Mini Review - Mariner of the Seas 4/11-4/18/04

[Sue C.]

I'm not a cruise critic, but someone on this message board had asked me to post what I thought of my cruise afterwards.

 

We were so awestruck upon entering this beautiful ship. It was like a 6 star hotel. To be surrounded by such beauty all week long was awesome, and we hated to leave.

 

The service was great and so was the food. Every employee we came in contact with was polite and efficient. Our waiter was outstanding and funny, which made dinners fun. Our table was next to the captain's table, second seating, but he only ate there one night on the Captain's Dinner (unless he ate there the night we went to the buffet).

 

My birthday was 4/14, so we ordered a cake and the waiter sang "Happy Birthday" to me. The other couple at our table (whom we had never met before) gave me a rose. What a nice birthday! (This was our daughter's graduation present/family vacation.)

 

We thought the buffets were good, but it does get a little crowded as you try to get your food. I kept getting lost as to which table to return to after going back for more food, as there are several seating areas, and my family laughed at me every time.

 

We thought Johnny Rockets was GREAT! The cheeseburgers, french fries, and onion rings were good and the shakes were delicious. Dessert of apple pie a la mode or oreo fudge sundaes are included and were delicious. We got such a kick out of the waiters dancing to "Staying Alive" and "YMCA". The $3.95 is worth it. We only had to wait in line for about 5 minutes one day and 15 another.

 

The Sprinkles frozen yogert ice cream cones are good. We never did find the free lemonade that people on this message board talked about.

 

We were too tired to go to some of the late shows, but we did see one of the comedians and the farewell show. The farewell show is great. The ice show is a must-see, as everyone has said. My husband is not into ice skating, and he really liked it. We watched one of the parades, and it was pretty spectacular--another must-see, I feel.

 

Now, as far as drunken teens...we did not see any. We saw some acting pretty silly, but then again, so do some adults. However, the other couple at our table claim they saw some drunken kids and that a few drunken parents were buying their drunken kids more drinks. Hard to believe. They also told us they "heard" (note: heard not saw) that some kids threw some deck chairs overboard one night, but we did not hear that from anyone else.

 

As far as motion, you could tell you were on a ship. It wasn't bad except for one of the last days at sea. For a few hours, we had trouble walking in a straight line (and we do not drink--haha).

 

Our rooms were interior cabins on Deck 9, #9223 and 9225. They are very quiet--we did not hear noise from the other cabins--and we felt they were plenty big seeing how you don't spend much time in them. Being in the front of the ship, though, we felt a lot of rocking when we were laying down to sleep and a lot of rocking while standing in the shower.

 

What amazed us about this huge ship and the large number of passengers was that we never felt it was crowded (except when getting out of a show or waiting for the dining room door to open). Otherwise, it did not feel overcrowded at all. There were lots of kids 'cuz it was Easter week. They didn't bother us. We saw people with babies/infants. We couldn't understand someone wanting to cruise with babies, but hey, that's up to them.

 

We played mini golf once (way tooo windy) and ice skated. My husband and daughter and her friend climbed the rock wall. My husband is shown climbing in the cruise video you could buy!

 

At Nausau, we snorkeled with the sting rays. Not very exciting. It's at Coki Beach and a portion of the water is netted off to keep the sting rays in. The feeding time was kind of fun, though, 'cuz everyone gets a fish to feed them with. The current pushed me back onto my heels, and a huge sting ray sat on me and I freaked out. LOL

 

At St. Thomas, we did the Sea Trek. We really liked walking in the Caribbean Sea 20' below the surface with the "bubble helmets" on. It was neat and we would recommend it. We also did some shopping for souveniers.

 

At St. Martin, we took a cab for $4/person to Marigot to shop a little and have a French pastry. Then we caught a cab for $4/person to Mullet Beach which we really liked. It was NOT crowded at all and had beautiful clear, torquise water. We rented an umbrella and 2 chairs for $12. Our taxi driver said that taxi's do not stop there very often but that he would if we gave him a specific time. So we tipped him $5 and sure enough, he showed up promptly. Then he drove us back to the pier for $4/person where we shopped at the shops for souveniers.

 

We LOVED the Mariner and would definitely go back on her again!!!!!

 

p.s. Guess this wasn't such a "mini" review after all. Sorry about that.

 

Sue

 

Mariner of the Seas - 4/11-4/18/04

 

Costa Line - 1979 & 1986

[PhoenixCruiser]

Excellent Review Sue!! Sounds like you had a wonderful vacation

 

Where in Wisconsin do you live? I was born in a small town up north and spent 8 years in Milwaukee before moving to Arizona. You live in a beautiful state!

 

Navigator of the Seas 6/26/04

 

 

<center>

<a href="http://www.escati.com/counter98/free_time_codes.htm">

</center>

[Sue C.]

PhoenixCruiser, I live in a small town halfway between Milwaukee and Madison, not far off I-94. (rather not mention town for security purposes--paranoid, I guess)

 

Sue

[WeirdEyes]

Thanks for sharing, Sue. Sounds like you and your family had a wonderful cruise!

 

<font color="#0000CC" face="Lydian Csv BT" size="4">~~Shelia~~</font></p>

Sailing the Mariner in.......

