All things Monarch of the Seas

[renaibr]

the casino was closed the entire time were in nassau

[lissaw16]

Is the ship's casino closed the entire time we are in Nassau? Thanks!

 

We were in Nassau from about 7pm Tuesday until 11pm Wednesday (missed Coco Cay due to high winds, and just headed to Nassau).

 

The casino was open on Tuesday starting around noon, and stayed open until late Tuesday night, despite us being docked early at Nassau (weren't due to arrive until morning Wednesday). The casino didn't open until late on Wednesday, I think around 7pm (I can check my Compass pages at home and verify that).

[lissaw16]

Link above is to pictures from our 2/23/09 sailing.

 

Lengthy day-by-day trip report on my blog, link below.

[TOM Cruzer]

We miss our Monarch ship out here on the west coast! We would take a 3 day weekend a couple times each year.

 

Yes, she is a little older, but pretty well kept when you consider the constant turn over and use.

 

The charm of the Monarch has little to do with the accomodations. The staff are some of the very best around, from captain (a woman!) on down. The reggae band could also play just about any type of music, incredibly well. The little cubby spaces are great for sitting with your sweetheart.

 

They don't do a cruise critic party on the short itineraries, though they did throw one for all of us on the last two sailings on the west coast. ...and we sure do miss her.

[Cruisepucks]

Going on the Monarch next week and am really looking forward to it.

Does anyone know if there are locker rooms and showers by the gym. The deck plans are inconclusive and if possible, I would prefer to shower at the gym.

Thanks for any info.

Cruisepucks

[SHELBZ5]

I can't seem to find the roll call for this 4 night sailing, is there one?

 

My boyfriend and I are going on our second cruise together (1st RC) and I've just read all 70 pages over the last few days. We're so excited! Thanks for all the information! Hoping to make this a tax-return-tradition :)

[lissaw16]

Going on the Monarch next week and am really looking forward to it.

Does anyone know if there are locker rooms and showers by the gym. The deck plans are inconclusive and if possible, I would prefer to shower at the gym.

Thanks for any info.

Cruisepucks

 

 

Yes, there are 2 showers, a restroom, and a sauna in the Women's locker room area (I can not speak for the Men's side, but I assume the same). There are lockers there. I seriously considered going there to shower, as those showers are way bigger than the one in my stateroom!

[lissaw16]

I can't seem to find the roll call for this 4 night sailing, is there one?

 

My boyfriend and I are going on our second cruise together (1st RC) and I've just read all 70 pages over the last few days. We're so excited! Thanks for all the information! Hoping to make this a tax-return-tradition :)

 

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=859419

 

Yes, there is. Monarch OTS***April 20, 2009***Bahamas Getaway***

[SHELBZ5]

Thanks!

[jessalz]

Has anyone had any trouble using their cell phones while on the ship in San Diego & Catalina (or in port in LA for that matter). I've read other posts about additional charges being incurred because the calls go thru the ships system rather than your own service provider (ours is Verizon). Just checking because I've got a teenager daughter that lives to text & would hate to have those additional charges!

 

here's the verizon coverage link:

http://b2b.vzw.com/international/Roaming/rates_coverage.html

[Cruisepucks]

Thanks lisaw16. Now I know I have the option of using the gym's shower's instead of fighting wih the shower curtain in the tiny room shower. And it is just down the hall from our room.

Cruisepucks

[lissaw16]

Thanks lisaw16. Now I know I have the option of using the gym's shower's instead of fighting wih the shower curtain in the tiny room shower. And it is just down the hall from our room.

Cruisepucks

 

Oh, that's an easy decision! Especially if you are that close! DH and I are both tall and big people (5' 8", size 20 for me, 6' and size 40 pants for him), and I personally had a hard time shaving my legs in that little curtained space, and DH had a heck of a time keeping the water in the shower (he soaked the bathroom floor each time).

[MNfamilycruiser]

Does anyone know if they offer the Luggage Valet Service for the Monarch now that she is in Port Canaveral?

 

We used it on the Mariner - and it was great. We could easily make an earlier flight out if they do.

[newbiecruiser09]

Does anyone know if they offer the Luggage Valet Service for the Monarch now that she is in Port Canaveral?

 

We used it on the Mariner - and it was great. We could easily make an earlier flight out if they do.

 

I thought I read it was available only on 7 day or longer sailings.

[MNfamilycruiser]

I thought I read it was available only on 7 day or longer sailings.

Oh, I hope that isn't true! I know that is what is says on the website.....

 

Any chance anyone has experienced differently?

