Royal Caribbean Cruisers -- How Are Things Where You Are? (was "Routine" ​ 😁 ​day in lockdown... how was yours?)

[bobmacliberty]

21 minutes ago, dpostman said:

A slightly full day yesterday for us.  The in-laws just left a few minutes ago as I type this as they from out of town but stayed over last night.  We planned a celebratory supper yesterday with our DS as he just finished the final step in purchasing his first home.  He is in an apartment already, and the closing date is July 8th.  About an hour before his planned arrival time, he call us to sy that he was in a minor fender bender, he rear ended another car, but thankfully, no-one was hurt, and the damage is relatively minor.  Just added paperwork and stress for him at the time when he is already overwhelmed with the things involved in purchasing a home.

 

My DD, just adopted a new cat from the SPCA yesterday, so lots of exploratory roaming and meowing going on.

 

Meet Patches:

 

Here are a few pics of the Tomahawk steaks that were served up for yesterdays supper.

 

Prepping for the Sous-Vide

 

With the dry rub mix

 

Vacuum sealed before sous-vide.

 

We had 3 Tomahawks for our 7 people.  1 for my DD's boyfriend (320lb football player for Dalhousie University, Halifax).  Pics from after the grill.

 

And the other 2 were sliced up for the other 6 of us.

 

Also included, is this years first crop of asparagus from our garden.

 

Looking forward to a quieter day today.  And maybe a salad 😉.

 

We were still able to happily celebrate our DS's new home owner status.

dp

 

Congrats to your son on his house purchase!  Patches looks like she has settled in nicely.  And the food looks fantastic!  How did you sear the tomahawks after sous-vide?

[dpostman]

39 minutes ago, bobmacliberty said:

 

Congrats to your son on his house purchase!  Patches looks like she has settled in nicely.  And the food looks fantastic!  How did you sear the tomahawks after sous-vide?

 

I seared about 5 or 6 minutes per side on a charcoal grill. Sorry, I should have taken pics on the grill.  Also, I wish I had taken pics after the slice, as the tomahawks were a very nice med-rare. A red wine sauce was also added after the pics were taken, but with the plating and serving, taking picture slip out of my mind since I'm only a man and can only do 1 thing at a time 😉

 

dp

[Ocean Boy]

[Keksie]

38 minutes ago, Ocean Boy said:

Mine will show you where the good stuff is for a dog treat.  Lol

[jmh2006]

12 hours ago, Luckynana said:

 

Thank you, Jen!  As the saying goes "from your lips to God's ears!" 

When do you leave for Italy and your cruise?  Has Dave been feeling okay since his trip to the hospital last week?

We leave on Tuesday the 21st and Dave is having his kidney stone blasted tomorrow 😃.  We are all packed up!  I told him I am leaving with or without you 🤣.

[bobmacliberty]

Time for an actual cruising question.  We're doing a family cruise on Wonder in November.  Same old, same old itinerary...St. Maarten, St. Thomas, CocoCay.  I'm looking for ideas on St. Maarten. For our first visit there many years ago (including daughters), we did a round the island tour with Bernard's Tours and enjoyed it.  We've since been to Maho Beach several times, and now typically just do a beach/shopping day in Philipsburg.  The "kids" with us are all in their late 20s and will want to do something more active.  We could try Bernard's again...anyone used them recently?   Any other ideas for something new and different?

[Sea Dog]

19 minutes ago, jmh2006 said:

We leave on Tuesday the 21st and Dave is having his kidney stone blasted tomorrow 😃.  We are all packed up!  I told him I am leaving with or without you 🤣.

 

Good luck Dave. I had that procedure done. I had no idea that even after they blast it into pieces you still have to pass the pieces. Luckily I did mine the next day.

