Quantum 3/13 summary

[starfish216]

So our family of five sailed on the March 13th sailing of the Quantum. It was my sister & I and our husbands (all in our late 50's) and our dad who is 85. We are veteran cruises with over a dozen cruises under our belt. The last four have been on RC (Explorer of the Seas twice, Oasis and Radiance of the Seas). Past cruises have been on Carnival and Holland America.

 

We live a whooping 20 minutes from port. Our appointment time was 12:45 PM - 1:15 PM. We choose to ignore that and left the house at 10 AM. We can either sit at home and wait or in the terminal. It took us about 35 minutes to get to port since the Bayonne Bridge was closed. Once we arrived my DH dropped dad and I off with our luggage, there was no line. He then proceeded to go park the car, there was about 6 cars in front of him waiting to park. He paid the $19 a day to park and met us in the terminal.

 

Embarkation:

Once he arrived in the terminal we were quickly assigned someone to check us in. She walked us over to the bay of chairs that had the 12:45 - 1:15 PM time and I thought to myself 'oh well guess we are going to be sitting here for a couple of hours'. But she actually did this so my dad can sit and be comfortable while she checked us in. Check in was smooth and our photos were good. As she is checking us in they called the first round of guest to board (suite, pinnacle etc). By the time she was done with us boarding was open to all guest who had the famous green Cape Liberty stamp on their Set Sail Pass to board. We were actually on board the ship a little after 11 AM. We headed to Cafe Two70 so dad can have one of the Roast Beef sandwiches that he loves. It wasn't very crowded yet.

 

Stateroom:

Staterooms were opened by 1 PM. We had a balcony cabin on deck 9 port side. Plenty of storage and the bathroom was roomy. Our cabin steward quickly introduced himself and we asked him for one bathrobe and ice bucket which he brought to the room when he did the evening service. We found some toiletry items in the bathroom and our cabin steward replaced them as need. He was great and always greeted us by name when we saw him in the hallway. We didn't find cleaning carts in the hallway all day, they were quickly hidden away when cleaning was done.

 

Our Sea Pass Card and bands all worked with no problem. Since dad stays in his own stateroom and has severe hearing loss, even with hearing aides, we usually have to go to guest services to get an extra card for his room so we can get him if he doesn't hear the phone ring. His band came in handy since I held on to it and was were able to use it to enter his room if need be.

 

One closet in the cabin had two bars to hang clothes from. This was great for slacks and my tops but my DH golf shirts either hit the floor on the lower bar or over lapped the hangers by a couple of inches if he hung them from upper bar. So he placed his golf shirts in the other closet with my dresses and his suit.

 

We were very happy with the cabin and our steward. He received an extra gratuity and WOW card from us.

[starfish216]

Dinning:

Prior to departure I had made some complimentary dinning reservations for the 5 of us. They all showed up on the Royal IQ app. Reading about the sometimes wait around peak times we adjusted our preferred dinning times by an hour and made reservations between 6-6:30 PM. Never did we have to wait. Bread and water arrived at the table quickly, appetizer came in a reasonable amount of time and beverages arrived quickly. We were done with the main course in a little over an hour and if we had coffee & dessert maybe it took an hour and twenty minutes. In every restaurant someone came over and asked how we were doing. We were completely satisfied with the service. I am not going into food details since my taste I am sure will vary from your taste.

 

Didn't notice any lines waiting to get into the various restaurants when we left around 7:30 - 8:00 PM.

 

Windjammer:

Ate breakfast, lunch and a couple of dinners here. Was it crowded…yes but we always found something to eat and a table. What I did notice was that there was never a line (except omelet station in the morning) to get food from the buffet stations. I like the way it was spread out.

 

In the late evening (around midnight) you can go up here and find hamburgers, hot dogs, sandwiches, fries and some desserts. Not much pickings but it was great for a quick snack.

 

Staff cleaned tables off quickly.

 

They ran out of Strawberry Kiwi and Mango drinks halfway through the week. Only served Lemonade and Ice Tea the rest of the week.

 

Entertainment:

Again prior to departing I have made some entertainment reservations for the five of us. They all showed up on the Royal IQ app. We arrived at the entertainment venue about 30 minutes prior to show and had no problem finding seats. We like to sit in the back rows and not the front rows. We all enjoyed Mama Mia it was done just like a Broadway production. Starwater and Sonic Odyssey I could take it or leave it. They were good to see once but I wouldn't go again.

