LIVE! Liberty of the Seas April 28, 2023 to Vision of the Seas May 1, 2023: A side-to-side with Dragon of the Seas

[buffet24]

Just now, DragonOfTheSeas said:

I did not do any speed tests, but it was very good.  I never had any problems.  

That's good enough for us!!  Thanks!!! 😁

[perfect match]

I’m enjoying your review! I’ll be interested to see how your S2S goes. We’ve done B2B, but never S2S.

 

Our last stop in Nassau was shortly after cruising reopened post pandemic. It looked to us like the whole port was nothing but a construction zone. We has a ship sponsored snorkeling tour booked and they picked us up right on the cruise pier. We never set foot on land in Nassau. We went from ship to pier to snorkel boat to deep water snorkel and reverse order back to ship. I thought it was very convenient and was hoping they would do that all the time. Wishful thinking on my part for sure. It will be interesting to see the newly redone port area there. 
 

We just got off Odyssey last week and while I didn’t love the new menus I still managed to find enough to eat. 😀😋 I loved the lasagna because it did have a lot of meat in it. Different people have different food preferences and the lasagna definitely was a hit for me. I was happy to see that some but not all of the always available items seemed to have found their way back onto the menu.

Edited May 1, 2023 by perfect match
Typo

[rafinmd]

Your new ride is here:

 

 

Roy

[DragonOfTheSeas]

3 hours ago, perfect match said:

I’m enjoying your review! I’ll be interested to see how your S2S goes. We’ve done B2B, but never S2S.
 

We just got off Odyssey last week and while I didn’t love the new menus I still managed to find enough to eat. 😀😋 I loved the lasagna because it did have a lot of meat in it.

This is a first S2S for us, too. We got an email last week about a Coast Guard inspection. They told us to arrive an hour later. Since we can’ t leave this ship later we hope we are not out in the hot sun too long.

 

We booked an Anthem cruise for next year. (Sister ship to Odyssey) How did you like the ship? It will be our daughter’s first cruise. 

[DragonOfTheSeas]

1 minute ago, rafinmd said:

Your new ride is here:

 

 

Roy

Thank you for the picture. Good to know she is here. 
 

 

This is my view so I can’t see her. 

[DragonOfTheSeas]

We are four couples sitting at the shuttle stop waiting to be transferred to the Vision of the Seas.  I will let you know how it goes when we get to the new ship.  

 

 

So, Lets's get this new party Started!!

 

This Vision cruise was booked more than a year ago.  We like reposition cruises and especially those that reposition to Baltimore. 😁

 

I joined the 2 Facebook groups and the Cruise Critic roll call for this cruise and “met” many of my fellow cruisers. On longer cruises passengers often have events planned.  This cruise is no exception.  DH and I plan to attend the Sail Away and Pub Crawl. But mostly we plan to relax.

 

I might go and watch the high stakes slot pull.  I have not seen one of those before.  It will be interesting to see how they do.  There are currently 12 people signed up to participate in that one.

 

Here are the scheduled events on the Vision of the Seas:

 

Monday May 1, 2023 Sail away @ 3:30pm: Observatory platform above Windjammer, forward- Deck 10

Monday May 1, 2023 High Stakes Slot Pull @ 9pm: Casino, buy in is $100/person or team of 2.

Tuesday May 2, 2023 Pub Crawl/ Meet and Greet @ 2pm: R Bar

Wednesday May 3, 2023 Slot Pull @ 11 am: Casino, buy in is $20.

 

[DragonOfTheSeas]

People often ask about the Key; We decided not to buy the Key. It was $29/day per guest and would have been $580 for DH and I total.  This might be worth it on the bigger ships with all the bows and whistles [depending on your use of the activities and Internet].  However, on the Vision class ships I do not feel it has that much value—especially for us. DH is not much for social media/Internet and likely will not use the computer at all on this trip. . .  and that is most of the value.  

 

JMHO

 

What's Included

• On debarkation day, enjoy an exclusive à la carte breakfast and choice departure.

• Priority access into the terminal (within booked arrival time) on Day 1.
• Carry-on bag drop off/delivery to stateroom. Drop carry-ons in Main Dining Room by 1:30pm.
• Private time at onboard activities including Rock Climbing, FlowRider and more.
• Priority departure at tender ports of call from ship-to-shore.
• Exclusive welcome lunch in the Main Dining Room featuring the Chops Grille Lunch menu.
• Seats in the exclusive VIP seating section at shows in the Main Theatre.
• VOOM ® Surf & Stream 1 Device high speed internet.

[rafinmd]

Once your bags are dropped off with the porters would it make sense to grab a taxi or Uber somewhere in town and maybe lunch until it is time to board in a civilized manner?

 

Roy

[buffet24]

I know you're doing S2S... but may I ask you about B2B?   How does Royal B2B work?  Do you have to get off the ship?  If so, where do you go (or where do they take you)??  And when do you get back on??

