Just returned from Mariner Jan 02 sailing(West Carib)

[antonthegreat17]

Questions are welcome, review to follow!

[clamtown cruisers]

Looking forward to your review, we are sailing on the Mariner Jan 29.

[ksoze]

I'm leaving on the Mariner this Sunday and need to hear....

[antonthegreat17]

Jan 02 –Jan 08, 2006 Mariner of the Seas Western Caribbean

 

Here it is folks! The review. It’s long and probably too much like a diary – so I apologize in advance for overcooking some parts and neglecting others. Therefore if there is anything specific you wish to know – just ask!

 

Let’s begin this review with the booking. I booked this over the phone (no travel agent) with the Royal Caribbean. I requested two balcony guarantee staterooms (one for me and my girlfriend and one for my parents). After I reserved everything, I checked the reservation online – AS SHOULD YOU! The RCCL agent booked us for two interior staterooms, despite what I said – quite a difference. I called again and they did fix it but I sure did get nervous in the process. Then I booked a flight to Orlando via Delta Song and at the last minute, a transfer to Port Canaveral with Standard Transportation for the price of $85 (not including tip).

1st Day – Despite the warnings on the cruise documents not to come until 2pm, we had an early morning flight so we decided to go an try to board early. The very nice Standard Transportation driver met us by the luggage carousel, and after about an hours drive we were in port. As we filled out all the necessary documentation over the net on the Royal Caribbean website our check in process was fast and easy. The line to get on the boat was longish but around noon we got in. The rooms were practically ready, so we left our carry-ons there and went to the Windjammer buffet to have some lunch. Good stuff! Only my girlfriend bought a soda sticker for $36. She is picky with her drinks…We then took a walk around the ship and found it delightful as well as huge. It’s a very new ship (2003) and of course at its size and clever decoration was very impressive. Dinner was very nice as well. At this point let me mention that we have only praise for our Room steward – Emerlyn Bob and our waiter Ahmed (and his assistant Imelda).

2nd Day – At Sea. We explored the ship further. We discovered the ice skating rink. My girlfriend and my mom were very brave and skated for much longer than I did – it was the first time for us all. I chickened out after two awkward circles. Now, at mini-golf I am the king – despite the very strong wind which rolls the balls all over despite the Astro-turf’s best efforts to keep it in place 

3rd Day – Jamaica. We booked a tour of the Brimer Hall plantation and Dunn’s River Falls. The plantation gave a nice introduction to Caribbean agriculture, we had a chance to chew on some fresh sugar cane – very nice stuff (nothing new to my Caribbean girlfriend though…). The great hall of the plantation is nice, but recently and horribly furnished including two very strange and corny sets of armor. One negative comment on the tour – a totally unnecessary shopping stop at one of the many malls in Ocho Rios. Because of it, we had very little time at the Falls. They looked scarier than I thought but in the little time we had, with the help of a very nice guide we climbed it all! I still have Jamaican sand and pebbles in my sneakers! The water at the falls was really wonderful, not too warm, not too cold – just perfect.

4th Day – Grand Cayman. My family and I walked away from the tourist into the residential areas of Georgetown. It seems like a weird little provincial town somewhere in Russia (my former homeland) – only richer and warmer… Satellite dishes and chickens everywhere – even behind the fried chicken restaurants…

We stopped at the public bus stop No.5. Eventually, a mini-bus came and we traveled to the Sea Grape section of the 7 mile beach for only $2.50 per person. There we rented two beach chairs and umbrellas (each set $15 US) and took turns swimming and lounging. Then went back to the ship via the same public bus.

5th Day – Cozumel. Mariner stopped there after all. The sea was very choppy so water sport tours were cancelled. We had the Muyil Mayan ruins and Jungle Tour. A Mexican ferry boat picked us up from the ship and took us straight to the mainland. Our guide, Freddy, took us to the bus, and after another hour we were there! Very Indiana Jones-y looking ruins with piles of rock, trees growing out the ruins and pyramid we could climb. Now, climbing a Mayan pyramid is something I wanted to do since childhood, but by now I realized (once on top) that I was afraid of heights, especially when the way down consists of very steep, very narrow steps. When we came back to the pier in Playa del Carmen, we found out that as there were many ships in town, there were very few tenders available. We were supposed to be back on the ship at 630pm so it could leave at 7pm. 300 folks from our ship finally ended up on the ferry boat only at 640pm! But at least they did not forget us…

6th Day – On very choppy sea. Pools were closed…Too windy to do much out side the ship but luckily the inside was magnificent.

