Looking for NEWS on VOYAGER-Galveston!!!

[Boo's Mom]

I know this may sound strange... but we love to take the ballroom dancing classes while onboard ship.... We have always met great folks while attending these and seem to always learn a new little step or two....

I know most Royal ships offer this on most of their ships....

Does anyone know???

 

 

I sure did not see any offered.

[Rancher Dave]

I'm sure your busy getting back to reality and all :) but I'm wanting to hear how you trip went.

 

We go in a few weeks and would love to hear your opinions when you get a chance.

 

Thanks!

 

Angela

 

 

We had a blast. It was nice and relaxing. Ate dinner one evening with the Captain. Enjoyed CL, had a few special on ship tours...all in all it was our favorite cruise yet.

 

Food was good, service was excellent. One of the crew who I will not name said VOS out of Galveston is his favorite cruise to work because the crowd is better behaved than some he has worked, and that is within RCCL fleet.

 

Ship is in good shape...one person was in shock it was going to dry dock...they couldn't beleive it needed work or that it was nealry 10 years old.

 

I am toying with a few different options for my next cruise which may or may not be with any others from the family. Promowave today had Navigator with only 150% Single sup...going to the one port I really want later this month, so its a toss between that or VOS at the start of Feb...

[abpmillsww]

Dave, I'm so glad to hear you had a good time. I have heard so many negative things...I had a feeling you would have positive things to say.

 

We can hardly wait until our time on the Voyager!

 

By the way, did I read somewhere that you live in LaGrange? I have family there.

[t town cruiser]

We were also on VOS on 12/28 cruise and have to agree that it was a very relaxing cruise. There were over 800 kids, but unlike the 3/15/2008 cruise, they seemed to be very well behaved. I spoke to the Hotel Director about that and his comment was that the parents were controlling their kids.

 

During the week they were replacing carpeting on a number of decks and varnishing balcony rails. Even with the dry docking coming up, they are still keeping up the ongoing maintenance.

 

The only downside to this cruise was the major fog delay when we arrived back in Galveston. We didn't dock until 12:45 PM and it was 4PM before we were on our way out of Light House parking. There were hundreds of passengers who had to have flights re-booked and immigration was slow which may have been due to the high number of foreign passengers - there were 500 from Mexico alone.

[abpmillsww]

Thanks for your positive review, too.

 

There are quite a few negative reviews around the boards about Voyager and I like hearing the positive reviews.

[Rancher Dave]

We were also on VOS on 12/28 cruise and have to agree that it was a very relaxing cruise. There were over 800 kids, but unlike the 3/15/2008 cruise, they seemed to be very well behaved. I spoke to the Hotel Director about that and his comment was that the parents were controlling their kids.

 

Gordon is good for a visit. It was later in the cruise when another crew member said virtually the same about the kids, the parents had the kids in control.

 

I too was amazed at the care going into the ship on a daily basis. Those crew members got out early to work on the rails...towards the last day I almost asked for a brush and bucket to freshen up the rails on my balcony, just to spiff it up a bit. It was already in good shape.

 

 

abpmillsww I don't live in La Grange, but my herd of Longhorns do. I am there on a frequent basis to see and care for them. I am about half way down 77 from LG to S-burg. Its inside the LG school district so I cheer for the LG teams. Some of my wife's aunts and uncles live there...the house next to our ranch is where MIL was born. We bought our place a few years ago...it was sold to another family about 30 years ago when DWs grandparnets moved to Houston as they needed MIL to care for them.

 

You can link to my web site and my email via my profile and email me to chat about your connections to small town La Grange. (Best barber I've had in a few years is there...although he took short to a new level right before the cruise...oh well)

 

I think most negative on last week was focused on missing flights due to FOG, which bites big time...but is not RCCLs fault. I do feel bad for those folks as most of the time I fly to the cruise so it could be me...

[wolfganghowell]

I'll try one more time on this question. :) Can anyone confirm the times for late seating? I am hoping it is 8 pm again. Thanks so much.

[J & G]

I'll try one more time on this question. :) Can anyone confirm the times for late seating? I am hoping it is 8 pm again. Thanks so much.

