Encore / Live / Solo(*)- Dec 1-8-2019...

[purpleally]

On 12/11/2019 at 6:14 PM, grandmarnnurse said:

Really, Sid? I remember seeing that figure in your review, but thought it was for 2 people, because when I sailed the Getaway for a 7 day cruise, it was only $99pp, and I thought THAT amount was too much, when you can get an adult area free on Carnival and RCCL.  No way would I pay that! That is crazy, Sid! 

It’s not crazy how people want to spend their money. I think it would be worth every penny to have a relatively private area. I also think specialty dining is worth the money. 

[moosecrouse]

Really enjoyed your review @sid_9169 Hopefully we'll cross paths for Shot O'clock sometime. Was very skeptical of the changes to the Encore but your review has me excited now. Thanks again for a fun and informative review

[blarko]

8 hours ago, sid_9169 said:

Then, there's blarko, who's name was unintentionally left off of my Horizon review a few months ago. I will never live down the moment when I realized that after all the careful work tabulating, that one of the most frequent posters ended up being left out...

 

😀😀😀

Finally!  GettIng the recognition I deserve!!  

Thank you....thank you very much!!!!!!!

[Beachiekeen]

Yayy the Mardi Gras!! I’ll be excited to read your review! It’s a bit of a controversy because it appears they ruined the Havana so I don’t want to sail on it now but I’ll be very interested to read about it.  Until the next one! 😀

[blarko]

23 minutes ago, Beachiekeen said:

Yayy the Mardi Gras!! I’ll be excited to read your review! It’s a bit of a controversy because it appears they ruined the Havana so I don’t want to sail on it now but I’ll be very interested to read about it.  Until the next one! 😀

 

What have they done to the Havana? I haven’t seen anything about that.

[Beachiekeen]

1 hour ago, blarko said:

 

What have they done to the Havana? I haven’t seen anything about that.

It's smaller and there is an increase in the number of rooms that have access is what I thought I read.   And no hot tubs either.  

 

But I did just read that Serenity has a pool and if that's true then that's something.  I find Serenity to be so windy though, it's hard to even enjoy it.

Edited December 15, 2019 by Beachiekeen

[ReaderDame]

On 12/11/2019 at 12:24 PM, turtletam said:

Thanks for sharing your trip with us all! We will be on the Dec 22nd cruise. What Pier did the Encore tie up at in San Juan? I heard there are 2 different ones. One walking distance to OSJ & the other one farther away. We are meeting family that lives there & trying to figure out where they should meet us. Thanks!

We were just on the Encore 12/08-12/15.  The ship docked right in front of the downtown area ; across from a Walgreens... if that helps.

[maryivo]

Hi Sid, I have a question for you or anyone who may have insight.  I booked during the free drink package so I have the basic one.  Should I upgrade to the premium plus?  Is it worth it?  What is included that I wouldn't normally get with the one that was given as a promo?  Thanks in advance.  

[pcrum]

On 12/3/2019 at 2:59 PM, sid_9169 said:

Yes, Vibe is twice as big as Escape or Bliss... I believe they sold around two hundred or so passes, and they're $209 person for a seven day cruise...

Does everyone in your cabin have to purchase the pass?

 

Thanks!

[sid_9169]

2 hours ago, pcrum said:

Does everyone in your cabin have to purchase the pass?

 

Thanks!

No, whoever wants one, and makes it in time can purchase them, but no requirement for anyone else...

[sid_9169]

3 hours ago, maryivo said:

Hi Sid, I have a question for you or anyone who may have insight.  I booked during the free drink package so I have the basic one.  Should I upgrade to the premium plus?  Is it worth it?  What is included that I wouldn't normally get with the one that was given as a promo?  Thanks in advance.  

It's worth it if you like to drink the higher grades of liquor and wine... It's also great because it includes bottled water, fresh squeezed juice, Starbucks coffee, energy drinks, ect...

[DeanDeeDee]

I finally got to read the second half of your review after returning from our cruise on the Breeze. It was a fantastic review.  Thanks for taking us along and I look forward to your next adventure!  By the way, we are booked on the Mardi Gras next December (the 12 -19).  Since our cruise on the Breeze was not all that great, I am not sure about sailing Carnival again.  We will see.  Thanks again for sharing your cruise with us.

[coriemarie]

Great Review. I thought about switching ships, but we stuck with Encore. Sailing April 26th and as excited as ever.

[sid_9169]

On 12/14/2019 at 8:27 PM, moosecrouse said:

Really enjoyed your review @sid_9169 Hopefully we'll cross paths for Shot O'clock sometime. Was very skeptical of the changes to the Encore but your review has me excited now. Thanks again for a fun and informative review

 

On 12/16/2019 at 9:08 PM, DeanDeeDee said:

I finally got to read the second half of your review after returning from our cruise on the Breeze. It was a fantastic review.  Thanks for taking us along and I look forward to your next adventure!  By the way, we are booked on the Mardi Gras next December (the 12 -19).  Since our cruise on the Breeze was not all that great, I am not sure about sailing Carnival again.  We will see.  Thanks again for sharing your cruise with us.

 

2 hours ago, coriemarie said:

Great Review. I thought about switching ships, but we stuck with Encore. Sailing April 26th and as excited as ever.

Thank you all so much for reading... Hopefully I can get something else booked, so we can do it all over again before my Mardi Gras cruise next November...

