All Things Adventure of the Seas

[rotchill]

[Ocean Boy]

The piano had a box on it to play itself

 

I get it. And most people who play would consider that..... Lame.;)

Edited March 10, 2014 by Ocean Boy

[ckrobyn]

You socialize with people besides us?:confused:

 

 

Yes.....jealous??? :rolleyes::p:D

[Ocean Boy]

Yes.....jealous??? :rolleyes::p:D

 

A little.:rolleyes:

[ckrobyn]

A little.:rolleyes:

 

Thought so ;)

[Familygoboston]

I just spent an entire evening reading through this whole "new" adventure thread, and it's been helpful, I've learned all about OBs love of caves and Robyn's fear of them, and that pretty much if it's Feb you will find Robyn on Adventure for a couple of weeks;)

 

We have booked Adventure (again- bit we had to cancel the last one and take Jewel instead- I know cry me a river:p) for DDs graduation cruise in April 2015, just before she hot foots it back to Europe. Adventure that is, not DD, she's thinking Bowdoin, Tufts or Vassar:p

 

SO- after all that reading, here is what I'm left wondering!

 

1- DRY DOCK: sounds like dry dock is this April 2014; what's happening? Is this the full "oasisization" (flat screens, way finders, and park cafes?) or just rugs and carpet? Will there be a diamond lounge added, and where? Sort of like the the ones in the Viking Crown lounges of other ships? What specialty restaurants are coming, and is anything going? (Like Johnny rockets?)

 

2-WHERE IS ROBYNS REPORT? is Robyn doing a review of her latest 2 week ADVENTURE? Does anyone have a link? I searched and just get the old stuff.

 

3- EXCURSIONS AND MORE: OB, where are these caves? Walking or swimming? And are their bats (dd would love the bats!) Robyn seems to enjoy finding a nice cafe in port (read her old reviews;)) But DD will want some adventure with her ADVENTURE, so I'm looking at independent tours of the islands (st Lucia, Antigua, and St Croix) we already booked Calabaza again with Gina - DD has got to see the turtles and we are happy to go back! And in SMX we will take her to our favorite beach and send her parasailing. But I haven't been to St Croix, Antigua or sT Lucia in 20 years! Any active excursion advice from anyone is most appreciated!

 

4- OSJ HOTEL: Is the Sheraton really 400 bucks a night? We stayed at Hotel plaza De Armas, but our stay left a little to be desired on the cleanliness side of things, so I thought I'd check out the old convent and the Sheraton, but 800 for 2 nights is more than I paid for one person to go on a 7 night cruise! Any thoughts for picking up one of those hotels a little cheaper OR a cleaner OSJ boutique hotel (don't mind shabby, just need clean!)

 

Ok that's it! Rather than pester with a thousand posts, just laid it all out there! (Hey, I do my bit, I can ask once in a while;):p

 

Thanks everyone!

Edited March 17, 2014 by Familygoboston

[Mykitteh]

There is an hotel called Hotel Miramar in San Juan that is a very cute little hotel. It's nothing big or fancy, but the staff are helpful and that roof top terrace is AMAZING!

 

It's walking distance to several little shops and eateries too. We saved a ton of money buy getting groceries and having a picnic at the hotel. (There are loungers and tables up there). There is also beaches walking distance as well from the hotel (10 min).

 

Also a quick ride to the cruise port.

[Familygoboston]

Well, answered my own #1 question with this:

 

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/findacruise/ships/class/ship/home.do?shipClassCode=VY&shipCode=AD&br=R

 

Looks like yes to the diamond lounge, pervasive wifi and way finders, yes to Giovanni's, no on Park Cafe, yes to cupcake factory and the outdoor movie screen. All sounds good to me, just hope the JRs stays- one of my fav venues on Navigator:D

 

Thanks mykitteh for the advice on Miramar, I'll look that up! We did stay in Condado, last time, and that was lovely, but I know DD will enjoy the forts in OSJ, so we were hoping to stay right there. We will suck it up at HPDA if we have to (I'll bring wipes) the service there was spectacular and the location can't be beat! I'll check out Miramar, see if we could make it work! Thanks!

[Two 2 Tango]

I went through a bunch of pages trying to find information on AOS cabins. Can I find that information somewhere on this thread? I am looking for information like larger than standard cabins or balconies, obstructed views etc. etc. Any help would be appreciated. Happy cruising.