 

I confirmed with Kathleen (Kat) Truscello Dining Administrator, Trade Support and Service, Royal Caribbean International that dining times are 5:30 and 8:00 PM. Hope that helps......

[Mamabug]

We have 8pm and I DON"T want it!! We booked less than a week ago so I know it was close to cutting it!! Guess we are on the wait list. 8pm will leave a grouchy wife!!

[brn2crz]

I sure did not see any offered.

 

They did Salsa last Jan...it was packed...could not see instructor..It was in the disco,so not a great spot..

[TxBubba]

I'll try one more time on this question. :) Can anyone confirm the times for late seating? I am hoping it is 8 pm again. Thanks so much.

 

Follow the link in my signature to look at the Voyager compasses with dinner times.

[CaribbeanDreams]

My family just got off of Voyager this past Sunday and I was very, very pleased with the condition of the ship. I am VERY picky when it comes to dingy or worn accommodations so I was a little nervous after finding some people found the ship showing its age too much.

 

I've grown up around the coast so I have seen how quickly sea water can age things but I would not have know how old Voyager was if I had not been told. The only thing that seemed old and crummy was the pull out couch in our junior suite but our stateroom attendant pulled in a rollaway that was much better.

 

The promenade was beautiful and very well kept as was the La Scala theater and all the lounges.

 

I had a few issues with the food in the dining room (I was the only one at my table that did though - maybe just bad luck on my part). One night I ordered fish as did several others and I found mine very undercooked and runny - the others said theirs was fine. One night I ordered a chicken breast which was very tough and overcooked - once again no one else at the table had a problem with their chicken. Funny thing is though that the food didn't begin to spoil the wonderful experience - we had the most wonderful waiter (Deikyl) and the most wonderful table mates so nothing could have spoiled that amazing times we had at dinner.

 

Although the food at the Cafe Promenade was average at best, who cares when it is food that is there for the taking ALL the time - it is fun just to snack a little bit and go on. My downfall was the soft serve ice cream machine outside the windjammer - by Saturday I was up to about 15 ice cream cones a day. I couldn't get enough of it.

 

So, I hope that anyone who is worried about the condition of the ship will be as pleasantly surprised as I was!

[Cindy]

We were also on VOS on 12/28 cruise and have to agree that it was a very relaxing cruise. There were over 800 kids, but unlike the 3/15/2008 cruise, they seemed to be very well behaved. I spoke to the Hotel Director about that and his comment was that the parents were controlling their kids.

 

 

We were on the ship with you last March, and some of the out-of-control teen behavior was the only sour note in what was otherwise a wonderful cruise. It got bad enough that I had to make a complaint the last evening (right after my DH & I got royally cussed out for trying to use an elevator). Soon after I went down to the desk and alerted them, there was a greater security presence and the misbehavior slowed down a bit. Another lady from our roll call had a drink thrown on her...also in an elevator. Her offense? Not being a teenager.:(

I received a follow-up phone call from RCCL a couple weeks after the cruise. We talked about the behavior, and some ways it can be stopped. Since we're optimistic that the cruise line can get the problem under control, we're sailing again in March -- the same week, since it's the only time I can go. Wish us luck and keep your fingers crossed that either RCCL has a better grip on youth security, or the wild families decided to go elsewhere this year!:D

[crazy 4 cruising]

We were on the ship with you last March, and some of the out-of-control teen behavior was the only sour note in what was otherwise a wonderful cruise. It got bad enough that I had to make a complaint the last evening (right after my DH & I got royally cussed out for trying to use an elevator). Soon after I went down to the desk and alerted them, there was a greater security presence and the misbehavior slowed down a bit. Another lady from our roll call had a drink thrown on her...also in an elevator. Her offense? Not being a teenager.:(

 

I received a follow-up phone call from RCCL a couple weeks after the cruise. We talked about the behavior, and some ways it can be stopped. Since we're optimistic that the cruise line can get the problem under control, we're sailing again in March -- the same week, since it's the only time I can go. Wish us luck and keep your fingers crossed that either RCCL has a better grip on youth security, or the wild families decided to go elsewhere this year!:D

Cindy, we are on the week before you and have heard from our roll call that it is spring break for schools in san antonio & maybe some in houston---sure hope the kids behave themselves. this is later than we usually go, but wanted the itinerary on the 8th--a little different than the others we have gone on out of Galvston.

