just off Enchantment of the Seas

[dmlm1995]

We just got off of a 9 night on the Enchantment of the Seas yesterday and had an awesome time. The ship was clean, the food was good, shows entertained us, Adventure Ocean kept the kids happy, the crew was very friendly, and the captain was amazing (Anders). He ensured we visited Labadee despite the pending storm. Everything met or exceeded expectations. The only disruptions were from two tables in the dining room and a mistake we made when packing. Those issues are in two different threads.

 

So, a Big Shout out for the Enchantment! I would take this ship again and would recommend her to anyone.:)

[beachnative]

Thanks for the post.

 

Which itinerary did you take. I'd love to hear you share more information.

 

We sailed on the Enchantment in March and were very pleased with her, so much that we sail on her next week, in February 2012, and in January 2013. Most cabin categories are already sold out for February 2012. The Enchantment out of Baltimore seems to be a hit!!

[dmlm1995]

We went to the Eastern Caribbean. It started in Baltimore and had two at sea days in the front and back. We stopped at San Juan, St. Thomas, Samana, and Labadee.

 

I traveled with DW, DD (8), and DS (8). Despite the kids being twins they do enjoy different things. My daughter loved the rock climbing wall and the tramploine while my son loved the shuffle board and ping pong. Both agreed they loved the Adventure Ocean staff and the pool. My DW and I agreed we loved the Schooner Bar :D.

 

Port experiences varied. We have visited most of these ports before.

 

We arrived in San Juan at 3 PM and visited the fort with my DS since he loves that stuff. My DD wanted to stay at the Adventure Ocean. We got back to the ship around 5 PM.

 

St. Thomas was the typical. A little shopping and then we tried the skyride. Very expensive for what you get. Would not recommend that. Both my DD and DS participated on St. Thomas.

 

Samana was a new port for us. From what we heard and read, we elected to stay on the ship. As such, I can not really comment. From what I saw, the tender was a long ride to shore.

 

It has been some time since we were in Labadee. What a change. I remember when we had to tender to shore over by what is now called "Columbus Cove" before they even built the "new" tender dock and they had one manicured beach area and one building for shopping. Now they have a complete pier. The island has built up so much. They did a really nice job here and we had a great day. The entire family had fun.

 

As you can tell, the ports did not make the cruise. It was the staff and the ship itself. :)

[Tony O]

We went to the Eastern Caribbean. It started in Baltimore and had two at sea days in the front and back. We stopped at San Juan, St. Thomas, Samana, and Labadee.

 

I traveled with DW, DD (8), and DS (8). Despite the kids being twins they do enjoy different things. My daughter loved the rock climbing wall and the tramploine while my son loved the shuffle board and ping pong. Both agreed they loved the Adventure Ocean staff and the pool. My DW and I agreed we loved the Schooner Bar :D.

 

Port experiences varied. We have visited most of these ports before.

 

We arrived in San Juan at 3 PM and visited the fort with my DS since he loves that stuff. My DD wanted to stay at the Adventure Ocean. We got back to the ship around 5 PM.

 

St. Thomas was the typical. A little shopping and then we tried the skyride. Very expensive for what you get. Would not recommend that. Both my DD and DS participated on St. Thomas.

 

Samana was a new port for us. From what we heard and read, we elected to stay on the ship. As such, I can not really comment. From what I saw, the tender was a long ride to shore.

 

It has been some time since we were in Labadee. What a change. I remember when we had to tender to shore over by what is now called "Columbus Cove" before they even built the "new" tender dock and they had one manicured beach area and one building for shopping. Now they have a complete pier. The island has built up so much. They did a really nice job here and we had a great day. The entire family had fun.

 

As you can tell, the ports did not make the cruise. It was the staff and the ship itself. :)

 

I have to agree this was one of the best if not the best crew we have had on any RCCL ship.

The only down side was the port of Samana. I regret getting off the ship. The people constantly were bother you every couple of feet begging you to buy their goods. I had one person cuss me out since I said I did not need my tennis shoes shined.

I understand there is a lot of poverty but to badger and harass you is not the way to go. I wrote on my guest survey and emailed RCCL my thoughts and experience in Samana.

I can't speak for the excursion people but just walking into town was a complete waste of time.

BTW there was really nothing to see but the poverty in town.

DW and I were inn Labadee a few years ago before they upgrade the stop. I can honestly say the did a magnificent job on the upgrade. The cement walkways were a welcome addition from the sandy grounds. The beaches use to be very rocky when you went into the water now they are sandy and more enjoyable.

All in all the ship was great, the crew was great and really caring to make sure everything was right and you were happy.

[Grumpy9117]

Next time in Samana, try going to Cayo Levantado.

[allentownahoy]

I believe Enchantment is dropping Samana next year due to complaints.

[DJG18]

We're on the same ship and the same itinerary later this month. I probably would have some specific questions, but can't think of them at the moment. So for those who have just completed this cruise, perhaps you can offer us some advice along these lines:

a) what do you wish you had brought onboard but didn't?

b) what did you bring onboard, but didn't need after all?

c) what are the "must do" things on this cruise?

d) anything you did onboard that wasn't worth the time spent?

 

Thanks for any advice.

[Tony O]

Next time in Samana, try going to Cayo Levantado.

 

I heard complaints about Cayo also from people who were there.

[dramaqueen4lyfe]

Next time in Samana, try going to Cayo Levantado.

 

We had a wonderful day there. Beautiful beach and lots of amenities.

[Tony O]

I believe Enchantment is dropping Samana next year due to complaints.