[reallyitsmema]

Back from our 9 night Liberty sailing.  Ship came in a little late yesterday due to having to wait for a large cargo ship to get into the channel prior to Liberty docking.  We weren't on the road home until almost 9am, which is really late for us for a cruise out of Cape Liberty.  We are usually over the GW before that time!  Our normal 4ish hour drive home took almost 6 1/2 hours!  

 

Not our favorite cruise or ship, but we had a good time.  Liberty is definitely showing its age.  Constant issues with elevators either out of order or just acting possessed.  All pushed buttons would clear or it would just skip stopping at a deck that had been pushed.  Bunch of wayfinder screens out of order for the whole week, stalls out of order all week in restrooms, tired carpeting and furniture.  Our cabin had carpeting that had a partial replacement at one point and the seam was lifting.  They need to just replace the whole thing before it turns to a tripping hazard.  Balcony was really rusty and dividers were banging really bad when we first left port.  My DH and the guy in cabin beside us wedged cardboard in the track on both sides and stopped that held for the week.  DH was able to do the same on the other side as we never ran into those people.  Glad they took the time to do it as we had really heavy rain and wind at the beginning and end of our sailing.  Our safe stopped locking three different times during the cruise and we had to call for someone to come fix it.  Last time it happened, we just gave up and locked our valuables in a suitcase.  Didn't want to waste another hour waiting for someone to come fix it and they won't send someone unless you wait.

 

Our MDR issues settled down with us going to early seating at 5:30 when they started seating all 200 of the misfits that got kicked to my time dining.  We skipped the line and were able to go directly to a maitre'd who took us to a table the head waiter had held for us.  We ended up with the same waitstaff four nights but three different table, two other tables and waitstaff two nights, specialty dining two nights and skipped dining room one night.  We had booked main seating so we weren't going all over the place but at least we didn't have to stand in line for 45 minutes after we got the head waiter involved.  We had met with the concierge to get it fixed, but she couldn't do anything.  She did ask to see my app because she wanted to see that I didn't have a reserve button in MTD so wasn't really in MTD either but being in limbo wasn't something she could fix.  She called the dining room and was put on hold, waited a bit and called on another phone and was on two phones at same time trying to get help, so she did try.  Mysteriously, day 5, I finally had a MTD reservation button in the app, even though we were eating in main seating.  

 

Crew on this ship was excellent for the most part.  Our cabin steward was inconsistent.  We asked for two sets of towels everyday and some days we got them and others he didn't.  He forgot to empty trash a few days but would make towel animals.  Took two days for him to remember a sharps container even though request was on the booking, also submitted request on email that now comes day before cruise and I asked when we first saw him.  All the dining room waiters and assistant waiters we had were excellent.  I felt bad for the first team we had because they served us and then the head waiter was at our table discussing our issues for about ten minutes. When the waiter came to clear plates, he was very hesitant as he asked if everything was alright.  We told him we were discussing our seating issues and not him or his partner and his demeanor completely changed.  Poor guy thought we were complaining about him!  We took pictures of all the names of our waiters and will make sure to mention them all in our review.  Bar staff and windjammer staff were really good too.  WJ staff were really good at clearing quickly but also getting drinks or even omelets for people whose beepers were going off.  

 

We went to some of the shows but not all as we had already seen some of the headliners in the past on other ships.  Ice show was our favorite of all the ships we have sailed.  Lots of skating with less props crowding the ice.  Saturday Night Fever was good though we like We Will Rock You from Anthem a lot better.  We do need to see the movie to see how it relates to the ice show.  Neither of us ever saw the movie as we were too young when it first came out. 😄  Captain's Corner was very good.  We had Captain Dustin for the first time and Danny Turner was CD.  Forget Hotel Director and Chief Engineer's names but the four of them were excellent answering questions and actually gave an update of the med flight that happened at midnight after leaving Puerto Plata.  Patient was taken to Turks an Caicos and had undergone emergency surgery in the middle of the night. They were doing well.