[DragonOfTheSeas]

1 minute ago, buffet24 said:

I know you're doing S2S... but may I ask you about B2B?   How does Royal B2B work?  Do you have to get off the ship?  If so, where do you go (or where do they take you)??  And when do you get back on??

It depends on where you’re embarking from. In the United States, you usually have to walk to where they scan your sea pass card, scan out the old card and then scan in the new card. That’s how it’s worked for us in the past. Each ship handles a tiny bit differently. But it’s mostly that way. I have read in Europe that’s not the case but I’ve never done one in Europe.

[DragonOfTheSeas]

Good bye Liberty. 

 

 

 

Our transfer was fairly easy. When we were ready to leave the ship, we got our luggage and then went all the way down the front of them terminal to a shuttle desk right beside the suite entrance.
 

DH needs disembarking assistance, so we got to that desk at about 8:25am. (Timing was up to wheelchair assistance.)  Other guests eventually arrived. There were 12 of us total that took the shuttle. It arrived at 9:45am. We had benches, it was in shade and an OK wait. 
 

It ended up being a 55 passenger bus. It was about a 5 to 10 minute drive just around this one inlet. And they let us come into the terminal immediately. We are in a junior suite so now we’re in the suite lounge but others that were in regular cabins were permitted in as well. 

 

It was a pretty seamless process. I would do it again.

 

 

 

[buffet24]

1 hour ago, DragonOfTheSeas said:

....In the United States, you usually have to walk to where they scan your sea pass card, scan out the old card and then scan in the new card. ...

Thank you dragon!

I guess you're referring to the ship-side card scan kiosk as you enter the ship from the terminal-side, am I correct?  And we're doing this B2B in New York Cruise Port on your Liberty!  Thanks again!  😊

[JK805]

12 hours ago, buffet24 said:

Quick question.... How is the WiFi speed on the ship while at Sea?  Do you feel you get pretty good speed out of it?  We love your updates!!!

Since the upgrade to Starlink last year, the actual speed (as reported on a speed test) didn’t go up much, but the latency dropped dramatically since it’s closer satellites. And that drop in latency is what makes it faster to load things on your device. 

[JK805]

1 hour ago, buffet24 said:

I know you're doing S2S... but may I ask you about B2B?   How does Royal B2B work?  Do you have to get off the ship?  If so, where do you go (or where do they take you)??  And when do you get back on??

As reported, B2B is largely ship/port dependent, but for most US based sailings Customs makes everyone disembark and go through Customs (their requirement so the ship has no say). I did it on Navigator out of LA last year and it was fairly easy. They put us in a separate lounge, gave us our new SeaPass with the old one marked up (so I had my new one right away instead of waiting), walked us off the ship to Customs, then right back on. We just had to wait 1-2 min before getting scanned on board because the system hadn’t loaded the new sailing yet for security. But Royal made it a very easy process, and I’ve got another B2B booked later this year. 

[buffet24]

31 minutes ago, JK805 said:

Since the upgrade to Starlink last year, the actual speed (as reported on a speed test) didn’t go up much, but the latency dropped dramatically since it’s closer satellites. And that drop in latency is what makes it faster to load things on your device. 

Makes sense!  Thank you!!!

[buffet24]

28 minutes ago, JK805 said:

As reported, B2B is largely ship/port dependent, but for most US based sailings Customs makes everyone disembark and go through Customs (their requirement so the ship has no say). I did it on Navigator out of LA last year and it was fairly easy. They put us in a separate lounge, gave us our new SeaPass with the old one marked up (so I had my new one right away instead of waiting), walked us off the ship to Customs, then right back on. We just had to wait 1-2 min before getting scanned on board because the system hadn’t loaded the new sailing yet for security. But Royal made it a very easy process, and I’ve got another B2B booked later this year. 

Very Interesting!!! We'll see what NYC does.... Thank you again!!!

[buffet24]

1 hour ago, DragonOfTheSeas said:

Good bye Liberty. 

Yep!!! I believe she will be departing for New York City today!!!  And then we'll get on May 23rd!!!  WooHoo!!!  😁

[rafinmd]

39 minutes ago, buffet24 said:

Very Interesting!!! We'll see what NYC does.... Thank you again!!!

I would guess that the variations are a bit more by port than by ship.  I did a B2B on Adventure last year.  Here's the process I had then.  I doubt if the COVID stuff will still apply but this is likely to be roughly what happens:

 

The meeting point for B2B cruisers was the Imperial Lounge on Deck 5 forward. I went down about 8:30 after seeing that the other groups meeting. There was a nice setup of drinks and pastries waiting for us.

A staff member came around checking each of us in. Not sure if it was people or cabins but the number she was looking for was 67. When everybody was accounted for we started with things normally handled in the muster drill including more or less detailed instructions on what to do and a life jacket demonstration. When all was ready we headed down to deck 4 and the gangway. We did not actually need to produce our passports but stopped in front of a facial recognition device to be admitted back into the US. We then congregated in the departure hall and were given our new seapass and in-transit cards. Final stop was a seating area in the departure hall where several crew members came around with tablets to ask the final health questions. I guess they needed to go “by the book” and had to see and scan our vaccination cards. Seems like a bit of overkill since we could not have been on the first leg without being vaccinated but procedure is procedure. When everything was done those who wanted to headed back to the ship while I went out to the port.

