M&JfromSDL

Time for an update.

Pre-Cruise Hotel:

We stayed at the Riverside Hotel in Fort Lauderdale. Overall a decent stay. The hotels in FLL were incredible expensive this weekend and I was happy to find a AAA rate for $250. About 3 days before checkin I found what I believed to be the same hotel in Hotwire for about $50 less.

What I enjoyed about the hotel was its location. The public areas are a bit dated and our room was incredibly small.

It was a $19 Uber from the airport and a $10 Uber ride to the port. There are also a bunch restaurants within walking distance. CVS is roughly a 10 minute walk as well.

Here's a 360 spin of teenie tiny hotel room.

https://theta360.com/s/eclNS2ZdJmEcCNqt7VJTdfdSK

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Sunday, March 5th.

Since we don't have to get to the port early to secure Vibe passes like last year's NCL cruise, we decided to enjoy our morning in Fort Lauderdale and head to the ship later in the day. We hate waiting around the terminal so we figured we would take our time, grab a nice brunch and head over at a leisurely time.

I found a Cuban restaurant that serves traditional brunch items with a Cuban twist and also has a unique craft beer menu. It's called Colada Coffee Shop and Eatery.

Cuban food + beer? Sounds like my kind of place.

We walked over from the hotel despite the wind. Took about 20 minutes but it was worth it.

We started with 2 jam croquettes and a guava pastry. My wife ordered biscuits and gravy which was made with a Cuban bread biscuit and chorizo sausage gravy. It was very good. A little rich for me but a generous portion for $7.99.

I ordered eggs Benedict which had a Cuban biscuit with lechon (roasted pork), poached egg, pickled onions and a black bean hollandaise sauce.

For drinks we had the same brunch beers, Singel in Havana. Belgian Singel beer brewed with guava. Awesome!

We stopped at CVS on the way back to the hotel and checked out!

More on our hotel, The Riveside Hotel coming up.

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We are at home packing for our 3/19 sailing. Your review is great, so far. Thank you for including pictures.

 

As for the app, perhaps what was originally meant was the app for re-entry into the port at the END of the cruise. It's a Customs app called Mobile Pass.

Could be. We downloaded it and also packed our Global Entry cards so will update. Lots of cruise ahead of us before we have to worry about that!

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Wait- there's an app for easier check in? Someone please elaborate! We're on Allure April 9th.

 

Thanks OP for the updates- keep them coming!

Not sure an app would be necessary. We got out of Uber at 11:43am according to my receipt. I sent my grandmother a photo of us on the gangway at 12:08.

Been reading the winds are high and I think Harmony is skipping Nassau. How are the winds?

 

My friends just got back from Oasis today and said for the past 2 days they e been sea sick. Very windy. They were happy to disembark this morning. :-(

 

 

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It's windy here. We were informed the itinerary has changed and we are doing it in reverse. Which I actually prefer so it worked out.

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Noticed a cute Italian pastry place on the walk back to the hotel. I was craving something sweet. Wife ordered Gelato which she enjoyed and I had a couple of small cannoli which were also very good.

Great late night snack before turning in for an early bedtime.

Also, quick thanks to all of you who have followed and subscribed to the thread.

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Ended up riding back to downtown Fort Lauderdale then back around. Got off at Stop #8 and walked to beach place. Incredibly windy.

Thought we would grab a drink and people watch for a bit. Popped into Lulu's Bait Shack. Looked like a tourist trap so we bolted.

Walked down to Coconut's. 90 minute wait for a table. Good thing we ate earlier. We sat on their patio and enjoyed a cold beverage then decided to head back to the hotel for a sweater.

Walked back to water taxi. Waited 30 minutes but we were so cold we opted to Uber back to hotel.

By now my early dinner had worn off and I needed a little food in my tummy. We picked B Square Burgers and Booze. I would come here again for the atmosphere. The food was room temp at best and it was hard to get our drinks refilled. Nevertheless we had fun talking and people watching.