 

Other entertainment we had reservations for were for the Hypnotist Christopher Caress and singer Clint Holmes.

 

Other entertainment during the week that was first come first serve were:

An evening with your Cruise Director Ken Rush

Comedian Darrell Joyce - adult only show

Majority Rules Game Show

If you know it dance it Game Show

60 seconds or less Game Show

Love & Marriage Game Show

Hypnotist Christopher Caress - did an extra show

Virtual Concert - Sante Fe & the Fat City Horns

Glow Party in the Seaplex

Adult Quest Game Show

Silent Party

 

There was also several appearances by the DreamWorks characters, various Trivia games and Karaoke.

 

As you can see there was plenty to keep you busy even on the cooler sea days. Some things we did some we choose not to do.

 

Pools:

The indoor pool remained covered the whole trip…. three out of four seas were cloudy/rainy and cool. I expected that…it was March.

 

On the nice sea day the out door pool was crowded by 10 AM and as usually there was a chair hog saving a dozen chairs for hours. It didn't effect me since DH & I are early risers and we were in our chairs pool side around 8:15 AM. But I kept seeing people approaching the chair hog and she refusing to give the seats up. It was almost three hours before someone else showed up to use any of the chairs. I minded my own business and just observed the going ons.

 

There was plenty of seating in the Solarium in the early part of the day….as the day went on it became more crowded. By lunch time we were done with the Solarium and moving onto other activities.

 

Ifly:

I had made reservation prior to leaving and they showed up on the Royal IQ. After watching some other inexperienced folks attempting to fly I decided not to try it. For me one minute is not enough time for me to get the hang of it…so we decided to do something else. BTW the best Iflyer we saw was some young girl who did great… most adults were just trying not to keep banging into the glass tube.

 

Northstar:

Since I am an early riser the second sea day morning we noticed the line was short….it was only a 30 minute wait, so we waited. Also upon returning early from Coco Cay we did it again and waited only 30 minutes. 30 minutes is all I am willing to wait...at some point the line was over 2 hours long on the second sea day. They suggested that folks at the end of the line to come back another day instead of waiting in the hot sun.

 

Casino:

We visited the Casino daily…sometimes twice a day. I am sensitive to smoke and somedays/times were worse than others. DH & I play Video Poker, dad plays Black Jack all day and night and my DS & BIL play Three Card Poker. Everyone of us at one point walked out winning but we were all addicted to this form of entertainment and in the end we all made a donation…..except for dad he actually returned home from vacation with more money than he went with. He also won the Blackjack Tournament for over $700. WTG dad.

[starfish216]

Music & Dancing:

The house band Horizon was great. The dance floor in the Music Hall was crowded with folks having a great time.

 

The one nice sea day we had they had Calypso Music with Hot Spices by the pool… they were great to listen to.

 

Ports:

 

Disembarkation/embarkation in ports was easy as long as everyone had their Sea Pass Card out.

 

Coco Cay - We actually arrived earlier than the scheduled time for Coco Cay. We were one of the lucky cruisers who experienced calm seas and no wind. So the Captain was able to get the ship in place and anchored quickly allowing guest to disembark an hour sooner than scheduled. We were sitting by the pool waiting when the Captain announced that guest can now depart. Since we were ready to go we got on the tender with very little wait time….only waiting was to fill the tender.

 

There are plenty of chairs some in the shade and some in the sun. We walked down several beaches and grabbed a couple of chairs in the shade. The water was warm and shallow, you can see smaller fish swimming past you. We stayed for a little bit and walked the beach then went back to the ship for lunch. Didn't wait around to eat the buffet on the beach.

 

Nassau and Port Canaveral were just as easy since we didn't have to be the first off the ship.

 

Port Canaveral we hired a private car to pick us up at 8 AM to go to Epcot… it's an hour's ride each way. We have been to Epcot many times and only went to see the Flower & Garden Show that is held there this time of year. We also made arrangements for transportation back to the ship for 4 PM.

