Adventure OTS 12/31/22 and questions I had that got answered

[Kellie in Texas]

Just back from the five-day Adventure OTS cruise from Galveston to Cozumel and Costa Maya. This was our 8th cruise and 5th with RCCL. We had two standard balcony cabins on deck 8. My oldest son's fiancee had never cruised before. 

The new Galveston RCCL terminal -- This place is gorgeous and the workers were all extremely nice and helpful. We had reserved parking in the North lot which I would definitely do again. Our boarding time was 10:30 so we arrived at the parking lot around 10:00. Very short walk to the porters to hand over our large checked bags, then into the terminal. There were escalators and stairs to go up to the check-in level, as well as elevators. We went through security and were directed to the seating area to wait for boarding. They started calling the Key and the higher levels to board and all of a sudden, they were calling us (Emerald). We were on the ship and headed to the Windjammer even before our 10:30 boarding time! We did the self-assist debarkation which was estimated to start at 8:15 am, but they started a few minutes before 8:00. We were in the car in maybe 15 minutes. 

 

Cabins ready early and the Emerald loyalty "freebie" -- We had just become Emerald before this cruise so we were to get some kind of "goodie" in our cabin. I didn't bother to call C&A ahead of time. Turns out, it was two bottles of water and a plate with three cookies. They had said cabins wouldn't be ready until 2:00, but they were open by 1:30, as I recall. 

 

The app and the now-free messaging capability that started Jan. 1 -- We had all downloaded the app and stayed off the messaging feature until day 2, Jan. 1, when the messaging became free. It was definitely helpful, mostly when we were arranging times to meet for dinner, etc. Like others have said, you don't get a notification like when you get a text. You had to be in the app and an orange bar comes over the three dots to indicate that you have a message.  

 

No paper Compass until I asked -- There was no paper Compass in the room on the first day. When our room steward came by to introduce himself, I asked him to bring one each night, which he did. I think the paper Compass has way more information on it than you find in the app, plus it's easier to see everything on one page instead of scrolling and scrolling. And the paper Compasses are built-in souvenirs of the trip. 

 

New Year's Eve and "formal/dress to impress" night in the dining room -- Our sailing day was NYE and that's when the main dining rooms had formal night. Not surprisingly, a lot of people were DRESSED UP! We almost never eat in the main dining rooms but decided to do so for NYE so our oldest son's fiancee could experience the dining room. They had a few special holiday dishes still on the menu along with the usual items. We all enjoyed what we chose. There were lots of NYE activities all over the ship but we were asleep by 11:00. It had been a long day and we aren't big partiers.  

 

Windjammer and Cafe Promenade -- Except for NYE dinner, a couple of lunches and one breakfast at Cafe Promenade, we ate in the Windjammer. We always found plenty of good stuff to eat. We missed having the separate Sorrento's pizza like on some of the other ships; the CP has pizza but we didn't think it was quite as good as Sorrento's. The pleasant surprise was breakfast at CP. They had some Egg McMuffin-type sandwiches, some egg and avocado tortilla wraps, and a few other things. It was much quieter than the Windjammer can be. We'll definitely check out the CP for breakfast in the future. 

 

Cozumel and Costa Maya -- In Cozumel, I had booked the RCCL excursion to Playa Mia, the deluxe version that included open bar and the buffet lunch. The beach was beautiful and we had great weather that day. We also had one of the nicest buses we've ever had on an excursion for our roughly 15-minute drive. The buffet was delicious and the drinks were good.  DS21 especially had fun on the inflatable obstacle course, etc. I didn't book anything in Costa Maya and I didn't get off the ship. DH and both DS's and GF decided to walk around the port area. They ended up going to the aviary and enjoyed it. The trolley on the pier was running that day, but not in any big hurry.  😄 

 

The shows -- We went to the theater for the Invitation to Dance show and the Can't Stop the Rock show. DH and I also went to the ice show, which was really good. That was it for any shows that we attended. 

 

The all-access bridge tour -- Everybody should do this tour at least once. It was very exclusive and super-interesting. We had right at 4,000 passengers and they only offered this tour twice with a max of 12 persons on each tour. So we were five out of 24 people in the 4,000 that got to see this. You bring your Sea Pass card and you can bring your phone, but no purses, bags, etc. We could take pictures of anything but no videos. Before the tour, security checked our Sea Pass cards against their list and we were wanded/patted down (lightly); there was a female security guard to check the women on the tour. We started in the dining room, then the galley, the provisions store rooms (we saw the ice cream freezer and the liquor storage -- it had three locks on it! 🙂 ) Down some stairs to the engine control room, the laundry, and the long hallway known as I-95. There was quite a bit of stairs, up and down, but we were able to take the elevator to the bridge. We were checked again by security before going onto the bridge. That was amazing and a highlight of the trip.

 

The disappointing thing -- My sons are soccer players and have always loved the soccer availability on the ships. Youngest son is also a rock wall climber and looked forward to that. Sadly, on our two sea days, the rock wall and the sports court were "closed for maintenance".  Both days were fairly windy and I can understand the rock wall being closed due to wind, but not sure how kicking a soccer ball on the sport court would be affected. It was a disappointment but they got over it. Went to the gym a couple of times, walked around deck 12 a bunch, but didn't get to kick the ball.  Maybe next time.

 

Once you have a junior suite ... -- On Serenade in Alaska this past June, we sprang for an aft junior suite and it was amazing. This time we had regular balcony cabins and definitely felt the difference. I expect that even when it's just me and DH on a cruise, we'll be springing for that junior suite for sure. 🙂 

 

I think those were all the points I wanted to pass along. I'll try to answer any questions.  Happy New Year!

[sandebeach]

Thanks for the review, we will be on Adventure later this year. I totally understand your preference for a junior suite!