Live Trip Report - Edge 2/16-23

[peter1956]

Have a great cruise and looking forward to your posts.

[Bo1953]

She must be speechless at the moment.... LOL

 

I know she is taking it all in before starting the blog...

 

bon voyage

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

Hi all!!

 

Sorry for the radio silence - I have been taking it all in!! 
 

This ship is, IMHO, a work of art. I am enthralled!! (So much that I did book the Apex cruise before the one I had already booked for summer 2021 this evening. Hard to pass up a free bottle of wine (Kendall Jackson Pinot Noir) for booking today!

 

A few first impressions pics...

 

Embarkation bubbly!

 

 

 

 

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

First meal was yummy! 
 

I love that they have a whole gluten-free area for desserts!!!

 

 

Amazing!!

 

 

 

[Silkroad]

I’m so happy to see you’re enjoying your first day aboard! Great pics, and I’d like to be right there with you (with my own frosty cocktail lol). Please give Mr. Edge a pat for me😊 Can’t wait to see him again in a couple months!

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

As for my cabin... I have a single stateroom with infinite veranda - 6141. Only the top of a lifeboat at the bottom of the window area, which is not a big deal to me as I look out and not down.

 

The storage is slim - a small closet and a few shelves in a cabinet - but since I pack light I am fine with it. 
 

It is not huge, but it works fine for me! (I have one booked for the now B2B Apex cruises actually!)

 

Pics...

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Cdresser]

Thank you for the pics. It looks like it would be perfect for one person. I like that the bed is not just a single. One woman we talked to on the Edge was irate about not having any drawers in the room but it looks like the shelving would work just fine if it were me.

[GRBlizz]

Thank you for this! We are cruising Apex in April, and I am so excited to see these pictures. Have a wonderful cruise!

 

[Silkroad]

Great pics! Thanks for posting them. My sister would love this cabin. The veranda chairs look much more comfortable (and appropriately sized for the space) than the chairs we had in our IV cabin last April. I see that the bifold doors are frosted also. 

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

Because of my status with RCCL I am Select here and so was invited to the Paradise Party this evening. Got to meet Captain Kate already!!

 

 

Went to the Martini Bar and had a Black Magic before dinner...

 

 

Dinner tonight was in Normandie. Overall it was good.

 

The weird: the gluten-free bread was cinnamon-raisin. Not normally the bread one would have with dinner. I shall be asking before getting bread at other dinners.

 

The Carrot Cumin Salad was delicious

 

 

The confusing...and the lesson to read the whole menu: I was going to get the Normandie signature Rack of Pork which is gluten-free. I did not notice that on the menu was a pork chop, which is not. So I simply said “The pork, please.” My server did come back and ask because “The pork is not gluten-free” but I said that it was marked as such - again, not realizing there was another pork dish. It came and I was like “Um...” and pulled up the menu on the app and saw that there were two pork dishes. Got it swapped no problem. The rack of pork was great!!

 

 

Dessert was essentially creme brûlée and delicious.

 

 

It has been an amazing first day!! Now I am settling in for the night to get ready for my adventure in Key West tomorrow!!

[jmdlv1]

Loving your TR and all the pics.
Thanks for posting.

 

Curious  how Did your arrival time at the port work out?

Were you able to get board right away.
I’ll be staying in the same area in a few weeks and was trying to figure out what time to leave the hotel.

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

3 minutes ago, jmdlv1 said:

Loving your TR and all the pics.
Thanks for posting.

 

Curious  how Did your arrival time at the port work out?

Were you able to get board right away.
I’ll be staying in the same area in a few weeks and was trying to figure out what time to leave the hotel.

My Lyft arrived at the Hampton Inn Blue Lagoon right after 9:30 and we headed straight to Port Everglades, getting there around 10:15. I went straight in through the Expedited Arrival area and then into the large waiting area. It was a little confusing where to sit, but finally figured it out. 
 

I think they started boarding with Concierge (the Suites has been on the other end and were already on board), then Aqua, then Elite + and so on. I think Select was called right around 11. Once it got going it was easy - but they will make everyone not just coming through the scanners sit down before they start. They were adamant about that.

[Oville]

Loving your review, hope Key West is great tomorrow.

