Familygoboston

it’s not all bad news! I have a menu! Day 3 Menu And I’ve been collection door decoration photos, just cause they are fun! I’ll keep collecting them and post a bunch during the sea days when we have more time! I’ll post more ship photos and some cabin photos along with some tips about the cabin during our many sea days. But off to bed tonight so we can “wing it” in Kalua Kona tomorrow- wish us luck, I feel like we are going to need it! 🤣’

Headliner Show Day 3 It all seemed so promising, like my Boston Bruins hockey team, which after a record breaking season and the two best goaltenders in the league, blew out a flip flop in the first series of the Stanley Cup Playoffs today. 😫 Steve Larkin- Mercury Rising was billed a Freddie Mercury tribute. Imagine the performer was to Freddie Mercury as older Elvis was to younger Elvis. The set started with a cut so deep that even the 80s kids in our group hadn’t heard of it. While playing the hits, he’d pass off the microphone to someone in the front row to do the falsetto! The crowd was streaming out of the theater like there was an abandon ship call! To be fair, finding an act available for 2 weeks at sea isn’t easy. An Australian performing for Australians probably made sense last week when the ship was mostly Australians but the act was lost in translation this week with so many Americans. And the “humorous” banter between songs went mostly over the heads of everyone in the audience except the people in the front row (who got all the falsetto solos.) One joke involving a play on the word “piles” was a “crappy” as it seems like it would be, making most in our group who understood the British term (for the results of the noro virus) just cringe. But our “Freddie” went out triumphantly wearing a crown!

Kanapali Beach/Black Rock Maui After an overnight in Maui, tenders began running at 8 AM, not tender tickets required today. Our group made their way from the tender on foot to the Boss Frogs store off of Front St at the corner of Lahianaluna and Luakini streets. Boss Frogs rents lightweight sun umbrellas and back pack beach chairs ($10 each) per day. Snorkel gear is also available. We then took an Uber over to Kanapali beach. Boss Frogs We told the Uber driver to take us to the Sheraton, but there’s a public access path just before your reach the Sheraton, and it’s marked with a blue sign. The beaches in all of Hawaii are open to all, so it’s no problem to cross through a private property such as a hotel to to access the beach, but it’s usually easier to find the public access. Additionally, all of the resorts on the beach offer bars and restaurants and shops. Our beach set up! Their are a few fun things to do here: For then young and brave (stupid) you can climb up the black rock and jump 30 feet into the ocean For the old and fearful (wiser) you can snorkel the base of the black rock, where there are lots of marine life! Friendly sea turtle R# and FGB snorkel the reef by Black Rock After a full day of sand and surf, everyone in our group made their way back to Boss Frog store to return rentals and walk back to the tender pier. So all in all, it’s sounds like the day went smoothly, doesn’t it? But you’d be wrong. So first RSharp forgot to bring his Sea Pass card with him to the tender line (roomie mistake and we mocked him ceaselessly for this) Then his adult daughters didn’t specify the Sheraton Kanapali for their Uber drop off and they ended up being dropped on the other side of the beach with the huge massif of the rock separating them from us in front of the Sheraton. After a fairly uneventful day (and exciting snorkeling !) We did not succeed in returning to the Boss Frogs very well! In separate Ubers, one party ended up at the WRONG Boss Frogs, 15 minutes away. A second party made the same mistake! And in the middle of all this drama- we received an email from our Kona Hawaii tour guide that we had lined up to take us to Volcano National park, had come down with, well you know… and could not take us out tomorrow on our last port day before 6 days at sea. We began scrambling to make alternate plans (no ships excursions left except the coffee plantation. There’s a possibility to rent a car, maybe take a helicopter tour, but this is why this is the “wingin’” it cruise! Headed to Kona now and we’ll be “winging it” We headed to dinner thinking “the day really can’t get worse” Then after dinner we sat through the 10 PM show of Steve Larkin, Mercury Rising, and things did in fact get “worse” 🤣

