Mitsugirly needed to ESCAPE from the cold weather

[mitsugirly]

I caught something out of the corner of my eye as we passed by. It was some type of bird, maybe a stork of some type?

 

 

 

 

 

I scream oh my gosh, stop. I see a bird! And stop she did. But, it was going off in the other direction and she didn't reverse the jeep. So, I got what I could for a picture and she drove off.

 

 

 

 

I could see the lighthouse in the near distance. At least we had finally made it to something to see other than the roads and greenery.

 

 

 

 

 

They have nice restrooms here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited January 12, 2020 by mitsugirly

[mitsugirly]

We parked and started walking toward the lighthouse. On the "beach" side of the lighthouse, Sakari discovered some swings and decided she wanted to swing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This was the best Mexican Christmas tree ever!

 

 

 

 

 

One of the Mayan Ruins. She told us that they are all real and not replica's. There are several situated in the area.

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

They were doing some renovations on the building beside the lighthouse. Our driver told us that the building was a museum and we were free to enter. I'm really not a museum type of girl. There's just really not much that interest me in these types of buildings. I don't really care about history or anything like that...but...we decided to go in and take a look around.

 

'

 

 

 

 

Inside the museum:

 

 

 

Now I'm going to be honest, I didn't realize my camera was on this setting and blurring things out. Oops

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was just room after room you went into and honestly, I don't know the significance of any of them. They just had "stuff" in them that was old. I told ya, I'm just not into these things.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

Now this!!! This is a room I can relate to!

 

 

 

Wait, is that a gator head? Yikes!

 

 

 

And then these....are these creatures lurking around here outside as well?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

 

 

 

 

Then it was time for the lighthouse. I really hated that I couldn't go up. I knew that the winding stairs would not accommodate the size of my boot and I was too weak to do that much climbing. It was going to be up to the hubby to be on daddy duty from here on out...or is it from here on UP.

 

 

I handed him a camera and Sakari was still equipped with the GoPro. Off they went into a spiral frenzy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It looks like a convoy of cars and jeeps arrived.

 

 

 

The hubby caught a glimpse of me heading to the restroom. I'm the one that looks like they have a huge leg and a smaller leg. lol

 

 

 

After using the restroom, I sat outside and by the tour guide. I needed to take my boot off and give my foot a rest and massage at this point. The swelling was already catching up with my activities and walking for the day. We started talking about how I injured my foot and everything that has happened since then. I think maybe at that point, she understood just how bad things have been and still were and the reason why our day didn't start off too good when I had to do all of that walking to find the meeting spot to get our jeep.

 

Somehow the hubby managed to zoom in on me. I think this new camera might just have zoom capabilities that are better than the tg 4 as well. It was pretty darn clear IMO and no loss of coloring.

 

 

 

Not only did they see me...but I seen them at the top of the lighthouse. They finally made it!

 

 

 

Now that they were up there, once again, I started freaking out. There was nothing but that fat railing around the top holding them in. The hubby has never been one to shadow over Sakari the way I normally do and she could be on one side and him on the other and you just never know...maybe she would try to lean over, maybe she would.....oh never mind. She didn't and he didn't and everything is good but still. My mind goes crazy thinking of these things all the time. I have always been a chronic over-thinker. The older I get, the worse it gets. Maybe I'm just more aware oh things because I'm a nurse. Maybe I'm more aware of how short life can be and the tragedies that can be around every corner when you least expect it because I've been around longer and have experienced these in my life time. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

 

 

Sakari took a picture of the "entrance" to the outside of the lighthouse. She giggled as she explained daddy crawling through this tiny hole to get out and then back in.

 

 

 

I gave daddy specific instructions on the pictures I expected him to get while he was up there. He was given a crash course on the settings and I told him I wanted regular pictures and pictures with the miniature settings (which bold the color and blur the edges). If he didn't come back with pictures on both settings, he would be forced to walk all those steps again to take more. Who was I kidding? 1) I would never know, until I returned home, if he actually did do the pictures right and 2) he'd never go for walking back up those steps again. LOL

 

I think he did an excellent job!!! So, he actually DOES listen to what I say. He just doesn't ACT like he listens. LOL

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wait, did daddy give Sakari lessons when she was up there? Is that a finger I see???

 

 

 

 

This pic makes my heart smile!

 

 

 

 

I absolutely LOVE this picture!

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is a great picture too! This reminds me of something you'd see in a news story about the lighthouse or on the cover of Lighthouse illustrated.  Something like that...it was beautiful IMO.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited January 12, 2020 by mitsugirly

[mitsugirly]

It was time to head back down. Get ready to crawl through that hole again...