[lissaw16]

Testing... if this works well, I will upload all the compass pages for the 4-night cruise.

 

Day 1 page 1

[lissaw16]

Testing... if this works well, I will upload all the compass pages for the 4-night cruise.

 

Day 1 page 1

 

 

Okay, that is way too small to read. Let's try something else...

 

 

That seems to work better. You can click on the individual pictures and see them in a large size, just click the magnifying glass above the picture that says "all sizes".

 

Let me know what you think!

[lissaw16]

just testing one more way pull images into posts...

 

I have 49 images in my Cruise Compass Flickr set, I don't want to bog down this thread with all of them-just use the link (above, and now in my signature).

[Nano]

My best friend and I are considering booking the Monarch for a girls getaway cruise. We were looking at late August when schools are back in session and hopefully hurricane season hasn't gotten into full swing yet! I checked the rates today on the RCI website and they are much higher than I expected (especially considering what some have posted here about their pricing). Hopefully there will be some discounts as we get closer to the sailing date? It looks like plenty of cabins are still available. For those of you who paid $200PP or less for a 4-day sailing, how far out did you book your cruise?

[allshookup]

Okay, that is way too small to read. Let's try something else...

 

 

That seems to work better. You can click on the individual pictures and see them in a large size, just click the magnifying glass above the picture that says "all sizes".

 

Let me know what you think!

 

I think they're great! Thank you very much for posting these!

[allshookup]

My best friend and I are considering booking the Monarch for a girls getaway cruise. We were looking at late August when schools are back in session and hopefully hurricane season hasn't gotten into full swing yet! I checked the rates today on the RCI website and they are much higher than I expected (especially considering what some have posted here about their pricing). Hopefully there will be some discounts as we get closer to the sailing date? It looks like plenty of cabins are still available. For those of you who paid $200PP or less for a 4-day sailing, how far out did you book your cruise?

 

You might try researching some on-line travel agents & see if you can get an OBC or some other incentives, but as far as pricing goes, I don't think you can pay less than $200 PP for a 4 nt cruise. We booked our cruise back in November for a 3 nt cruise mid August & we are paying almost $400 PP. The price has since gone down because they took away the fuel charge so I don't think even if you booked ahead would you have saved.

[lissaw16]

You might try researching some on-line travel agents & see if you can get an OBC or some other incentives, but as far as pricing goes, I don't think you can pay less than $200 PP for a 4 nt cruise. We booked our cruise back in November for a 3 nt cruise mid August & we are paying almost $400 PP. The price has since gone down because they took away the fuel charge so I don't think even if you booked ahead would you have saved.

 

 

We booked on 12/8/08 (right as the fuel surcharges stopped) for our 2/23/09 cruise... we paid $249pp for the 4-night (plus about $60 total taxes & fees). I thought that was very reasonable.

 

Think of it this way: how much would you pay for a night in a hotel with a pool, several lounges, and a nice restaurant? In my experience, $125/night is probably common, which translates to $500 for 4 nights. So, in my math, for my cruise, my DH and I got free meals for 4 days.

 

I have read other posts where people believe that $100/pp per night is the most you should pay for a cruise, on average.

[birdylady]

Can anyone tell me if the Monarch Casino has a Craps Table?

 

Thanx,

Erika

[Nano]

We booked on 12/8/08 (right as the fuel surcharges stopped) for our 2/23/09 cruise... we paid $249pp for the 4-night (plus about $60 total taxes & fees). I thought that was very reasonable.

 

Think of it this way: how much would you pay for a night in a hotel with a pool, several lounges, and a nice restaurant? In my experience, $125/night is probably common, which translates to $500 for 4 nights. So, in my math, for my cruise, my DH and I got free meals for 4 days.

 

I have read other posts where people believe that $100/pp per night is the most you should pay for a cruise, on average.

 

I was thinking the same thing (comparing the price to what you would pay for a land-based vacation). On our past cruises (which we booked within 60 days of the sail date), we usually paid about $100pp per night. When you look at it that way, the $350PP they are currently asking for an OV cabin for 4 nights seems pretty reasonable. Still, we are planning to sail during the off-season, so I think I'll just hold off for a while to see if they drop the price below $300PP. Thanks all for your feedback and suggestions!

[newbiecruiser09]

Okay, that is way too small to read. Let's try something else...

 

 

That seems to work better. You can click on the individual pictures and see them in a large size, just click the magnifying glass above the picture that says "all sizes".

 

Let me know what you think!

 

Thank you so much for posting!! As a "cruise virgin" now I have some idea of what there is, what I should do the first day and what to keep an eye out for! I appreciate your taking the time to do this!!