There's an art show on Las Olas this weekend. My wife poked through a few of the booths while I explored these works of arts! :-)

Aston Martin DB11

Rolls Royce Wraith

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We jumped off the water taxi at 15th Fisheries and enjoyed a late lunch/early dinner.

Let's get this vacation started. Luckily this pitcher of mojito was not as strong as it looked.

Clams were good. Sorry no before photo...only after.

Caribbean lobster was good. Waiter recommended blackened mahi mahi that was over seasoned.

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We landed at FLL right on time. We enjoyed a nice view of HoS and a few other ships while waiting for our gate to open.

Bags came quickly. We used UberX again to get to the hotel. I assume because it was a relatively short ride and there was a lot of traffic we had 2 drivers cancel their pickups. It took about 10 minutes total for the app to arrange our 3rd and final driver.

Someone mentioned designated pickup zones at the airport in another thread but our Uber and many others pulled right up to the arrival area.

Nevertheless it took us roughly an hour to deplane, grab our bags and drive over to the hotel. Not bad.

We dropped our bags, changed into shorts then headed for the Fort Lauderdale Water Taxi.

Did anyone else see the thread on here about 'Despicable Linecutters?' Well I found him...

It was breezy and a touch too cool on the water but the views were amazing.

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We used UberX to get to the airport this morning. We were lucky to find a driver 3 minutes away. DC traffic was light so we went from apartment to mimosas at the airport bar in about 40 minutes.

Passing Arlington Cemetery on the way in.

I booked with American Airlines because they offer convenient nonstop flights but I also have an AA credit card so our first 2 checked bags were free.

If you travel more than a few times a year I highly recommend getting an airline credit card with free checked bags. The annual fee for my AA card is $95 which just paid for itself on this one trip.

DCA is easily my favorite airport in the US.

Speaking of checked bags, while we were going through security I realized I packed my medication in said checked bag. That's like travel rule #2 broken. #1 being don't leave your medication at home.

We zipped through TSA Pre Check and grabbed a little breakfast at the airport bar.

Our very full flight boarded ontime and soon enough we were climbing out of the D.C. Area.

That moment you realize you packed the wrong iPhone earbuds.

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Saturday, March 4th

Everyone that has a cruise booked knows the anticipation is incredible. I find the reviews and trip reports here on CC a great way to pass the time. But alas, our turn is finally here! Hope this thread helps all of you with upcoming cruises daydream a little about your future cruise.

I've written about our previous cruises but this is my first "live-ish" thread. I say live-ish because I committed to my better half that I would not be glued to my iPhone while on vacation.

I will do my best to update this thread as the week progresses but may not reply to questions as rapidly.

That being said... let's kick this vacation off.

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We don't want to be stuck with a tour and a bunch of people in a van/bus, especially when everyone's hammered by the end of the day, that's the problem. We'll probably just hire a taxi. Thanks though.

We went to Mezcalito's last year. I love the east side of the island and plan to return when we are there next month. Despite the rougher water, the area is beautiful and there are far less crowds.

I agree the idea of being stuck in a van tour with a bunch of drunk cruise passengers does not sound appealing. However, I will 2nd what someone else suggested, try and arrange a return taxi when you are dropped off. There were long stretches of time where a taxi did not pass by. I imagine if you head further away from town (toward Coconuts, etc.) that it may even be a bit more difficult.

Not sure where you are planning to stay in Miami, but if you are in the Miami Beach/South Beach area most hotels charge an exorbitant amount of money to park overnight.

Also, at FLL airport where do you go to get an uber once you request one?

You will select the airline you arrived on when requesting the ride. Once the driver is assigned, I usually text the door number for easier pickup.

Same here. I am about to start 8 days in a row work today. Vacation is on the other side though. It's 70 degrees here in Virginia so we got a nice preview of what Florida will be like next weekend.

Enjoy your vacations everyone! Happy cruising!

My staple cruise drink is a Grey Goose L'Orange with Soda water and a slice of orange. Cold, refreshing and the citrus adds a clean flavor. Sometimes I'll have them add a splash of sprite. My wife drinks Stoli Rasberry and Sold Water with a slice of lime.

