"LIVE" from Enchantment of the Seas- Bermuda/New England - May 17, 2012

[smalltimecruiser100]

The Island Bar (Now named the Oasis Bar is pretty close to poolside. There is also a Pool bar by near the center (port to starboard) of the ship next to the Windjammer. Thumbnails attached.

 

 

 

 

 

Roy

 

Thans Roy. We're trying to meet on Friday originally at the sky bar, did not see Pool bar next to wj on deck plans. and now you say Island is now called Oasis. Wish they could have waited until after our cruise to rename and add pool bar.

[cruzingduo]

Roy, do you know if it was warm enough to go in the water in Bermuda?

[zonkerstl]

I'm in a basic outside cabin on deck 4. No walkin closet, but ample storage space at least for a solo.

 

Roy

 

Have you had any noise problems with either the casino or Bolero Lounge?

[hansolosmom]

Thanks Roy for a great review. I always love your 'parting shots' amazing about West Side Story

[mommaof 3]

really enjoying your review, we are going on Enchantment in August and are so excited. Reading about your day is great for daydreaming!

 

Are you a former actuary..since you mentioned visiting Boston for training? Just wondering - my husband is an actuary. I have a couple of actuary jokes, lol - none are actually funny. :p

 

We visited Boston for a week (w/ 4 kids) a couple of years ago, and it's such a great city to visit. We had a GOBoston card and did everything on the freedom trail plus some more. It is amazing how much history is preserved there, we liked the state house and paul reveres house the most - particularly w/children. The glass flower exhibit sounds like something we'd like too - if for no other reason than because we really like Chihuly's sculptures.

 

Thanks again!

[ready2sail40]

Roy,

 

I have a mission for you...lol just kidding, but really can you find out the price of a long island ice tea? My favorite drinks!!

 

Thanks and I love your report.

[emelvee]

Roy,

 

I have a mission for you...lol just kidding, but really can you find out the price of a long island ice tea? My favorite drinks!!

 

Thanks and I love your report.

They were $8.00 + gratuity on Allure in February 2012

[emelvee]

*taps foot in OP's general direction* :D

[rafinmd]

When I woke at 5 the transition to daylight had begun but it was still very foggy with drizzle. The fog slowly dissipated as we made our way up Naragansett Bay, and we had clear visibility as we dropped our anchor about 10. Newport is a somewhat challenging tender port as we anchor about a mile off the shore and wake restrictions for much of that distance making it optentially a 4-hour process to get everybody off the ship. The process was helped a lot by using 2 shorside vessels as tenders, the Aquideck Ferry and the Amazing Grace. Our port time was also extended from 6 to 8 PM to give people time ashore.

 

Having booked an afternoon tour I opted to go on my own first. Tender tickets were to be given out at 9:15. At 8:45 there was a long line. I went up to the Windjammer, and the announcement that tickets were available came about 9:10. By the time I walked down to Centrum I walked right up and got tender number 5. Number 1 was called about 10:15 and my turn came just before 11. This is the first time I had used the roof level of the tender and it was a beautiful ride this morning. I was on shore about 11:30.

 

A trend seems to be developing that when I am on a cruise in New England I run into my next ship. On the Crystal Symphony last fall (Montreal-New York) I encountered the Jewel of the Seas in both Bar Harbor and Boston. That was actually the first time I had seen the ship in person and got me in the mood to set sail in January. As we were tendering into Newport today I was stunned to pass by a familiar vessel docked at Bannisters wharf. I will sail the tiny (96 passenger) Grande Caribe in July to several New England islands. Today it was nearing the end of a cruise from Jacksonville Florida to it’s home port just up the bay. I walked over to the ship and the Captain came out to meet me. He told me that they had been in Baltimore Monday. He will be in Command for my July 17 cruise as will the current cruise director, both of whom I know quite well. We chatted for about 10 minutes.

 

After lunch I took a short walk around Newport and returned to the tender pier at 1:30, only to learn that my 1:45 Rose Island tour had just departed. I was offered a seat on the land half of the land and sea tour, which took a drive around the Island. It was not my day for touring. Immediately after a brief stop at Fort Adams our bus broke down and the 5-minute stop became a half hour. The replacement bus took us on some very scenic streets past great ocean vistas and stately “cottages”, playgrounds of the super rich for the past century. We did not go past the Breakers but I’ve been there several times and the cottages we did pass were equally nice.