 

All in all, we just did our own thing as we tend to do on cruises and just try to relax.  We like the music that Anthem and Oasis class ships have in bars and lounges more than on Liberty.  Schooner bar singer turned most of his nights into a sing a long where on Anthem they will have a pianist or guitar player, not a sing along. We like to sit and enjoy a drink and listen to music.  Hoping we can find that on Odyssey when we sail later this year.

 

[reallyitsmema]

47 minutes ago, bobmacliberty said:

Time for an actual cruising question.  We're doing a family cruise on Wonder in November.  Same old, same old itinerary...St. Maarten, St. Thomas, CocoCay.  I'm looking for ideas on St. Maarten. For our first visit there many years ago (including daughters), we did a round the island tour with Bernard's Tours and enjoyed it.  We've since been to Maho Beach several times, and now typically just do a beach/shopping day in Philipsburg.  The "kids" with us are all in their late 20s and will want to do something more active.  We could try Bernard's again...anyone used them recently?   Any other ideas for something new and different?

 

We were in St Marteen this week and had America's Cup Racing Regatta booked through the cruise line but it was cancelled due to operational reasons.  It is an old America's Cup sailboat that races an old Canadian boat.  We have seen it and it looks like fun.  Everyone gets to participate as much as they want.  I was going to be the lookout for icebergs 😄 but my DH was going to be a grinder or one of the more active participants.  They have a website you can look them up.  It sails from Bobby's Marina right near were the ship docks.

[h20skibum]

37 minutes ago, bobmacliberty said:

Time for an actual cruising question.  We're doing a family cruise on Wonder in November.  Same old, same old itinerary...St. Maarten, St. Thomas, CocoCay.  I'm looking for ideas on St. Maarten. For our first visit there many years ago (including daughters), we did a round the island tour with Bernard's Tours and enjoyed it.  We've since been to Maho Beach several times, and now typically just do a beach/shopping day in Philipsburg.  The "kids" with us are all in their late 20s and will want to do something more active.  We could try Bernard's again...anyone used them recently?   Any other ideas for something new and different?

We did parasailing from one of the vendors at Orient Beach, but just don’t wander too far to the clothing optional section.

 

For something different, there is always The Yoda Guy place.   If anyone is interested in movie props and memorabilia, this is interesting.   Nick Maley has done a lot of special effects models for Star Wars, Terminator, and many other movies, and many are on display.  Nick is usually there after 10 each day, and if you pay for a tour, you can meet and talk with him and get a photo with him.  The tour is an hour or less.

 

This is Nick with one of his Yodas (with part of me cropped out so I don’t get confused with Yoda)

 

 

A Yoda in progress

 

 

 

Stormtrooper

 

 

Terminator

 

 

A couple more exhibits

 

 

[Ocean Boy]

35 minutes ago, reallyitsmema said:

Back from our 9 night Liberty sailing.  Ship came in a little late yesterday due to having to wait for a large cargo ship to get into the channel prior to Liberty docking.  We weren't on the road home until almost 9am, which is really late for us for a cruise out of Cape Liberty.  We are usually over the GW before that time!  Our normal 4ish hour drive home took almost 6 1/2 hours!  

 

Not our favorite cruise or ship, but we had a good time.  Liberty is definitely showing its age.  Constant issues with elevators either out of order or just acting possessed.  All pushed buttons would clear or it would just skip stopping at a deck that had been pushed.  Bunch of wayfinder screens out of order for the whole week, stalls out of order all week in restrooms, tired carpeting and furniture.  Our cabin had carpeting that had a partial replacement at one point and the seam was lifting.  They need to just replace the whole thing before it turns to a tripping hazard.  Balcony was really rusty and dividers were banging really bad when we first left port.  My DH and the guy in cabin beside us wedged cardboard in the track on both sides and stopped that held for the week.  DH was able to do the same on the other side as we never ran into those people.  Glad they took the time to do it as we had really heavy rain and wind at the beginning and end of our sailing.  Our safe stopped locking three different times during the cruise and we had to call for someone to come fix it.  Last time it happened, we just gave up and locked our valuables in a suitcase.  Didn't want to waste another hour waiting for someone to come fix it and they won't send someone unless you wait.