 

Go to the top of this page, click reviews then cabin reviews, then the ship and decks you require.;)

[drarill]

Well, answered my own #1 question with this:

 

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/findacruise/ships/class/ship/home.do?shipClassCode=VY&shipCode=AD&br=R

 

Looks like yes to the diamond lounge, pervasive wifi and way finders, yes to Giovanni's, no on Park Cafe, yes to cupcake factory and the outdoor movie screen. All sounds good to me, just hope the JRs stays- one of my fav venues on Navigator:D

 

Thanks mykitteh for the advice on Miramar, I'll look that up! We did stay in Condado, last time, and that was lovely, but I know DD will enjoy the forts in OSJ, so we were hoping to stay right there. We will suck it up at HPDA if we have to (I'll bring wipes) the service there was spectacular and the location can't be beat! I'll check out Miramar, see if we could make it work! Thanks!

 

Thanks for the link!! We are celebrating New Years Eve on the Adventure in December. Looking forward to enjoy the changes!!:):)

[B&J_Pgh]

Sorry to take so long getting back to you (I've been investing the majority of my time shopping for health insurance). Is there still time? I have them right here and when one of my tech savy people get home can scan them for you. Let me know.

[B&J_Pgh]

I posted an actually balcony picture of her Valentines Week this year. There's a thread about her balconies. Take a look! Hope it helps.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=41928150#post41928150

[stamford57]

My parents have just booked cabin 8542, does this have steel around it or is it open? Any pics would be greatly received.

[Dajbman22]

My parents have just booked cabin 8542, does this have steel around it or is it open? Any pics would be greatly received.

 

All but the aft balconies have the steel border around the balcony.

[B&J_Pgh]

we didn't stay at the Concha but we heard two people that did. Try out my link for my posting. The got it on a deal on one of the travel sites at bargain prices.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1994114

[B&J_Pgh]

not mine.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1994114

[stamford57]

Will it be like the one above in the link?

[Dajbman22]

Will it be like the one above in the link?

 

Short answer: Yes.

 

FYI:

The one in the link above is a D (superior) balcony, and 8542 is an E (deluxe) balcony, but that affects the room size itself, not the size or look of the balcony. D's are a few feet longer and have a full couch and E's have a love seat.

[stamford57]

Short answer: Yes.

 

FYI:

The one in the link above is a D (superior) balcony, and 8542 is an E (deluxe) balcony, but that affects the room size itself, not the size or look of the balcony. D's are a few feet longer and have a full couch and E's have a love seat.

 

Thanks for the info, I'm sure it will be fine 😎

[Ocean Boy]

 

3- EXCURSIONS AND MORE: OB, where are these caves? Walking or swimming? And are their bats (dd would love the bats!) Robyn seems to enjoy finding a nice cafe in port (read her old reviews;)) But DD will want some adventure with her ADVENTURE, so I'm looking at independent tours of the islands (st Lucia, Antigua, and St Croix) we already booked Calabaza again with Gina - DD has got to see the turtles and we are happy to go back! And in SMX we will take her to our favorite beach and send her parasailing. But I haven't been to St Croix, Antigua or sT Lucia in 20 years! Any active excursion advice from anyone is most appreciated!

 

Which islands are you going to? Barbados and Curacao are the good ones for caves. If you are going to either of those I will write more about them. On St. Lucia you could check out the Volcano. I found it very interesting. I am sure Robyn would too.;):rolleyes:

[Familygoboston]

Thanks for the link!! We are celebrating New Years Eve on the Adventure in December. Looking forward to enjoy the changes!!:):)

 

Yes, I was pleasantly surprised by the Revit efforts in Enchantment, so I'm glad my cruise will be post revitalization! New Years Eve, that'll be a party! Write a review for me, and save the compasses, Ok? ;):p

 

we didn't stay at the Concha but we heard two people that did. Try out my link for my posting. The got it on a deal on one of the travel sites at bargain prices.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1994114

 

Thanks for posting your review, I'm going to dig into that tonight! We stayed at La Concha and we got a deal, so I was expecting problems ;) But we were "perfectly delighted"; it's a great location, happening bar scene, but quiet rooms and the ocean views were spectacular! We'd go back, but DD is keen to see OSJ without having to cab over there. But at 800 bucks for 2 nights in OSJ, we will use our Marriott points instead to stay in Condado and pay for the cab:eek:

Edited March 17, 2014 by Familygoboston
ETA: already read this review anyway!

