Monarch Review - 7/7 to 7/10 3 Night Bahamas

[capnlars]

We are a late 40s/early 50s couple. This was our 16th cruise on RCI, 8th time on the Monarch, including the 16 night Panama Canal transit when she was moved to Port Canaveral last October. This was a quick weekend getaway, a surprise for Nancy’s birthday. As always, we had a great time on the ship. The crew is so friendly, and there’s several who have stayed in touch throughout the years.

We arrived at Port Canaveral about noon. They’ve really messed up the luggage dropoff/parking thing. To drop off your luggage, there were 3 parking spaces – you had to pull all the way in, drop your luggage, back out and make a u-turn to get to the lane to then go in the garage. We were there early and there was a long wait to get to the front, can’t imagine what that was like a couple hours later.

The line on the east side of the terminal to get in was pretty long – but on the west side (left facing the terminal from the front), the line is always smaller. We walked right through security, and proceeded up to check in. We were on the ship within a couple of minutes, bypassing the “welcome aboard” photo ops. Total time from leaving car to being on the ship – maybe 10 minutes.

Went up to the Windjammer for lunch – of course had the honey-stung chicken. Nancy had to really search to find low cal healthy alternatives, but was able to find something at each meal.

Checked out our table in the dining room – we had requested a table for 2. They had honored our request, and we were in the back of the room on the 4th floor which was pretty quiet.

When we finished lunch, our rooms were ready – so we went to drop our stuff there. We had room 1510, an Owner’s Suite. We’ve stayed in this room every time on the Monarch (except once in the RS). We like this room as the balcony is larger than the other OS’s, and being all the way in front, the hallway outside is always quiet. Immediately our attendant came in – Randall. We had had Hershell as our attendant on the last weekend Monarch trip as well as for the canal transit and were disappointed to hear that he was “busted” down to deck 3 because of a complaint from someone on the previous cruise. We had become friends with him and his girlfriend (Melanie from beverage service) on the Panama trip, and missed the opportunity to see him here.

Some new things since our last trip in January….there was a huge list of wines and drinks available for room service, as well as expanded menus. In full suites now, you can order ANYTHING from the main dining room during meal hours instead of the limited room service menu. There was a different dinner menu for each night of the cruise in our room. We had robes, slippers, upgraded bathroom amenities, and they put Ghiradelli chocolates on the pillows at night. The chocolate was nice, I hated the old ones. There was also a table-games menu.

The muster drill was at 3:30, with a 4:30 sailaway. We did have to bring our life jackets, however I was told that as of today’s sailing (4/10) they would not have to anymore. We found our favorite 2 bartenders (Sujas and Ivanko) by the pool and got drinks for sailaway, which we did from the balcony. It was nice leaving earlier (used to be 5:30 I think), as we always had to rush between sailaway and main seating for dinner.

We did not do MTD, and early seating was moved to 5:45p. As soon as we sat down, our headwaiter (Wellington) appeared with a bottle of wine. It turns out our headwaiter Tony from the last two cruises had sent a bottle of wine to us for dinner. He had left the ship that morning for a couple of weeks, but wanted to do something for us. Something new in the dining room is that there is no more bar staff. The waiters will take your drink order, and the assistant waiters will go get the drinks. The assistant waiters were running their butts off, as to us even before they were always very busy. Our waiter was Nestor, with Abigail as the assistant. For anyone that has been on Mariner in 05 or 06, Abigail was one of the greeters at the Windjammer in the mornings, singing “Good morning, either way, enjoy your breakfast!!”. The service was as good as always, and we had some nice people at the table next to us that we talked with. I got the “Chops Grill Filet”, and must say that it was 1) huge, and 2) very tasty. Worth $15? For me it was.

That evening, we went to the casino. Not a pretty evening, that first one. They have raised the minimum on the blackjack tables to 6 dollars from 5. Not a big deal, but a little annoying dealing with the extra $1 chips. There was a dispute at our table, which kind of soured me for the evening. The dealer dealt a hand and she had an Ace showing. Instead of asking if anyone wanted “insurance”, she flipped her cards to show a blackjack. One of the players then said, “Wait, you didn’t offer insurance”. Most blackjack players NEVER get insurance, but I do believe this woman would have if offered. They called over the pit boss, who talked with her and gave her the bet back. Then two other people chimed in that they would have gotten it too – and the pit boss said she’s only seen on or two get insurance the whole time she’s been on the ship. These other two people, I am quite sure, would not have gotten insurance if asked – but insisted on their bets back too. I get really annoyed when people try to rip others off, so I left the table after that hand. Had no luck on my favorite slots there (but did the next 2 nights). Nancy had no luck at all that night. We then went back to the cabin for the evening.