Morning of Departure – Relativley Painless. If you want to get out fast, they have an early departure program for those who can carry-out their own luggage. We had a late flight back and so took a “VIP” tour of Kennedy Space Center. Parts of that complex are like a bad theme park, others are literally Awe-some, like an entire Saturn V rocket. You do get to see launching pads up-close, as well as egrets, alligators and other critters who are all over the complex.

 

DO have plenty of 1 and 2 dollar bills handy at all times on land – you’ll need to tip everywhere (or I am just a pushover when it comes to it!)

 

Entertainment: As I am sure you’ve heard from everyone, the ice show is great – too bad I didn’t get to see it!!! When they say the tickets are going away fast, they mean it. By the time I thought that perhaps the show IS a good idea, the tickets were gone. These tickets are free, but they are distributed ONCE per cruise for all 3-4 performances they have. My dad came in almost by accident, no one told him to leave and had “standing room” for a bit – he says the show was great, the skaters manage to change costumes on the go and do it flawlessly. We did not see any other show but the most popular one I saw was the guitar singer (who does requests) at the “pub” bar in the Royal promenade. At least once, I saw the captain being the performer. The crowds are large but friendly. Also, take a pair of good binoculars, especially if you have a balcony – the views are great, especially of Cuba and other unvisited islands. The night sky is wonderful too. Oh and the TV programming is very nice as well. If you happen to be a news junkie like me be warned that CNN Headline News is constantly interrupted by lengthy, silent reports from EVERY imaginable stock market… The daily newspaper digest is available in the library on deck 7 – get the “NY Times” printout early or all you’ll have is Noticias….

 

Sports: Ice skating of course – sign a consent form and off you go! Mini golf course in excellent condition. When the sun sets, pools empty out – time to swim with room to spare. Gym large and very well appointed. Spa (not really sporty but…) VERY pricey! Basketball games are very popular, the court always in use.

 

Dining: Food much better overall than Princess cruises I’ve been on before. One complaint – regular coffee plain, not nicely roasted, but now I am just too picky  If you want to dine at the two specialty restaurants Italian “Portofino’s” or “Chops Grille” reserve EARLY, these are popular too. The free frozen yogurt machine is open during the day and is located by the pool on deck 11. Johnny Rockets is in an obscure location on the Sports/Kids clubs deck. We dined in the main restaurant and I didn’t have anything that wasn’t great. Midnight buffet does look great – but I just took pictures… Ok there was one small disappointment – baked Alsaka seems to be Neapolitan ice cream wrapped in cold pound cake… no wow here…But we eat to live, not the other way around right? 

 

Library is nice, but not as well stocked as I’ve hoped… Internet is 50 cents per minute or you can get discount blocks of time as a package. They do have wireless service for your laptop.

 

Ok I suppose this is it – I am sure I’ve overdone the personal stuff, and ignored the practical – so ask about anything I’ve missed – it’ll refresh my memory.

 

Thanks for your patience!

[ksoze]

A couple of follow-ups:

 

How was the weather in ports and water temp for swimming?

 

You mentioned rough seas on day 6, how was the rest of the trip as far as rough/choppy seas? Seems like it was a windy trip.

[neverest]

I too was on that sailing and can attest to most of the comments made on the review.

 

As for the waters, the first four days were excellent. Calm waters and very little movement. As for the trip from Grand Cayman to Cozumel, and the day at sea which followed, waters were very choppy and I noticed several people getting noticeably seasick on the cruise ship. As I had an aft balcony, movements were especially rough but I don't get seasick though my mother definitely felt sick for a little bit.

 

Water temperatures for swimming in Jamaica and Grand Caymen were perfect - I can't say anything about Cozumel because it was so cold that we didn't even touch the water let alone swim. In Tulum around mid-day, however, weather was good enough for people to swim in.

 

The tendering process at Cozumel, as it has been mentioned before several times recently, can be significantly improved. The tender to and back from Playa Del Carmen (the mainland) was extremely shaky and many people got sick due to heavy wind and rough seas. The tender from the ship to the International Pier, however, is very short and won't likely induce seasickness unless you're extremely prone to it.

[antonthegreat17]

Yes - it was the second half of day in Cozumel and the rest of the last day tht the seas were choppy, the ship was going faster too, thus more movement felt on board. Also, I should have mentioned that it was rather cold - they actually had a slight freeze in Florida the day before our return, so it was rather chilly. The normally airconditioned ship seemed warmer then! So in terms of planning a light jacket helps.

[albertablueskies]

Funny thing about tenders. In Grand Cayman, the tender captain was very careful and gingerly docked the boat. While in Cozumel the tender captain was ramshackle and smashed into the pier, sending many cruise passengers flying into the deck. Is that a Mexico vs Cayman service thing?

