Enchantment of the Seas July 11 Sailing

[imsulin]

Who on earth would book a flight on disembarkation day at 10:15 a.m.?? Sorry, but that was not-so-smart to do! You're very lucky you only had to pay $25.00 per person to change your flight to a later time! A question for greenpea and AuntieG: Did you book this cruise through a TA or on your own? If you booked it on your own, and have previously cruised, why would you even consider taking a return flight at 10:15 a.m.? Sorry, but I have no sympathy for you there, especially since you informed Guest Relations DURING the cruise. You booked this return flight BEFORE your cruise! I think you have a legitimate complaint about the toilet situation, but NOT about the "Disembarkation Nightmare"...that was YOUR OWN doing! Better luck next time, OK?

[Host Kewlguy]

kewlguy -- did you recall any plumbing issues on your sailing? thanks

 

We had a couple of flushes which were delayed by about 10-15 minutes but that's about it.

 

We did notice VERY long lines throughout the cruise at the guest relations deck. Maybe the toilet issues explain that now.

[whale-watcher]

We had a couple of flushes which were delayed by about 10-15 minutes but that's about it.

I could live with a delayed flush now and then, but would hate to see any backflow from the shower drain:eek: ! which deck were you on (we will be on deck 8 in September, and I am hoping that is just too far uphill...) Thanks for the info!

[Host Kewlguy]

I could live with a delayed flush now and then, but would hate to see any backflow from the shower drain:eek: ! which deck were you on (we will be on deck 8 in September, and I am hoping that is just too far uphill...) Thanks for the info!

 

Deck 2

[barbface1]

So sorry about the plumbing issues....I too have IBS and this will be a big issue for me if the plumbing problems continue until 8/14....

 

One question....what about the solarium issue....lots of kids in there (hot tubs) or was the adult only rule inforced?

[Merion_Mom]

One question....what about the solarium issue....lots of kids in there (hot tubs) or was the adult only rule inforced?

Oh, Barb, with you AND me on board, any marauding kids in the solarium won't stand a chance! LOL! :D

 

Carol

[AuntieG]

So sorry about the plumbing issues....I too have IBS and this will be a big issue for me if the plumbing problems continue until 8/14....

 

One question....what about the solarium issue....lots of kids in there (hot tubs) or was the adult only rule inforced?

 

There were very few children on the 7/11 cruise so it wasn't like the situation described from the previous week. However, I can tell you that RCI does not enforce the rules in the solarium. There was a family with a few kids and a baby who set up a play pen in the solarium the last sea day. Fortunatley, the baby and children were reasonably well behaved. If they were disruptive I would have definitely escalated the problem.

[thegreenepea]

I also would like to add that reserving of lounge chairs was a problem too. By 8:00 a.m. there wasn't a lounge chair to be found in the solarium (the inadeuqate number they had) and we were forced to drag lounge chairs in from the outside pool area. Just another irritation.

[cme]

I must say that we had problems with our toilet on the Navigator on going thru a back to back cruise last Oct.:eek: I was just on the Brilliance cruise in the Med. and once again had some major toilet issues. Lets just say our toilet filled up with other people"s S**T! from deck four. It was disgusting. They were always good about working on it, but it just kept happening.

 

 

Carrie

[barbface1]

There were very few children on the 7/11 cruise so it wasn't like the situation described from the previous week. However, I can tell you that RCI does not enforce the rules in the solarium. There was a family with a few kids and a baby who set up a play pen in the solarium the last sea day. Fortunatley, the baby and children were reasonably well behaved. If they were disruptive I would have definitely escalated the problem.

 

 

I don't mind if they are there,....just don't want them in he hot tub!

[sagiter]

I posted this review yesterday in another thread. We did not experience the bathroom problems (thank heavens I would have freaked out altogether) and totally sympathize with those who had a problem. It didn't sour us on cruising and would consider another, we were just dissapointed that much of what we heard about food and service didn't pan out. based on what we spent for the cruise I feel that I could have had a land vacation that was superb and gotten some change back. here's the review :

 

Hi Folks,

 

 

My family (wife, teenage son and daughter) and I were on the July 11th sailing. this was our first cruise so our impressions are not based on any prior experience.

