Empress Review 2-13-06 Part 3

[lovethesun58]

My husband and I like to take the excursions so here is a list of what we did. I'll try to answer any questions you have.

St. Marrtin - Afternoon Beach Break

St. Kitts - Senic Rail Tour

Antigua - 1/2 day Beach Break

St. Lucia - Land Rover Explorer

Barbados - Mini Buggy Safari

Curacao - Fun Bus Express

Aruba - 1/2 Day Jeep Safari

 

Here are some of the activities offered on the ship:

For a $10 Fee for each class:

Spinning Class

Pathway To Yoga

Pilates

Areodance

Salsa Aerobics

For a $49 Fee: Partner Teach Massage Class

For a $7.50 Fee: Wine Tasting Seminar (Free if you had a coupon)

For a $20 Fee ( I think ) BlackJack and Slots Tourn.

Free Activities:

Movies In The Lounge: Walk The Line & Good Night, Good Luck

2 Karakoke Nights,1 Family Karaoke, 2 Karaoke Auditions, Karaoke Finals

Gaming Lessons For the Casino

Singles Get Together/Honeymooners and Anniversary Couples Get Together

Quest

Rock Climbing

Cooking Demos

Backstage Tour

Napkin Folding

How to Make Towel Animals

Beginers Scrapbook Workshop and Regular Scrapbook Workshops

Spa Seminars

Trivia,Pictionary,Name That Tune

Ping Pong, Shuffleboard

Family Scavenger Hunt

Pool Volleyball and Pool Games - There was a Giant Chess Board w/pieces on the pool deck

Ballroom Dance Classes

Mens Sexy Legs

Mens Belly Flop ( on our sailing a woman took part in the comp. and won)

Tournaments: Ring Toss,Shuffleboard,Shufflegolf,Baggo,Ping Pong

 

We really enjoyed this cruise and would definately sail on Empress again for this itinary or something comparable. The Brillance is still my favorite ship and we will be sailing on Radiance next year.

It's true that the staff is very friendly.

 

I'll try to answer any questions that you have from any of the 3 parts of my review.

Happy Cruising to Everyone

Cherie

[laceyjane]

Wow!! Thank you so much for your fabulous review!! We are leaving in 2 days for San Juan for our March 13 Empress Cruise and your review has been so very helpful to us.

[lovethesun58]

Wow!! Thank you so much for your fabulous review!! We are leaving in 2 days for San Juan for our March 13 Empress Cruise and your review has been so very helpful to us.

 

I'm sure you will have a great time! Sounds like you are doing a pre-cruise. We stayed at the Sheraton which was very nice. We had dinner at Senior Frogs- (very good) and just walked around a bit--We were in San Juan just for the night before the cruise.

[Jersey Native]

Thank you for the great review. I am thinking of sailing the Empress to Bermuda in August or September. Where can I find parts 1 and 2 of your review?

[lovethesun58]

Thank you for the great review. I am thinking of sailing the Empress to Bermuda in August or September. Where can I find parts 1 and 2 of your review?

 

Here is part 1:

 

My first review so bear with me.

 

Empress Of The Seas 2-13-06

Captain: Manolis Kasselas

Cruise Director: Warren Allen

Loyalty Ambassador: Chris Hou

Executive Chef: Nestor Guevara

 

Embarkation: Documents said after 2:00. We arrived at 11:00 by taxi and were 15th & 16th in line. Doors opened at 11:30 for carry-on and person security,we then went up to the area where you show the set-sail pass paper and was then led to the priority seating area.At noon the doors opened and a representative had people line up in the order that they were brought over. We then had our picture taken for the sea pass and up the escalator we went. My husband and I ended up being the first ones on the ship. What a feeling! It was now about 12:05. We went to our cabin to drop off our carry-on and then went to chek out our dinning arrangements. We were surprised to see that we actually had the table for two that we requested. We then headed up to the buffet in the Windjamer and afterwards checked out the ship.

Welcome Aboard Lunch - 12-5

Muster Drill - 5:30

Main Seating Dinner - 6:16 Second Seating - 8:45 CASUAL ATTIRE

Welcome Aboard Show for all guests - 10:30

 

Drinks Of The Day - $5.95

Soda - $1.50 a can COKE PRODUCTS

Water - $1.99

Can Domestic Beer $3.50

Glass Of Wine $5.50-$7.50

 

Seemed to be around 10 kids on board. There might have been more, we just didn't see them.

