Jewel of the Seas Review 12/26 - 1/2

[thompson4131]

This was our 9th cruise, all with RCCL.

 

Arrival: Plane arrives into Ft Lauderdale at 5:04 pm due to heavy volume of air traffic in Atlanta. Went to baggage claims and were told by RCCL staff that we missed the ship. They again contacted the ship and were told that if we got there in 10 minutes, they would wait for us. Without time to claim our luggage, the RCCL staff flagged down 2 limos and told the drivers to take us to the pier and bill RCCL later. We ran onto the ship through the crew gangway and checked in at the Guest Relations desk. Our luggage caught up with us the following day in Key West. RCCL comped us for all laundry and gave us t-shirts & toiletry bags to get us through the night. The best part of this experience is that we missed mustering (oh, too bad...ha, ha, ha)!

 

Dining: For those of you who like to complain about the food in the dining room, all I can say is that you are absolutely WRONG. The variety is wonderful and if you don't like the specialties of the day, they always have Grilled Strip Steak, Grilled boneless Chicken breast, Pasta, Baked or Mashed potatos and veggies every single night. I always ordered the "healthy menu" items indicated with a heart and they were excellent. Our party of 12 also dined in Chops Grill on day 4 (Italian Night). It was good but I thought the steak in the dining room was just as good, only smaller. I didn't particulary like the sides offered at Chops because everything is either starchy or fried in butter but the rest of our party raved about them. Menu choises in Chops included Strip Steak, Filet Mignon, Prime Rib, Lamb Chops, Veal Chop, Veal Tenderloin, Salmon, and Chicken. For dessert, the dining room (not Chops) offered a variety of pastries, Ice Cream, Suger Free Ice Cream & Sherbet. I always ordered 2 scoops of sherbet and hold the cookie!

We ate all breakfasts & lunches in the Windjammer. We rarely waited in any lines even though the ship was at capacity. I enjoyed scrambled egg whites (made fresh to order) & fresh fruit each morning. Many brands of cereal were also available with 2% & skim milk, oatmeal, grits, eggs, bacon , pork & turkey sausage and carved ham. A large variety of breads, pastries, toasted bagels, toasted muffins, wheat or white toast, pancakes & waffles, peanut butter & jelly were also available.

 

Room: My wife, daughter & I were in cabin 8500 (Family Oceanview). The Cabin Steward was excellent as we rarely saw him yet our room was quickly made up every time we left. We never wanted for anything. We ordered Room Service once and it was prompt (40 minutes) and FREE. The only thing you pay for is Bar drinks, and soda.

 

Gym: The gym officially opens at 6:00 a.m. but I was always the first one there at 5:45 a.m. The Lifecycle Treadmills have a placard posted above them indicating the maximum time for that particular machine. Some were 15 minutes and some went as long as 60 minutes (the ones without the placards were 60 minutes). By 6:30 a.m. the gym was pretty busy so get there early. Once the ship docked, the gym quickly emptied. The locker rooms don't open until 8:00 a.m. so don't plan on showering there if you work out early.

 

Shows: The performers are excellent. The sets are wonderful. If you want broadway quality talent however, go to broadway, not a cruise ship!

 

All in all, the Jewel is an excellent value for the money you pay to be there. The artwork is nice but the ship would be great even without it. As long as I don't have to clean my room for a week, cook for a week or hear my phone for a week, I'll never complain about the cabin, food or anything else that dosn't hurt me or cause me financial harm.

[mtchg]

..Do her in Nov..and can't wait.

[goodml]

Great review - we were on her on the 12th and agree completely. Kudos to you for racing off to the ship and having the faith that your luggage would catch up to you. Glad it all worked out the way it did. Welcome home.

[Donnaluv2cruise]

Glad to hear you had a great time. We'll be boarding The Serenade in a few weeks. Thanks for taking the time to do a review!

[trixiee]

Thanks for the review! We'll be on her this Sunday!!!!!!!!!!!! (Finally!)

[thompson4131]

More Dining: The maximum table size is 12 people. Fortunately, we had 12 in our family so we all sat together. The only bad thing to report in the dining room involved other passengers and not RCCL. On the final night of the cruise we noticed 5 empty tables around us that were full throughout the cruise. GUESS WHAT...a new trend for the cheapskate passenger is to skip the dining room during the final night in order to avoid paying the tip! I personally feel this is very rude to say the least. Food service is also available in the Solarium during the day. The Solarium offers continental breakfast (danishes, cereal, coffee) Snacks consisted of pizza, wraps and crepes with your choice of chocolate, strawberry, blueberry toppings and whipped cream. The Seaview Cafe on deck 12 is still FREE (unlike Johnny Rockets on other ships) and offers Reubens, Hamburgers, Hot Dogs, Chicken Fingers, Fish & Chips, Onion Rings, Tuna Melts, Fries, Potato Salad, Tossed Salad topped with Tuna or Seafood Salad and a Vegetarian Sandwich. Milkshakes are also offered ($3.50) as well as a full bar at bar prices.