 

Check in was excellent with no problems at all. We drove in as we are New Yorkers, dropped off our luggage, parked and were on the boat in less than an hour. Our rooms were ready when we boarded so we headed off to 4510 and 4512 (Deck 4 - forward section). We found them comfortable and with plenty of closet space. hangers and shelf space to make ourselves comfortable. Although we were fortunate that our toilets worked we did hear stories of those that weren't so lucky and they were not pleased to say the least. i would have probably freaked out. A friend of my son's told us that they awoke one morning to find their cabin flooded. Anyway we met our cabin steward, pre-tipped him $50 and asked him to remove the chargeable drinks from the kids room which he took care of. We hardly saw Joseph (steward) and our rooms were kept in excellent order.

 

Our first problem arose early on with the Shore Excursion folks. Personally I doubt I will ever book a shore excursion through RCI again. We booked online, prior to sailing, the Halifax Hop on Hop off bus for 4 at $36 a person. On check in we received one ticket (my wife's). We called over to guest services who told us they couldn't help at all and we would have to see the Excursion desk people the following day (a sea day). More on this later.

 

We had lunch at the Windjammer (every day on board as well as breakfast) and found it somewhat crowded but still negotiable. I saw some folks having a real problem getting tables but we were lucky I guess and didn't have a major problem. the food was decent, nothing spectacular, on par with good diner food but it's a buffet and what can you expect ? Through the week we did experience the lack of plates and silverware syndrome several times which was quite annoying. There also seems to be a haphazard set up of stations so you really have to sometimes bus an empty table to get a seat and certainly get your own drinks.

 

After some more exploring we went back to our rooms to get ready for dinner. Our bags had arrived by then so we unpacked, changed for dinner and after spending some time finding our table (several staff members had no idea where it was either) we finally met our waiter and assistant. Both were excellent although our waiter cut him self 3 days into the cruise and we then got our head waiter as a waiter. Service went down at this point as she appeared to have a bit much on her plate and we waited fairly long for certain things to arrive, like a menu :-). The food on this night as well as most others was somewhat disappointing as the food never really lived up to it's description or our expectations. We had the early seating for the kids (who pretty much gave up on the dining room by the third night). We found the dining room ridiculously loud and cramped and most uncomfortable especially on formal nights. Another thing about our expectations was we thought (based on many reviews on several sites) that most people paid attention to the dress suggestions and we dressed accordingly. This really upset my kids (especially the son) because no one else seemed to really care. Shorts, halters whatever seemed just fine except on the first formal night when most folks seemed to follow as best as they could. the second formal night I was surrounded by folks with no jackets and what I considered easily informal wear. btw... I could care less what anyone wears this is just a comment on expectations versus reality. We told our kids that they had to follow the code no matter what and they opted for the Windjammer rather than the hassle. One other thing, I found the two nights with the announcements and the march of the waiters and loud music annoying. Truth is I could care less about how many people it takes to cook and serve allot of food and with having to literally rush out to see a show, who's got the time ? Also, we sat next to a family where the son would spit the food he didn't like right out onto the table which was fairly disgusting. and between two other table(one of parents and one of their kids) and they would routinely yell past our table to communicate with each other.

 

At this point I have to say that the kids found many friends and had a great time on the cruise, no complaints at all.

 

The rest of the night we walked around, did some minor shopping, had a drink or two, etc. and basically got the feel of cruising.

 

First morning we had breakfast at the Windjammer (my son slept in and we brought a plate down to him) and went to the Shore Excursions desk. Fifteen minutes before the desk was to open we got on the back of a 30 minute line along with everyone else whose tickets and excursions were messed up on line. When we finally got to the counter, the line stretched out behind us, bending around, it was so long. We told them our problem and they printed my ticket and told us that the kids' tickets would be delivered to the stateroom by dinner. By dinner one ticket had arrived so we called down to guest services who again told us that we would have to be on line again tomorrow as there was no number to call for excursions and no other way to solve the problem. We had a fairly relaxing day on board, watched the art auction, had two additional mediocre meals and hit the sack to get ready for our first stop Boston.

 

First thing in the morning I fortified myself with some coffee and at 7:00AM got on the line at Shore Excursions for the grand 7:30Am opening. At 7AM I was 5th in line. By 7:30 the line was 60 people long. i went through my entire routine again and had the last ticket printed (she wanted me to go away and said the ticket would be delivered by dinner but I was having none of that :mad: .

 

We did Boston on our own (Harvard, Quincy market and the NE Aquarium) and had a good day overall. We got back to the ship and got ready for our very first Formal Dinner. As I said, we were usually somewhat disappointed with our dining room experiences.

