cruzGMa Posted May 28, 2008 #1 Share Posted May 28, 2008 This is going to be a little long, but I wanted to share as much information as possible for all those considering or going on the Enchantment. Our family of 9, including children 14mos, 5 & 7, returned from a 4 night cruise yesterday and we all had a terrific time. Here's some information that might answer questions you have: - We had 2 adjoining cabins for ourselves (Gma & Gpa), our son, his wife & 14 mo. old. This worked out great, as we were able to open the adjoining door and do a little occasional babysitting. They took their own pack 'n play and said it was worth the effort. There was plenty of room for it, our grandson slept great the whole cruise, plus there was a curtain to pull out nearby to block any bedside lights. - Our daughter, her husband and their 5 & 7 year old boys had a cabin down the hall which had two pull down (from the ceiling) "bunk" style beds with ladders. The beds had restraining sides on them and were half over the parents' queen/king-sized bed (2 twins pushed together). Only a pillow fell down on the parents... These three rooms were large ocean-view staterooms in the new middle section on Deck 2. Although some people think this is the "bowels" of the ship, it is quiet and relatively free of traffic and, c'mon, the elevators are fast enough to get you up to the higher decks. Also, the lower you are the less sway to the ship, which we appreciated when even we were feeling it! - The staterooms in the new middle section are basically the same as the old section except for the bathrooms and the closet; they are much nicer. (We did the same cruise two years ago in the old section.) The bathroom tile is very pretty and the sink/counter run along one wall, giving plenty of space for stuff. Also, there are shelves behind the left mirrored section (don't pull on those round knobs, put your hand underneath the left corner). The shower is in the round and spacious enough. Also, besides the all-purpose soap-in-a-dispenser, they provided small bar soap in the shower and the sink. Very nice! We never needed the over-the-door shoeholder - which I picked up at a dollar store for $1.25 - for extra storage. - The staterooms had plenty of drawers/shelves for clothes for a 4 or 5 day cruise. Also, the new section had plenty of wood hangers for dresses and pants, plus about five wire shelves to put things on - very, very nice! There are also shelves behind the side mirrors over the dressing table and a hair dryer in a drawer (which is not removable). Plenty of outlets, too. - I was very impressed with the sheets on the bed in the new section - very soft & rich feeling. And towels for the beach were always left on a shelf in the bathroom under the sink. _ All in all, every need was anticipated and provided for in this section. - As for which beach to go to... We went to the Paradise Beach. I had looked it up on their web and thought it might be too big, but it really isn't as deep a beach as it looks. And, it is an extremely clean, well-kept place with no pressure to buy anything. We were asked once if we wanted to buy the arm band for the larger toys - which we didn't. But, after buying much food and drinks, no one said a thing when my son took his nephew out on the large tube float/trampoline. And, the food/drinks are great (and you were all right about those nachos!). Again, no pressure, but great service. There's also 3 tents where you can get a massage, which my s-in-l did, for $1 a minute (said it was great), tattoos, and hair braids. There are immaculate restrooms, changing rooms and outside showers. The grounds leading in are lovely. The water is not the clear blue you would probably like to see, but we had chairs right along the water's edge with tables for food and umbrellas to put up if it got too hot and the children were able to play in the sand right in front of us. Can't beat it! - The Solarium area on the ship was a lovely get-away for us, and the deck patrol did strictly monitor the area for children, asking a couple to take their young daughter to the other pool area. And speaking of pools, the pool area does have a splash area for diapered babies on this ship, although I never saw that large sign someone posted a picture of saying for "diapered babies only," etc. Our young grandson loved it and again, the deck patrol had parents remove a diapered child from the next level pool up to the splash area. I hope this answered any questions up-coming cruisers might have. So many single questions are asked, I thought I'd try to put it all together (while my euphoria from the trip was still intact!). My 7 y.o grandson declared the trip better than Disney World. So that gives you some idea of how much the kids will enjoy it. Hope you all have a wonderful time. We can't wait to take our next cruise! