LIVE - B2B Mariner 5/7/22-5/23/22 - ABC! 🎶 Easy as …um, Bermuda?

[aring75]

We started with the garlic bread and the garlicky prawns (I got these this time. So much better than the calamari!)

 

 

 

Mark said the garlic bread was “not bad.” But then he used it to soak up the sauce under the prawns and said it was “excellent.”

[aring75]

I asked if I could get a small version of the Caesar salad. It had onions and pancetta. Different, but good. 
 

 

 

We both opted for the short rib. It was delicious.

 

 

 

It went quite well with the Marchesi de Frescobaldi Chianti. Our server didn’t even charge me the extra dollar when I used my Diamond drink voucher. Bonus!

 

[aring75]

Tonight’s main show was Jeffrey Allen, a musician/artist who performed a tribute to Sir Elton John. 
 

 

 

Mark and I both enjoyed this. Keep in mind, if you are boarding soon and see this show, it is part performance, part (encouraged) sing-along. The audience really got into the show and almost everyone we talked to afterward said they loved it. One lady was disappointed because she said she would rather sit and listen to the singer, not the audience. So I would just keep this in mind in determining whether or not you would enjoy it b
 

[aring75]

Got back to the room and got the first one of these so far this cruise. 
 

 

 

 

[aring75]

Also got the first one of these. 
 

[aring75]

We tried to make a reservation for the escape room, but I think we waited too long to do it. There are only a few spots left, and they are during our Taste of Royal lunch. Going to try to do it on the second cruise. Looks like fun!

 

[lola2013]

I've just found your review and am loving it so far! 

 

My group is doing the 8-night Bermuda cruise on Mariner mid-August and are counting the days!  FYI, my friend and I did a Pearl Island excursion when we were on Celebrity Edge in September.  It is a small, pretty island...lots of water toys and a delicious lunch.  We were the first group there since the re-start and the employees on the island couldn't do enough for us!   Be sure to go to the top of the lighthouse (not very tall...but the stairs are narrow)...it's a pretty view.

 

We have a Oasis Lagoon Cabana for CocoCay; I am anxious to hear what you think about that day.

 

I am doing the ABCs on Celebrity Equinox in February so I'm also anxious to hear about that part of your trip.

 

Enjoy!

Susan

[aring75]

25 minutes ago, lola2013 said:

I've just found your review and am loving it so far! 

 

My group is doing the 8-night Bermuda cruise on Mariner mid-August and are counting the days!  FYI, my friend and I did a Pearl Island excursion when we were on Celebrity Edge in September.  It is a small, pretty island...lots of water toys and a delicious lunch.  We were the first group there since the re-start and the employees on the island couldn't do enough for us!   Be sure to go to the top of the lighthouse (not very tall...but the stairs are narrow)...it's a pretty view.

 

We have a Oasis Lagoon Cabana for CocoCay; I am anxious to hear what you think about that day.

 

I am doing the ABCs on Celebrity Equinox in February so I'm also anxious to hear about that part of your trip.

 

Enjoy!

Susan

Thanks Susan!

 

Glad to hear you thought Pearl Island was nice. We usually just stay on the ship in Nassau, but decided to take a chance since we’d never tried this excursion before. We will be sure to check out the lighthouse!
 

We have had a Chill Island cabana. Loved the ceiling fan and dedicated, private space. However, our cabana attendant was not very attentive. Also, we just can’t justify the price anymore for only the two of us. The lowest any of the cabanas went for our cruise was $999. The Oasis Lagoon looks really nice. Not sure if we’ll go there or try to find a nice spot in the shade. I will report back!

 

Today is Day 3 and our second day at sea. One thing. Chairs on the pool deck and in the solarium are gone by 8-8:30. Still some loungers one deck up (overlooking the pool), but these are all in full sun. I know this is not uncommon, but I think we got a little spoiled with the reduced capacity cruises over the past year. 
 

Aruba is tomorrow. Yay!

[aring75]

Got a coffee from Starbucks this morning. We never drink it at home. The only time we ever have it is when it’s the only option at the airport, lol. But I got a Starbucks gift card at Christmas and haven’t had a chance to use it. The Starbucks onboard accepts gift cards or payments from the app. Mark’s latte and my Café Mocha were both good. 

[aring75]

Breakfast this morning was in the main dining room. They are seating people at shared tables, but you can still request a table for just your party (you may have to wait a few minutes).

 

 

 

I got the market vegetable breakfast bowl. They forgot my cheese, but I didn’t realize it right away so I didn’t say anything. It was good, but c’mon. It would have been so much better with cheese!

 

 

 

Also. The bacon is always too thin. Too crispy. Not very flavorful. So please explain to me. Why do I always order it?? 😩

 

It’s like I’m expecting surprise bacon. Like one day they are going to have thick sliced applewood smoked bacon and it’s going to make my whole day. 
 

But, as cruise bacon goes, this morning’s bacon was not too bad. 

[lola2013]

13 minutes ago, aring75 said:

Thanks Susan!

 

Glad to hear you thought Pearl Island was nice. We usually just stay on the ship in Nassau, but decided to take a chance since we’d never tried this excursion before. We will be sure to check out the lighthouse!
 

We have had a Chill Island cabana. Loved the ceiling fan and dedicated, private space. However, our cabana attendant was not very attentive. Also, we just can’t justify the price anymore for only the two of us. The lowest any of the cabanas went for our cruise was $999. The Oasis Lagoon looks really nice. Not sure if we’ll go there or try to find a nice spot in the shade. I will report back!