 

Yes, I heard the same thing from several different crew members.

Antigua kept popping up as the replacement port.

[Tony O]

We had a wonderful day there. Beautiful beach and lots of amenities.

 

The people I spoke to loved the placed,but were somewhat put off by the people. Maybe they ran into that kid who wanted to shine my tennis shoes.

[Tony O]

We're on the same ship and the same itinerary later this month. I probably would have some specific questions, but can't think of them at the moment. So for those who have just completed this cruise, perhaps you can offer us some advice along these lines:

a) what do you wish you had brought onboard but didn't?

b) what did you bring onboard, but didn't need after all?

c) what are the "must do" things on this cruise? Quest

d) anything you did onboard that wasn't worth the time spent? We planned our day around the Daily Compass and did exactly what we wanted to see and do.

 

Thanks for any advice.

Just enjoy and do what you want to do when you want to do it.

[dmlm1995]

We're on the same ship and the same itinerary later this month. I probably would have some specific questions, but can't think of them at the moment. So for those who have just completed this cruise, perhaps you can offer us some advice along these lines:

a) what do you wish you had brought onboard but didn't?

b) what did you bring onboard, but didn't need after all?

c) what are the "must do" things on this cruise?

d) anything you did onboard that wasn't worth the time spent?

 

Thanks for any advice.

 

A)I wish I brought a Caribbean themed shirt. They had a night that was that theme.

B)I actually brought too many pairs of socks. I pretty much wore flip flops or dress shoes. Never really wore my sneakers.

C)Have a drink in the Schooner Bar. We saw the shows and thought they had improved over prior years. The tramploine was fun.

D)Play trivia after drinking several drinks and thinking you may have a chance. My team knew very few answers before we drank and that just made it worse :)

 

Enjoy the cruise, it is a great one!

[PandK1012]

What are the kiddie pools like on the Enchantment? I have a 3 and 5 year old, is there a place they can just sit and splash around? Or does the Enchantment only have "deep" pools? We haven't taken a cruise on a smaller ship in a while (before the kids) and were wondering if there is enough for toddlers to do on a smaller ship.

[Tony O]

What are the kiddie pools like on the Enchantment? I have a 3 and 5 year old, is there a place they can just sit and splash around? Or does the Enchantment only have "deep" pools? We haven't taken a cruise on a smaller ship in a while (before the kids) and were wondering if there is enough for toddlers to do on a smaller ship.

 

I saw a sprinkler type of area and they had another pool that was about 1 1/2 ft deep I think.

[Jimbo]

Next time in Samana, try going to Cayo Levantado.

 

I agree had a nice day there, we were on the beach to the extreme right as far as you can walk and that is where we got to see the sea lion excursion that rccl runs for free in the water. We didn't see the inside part that the passengers who paid for the excursion though.

 

Still it was a nice treat to see the sea lion so close and doing tricks in the water with the passengers who paid for the excursion.

 

Jimbo:)

[dmlm1995]

I saw a sprinkler type of area and they had another pool that was about 1 1/2 ft deep I think.

 

Tony O you are correct. The Sprinkler area is closest to the bar area. That circular area does not really hold any water just has a large sprinkler in the middle. It looked like the little ones enjoyed that. The next pool (adjacent to the sprinkler pool) is the pool that is about 1 1/2 feet deep. That pool is connected the a pool that is 4 1/2 feet deep but a metal fence separates them.

 

Enjoy!

[bus man]

c) what are the "must do" things on this cruise?

 

bungee trampoline!

[starcat]

Cayo Levantado was great! I don't know how someone can complain about that island. One of the best beaches I have been to. In the market area the people were a little aggressive but you can avoid that.

[PandK1012]

Thanks so much! The sprinkler and 1.5 ft area sounds great for my little ones! They love water, but can't swim yet and just like to play with shallow water and sprinklers. I think we will go ahead and book on the enchantment out of Baltimore then. How is the weather in Bermuda in June? Is it hot enough to hang out at the beach?

[DJG18]

bungee trampoline!

 

Yes, I want to try that and the rock climbing wall, among other things - are there long lines for those activities? Are there many of us, well, not-so-young-anymore adults lining up for these activities?

 

Any particular shows "must-see" and any "don't bother"?

 

Thanks for the responses, folks.

[pstone1]

Yes, I want to try that and the rock climbing wall, among other things - are there long lines for those activities? Are there many of us, well, not-so-young-anymore adults lining up for these activities?

 

Any particular shows "must-see" and any "don't bother"?

 

Thanks for the responses, folks.

 

We took the Canada/New England Enchantment cruise in July and loved the ship. The shows were all surprisingly good. Even the RC Singers and Dancers seemed better than we've seen on some of the other ships. We also had a Rock Juggler that was amazing (I know that sounds crazy but he was great). In the end, we were glad we went to all the shows on our cruise. Hope that helps.

 

Paula

[leepep]

How were the crowds- especially at shows? Considering booking Enchantment but hear negative reviews on seating in theater and WJ...

[rere827]

Cayo Levantado was great! I don't know how someone can complain about that island. One of the best beaches I have been to. In the market area the people were a little aggressive but you can avoid that.

 

Perfectly agree!! Also some great snorkeling - brought our own equipment so there was no extra cost. Very lovely, relaxing day.

[happythoughts]

LeePeep

 

The biggest problem finding a seat in the theatre was on the first night when they only had one show. After that when they had two shows each night, I generally showed up late, even after the show started and could usually find a seat in the back or up on a higher deck.