[Cindy]

Cindy, we are on the week before you and have heard from our roll call that it is spring break for schools in san antonio & maybe some in houston---sure hope the kids behave themselves. this is later than we usually go, but wanted the itinerary on the 8th--a little different than the others we have gone on out of Galvston.

 

This will be my sixth time to cruise out of Galveston...5 Spring Break cruises and one Thanksgiving cruise, all on ships that were full to the brim with kids. Last year was the only time we've had a problem. Sometimes it's just a bad mix, or maybe we just had an unusual number of people who thought it was OK to let their kids wreak havoc on other passengers.

You should be OK. The ship will definitely be full, but I know the big break week for the Houston area is the week I'm going. Maybe if we're all lucky the Spring Breakers will be a little more spread out this year. We had 1,300+ children (under 18) on the ship last year. I think we just ended up with an extraordinarily large group of kids who were at that age that they didn't really want anything to do with adult-organized activities, so they just hung out. Unfortunately their hanging out became abusive, destructive, and even dangerous in addition to inconveniencing other passengers. I'm hopeful there won't be a problem, but if there is I'll be marching myself downstairs much earlier this year!

[crazy 4 cruising]

This will be my sixth time to cruise out of Galveston...5 Spring Break cruises and one Thanksgiving cruise, all on ships that were full to the brim with kids. Last year was the only time we've had a problem. Sometimes it's just a bad mix, or maybe we just had an unusual number of people who thought it was OK to let their kids wreak havoc on other passengers.

 

You should be OK. The ship will definitely be full, but I know the big break week for the Houston area is the week I'm going. Maybe if we're all lucky the Spring Breakers will be a little more spread out this year. We had 1,300+ children (under 18) on the ship last year. I think we just ended up with an extraordinarily large group of kids who were at that age that they didn't really want anything to do with adult-organized activities, so they just hung out. Unfortunately their hanging out became abusive, destructive, and even dangerous in addition to inconveniencing other passengers. I'm hopeful there won't be a problem, but if there is I'll be marching myself downstairs much earlier this year!

 

good to hear. we will just go with an open attitude. I ma sure they won't be allowed to wreck havoc in the CL & we do have a nice balcony that we can always hang out on, if need be. But will definately be sure to let it be known if anyone is out of order.

[Cindy]

good to hear. we will just go with an open attitude. I ma sure they won't be allowed to wreck havoc in the CL & we do have a nice balcony that we can always hang out on, if need be. But will definately be sure to let it be known if anyone is out of order.

 

Since I'm in education I HAVE to travel during school breaks. That's why a balcony is something I never cruise without!:D

[Pumbaamd]

There are some questions about the dining room times here, and on other CC threads.

We have the main (early) dining on our 2/22 Voyager cruise. 5:30 is way too early for a cruise dinner. Not shore why they schedule it that early, but we know they could give us their reasons.

Elsewhere on CC, it is stated that RCCL plans to offer "My Time Dining" on Voyager effective February 1. We have a table of 12 that would love to make the switch.

Stay tuned.

Rick and Deirdra

[crazy 4 cruising]

Since I'm in education I HAVE to travel during school breaks. That's why a balcony is something I never cruise without!:D

 

ahhhhhhhhh. I WAS in education until I RETIRED!!!!! my fav thing to say is that retirement is the most UNDERrated thing there is. catches folks off-guard for sure

[Rancher Dave]

5:30 is way too early for a cruise dinner. Not shore why they schedule it that early, but we know they could give us their reasons.

 

I mentioned that to one of the top ship officers and the response I got, short version, was that since we had our own table go eat at 6 as that would give enough time to still turn the table. That was after our 2nd of 3 nights eating at our table...and on the third night we went at 545 due to something else we had going on... As long as everyone doesn't go late and you let the waiter know ahead you shoudl be ok if you have your own table to go a bit late each night.

 

We were late to Portifinos the last night but that was because we were having too much fun in the CL.

[J & G]

There are some questions about the dining room times here, and on other CC threads.

