'll try to answer any questions

that you might have.

Sorry. They don't do anything extra. But you can order decorations and things like that to be there when you board.

yeah I realize that. My friends mom wants to come now so I was just asking for her as I was not sure. She thinks if we have more people it will be cheaper.

Thank you for responding.

Unfortunately, its not like renting a hotel room. You would need to move to a larger cabin and then pay the third person fare.

I dont know if this is fleet wide but I just got off of Independance of the Sea a week ago. I was able to purchase the beverage package just for myself for the cruise. I did not have to buy it for my boyfriend who doesn't drink. It was AWESOME. Just ask any bartender when you get on the ship. I was told that Royal changed their policy on this. :D I am one happy camper.

unfortunately, we have all been reading the recovery rate for many years. Getting anything back from lost and found is soso. Sometimes.. Awesome. other times.. not so much. The advice about turning it into insurance seems to be the last result. I really hope you get the ring back.

It's an easy walk to the Queens staircase and up to the "fort". We did the due it yourself walking tour.

http://www.frommers.com/destinations/new-providence/722464

Carnival Romance packages are available.

http://www.carnival.com/honeymoon-cruises.aspx

Thank you so very much for a preview of my up coming cruise. Now I'm even more excited about this cruise (if even possible HA). :)

Thats pretty rare to lose it from the curb to the ship. The thing that could happen is post cruise. They take your luggage on the last night and transport it to the terminal for pick up. You would be amazed how many passengers just grab a bag without checking the luggage tag to see if it is theirs and walk off. I cruise with just a carry on so my luggage never leaves my hand. If your going to put it out, make sure you can easily identify your luggage. Lots of people get very creative with the new patterned duct tape. :)

There's a ton of them just depends on how much you want to spend.

this is pretty much right across the street from the port.

http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/msymc-new-orleans-downtown-marriott-at-the-convention-center/

She will not be able to participate in teen activities. They don't really have anything structured. There will probably be a meet up for adults 18-20. She might meet some people at that.

You are going to regret asking... go to post #13 on this link... but don't say I didn't warn you :eek:

 

http://messages.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1564326

LMAO Everyone has a different idea of "sexy" HAHAHAHA