 

Nassau we did the ships Rainbow Reef Snorkeling Excursions for late morning. It was great. Easy on and off the ship. The boat operator picks you up at the end of the dock in Nassau but drops you off at the end of town (several blocks away) upon return. My guess is that the Port of Nassau wants you to walk past their stores and Straw Market to return to the ship. The excursion was great, boat was clean, staff was friendly and we saw some colorful fish. The only negative about this is the way were exited the boat…you climbed out onto the ledge of the sea wall that's about a foot wide….not very safe. It was fine for us, we just stepped over the sea wall. But I could imagine it may more difficult for some others.

 

Disembarkation:

Our schedule time was around 9:15 AM . There was no notice that we had to be out of our staterooms early but we went to Cafe Two70 for grab coffee and a light breakfast. For awhile it looked like things were moving along quickly then all of a sudden we stopped hearing numbers being call. At 9:15 about a dozen number were called at once…at this point the wait to bing off for the last time took 15 minutes. The line for customs took another 15 minutes. So all in all it took 30 minutes to get to the car from the time we got up to leave the ship…. not too bad. Oh yea we had to clean some of that white stuff that fell the day before off the car….it's a good thing we kept the brush in the car.

 

In summary it was a great cruise. One of the best we had. I would definitely sail on this class again. At times you couldn't tell you were on a ship, you felt no movement or vibration. Other times there was a slight rocking motion, I think it's caused by the wind.

 

Be flexible and enjoy the Quantum of the Seas. She has a lot to offer just make sure you take the Daily Planner with you and circle what interests you. There is always something going on.

[nycruise]

Nice summary, we sailed Quantum last month and had a great time also.

[roe2ship]

Thank you for sharing your thoughts.

 

I have a question please. When in port, does the North Star just go up and down and not over the sides of the ship? Do you happen to know how late they are open?

[starfish216]

Thank you for sharing your thoughts.

 

I have a question please. When in port, does the North Star just go up and down and not over the sides of the ship? Do you happen to know how late they are open?

 

While in Coco Cay the North Star went out over the side of the ship.

 

The Daily Planner has the hours posted usually it's 8 AM - 5:30 PM weather permitting.

 

The first time we went up was the second sea day at around 8:20 AM we saw very short line while we were sitting at the pool. We waited 30 minutes. The first sea day and the last two sea days were cold cloudy/rainy, I wasn't outside to notice if it was operating.

 

The second time we went up was when we came back from Coco Cay early in the afternoon. Again we were just sitting by the pool and notice a very short line.

 

Both times it went over one side of the ship.

 

Don't know if it was operating while in Nassau or Port Canaveral, we were busy both days and off the ship early.

[yj2cute]

Thank you for your summary. In your list of entertainment you noted they had the Adult Quest. I had heard they would not be doing the Quest on this show. What venue did they use for Quest?

[starfish216]

Quest was held in the Sea Plex. The seating in very very limited so if you need to sit get there early. Most guest were standing.

 

Ken Rush, the current Cruise Director, said our sailing was the third time they were trying it. He did announce that it was adults only but there were a couple of kids in there with their families.

 

We prefer the Quest that was done on the Explorer and Oasis which left us laughing. This one seemed just OK don't know if it was the venue or the participants.

[nycruise]

Thank you for sharing your thoughts.

 

I have a question please. When in port, does the North Star just go up and down and not over the sides of the ship? Do you happen to know how late they are open?

 

 

We also went on Northstar at Coco Cay and went over the side. They said they cannot go over the side in ports but in Coco it's okay since it's their island.

 

Am I the only one who found Northstar boring and overhyped? Maybe it would have been more exciting if the ship was moving. ;)

[CruisinCons]

We also went on Northstar at Coco Cay and went over the side. They said they cannot go over the side in ports but in Coco it's okay since it's their island.

 

Am I the only one who found Northstar boring and overhyped? Maybe it would have been more exciting if the ship was moving. ;)

 

I read in a couple reviews that you need to do the North Star twice on your trip; once at sea and once in port. The once at sea, to go to the side and see the waves moving below you, and the once in port, (even though it only goes up and down) to see the full beauty of the island below you. Some of the smaller islands they said you could see the whole island. Very cool. I can't wait!! Thanks for the great (and positive) review.

[roe2ship]

While in Coco Cay the North Star went out over the side of the ship.

 

The Daily Planner has the hours posted usually it's 8 AM - 5:30 PM weather permitting.

