My Majesty 2/11

[Ralphinsc]

what is the martini clinic that everyone is chatting about? i have never heard of it! Might be interested!

 

Correct me if I'm wrong AF. It's held at one of the bars and generally goes for $10pp. The bartender gives a lesson on different martini's and demonstrates how to make a wide variety of different martini's. The attendes then sample these drinks. I look at it as a cultural experience where you broaden your horizons and perhaps gain some knowledge on a new skill. Doesn't hurt that it equates out to a very good deal in the amount of alcohol to money spent. someone said on one thread that it was roughly five drinks pp for the $10 cover. Hope this helps.

[embradley]

I am also booked on the 3/25 cruise and have found this thread to be very helpful!! This is my first cruise and Im already very very exited!! We are booked for the stingray city & island tour in Cayman..thru the ship though. This is our very first time and we wanted to be safe rather than sorry. In Cozumel, we are renting a Jeep and going to explore ourselves..probably visit Paradise Beach..it looked really nice on the website. Anymore feedback would be appreciated!! :D

[retiredAF]

Sonny MA, I spoke with one woman at the Charleston port who told me that if the ship arrives on time and the debark goes well, they are ready well before the posted 1 PM time to let passengers board. One of the staff on board told me that their goal is to be ready to accept the new passengers at 11:30 (again if they arrive on time which is the norm but not a guarantee) So many folks on our cruise did the "express walk off" so I am sure that helps with the turnover process.

morningglory69, Ralphinsc is correct, the martini bar was held in the Polo Club (deck 6) and the bartender gives a brief history of the drink or products used and demonstrates how to make them. Our bartender was Gusti and he kept it very fun and interesting. It was $15 pp and you really get more then a sample of the 5 martinis demonstrated. They were the medium size glasses some bars use as their only martini glasses so a good deal beside being fun! The Sunday session was the better option for us because you are at sea all day so it won't ruin your Key West plans if you enjoy the clinic too much! We had the traditional (classic), sour apple, cosmopolitan, passionate, and chocolate. Lots of fun.

We were on the fourth deck/center and with the rough weather, our room stewart suggested fresh air if you were not feeling well so we went up on the deck when my husband had a small bout. Different things worked for different people and the ship had plenty of ginger ale which was the popular drink of the day!!

Miller light is $4.34 or maybe 4.54 but that does include your tip. My wine (white zin)was $6.04 a glass (incl tip) or you could buy it by the bottle and save money. They will cork it for you and bring it to any lounge or restaurant whenever you wanted it.

It took me a while to convince my husband to try cruising also and on day two, he already started talking about "the next time we cruise"!

Hope I didn't miss any of the questions..

You guys will have a blast!

[Ralphinsc]

Does it mean you get to select what flavors you desire to see made? I was certainly hoping so as there is a definate preference. For example, I'm not too fond of knowing much more about a dirty martini other than that it uses olive juice. Perhaps the dw because she absolutely loves olives but as for me, I'll pass. I'm just hoping the recovery time is ample on sunday because I'd hate to be tipsy for the formal night :o , well at least until after dinner.

[bdeviled]

Aside from the martini clinic, which sounds good; what are some other highlights from your cruise which we should be sure to do. As well as avoid? I realize some did not like the food while some did enjoy it. So I guess im looking more at activities and none food related ideas. Thanks

[retiredAF]

Ralphinsc, The martini choices were set before the clinic started. We got handouts with a description of the martini selections. You may be able to "request" certain martini's in advance but I am not sure. Stop by the Polo Club and speak to Gusti the day before and ask him. He is very helpful so if it is possible, he will do it. Recovery time was ample for an excellent dinner that night!! :)

 

 

bdeviled, On other activities, it took us a day or two to really study the freestyle daily (which is left in your room each night) to fully appreciate all of the options you had. We looked more at the front page "Today's Top Activities" then inside where everything is listed so I suggest you pay attention to that. We really enjoyed the commedy shows and the hypnotist (which we had not planned to go to at first). The musical shows covered different types of music no matter what your preference is, and most were pretty enjoyable. We did not go to any shows that I would tell you to avoid.

 

One suggestion I found on another thread that I think is worth repeating is to bring an over the door hanging "shoe bag" with you. It fits over the bathroom door and you can throw everything in there. As you can imagine, there is not a lot of space in the bathroom in the standard staterooms. (don't know about the others)

[retiredAF]

One other thing that I just thought of.. some cruisers were not aware of the charges for parking at the Charleston pier. It cost $105 for the week and they only take cash or checks. The do not take credit cards.

Would hate for you to start your cruise on a bad note if you were not prepared for that!