 

 

 

 

Now if you think going up was hard, going down...they said it was scary as could be! You really had to watch your head in most places and it felt like such a tight squeeze.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I am so incredibly glad I did not have to do this. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[perfect match]

I still need to catch up here. Can’t wait to see what you were up to in Cozumel! In the meantime, here’s some pictures of 10327 on Oasis. Please keep in mind that these were taken in 2016, so definitely before her recent “amplification “. The Ultimate Abyss slide was not in place at that time, so it will block some of your view. Hopefully, it will not be too bad. I’ve found pictures from 10329 on Harmony. We will definitely be able to see the slides from our room, but we think we’ll be ok there.

 

As far as the room Kendra is looking at, if it is a connecting room I don’t think it can fit a full sofa due to the connecting door. If the room is not connecting, it should have the same sofa as 10327. Also, the position of the bed in the room alternates between by the bed and by the balcony. For example, 10327 has the bed by the closet, 10329 has the bed by the balcony. Some people have a strong preference for one layout over the other. We have only had rooms with the bed by the closet so I can’t offer you a comparison, but we were fine with that layout.

 

Oasis tip of the day - reserve your show times as soon as reservations open up in your cruise planner! Especially the adult comedy show as the venue is smaller than all of the other show venues. Now, I know you like to be able to do things on your own schedule, but reserve your shows anyway! If you decide you don’t want to go at the time you reserved, no problem. People in the stand by line will gladly fill your seats. Specific seats are not assigned to your reservation. You’re simply guaranteed that you will get into the show as long as you arrive before the cut off time, usually 10-15 minutes before the show starts. I have also found that if you already have a reservation that you want to switch to a different day or time once you get on board it is much easier to do that than to get a reservation if you don’t already have one.

 

If you haven’t already done so, download the Royal Caribbean app from your App Store. From Set Sail passes to menus, to schedules and anything else you can think of, it’s on the app - or if not there yet, it will be once you’re on board.

[mitsugirly]

We must have timed things right because as I started walking across the parking lot toward the lighthouse, they were coming out.

 

At the base of the lighthouse there was a guy that had 2 macaws. He was letting people hold them, pose, and lets you take pictures and/or videos. He says you can "donate" any amount you wanted and every little bit helps with the park.

 

My family are just animal freaks and the funny part about it, most of the animals that you'll find in any port, my family (mostly Kendra) has owned them and the macaw's were no exception. But, you would think that Sakari had never held one before and she always has to get in on the action. She was super excited about this. She has always been a bird freak and we have owned 2 (both a hilarious talking and dancing umbrella cockatoo and a cockatiel).

 

 

 

Holding a sunflower seed in her mouth

 

 

 

 

Wait for it, wait for it...now turn

 

 

 

She loved every minute of this.

 

[mitsugirly]

We had done everything in this area and we were back on the road again.

 

 

 

We headed to the beach and restaurant area. Our driver told us this is where we would be eating today. I couldn't wait to get out and stretch my legs. I mean it had been a whole 5 minutes since we were out of the jeep.

 

 

 

Sakari prepared with her mermaid tail and GoPro.

 

 

 

More swinging chairs. Sakari found her spot...

 

 

 

And we found ours...

 

 

 

 

This sand was the softest of the soft! It felt so good on my foot. Sakari kept commenting how soft it was too.

 

The area was a nice size under the palapa to eat with plenty of shade.

 

 

 

There were quite a few beach chairs and umbrella's. But, we were perfectly happy sitting at the table and were ready for some food!

 

 

 

 

 

There wasn't a whole lot of people there today.

 

 

 

Take care of the reef...don't pee on it!!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This beach was gorgeous and so was the water!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

Once again, my camera would be on the wrong settings and I would get lousy pictures of the menu. Not that it mattered to US because we were told we could only pick from tacos or quesadillas. 😕  (Was included with our tour). Of course, we had to buy our own drinks. You know, the drinks that were supposed to be included with our tour in the cooler???? Yea, nope!

 

 

 

The hubby got the tacos. They were pretty small and we were pretty hungry. So, it didn't seem like much.

 

 

 

Sakari and I got the quesadilla's.

 

 

 

Then out of the corner of my eye....