[Cruise a holic]

boarding march 15th

[Bo1953]

8 hours ago, WrittenOnYourHeart said:

My Lyft arrived at the Hampton Inn Blue Lagoon right after 9:30 and we headed straight to Port Everglades, getting there around 10:15. I went straight in through the Expedited Arrival area and then into the large waiting area. It was a little confusing where to sit, but finally figured it out. 
 

I think they started boarding with Concierge (the Suites has been on the other end and were already on board), then Aqua, then Elite + and so on. I think Select was called right around 11. Once it got going it was easy - but they will make everyone not just coming through the scanners sit down before they start. They were adamant about that.

Could be due to those of us who rushed the door upon our first sailing! LOL...

 

bon voyage

[Pacificlander]

32 minutes ago, Bo1953 said:

but they will make everyone not just coming through the scanners sit down

Im sorry, but what does this mean? Who gets to just go through the scanners?

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

Good morning!!

 

i am sitting in the Ocean View Cafe watching a glorious sunrise as we approach Key West
 

I had a soy vanilla latte, fruit, and am egg white omelette 

 

 

I’m making an effort to not blow ALL of my hard work so far with the OrangeTheory Transformation Challenge. I did also have a Paris Screwdriver, but water with each alcoholic beverage!!

 

All set for my adventure today!! The angle is bad, but I got this tank specifically for my adventure today...

 

 

And also, because I know people always ask, here is the staff sheet which was in the daily thing yesterday...

 

 

I will check in later after my adventure!!

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

10 minutes ago, Pacificlander said:

Im sorry, but what does this mean? Who gets to just go through the scanners?

Everyone goes through the scanners - just like at an airport. They are before you enter the seating area and check-in counter if you did not check in already.

 

People were constantly coming through them when boarding started, and some of us were joking that we would be sitting until the final person cleared security.

[Bo1953]

14 minutes ago, Pacificlander said:

Im sorry, but what does this mean? Who gets to just go through the scanners?

I believe that written meant to write 'everyone coming through the scanner..'

 

bon voyage

[Pacificlander]

Thank you. I know about the security scanners, I misunderstood & thought there was another scanner somewhere that folks were just able to hop on the ship to.

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

9 minutes ago, Pacificlander said:

Thank you. I know about the security scanners, I misunderstood & thought there was another scanner somewhere that folks were just able to hop on the ship to.

No. Sorry, I was not super clear.

 

As people cleared the scanners they were directed either to the seating area if they had expedited check-in or to the check in lines. But that did mean people walking around when they were saying everyone had to be seated. Lol.

[jmdlv1]

3 minutes ago, WrittenOnYourHeart said:

No. Sorry, I was not super clear.

 

As people cleared the scanners they were directed either to the seating area if they had expedited check-in or to the check in lines. But that did mean people walking around when they were saying everyone had to be seated. Lol.

Sorry about one final boarding question.

Are the scanners the metal detector types?

Metal shoulder and knee so I have to use the body scanners at airports.

Or an extensive pat down results.

I'm guessing I need to get ready for pat downs.

[Treacher1]

So I am ELITED and concierge and expedited.  Doe ELITE and concierge still board before all expedited?  Not sure about order of boarding - like to board early  - seems like an extra day of vacation.  Your pics are excellent - thanks so much for posting all of them - looking forward to more.  Your pics and enthusiasm make me even more excited about our 2021 cruise - which seems so far away!  Enjoy - smooth sailing - look forward to all your future posts!!

 

 

[Treacher1]

Sorry  - meant ELITE Captain's Club. 

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

43 minutes ago, jmdlv1 said:

Sorry about one final boarding question.

Are the scanners the metal detector types?

Metal shoulder and knee so I have to use the body scanners at airports.

Or an extensive pat down results.

I'm guessing I need to get ready for pat downs.

Yes, the scanners are like airport ones. My dad had a hip replacement and had a card to show.

 

 

7 minutes ago, Treacher1 said:

So I am ELITED and concierge and expedited.  Doe ELITE and concierge still board before all expedited?  Not sure about order of boarding - like to board early  - seems like an extra day of vacation.  Your pics are excellent - thanks so much for posting all of them - looking forward to more.  Your pics and enthusiasm make me even more excited about our 2021 cruise - which seems so far away!  Enjoy - smooth sailing - look forward to all your future posts!!

 

 

 

Thank you! Expedited just means you don’t go to the counter. Concierge will board before Elite.