 

For the rest of the cruise Main Seating was at 6:00 and Second Seating was at 8:30.

Day 2 FORMAL Day 7 FORMAL

Day 3 CASUAL Day 8 SMART CASUAL

Day 4 SMART CASUAL Day 9 CASUAL

Day 5 CASUAL Day 10 CASUAL/CARIBBEAN

Day 6 CASUAL Day 11 CASUAL

 

Chocolate Buffet - Day 2

Gala Buffet - Day 7

Caribbean Market Buffet and Dance Party - Day 10

 

Rock and Roll Reunion Party - Day 3

70's Disco Inferno Party - Day 4

Battle of the Sexes - Day 5

Salsa Dance Competition - Day 6

Rock-A Rokie ( you get to perform with the band ) - Day 6

Love And Marriage Game - Day 8

Quest - Day 9

Karaoke Idol Final - Day 11

 

On Valentine's Day all the ladies were given a long stem rose at dinner.

 

And Part 2:

 

Our room was 9620 a JS. We had plenty of room. There was a walk in closet to hang your clothes with about 24 hangers. The safe was in the closet and we also kept our suitcases in there. Queen size bed, pull out sofa,chair with foot rest, and two chairs and a small table on the balcony. There were two night stands and a small dresser with three drawers.There was also a "vanity" area with chair and the mirror opened up to more small shelving. The bathroom area was large enough for us. The shower was indeed small. Combination shampoo/conditioner, and soap were supplied. There were two medium glass shelves attached to the mirror, counter top space, and space under the sink. Our stateroom attendant, Delmar, was excellent. He even brought us a mini-fridge and we didn't even have to ask for it. The room was very clean and the bed was comfortable.

 

Fitness Center - Very nice. Treadmills, bikes, weight machines. More but I can't remember.

Pool - Always being used but never seemed crowded. ( Depth of 5' )

Wadding Pool - Nice for little ones but adults were also using it to dangle feet in or walk around in. ( ankle to mid-calf deep )

Hot Tub (3) We used them at night between 8-9 - nice - but the water could of been a little warmer.

Show Room - If you are really into the shows, get there early. We would arrive about 20 min. before the start and the first 6 rows were always filled. (along with scattered seating). We always sat in the upper level and the view was fine for us.

Lounges - All were nice. Different type of music for each lounge.

Piano Melodies-Schooner Bar w/Pat Calisura

Dance Party - Boleros w/The Liza Hendrix Band

Piano Bar Entertainment - Schooner Bar w/Enrique Vasquez

Night Club Experience - Viking Crown Lounge w/DJ Mario

Internet - I think there were about 12 computers. We used it to e-mail home and in our estimation, service was quick.

Spa - Always saw people going in. I booked a full body seaweed massage (2 hours) at 8:00am. and there were four others in the lounge area at that time for appointments also. So prices must have been pretty good. Mine was a gift from my daughter - cost $205. I don't know how much the other services were.

Dinning Room - Beautiful room. Only on Two ocassions did we experience the vibrations. ( we had early seating ) Piano music every night but one. Our waiter, Kenyenta and our Asst. waiter, Maurat were excellent. Professional yet very friendly and warm personalities. The food was good. I have to admit though that we've had better on the other RCCL ships. Entrees seemed to be repetitive - not much variety from evening to evening. Appetizers and deserts were of course to die for.

Chair Hogs - Really didn't see any. There seemed to be enough chairs for those who wanted them. On sea days it got pretty crowded and chairs were hard to find, but they were being used.

 

I have to get dinner for hubby - I'll try and write another installment tomorrow night.

__________________

[froggie Q]

Cherie - Thank you for the review, it has been so informative for us!:)

 

We will be on the Scenic Rail Tour on St Kitts and the Beach Party on Antigua (Rum Punch Beach Party - is this the one you were on?). Can you tell us more about these excursions? Did you enjoy them? Was there time to shop in Basseterre after the train tour? If you didn't do the Rum Punch Beach Party, what did you think of the 1/2 day Beach Break? Which beach did you go to? And was there time to shop on Antigua? Really, I'm not that HUGE of a shopper, even though it sounds as if I am!:rolleyes:

 

Thanks!!