 

Our MDR issues settled down with us going to early seating at 5:30 when they started seating all 200 of the misfits that got kicked to my time dining.  We skipped the line and were able to go directly to a maitre'd who took us to a table the head waiter had held for us.  We ended up with the same waitstaff four nights but three different table, two other tables and waitstaff two nights, specialty dining two nights and skipped dining room one night.  We had booked main seating so we weren't going all over the place but at least we didn't have to stand in line for 45 minutes after we got the head waiter involved.  We had met with the concierge to get it fixed, but she couldn't do anything.  She did ask to see my app because she wanted to see that I didn't have a reserve button in MTD so wasn't really in MTD either but being in limbo wasn't something she could fix.  She called the dining room and was put on hold, waited a bit and called on another phone and was on two phones at same time trying to get help, so she did try.  Mysteriously, day 5, I finally had a MTD reservation button in the app, even though we were eating in main seating.  

 

Crew on this ship was excellent for the most part.  Our cabin steward was inconsistent.  We asked for two sets of towels everyday and some days we got them and others he didn't.  He forgot to empty trash a few days but would make towel animals.  Took two days for him to remember a sharps container even though request was on the booking, also submitted request on email that now comes day before cruise and I asked when we first saw him.  All the dining room waiters and assistant waiters we had were excellent.  I felt bad for the first team we had because they served us and then the head waiter was at our table discussing our issues for about ten minutes. When the waiter came to clear plates, he was very hesitant as he asked if everything was alright.  We told him we were discussing our seating issues and not him or his partner and his demeanor completely changed.  Poor guy thought we were complaining about him!  We took pictures of all the names of our waiters and will make sure to mention them all in our review.  Bar staff and windjammer staff were really good too.  WJ staff were really good at clearing quickly but also getting drinks or even omelets for people whose beepers were going off.  

 

We went to some of the shows but not all as we had already seen some of the headliners in the past on other ships.  Ice show was our favorite of all the ships we have sailed.  Lots of skating with less props crowding the ice.  Saturday Night Fever was good though we like We Will Rock You from Anthem a lot better.  We do need to see the movie to see how it relates to the ice show.  Neither of us ever saw the movie as we were too young when it first came out. 😄  Captain's Corner was very good.  We had Captain Dustin for the first time and Danny Turner was CD.  Forget Hotel Director and Chief Engineer's names but the four of them were excellent answering questions and actually gave an update of the med flight that happened at midnight after leaving Puerto Plata.  Patient was taken to Turks an Caicos and had undergone emergency surgery in the middle of the night. They were doing well.

 

All in all, we just did our own thing as we tend to do on cruises and just try to relax.  We like the music that Anthem and Oasis class ships have in bars and lounges more than on Liberty.  Schooner bar singer turned most of his nights into a sing a long where on Anthem they will have a pianist or guitar player, not a sing along. We like to sit and enjoy a drink and listen to music.  Hoping we can find that on Odyssey when we sail later this year.

 

Thanks for the review. I have Freedom booked next winter and it has been a while since I've been on an older ship. The way you found Liberty has me concerned as Freedom is even older.

 

I think you will really like Odyssey as far as the evening music goes. Each time I've been aboard the piano guy in Schooner and guitar guy in the pub have been excellent.

 

I'm not sure if you have sailed Odyssey before? She is a beautiful ship... and no rust. I find the decor of the cabins very soothing as far as color scheme. She has the most functional Windjammer that I have been in so far. I can't wait to be aboard again.

[grapau27]

It is 16.45pm here.

It has been cloudy and 52°F all day.

We have had a pyjama day watching TV.

I hope y'all are safe and well and having a nice day.