 

While the day started out pretty ominously, the weather turned beautiful by midday. My ride back to the ship was in perfect conditions.

 

As dinner ended today we were just leaving Newport with a perfect sunset.

 

Today’s headline show was the Happenings. This appears to be the original vocal group from the 1960's singing sixties rock music, including some of their hits like See You in September and Go Away Little Girl.

 

As today’s parting shot, just being in Newport today is a reminder that money isn’t everything. Many of the families in the cottages lived rather tragic lives. As I recall, the builder of the Breakers died rather suddenly after living just a couple of years in the house. Several others were lost on Titanic, including John Jacob Astor, and several members of the Widener family, the benefactors of the Harvard Library.

 

Roy

[smalltimecruiser100]

Are you OT for Baltimore?

[emelvee]

Sorry to hear about the tour issues in Newport. Thanks for the update!

[emelvee]

On the Compass you posted for Day 6 - Boston, page 4 is actually the 2nd page of the Compass (Offers/Highlights), not the 4th page (Today's Activities).

 

I'm a little embarrassed that I paid so much attention to the Compasses to notice this. lol

 

Thanks again for all of your information.

[KathyPet]

I have read that the Newport Visitors Center is only a block from the dock where the tenders arrive and that you can easily walk there and choose from many different tours that leave from there. Do you know if this is, in fact, the case????

[sept10dsm]

I have read that the Newport Visitors Center is only a block from the dock where the tenders arrive and that you can easily walk there and choose from many different tours that leave from there. Do you know if this is, in fact, the case????

 

Yes the visitor center is very close to the dock. They do have a lot of info avail. We did not book any tours with them but there were lots and lots of them. I would suggest contacting them prior to arriving to get the free info they will mail. We did this for our 3 Canada NE cruises! I do that with any port or city/area I will visit and have always received local info/maps/points of interest and sometimes coupons:)

[zonkerstl]

Thanks for taking the time to post all of this info. I noticed you are on the fourth deck. Did you have any problems with noise from the casino, Bolero's lounge , etc. from deck five?

[rafinmd]

On the Compass you posted for Day 6 - Boston, page 4 is actually the 2nd page of the Compass (Offers/Highlights), not the 4th page (Today's Activities).

 

I'm a little embarrassed that I paid so much attention to the Compasses to notice this. lol

 

Thanks again for all of your information.

 

Thanks for the heads up. I normally throw the compasses away before I leave since I have the scanned copies; I'll be sure to rescan that one but will probably not fix the internet version till I get home. If you hadn't kept me honest I wouldn't have that page for my own reference.

 

Are you OT for Baltimore?

 

We certainly appear to be. Right now we're doing a leisurely 14 knots which I'm sure wouldn't be the case if we were running late.

 

Thanks for taking the time to post all of this info. I noticed you are on the fourth deck. Did you have any problems with noise from the casino, Bolero's lounge , etc. from deck five?

 

I'm actually under the Orpheum theater. This was the best available room when I booked and was concerned but I haven't had a bit of a problem.

 

Weather today has been a bit disappointing but it's been a very busy day.

 

Now, back to the scanner to fix my mistakes.

 

Roy

[Love Cruises]

When I woke at 5 the transition to daylight had begun but it was still very foggy with drizzle. The fog slowly dissipated as we made our way up Naragansett Bay, and we had clear visibility as we dropped our anchor about 10. Newport is a somewhat challenging tender port as we anchor about a mile off the shore and wake restrictions for much of that distance making it optentially a 4-hour process to get everybody off the ship. The process was helped a lot by using 2 shorside vessels as tenders, the Aquideck Ferry and the Amazing Grace. Our port time was also extended from 6 to 8 PM to give people time ashore.

 

Having booked an afternoon tour I opted to go on my own first. Tender tickets were to be given out at 9:15. At 8:45 there was a long line. I went up to the Windjammer, and the announcement that tickets were available came about 9:10. By the time I walked down to Centrum I walked right up and got tender number 5. Number 1 was called about 10:15 and my turn came just before 11. This is the first time I had used the roof level of the tender and it was a beautiful ride this morning. I was on shore about 11:30.

