just off Jewel Feb. 11 sailing-some observations

[39august]

Just home last night from our first JOS cruise. Of course it was great. We had the best tablemates, ever and had a real blast with a regular group in the concierge lounge each night. There was horseracing one day. And there was a 7 day cruise give away bingo game last sea day. The Seaview has the same menu as earlier. Times, of course, varied, but mostly Seaview was open from noon to 6 and 10PM to 2 AM. Solarium cafe had good pizza and crepes. Solarium usual hours were noon to 6 and 9 PM to 3 AM. All service was excellent. There was only one production show and I didn't enjoy it as much as many others I have seen. It was called "West End to Broadway". The second night's show was "Ole, Ole", a flamenco guitar and dance show. Loved it!! For appointments to the Loyalty Ambassador, you had to dial 0 on the room phone and set it up, unlike all the other ships I have been on where the LA had an appointment book open at their work stations. In the Windjammer the first couple of days, servers tried to do all the serving instead of letting pax help themselves. I'm sure it was a worthy idea to cut down on the spread of germs, but finally they gave up as it was just too cumbersome. There were santiation stations set up at Windjammer, Seaview and dining rooms, as well as when reboarding from a port. I was pleasantly surprised to see the plastic doors on the showers, just like the Voyager class! Brilliance has only the dreaded plastic curtain. Speaking of Brilliance, I prefer her to Jewel. The atrium on Jewel is not anywhere nearly as breathtaking as the Brilliance. I also thought the food was more varied on our 10 and 11 day BOS cruises than on this 8 day cruise. However, some of my favorite dishes were just as good as I remembered. Do beware of the "hump" cabins on decks 7 and 8 just either side of the elevators. You will get the sound from the Atrium entertainment. I just went our to the balcony to avoid it. Also I can say first hand that I would not book a balcony on deck 7, and try to avoid also deck 8 because of the life boat "covers" sticking out and slightly obstructing the view. If there are any questions, I would be happy to try to answer.

[trishalee]

Do you remember seeing a fresh flower cart set up outside the dining room doors at dinner? You got to choose which flowers you wanted in your nosegay or bouquet. They did this on the Radiance last year, and I made great use of it always having fresh blooms for the stateroom at a very reasonable price.:D

[PhoenixCruiser]

Do the lifeboats affect all of the balcany cabins on deck 8?

 

Thanks,

 

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[bjd3563]

We are scheduled for the JOS on March 5, of course balcony on deck 7, 7042 to be exact. I had heard that if you were aft the life boat covers were not an issue. Is that not true? I will be so disappointed if so as this is the first time we have booked a balcony. Also I have heard the pool is very small but mostly like the atrium pool since we are traveling with no children. Are they crowded? Nice to talk to someone who just got off JOS. Regarding you comments on staff serving people- was there some type of outbreak on that ship recently?

[happycruzer]

Hi 39August...glad you had a wonderful cruise and thank you for sharing your thoughts on the Jewel.

We are sailing on her March 5th for a B2B and would be delighted if you could answer a couple of questions for us.

Can you recall what nights were formal and semi formal/smart casual ?

Was the roof in the solarium closed over ?

Also would appreciate any helpfull hints for the ports you visited and finally just like another poster here, I'd love to know if there was a flower cart onboard too. I'd love to have some flowers delivered to my DD at some point during our cruise , I'm sure they would just set her cabin off nicely.

Many thanks in advance.

Happycruzer

[wolfcathorse]

39August did you have Capt MacDonald or Capt Thore for your master.

[39august]

