Semi Live Review Indy OTS 9 night Galveston

[cynt]

I'm writing this as we're waiting on folks to complete their safety drill. SMH! Around 330pm there were 400ish not in compliance. 4pm  200ish not in compliance. He just announced 130 left. We can not sail until they complete it. SMH! 

 

Hi I'm Cynt. I thought I would post a few items I wondered about on this 9 night cruise. Itinerary 2 sea days, Port Canaveral, Miami, Nassau and Coco Cay and 2 more sea days. 

 

I'll post today, Saturday and Sunday and finish up when we get back. Because I do not purchase wifi on vacay! 🤣😂🤣😂

[cynt]

Phew! I thought I lost my post so I posted what I had. 

 

This cruise came about because I was chasing points to get to Diamond. I needed 16 points. That normally would have taken two 7 nighters and a short weekend cruise. Well thanks to double points I could get these 16 points in one cruise, 18 points. It was also from my home port, Galveston. 

 

I mentioned it to DH and he said go for it but he couldn't go because he had a guy's trip to Vegas. I waited a week and asked him again. He was like babe go for it. So I did. 36 points since I'm cruising solo! 

 

I drove down yesterday and stayed at Grand Galvez aka hotel Galvez. 

 

[cynt]

I selected Hotel Galvez for the $60 cruise parking. Upon checking in they told me it was not available. They are renovating their parking garage. 🙄 

 

So I parked at Falstaff. And it was difficult to get to because of rode construction. The road sign on Church St says do not enter but enter anyway and drive down to the building. 

 

Nothing like that 1st glimpse of the ship. Hey Indy Hey!

 

 

 

[cynt]

1st vax and shot check was a breeze.. 2nd check security a breeze. 3rd Check in took forever. A couple of things to note. While standing in the check in counter there was a noticeable mature crowd. Very few in this crowd had pre registered online. I went to 3 different lines. And of course as soon as I stepped in a line that was moving it came to a screeching halt! 😆 🤣 😂 At this point all I could do was laugh. It was finally my turn. I was finished in 2 minutes. SMH! 

 

I'm going on a cruise! I'm going on a cruise. On more check point and up the gangway to the ship. 

 

My cabin.

 

We're finally leaving. See ya Saturday. 

 

 

[cynt]

[cynt]

[cynt]

A few flyers. Bye 👋 👋 

[tradercj]

Thank you for doing this. I am on Indy next week

 

[jean87510]

lol.  like the part with the pre registration crowd...

[HunterBarb]

Well ~ I just left INDY on Wed ~ maybe you got my cabin !  LOL - I was solo B2B on 9/17 & 10/1 - had a great time, made some new friends, ate WAY too much, played a lot in casino, was a very good experience!   AND - scored some MAJOR  C & A points !  I see DIAMOND on the horizon !! ❤️

If you have a choice in servers in MDR - ask for KUNAL  ~  he is Super !  He was my waiter both sailings, and he always remembered my preferences !

ENjoy !

[cynt]

GM CC!

 

We arrived safely to Port Canaveral. My first time to PC. I have no idea what I'm going to do today. The last month I've been trying to figure out a reasonable way to get to Magic Kingdom. To no avail. I'm a Disney fan and being this close is crazy 🤪. But it's ok I'll see the mouse in June. Plus I didn't want to spend $152 for a one day ticket. I'll report back when I decide what I'm going to do.

 

 

Edited October 9, 2021 by cynt

[cynt]

GM from MIA! 

 

First shout out to everyone who post Live Reviews. I got busy yesterday and totally forgot to come back and post. I guess my mind goes on vacation too😁!

 

Ok, for those who port at Cape Canaveral good news. The port is basically a marina. It has 6 or 8 seafood restaurants and bars. I went to Gators and watched the TX vs OU game. 

[cynt]

These two beauties were also in Port.

[cynt]

Enjoying a chocolate brownie ala mode.

 

I liked this pic with the Disney ship in the background. 

 

Talk about a tale of two halfs!

🤪🥴😳

Edited October 10, 2021 by cynt

[cynt]

Now to back track. Thursday and Friday on the ship I did absolutely nothing. Sleep, eat, walk the track, read. Repeat.  I love ❤ sea days.

 

I am enjoying the ultimate dining plan.

Friday Chops. I enjoyed Chops so I booked it 6 days. 🤣😂 Everything has been delicious but the soups can use a little more seasoning. 

 

Friday Chops

 

Wednesday Chops

.

 

 

 

 

[cynt]

We're pulling into the Miami port. 3 ships are here Virgin Scarlet Lady, Carnival Horizon and Norwegian Gem. I ain't gonna lie. I was so happy this was just a port stop and we were not going home today. On those ships people were getting kicked off today. O you know that sad feeling you get when you gotta get off the ship 😔.