 

 

 

Two raccoon's made their appearance. They were their pets. I know for sure that one's name was Bonita (the "wife") and I think the husband was "Clyde". They were friendly. The worker said "They are married". lol

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

After eating, Sakari and I decided to go check out the beautiful beach. There were several people walking up and down it. Most of these people are coming from a snorkeling tour. Now, if you read my "notes" in the beginning, my tour was supposed to include a "private snorkeling tour". It said that my tour guide would take us out in the water and give us a private guided tour around the reef area. They took great pride in telling us that we wouldn't be in a group tour with others and it would be personal. Guess what? There was no tour. She never offered at all or mentioned it. All she did was ask if we'd like to stay and swim. For some odd reason, even though Sakari was toting her mermaid tail around, she didn't even want to get in the water or swim. I'm not sure why. I ask her several times and she said no. This was so unlike her.

 

 

 

 

There were more people walking than sitting in the chairs. It was such a beautiful day.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then here come Bonita.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

We watched several people walk way down the beach. I REALLY wanted to do this. But, I knew I wouldn't get far. I wanted to get far away from any of the people and take pictures. But, I didn't make it far. I started to wear out from trying to walk in the sand with my boot. It's not easy.

 

 

Look at all of those snorkelers out there.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I decided I would make the most of my short walk. I sat down to rest and found interesting items to take macro shots of. Sakari was busy looking around the area to find me interesting things and bring them to me as I sat on the little sand hill.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I thought this turned out really cool.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[perfect match]

Here’s some pictures of the Ultimate Abyss slide on Harmony. I’m pretty sure they’re taken from the balcony of 10329. One of these is looking straight across the Boardwalk from the balcony. The rest are all different angles looking aft.

[mitsugirly]

 

 

I felt rested enough and I knew the hubby was probably wondering where we went. We had been gone for quite some time. Slothing aint easy I tell ya. We started heading back. I went back the beach way and Sakari started headed the "green" way. She quickly regretted going that way because she ended up with thorn after thorn in her feet. Walk a few feet, pull a thorn out. Walk a few more feet, pull a thorn out. "Ouch, ouch, ouch. I'm ok" (Remember that child that refuses to shed a tear these days? She was holding it in) Now normally I would have rescued her by going in and having her jump on my back and carry her out. However, in my condition, I was lucky to carry myself and she would have to endure the feet torture chanber of green until she made it out of there. 

 

Back at the beach, Bonita was still wondering around.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We made it back and the hubby was not the slightest worried about where we had been for so long. He was busy still eating. He ordered some nachos because he was still hungry. I tried them. I didn't think they tasted very good.

 

 

Now remember, our meal was included. So, all we purchased were the nacho's and a few rounds of drinks and it came to $38 I believe. YIKES! (And by drinks, we're talking pop, not alcohol)

 

Off to take our Christmas picture.

 

 

 

Then it was time to leave.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

Our guide kept looking at her watch. She was now acting like we needed to speed things up. I thought we had plenty of time and now I was wondering if maybe we shouldn't have spent so much time at some of the other places or stopped as many times as we did (which really wasn't much when I go back and look at the time spent each place and how many times we stopped). It was just this eco park was so big and took forever to get from one place to another that ate up a lot of our time...and to think, we didn't even swim or snorkel like we were supposed to.

 

Off we went...slowly and making sure to pull over every time another vehicle went by.

 

 

 

 

 

 

We drove for a long time and finally made it back to the area of the lagoon and gators. The entrance showed multiple plants that were growing. She mentioned they were trying to boost the mangroves but every attempt they had tried did not work. They have figured out it does better on it's own than with their help of planting new.

 

 

 

Out to the lagoon we went. Every little stick that was sticking up I took note of. Was it a gator with a head sticking up? Was there one lurking below us and ready to jump out of the water to eat us? Are they laying in the bushes waiting to come out as we walked by?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Where are they? This was a huge area and the water and lagoon went on forever. I just knew we weren't going to see anything and I would come back to write an empty review of this area and no excitement other than the layout of the area.

 

 

Every shadow cast, every murky area, every hiding spot...was there or wasn't there something under there looking out at us...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

Then I spotted it...lurking down below. Our tour guide didn't even see it. I dead stopped in my tracks and shouted "there's one!!!"

 

 

 

 

Yikes

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

Sakari got excited after seeing the croc and ran off to look for more...only all of a sudden I spotted this....

 

 

 

 

She was going high!

 

 

 

 

Of course my anxiety kicked in again with her being up there and I tell ya, those stairs didn't look the greatest with wide opening spots and I kept telling her "be careful, hold on to the hand rail tight, one slip and you are gator food."

