Review/Trip Report: Navigator of the Seas January 11, 2015

[April-in-NC]

We are in the process of getting a refund for the excursion. Island Marketing did get confirmation from the operator and resort about the situation and they agreed that the tour we were provided was NOT what we were supposed to receive. They are refunding the deposit that was charged to our credit card and we are trying to work out a method to get a refund of the cash we paid to the resort.

 

Island Marketing is requesting our BANK information (not our credit card) to issue the refund and there is no way in hell I’m providing someone in a third world country my bank account number. At this point Island Marketing is trying to see if the resort can issue the refund to a credit card or another method that doesn’t include our bank account, and Western Union was listed as a possible solution but I have no idea how that even works.

 

I’m pleased that Island Marketing is working with us to make it right after the fact, but I’m disappointed that they won’t refund the full amount to our card right now and then deal with getting the refund back from the resort for themselves.

 

After returning to the port we did some shopping and I found some really interesting pottery made by the local women. It is still made by hand and different than anything I had seen before so I bought a vase and a Christmas ornament.

 

[/url]

 

 

The port area is safe inside the gates but outside the gates I did feel a little uneasy. There is a lot of poverty and kids running around asking you to come and look at stores. We were not pressured or accosted, but I was very aware of our surroundings and kept our wallets in front pockets with our hands in our pockets as an extra precaution.

 

 

There was a stand for those who want their passports stamped and wifi is available for a fee (I think it was $5) and I think there was a Duty Free store that would give you free wifi with a purchase.

 

I’m not ready to write off Roatan as a port stop, but we were very disappointed in our day there. Part of it was that I really wanted to snorkel the reef (second largest behind the Great Barrier Reef in Australia) and the Blue Channel. With those plans cancelled nothing would have lived up to those expectations.

 

I take responsibility for choosing the alternative excursion, but with less than 2 hours to make a decision I didn’t have time to go into full research mode and I wanted to avoid a ship excursion, but hindsight tells me it would have been better to be on a large boat getting to snorkel as opposed to what we elected to do.

[KJL53]

Thanks for the review. I leave in April.

 

You said you took the RCCL shuttle and it left for the ship at 11:30. Was that the first bus to leave? I don't want to get back to the airport earlier than necessary.

 

Thanks

[April-in-NC]

Thanks for the review. I leave in April.

 

You said you took the RCCL shuttle and it left for the ship at 11:30. Was that the first bus to leave? I don't want to get back to the airport earlier than necessary.

 

Thanks

 

I'm fairly certain it was the first bus (our cards said Bus 1), plus we were on the first bus back to Galveston on Sunday and we didn't arrive until 10:50, so by the time the bus got down to the loading zone and the rep got people situated that would be about right.

 

You don't need to be there super early, but they do line you up in the order you get to the check in desk, so if you arrive later you could be on a later bus. I'm not sure how much time is between buses, maybe only long enough to load it up.

[April-in-NC]

Thursday, January 15th: Belize City, Belize

 

Today’s excursion was Cave Tubing and Zip Lining with “Butts Up”. The tender process ran smoothly, we were one of the first people on the tender and the total time (boarding, tender and docking) was about 45 minutes. The ride itself was probably around 20 minutes.

 

[/url]

 

The dock area was a lot more commercialized as opposed to Roatan and it took us a few minutes to find the right meeting spot. We were immediately put on a bus and taken out of the immediate port area to get on another bus that would take us to the National Park. The guides were funny and told us a little about the country and areas we were driving through.

 

As we got closer the the park they took a head count on how many people were doing different excursions offered and they called that in to headquarters. By the time we arrived at the park they had different vehicles ready for us so that the different groups weren’t waiting on each other all day. Their ability to manage the real time logistics was impressive and was an unexpected bonus as it allowed us to get back to the port area a little earlier and gave us time to do some shopping.

 

We did the cave tubing portion first which did disappoint me a little as I would have to put on shorts over a wet bathing suit, but the zip line actually dried me out by the time we were done!

 

We walked about a quarter of a mile before we were given our life jackets and head lamps (our tubes were waiting at the cave, no need to carry them ourselves) and then we continued on walking. The trail was lined with pebbles/rocks to try to lessen the mud so you will want shoes with a good sole on them if you have sensitive feet like I do (no flip flops allowed).

 

[April-in-NC]

We crossed the stream/river 3 different times, the first time there was a rope to hold on to which was nice because the current was fairly strong. The next two times there was no rope and it was more difficult to cross. The extra crossings were shortcuts according to our guide, if we stayed to the land path it would have added more time to the trip and cut in to our time available in port.

 

[/url]

 

When we reached the cave entrance our guide tied the 6 tubes together and got us all situated before entering the current. The current was fairly swift, but no rapids to speak of, it was really neat going through the chambers of the caves and hearing how the natives thought the caves were actually the entrance to hell and if you made it through you were reborn.