 

Today is Day 3 and our second day at sea. One thing. Chairs on the pool deck and in the solarium are gone by 8-8:30. Still some loungers one deck up (overlooking the pool), but these are all in full sun. I know this is not uncommon, but I think we got a little spoiled with the reduced capacity cruises over the past year. 
 

Aruba is tomorrow. Yay!

I bought the cabana for my relatives and friends as their Christmas gift.  Seemed like a good gift for people who have everything!!!   The Oasis Lagoon cabanas appear to be the only ones that are sold out for our sailing so they must be popular.

 

Forgot to mention that I will have the same category stateroom that you have...deck 8 on the hump.  The room seems to be a bit larger than we had on Jewel of the Seas a few years back and the closet is a little narrower.  I am happy to see all the drawer space!  I tend to overpack!!! 😉

 

Enjoy Aruba...one of my favorites!!!

Susan

[PTC DAWG]

Nice review....following along.  Wife and I are boarding for a quick 5 night getaway on the 23rd of May.  

[pstone1]

Great review so far!  We are onboard Mariner with you for both legs, also in a Deck 9, mid-ship, Spacious Balcony!  So far, everything has been great!

 

We were also in Jamie’s both times you were!  The Jamie’s on this ship seems to be a lot better than some of the others we’ve tried.  We were happy with our food and had great service!

 

If we see you around the ship, we’ll definitely say hello!

[eabplus2]

Love your review. We are cruising on Allure in July. We have connecting ocean balcony rooms. We are sailing with our teen daughters. I'm very nervous about this cruise.

[aring75]

29 minutes ago, pstone1 said:

Great review so far!  We are onboard Mariner with you for both legs, also in a Deck 9, mid-ship, Spacious Balcony!  So far, everything has been great!

 

We were also in Jamie’s both times you were!  The Jamie’s on this ship seems to be a lot better than some of the others we’ve tried.  We were happy with our food and had great service!

 

If we see you around the ship, we’ll definitely say hello!

 

Hi pstone! Glad to hear you are enjoying the cruise too. That’s so funny we are on the same deck and we were in Jaime’s at the same time. I agree the service was great. We told our server, Ruth, that we will be back next cruise and will ask to sit in her section. She was fantastic!

[aring75]

Enjoying a relaxing late morning/early afternoon in the Viking Crown Lounge. It is a smaller area than many of the other ships, so not as much seating. One side of the lounge has been converted to the Suite Lounge and the other side has an area carved out for the Diamond Lounge. 
 

I love the windows in the Diamond Lounge, but just thought I’d mention the smaller public lounge space. It gets crowded on sea days. 

[aring75]

I also wanted to mention for anyone following along who will be on a future 8-day cruise, you can bring up the information for this cruise in the app. That means you can see Daily Planner activities, menus, events/shows, etc.

 

When you open the app, you may need to pull down the itinerary menu at the top. 
 

 

 

Then choose the “change ship/dates” link at the bottom.

 

 

 

You can choose this ABC cruise (5/7-5/15) or the Bermuda cruise next week (5/15-5/23).

[Mary&Jim]

Great review!

 

Can you tell me if the library has been re-stocked yet? 

Thanks,

Mary

[aring75]

3 minutes ago, Mary&Jim said:

Great review!

 

Can you tell me if the library has been re-stocked yet? 

Thanks,

Mary

I’ll check!

[aring75]

 

 

Sailing through the Sargasso Sea. TIL the abundance of sargassum/sea weed is due to the fact that FOUR ocean currents converge in this area to create a kind of gyre or vortex. This causes the “lines” of sea weed. But also gives the water that deep blue color. The underwater visibility here can be clear up to 200 ft!

 

The more you know. 
 

 

 

 

 

There’s also a ton of flying fish through here. I love to stand at the railing for a little while and watch the schools of them jump/fly through the air. 
 

Sometimes it’s the little things. 😁

 

 

Edited May 9, 2022 by aring75
I can’t spell. Or type.

[Biker19]

40 minutes ago, aring75 said:

That means you can see Daily Planner activities, menus, events/shows, etc.

Just wanted clarify that the bookable shows, if any, may not show up for anything other than the current sailing.

[aring75]

2 hours ago, Biker19 said:

Just wanted clarify that the bookable shows, if any, may not show up for anything other than the current sailing.

 

Yes. This is true. Thanks for mentioning it! 😁 Currently reservations are not required for nightly shows on Mariner, but things like the Escape Room, shore excursions, special events, etc. might not show up in their entirety.

 

[aring75]

Decided to try Playmaker’s for lunch today. 
 

 

[aring75]

We shared an order of the nachos with pulled pork. This was much larger than either of us anticipated.

 

 

 

^^This could easily be shared between four people as an appetizer. Mark and I thought we could have split it between the two of us for lunch. 
 

 

I got the Kona Big Wave Golden. And Mark just got a draft Heineken. He wanted a Blue Moon, but they were out of it on draft. (They did have cans.)

 

 

 

I got the chicken fingers which came with fries. Chicken was lightly breaded and crispy. Fries were good but nothing special. 
 

[island lady]

2 hours ago, Mary&Jim said:

Great review!

 

Can you tell me if the library has been re-stocked yet? 

Thanks,

Mary

 

No, it hasn't.   There is only a few books in there.  Same thing on all the ships now.  Odyssey was the worst.  I suppose they expect us to bring our Kindles...but I am a real book person, and drag along my own in my luggage.  Old fashioned I guess.