[lojill]

We are crusing in Feb and we are concerned about the seas and weather. We are 1st time cruisers and we don't want a bad experience. We are going the western route. Coz,belize,key west. Any info would be helpful

[antonthegreat17]

Generally, the cruise ships are so large that rough seas are not felt too badly. If you are going to sleep its more like a crade rocking. However on tender boats (the way to get ashore in Grand Cayman and Cozumel) you'll feel it much more. On the Mariner of the Seas, the Guest Relations (eg the Purser's Desk) gives out free pills for motion sickness. They can make you drowsy though. Also many people walked around with little round medicine patches behind their ear - not sure what medicine is in it, but just in case you can look into it. Good luck!

[antonthegreat17]

Generally, the cruise ships are so large that rough seas are not felt too badly. If you are going to sleep its more like a crade rocking. However on tender boats (the way to get ashore in Grand Cayman and Cozumel) you'll feel it much more. On the Mariner of the Seas, the Guest Relations (eg the Purser's Desk) gives out free pills for motion sickness. They can make you drowsy though. Also many people walked around with little round medicine patches behind their ear - not sure what medicine is in it, but just in case you can look into it. Good luck!

[Slam308]

Am I mistaken, there's no mention of Labadee?

Also, my guess for the difference in "gentleness" of docking the tenders in Grand Cayman and Cozumel is that GC has plenty of tenders and plenty of time. Cozumel, they're trying to get as many spending tourists on the island as quickly as they can. I heard they can't use ships tenders there because the ferry tenders (the only ones left after the hurricane) are so much higher and the ship's tenders (lifeboats) can't reach them.

Just my opinion.

[neverest]

Labadee was omitted as this was a special six-night sailing due to the holiday. As for the tenders at Cozumel, it had nothing to do with the speed of which they were moving, so much as the very rough waters that day due to high wind and a cold front passing by there.

[msbookworm]

Going on this cruise in March. It's my first cruise. Question in regards to the drinks. What drinks are free? I'm hoping iced tea as I heard that but also read that it wasn't. Also in regards to wifi. If I bring my laptop can I hook up wirelessly without a fee? I'm figuring not but thought I'd ask. Thanks and I'll probably have more questions as I follow this thread.

[MAO]

antonthegreat17, Thanks for the review! I thought it was very good and too the point.

Can't wait to go in 2 weeks:eek:

Happy Cruiseing all.

MAO

[neverest]

Going on this cruise in March. It's my first cruise. Question in regards to the drinks. What drinks are free? I'm hoping iced tea as I heard that but also read that it wasn't. Also in regards to wifi. If I bring my laptop can I hook up wirelessly without a fee? I'm figuring not but thought I'd ask. Thanks and I'll probably have more questions as I follow this thread.

 

Orange and apple juice are definitely free in the morning at the Windjammer/dining venues and via room service- don't know about other times. Iced tea and lemonade is free around the clock. Non-mineral water is of course free.

 

As for the internet, no matter how you choose to connect, you will be charged a maximum of 50 cents per minute. I say maximum because you can purchase minutes in blocks which bring down the cost a bit (the 25 dollar one, for example, I believe charged at 42c/min). I don't know what your cabin location is, but I was able to get wireless signal in my aft room in deck 7 which is a good distance away from any public hotspots so I was impressed.

[msbookworm]

Thanks, will be on Mariner of the Sea on 3/26. Your information was very helpful. Thanks and perhaps I'll be sending a few more questions your way.

[antonthegreat17]

While not really free, juices are included in the soda card (sold for $36). So it makes a little more sense to buy that in this case. However, the free lemonade is made with real lemons, (not Pinesol, not Joy, not Mr. Clean) and tastes good.

[rehm2]

Cozumel water was great on Jan 6th. The emerald color water and the waves were wonderful to play in. Take a mask with you and see the cute colorful fishes. This was my families favorite stop last week. We did the dune buggy trip with Eagelray divers. The conch shells were the prettiest I have ever seen so big and pink. Dont miss Cozumel. Vicki:) :) :)

[neverest]

Cozumel water was great on Jan 6th. The emerald color water and the waves were wonderful to play in. Take a mask with you and see the cute colorful fishes. This was my families favorite stop last week. We did the dune buggy trip with Eagelray divers. The conch shells were the prettiest I have ever seen so big and pink. Dont miss Cozumel. Vicki:) :) :)

 

Really? At least on the side of the island facing Playa Del Carmen, the water was pretty rough and the weather was pretty darn windy when I got off the tender in the morning. I'm glad you had a good time! We wound up going to Tulum.