<font color="#003399" face="Benguiat Bk BT">Carnival Destiny 2002</font>

 

[PhoenixCruiser]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Sue C.:

PhoenixCruiser, I live in a small town halfway between Milwaukee and Madison, not far off I-94. (rather not mention town for security purposes--paranoid, I guess)

 

Sue<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

 

Understand completely!! We're spending a week at the Dells this summer, all 19 of us, cannot wait

 

Navigator of the Seas 6/26/04

 

 

<center>

<a href="http://www.escati.com/counter98/free_time_codes.htm">

</center>

[Nancy O]

Yes Sue, great review. DH and I are looking into that same cruise for Feb 05, and I just have a few questions.

Did you fly out of Milwaukee or Chicago? Did you go a day early and stay near the Port? If so where did you stay and how was it?

Where in WI are you from? We live in the southeast corner of the state about 50 miles south of Milwaukee.

 

Nancy

Voyager 2/04

Voyager 2/03

Grand 2/02

[Sue C.]

PhoenixCruise -- The Dells is great! Be prepared for crowds, though, and to spend money. (not trying to be negative, just realistic) I love the boat rides and the Duck Ride (you know what that is, right?). My daughter loves the water parks with the slides.

 

What are your plans?

Sue

[Sue C.]

Nancy -- Seeing how we booked at the last minute (within the last two weeks before cruise), the airfares were too high for us to afford ($400+). So we drove to Cape Canaveral. Yes, drove! It took 21-22 hours. We spread it out over 2 days. (It sure would have been nice to fly!)

 

We arrived one day early so we could relax on Cocoa Beach and to make sure we got there without any car problems. We stayed at the Hampton Inn on Cocoa Beach. We would recommend it. Nice, clean room. Friendly, good service. We were able to rent a room for the night and park our car there for the week for a reasonable price. They have a pool and a private 600 ft. walk to the beach. Then Art's Shuttle service picks you up around noon to take you to the pier. Just tell the hotel when checking in you want to use Art's service. The cost was $3/person one way.

 

I know where Kenosha is. We used to cross country ski many many years ago in some park there. We live in a small town between Milwaukee and Madison, just off I-94. I don't know why, but I feel paranoid saying which town.

 

Sue

[PhoenixCruiser]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Sue C.:

PhoenixCruise -- The Dells is great! Be prepared for crowds, though, and to spend money. (not trying to be negative, just realistic) I love the boat rides and the Duck Ride (you know what that is, right?). My daughter loves the water parks with the slides.

 

What are your plans?

Sue<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

 

We spend our summer vacation there every other year, we know all about the crowds The rest of my family still lives in WI, so it's an easy location for us to get together. My parents use their time-share so we can stay together under the same roof, yet have enough kitchens/bathrooms/bedrooms. Since we have such a big group we just do what we want - golf, water parks, go-carts, mini-golf, and boat rides.

 

We have driven from WI to FL many, many times! Glad you had a safe trip home!

 

Navigator of the Seas 6/26/04

 

 

<center>

<a href="http://www.escati.com/counter98/free_time_codes.htm">

</center>

[rockyhou]

Thanks for the great review!

 

I am going in just 3 days and your review has me even more exceited.

 

Michael

 

Soverign of the Seas Nov 99

Majesty of the Seas Apr 00, Nov OO

Enchangement of the Seas Sep 00, Oct 02

Rhaposdy of the Seas Jun 01

Elation Oct 01

Zuiderdam Apr 03

Radiance of the Seas Jun 03

Voyager Nov 03

Mariner Apr 04

 

[Nancy O]

Hi again Sue,

I don't blame you for being paranoid to say your town's name. In a city the size of Kenosha (almost 100,00) I am not worried about anyone finding me.

We have also driven to Florida and can relate to your trip. In fact we did it one year with 5 kids, DH and myself in a mini van. DH said "never again"!

Hampton Inn's are great, I will have to find that one on the internet. thanks.........

 

Nancy

Voyager 2/04

Voyager 2/03

Grand 2/02

[ScoutKing]

Sue - We leave in 3 days and also have signed up for the Swim with the Stingrays. Should I attempt to cancel it? (not even sure that I can.) I know we're in Port for such a short period that we thought it fit into the schedule well.

 

Just wondering about your opinion. Thanks! Can't wait to go and really appreciated your review!!!

[LLM]

Thanks for your review. I'm glad that you had a great time! I can hardly wait for it to be our turn!

 

Lisa

 

Until Mariner of the Seas

 

 

Voyager of the Seas - Oct. 2003

[Sue C.]

ScoutKing -- I don't think I would cancel the Swim with the Sting Rays. I guess it just wasn't what I was expecting. There was an area netted off to keep the sting rays in. You snorkled and they swam under you. My husband snorkled over to the right side (as you are facing the Sea), and he said he saw some fish. Feeding time was kind of fun. Part of the time can be spent just laying in the sun on the beach there (Coki Beach). It was super windy the day we went, so sand was blowing in our eyes. If it hadn't been so windy, I think that part of the trip would have been nice, too. There were plenty of lounge chairs. Please don't cancel because I said it wasn't as exciting as I was expecting. It's just one person's opinion.

 

Nancy -- http://www.hamptoninncocoabeach.com/ BTW, we had a balcony with a view of the ocean. Very nice.

 

Sue

[bbsea73]

Sue,

Thanks for the review. We sail on the Mariner in three days!

 

Brian

[ScoutKing]

Sue - Thanks so much. We won't cancel - and I'll try to remember to let you know how it goes! Again, I appreciate your insight...I'm psyched to get away!