[grapau27]

[dani negreanu]

3 hours ago, dpostman said:

We had 3 Tomahawks for our 7 people.  1 for my DD's boyfriend (320lb football player for Dalhousie University, Halifax). 

 

And the other 2 were sliced up for the other 6 of us.

 

@dpostman

 

Dennis,

May be the pic is misleading, but it seems that those 2 remaining TH are very small portions???

 

 

1 hour ago, Sea Dog said:

Good luck Dave.

 

@jmh2006

 

J & D   + 1

 

 

@bobmacliberty

 

I'm very impressed with your cooking skills 😎 When I've "left" DH for just 2 days, he was quite lost, and ended up buying .... falafel for lunch... 😉

 

[mets07]

Just returned from an 8 day cruise from Cape Liberty, New Jersey .... went up to Martha's Vineyard and then down to Bermuda for 3 days.  Ship was Celebrity Eclipse. It was our first Celebrity cruise and we really enjoyed it. We had Elite status due to match from Royal. 

 

I will post a few pics when I get a chance later. We have been to Bermuda many times and almost all the beaches, so we did a lot of walking on this visit to see some different things. 

 

[helen haywood]

@dpostman Amazing how any color of cat will shed copiously on black pants!!  To paraphrase Joan Crawford “No black pants!!!”

[Arzeena]

1 hour ago, jmh2006 said:

We leave on Tuesday the 21st and Dave is having his kidney stone blasted tomorrow 😃.  We are all packed up!  I told him I am leaving with or without you 🤣.

Best of luck. Wish him well. Bon Voyage!

[helen haywood]

5 minutes ago, dani negreanu said:

When I've "left" DH for just 2 days, he was quite lost, and ended up buying .... falafel for lunch... 😉

But we know he is a fabulous cook!!  I guess he needs his muse. 😁

[George C]

Warm day in Dallas will be in low 90’s , but New York City on Thursday, have tickets to Hamilton on Friday, will see another play or two plus show at 54 below. Will get a pastrami sandwich at either Katz or 2nd ave deli. Do our favorite restaurant Becco at least once and must have pizza a couple of times . Have our favorite suite at michealanglo which as a great location 51st and 7ave. Want to try a new restaurant not sure what yet , meeting a couple boyhood friends Sunday and will listen to a cousin play drums at Swing 46. On Memorial Day we fly to Shelagh home town in Buffalo area , have some great wings and beef on wick. Will see some of my wife’s family and also her best friend. 

[Arzeena]

1 hour ago, bobmacliberty said:

Time for an actual cruising question.  We're doing a family cruise on Wonder in November.  Same old, same old itinerary...St. Maarten, St. Thomas, CocoCay.  I'm looking for ideas on St. Maarten. For our first visit there many years ago (including daughters), we did a round the island tour with Bernard's Tours and enjoyed it.  We've since been to Maho Beach several times, and now typically just do a beach/shopping day in Philipsburg.  The "kids" with us are all in their late 20s and will want to do something more active.  We could try Bernard's again...anyone used them recently?   Any other ideas for something new and different?

I love your same old same old itinerary! 😆
Recently Wonder (especially) and some ships have been modifying this itinerary from St Thomas to San Juan, blaming it on some fueling issue.... so you may not have the same old.😉

About St Marten, I am also in your boat...BTDT on all suggestions.

How about going to Pinel Island and snorkeling there or vegging out on the beach?
 

[Arzeena]

12 minutes ago, mets07 said:

Just returned from an 8 day cruise from Cape Liberty, New Jersey .... went up to Martha's Vineyard and then down to Bermuda for 3 days.  Ship was Celebrity Eclipse. It was our first Celebrity cruise and we really enjoyed it. We had Elite status due to match from Royal. 

 

I will post a few pics when I get a chance later. We have been to Bermuda many times and almost all the beaches, so we did a lot of walking on this visit to see some different things. 