 

The first time we went up was the second sea day at around 8:20 AM we saw very short line while we were sitting at the pool. We waited 30 minutes. The first sea day and the last two sea days were cold cloudy/rainy, I wasn't outside to notice if it was operating.

 

The second time we went up was when we came back from Coco Cay early in the afternoon. Again we were just sitting by the pool and notice a very short line.

 

Both times it went over one side of the ship.

 

Don't know if it was operating while in Nassau or Port Canaveral, we were busy both days and off the ship early.

Thank you!:)

 

We also went on Northstar at Coco Cay and went over the side. They said they cannot go over the side in ports but in Coco it's okay since it's their island.

 

Am I the only one who found Northstar boring and overhyped? Maybe it would have been more exciting if the ship was moving. ;)

I'll share my opinion if I don't chicken out when I see it in person. I'm usually not afraid of heights but being above the ocean that high in a crane with a small capsule kind of scares me.;)

[starfish216]

We also went on Northstar at Coco Cay and went over the side. They said they cannot go over the side in ports but in Coco it's okay since it's their island.

 

Am I the only one who found Northstar boring and overhyped? Maybe it would have been more exciting if the ship was moving. ;)

 

You are not the only one that found it boring or overhyped. It was no big deal when we did it at sea so when we saw the line was short while sitting at he pool in Coco Cay we went up again thinking we would see sweeping views of the island. It was not a big deal, I wouldn't bother doing it again.

 

We only did it since we were sitting at the pool and it just gave us something to do while not being gone too long.

Edited March 24, 2015 by starfish216

[starfish216]

I just wanted to add that the glass inside of North Star is very reflective especially if the sun is out.

 

The reason why we did it a second time is the first day was overcast and no sun. In Coco Cay it was sunny I was thinking I would get better photos…. I was wrong.

 

Since it was very sunny in Coco Cay we went up in North Star again…. all my photos shown some sort of reflection of the inside of the capsule no matter how close to the window I placed my lens. In one photo I ended up with the writing on my camera lens showing up in the photo.

[A.S.]

Great review. Glad you had a nice time.

 

We know the Bayonne bridge will be closed the weekend we are traveling also. Can you tell me the alternate route you took.

 

Not sure what direction you were coming from, but we are coming from Long Island.

 

Also, did they do away with the shuttle bus to the ship?

 

Thanks for any help you can give us.

[starfish216]

I am on Staten Island.

 

Instead of going over the Bayonne Bridge continue on Rte 278 W and go over the Goethals Bridge and take I 95 N (this is a toll road) bear left as you go over the bridge and once you are through the tolls. Truck or car lane doesn't matter. I 95 is also known as the New Jersey Turnpike.

 

Take exit 14 A-B-C and follow the signs for I 78 E (Bayonne, Holland Tunnel and Jersey City) depending on the time of day this road can be very congested.

 

Get off at exit 14 A. Pay the toll. At the immediate light take 440 S (if possible go through a middle toll booth because you will to go straight at this light). Follow the road around keep bearing to the right until you come to a light. At the light make a left (this should be 440 S). The majority of the traffic will flow this way.

 

Stay in the left lane go about .5 to .75 of a mile and make a left at the light. Never paid attention to the name of the street at this light because by now I am just following the signs to the terminal. Just follow the road for about two miles until you see the ship.

 

There are signs that say Cape Liberty Cruise Terminal along the way.

 

All the bridges and I 95 take EZ-Pass. Tolls are discounted if you have Ez Pass.

 

Cash tolls are as follows:

Verrazano Bridge is $16 round trip payable going west.

Goethals or Bayonne Bridge is $14 round trip payable going east.

I 95 toll is about $3 each way.

 

Since there was no line at the terminal DH dropped us off with luggage and proceeded to park and walked across to the ship. You are allowed to walk from parking lot to ship's terminal... it's across the street, about a block worth of walking in distance. Parking will cost $19 a night here.

 

When we disembarked since there was a mob scene at the curb waiting to be picked up we actually all wheeled our luggage to the car.

 

From what I heard there are shuttles in the parking lot that can take you around and drop you off directly in front of the terminal. I didn't notice any but then again I was looking for them.

 

Enjoy your cruise!

[A.S.]

Thank you for explaining this step by step. I am going to copy and print it. Will certainly be helpful.