 

 

 

You think I'm joking....I'm not. The gator we seen back on the main pathway in before had followed her and was lurking under the decking now by where she was.

 

 

 

 

I can still see you!

 

 

 

 

It darted under and was on the move again when it seen Sakari come back down the stairs.

 

 

 

 

 

Sitting duck....seriously. As we walked out I was just waiting on a gator to come up out of the water and have this duck for lunch. I didn't want to witness it. I hurried down the decking and back out to the parking lot.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

In the jeep and headed out...one of the mayan ruins

 

 

 

 

 

 

We had spent around 3 hours in Punta Sur. It was a beautiful place but there's just something about being on a tour and having a driver sitting there watching your every move like they are waiting for you to go that just doesn't sit right with me. I feel rushed. Had we went on our own, we probably would have went to the beach as a normal beach day and snorkeled and just been our normal self. But with someone there waiting on you...it just feels different.

 

After coming out of the park, I mentioned I was thirsty and the guide offered some of that yummy beer and water again. I told her I don't drink either and drink pop and had requested that the cooler be filled with that instead. She said she would stop somewhere to get us some pop.

 

She stopped at a little stand and ask "What do you drink? What do you drink? and What do you drink?" I told her diet Pepsi, Sprite and regular Pepsi" She said ok and hopped out of the jeep, went up to the stand and purchased the drinks and came back and handed me mine and Sakari hers. Um....ok, I guess the hubby wasn't getting anything despite her asking and being told what each of us wanted. 😕

 

 

 

 

On the way back down Quintana Roo 1, which had now circled around and we were passing all of the beach clubs we had previously been to in the past when we came here, we were going SSLLLLOOWWW...like a sloth. I guess the jeep/driver matched my current status. Vehicles were passing us, even huge tour buses. There was another jeep in front of us that the tour bus passed. However, that jeep was at least going faster than us because it passed us already.

 

 

 

We made it back to the port and it was around 3:05pm. She pulled up to the drop off area to let us out. I thanked her for the tour and told her I was sorry we got off to a bad start. I knew it wasn't HER fault how everything happened and instead the fault of the company. I tipped her and off we went into the port.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

So just some final thoughts about our day because I feel the need to express them.

 

We toured with this company last time and had a wonderful time. The staff was friendly and everything went well ...other than the beginning and waiting on everyone to arrive that was going with us. The instructions say be there within 30 minutes but it was a VERY long wait last time...VERY long. But, everything else was fabulous!

 

This time, the amount of travel involved in getting to the "meeting place", which wasn't even the meeting place, the crappy instructions, and the distance from the pier (past both piers) was just ridiculous! Then to turn around and have to come back the way we came? They need a much better system. We are not that dumb to not be able to go down the side street in front of the cruise terminal and see a huge parking lot filled with brightly colored vehicles to know that's where to go. Seriously!

 

Then the arguing about the price. Don't tell me one thing and try to change it up to a different price. Nope, not gonna happen.

 

Their description (it was all over the place both on their website and in my email) said that we would go to a private beach club and it was the best place to snorkel from shore, with a private guide on the snorkel tour and also a pool.

 

"Your private guide will take you on your own private snorkel tour to discover a beautiful reef that is a short swim from the beach so you get a more personalized snorkel adventure and venture further out to discover even more sea life. It allows you to snorkel at your own pace. Even people who don't know how to swim have taken our private snorkel tour and loved it! You will be given snorkel gear and a professional snorkel life vest, made specifically for snorkeling. This allows you to just float above without having to know how to swim and our guides will help guide you along if you like. The water is nice and shallow so you'll be from arms length to discover and capture Cozumel's mesmerizing reefs. The beach makes entering the water very easy."

 

Like always, something I was looking forward to and sounded perfect considering my "condition". But there was no snorkel gear, no mention of snorkeling, and not beach club with a pool either.

 

Their description of the east side of Cozumel:  mentioned "caves, secret beaches, off-road paths and more."

 

"Your guide will take you to explore---caves that many tourists will never experience---you'll stop at a Beach Bar/Restaurant---an enjoy an authentic Mexican meal. We also include a cooler of beer and water that you may use for your meal instead of buying something and you'll always have refreshments when relaxing on one of the gorgeous beaches."

 

Yea, none of that really happened the way it was described. Where were the caves? Our guide didn't bring the drinks to the beach with us and the Mexican meal was very very limited and not filling. 

