angela715

We went to Half Moon Cay for the first time a few weeks ago and it was amazing! We are returing in a few months with some friends. It was a long walk from where we perched on the beach to where you get on the tender. Is there a shuttle that will take you on the island from the sidewalk behind the beach to the tender area? Some said that a tram would pick you up, but we waited and never saw one, so we walked back.

In Half Moon Cay, the further you go down the beach, the less crowded it is. We walked about 3/4 of the way down, got great chairs and it wasn't crowded at all. We will do a clam shell next time, but keep in mind that they are at the very back, so you really won't have much of a view. This was the best stop of the whole cruise!

At Paradise Cove did you add on lunch or if we wait till we get there is there more variety? Is there a bar? 

I just called. There is no pilot program available before March 15 on the Vista. :(

We cruised VOS in February. Here is the review I wrote:

This is a review of Royal Caribbean's Vision of the Seas but manly a comparison between RCCL & CCL.

We cruised VOS 2/14/18. It was our first (and last) RC cruise. Previously we have cruised 8 times on CCL and also on Princess and Celebrity.

Embarkation-this was a quick, fairly painless process. We went through security quickly and waited about 30 minutes to meet with a rep to get our cards, take pictures and check in. Our previous experience with CCL out of Galveston was faster with the new method of leaving room keys in the mailbox by the door. But embarkation was pretty painless. Score-tie

First drink-We went to the 4th floor bar for our first drink. There was a limited first day menu and with the Deluxe Drink Package, we were able to drink as part of the package as soon as we boarded. The drinks were fine. Alcohol is not name brand and they did not have everything that was posted on their limited menu. Score-RCL because we can drink on the package first day. We prefer the CCL beverages. See that section.

First meal-We went to the Windjammer buffet for lunch because it was the only thing open. As a rule, we do not generally love buffets and this was no exception. The food was mostly lukewarm or cold. Score-CCL (more options like Guy's Burgers or Blue Iguana for the first meal make it the clear winner)

Room-RCCL makes an announcements when rooms are ready. They were done at 1 p.m. There was no wait for an elevator and no crowds When we got to the room, we found it clean and a decent floor plan (we had an ocean view. We generally do balcony, but decided since this was a group trip, we'd save the money), but the decor is outdated. (Ultrasuede on the walls around the bed with visible stains.) There was plenty of storage. The room steward was very nice and helpful. We found our own luggage on the way to the room so we brought it down ourselves. (It was in a hallway waiting to be moved) One nice feature of RCCL is they have little cards you put into the key slot when you want your room cleaned or not to be disturbed. Whenever we put the card in, the room was cleaned immediately. One detraction from RCCL is their shower. The shower head is handheld and no matter how hard we tried, it would fall off and attack you. Also, the shower curtain kept coming in and attacking us. I HATE when a hotel shower curtain touches me. We tried putting clips at the bottom and finding ways to keep it away to no avail. Score-CCL because we feel their rooms are more updated and their showers are better. Even on the older ships. But this was very close.

Dinner in the Main Dining Room-We had your time dining, but were able to make reservations for our group of 12. We ate at the same time each night and at the same table. The food was generally decent, but frequently lukewarm. Desserts were a real disappointment. Being on the drink plan, I like a glass of wine with dinner. Because your waiter also takes and brings your drink order, this takes longer than it should. I found that by bringing a glass to dinner with me, and then ordering a second at the beginning of the meal, it helped. The wait staff was excellent. 5 out of 5 nights, there was no dinner entertainment. 2 nights they did introduce some of the more special people (chefs, matre'd etc.) Score-CCL

Shows-There were 2 production type shows on this cruise. Both were introduced by the cruise director who went through a play by play of the next day on the ship before the show. Then they played an outdated intro video, then the show. The singers and dancers were very good, but the costuming was seriously outdated. Think 1990s. Score-CCL hands down

Other Entertainment-We love to listen to live music and/or dance. On our last CCL cruise, we had a difficult time deciding which musicians we wanted to go to each night because they were all so good. On this RC cruise, there was an Asian cover band that played music from the 70s (and not the good stuff, either), a Latin trio and strings. While I enjoy strings during dinner or maybe pre dinner, I wanted to be entertained at night, and the music was seriously lacking. A couple of nights they had a comedian as the main show in the theatre. While one was good, the other did a lot of improv with the crowd (especially a young kid) and he wasn't really funny. While I appreciate the space in the theater over the comedy venues on the CCL ships, I would prefer to have more options for the comedy shows like CCL has. Score-CCL hands down