[Ralphinsc]

Is it true that you have to go to two different spots to embark? I looked at the Port of Charleston site and the instructions they had for Majesty embarkation had an address of 32 Washington Street as the reporting site. The Cruise terminal itself is at 196 Concord Street. while not far, it is a bit of a distance for a drop off to walk. Is it just that the only way into the port facilities is at the 32 Washington street address? Just looking for a little clarification. I know we must be bugging you guys to death with questions. LOL! :) Here's the link to the embarkation infor that I got these addresses from.

 

http://www.port-of-charleston.com/Cruises/documents/Embark_Guidelines_Nor_Magesty_Series_2005_06.pdf

[retiredAF]

Ralphinsc, Once you get down by the pier, they will have excellent signs directing you to the parking area. You will drive through an area where they check your tickets, quick view of passports and then you pay. If you already have luggage tags, they have you go to one area and if not you pull over to an area right on the side where they give you the tags and you get your bags ready. After that, you get in the line with the previously tagged folks and when you pull up, they take all of your luggage and direct you to the parking area. They shuttle you right to the door of the processing center. The lines were very short when we arrived and that whole thing took 15-20 minutes till you reached the official cruise check in. That too went very fast (10-15 minutes). If you take the walk off option when you return, you get off the ship with your bag and they shuttle you to the parking garage.

It was a very efficient process.

[bdeviled]

Retiredaf, Thanks for your info. I'll be sure to bring the reading glasses, I normally would have skimmed over it and read what caught my eye. Thanks again.

[Gabrielle R.]

Ok, this will be our first cruise and it took years of begging to get dh to agree. I am now getting nervous reading these posts. I want him to love it and want to go again. So, any suggestions would be most welcome. I too am concerned about the food after reading these posts and have no problem in going to LeBistro a couple of nights - what about the other restaurants on board? And we were planning on 1 big suitcase together - will this not fit under the bed? It is a really large suitcase.

 

I remember our first cruise. WE were on a Carnival cruise ship- it was a refitted transport ship from the 1960's. Our room- bunk beds! But we had fun. We had no expectations going in. Now I'm looking at cruise #8 Shouldn't be so bad aboard the Majesty. Just go and have fun.

Most beds you can put your suitcase under them. Just lift up and shove under. Hope you have a great cruise!

[tsage]

Is there a limit on how many suitcases? I ask because I have a really large one and the others are relatively small. I am in an Oceanview room on Majesty - not sure how much room under bed.

[Kar313]

thanks guys. I'm actually going to be in Charleston next weekend and will be down in the Market. Of course, I might just notice a boat peeking over the water nearby that I'll be a little interested in. LOL! I'll actually take the time to head down to the battery to wish those on the 2/25 trip a Bon Voyage.

 

Ralph - I'll make sure to look for you on the 25th. I'll be sure to drink an extra drink to you at the sail away party if they have one.

[embradley]

tsage: "Is there a limit on how many suitcases? I ask because I have a really large one and the others are relatively small. I am in an Oceanview room on Majesty - not sure how much room under bed."

I am also wondering the same thing. Im on the 3/25 cruise in an ocenview room as well. :)

[retiredAF]

I don't believe there is a limit on the number of suitcases but each person is limited to 200 lbs.

 

Here is a cut and paste from what NCL sent us in the "welcome aboard" letter:

 

How many suitcases can I bring?

Each person is allowed up to 200 pounds of personal luggage on board. However, if you are traveling by air, ask the airline if it has different

restrictions. Airlines and NCL have limited liability for loss, so be sure all baggage and personal belongings are properly insured. Suitcases

should be securely locked and tagged. You should hand-carry medication, jewelry or other valuables and important documents.

[retiredAF]

I should have added that we did take one rather large suitcase that did not fit under the bed but it wedged in fine right in front of the cabinet with the TV on it (at the end of one of the twin beds). That was in an interior room.

[embradley]

thanks! I just received my docs in the mail today *kind of late b/c they got shipped to the wrong address!!:rolleyes:*..so Im really excited now!!

 

One other question...I booked directly with NCL and did receive the luggage tags with the docs. My other family members *in 3 other rooms* booked with an online TA and did not receive any luggage tags. Is there any way for them to get them *I know they give them out at the pier but they wanted to avoid that situation*. Thanks!:D

[Bberry]

We were in a CC category Superior Oceanview Cabin on deck 7 (Promenade) and we took about 7 or 8 bags for the 3 of us. They all fit very well under the bed. The largest was a 31" or 32" wheeled upright. We actually had 2 of those. We nested the smaller ones inside those and slid them under the bed. They fit perfectly! There was also plenty of storage space in the cabin. Plenty of closets and drawers. We took TWO over the door shoe holders...one for the outside of the bathroom door and one to hang inside. We used both of them and they were very handy. Remember when taking that much luggage that the porters who help you from the terminal back to parking will need to be tipped. We tipped $10.00 for 7 or 8 bags. Hope this helps!

