Weekend Mariner of the Seas AMA

[lazydayz]

52 minutes ago, cruizzing said:

We went to Margaritaville.  Got a room, but they're now offering day passes. Were strict about masks walking down pier (there would be someone reminding you that masks were mandatory in Nassau), and going in to resort, but not at/by the pool. Would go there again also. 

I will check it out. Thanks 

[lazydayz]

53 minutes ago, TYMAN said:

We normally gamble at Atlantis also, but the Fam didn't want to cram in a van full of strangers. We just stayed on board, had lunch at Chops then hung by the pool drinking Pina Coladas....:-) 

We might just do that.  We have the unlimited dining package so we could do a fine lunch onboard and save the extra dollars for drinks and the onboard casino.  

[TYMAN]

9 minutes ago, lazydayz said:

We might just do that.  We have the unlimited dining package so we could do a fine lunch onboard and save the extra dollars for drinks and the onboard casino.  

If you like Burgers, try the one at Jamie's! OMG, better than Chops in my Opinion. Ask for YaYa. They bring you so much food.....I had the Filet at Chops the next day's lunch. 🙂 Had burgers at Jamie's, Johnny Rockets and Snack Shack. Wish I took a picture of the Jamie's burger. Yum...

[flamingos]

2 hours ago, lazydayz said:

 

That is great to hear.  We did the Beach Club once before (days before shutdown) and really enjoyed it.  So excited to be going back in just over a week!

We're Mariner on the 17th.

[lazydayz]

2 hours ago, TYMAN said:

If you like Burgers, try the one at Jamie's! OMG, better than Chops in my Opinion. Ask for YaYa. They bring you so much food.....I had the Filet at Chops the next day's lunch. 🙂 Had burgers at Jamie's, Johnny Rockets and Snack Shack. Wish I took a picture of the Jamie's burger. Yum...

 

Thanks for the tip.  I have seen those burgers before - they are huge! 

[lazydayz]

1 hour ago, flamingos said:

We're Mariner on the 17th.

 

That's great.  Hope to see you on the ship. 

[ajgobucks]

We were on the same sailing and completely agree with the OP's assessment.  The biggest issue for us was the limited dining times.  No Windjammer for dinner, soft serve ice cream and hot dogs only until 6 pm. The only options for dinner were MDR and Cafe Promenade (24 hours).  We were caught off guard because My Time Dining was only from 6:45 to 9, which overlapped the 8 pm second seating and caused some crowding and kitchen delays. Thankfully, we were able to switch to the 5:30 seating and avoided the issues. 

 

The new muster station procedure is brilliant - easy and crowd-free. Open the app, view the videos, get a sticker from an attendant at your muster station at your leisure before 4:30 pm.

 

Our personal favorites were the "Ice Under the Big Top" show and the big band music with the Mariner of the Seas Orchestra.  Fantastic 9-piece band - it was a shame that there were only a handful of guests in attendance for it. 

 

The amplifications made her feel like a newer ship; the only place that felt dated were our staterooms, which were not updated.  The improvements at Coco Cay were truly impressive, but the crowds in the pool and tiki bar made all of the precautions on the ship seem pointless. 

Mariner Cruise Compass Day 1.pdf

Edited September 9, 2021 by ajgobucks

[ajgobucks]

Mariner Cruise Compass Day 2

Mariner Cruise Compass Day 2.pdf

[ajgobucks]

Mariner Cruise Compass Day 3

Mariner Cruise Compass Day 3.pdf

[PTAngel]

I am a little confused.  Did you need the Bahama Visa to get off in Nassau?  We leave on 10/17 on the Oasis OTS & will be stopping at Port Canaveral, Nassau, & Coco Cay.  Also, do you know if Ardastra Gardens is open during the week?  If their website is correct & current, it is only open on the week-end.

 

[ajgobucks]

9 hours ago, molly361 said:

Did they have the seats back at the bars at Playmakers and Boleros since all adults have to be vaccinated?

As far as I recall,  Barnacle & Barrel had seats at the bar. Not sure about Playmakers & Boleros.

Edited September 9, 2021 by ajgobucks

[ajgobucks]

13 minutes ago, PTAngel said:

I am a little confused.  Did you need the Bahama Visa to get off in Nassau?  We leave on 10/17 on the Oasis OTS & will be stopping at Port Canaveral, Nassau, & Coco Cay.  Also, do you know if Ardastra Gardens is open during the week?  If their website is correct & current, it is only open on the week-end.

 

We only needed our SeaPass card, our passports and vaccine cards. Not sure about Ardastra hours. Nassau was, well, Nassau.  Many businesses within walking distance of port had closed.  The port is undergoing a massive overhaul, so you'll walk through a large construction zone. The new cruise port (when completed) looks like it will be impressive:     www.nassaucruiseport.com/

Edited September 9, 2021 by ajgobucks

[flamingos]

Question about the SeaPass Card - can you get a hole punched in this one, or do we need to get the new lanyard?