Beverages-We purchased the Deluxe Drink package for $53 plus 18% gratuity. It began on the first day with a limited drink menu because of Texas liquor laws. After that, I had to ask for a drink menu at all the bars. They are not out for you to look over and choose a drink. Also, there were few times when servers were walking around taking drink orders. The majority of the time, I went to the bar to order my beverage. I found the beverage menu to be not inventive and boring. Also, there was not an option to go to a bar where you could tell them what you like and they make you something. Even when there was no one at the bar waiting, bar tenders handed me a menu and told me to pick what I liked. All the bars have the same menu. One plus, you never sign for a drink on the drink package. This was nice, but I felt the bartenders lost out on tips that way. I frequently add $1 when I sign for good service on CCL. Score-CCL

Pools/Adult Area-The adult area was enclosed and frequently too warm for my liking. Pluses in that area-a less busy bar, the deli and decent restrooms. The pool was always empty. While I liked that it had a pool and food, I would have really enjoyed it if they had opened the roof. I prefer getting as much sunshine as possible when I cruise in the winter. The other pool was always crowded, but if you wanted a chair further away, they were easy to get. Towel check in/out is easy. Music was usually videos played on the big screen and not too noisy, which was a plus. Score-CCL only because I prefer Serenity. But this is by a small margin.

Specialty Restaurants-We didn't eat at any specialty restaurants, and don't usually eat them on CCL either. I will say that RC pushes them hard. Every. Single. Night at dinner they came to our table pushing a restaurant or sushi making class. They didn't have the shots guys pushing shots, so I guess it's a tie.

Photographers-There was one at embarkation, and maybe a couple each night, kind of hidden on the ship. I've come to enjoy taking lots of pictures, even though we don't generally buy them. And I had hoped to get a fun group picture since we were a group of 12, but there really was never an opportunity. I will say, they didn't do the big dinner pics push. There were a couple of nights they did dinner pics, but no awkward pirate or anything. We did appreciate that. Score-CCL

Debarkation-We did self assist and we were off the ship by 7:30 a.m. and through customs by 8. The process was pretty painless. The elevators were not crowded like they are on debarkation on CCL. Score-RC

Misc.- I really missed the Carnival HUB app. I had no idea how much I used it. The only way on this ship to check my account was by standing in line and getting a print out. I like to check my account each day to see where we are and make sure there are no strange charges. I also enjoy having the option of getting a text when an activity I wanted to do was coming up, or being able to text others in my group and looking at my photos easily. Prior to the cruise, I had issues with my payment and had to talk to customer service. I will say that the RC customer service is good on the phone, but their website stinks! Also, the frequently had what I ended up calling RC math. I'd see one price online, call them to discuss and they'd say, "we found you a lower price, how does XYZ sound? But it wouldn't add up when I figured what I had put down and what they said I was saving. In the end, we did save some money from the first quoted rate, and they did make all the payment issues right, but their website and customer service were lacking in comparison to CCLs.

Overall comments-This was a nice vacation because any day on a cruise is better than a day at work. We did discover that we are just not RC people. We had heard so often that it was a higher class of cruise line and that the passengers were better, but we did not find that to be the case at all. Every CCL ship we have been on has been better than the VOS, We just felt that everything is better on CCL, especially for the money. The RC crew was fabulous, but we always feel the CCL crew is fabulous too and we show our appreciation to them both in saying please and thank you, tips and compliments.

I've brought my diffuser & oils on several cruises without an issue. There is no heating element for those concerned with fire risk. Never had an issue. I do pack it & my oils in my carry on.

Highlighter & bonine

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I was planning on putting aside a drinking budget instead of ordering cheers, but after reading all the responses, I know we will avoid ordering what we want to save money. This forum has convinced us cheers is the way to go for us too! Thank you! Now if I could just figure out a way to prepay for it using discounted gift cards...

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After being on the triumph when the fire happened, I can't cruise without a balcony. I need to have a safe place to sleep outside if necessary. We had an inside cabin on deck 2. It was so hot & sewage filled we couldn't return to it even a few hours after the fire, much less sleep there. I wish I could go back to an inside & save $ and have that great dark hole for sleeping but I get anxious even thinking about it.

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