We have the main (early) dining on our 2/22 Voyager cruise. 5:30 is way too early for a cruise dinner. Not shore why they schedule it that early, but we know they could give us their reasons.

Elsewhere on CC, it is stated that RCCL plans to offer "My Time Dining" on Voyager effective February 1. We have a table of 12 that would love to make the switch.

Stay tuned.

Rick and Deirdra

 

I asked about the earlier dining time and was told that early dining was overcrowded. The dining time was moved up to encourage more people to take late dining.

 

I also asked about MTD on Feb 1, since we were interested in it, and was told that it was not available. :(

[TxBubba]

This will be my sixth time to cruise out of Galveston...5 Spring Break cruises and one Thanksgiving cruise, all on ships that were full to the brim with kids. Last year was the only time we've had a problem. Sometimes it's just a bad mix, or maybe we just had an unusual number of people who thought it was OK to let their kids wreak havoc on other passengers.

 

You should be OK. The ship will definitely be full, but I know the big break week for the Houston area is the week I'm going. Maybe if we're all lucky the Spring Breakers will be a little more spread out this year. We had 1,300+ children (under 18) on the ship last year. I think we just ended up with an extraordinarily large group of kids who were at that age that they didn't really want anything to do with adult-organized activities, so they just hung out. Unfortunately their hanging out became abusive, destructive, and even dangerous in addition to inconveniencing other passengers. I'm hopeful there won't be a problem, but if there is I'll be marching myself downstairs much earlier this year!

 

We'll be there with you.

 

One thing to mention to is that in early November a friend of mine was looknig at this cruise (Mar 15) and there were no rooms to be had. Now, there are quite a few available it seems. I think a lot of folks canceled when final payment was due because of perhaps the economy. The ship may not be as full as we might expect.

[Nano]

Hey Ya'll,

My best friend from HS is having her 50th b'day on March 5th. She lives in Seattle and I live in Raleigh, NC. We were thinking of meeting in Galveston to take a cruise on the 3/1 sailing of the Voyager in honor of her big day. But for some reason, the pricing is higher on this sailing than it is on 3/8 or 3/15. That seems odd since you mentioned that Spring Break around there is during one or both of those weeks. Is there something going on during the first week in March that any of you are aware of? Maybe it's just the itinerary or perhaps there is a large group booked on that sailin? Anyway, I'm very excited to cruise on the Voyager. Our family has been on the Mariner 3 times and we LOVED it! Guess you all know she's on her way to LA right now... :-(

Thanks for any insights you can share about the 3/1 sailing!

Nano

[June Bug]

We were on the ship last week also. And we also had issues with the food quality. Quite a disappointment! However, we loved the ship as well and had a great time. My post about my food experience is around here somewhere. Glad you had a great time. We loved the New Year's countdown and fun time on the Promenade!

 

June

[crazy 4 cruising]

Hey Ya'll,

My best friend from HS is having her 50th b'day on March 5th. She lives in Seattle and I live in Raleigh, NC. We were thinking of meeting in Galveston to take a cruise on the 3/1 sailing of the Voyager in honor of her big day. But for some reason, the pricing is higher on this sailing than it is on 3/8 or 3/15. That seems odd since you mentioned that Spring Break around there is during one or both of those weeks. Is there something going on during the first week in March that any of you are aware of? Maybe it's just the itinerary or perhaps there is a large group booked on that sailin? Anyway, I'm very excited to cruise on the Voyager. Our family has been on the Mariner 3 times and we LOVED it! Guess you all know she's on her way to LA right now... :-(

Thanks for any insights you can share about the 3/1 sailing!

Nano

I don't know, wonder if it college spring break time? we h ave done the 1st itinerary SEVERAL times & so went with the different one on the 8th.

 

I asked about the earlier dining time and was told that early dining was overcrowded. The dining time was moved up to encourage more people to take late dining.

 

I also asked about MTD on Feb 1, since we were interested in it, and was told that it was not available. :(

as late diners, I'm glad it is 8 & not 8:30. we go to the CL & have a few until dinner. I would not like 5:30, 6 was hard enough when we do that. (my bil, when he goes, likes to eat early:()