 

I chose to go to my car and swap some dirty clothes for clean ones, and I think I would have been required to wait until priority boarding started to get back on, but in any case checked out the port a bit and especially the 9/11 memorial bu the water.  When I returned there was a long line for the terminal but I just showed them my sea pass and was just allowed in, and right on to the ship.  The  corridors are closed until the cabins are ready but they shouldn't be locked, and you should be allowed to go back to your cabin.  I switched cabins on that trip.  I had to pack up all my bags but was told to leave it in my cabin, and crew moved them to the new cabin.

 

One more thing.  When I arrived at the port the garage was "full" but when I told them I was on a B2B and got to the overflow lot they told me to go back to the garage, explain the situation and was given a perfect spot in the garage.

 

Roy

Edited May 1, 2023 by rafinmd

[buffet24]

24 minutes ago, rafinmd said:

I would guess that the variations are a bit more by port than by ship.  I did a B2B on Adventure last year.  Here's the process I had then.  I doubt if the COVID stuff will still apply but this is likely to be roughly what happens:

 

The meeting point for B2B cruisers was the Imperial Lounge on Deck 5 forward. I went down about 8:30 after seeing that the other groups meeting. There was a nice setup of drinks and pastries waiting for us.

A staff member came around checking each of us in. Not sure if it was people or cabins but the number she was looking for was 67. When everybody was accounted for we started with things normally handled in the muster drill including more or less detailed instructions on what to do and a life jacket demonstration. When all was ready we headed down to deck 4 and the gangway. We did not actually need to produce our passports but stopped in front of a facial recognition device to be admitted back into the US. We then congregated in the departure hall and were given our new seapass and in-transit cards. Final stop was a seating area in the departure hall where several crew members came around with tablets to ask the final health questions. I guess they needed to go “by the book” and had to see and scan our vaccination cards. Seems like a bit of overkill since we could not have been on the first leg without being vaccinated but procedure is procedure. When everything was done those who wanted to headed back to the ship while I went out to the port.

 

I chose to go to my car and swap some dirty clothes for clean ones, and I think I would have been required to wait until priority boarding started to get back on, but in any case checked out the port a bit and especially the 9/11 memorial bu the water.  When I returned there was a long line for the terminal but I just showed them my sea pass and was just allowed in, and right on to the ship.  The  corridors are closed until the cabins are ready but they shouldn't be locked, and you should be allowed to go back to your cabin.  I switched cabins on that trip.  I had to pack up all my bags but was told to leave it in my cabin, and crew moved them to the new cabin.

 

One more thing.  When I arrived at the port the garage was "full" but when I told them I was on a B2B and got to the overflow lot they told me to go back to the garage, explain the situation and was given a perfect spot in the garage.

 

Roy

Roy, this is Golden!!!  Especially your tip about the Parking Garage!!!  Thank you!!!

[DragonOfTheSeas]

Relaxing in the Viking Crown lounge until cabins open. 
 

 

 

 

It has a great view of the pool deck. 

 

 

 

Not a cloud in the sky! ☁️

[DragonOfTheSeas]

Cabins not ready until 2:30pm now. 

[DELTABLUE]

Welcome aboard!  Glad that you made it.  It looks very familiar so far.  Happy that your transfer went easily.

[DragonOfTheSeas]

It feels and looks just like the Lady G. We are both ready for a relaxing time. 
 

Here is the centrum. I know it looks familiar. 


 

 

[DragonOfTheSeas]

 

We were lucky to snag a junior suite at a good price well over a year ago. It will be my happy place for the next 10 days.

 

 

 

One feature of a junior suite that I like over the balcony is that it has a tub rather than a tube shower. 

 

 

 

 

 

[LATTELOVE]

19 hours ago, DragonOfTheSeas said:

It seems I have been too hard on Nassau.  We were docked with a Norwegian Cruise line ship blocking the shore.  No problem I did not plan to go ashore.  Npw I am sorry I did not.  

 

I knew Nassau was renovation the dock area. I was surprised today when the other ship left.  It seems Nassau has filled in an area adjacent to the old shoreline. They are building an entirely new dock area.  

 

This is an article describing the project.  We arrived just a few weeks to early. 

 

Nassau's New $300 Million Cruise Port to Open May 2023 (cruisehive.com)

 

 

I can not tell you what each of these things area.  But it is obvious this is the terminal.  

 

 

 

I think this might be the straw market--but not sure.  

 

 

I am impressed the built an entire lagoon for water taxi and tour piers.

 

 

 

For those of you familiar with this port Senior Frogs is where the green umbrella on the top right of this picture.  That used to be the waterfront.  Thie will be a HUGE upgrade. 

WOW,

So nice and beautiful.  I hope it will be 

open for our up coming cruise.