Christine

[kruisinkris]

THANKS FOR THE DETAIL CHERIE!!

We'll be going on the 4/10/06 sailing. You included a few things in your review that I'd been wondering about & a few things I hadn't even thought to ask. THANKS AGAIN!!

Just a couple of questions:

Hot tubs: You mentioned you'd been able to be in the hot tub around 8-9. Did they post how late it was open? ALSO did you happen to notice if it was open on the afternoon of embarkation?

Karaoke: If I read correctly, there's a chance to sing/listen to karaoke singers 6 times!! Right?

Scrap booking: Do you remember when (day(s)/time(s) the scrap booking workshop(s) were held?

Thanks again for your help & your review. I thought I was excited about the cruise B4...and now...even more...YIPPEE SKIPPEE!!!

Kris

[lovethesun58]

Cherie - Thank you for the review, it has been so informative for us!:)

 

We will be on the Scenic Rail Tour on St Kitts and the Beach Party on Antigua (Rum Punch Beach Party - is this the one you were on?). Can you tell us more about these excursions? Did you enjoy them? Was there time to shop in Basseterre after the train tour? If you didn't do the Rum Punch Beach Party, what did you think of the 1/2 day Beach Break? Which beach did you go to? And was there time to shop on Antigua? Really, I'm not that HUGE of a shopper, even though it sounds as if I am!:rolleyes:

 

Thanks!!

Christine

We really enjoyed the Rail Tour. There were 4 or 5 small busses that took the people to the Tour. Each bus stopped in front of a section of train. ( so whoever was on your bus was also on your part of the train - I'm thinking there were about 20 people to a section) You could sit in the air conditioned area on the bottom or you could sit on the top. PLENTY of seats. You could even change your seat at anytime during the tour. We were offered Pina Coladas,Rum Punch,Fruit Punch,water,soda. You could have as much as you wanted. There was a narator that talked about what we were seeing. We went through sugarcane plantations, villages, and saw some beautiful scenery. During the tour, there were 3 girls that went from section to section and sang 2-3 songs. Plenty of time to shop. Our tour was from 9:30 - 1:00 and you don't have to board the ship until 5:30.

The 1/2 day beach break was just that---a beach day. We were brought to A beach called Millers Beach. There was a changing room and showers, a bar,reastaurant and gift shop. We were given a free chair and a free drink. I think umbrellas were $5. The beach is beautiful. Alot of waves to play in. Wasn't crowded the day we were there. We just shopped at the shops at the port. Many shops and we had plenty of time.

Enjoy your cruise!

Cherie

[lovethesun58]

THANKS FOR THE DETAIL CHERIE!!

We'll be going on the 4/10/06 sailing. You included a few things in your review that I'd been wondering about & a few things I hadn't even thought to ask. THANKS AGAIN!!

Just a couple of questions:

Hot tubs: You mentioned you'd been able to be in the hot tub around 8-9. Did they post how late it was open? ALSO did you happen to notice if it was open on the afternoon of embarkation?

Karaoke: If I read correctly, there's a chance to sing/listen to karaoke singers 6 times!! Right?

Scrap booking: Do you remember when (day(s)/time(s) the scrap booking workshop(s) were held?

Thanks again for your help & your review. I thought I was excited about the cruise B4...and now...even more...YIPPEE SKIPPEE!!!

Kris

Hot tubs - no times posted but I heard 2 different stories---one was that they closed at 10 and another that said they only closed for cleaning. We were always out by 9-9:15 or so.

Karaoke - yes - We didnt go to the family one, but we caught the first adult one, first audition one, and the finals. We had some very good singers on our saling.

Scrapbooking: beginners: Day 3 1:00

Port of Call Scrapbooking Day 5 1:00

Scrapbook Workshop Day 8 3:45

Have a great Cruise!

[froggie Q]

The rail tour sounds wonderful. I think my 3 year old will love it! Thanks so much for the information.:)

You have given a lot of information that others didn't include in their reviews.

Thanks!

Christine

[kruisinkris]

Thanks for the info Cherie!

 

My SIL who's going w/us is a big "scrap booker" & I LOVE hot tubs & Karaoke!! Thanks again.

[lovethesun58]

Kruisinkris and Froggie Q:

 

You are quite welcome.

Have a wonderful cruise! :)