Yea Nancy! Ii remember you! And you do get big bonus points for being an OG! Yeah! oh my gosh- I can imagine that you missed the solarium, it’s really nice in there, we’ve been doing breaksaft every morning! Book it immediately! 🤣

GLITCHES AND OTHER INTERNET TALK Sorry for the double post! Uncle Elon is playing with us! 🤣 For some reason, looked like the photos didn’t go up, but then they did and now you have a double post! 2 for the price of one! I’m generous like that! You are welcome! But while we are on the topic- internet packages. We bought a a 1 device Voom Surf and Stream. On this ship, they are using starlink and we’ve had good success uploading photos (not as quickly as at home, but workable!) and downloading content like emails and photo rich social media apps. So far so good! So if you haven’t cruises in a minute because of …well, you know, this is how things have changed. Packages are still cheaper to buy early, during the Halloween, Holi, Arbor Day or puppy day sales, than to buy on board so we purchased early. Especially in summer with a lot of families on board for Alaska, I’d buy at the earliest time you can find, they won’t be begging you to buy it at a lower price later. This cruise has a lot of “we like to unplug” senior citizens onboard (IE I might not be able to work the internet without my 13 yo grandson) but AK cruises will be younger and fully connected. Don’t count on your cell service in most of SE AK, I was there recently and while you might get it in port, you won’t see bars in glacier bay or in the inside passage. So fingernail sketch of what’s usually on offer - surf: for emails and looking at SM surf and steam : for uploading pics, or downloading movies/videos You can buy ONE device and share it so long as the last person to use it logs off first (use log out.com) You can buy multiple devices (2 or 4 etc) and everyone can be on at the same time. Logging in is different too, the package you pre package is already linked to you and when you join the RC Wi-Fi in settings, you’ll have a browser window pop up. You can select FREE if you just want to use the RC app. If you have a package you select the other option and it prompts you put your name in, and make a PIN number (remember this is you plan to be logging in and out to share) You’ll be logged in with whatever package you bought and ready to go. Easy peasy, no codes, no lines to stand in, no redemptions to do. If you get stuck they staff the technology “bar” with staff to help and upsell you! If you are sharing the internet - Go to log out . Com and it will log you out of the internet and your partner can log in using the same pin you had. Then have them log out when they are done, rinse and repeat!

Shows at a glance

Shows at a glance

Day 2 and 3 cruise compasses ( all in line now)

As you can see Hike Maui did an awesome job! Although the hike is not long, about 2 miles, it was rough (wear closed toe amphibious sandals or hiking boots- possible bring both) if you don’t wish to swamp your boots. 😳 We swamped our boots because it made us feel rough and rugged and like we were really hiking in a rain forest! Here’s our boots- beware if your don’t want this to happen to you! IMG_9881.MOV

Quantum of the Seas in Lahaina Maui at night.

Lahaina Maui at night After the ceremony we took an Uber back to Lahaina, where we wandered. We enjoyed a gelato at Banyon Treats near Banyon tree park and wandered a bit around the shops. Did you McFleetwood has a bar here? Also, we found a place to rent chairs, umbrellas and snorkel gear at Boss Frogs which is just off of Front street in Lahaina. Tomorrow we’ll get there in the morning and head back to Kanapali Beach for a day in the sunshine. IMG_9293.MOV

Lahaina Maui at night After the ceremony we took an Uber back to Lahaina, where we wandered. We enjoyed a gelato at Banyon Treats near Banyon tree park and wandered a bit around the shops. Did you McFleetwood has a bar here? Also, we found a place to rent chairs, umbrellas and snorkel gear at Boss Frogs which is just off of Front street in Lahaina. Tomorrow we’ll get there in the morning and head back to Kanapali Beach for a day in the sunshine. IMG_9293.MOV

Black Rock Beach at Sunset We have an overnight in Lahaina Maui tonight. This gives us the opportunity to go out and see the sunset and the Lele Kawa (Cliff Diving) Ritual at the Sheraton Black Rock. The beach, like all Hawaiian beaches is open to the public, and you can Uber up to the resort and just head out to the beach, we stopped at the bar for drinks and then made our way out to the beach to see the ceremonial lighting of the torch and cliff diver. IMG_9936.MOV

I’ll let Randy describe our day hiking in Maui. But I thought I’d share tonight’s menu!