 

 

 

After exiting the caves we floated on the river a little more as our guide pointed out things of interest in the trees (like a large orange iguana). When we reached the exit point we pulled the tubes out of the river and carried them a few yards down the path to the hut where we dropped off our equipment.

 

We then had few minutes to dry off and put our clothes back on, but there were no changing facilities that we saw so everything went on over our bathing suits. After changing we walked over to the zip line course and got our safety equipment, instructions and a quick training zip.

[CCC3]

Sailing on the Navigator May 31! I am loving your pictures...thanks!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[KJL53]

I'm fairly certain it was the first bus (our cards said Bus 1), plus we were on the first bus back to Galveston on Sunday and we didn't arrive until 10:50, so by the time the bus got down to the loading zone and the rep got people situated that would be about right.

 

You don't need to be there super early, but they do line you up in the order you get to the check in desk, so if you arrive later you could be on a later bus. I'm not sure how much time is between buses, maybe only long enough to load it up.

P

 

 

Thanks for the info...

[habanero111]

Enjoying your review April-in-NC, as we were on the ship too. Too bad we didn't have a chance to meet in person.

 

Looking forward to the rest of the review!

[Kinny]

Really cool review. We live in the area where you stayed. Baybrook Mall is a hot mess right now and it will continue to be a hot mess for several more years. :(

[George C]

Really enjoying the review , will be sailing same ship in April

[pbair90]

Hey April-in-NC - -so excited to read your review. We're going on the same cruise in March, and are also flying from Columbus to Hobby (Go Bucks!!!!!!):D

 

Thanks for taking the time to put this together!

[crazy4themouse]

We're on Navigator in 19 days -- your report is making me even more excited than I already was!! :D Thanks for taking the time to share your experiences!

 

 

-gina-

[April-in-NC]

This course is not the longest or the most exciting, but for the small additional add on cost it was worth it. I think there were 6 zips (including the training run) including two long runs over the river. There were two fairly long hikes up a set of stairs and dirt path, I’m out of shape and managed but I was out of breath by the time I got to the top.

 

[/url]

 

 

 

After we finished the zip lines we headed back to the parking area where we boarded the bus and they took us back to the headquarters for our lunch. Everyone got a home made chicken tamale and we could buy chips and beverages. Bottled soft drinks were $1 and beer $3.

 

 

We got back about 2 hours before the last tender, so we had time to do some shopping. There was a really neat "Made in Belize" shop that had wood products that I wanted one of everything.

 

[At Sea 4Ever]

Following and enjoying your review. We will be on Navigator soon! Was there a set cover charge for Sabor or al a carte? Also how long was the tender ride in Belize?

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[Clarea]

Following and enjoying your review. We will be on Navigator soon! Was there a set cover charge for Sabor or al a carte? Also how long was the tender ride in Belize?

Sabor on Navigator is fixed fee: $25 dinner, $20 lunch.

[jabraham99]

Sabor on Navigator is fixed fee: $25 dinner, $20 lunch.

 

 

Love the review!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[TXBBQDUDE]

Great review the wife and I are doing this route in April cant wait!!

[April-in-NC]

Following and enjoying your review. We will be on Navigator soon! Was there a set cover charge for Sabor or al a carte? Also how long was the tender ride in Belize?

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

 

The whole tender process (boarding, traveling, unloading) probably took about 45 minutes each way if you were one of the first ones on the tender and one of the last ones off.

 

They didn't have tender tickets on Navigator.

[BillOh]

Background:

 

My name is April (33, 7th cruise) and my husband is Andy (37, 3rd cruise) and we live in Columbus, Ohio, home of THE Ohio State Buckeyes and The Best Damn Band In The Land.

 

OH!

 

That said, off to read the rest!

[April-in-NC]

OH!

 

That said, off to read the rest!

 

I-O

 

I'm getting ready to go to lunch and I hope to continue working on the review during that time... Next up is Cozumel and Salsa, Salsa Margarita!

[April-in-NC]

Thursday, January 15: Cozumel, Mexico

 

Back at our last Cozumel stop on Freedom we did a mini-sub excursion at Hotel Cozumel. While we were there we could hear the fun from another excursion that was going on at the same time, Salsa and Salsa so we decided to give that a try this time.

 

You can only do this excursion through RCI and once I saw how many ships would be in port we decided to book it early and not use our OBC.

 

The tour started at 10:30 with a 10:15 meeting time on the pier, so we got off around 9:00 to see if there were some souvenirs that were of interest. I was able to find some black clay pottery that I had not seen before that was really pretty. I also picked up a small 3-pack of vanilla to take back to family.

 

BTW, Allure was parked next to us and HOLY COW that is a large ship. This is the first time I had seen Allure (never seen Oasis) and I knew it was big, but it dwarfed Navigator. We saw the balcony for one of the suites and it was huge. It had several lounge chairs, a long table with chairs, a bar and it's own hot tub.

 

[/url]

 

 

I couldn't even get them both in one picture!