 

I honestly don't feel I got what I paid for and I'm pretty much left longing to actually do/see a few of the things I missed. It almost makes me want to go back and do a land vacation just to relax and spend time at some of the places we thought we would go to in order to snorkel or even go back to Punta Sur to snorkel and relax. I didn't realize that Punta Sur was so long in and out of there that it would eat up a lot of our time. I didn't realize that we were not going to this snorkeling spot at a place with a pool as well. I did not see any snorkeling equipment anywhere in the jeep and we didn't bring ours because we were told it was provided. None of the drinks I requested were brought. I'm just left wondering if I got a freak tour this time around or if it was a freak tour last time around by being so good. I'm just not sure. 😕

[mitsugirly]

Back at the pier...Sakari wanted pictures with everything she could find.

 

One of the live statues. You think they are fake but they move to scare you at a moments notice. These guys are so good at this stuff. Only this one put his sword around her neck and held her there. I took the picture and told her to come get money to put in his box, only he wouldn't release her. She said she couldn't move. She didn't know how to get out. I told her to duck under. He wasn't about to let that happen either. I physically had to put the money in his box for him to release her. How strange and made me feel a little uneasy at that point.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It looks like we had several Carnival ships docked with us.

 

 

 

I did talk to our guide about us docking at that dock and because the weather had not been that great the night before and it was really windy out today off and on as well, docking at the Punta Langosta pier is very difficult for a bigger ship and in the area it is in. The smaller ships do not have as many problems on a windy day but the bigger ships are safer to dock further down. I would think that the smaller ships would have more problems with the windy blowing them around than the bigger. ???  But that's what she said anyhow.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The only snorkeling we would get to do this day.

 

 

 

I love day of the dead costumes and was hoping that these guys were friendlier than the last guy she took pictures with.

 

 

 

 

We were following a family around taking pictures. I offered to get them all in a picture together and from then on out, I would be their photographer as we went from place to place taking pictures with all of the props at the port. lol

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have to say that Sakari's personality is really blossoming since starting middle school. I've noticed that she's starting to want pictures with everything and makes poses and various faces in her pictures now. She's coming out of her shell these days. She's always been quiet and reserved.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

Heading down the pier back to the ship. The Allure was docked at the RC port. Man she is so big. Sakari made the comment "Are we EVER going to get to go on the Allure or Oasis???" Well baby, you finally got your wish now.

 

 

 

We were docked beside the Conquest (which we have been on) and Paradise. They looked so small beside the Escape.

 

Now once again, notice there were no 3 wheeled bikes running that day. I was told because it was too windy. Also notice the guy with the wheelchair coming? The hubby flagged him down for a ride for me.

 

 

 

NCL always provides you with wet washcloths when returning from port. They were smelling kinda "funny". I hadn't noticed this smell in the past years. They were just very very cold and wet in the past. But now they have a weird smell to them. I really wasn't sure what it was but know I had smelled that aroma before. On our last stop, I just had to ask one of the workers what was on it because it was just driving me insane. It was Eucalyptus. I have some of this for a relaxing tub soak that I put in my jacuzzi tub. It's very soothing. I'll add it to the water, light some candles and turn the lights out with the jets running. It's so relaxing but I haven't used it for quite some time due to my leg situation. I just knew that the smell was familiar.

 

 

The other thing I have always loved about NCL is their "coming back" party with the staff lined up and dancing to welcome you back to the ship. These guys weren't so lively as most of the ships in the past, but they were having fun.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Cafedumonde]

We have found that we do not really enjoy having a driver wait for us while we hang at the beach either.  We thought it was just us!  But we have tried it twice and both times we felt like the driver was ready for us to leave the entire time.  

[mitsugirly]

On 1/11/2020 at 2:28 PM, amelia3171 said:

Really enjoying your review as always, thank you. 

 

Life would be so much better if every morning breakfast was a freshly made omelette, hash browns and a couple of thin sausages. 

 

 

 

Aww, glad you are enjoying it.

 

Wouldn't it though (be better with that breakfast each morning).

 

 

On 1/11/2020 at 3:37 PM, c-leg5 said:

Mitsugirly, are these your notes, or from the tour company?
 

The first paragraph is definitely not a description of Punta Morena as I know it!

 

They are my notes that I copy and pasted from their website and the emails I got from them.

 

 

20 hours ago, JoeTec said:

Oh no! Now I am nervous. We are taking a tour with the same company in 1/30 on the breakaway except we are doing the dune buggy. My husband has a bad foot & can't walk far distances. What would of happened if you went right to the parking lot instead of your long journey? (I know you didn't know where it was just asking for us)

 

Did you have to tender? 