 

Let me add something here about the shows and the theatre. The theatre is very nice. To get a seat at the late show you have to arrive 45 minutes early. The theatre fills very fast. I was told the early show is easier but that was our dinner time so that was out. The two production shows we saw were fine. The first night we couldn't get in and one night we didn't like the show so we left. It's weird but I feel that the time spent waiting is a waste. they should have expanded the theatre with the ship or added another show. We're a family of four and for appx. $6000 I shouldn't have to wait or miss shows or arrange my entire schedule around the rush to see a show or waiting on lines to fix problems, etc.

 

Did I mention my kids had an absolutely grand time?!

 

We did Bar Harbor on our own as well; an off ship tour of Acadia and just tooling around town. One thing to note. We went down to the tender dock a little before 9:00AM as we had a 10:00 tour scheduled and were told that we couldn't board until the RCI booked excursions were on the tender. The crew members didn't really seem to care that we had a private tour booked, just that "their" people had a seat. We did get on that tender eventually but it upset me to no end that these people were in some way given preferential treatment over me. I don't think they would have cared at all had we not got on that tender and then had to rush to make our tour. The guys' attitude was unconscionable.

 

btw... at least one pool was closed most of the days which filled the other pools with little kids. Folks I love kids but I've done my time and now like a pool with mostly adults, I didn't swim once. One night my wife and I decided we'd like to hit the hot tubs on deck and at 8:00PM they were all closed, the next night, too.

 

The Halifax portion of our trip was nice. We got the bus, let it take us around, got off at the maritime museum, wandered a bit on the boardwalk, shopped a little, basically trying to get a feel of being in a different country, especially the kids. We went back on board, prepared for our second Formal Dinner, again somewhat disappointed in the experience. We learned that evening that our daughter is allergic to shrimp. Thankfully the ship's shop had Benadryl and her symptoms, watery eyes, considerable swelling, itching and hives, subsided for the most part within an hour. She went back and joined her friends once the medication took effect and thankfully had no other difficulties. Oh well, no more shrimp for our DD.

 

My kids both waited for and did the rock wall once but the lines were amusement park like as well as for the bungee. My daughter tried several times for the bungee and gave up in disgust each time. The wait had to be at least an hour in what was usually full sun. Both of these facilities were open for very limited amounts of time.

 

Two more things about ship excursions. For the Halifax stop, we did the Hop On Hop Off bus, pre-paying $144 to RCI for our tickets. At our first stop there was a sign that said a family of four could use the bus all day for two days for $69. Again, unconscionable. To make matters worse, on our check out bill there was a charge for a Boston excursion we never took or signed on for which again had to be taken care of, this time only 3 calls to guest services.

 

Overall, our experience on the cruise was pleasant, though somewhat disappointing but our kids had a great time. They made new friends from all over the country and enjoyed many of the activities both scheduled and non-scheduled. They exchanged e-mails and phone numbers, and have been in touch with several kids that they met on board.

 

As we didn't go to all the shows or most of the scheduled events/games on the ship we found the ships videos interesting and amusing. We were able catch some of what we missed, sometimes enjoying the event with abandon (the comedian on the first night was very funny). I liked the ship's cam and watched the docking at Halifax. The disembarking video was also helpful.

 

Ah yes, disembarking. We filled out the appropriate paperwork on the second or third night regarding luggage tags and that sort of thing. We were informed that we would be in the Gray 2 group for leaving the ship. We were to vacate our stateroom by 8:00 AM and wait in a lounge for our group to be called. We found a place to sit and waited. It was hours before they called us to disembark. My wife had gotten a soda and a juice from the bar just before they stopped serving at 9:00 AM. Still we waited until nearly 11:00 for our turn to leave. Surprisingly, once we got off the ship the rest of the process was amazingly quick. We got through customs, found our luggage, caught a courtesy bus and we were in our car, luggage loaded and on our way by 11:20. RCI has experience in this port and should arrange the deembarcations differently at least have some service available during a 3 hour wait when not in your room.

 

Would I cruise again. Probably, prehaps a higher rated line, not sure, certainly a late seating dinner (early seating is very harried on land days) and I like to realx a little and wind down before dinner. i'd also hit the Chops restaurant during the week for the quiet over the dining room.

 

Thanks for listening.