 

A trend seems to be developing that when I am on a cruise in New England I run into my next ship. On the Crystal Symphony last fall (Montreal-New York) I encountered the Jewel of the Seas in both Bar Harbor and Boston. That was actually the first time I had seen the ship in person and got me in the mood to set sail in January. As we were tendering into Newport today I was stunned to pass by a familiar vessel docked at Bannisters wharf. I will sail the tiny (96 passenger) Grande Caribe in July to several New England islands. Today it was nearing the end of a cruise from Jacksonville Florida to it’s home port just up the bay. I walked over to the ship and the Captain came out to meet me. He told me that they had been in Baltimore Monday. He will be in Command for my July 17 cruise as will the current cruise director, both of whom I know quite well. We chatted for about 10 minutes.

 

After lunch I took a short walk around Newport and returned to the tender pier at 1:30, only to learn that my 1:45 Rose Island tour had just departed. I was offered a seat on the land half of the land and sea tour, which took a drive around the Island. It was not my day for touring. Immediately after a brief stop at Fort Adams our bus broke down and the 5-minute stop became a half hour. The replacement bus took us on some very scenic streets past great ocean vistas and stately “cottages”, playgrounds of the super rich for the past century. We did not go past the Breakers but I’ve been there several times and the cottages we did pass were equally nice.

 

While the day started out pretty ominously, the weather turned beautiful by midday. My ride back to the ship was in perfect conditions.

 

As dinner ended today we were just leaving Newport with a perfect sunset.

 

Today’s headline show was the Happenings. This appears to be the original vocal group from the 1960's singing sixties rock music, including some of their hits like See You in September and Go Away Little Girl.

 

As today’s parting shot, just being in Newport today is a reminder that money isn’t everything. Many of the families in the cottages lived rather tragic lives. As I recall, the builder of the Breakers died rather suddenly after living just a couple of years in the house. Several others were lost on Titanic, including John Jacob Astor, and several members of the Widener family, the benefactors of the Harvard Library.

 

Roy

As always, we are really enjoying your blog of your trip.

 

We really appreciated viewing the Compass since we will be going on RCCL for the 1st time on June 7th. Viewing it, we can see that they have many activities and trivia each day to look forward to (much, much more than HAL).

 

It was great seeing your photo of the Grande Caribe today. Who is the Captain and Cruise Director onboard? We really enjoyed the intra-coastal we did with them from Jacksonville to Warren years ago. We wish they would come down more in their future cruises rates!

 

Thanks again for taking us along on another one of your great adventures.

 

 

Barbara and Dan

[rafinmd]

Barb and Dan, Captain was Mike Kiernan and cd Jen.

 

really enjoying your review, we are going on Enchantment in August and are so excited. Reading about your day is great for daydreaming!

 

Are you a former actuary..since you mentioned visiting Boston for training? Just wondering - my husband is an actuary. I have a couple of actuary jokes, lol - none are actually funny. :p

 

We visited Boston for a week (w/ 4 kids) a couple of years ago, and it's such a great city to visit. We had a GOBoston card and did everything on the freedom trail plus some more. It is amazing how much history is preserved there, we liked the state house and paul reveres house the most - particularly w/children. The glass flower exhibit sounds like something we'd like too - if for no other reason than because we really like Chihuly's sculptures.

 

Thanks again!

 

mommaof3, that’s correct. I was actually at the last exam prep seminar in Northeastern’s program. I spent 42 years with the Social Security Administration before retiring (actually 5 years ago this weekend.

 

I think I’ve (or someone else has) answered all the questions to date. If I’ve missed any (I really skim quickly through the thread when on satellite time), please repost them.

 

When I went out just after 5 today we were roughly 80 miles South of New York, running along at a leisurely 14 knots. I finished my 5 miles on deck 10 about 7:15, with the foghorn going off intermittently throughout the walk. While it was not actually raining, the mist was heavy enough so my vest got quite wet. For a few brief minutes mid-walk the sun was strong enough to be seen through the fog, but that didn’t last long.