 

I'm very intrigued to try Virgin. My husband and I are DINKS so I think we might really enjoy Virgin.

 

My DH loves Carnival because he's your typical guy and could live on burgers and Mexican food which are at his finger tips on Carnival. Plus they have real channels on the TV which he enjoys 😉 .

 

Norwegian is on our list to try. We just haven't gotten around to it. 

 

Welcome home Indy!

[cynt]

I've asked around and there's about 1500 passengers on board. I've counted the kids on the splash pad and there were around 16 kiddos playing. I've seen maybe 10 teenagers at various times. I do not believe Adventure ocean nor the Teen place is open. Just walking around the ship I don't see any kids. They are usually at the pools and splash pad.

 

It feels weird seeing empty lounge chairs by the pool mid day. I could get use to this.

 

 

Relaxing in the Solarium.

 

 

[cynt]

Not really a place to walk at the Miami port. I'll probably just stay on the ship today. This isn't a very good port to dock.

 

[cynt]

A view from the port side of the ship.

 

[CruiszBug]

28 minutes ago, cynt said:

Not really a place to walk at the Miami port. I'll probably just stay on the ship today. This isn't a very good port to dock.

I did a B2B2B during December 2019. I walked all the way to the Catholic church (Gesu) in downtown Miami for Sunday Mass. I Ubered back, though... Lol! It was a lovely day and not too hot early in the morning. The view over the bridge was spectacular!

Edited October 10, 2021 by CruiszBug

[cynt]

A few thoughts thus far on the cruise.

 

RCCL needs regular ESPN and ESPN2. Period. Point blank. They have ESPN Caribbean and ESPN2 Caribbean. All those channels televise is soccer and more soccer. Why Royal? Why?

 

The Indian food is delicious. I had butter chicken Wednesday and chicken koman today. Both were excellent. The fruit has been fresh and sweet this week. BONUS! I've been to the WJ 4 times and no complaints. I'm really wondering if they will open WJ for our Christmas cruise since capacity is supposed to increase. 

 

Playmaker is pretty good. I've been having lunch their daily. Poke nachos are Fantastic. I wish they would double the poke though. The Original playmaker burger is GOOD! I didnt care for the fries with the sauce and Parmigian cheese. But I'm a plain French fries kinda girl. All I need are hot fries and Heinz ketchup. 😁

 

I haven't made it to Izumi sushi yet. I keep messing up my timing to go there. Between me sleeping in and taking long afternoon naps I keep missing their open times.

 

I am very pleased with Royals covid protocol. They triple check you vax card and test results. The last check is where your records are scrutinized. Make sure your records are in order. If your vax card is all jacked up get another one. 

 

Everyone seems to be following mask rules. They're simple when inside mask up. All vaccinated venues (casino, 3rd floor theater) you can take off your mask. Easy peasy. if you loathe wearing a mask 😷 you probably should wait to cruise. Wearing a mask is 2nd nature to me. After masking up for 20 months it's not a big deal to me. 

 

I love the wash stations entering the WJ. I love the servers serving the food. I'm not a buffet person so this gesture is a win win for me. 

 

Go see Grease. It's a fun show. Royal kills it in the entertainment field. The ice skating show was cool. Flash back to the good ole days. It was nice. 

 

Well I'm getting sleepy 🥱 so time for my afternoon nap. 

[vplsh]

We were on the 8 day on Indy the end of September and had a great time. We loved the Ultimate Dining Package and ended up eating dinner in Giovanni's 6 of the 8 nights. If you make it there, tell Ahmet that Lisa and Steve say hi!!

[cynt]

Ok I'm here to report back on the port of Miami. I walked from Royals terminal to the front past NCL, Carnival to Virgin. It was a one mile walk one way. Round trip was 2 miles. I walk 2 to 3 miles a few times a week and I hike. It was a nice leisure walk and no big deal for me. 

[cynt]

There is a free trolley that will take you into town. I did not ride it but I saw it on my walk back to the ship. You catch it at terminal D. Today that was the Carnival terminal.

[Merion_Mom]

7 hours ago, cynt said:

We're pulling into the Miami port. 3 ships are here Virgin Scarlet Lady, Carnival Horizon and Norwegian Gem. I ain't gonna lie. I was so happy this was just a port stop and we were not going home today. On those ships people were getting kicked off today. O you know that sad feeling you get when you gotta get off the ship 😔.

 

I'm very intrigued to try Virgin. My husband and I are DINKS so I think we might really enjoy Virgin.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You and Virgin are definitely made for each other.  I think that you would love it.

 

 

2 hours ago, cynt said:

A few thoughts thus far on the cruise.

 

RCCL needs regular ESPN and ESPN2. Period. Point blank. They have ESPN Caribbean and ESPN2 Caribbean. All those channels televise is soccer and more soccer. Why Royal? Why?

 

 

 

 

 

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