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B'smeme Posted May 28, 2008 #2 Share Posted May 28, 2008 cruzGMa, Thanks for the great review. I'm not sure if you've got an answer to this question, but thought I would give it a try since you had a 5yr old grandson with you. I'll be traveling to Alaska end of June on RC's Rhapsody of the Seas with my daughter and granddaughter who will be 5 yrs 10 months and starting first grade. My concern is the ages for the Adventure Ocean program is 3yrs-5 yrs, or 6 yrs-8 yrs. She is not old enough for the 6yr old group. But there is such a big difference between a 3yr old and a 5yr 10month. Do you know if they have age appropriate activities for the differences in age? Thanks for any info you can give me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ncmomof2 Posted May 28, 2008 #3 Share Posted May 28, 2008 granddaughter who will be 5 yrs 10 months and starting first grade. My concern is the ages for the Adventure Ocean program is 3yrs-5 yrs' date=' or 6 yrs-8 yrs. She is not old enough for the 6yr old group. [/quote'] B'smeme, I emailed RCI about this issue because I'm contemplating taking a cruise when my DD is not quite 12, maybe with a friend who'd already be 12!! :eek: Here's the reply I got from RCI, which should relieve your mind -- basically they'll put your GDD wherever she's most comfortable... "Thank you for your email. Concerning our Adventure Ocean program, it is understood that our younger guests wish to be together. To this end, our onboard staff will evaluate the request. All requests for changes in age groups in the Adventure Ocean program are handled as follows: Prior to any age group change request all children must be enrolled in their proper age group for one day activity session and one night activity session of at least 3 hours. If after this period of time there is still a request to change age groups the Adventure Ocean Manager with the assistance of the supervising Youth Staff will decide if the child can change age groups. Children may bump down an age group at any time as decided by the parents and Adventure Ocean Manager but they may not alternate back and forth between age groups. The Adventure Ocean Manager can make an exception and bump up a child an age group if applicable and monitored for one full day. Thank you for choosing Royal Caribbean International. Merlin Reynolds Customer Service Representative" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruzGMa Posted May 28, 2008 Author #4 Share Posted May 28, 2008 Our 7 y.o. grandson, who is more affected by change, wanted to be with his 5 y.o. brother in the Adventure Ocean program. Five y.o. would have been fine by himself. My daughter asked if the 5 y.o. could bump up to the 6 - 8 yr. olds, but they said no. (And at the introduction program about the A.P., it was stated quite clearly that the child would be in the program in the age group for the age they were "that day." In the end, the 7 y.o. moved down to the younger group so that he could be with his brother and he was fine. It seemed that there were different things to do for the different ages within each age group. It wouldn't hurt to ask, however, to bump her up if she feels - after a day - that the group is too young for her. In any event, she'll have a blast on the ship - you, too! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B'smeme Posted May 29, 2008 #5 Share Posted May 29, 2008 Thanks to both of you, ncmomof2 and cruzGMa, for answering my question. I feel much better knowing that Adventure Ocean Program will work with you. I never thought of e-mailing RC about the issue. I will also be cruising with my niece who has a daughter who just turned 6 years old. My granddaughter only sees her cousin once a year since they live out of state. My niece said she is willing to put her 6 year old in the 3 - 5 year old group so they can be together. It sounds as if we shouldn't have any problems. Thanks for your help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
house7 Posted June 2, 2008 #6 Share Posted June 2, 2008 cruzGMa, thanks for all the info. We are cruising on the enchantment in October. We have 3 cabins and 2 are in the new section on deck 2. The other is in the old section one door down. I'm glad to here you had a great time, we were on Sovereign last September and our children agreed Cruising was better than Disney. We offered them the choice this year Universal or Cruise, and I'm happy the cruise won:D . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KandMGIn Posted July 17, 2008 #7 Share Posted July 17, 2008 Doed anyone know where the new rooms are and if the old rooms were updated to mirror the new rooms? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.