[cruizzing]

15 minutes ago, flamingos said:

Question about the SeaPass Card - can you get a hole punched in this one, or do we need to get the new lanyard?

It can be punched (One in our party had Guest Services do it).

They are looking for the vax bracelet - in Solarium, the lifeguard asked someone where theirs was. Didn't have to show Sea Pass card anywhere that was Vax Only - they could tell by bracelets. 

[smplybcause]

37 minutes ago, flamingos said:

Question about the SeaPass Card - can you get a hole punched in this one, or do we need to get the new lanyard?

 

As the other person said it can be punched (did not get RFID locks in the amp) - but I actually didn't do it this time! They just ask for your room number for drinks anymore - limiting lots of people touching the cards I guess. No handing them your card each time you order. Besides entering your cabin and getting off the ship - the only time I needed my card was to scan in/out of windjammer and checking in for dinner (we had MTD guessing you only needed it the first night for other options). There was once or twice my card was swiped for drinks - but that was when I absentmindedly handed mine when I forgot about the room number. And they might have scanned them for shows but we always ended up arriving last minute. 

[flamingos]

20 minutes ago, cruizzing said:

It can be punched (One in our party had Guest Services do it).

They are looking for the vax bracelet - in Solarium, the lifeguard asked someone where theirs was. Didn't have to show Sea Pass card anywhere that was Vax Only - they could tell by bracelets. 

I need it for the drinks.  🙂

[cruizzing]

1 minute ago, flamingos said:

I need it for the drinks.  🙂

Gotcha. Was just clarifying because I think at one point there was talk that punching the card meant unvaxxed, but with the new protocols,  that wasn't my experience. 

 

For drinks, they mostly looked at it and asked for our stateroom # - don't really recall giving it (and no signing a slip), but YMMV. Enjoy your cruise 🙂.

[flamingos]

28 minutes ago, cruizzing said:

Gotcha. Was just clarifying because I think at one point there was talk that punching the card meant unvaxxed, but with the new protocols,  that wasn't my experience. 

 

For drinks, they mostly looked at it and asked for our stateroom # - don't really recall giving it (and no signing a slip), but YMMV. Enjoy your cruise 🙂.

Ah, I was wondering how they were going to handle that.  Guess I need to learn it.  🙂

[cruizzing]

Just now, flamingos said:

Ah, I was wondering how they were going to handle that.  Guess I need to learn it.  🙂

You just need to remember the first digit (deck number) - the others are printed on the card.  

[smplybcause]

3 minutes ago, cruizzing said:

You just need to remember the first digit (deck number) - the others are printed on the card.  

 

Unless you're on deck 10 because they decided for some godforesaking reason to only use "1" instead of "10" for the cabin number. So cabin 577 on deck 10 is 1577. Which is bloody annoying and took me a while to get used to it.

[Montanagirlalways]

2 hours ago, smplybcause said:

 

Unless you're on deck 10 because they decided for some godforesaking reason to only use "1" instead of "10" for the cabin number. So cabin 577 on deck 10 is 1577. Which is bloody annoying and took me a while to get used to it.

LOL. we found that confusing to!!!

[SheSailsFL]

On 9/8/2021 at 11:56 AM, flamingos said:

How did Coco Beach Club look? This may be the only time we ever go - we got it for $61.  🙂

Wow!  Awesome price on the beach club!  I’m still seeing $160.  Drink package still $61.  Not pulling the trigger yet.  I’m sailing B2B in January and again in April. 

[Rogueperson]

5 hours ago, SheSailsFL said:

Wow!  Awesome price on the beach club!  I’m still seeing $160.  Drink package still $61.  Not pulling the trigger yet.  I’m sailing B2B in January and again in April. 

The 24th's beach club is 97.  I'm still not sure its worth it, but my friend is wavering.

[lazydayz]

15 minutes ago, Rogueperson said:

The 24th's beach club is 97.  I'm still not sure its worth it, but my friend is wavering.

 

I would do it at that price because we like the serenity of the Beach Club.  If you are looking for a more vibrant atmosphere, I would say skip it.  But the lunch is fantastic and it is not crowded.  Just depends what you are looking for. 

[Rogueperson]

1 minute ago, lazydayz said:

 

I would do it at that price because we like the serenity of the Beach Club.  If you are looking for a more vibrant atmosphere, I would say skip it.  But the lunch is fantastic and it is not crowded.  Just depends what you are looking for. 

I will keep that in mind.  I'm generally not a beach person.  Foodwise, this is more expensive than Chef's Table, and I love Chef's table and find it hard to believe that the food here rivals chef's table.

We'll see.  We will be at Cococay with Freedom.  If both ships are at reduced capacity as I suspect, it may not be bad.