The next morning, we were invited to the Crown and Anchor Plat/Diam reception. We only stayed a short time, as I wanted to be on the balcony when we docked in Nassau. We had arranged the Deep Water Swim with the Dolphins through the ship. There were long lines to get off, but if you had an excursion ticket, they put you up front. People were not at their best waiting in line, and there were lots of line cutters and nasty people. Staff did their best to make things better, but it was pretty much as I expected. After a ferry ride to Atlantis, we were then told we had a one and a half hour wait until our time with the dolphins. It would have been nice if we had known that, as we would have taken a later ferry over.

This excursion was awesome. Everyone had to put on wet suits to swim with the dolphins. After a short orientation, we were taken out to the lagoon. They have about 30 dolphin there, many rescued from a marine center that was destroyed near New Orleans. We were broken into groups of 5 or 6, which was really nice. We first got in waist-high water and the dolphins would come up and “hug and kiss” and do some tricks. Next they had us lay down on top of a boogie-board. The dolphin would come up behind you and push you from your feet across the lagoon, probably 100 yards. When that thing kicks in, you come up out of the water, and are doing probably 20 miles per hour for a short burst. That was really a blast! For the last part, you were given a snorkel scooter. This is a device that you hold on to that propels you through the water when snorkeling. We then used these to swim with the dolphins in the deeper water. What an experience! The only bad part was that you could not bring a camera, and if you wanted any pictures you had to purchase one of their packages, which went from 60 to 250 dollars.

The excursion included return to the ship by ferry, but we opted to skip the walk to the ferry terminal and caught a cab back. Cabs to and from Paradise Island are $4/person if there’s 4 or more, or $11 for just 2. We got back on the ship around 5:15p, just as it started to rain.

For dinner, we tried something that’s new on the Monarch. In the Jade restaurant (deck 12 forward above Windjammer), they now have something called the “Black Rock Grill”. This is almost like a Korean bar-b-que, with a very very hot rock that you use to cook your food. I also had the Spicy Tuna Roll and was quite surprised at how good that was. As we were leaving, we met Sheldon the windjammer manager. We had met him on the Panama cruise and he remembered us by name. I’m always amazed by that, as I am so terrible at remembering people’s names.

We were pretty tired from the hot day in the sun, and went back early after a little time in the casino. Both of us had much better luck this night, took home about $100 between the two of us.

Sunday morning, we got a tender around 10:30 for Coco Cay. There was hardly anyone waiting, so the process went pretty well. Our favorite thing to do on Coco Cay is to go sailing on the Hobie Cat. We were out about 20 minutes when the wind really died. I think there was negative wind, possibly a vacuum going on!! After some time of not moving at all, someone came out on a wave runner to make sure we were OK. Just then the wind picked up and we said we thought we’d make it back fine. We got within a couple of yards of the lagoon when the wind died again. After getting us back on shore, they offered to refund our rental, or we could come back later if the wind picked up. We thought this was quite not necessary, as that’s part of sailing – but it was nice of them to offer. We saw someone else go out later, and they had to be towed from quite a distance as the wind died on them too. We saw lots of jellyfish as were out on the sailboat and decided against snorkeling later. After lunch, we went back to the ship to spend some “quality balcony time” together.

Went to the dining room for dinner, and I don’t know what was different – but the Tiger Shrimp were the best I’ve had on any of the cruises. Passed out the envelopes, said our goodbyes, had a good time there. We went to the casino for a little while, and between the two us, made about $300 on the slot machines.

We had tried to arrange to see 2 of our friends who were working. They are not normally allowed in public areas or to mix with the guests, and they could not free their schedules to meet in Nassau on Saturday night. I talked with the Hotel Manager (Frank), to see if there was any way we could meet them. He told me to have them see him and after filling out a form they would be able to meet us in a lounge for drinks. These are people we’ve kept in touch with since October of last year, and really wanted to spend some time with them. They were able to free their schedules up to meet after 9:30p. Turns out no one could find any of the forms that needed to be filled out, so we were not able to see them. That was a bummer. They did arrange to “bump into” us departure morning, so we did have some time.