I’ll post each night as long as I have service!

Oh I’m def going to review it! Look for it under my screen name on the uncruise tab or you can check out our blog- in the signature. I won’t be able to do it for a while because the photos have to be processed and I have to get back to my laptop! But I’ll be posting all about it, it was incredible!

We decided to relax in deck and watch the sail away while listening to the live band on the pool deck. Relaxing on the upper deck this photo is from Waikiki beach taken by a passenger who just got off as our ship passes by Waikiki this evening! We took in the comedian tonight, at the 7 PM show. Was hoping CD Michael would have the number of passengers aboard this cruise but he did not. Dinner was seated at 7:45 with doors closing st 8 PM for second seating. (5:45 and 6 pm for early seating) our wait staff! Very professional! Day 1 menu aboard QOTS. We are still noticing “shortages” of things that ran out during the last cruise, Fosters beer, drink mixes and my husband seemed to have found the last squirts of ketchup at the windjammer today. We are hopeful that the ship will be resupplied over the next few hours, eliminating the shortages! On a positive note, tonight’s fish dish was excellent, very fresh! Tomorrow we anchor in Lahaina Maui in the morning and most of our group has a waterfall hike, including lunch and swimming in the pools.

Boarding Day A full day getting organized- let’s face it, our group was all over the place today! 🤣 People booked specialty dining, complimentary I fly and north star. We noticed that as diamond members - 2 on our party could book them as soon as we boarded, others in the group with fewer cruises had to wait till later in the day. But we booked both for our first full sea day, day 5. Some on our gang booked some specialty restaurants. We decided to do late dining and when that timing doesn’t work out, we’ll go to the buffets or cafes! I think some of our group was a bit out of sorts trying to learn a new class of ship after being familiar with Oasis class! But although I didn’t do a full tour today, I did capture a few photos around the ship. the promenade The solarium pool Views from 270 270 The main theater The pool scene from deck 15

Boarding Day Our first time aboard Quantum class! She’s really lovely, large and tricked out with fun stuff like Oasis class, but oriented to the sea and the views in a way Oasis class is not. We had a 12 AM health check and 12:30 PM check in time, but people all showed up at noon, causing a big crush. We were sort of at the head of the crush and were onboard by 12:30

Boarding Day! Our group transported separately, and we are in line at the terminal! The most exciting day! Bags are dropped and ready to go!

Waikiki Waikiki has enough to do even if you never left the area to do other pre cruise activities. We were able to dine, both sit down and fast food or food trucks. The ABC markets have fresh sandwiches and salads. There are lots of shops, getting more upscale the closer you get to downtown! The beach is beautiful with lots of pocket parks and foot wash stations. Be sure to check out all the statues along the sidewalk. And there’s a free hula show on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Check the web for times, but it’s generally at sunset! sunset in Waikiki. children perform hula at the public Kuhio park at sunset Waikiki at night