I would pack 2 bottles in a bag tagged for 1 cabin; 2 in a bag for the other cabin. If I were a betting man, no one will catch it.

The sign at FLL (last Friday) said no earlier than 4 hours before departure.

Which is why I thought the Valet program was a good idea. 4 hours before would put me at roughly 9am. FLL at 9am on a Sunday is a zoo.

We have used the luggage valet many, many times - just my husband and me and with large groups - knock on wood, we have never had a problem. We just got off the Harmony with 20 in our party - all luggage arrived at our final destination. We will use it on our May cruuse on the Allure.

 

What disappoints me about the problem the passenger had is the lack of response from Royal Caribbean.

 

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Glad to hear a few good experiences. The lack of response is disappointing. I wonder if RCCL uses a vendor to provide the service. Might be worth looking into and contacting the company they outsource to.

Very sorry to read about your experience. My wife and I were planning to use Luggage Valet when we disembark Allure next month. Since our flight is not until 1pm we figured we could Luggage Valet our bags to the airport and jump in an Uber and grab brunch before our flight. Maybe we will just Uber to the airport, drop bags and then poke around for a bit.

WOW! Thank you so much for taking the time to reply.

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We had a mixed experience on the Getaway last year. A couple of quick points as I head out to work:

• Getaway food was hit or miss, but we find that to be the case with most cruises nowadays. We like the variety of restaurants on Getaway but did not like having to plan out meals/times far in advance with reservations.
  
• The Allure is obviously a much bigger ship and much more spacious. We had Vibe passes on the Getaway and I think I would have to have them (or Haven Access) because the pool areas on the Getaway are jammed.
  
• We found bar service, etc. to be much better on Royal. I think the spread of the drink package and included gratuities has led to the decline since there is less opportunity to tip on the fly.
  
• Our Getaway cruise was an awesome deal. We booked a Spa Balcony with Drink Package and Dining Package for about the cost of a Boardwalk balcony on Allure without the add-ons. So despite the shortfalls in certain areas, it was a much less expensive vacation.
  

Overall, for the right price and itinerary, I wouldn't hesitate to sail the Getaway again. We decided to book an Allure cruise for next month because we enjoy Royal and it was a good deal. Either way I don't think you can go wrong.

Hey everyone. We will be in Cozumel next month during our Allure cruise. My wife and I love to eat and hope some of you can suggest a restaurant for a really great lunch or dinner. We are adventurous eaters. We really enjoy experiencing different dishes originating from various regions of Mexico. We are completely open-minded; up for something dressier and elevated; or off-the-beaten path and casual. What we are not looking for is the typical Americanized Mexican food (guac, nachos, etc.).

We have a handful of favorite places in Playa del Carmen but don't think we want to bother with taking the ferry over.

Thanks in advance for the suggestions.

For pick up by helicopter the ship can't be stopped. It is required. to maintain a certain speed for stability of the fronthelicopter pad.

There was a thread on here earlier from a passenger who stated they were scheduled for a medical evac at 12:30pm.

If you are interested in Passion Island, do yourself a favor and search for Mitsgirly's photo intensive review of this excursion.

I'd say the biggest thing to worry about in those 2 ports is carrying enough cash (safely) to last you. ATMs are hard to come by and there were a few shops/bars we ran into in Cozumel that didn't take credit cards.

Flew Allegiant a couple times to visit family in WNY when they had nonstop flights between FLL and IAG (now discontinued). But no way would I fly them when timeliness is required as in having a ship to catch. Not only will they not put you on another airline if your flight is cancelled (a fact common to all non-legacy carriers) but they will ONLY rebook you on the EXACT same route, however many days later it is. Say you had a nonstop from city X to your cruise they will under no circumstances put you on an indirect X via Y to your cruise even if available and the only way to get to your cruise on time--making them one notch below even Spirit. .

This has prevented me from flying Allegiant. Frankly, Souhwest has the same policy of not rebooking on other airlines so I will typically only fly them home from a cruise.