[Familygoboston]

Which islands are you going to? Barbados and Curacao are the good ones for caves. If you are going to either of those I will write more about them. On St. Lucia you could check out the Volcano. I found it very interesting. I am sure Robyn would too.;):rolleyes:

 

Ah, there you are neighbor! :D

 

Barbados

St Lucia

St Martin

Antigua

St croix

So the only repeats from our Nov cruise are SMX and Barbados, 2 of our favs. Haven't been to the others in 20 years!

 

Sounds like we are out of luck on caves, DD would prefer swimming with sea turtles in Barbados, and we've booked With Gina on Calabaza already. I'm hoping to hire an independent guide in St Lucia to get to the pitons and the volcano, ( no bats in the volcanos!) maybe a little hike in the rainforest. I'm researching a few now. TA has some good reviews, but I also like to hear from my CC friends, and so far all the reviews I've read, everyone hits the beaches, no tours! :cool:

 

Love to hear more about your day in St Lucia. Also, do you know if Robyn has done a review for her last trip Feb 2014 yet? Thanks OB!

Edited March 17, 2014 by Familygoboston

[Ocean Boy]

Ah, there you are neighbor! :D

 

Barbados

St Lucia

St Martin

Antigua

St croix

So the only repeats from our Nov cruise are SMX and Barbados, 2 of our favs. Haven't been to the others in 20 years!

 

Sounds like we are out of luck on caves, DD would prefer swimming with sea turtles in Barbados, and we've booked With Gina on Calabaza already. I'm hoping to hire an independent guide in St Lucia to get to the pitons and the volcano, ( no bats in the volcanos!) maybe a little hike in the rainforest. I'm researching a few now. TA has some good reviews, but I also like to hear from my CC friends, and so far all the reviews I've read, everyone hits the beaches, no tours! :cool:

 

Love to hear more about your day in St Lucia. Also, do you know if Robyn has done a review for her last trip Feb 2014 yet? Thanks OB!

 

We don't really do beaches when we are on vacation. I can walk down the street from home and do that. It is too bad that you already have plans for Barbados. Harrison's Cave has to be one of the most beautiful caves that I have been in. But it is not high in bat content. You actually ride a tram through the cave. At one point they stop the tram and let you walk around near a waterfall. And also at one point the stop the tram, turn off all of the lighting in the area, and let you experience what total darkness really is. On Curacao, Hato Cave is LOADED with bats.

 

On St. Lucia it took a bit of time to get to the volcano but it was well worth it (to me anyway). I found it quite fascinating. After the volcano we went to a tropical waterfall and garden with hiking trails. It was very beautiful. I can't remember the name right now but I will come up with it later and post it for you. You might want to consider whether you want to spend time getting to the Pitons or not. The only reason I say this is because when we sailed on Serenade the captain brought us to the Pitons after we sailed out of port. He stopped the ship right between the Pitons, did a 360 with the ship and then parked us right there to take in a magnificent sunset before heading out on the itinerary. I can't tell you that you will get this experience when you sail so if you want to see the Pitons up close you might have to do it by land. We hired someone after we got off of the ship. We did not have a tour arranged before we got to the island.

 

On Antigua we went down to Nelson's Dockyard, English Harbor, and Shirley Heights. They are beautiful and you get a nice drive of the island on the way. We also went through the rain forest on the way back to the port which is located in the capitol town called St. Johns (not to be confused with the USVI St. John). By the way, we hired someone after we walked off of the ship to take us around. Again, we did not have it planned before we got to the island. Our driver was great and she have us a very nice talk as she took us around.

 

As for St. Croix, I don't have much to say about it. I didn't really care much for being there and it is the only island in the Caribbea that I don't really care to go to again. I would rather that they put St. Thomas back on this itinerary like it used to be.

 

Now, St. Maarten is absolutely one of by favorite places to be. But you seem to be pretty well versed on that port already. But if you have any particular questions about the island I'd be glad to try to answer.

[Familygoboston]

Thanks for the response! Yes, I'm the same way about beaches, when I get through a review and it's all beaches, I'm happy for them, but it's not what I want to do, we've got the beach house in Maine, and our beach all to myself, so I'm very spoiled! Ok, so there are no umbrella drinks served, and the water is much, much colder! ;) Generally, I go for one or two beach visits per 7 days, and I save those for ports I've explored quite a bit already.