Honolulu Tours and Pre Cruise I’m sure Rsharp will jump in with thoughts and photos from our precruise too- but here’s a little of what we’ve been up to! Day one we explored SE Hawaii by rental car, checking out (but not snorkeling!) Hanauma Bay, the Koko crater, and Makapuu point and dining at a little shrimp and steak shack. snorkelers with reservations head to Hanauma bay On our second day, we explored Pearl Harbor, using Charleys Taxi to travel, visiting the somber Arizona Memorial and remembering the fallen there. Reservations required to visit the AZ memorial, but the movie and other attentions can be seen standby On our third pre cruise day, we hiked Diamond Head and enjoyed Waikiki beach. This time trying Uber. Waikiki as seen from Diamond Head summit, this one mile hike each way is steep but not too technical. On 4th day we did the the North Shore on the Surf Bus, RSharp had taken this tour years ago and it’s still excellent, narration of the route, two stops for local macadamia nuts and fruit (and potty) and once at the North Shore opportunities for 2 activities, as well as excellent (and unexpected!) recommendations for lunch and famous Hawaiian Shave The Surf Bus picked us up in Waikiki and took us to the North Shore one of the options was a short 1/2 mile hike to the Waimea Falls, where swimming was offered On our 5th day, we did a boat turtle snorkel with Living Oceans, an excellent outfit with very safe operation and friendly helpful staff. while not guaranteed, there’s an excellent chance to see green sea turtles both from the boat and in the water snorkeling. We also spotted a mantra ray! Transportation All the transportation options are comparatively expensive, because it’s an island thousands of miles away from the mainland, cars are expensive, gas is expensive and an uber XL (which you’ll need for cruise luggage) to the airport is about 50 bucks, Charleys taxi took a friend to the airport for about 40 bucks. Renting a car costs a couple of hundred for the day and gas about $4.5 a gallon and most difficult thing is parking in most places, our hotel charges over $50 a day. The turtle tour is not far from the cruise port, and Uber surge pricing to the area was over $60 for an XL in the morning, but only $30 coming back at a quieter time. So comparing taxi vs pricing on the Uber app is helpful. We were able to walk to most of Honolulus Waikiki attractions on foot, usually less than mile each way.

After our Uncruise, we connected with the first of our QOTS group. HWSNBN set is up with an incredible deal at the Hyatt Waikiki Place, located just 2 blocks from the beach. It’s a great location right next to an ABC store (and you’ll learn every hotel is situated next to an ABC store!) and an alley full of inexpensive food trucks. ABC store next door for sun screen and wine! food trucks in the alley! The hotel is in various states of upgrades, the lower floors are very loud, with street noises and roosters crowing at all hours. This has been mitigated by running the AC fan which sounds alternatively like a raging wind storm and a jet airplane taking off next door. Hyatt Waikiki Place pool area with outdoor seating where breakfast is offered But it is worth it, the price is right, there is good WIFi, a hot, included breakfast, and guest laundry at a reasonable cost. I’m not sure I could have swallowed prices at 5-10 TIMES the price of this for beach front when we can check out towels and beach chairs and walk two blocks. The staff is friendly and attentive. If you can get past a little noise and cosmetics, it’s been a great option for precruise.

The one thing that “winging it” has given us is permission to “pivot” quickly when we need to … this has happened several times during our pre-cruise. RSharp, having taken an incredible trip to Hawaii about 10 years ago, had some specific memories of places to go. But those places have changed entry policies or just become more crowded as Hawaii is more popular with travelers than ever. We pivoted from many plans because accommodating 14 people isn’t as easy as it was a decade ago and certainly a lot harder since, well, you know. A big dinner planned at Dukes couldn’t accommodate our group. Hanauma Bay snorkeling reservations open at 7 and sell out at 7:10 AM 48 hours before. Tickets to Diamond Head and the Pearl Harbor Arizona memorial must be secured months in advance. We’ve been winging it since we started and continue to “wing it” since we’ve arrived in Honolulu. But are we having any less fun? Nope, we are having just as much fun! The gangs all here, and today is boarding day! The gangs all here! PRE CRUISE All of us arrived at different times! Mr FGB and I started our adventure weeks ago with a long cross country flight to LAX, connection to Honolulu on Hawaiian Air. (Stunningly, not one single thing went wrong on our flights! A first since post, well, you know) We overnighted at the Best Western Honolulu airport because of the proximity to the airport, free shuttle, included breakfast and were in our way to Molokai the following morning. We spent 2 nights at the Hotel Molokai on the lightly inhabited island of Molokai (possibly more chickens than people). Our plan was to meet other long time friends and embark on a 7 day cruise called “Uncruise” aboard the Safari Explorer- an expedition ship that held just 28 passengers for our intimate cruise around the Hawaiian islands of Molokai, Lanai, Maui, and Hawaii. (If you are interested in Uncruise - cruise in over to the Uncruise section of Cruise Critic, we’ll probably do a review there, and there are others who have. It’s a very different sort of cruise, but we couldn’t leave Hawaii without this more intimate and adventurous exploration of the Hawaiian Islands! We may in fact be the only people to ever cross over on cruises from less than 30 passengers to more than 3k within the week, but we’ve got an interesting travel philosophy. Every cruise can be great, if you accept it for what it is and embrace what it is! It’s like movies, some are Oscar winners and some are marvel movies, both can be entertaining, you just need to know what ticket you bought and embrace the experience! On Safari Explorer before our QOTS cruise. Our Uncruise was incredible- with encounters with wildlife and connections to local people in amazing landscapes. And I have every reason to expect that our QOOS cruise will also be joyous- bumper cars and shoes, and dinners with friends! Is it a cruise? Then I’m probably going to enjoy it!