 

Sagiter

[Flacruiser123]

Thanks for the review; I and many others here appreciate your frankness!!

 

Sweetpea - wow, such a bad deal on the "toities" - I'll be on Enchantment in September and am hoping the plumbing situation is fixed by then!!!

[TheWog]

Sagiter -

 

great review. Thank you for taking the time. Small world, my wife, son and MIL were at the NE Aquarium the same day. :)

[cruzindad]

Just posted some of my pictures from the July 11 cruise. I will add more when I get a chance.http://community.webshots.com/user/cruzindad

[spongerob]

Good review, Sagiter. I would ask that you reconsider your position in the following statement:

 

"...we had a 10:00 tour scheduled and were told that we couldn't board until the RCI booked excursions were on the tender. The crew members didn't really seem to care that we had a private tour booked, just that "their" people had a seat. We did get on that tender eventually but it upset me to no end that these people were in some way given preferential treatment over me."

 

When tendering, or if the ship is running behind schedule, passengers who have booked tours through the ship will always have priority, as they should. They are paying more, sometimes a lot more, for the privilege of getting off first and having the ship remain in port should they arrive back late. Your sense of being upset is misplaced, and I hope this explanation helps alleviate those feelings.

[lojill]

Those are great pictures

[bluehorizonlover123]

Loved your pictures and review. We are leaving in one week. We are on Deck 2. Are you saying that the toilet issues happened on Deck 2. For some reason I am not looking forward to this cruise right now.

[Host Kewlguy]

Loved your pictures and review. We are leaving in one week. We are on Deck 2. Are you saying that the toilet issues happened on Deck 2. For some reason I am not looking forward to this cruise right now.

 

We were on Deck 2, cabin #2608. We had no major toilet troubles. Just a couple of delayed flushes. Think positive and remember any cruise is better than being home. :D The ship is clean and very beautiful. My problem was the solarium and steaks/service in the dining room. Maybe I just had a lousy waiter and assistant. Or maybe I was just spoiled on Celebrity.

[Merion_Mom]

Just posted some of my pictures from the July 11 cruise. I will add more when I get a chance.http://community.webshots.com/user/cruzindad

Dear Dad, Thanks for the pictures. Love, Mom :)

 

Good review, Sagiter. I would ask that you reconsider your position in the following statement:

That's what I told him on the other thread where he kindly posted his honest review.

 

Carol

[thegreenepea]

I would also like to further comment on many points in your review.

 

RCI does not enforce their policies and the dress code is just another example. I understand that it is subjective, however, shorts and tank tops are not be permitted in the dining room for dinner and the maitre d should ask them to dine in the Windjammer.

 

The ship increased the passenger count by 300 but no provisions were made to increase the size of some of the public areas; and what you stated is absolutely true that there was not enough room for all the guests who wanted to see the shows. I never expereinced that problem on previous cruises.

 

Excursions are usally much cheaper when you book them on shore - the cruise lines make as much money as they can on the extras.

[Host Kewlguy]

I would also like to further comment on many points in your review.

 

RCI does not enforce their policies and the dress code is just another example. I understand that it is subjective, however, shorts and tank tops are not be permitted in the dining room for dinner and the maitre d should ask them to dine in the Windjammer.

 

The ship increased the passenger count by 300 but no provisions were made to increase the size of some of the public areas; and what you stated is absolutely true that there was not enough room for all the guests who wanted to see the shows. I never expereinced that problem on previous cruises.

 

Excursions are usally much cheaper when you book them on shore - the cruise lines make as much money as they can on the extras.

 

Yes, there was a shortage of chairs/lounges in the Solarium. Nearly impossible to find anywhere to sit in the afternoon.

[Gpec24]

Thanks for the pics! I was on the July 11th sailing as well. I havent reviewed the cruise yet but we did encounter some of the problems previously mentioned. Thanks for everyone's input!!!

[Bean2]

We are booked for the 8/14 sailing from Philly, with my elderly parents, one of whom is very ill. I am very concerned about this plumbing issue, the dining room problems, and the solarium crowd. But, I guess I have no choice but to go at this point. Maybe by 8/14 some of the problems will have been ameliorated.

[Shanafan]

OT....... to quote the Fawkers.... if it's yellow, let it mellow.... if it's brown flush it down (in your case, you might not be able to):rolleyes:

LOL as usual!

[sueinphilly]

What times are the dinner seatings, 6:15 and 8:30?