 

A few years ago they had a bus that took the passengers from the terminal to the ship. I didn't mean the shuttle in the parking lot.

 

Were you able to walk on the ship without taking a bus?

[Nhsaltshaker]

Thank you for explaining this step by step. I am going to copy and print it. Will certainly be helpful.

 

A few years ago they had a bus that took the passengers from the terminal to the ship. I didn't mean the shuttle in the parking lot.

 

Were you able to walk on the ship without taking a bus?

 

Yes. You no longer have to take a shuttle from the terminal to the ship. From the terminal you WALK right onto the ship. YAY!!!:)

[starfish216]

Thank you for explaining this step by step. I am going to copy and print it. Will certainly be helpful.

 

A few years ago they had a bus that took the passengers from the terminal to the ship. I didn't mean the shuttle in the parking lot.

 

Were you able to walk on the ship without taking a bus?

 

You no longer have to take a bus, you go right from the terminal onto the ship….. been on over a dozen cruises and this by far was the fastest and easiest embarkation. There was even no wait going through the security scanners.

 

It takes time to work out the kinks of anything new…. couldn't have asked for anything to be done different or faster.

 

Do have a great time on your cruise. We enjoyed ours so much we are looking into booking the Anthem for next year.

Edited April 2, 2015 by starfish216

[starfish216]

OP…if you want more detail directions use Google Maps…. just move the highlighted line to go over the Goethals Bridge.

 

Also here is a link for the Port Authority…..closing schedule varies for the Bayonne Bridge who knows it may be open the day you are traveling.

 

Click on the tab that says Staten Island Bridges.

 

http://www.panynj.gov/alerts-advisories/advisories.html?tabnum=4#bayonne

[A.S.]

Thanks again. I showed your directions to my DH and he said it should be no problem getting there.

 

We are on the Liberty going to Bermuda which is one of my favorite places to visit.

 

So glad they did away with that bus. Walking on should be much easier. Heard the new terminal is really nice.

 

Enjoy all your future cruises.

[starfish216]

A.S. - have a nice time going to Bermuda.

 

As for the terminal….wasn't in it long enough to notice although it did look clean and new. I didn't even get a chance to sit down. Anything is nicer than the way it was.

 

Do check the Port Authority schedule before leaving…..we use the Bayonne Bridge all the time since our kids live in Hoboken, NJ. The hours of closing vary from a few hours to a whole weekend. It is so much faster and easier to go over the Bayonne Bridge if it is open.

[JAMESCC]

Starfish216, thank you for your balanced review of your cruise and of Quantum of the seas. I am so sick of the bitching over this ship. Try to do something different and people can't handle it.

[Paulette3028]

Quest was held in the Sea Plex. The seating in very very limited so if you need to sit get there early. Most guest were standing.

 

Ken Rush, the current Cruise Director, said our sailing was the third time they were trying it. He did announce that it was adults only but there were a couple of kids in there with their families.

 

We prefer the Quest that was done on the Explorer and Oasis which left us laughing. This one seemed just OK don't know if it was the venue or the participants.

 

You mentioned Ken Rush as the Cruise Director, who was the Activity Manager, which is usually the CD's assistant? Sometimes the CD has the Activity Manager co-host the morning show that the CD does.

[starfish216]

Paulette, sorry I have no idea who the Activity Director was (or the Captain for that matter).

 

Yea I know I am bad but I don't usually pay attention to others. The only reason I remember Ken Rush is that he was at so many events that we attended. He just seemed to have the personality to get everyone to join in. It also helped that the CD name is mentioned several time in the Cruise Compass ' Join your CD Ken and his staff at ….…'

 

Never watched the morning show….I woke up, showered and left the cabin. Never spent time on the balcony either. There was so much to do and see the last thing I wanted to do was put on the TV. Even when the weather was awful we left the cabin around 8 AM and went to the solarium.

 

JamesCC - I think that is exactly the problem - it is something different and some people don't like change. It's their money and they can choose to spend it on another ship next time. Some of the negativity I can understand in the beginning - it takes time to work out the kinks and for the staff to adjust. But in the end it was a great cruise for us.

 

I owe thanks to all those who post on these boards with suggestions…in the end it's this community that offered suggestions that aided in more than one great cruise vacation. I have gotten so much form everyone on here I just wanted to 'pay it forward' and give my two cents worth.