Yes, there is a flower cart outside the dining room, at least there was on deck 5. Solarium was enclosed everytime I noticed. To get a lounge in there, probably need to be there by 10 AM. On this 8 day cruise, the formal nights were first and last sea days. Don't remember smart casual. By the way, most folks changed into casual clothes after dinner or at least after the show. I am not aware of any outbreaks on this ship recently. They certainly went out of their way to encourage proper hygene. All deck 7 balconies that I have seen, except aft, overlook the life boat covers to some extent. Our cabin, 7094, is the first port side cabin to the left (as you get off) of the centrum elevators. This cabin has a huge balcony and since it is at an angle because of the "hump", we were only sightly affected by the life boat covers. I'd take those 2 rooms (first to the left of elevators) and their counterparts on 8 for the large balcony again. I can deal with the music. I don't see that 7042 is at all toward the aft. Our 7094 was smack in the middle. However, the deck 7 cabins way forward and way aft(not facing aft) look as if they do not overlook as much of the life boat as those cabins in the middle of the ship. Can't say for sure. As for ports, we just stayed on the beach, Great Bay, in Phillipsburg. Love that port. Went up on the Paradise Point tram for the first time in St. Thomas. I would go to Magens Bay if it were my first visit to St. Thomas. Or get a Godfrey Tour(see St. Thomas port of call board). We've been there many times, so this was new for us. Great views and photo ops at the summit. Also great drinks...Bushwacker is all it's said to be. Hint, you don't have to pay the $10.50 quoted price. That includes a souvenier glass. Without the fancy glass you can get a large for $7.50 or small for $5.50. Be sure to use the $1 coupon on the back of your tram ticket. Unfortunately, we had to skip Nassau and went to Freeport instead, a very unattractive port area. Didn't do a tour, so can't say that the whole area is a dump, but the port is! We booked a private tour with Lawrence of Antigua at Antigua. He is very responsive to email. He was prompt, courteous, knowledgable and his van was very new and comfy. You can get info about his tour and how to contact him on the Antigua port of call board. I do not suggest walking around the port area and shopping in Antigua. Prices are much higher than St. Maarten and St. Thomas and the area is not as attractive. Take a tour or take a taxi to Runaway Bay or Dickenson Beach, both near the port. Other beaches are quite a distance so taxis are expensive.

[happycruzer]

39August....Many thanks for your quick response and for taking the time to answer all of my questions, it has been a great help.

I noticed that you didn't get to stop at Nassau, was ther a specific reason for this...I have read a couple of other recent posts from the Jewel all with the same thing, but on phoning RCI to enquire they still say that Nassau is scheduled, I am leary of booking any private trips now because of this. So thanks for all of the input. I'll wait and see if we make it to Nassau before I book anything.

Thanks again for all you help/advice

 

happycruzer

[johnbob7]

39, thanks for the update on the Jewel, we are on the 8 day in March and looking forward to it very much.

 

Can you tell me if the Murder Mystery Dinner was held in Portofinos and if so which night?

 

Thanks,

 

bobj

[KreiderCarter]

39August did you have Capt MacDonald or Capt Thore for your master.

 

I notice people asking a lot who the captain of the vessel is...why? Just curious. To my knowledge he doesn't really affect the cruise much...that is unless he is running in to a pier, another ship or iceberg :) or something.

 

I could be wrong though...someone please enlighten me.

[ROMPAR98]

We were also on this cruise. A note on Freeport. We were met by the local school marching band which gave us a terrific welcome. When we got off the ship, we got in line for a taxi to Port Lucaya for 5.00 pp. The island looked very neat and everything was well kept. We were dropped off at the Sheraton which is next door to the casino and right across the street from the shops. We passed through the Sheraton and found a spot at the beach. No charge since the beaches are public. The beaches are gorgeous and well maintained. There were many options for water activities banana boat rides, parasailing jet skis etc. Don't know the prices since we were content to get some sun and walk up and down the beautiful beach and check out the beachfront homes.

 

After the beach, we stopped for a drink at the beach shack and then walked across the street to the shops. I always wanted a conch shell and found many there. DH also found 2 Harley T shirts for a friends collection. Browsed jewelry and saw many nice pieces but not in the mood to buy. Easy to pick up taxi at the stand near the shops. All in all we spent a great afternoon there and would go back again

[39august]

Glad someone could report good news about Freeport beaches. I don't know why we were switched to Freeport. Yes, there was a Murder Mystery, but since we never eat in the specialty restaurants, I don't know what night. The captain was James MacDonald.

[SeaSeaRiders]

With the tour on St Thomas with Godfrey & the one with Lawrence in Antigua, did you book online with them or were they the ones who ran the tours off the ship? I understand that Lawrence can be hard to get a hold of, but worth the trip. What did you do & think of both of these tours? How much per person?

 

Thanks...........

[threeofus]

Who was the CD? We are sailing on April 8th.

[LindaandJeff]

I notice people asking a lot who the captain of the vessel is...why? Just curious. To my knowledge he doesn't really affect the cruise much...that is unless he is running in to a pier, another ship or iceberg :) or something.

 

I could be wrong though...someone please enlighten me.

 

The Captain sets the tone for the whole ship. If the Captain is grumpy, the entire crew is going to be grumpy. Think about how a parent sets the tone for the home or a principal sets the tone for a school. Same concept. It's not all about steering clear of icebergs! ;) Some are also more accessible to passengers than others, too. If you have a Captain who is available to the passengers it makes the trip that much nicer.