 

Bars: The cost of a 12oz can of beer is $3.00. Draft Beer is available in the Schooner, Pit Stop, Vortex & Safari bars for $3.00 small & $3.75 tall (20 oz). Draft beer selection was Amstel Light and Heinekin. Most other major brands were available in can or bottle (incl. Red Stripe & Corona). Most frozen drinks including virgin drinks were $5.95. A 15% gratuity was added automatically to each tab.

 

Final Tips:

1. Pack medications for problems involving change in your diet. Laxatives & Pepto Bismol are expensive on board.

 

2. Pack Light...Luggage is a hassle, especially during debarkation. Also, we spent over 2 hours in line at the Ft. Lauderdale Airport checking in due to TSA scanning luggage. One of their X-Ray machines broke down at the Delta counter. Try to debark with a minimum of a 3 hour window until your flight time.

 

3. Cozumel, Don't book the Tulum/Xel Cha tour. This is an 8 hour tour in which you spend over 4 hours on transportation (ferries & busses). Either go to Tulum or go to Xel Cha, don't do both together.

 

4. Costa Maya, The cute little fishing village nearby is no more...it has gone COMMERCIAL...nothing but souvenier shops trying to sell you junk. Definately not worth the $3.00 pp taxi ride to get there.

Jungle Beach Break...great time if you arrive early! Two times were offered 8:00 & 9:30. GO AS EARLY AS POSSIBLE if you want a beach chair in a decent location. By 10:00, all the prime spots and most of the chairs were taken.

[G-Man]

going on Jewel during spring break for 8-days. looking forward to the vacation. thanks for the info

[beachbum84]

Thanks for the review! I'll be on her with a party of 6 in March... sounds like you had a blast! I can't wait

[spocruiser]

GUESS WHAT...a new trend for the cheapskate passenger is to skip the dining room during the final night in order to avoid paying the tip! I personally feel this is very rude to say the least. QUOTE]

 

Our first cruise is in April on the Jewel. Really apprecaite the information in the review. Was curious about the comment above (hope I did the quote portion right). How does tipping work for the dining room and how is it tied to the last meal of the cruise?

 

I'm glad to tip for good service, just have not read about the above to date on the boards.

 

Thanks.

[thompson4131]

Tipping is (of course) at your discretion and is paid to the recipients during the final night of your cruise. RCCL has suggested amounts and you can choose to pre-pay them when you book your cruise. You can also charge them to your Seapass account on board and simply hand the recipient a vouchure. We chose the vouchure option and put an extra $20 in the envelope for the waiter & cabin steward. You can also just use cash. Prior to your final dinner on the last evening, your cabin steward will leave pre-addressed envelopes in your cabin for this purpose.

[cruzobsessed]

hey thompson 4131, i couldn't get my kids to go to the teen program. they had an excellent time as well. were you playing football on "uvero beach"?

[thompson4131]

cruzobsessed:

 

yes...that was us! My 2 sons and their 2 friends were playing with a borrowed ball from the sports desk. The beach really got crowed once the Carnival Ship people got there. We left around 12:30 on the first shuttle back to the ship. My wife had enough sun so we decided to go back then.

 

I definately recommend this tour option. The open bar was great! Frozen drinks included Strawberry Daqueries and Pine Colotas (virgin as well) as well as Dol Seques (XX) on tap! Food entrees cost $5.00 each and included Chicken Quesedias & Enchalatas (sorry for the spelling), Nachos & Cheese for $3.00 and a Hamburger. My wife had the hamburger and didn't finish it. I know what beef tastes like and it didn't taste like beef! Wave Runners & Speed boat rentals were $50/half hour. Only 1 wave runner was operational during our visit.

 

Hope you had fun!

 

Steve

[nwcruisemamma]

Hi,

 

Do you know if the cabin next door to you (8000) was the same layout? Do you have any photos of your cabin?

 

Thanks!

[bilyclub]

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1472280

[OfTheSeasCruiser]

This thread is from 2005 :eek::eek::eek:

 

No wonder I couldn't figure out why the poster was leaving from FLL on the Jewel!

[nwcruisemamma]

This thread is from 2005 :eek::eek::eek:

 

No wonder I couldn't figure out why the poster was leaving from FLL on the Jewel!

 

I know it is old but it was my attempt to contact the poster thompson4131 as there are very few members that have specifically referenced the cabin I am interested in!

[OfTheSeasCruiser]

I know it is old but it was my attempt to contact the poster thompson4131 as there are very few members that have specifically referenced the cabin I am interested in!

 

I know I was just kidding around! :) I was so confused though after reading the first post because I couldn't figure out why Jewel would be leaving from FLL. Then I figured it out. BTW, if anyone is interested, I also sailed the Jewel from FLL in 2005 and had a great time! :p:):D