[retiredAF]

embradley, You may want to check with their TA but, getting the tags and putting them on takes just a minute and they route you right in to the line. All the info they wanted you to put on the tags was last name and cabin number.

[embradley]

Bberry: Thanks for the info. We are also in a CC room on the Promenade so knowing this makes me feel more at ease. We were also going to bring the 2 over the door hangers..Im glad they come in handy!!:)

 

RetiredAF: Thank you also. I will pass on the info. They just didnt want to have to get out of one line to wait in a longer line..and then make it a long process. Im glad to hear it is a quick and easy fix. Thanks!;)

Has anyone ever booked a Jeep for Cozumel? We were thinking about reserving one with Avis and explore on our own. Would you suggest this? How easy is it to navigate to the different points of interest? We were also thinking about visiting Paradise Beach...anyone been there? Thanks!:p

[Janearl]

We were on the Majesty in January and had a wonderful time. Seas were a little rough the first night but after that seemed ok. We didn't get to go into Cozumel because of high winds. To hard for the tenders to take us in. We had an extra 4 hours in Key West on Thursday. We did a helicopter ride over Cayman that was fantistic. I loved every minute of it. It was a little pricey but it was vacation after all. Staff and crew were the best. Have a great time all of you.

[Bberry]

Hi,

 

We were in Cozumel over Thanksgiving (on the Majesty) and we visited Paradise Beach. It is sooooo gorgeous! The food was really great and the service excellent. This was relatively soon after the hurricane and the beach had already been restored. The shoreline there is rocky and although they try to keep it covered in sand (that they bring in) you can still get cut. My nephew cut his foot at the edge of the water. No big deal, no major blood loss :D , but just to remind you guys that water shoes will be a big help here. The jeep tours I can't really tell you much about...except that much of the island in November was still just devasted and I got the feeling you wouldn't be able to do much exploring on your own. We took a taxi to Paradise Beach (there were 8 of us including my dad who is in a wheelchair and needed the lift) and the driver only charged us $60.00 round trip. We told him what time to be back and he was there early. There are lots of taxi drivers hanging around at Paradise Beach and lots of taxis...so no need to worry about not getting one back to the ship. We saved a ton of money by going this route rather than booking the beach excursion from the ship. The beach you go to with the ship's excursion is literally right next door! It is free at Paradise Beach to use the chairs and the beach and the chnaging rooms and restrooms. They do charge a $7.00 or $8.00 fee if you want to use the sea trampoline or climb the iceberg or use the other sea toys. Jet skiing and other activities have an extra charge. You might check out www.cozumelmycozumel to see how the island is shaping up after the storm. I think Paradise Beach has a website as well. Hope this helps!

[Bberry]

How about www.cozumelmycozumel.com Maybe that will work better. :p

[embradley]

Bberry: Thanks so much for the advice & the website. I visited their website and it looks like a really beautiful beach..plus its free to get in..who can beat that? I will need to check into getting some watershoes...I probably wont get into the water much but just in case *I am a very clumsy person..if it can happen to someone, it will happen to me!* I also checked out the Jeep rentals with Avis and they are around $65 for an all day rental, so thats not a bad deal. We were thinking about hitting Paradise Beach first thing in the morning to beat the crowd..and stay there for a couple of hours. Then maybe drive around/ go shopping...im sure we will find something to do!;) These boards are making me too excited..i still have 31 days!!! :eek:

[lyneee]

Bberry: Thanks so much for the advice & the website. I visited their website and it looks like a really beautiful beach..plus its free to get in..who can beat that? I will need to check into getting some watershoes...I probably wont get into the water much but just in case *I am a very clumsy person..if it can happen to someone, it will happen to me!* I also checked out the Jeep rentals with Avis and they are around $65 for an all day rental, so thats not a bad deal. We were thinking about hitting Paradise Beach first thing in the morning to beat the crowd..and stay there for a couple of hours. Then maybe drive around/ go shopping...im sure we will find something to do!;) These boards are making me too excited..i still have 31 days!!! :eek:

embradley:..... if you do the Jeep rental and then explore on your own, would you please let us know how you made out... we'll be there after you (April) and was planning on doing something similar.

 

Bberry:... thanks for the great website on Cozumel!!