[Flounder8]

The cruise director was Karen and she was pretty good. She did a really funny demonstration for one of the cooking classes. I really liked Carlos and Belinda though for activities and they always made trivia and Bingo fun. This was our first cruise and we had a great time. Not much to complain about. We too we a little put off about being served in Windjammer and were very glad that was stopped after the sickness worries were cleared. The captain explained at his captain's corner that they do this and the handwash for the first couple of days to prevent illness.

[bjd3563]

Sorry, we are forward not aft at 7042. Don't have this lingo down yet. I have seen on several posts that forward and aft are not affected by the life boat covers. Sure hope they are right as after reading your post I am becoming concerned. I would really be disappointed to looks at those covers since this is the first time we have been able to afford a balcony. We leave next week so I guess I will let everyone know when we get back. Does anyone else know if forward cabin will have to look at those life boat covers??

[wcal]

39 August, Thanks for the review. We will boarding the Jewel this Saturday for an 8 night eastern. We are also booked with Lawrence when we are there. We have a hump cabin on deck 9(9580) so life boat covers should not be a problem. We are heading up a group of 10 and all are looking forward to the cruise.

[driftychick]

39august: Thanks for the great review. Did you take any photos of your cabin and balcony. The reason I ask is because we have 7094 and our friends have 7092 for the October Repositioning Cruise on the Jewel this year. Did you have a lounge chair or jusr regular chairs on the Balcony? Also did you have a chair or a loveseat in the cabin? Any info will be a help, glad you enjoyed your cruise!

[madforcruising]

Sorry, we are forward not aft at 7042. Don't have this lingo down yet. I have seen on several posts that forward and aft are not affected by the life boat covers. Sure hope they are right as after reading your post I am becoming concerned. I would really be disappointed to looks at those covers since this is the first time we have been able to afford a balcony. We leave next week so I guess I will let everyone know when we get back. Does anyone else know if forward cabin will have to look at those life boat covers??

 

First of all to ease your mind 7042 is in a section where there is NO lifeboats underneath and therfore no lifeboat covers.

 

Anyway you would not look at this cover !!!

 

It is just that the lifeboat cover spreads out in front of your balcony on the hight of the floor. You can´t look straight down to the water, but you can look out without any obstruction.

 

From looking at my Jewel pics though you won´t have the lifeboat cover you still won´t be able to look straight down to the water as the ship is slightly wider than your balcony. Anyway you will have fabulous views and enjoy your balcony.

[39august]

-Cheralynn- We did the Lawrence of Antigua tour and he impressed us very much. We had no trouble getting quick responses from his e-mail. We haven't done the Godrey tour, but many recommend it, and it would be great for first timers in St. Thomas. Both these tours are NOT ship tours, but offered by independent tour guides. Lawrence is $35 pp or $40 if you want to stop at a beach from which he picks you up a couple of hours later. The basic tour is 3-31/2 hours. -Driftychick-The balcony for 7094 is huge and easily accomodates 2 full lounge chairs, 2 chairs and 1 small table. That still leaves plently of room to move around. Sorry, no pictures.

[PhoenixCruiser]

First of all to ease your mind 7042 is in a section where there is NO lifeboats underneath and therfore no lifeboat covers.

 

 

How about 8622? Thanks!

 

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[wolfcathorse]

I notice people asking a lot who the captain of the vessel is...why? Just curious. To my knowledge he doesn't really affect the cruise much...that is unless he is running in to a pier, another ship or iceberg :) or something. I could be wrong though...someone please enlighten me.

 

The reason is that I maintain the thread "Current Captains". I have found that some captains are better at PR than others. And some people prefer to sail with a particular captain. After my last cruise, comparing the 2 captains, I would definately avoid one over the other when booking.

[KreiderCarter]

The reason is that I maintain the thread "Current Captains". I have found that some captains are better at PR than others. And some people prefer to sail with a particular captain. After my last cruise, comparing the 2 captains, I would definately avoid one over the other when booking.

 

I've never really interacted with the Captains in my 3 cruises. One showed up for our "Meet & Mingle" answered a few questions and that was it.

 

I just never thought a captain really had much of an effect on whether the cruise was enjoyable or not.

 

Cruise Directors I can understand because they have a lot more interaction with the passengers but I guess I just haven't seen enough of the captains to make a judgement on their impact.

[Max Circus]

39, thanks for the update on the Jewel, we are on the 8 day in March and looking forward to it very much.

 

Can you tell me if the Murder Mystery Dinner was held in Portofinos and if so which night?

 

Thanks,

 

bobj

 

I was on the 1/14/06 8 day sailing and the Portofino Murder Mystery was on Wednesday night. Based on what the concierge told us, it can vary for each sailing.