 

I would love to know what you thought of the Eclipse vs the refurbished Summit. We are looking at an Eclipse sailing out of FLL and my other choices are Beyond and Reflection. The pictures look like it is in need of a lot of love. And has it been refurbished at all? I do see it got the blue hull and outside stuff done, but am interested in learning about the inside.
 

[reallyitsmema]

55 minutes ago, Ocean Boy said:

Thanks for the review. I have Freedom booked next winter and it has been a while since I've been on an older ship. The way you found Liberty has me concerned as Freedom is even older.

 

I think you will really like Odyssey as far as the evening music goes. Each time I've been aboard the piano guy in Schooner and guitar guy in the pub have been excellent.

 

I'm not sure if you have sailed Odyssey before? She is a beautiful ship... and no rust. I find the decor of the cabins very soothing as far as color scheme. She has the most functional Windjammer that I have been in so far. I can't wait to be aboard again.

 

We haven't sailed Odyssey yet but have sailed Anthem a lot and also Quantum.  They are similar to Odyssey though I like some of the changes they made to the Ultra Quantum class, so can't wait to sail her.  We like the cabin decor too and find the storage a lot better.  We are in a JS on Odyssey so that will give us access to Coastal Kitchen for dinner.  I am glad you have had good experiences onboard with music, we missed that but allowed more time for my DH to stream Bruins and Celtics games. 😄 

 

I hope Freedom is in better shape.  We haven't been on Freedom for 11 years, so have no recent experience.

[Arzeena]

@TravelGirlinDallas

Bethany, I remember you asking me to post about my cruise on the Beyond since you are going on it.

FABULOUS. Hope that describes it.
 

And our cabin was very quiet. Did not witness any of the noise that people are upset about. Deck 7, starboard by the aft elevators. Very comfortable room. I never close the folding doors to the infinite verandah and use it as a floor to ceiling ocean view room and that makes the room seem a bit longer. Bathroom was great.

The ship overall is very nice. Lots of interesting art work. Food was great (food is subjective but I thought it was great!). Oceanview cafe food was fantastic (OB,  Attention attention). Out of the 4 dining rooms we went to Cypress the first night. We had a 3 night dining pkg which we used on Eden twice, Rooftop garden grille and once we went to Raw on 5. Among that, I really enjoyed the whole Eden dining experience. Shows were great and I enjoyed them a lot.
I believe you all will have a great time!

Edited May 19 by Arzeena

[mets07]

13 minutes ago, Arzeena said:

I would love to know what you thought of the Eclipse vs the refurbished Summit. We are looking at an Eclipse sailing out of FLL and my other choices are Beyond and Reflection. The pictures look like it is in need of a lot of love. And has it been refurbished at all? I do see it got the blue hull and outside stuff done, but am interested in learning about the inside.
 

 

I have not been on Summit, but our room including bathroom on Eclipse seemed fairly decent. Perhaps it was refurbished at some point? I know Eclipse goes in for some "work" next year I believe - not sure how extensive.

 

I noticed the curtains and the balcony were worn-looking. The balcony needed a paint job and the chairs on the balcony need to be replaced. The balcony however was nice as we were in a "hump" cabin and hence it was a bit deeper than normal. Here are a few photos in case it helps....

 

We thought the inside of the ship overall was good, although clearly not new. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Arzeena]

20 minutes ago, mets07 said:

 

I have not been on Summit, but our room including bathroom on Eclipse seemed fairly decent. Perhaps it was refurbished at some point? I know Eclipse goes in for some "work" next year I believe - not sure how extensive.

 

I noticed the curtains and the balcony were worn-looking. The balcony needed a paint job and the chairs on the balcony need to be replaced. The balcony however was nice as we were in a "hump" cabin and hence it was a bit deeper than normal. Here are a few photos in case it helps....

 

We thought the inside of the ship overall was good, although clearly not new. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thank you! It looks great!