You are back! Shocked, gluttons for punishment, all of you! So where have we been since 2019… nowhere really…you? Ok, we don’t need to discuss it, no one wants to but in lieu of cruising, we did “land cruises” ie road trips RSharp bought a shiny white jeep and trekked from his Midwestern state to Northern New England to explore Vermont, drive up My Washington, set our boots on the Appalachian Trail and explore the coast of Maine at our summer home. The RSharp mobile visiting the biggest stack of file cabinets in Burlington VT. Then when the…well you know… just wouldn’t go away, FGB and Mr FGB flew to Chicago, rented a car and trekked west, attending an outdoor wedding in WI, exploring Omaha, KC and Lake of the Ozarks with the hospitality of the RSharp family. This satisfied the travel itch for a bit, but providing no interest micro loans (in the form of cruise deposits) was getting old and it was time to do an actual cruise again. SO How did we pick this one? Our amazing T R A V E L “you know what” (whom we shall refer to as “He Who Shall Not Be Named” or for simplicity and to avoid any possible issues, henceforth know as HWSNBN) is often guilty of feeding our twin addictions/ sending “deals” across our transoms that we are too weak to resist. After much eye rolling, spouses are on board (the arm twisting gets surprisingly easier with each succeeding cruise and after months of sitting around the house in PJs because of…well you know !) and the trip is planned. We don’t always travel together, after the 2013 Allure cruise, FGB didn’t travel with the RSharp party and their biennial group cruise because they usually traveled in the summer time (not a time FGB travels because I have another secret spot in the summer, one I rarely review because it doesn’t accommodate several thousand people!) We did join group for the 2019 big group cruise and because of some employment changes, the group has more flexibility with timing, we could plan to join the group again. We approached HWSNBN with the idea of an Alaska cruise and he returned with an incredible deal on this repositioning cruise from Honolulu to Vancouver. This met our needs, being a warm weather cruise ( required for Mrs RSharp) and being a new class of ship for all of us. Hawaii is a “new state” to check off for FGB, and everyone was intrigued by the 6 sea days… a chance to really get to explore the ship and hang as a group. Group was alerted, bookings made and soon we had our group- a core of about 14 from the original 50+ who were on the 2019 cruise. But this one is different in a lot of ways! First, the planners usually scour the internet for information about the itinerary and repo cruises only happen once a year, so there’s not a lot to research. Adding to the difficulty was that Quantum of the Seas had sailed to Vancouver in spring of 2022 with only crew aboard… no reviews to read, no Face Book group to stalk. So RSharp and I were planning blind, “winging it” is how we often referred to our planning seshes. Normally, there’s a spread sheet, we discuss what time to have dinners and how they fit with the shows. We plan excursions, and balance them with in board activities like “Love and Marriage” or Quest. But not this time. We didn’t even know which night is “Dress to Impress” (Formerly known as Formal Night) Without this information, we did the unthinkable, what for it… we made a spread sheet empty on the sea days, huge boxes on MS Excel with no plans! No dining booked! No shows penciled in! We are literally “winging it!” Empty spread sheets! Now, not a few people in the group are actually quite relieved, you could say even joyous at the idea of having days with not a single thing planned! (We don’t know how or why we are still friends with those people.) But it was anxiety provoking for RSharp and I to stare at those cavernous gaps on the spread sheet, but we will get through it together!