 

It was a busy sea day, especially the afternoon. I spent much of the morning packing, but the great cake decorating challenge came up at 10. Keith claims the Hotel Director had never been defeated, but that sounds like hype to me. Captain Anders did a surprising job of slicing the layers and was a fan favorite with his liberal use of the sherry. He was officially declared the winner, although I think the pastry chef really had the best cake. I found out afterwards that the Captain’s cake actually looked better from deck 8 than it did close up. I have enjoyed sailing with Captain Anders although I must admit I prefer Captain Gus. At his noon update Captain Anders reported we were then off Fenwick Island Delaware and will reach the mouth of the Chesapeake bay around 10PM. The announcement was followed by a crew presentation of flags in Centrum representing the crew’s 60+ countries.

 

The afternoon started off with a presentation by Timothy Calvert on Baltimore with a highlight on it’s many museums, particularly the Baltimore Visionary Arts Center and Museum of Industry, both close to the port. At 2 the production cast held a Q&A session discussing their jobs, the audition process and shipboard life. The Captain’s Corner came at 3 with Captain Anders, the Chief Engineer, and Hotel Director talking about all things related to the sea. There were a surprising number of questions relating to the sea. The enhancements to both Enchantment and Grandeur as well as the redeployment of the 2 ships were also major topics.

 

The farewell dinner came with an introduction of the galley team and sad goodbyes. The farewell show included a video of the weeks activities, comedy by Joseph Yannetty, and a closing number by the Royal Caribbean Singers and Dancers who also performed a 10:15 cabaret in Centrum.

 

Today’s parting shot comes from the Captain’s Corner. I asked 2 questions there. The first was about Newport. Tendering there is difficult while there is a virtually abandoned Navy Base there. Captain Anders thought there were signs of possibility for eventual docking of cruise ships there. My other question was about the Promenade Deck 5. He replied that it was officially open “most of the time”, a change that was made a few weeks ago after being closed off for many years. I consider that a very positive change.

 

Roy

[cruisin4thedeepblue]

Thanks so much for your reviews and posting the compasses and menus!

We are on her May 31. Question.. We are enjoy ballroom dancing. Can you tell me how good the bands are and what kind of music they play? I would imagine Trio Royal plays more ballroom, what does Night Flight and Lightning Wave play?

Thanks:)

[emelvee]

What's the story with Promenade deck 5 - why was it closed for so long?

[kacoombs]

Hi, Roy -

 

We were on board this cruise as well & we're neighbors of yours.

 

Despite the weather, we really enjoyed this cruise. Newport was very pretty.

 

Kirsten

[Lady Hudson]

I would like to find that out, as well. On the March 31 trip Captain Gus made a point of saying that the promenade deck was now open after being closed for a number of years. Then someone on CC posted that it was closed again, sometime in April. I love being able to walk all the way around (That's what a promenade deck is for, right?) Hope someone has an answer.

[rafinmd]

Hi, Roy -

 

We were on board this cruise as well & we're neighbors of yours.

Despite the weather, we really enjoyed this cruise. Newport was very pretty.

 

Kirsten

 

Kristen, I'm sorry we didn't meet on the ship.

 

Thanks so much for your reviews and posting the compasses and menus!

We are on her May 31. Question.. We are enjoy ballroom dancing. Can you tell me how good the bands are and what kind of music they play? I would imagine Trio Royal plays more ballroom, what does Night Flight and Lightning Wave play?

Thanks:)

 

I would like to find that out, as well. On the March 31 trip Captain Gus made a point of saying that the promenade deck was now open after being closed for a number of years. Then someone on CC posted that it was closed again, sometime in April. I love being able to walk all the way around (That's what a promenade deck is for, right?) Hope someone has an answer.

 

I’m not really an RCI fan (more in my parting shot) and not a dancer, so I’m probably the last person to ask these questions. With regard to music, I saw both Night Flight and Lightning Wave listed for poolside so I doubt if they are appropriate for ballroom dance.

 

I suspect the Promenade deck is still a work in progress. When I was on Enchantment a year ago, the bow was NEVER open, and my best guess is that’s due to a security concern. The walkway around the bow passes close to machinery areas involving both the mooring lines and the anchors, with a wall that would not be difficult to scale. To the extent that security is an issue, I think raising the wall (even with a chain link fence) would be better than the existing system. When the gates are closed, they are not difficult to get over, so closing the gates only makes creating havoc a little more difficult. I saw the gates open many times and closed many times, so I would doubt anyone who says categorically that they are “open” or “closed”. I suspect at least in the short term they will be closed when work is going on in the bow and when approaching a port. Time will tell.