 

IF you are on the Breakaway and IF you dock at Punta Langosta, then you will be fine. It's super simple to get to them from that port. Just follow the port to the end, go down the steps or elevator and then back to the street and they meet there. Super easy. The only problem is if you dock at one of the other ports. Then there's a lot more walking involved...especially fro the Carnival dock.

 

If I would have went right to the parking lot (if I would have known where they were) then I'm not sure how they would have known I was there to begin with. There's so many tours in that area, all parked in the parking lot (which isn't really a paved parking lot and more like grassy/dirt area).

 

 

17 hours ago, perfect match said:

I still need to catch up here. Can’t wait to see what you were up to in Cozumel! In the meantime, here’s some pictures of 10327 on Oasis. Please keep in mind that these were taken in 2016, so definitely before her recent “amplification “. The Ultimate Abyss slide was not in place at that time, so it will block some of your view. Hopefully, it will not be too bad. I’ve found pictures from 10329 on Harmony. We will definitely be able to see the slides from our room, but we think we’ll be ok there.

 

As far as the room Kendra is looking at, if it is a connecting room I don’t think it can fit a full sofa due to the connecting door. If the room is not connecting, it should have the same sofa as 10327. Also, the position of the bed in the room alternates between by the bed and by the balcony. For example, 10327 has the bed by the closet, 10329 has the bed by the balcony. Some people have a strong preference for one layout over the other. We have only had rooms with the bed by the closet so I can’t offer you a comparison, but we were fine with that layout.

 

Oasis tip of the day - reserve your show times as soon as reservations open up in your cruise planner! Especially the adult comedy show as the venue is smaller than all of the other show venues. Now, I know you like to be able to do things on your own schedule, but reserve your shows anyway! If you decide you don’t want to go at the time you reserved, no problem. People in the stand by line will gladly fill your seats. Specific seats are not assigned to your reservation. You’re simply guaranteed that you will get into the show as long as you arrive before the cut off time, usually 10-15 minutes before the show starts. I have also found that if you already have a reservation that you want to switch to a different day or time once you get on board it is much easier to do that than to get a reservation if you don’t already have one.

 

If you haven’t already done so, download the Royal Caribbean app from your App Store. From Set Sail passes to menus, to schedules and anything else you can think of, it’s on the app - or if not there yet, it will be once you’re on board.

 

 

 

As far as connecting rooms, she was looking for rooms beside each other to connect the balconies, not the actual rooms. No way, no how (said by me lol). We just thought if they can open up the balcony and us be able to sit out there together and watch shows that would be cool.

 

Gosh I don't even have any clue what shows they have there and what I should be booking. Eekkk

 

Making note to download the app for RC. I think I had it last time because doesn't the app also involve the messaging on there as well? Usually after a cruise, I end up deleting the apps until its time to cruise again. I don't know why I do that every time.

 

 

 

16 hours ago, perfect match said:

Here’s some pictures of the Ultimate Abyss slide on Harmony. I’m pretty sure they’re taken from the balcony of 10329. One of these is looking straight across the Boardwalk from the balcony. The rest are all different angles looking aft.

 

 

Oh my gosh! What the heck???? That's going to block a good view. I'm now worried. That was the whole idea behind getting that room. 😞 

 

So it looks like al those pictures were taken from different rooms or floors and not the same place. I will hate it if I'm looking at picture #1. Of course the last picture would be an ok view for the show. Man what a bummer. Why would they do that?

 

 

6 hours ago, Cafedumonde said:

We have found that we do not really enjoy having a driver wait for us while we hang at the beach either.  We thought it was just us!  But we have tried it twice and both times we felt like the driver was ready for us to leave the entire time.  

 

Isn't it weird? I feel like I'm being watched and hurried. Our driver was trying to be nice about it and said she was going to go "over here" and let us have our privacy/time there alone. But, you could see where she was sitting (by the bar and we were at the tables right there) and if just felt like we were being watched. A few times she came over to ask if we'd like to leave or what time we'd like to go. Another time she mentioned that it was getting late and it was a long drive out and she still wanted to show us the lagoon with the gators. You know, that sort of thing.   I would really like to do this trip on my own next time!

[pohlerbear]

We did a tour with the same company and had a very different experience. We went to a beach club to snorkle, then a tequila factory. Then our driver took us to 3 bars on the east side ( none of th e ones you stopped at) and then a fourth one for lunch. Ours included a shot at each bar and the beer and water in the jeep. They stopped at a market on the way back my DH could check out cigars. It was the best excursion ever.