[meggymay]

Loved the review Sid, you have such a natural observational writing style. I'll be on the Mardi Gras Nov 7. So it looks like i'll just miss ya, guess i'll have to beat the post cruise blues with your review.

[Kfamilycruise]

Thank you so much for your amazing review. At this point, I'm really sad I don't have reservations at Los Lobos! As soon as I get on this ship, I think I'm going to change one of my reservations there. Looks like you had an amazing time! Thanks for taking us along with you!

[atanac]

I have a ? for Sid...although anyone else who has an opinion please chime in. If I am correct

Vibe is primarily an outdoor experience ie:  private outdoor area with lounge chairs, cabanas,

hot tubs, Vibe bar.

 

Do you feel like Vibe works for a cold weather cruise? I thinking Alaska where it can get really

cold and windy. I've been on a dozen Alaskan cruises and almost without fail you need to bundle

up if you are going to spend any time outside.

 

Whaddaya think?

[teach/2/cruise]

On 12/14/2019 at 6:22 PM, OceanBlueWaters said:

 

Hi Wilson!

Geez!  It looks like I missed a lot!  From what I gather, that Canadian guy was totally out of bounds.  Never liked him anyway...

 

Glad you are feeling better and keep doing what you do!  

 

🙂

 

which post # are you talking about?  Canadian guy?

 

thank you

 

 

 

 

 

[grandmarnnurse]

9 hours ago, atanac said:

I have a ? for Sid...although anyone else who has an opinion please chime in. If I am correct

Vibe is primarily an outdoor experience ie:  private outdoor area with lounge chairs, cabanas,

hot tubs, Vibe bar.

 

Do you feel like Vibe works for a cold weather cruise? I thinking Alaska where it can get really

cold and windy. I've been on a dozen Alaskan cruises and almost without fail you need to bundle

up if you are going to spend any time outside.

 

Whaddaya think?

What do I think? Well, I’m seeing that a lot of people feel the Vibe is worth it, if only to escape the masses at the main pool. I personally do not think that price is worth it even in warm weather, but for colder weather? Definitely not. Not to mention, the main pool will be less crowded on colder cruises. But this is just me, and my “retirement budget mindset” where as we very rarely pay for anything extra. We were happy when there was an adult only area on a NCL that did not cost anything (Spice H2O), but that space is not on the Encore. Probably one reason we will stick with ships that do offer us an adult only space for free. And Carnival has a fabulous Serenity area, totally free. We sailed the NCL Getaway, and Spice H2O was on that ship. I found that NCL (and RCCL) are really pushing the for-fee items——adult spaces and specialty restaurants—-and that is something that we avoid. But as I said, this is just my personal opinion. Definitely not worth paying that price in cold weather.

[sid_9169]

16 hours ago, atanac said:

I have a ? for Sid...although anyone else who has an opinion please chime in. If I am correct

Vibe is primarily an outdoor experience ie:  private outdoor area with lounge chairs, cabanas,

hot tubs, Vibe bar.

 

Do you feel like Vibe works for a cold weather cruise? I thinking Alaska where it can get really

cold and windy. I've been on a dozen Alaskan cruises and almost without fail you need to bundle

up if you are going to spend any time outside.

 

Whaddaya think?

For the Caribbean, Vibe is a must for me... But cold weather? I think that I might save the $ for other things. It does sometimes get very windy...

[AZYAYA]

On 12/5/2019 at 2:07 PM, sid_9169 said:

We met Claudia and her crew at the dock at 10:30, and boarded the Rebel Yell catamaran...

 

Rebel Yell is the best!  I love JVD, but I prefer Hendo’s over Soggy Dollar.  But I’m not one to turn down a pain killer either way!

[ShelleyQT]

On 12/2/2019 at 4:36 AM, sid_9169 said:

After breakfast, I scouted the OL for nappers and bare feet on the furniture... I found a few sleepers, but there were people nearby, so I didn't photograph them. I did, however get a few covert shots of bare feet up on the new furniture...

 

Of course, there are very few people here this early, but I suspect this will reach critical mass by 11:00 am...

 

About the bare feet, it's funny once you notice it, but those chairs are obviously made for people to stretch out, and I don't see a difference between bare feet and shoes that have been dragged through the restrooms and all around the ship...pretty yucky either way.

 

[ShelleyQT]

On 12/2/2019 at 12:23 PM, sid_9169 said:

I was bored, so I did a quick walk through the OL...

 

 

It's too bad those people can't afford a cabin to sleep in on this cruise...

[ShelleyQT]

On 12/2/2019 at 1:18 PM, TPgal said:

We have something similar in Seattle - it's called the Gum Wall outside Pike Place Market.  For the cost of hand sanitizer you can stick your own ABC gum on the wall.     (No offence to the artist, who I'm sure wants us to see something about humanity.) 

 

Fellow Seattle native here... the disgusting Gum Wall was my first thought immediately!  The smell of the whole walkway near the Gum Wall makes me retch.  Yuck!

 

Edited December 23, 2019 by ShelleyQT
Missed a sentence

[Cafedumonde]

This has been a weird month for me and I only just finished reading your report!  Thank you again for writing.  I don’t know that I will sail on encore (never say never though), but the ship does look nice.   

Love your Latin quote shirt.  I have a favorite Latin quote to live by for you:  “Semper ubi sub ubi!”  

 My first Latin teacher was a real joker and that quote was one of the first things he taught us.  Took that torturous language for 5 years.