 

I placed a wakeup call today for 4:30. When I got out on deck about 4:45 we were just passing under the Chesapeake Bay bridge. We passed under the Francis Scott Key bridge just before 6 and put the first lines out about 6:55. I took about 6 laps on deck 10 between the Key Bridge and the port; finishing my walk just as we tied up. I did have a problem with my bill. RCI seems to have a problem with accounting for internet use; for the second time of the cruise I was charged for an internet session, even though I had ample time remaining on my package. A visit to guest relations quickly got the problem resolved.

 

I had opted for self disembarkation. When I stepped onto the Promenade deck after my walk people were crossing the gangway. I returned to my cabin for my bags, and was at the taxi stand about 7:20. A quick taxi ride took me to Camden yards (our baseball park on a former railroad yard which still serves commuter rail), and a 20 minute ride to the suberbs. After a connecting ride on my local transit system, I was home at 10:15.

 

Today’s parting shot deals with my relation with Royal Caribbean. I don’t really call myself a fan of the line. To me, it holds somewhat of a niche status with 2 things I see it doing well. First, it handles short getaways (under 7 days) very well. With more upscale lines the crew has a rhythm that works best with longer term relationships with the passengers and short cruises with frequent turnarounds tend to get very poor reviews. RCI handles short cruises very well. The other is that they are my line of choice out of my home port of Baltimore. In fairness, I haven’t sailed their Baltimore competition for many years but my perception is that Royal’s onboard experience is better. Where I know Royal is better is on itineraries. I looked at the competition and they serve a grand total of 5 ports from Baltimore. Despite my limited experience I’ve already done better than that on the Enchantment. Despite the weather, this was the best yet of my 3 RCI cruises. The crew is very good and the condition of the ship is excellent. I will be returning for a 3rd voyage on Enchantment in January and looking forward to an even better ship with the enhancements in drydock. There really is a cruise line (or perhaps cruise line-itinerary combination) for everyone.

 

Roy

[believer33323]

Hi, I am scheduled for the July 12th cruise, same itinerary. While in Boston I wanted to reserve the "freedom Trail" tour through RCCL. Has anyone taken this particular tour. Yes, I understand you can easily do it yourself but I like the idea of the tour guide and it's 3-1/2 hours long with pickup and drop offs included. Other tours are cheaper but less than half the time. I am curious if the RCCL one includes admission to some of the Hisotrical houses etc....

[rafinmd]

Hi, I am scheduled for the July 12th cruise, same itinerary. While in Boston I wanted to reserve the "freedom Trail" tour through RCCL. Has anyone taken this particular tour. Yes, I understand you can easily do it yourself but I like the idea of the tour guide and it's 3-1/2 hours long with pickup and drop offs included. Other tours are cheaper but less than half the time. I am curious if the RCCL one includes admission to some of the Historical houses etc....

 

My answer is a bit tentative since I was on my own in Boston, but I did what looks like the same tour off the Crystal Symphony last October and the descriptions match up very well. The only place we entered then was old North Church and the RCI description says "visit Old North Church". You should have some time afterwards to visit some other sites on your own. Here's what I wrote then:

 

My tour today was "Freedom Trail Walk". Our guide Julie met us and we travelled by coach to the Massachussets State House by the Boston Commons where our walk began. The Freedom Trail is a planned walk encompassing many of Boston's historic sites along a route marked by a red painted or brick line in the sidewalk. The State House sits across the street from the Boston Commons and a statue commemorating the first black regiment in the Civil War. We visited the Granary Burying Ground where mostly slate graves marked the great like John Hancock along with many ordinary citizens. The Old South Meeting House was the place where colonists formed to organize the Boston Tea Party.

 

A hub of activity in Boston is the Quincy Market area with Fanueil Hall. This was dock area in the early days but is now several blocks back. Much of the land in between was filled in with rubble from a fire in the 1870's. We paused at the National Park Visitors Center and then went on to the North End. We stopped at the Old North Church where a staff member told us about the church and it's role in the revolution. While it was pretty much reserved for the rich in revolutionary times it is today an active Episcopal Church for the community. It sits on a large plot with some very nice gardens and a statue of Paul Revere, whose house is about 2 blocks away. We returned to the Quincy Market shuttle stop to end the tour.

 

Roy