 

I'll ask DD about Harrison's cave, but from the sound of it, she will probably still want to snorkel with the turtles. If we ever get to curaçao we will definitely try that!

 

I will I've always been afraid to just hire a taxi driver in port. So many folks do it and works out great, but my big fear is I get the one drunken loser in the bunch and have a frighteningly bad tour! But everyone I talk to says they get a great tour! So it restores my faith in humanity, but I'm still to nervous to leave it chance! :p

We don't really do beaches when we are on vacation. I can walk down the street from home and do that. It is too bad that you already have plans for Barbados. Harrison's Cave has to be one of the most beautiful caves that I have been in. But it is not high in bat content. You actually ride a tram through the cave. At one point they stop the tram and let you walk around near a waterfall. And also at one point the stop the tram, turn off all of the lighting in the area, and let you experience what total darkness really is. On Curacao, Hato Cave is LOADED with bats.

 

On St. Lucia it took a bit of time to get to the volcano but it was well worth it (to me anyway). I found it quite fascinating. After the volcano we went to a tropical waterfall and garden with hiking trails. It was very beautiful. I can't remember the name right now but I will come up with it later and post it for you. You might want to consider whether you want to spend time getting to the Pitons or not. The only reason I say this is because when we sailed on Serenade the captain brought us to the Pitons after we sailed out of port. He stopped the ship right between the Pitons, did a 360 with the ship and then parked us right there to take in a magnificent sunset before heading out on the itinerary. I can't tell you that you will get this experience when you sail so if you want to see the Pitons up close you might have to do it by land. We hired someone after we got off of the ship. We did not have a tour arranged before we got to the island.

 

On Antigua we went down to Nelson's Dockyard, English Harbor, and Shirley Heights. They are beautiful and you get a nice drive of the island on the way. We also went through the rain forest on the way back to the port which is located in the capitol town called St. Johns (not to be confused with the USVI St. John). By the way, we hired someone after we walked off of the ship to take us around. Again, we did not have it planned before we got to the island. Our driver was great and she have us a very nice talk as she took us around.

 

As for St. Croix, I don't have much to say about it. I didn't really care much for being there and it is the only island in the Caribbea that I don't really care to go to again. I would rather that they put St. Thomas back on this itinerary like it used to be.

 

Now, St. Maarten is absolutely one of by favorite places to be. But you seem to be pretty well versed on that port already. But if you have any particular questions about the island I'd be glad to try to answer.

 

It's interesting that you weren't wowed by St Lucia, as I read reviews and tour options, I'm not finding anything that is thrilling me. DD and DH are history buffs, and interested in military history, so I'm thinking of going to Christiansted to see the forts, and then calling it an early day. Do you think the Antigua Nelson's Dockyard area is historical too? I so remember doing it years ago and it wasn't as "restored", buildings were there but no interpretation etc. wondering if that's improved now? We are hoping to spend Sat in OSJ and do the forts there. I know DD will enjoy that too, she's hoping to major in history and it's her graduation cruise!

 

Thanks again for all your advice!

[Ocean Boy]

I will I've always been afraid to just hire a taxi driver in port. So many folks do it and works out great, but my big fear is I get the one drunken loser in the bunch and have a frighteningly bad tour! But everyone I talk to says they get a great tour! So it restores my faith in humanity, but I'm still to nervous to leave it chance! :p

 

 

It's interesting that you weren't wowed by St Lucia, as I read reviews and tour options, I'm not finding anything that is thrilling me. DD and DH are history buffs, and interested in military history, so I'm thinking of going to Christiansted to see the forts, and then calling it an early day. Do you think the Antigua Nelson's Dockyard area is historical too? I so remember doing it years ago and it wasn't as "restored", buildings were there but no interpretation etc. wondering if that's improved now? We are hoping to spend Sat in OSJ and do the forts there. I know DD will enjoy that too, she's hoping to major in history and it's her graduation cruise!

 

Thanks again for all your advice!

 

With so many drivers looking for business I find it pretty easy to size them up. I would not be too nervous about it.

 

It is St. Croix that I was not impressed with not St. Lucia. I found Nelson's Dockyard to be very interesting. I think they did a great job with the buildings. It has been a few years since we were there. I am sure that it has only improved since then.

 

I love the two major forts in San Juan. They are very much worth exploring. I alsoways look forward to returning to San Juan. It is a beautiful city.