 

At the meeting spot they split us up into groups of 8 and put us in taxi vans for the quick ride to Hotel Cozumel. I was expecting the location to be the covered balcony on the beach, but we were in a large ballroom without windows. It was a big disappointment to "waste" such a beautiful day inside without fresh air or sunshine, but we still had a great time.

 

We were handed margaritas on the way to our tables, and during the course of the excursion we learned how to make 2 margaritas (on the rocks and frozen strawberry), 6 salsas and Guacamole before learning some Salsa dance moves. Non-alcoholic beverages were available for those who couldn't/didn't want to drink and they had a table set up to buy some of the salsa making tools, cookbooks and aprons.

 

Margaritas were free flowing, you just had to ask if you wanted more.

 

Supplies all set up on the table when we arrived.

 

 

 

The salsas we made were fantastic, my favorite was the green salsa made with roasted tomatillos.

 

As we left the tour we were given a sheet with the recipes so we could try to make them at home.

[April-in-NC]

Our last sea day was cool (too cold to use the flow rider or regular pools) and cloudy so I didn't do a whole lot. We tried the rock wall (I only got 1/2 way up) took pictures of the ship, napped, DH won a trivia game and packed up all our stuff.

 

Here are some general thoughts on the cruise before I get into the photo tour.

 

Ship

 

I can't compare to the pre-drydock Navigator, but the ship was in fabulous shape. I want a set of those cabin curtains for my house! The art was fun to look at and it was all just well done.

 

Crew

 

Everyone we interacted with was top notch. Friendly, fast, and eager to make you happy.

 

Entertainment/Live Music

 

The entertainment was hit or miss in the theater. The late night comedy show and the Love and Marriage show were the two best things we saw. The other shows were just "meh" and the last production show I almost got up and walked out because I was bored.

 

The live music was pretty good when we stopped to listen. I did notice some country music, but it wasn't "all country, all the time" like some reports. I heard a little bit of everything.

 

Sailing out of Galveston

 

Sailing out of Galveston is harder than it needs to be. The lack of inexpensive ground transportation for 2 people is just sad and I spent a lot of time researching to find something less expensive, but the cheapest I found was the RCI shuttle ($32 pp/each way).

 

We were slightly delayed by fog on our departure, and I can see how in the winter months Galveston has long delays if this is at all a frequent occurrence.

 

If I could do this itinerary from a different port I probably would. The fact that Texas is taxing the alcohol imports along with the other travel hassles makes it less appealing to me, but I'm sure locals have a different opinion.

 

I would say about 75% of the people we talked to were from Texas, and most of those from the Houston area, but they were a friendly bunch!

 

Weather

 

Obviously this will change from sailing to sailing, but we really lucked out on the weather. It was cold, damp and raining in Houston and Galveston all weekend and it was forecasted to be cloudy and a high chance of rain all week but it barely rained at all! We got a few sprinkles (not even enough to run for cover) in port and it was cool and cloudy on our last sea day but we were fortunate in the sunny skies we had.

 

Embarkation/Debarkation

 

We were about an hour and a half from the time we got in line at the port to the time we got on board. The Captain announced over 1,600 repeat cruisers on our sailing so that partially explains why the Gold line was so long and slow. Since this was our last cruise as a Gold member I guess it doesn't matter in the future. :p

 

Debarkation was slightly delayed, we were group 3 and we were 20 minutes late being called, but from the final "ding" to the shuttle bus was only about 35 minutes. Customs seemed to be fully staffed and on that day not giving everyone the 3rd degree.

 

Large Groups On Board

 

There were at least two groups on board, the Larry Taylor Band had a large group and a missions group was also on board. Other than having some extra bands performing we didn't notice any disturbances about venues being shut down for private events. If it hadn't been for the extra lanyards I probably wouldn't have noticed at all.

[BillOh]

I-O

 

I'm getting ready to go to lunch and I hope to continue working on the review during that time... Next up is Cozumel and Salsa, Salsa Margarita!

 

Do either you or your husband work on the west side? He looked familiar to me.

[BillOh]

 

I couldn't even get them both in one picture!

 

You have to way back up that long pier to get them both

 

 

A I was expecting the location to be the covered balcony on the beach, but we were in a large ballroom without windows. It was a big disappointment to "waste" such a beautiful day inside without fresh air or sunshine, but we still had a great time.

 

That's a good point that might make as a suggestion to RC's excursion departments. Years ago when we were in Cozumel on Navigator they had an "ok" beach excursion to Playa Mia resort. On its own, I would say it was just ok, but there was a Mexican cooking class held at the same location and those people had a great time and raved about it. They joined us on the beach for about an hour before the bus back, they said the view was nice while they worked. This is the only pic I could find, but the room was only 50ft from the beach.

 

[April-in-NC]

Do either you or your husband work on the west side? He looked familiar to me.

 

He used to work for Cardinal Health and he used to live in Dublin. We live on the east side now and he works near Easton.