Enchantment review 11/20/08-11/24/08

[lyttleone1977]

Enchantment of the Seas – 11/20/08-11/24/08

I won this cruise from work, so other then my alcohol, shopping and excursions, everything was paid for by someone else. I have also cruised before, but on Carnival. My first time was a 5 day on the Imagination (which was #1 in the fleet at the time) and 8 day Carnival Liberty. Service on both of them were absolutely fabulous.

Flight in and embarkation

I was a part of a group of over 150 (approximately). Our office had 21 traveling on Northwest. Our flight was scheduled to leave the airport at 6:30am for DTW. We started pulling out to the runway when we stopped, and the pilot came across the intercom saying that a light popped up on the panel and he did not know what it was and they were taking us back to the gate. We proceeded to go up to check in where the NWA agents got on the phone and looked into as many options as they could. The biggest problem we had was the airport we were flying out of doesn’t have a lot of options. We were told there was a really good chance we would not make the ship, even if we were able to find a flight down there. Being adventurous as I am, as soon as our plane was fixed myself and my fiancée jumped on it with no plan in place, we just took our chances. When we got to DTW, I called the travel agency, and she promised that no matter what happened we would be taken care of in FLL. Then I called my boss, who told me that 7 more would be joining us at DTW, then the rest were being taken to a different airport and fly in through Atlanta. The odds of us making the ship were still very slim, especially since the captain had not yet been contacted. At about 1:30, nine of us boarded the plane to take us FLL. We were scheduled to arrive just after 4:30, which would put us in 30 minutes late. Due to the problems at our home airport, most of us were upgraded to first class, so we started the party by having a couple of drinks and taking advantage of the free food. When we got to FLL, we headed towards baggage claim, but before we even got there we were greeted RCI representatives. They were just expecting 2 of us (there were nine), so as they were rushing us through the airport they got our names and told us our luggage would meet us in Key West. They got us on a bus, where the bus driver drove like a bat out of hell to the terminal (we were almost ran over by a semi and thought we were going to tip over he was driving so fast). Once at the terminal, we were rushed through security, up some secret passage and up the gang way. During this time we received a text from the other group to find out they missed the flight to Atlanta and were still stranded in Michigan. So to those who were sailing with us, sorry we were late departing by two hours – it was my group! I admit it!

Once were on the ship we all had to go to Customer Relations to get our Sea Passes set up. As soon as it was our turn to get checked in, there was a problem with the system and our cards wouldn’t print. So we had to go get in another line to get it fixed. We had to reset up our sea passes with the credit card because apparently it didn’t take from here at home. This was not the only issue with the Sea Passes. Apparently someone screwed something up and I had to take care of it again 2 days later because it was originally set up as a cash account. We finally got to to our room, go up to the pool deck bar (were most of our group held up the bar for the trip), and start to enjoy our vacation. Leaving FLL in the dark was a really neat experience, something you don’t get to experience very often.

Food

Food is a very important part of any cruise. I was somewhat disappointed. The first night the food was not good. Almost no one at our table finished their food. It was tough, lacked flavor, and when we went to add salt to it, nothing came out of the shaker. I definitely enjoyed Carnivals menu better. The Windjammer wasn’t that much better. We ate there for breakfast and lunch. The best part of lunch was the salad bar. I really missed having the “extra” food stations that Carnival has, such as the deli. It seemed like it was the same thing every day, and as a lover of cold salads, I was extremely disappointed.

Room

The room was tiny. I was expecting small, and that’s what I got. My fiancée ran into the little glass table many times, and now has a bruise to prove it. The bathroom was the smallest I’ve seen so far. There was no moving room in the shower, and every time one of us took a shower, the floor was flooded. My bathroom on the Imagination was twice the size, and a 1A, which is an interior “interior” (private hallway in very middle of ship), and it seemed like a palace compared to this one.

Layout of the ship/Appearance

Once we figured it out it was fine, but the first night was very rough. Had a hard time finding our room as the little maps they give you do not make sense. We were close to the dining room and the front elevators. Based on the fact everything on this ship is turned around from Carnival, I had a great deal of trouble trying to remember which direction was bow and what was aft.

The apprearance was not the desirable. It wasn't gawdy, but I really hated the white tile everywhere. It really dated the ship. It was clean, but something that tended to frighten me was the elevators - too many of them made lots of noise - chains clinking, etc. Most of the windows looked dirty, which is a huge turn off for me. One of the best parts of crusing is to just sit there and watch the world go by, which out have to look at a huge dirty spot on a window.

Service

I was very disappointed with the service, mainly in the dining room. I am used to a very elegant dining experience, but this was not that. When they came around and picked up the extra silverware, they just grabbed and went. When I made a mess with the messy sourdough rolls, I have had the waiter come behind me and clean it up before they put the next plate down. It is little things like that catch my eye – things I never would have thought of if I had never experienced them before. I also realize that a shorter trip is considered training grounds, so I wasn’t that disappointed, but made me realize how important good service really is to me. I will say that the last night, I am not sure if it was a head waiter or maitre d or what, but he came over and helped me get the shrimp from its shell so I would not get my fingers dirty. That was great!

Entertainment

We did not go to any of the shows, which is really unusual for me. We did go to karaoke one night which was fun, up to the Viking Crown Lounge which was great (we came out of there drunker then skunks). I attended the art auction and had my free champagne. The last night there was a 70’s party in the Centrum, which was a blast to watch.

Excursions

In Key West we rented a little electric car (was a little PT Cruiser roadster) and drove around the island, even on US 1. It was a blast. We checked out the Southernmost Point then went back to Duval St were we went shopping.

In Cozumel we went on the Jungle Buggy excursion, which is one of the best ones we have done so far. It’s a new excursion (less then 4 months old) and definitely worth the money. Be prepared to get dirty. Included in the trip was round trip by jeep, the jungle buggy portion (they go about 40 MPH) and a meal of Mexican food. Beer and soft drinks were also provided. We docked at the International Pier, and since we were in Cozumel a year ago we decided to not go downtown this time.

Disembarkation

Disembarkment was very smooth compared to Carnival. We met our group in the Spotlight lounge, walked down and off the ship by 9. We had rented a car, so hopped on the shuttle to FLL to get it. We ended up driving to FL Beach then up to Pomona Beach to go to the Festival Flea Market, which is absolutely huge. Our flight was set to leave at 5:30, left after 6, and we barely made our flight back to AZO.

All in all, we had a good trip. Yes, we had some hiccups and some issues, but overall we still had a good time. Even though we still love Carnival very much, we decided to try RCI one more time, but this time on a bigger ship and longer itinerary. Who knows when that will be, but until that trip I will try to keep an open mind!

Please feel free to ask any questions!

[ChristieNJ]

Holy crow, what an adventure!!! :eek: lol Sounds like you could've had a bit of a better time than you did. :( We had an awesome experience on Enchantment, we really loved it. Although I am a 'big ship' person, I thought the decor on Enchantment was sophisticated and beautiful. But I would definitely go ahead with what you said and try the bigger ships. It's a different experience for sure, and the big ships will really impress you! I'm glad you had a good time all in all though. :)