We had heard lots of complaints about the departure process on Monarch since she moved. I guess they’ve listened, because we thought it went really well. They had the self-leave people wait on deck 4 in the dining room, so the centrum area was empty. It was actually blocked off completely unless you were escorted by a staff member. They started the self-check people at 7:40, about 10 minutes after scheduled. There was a Platinum/Diamond/Suite waiting area on deck 7. At exactly 8, we were escorted down to deck 4 to leave and there was virtually no line to get off or get through customs and immigration. We were on the road by 8:20, and already missing the Monarch.

 

I think I got everything here.....the Monarch is our favorite of the fleet, and that's always been because of the crew.

[DrmnOfMaui]

Thanks for posting your review! We have considered short Bahamas cruise as our kids are "desperate" to return to Atlantis and we were thinking this would be a good way to get them there while combining it with a short cruise. We will definitely have to keep it in mind.:)

[cruisegirl1]

Thanks for the balanced review. So I am curious what machine ( and denomination) did you play that gave you a payout? Recently, we have been unsuccessful with the Monarch slots.

 

Also - we like to carry our luggage off the ship. Is there a special Plat/Diamond area for folk to do that or do you wait with the gemeral carry off crowd?

 

Thanks M

[firefly4423]

thanks for sharing!

[Chelsea17]

Hi,

 

I did not know that MTD was offered on the Monarch. We were not given this option when I booked directly with the cruise line. Is this something we can change when after we board? I would really like to try it.

 

Thanks,

Deborah

[capnlars]

Thanks for posting your review! We have considered short Bahamas cruise as our kids are "desperate" to return to Atlantis and we were thinking this would be a good way to get them there while combining it with a short cruise. We will definitely have to keep it in mind.:)

 

We were in Nassau from noon until midnight - so that would be plenty of time.

[capnlars]

Thanks for the balanced review. So I am curious what machine ( and denomination) did you play that gave you a payout? Recently, we have been unsuccessful with the Monarch slots.

 

Also - we like to carry our luggage off the ship. Is there a special Plat/Diamond area for folk to do that or do you wait with the gemeral carry off crowd?

 

Thanks M

 

M,

 

I played the Bonus Spin machine. There's 2 I like, both are quarter machines. Coming in the casino from the centrum, one is just inside and around to the right - first machine. The second one you continue in to the aisle, make a left, and it's next to the windows. It's across from a Pink Panther machine that makes lots of noise when no one is playing.

 

There was no special area for Platinum/Diamond carry-off. The waiting area was Claudes on 4. They made the announcement for them at 7:40, and then we were in the centrum at 8:05 and they were no lines to leave in front of us - so it must have moved pretty well.

[capnlars]

Hi,

 

I did not know that MTD was offered on the Monarch. We were not given this option when I booked directly with the cruise line. Is this something we can change when after we board? I would really like to try it.

 

Thanks,

Deborah

 

You can change when you get on - they had people on deck 4 at 1pm the first day, or you can call and change it before you go. They will require that you prepay the tips to do MTD.

[Chelsea17]

Capnlars - Thank you so much for your reply and the information (and for your review)!

 

Regards,

Deborah

[mamaza]

Nice Review. After only doing Voyager class ships I was wondering how a smaller ship woud be. When I booked Monarch I was afraid I had stepped down too much, but your reivew gives me such relief. We booked a JS on a 4 night. I'll try to look up your favorite bartenders and say, "Howdy."

 

Thanks again,

[cruisegirl1]

Thanks capnlars

 

Wish me luck!

M

[yogimax]

Love that honey stung chicken! Thanks for your review!

[paradise4me]

Thanks for the great review. You sure brought back great memories of Abigail, "This way to the Buffett"!

[Nano]

Nice Review. After only doing Voyager class ships I was wondering how a smaller ship woud be. When I booked Monarch I was afraid I had stepped down too much, but your reivew gives me such relief. We booked a JS on a 4 night. I'll try to look up your favorite bartenders and say, "Howdy."

 

Thanks again,

 

Hey Mamaza - we're in the same situation as you. We've cruised Voyager, Mariner (3 times) and Indy, so we are a little worried if Monarch might be too small for us. But everything I've read on these boards has been really positive. We also booked a 4-night in a JS on 8/31. When are you sailing? I'll be glad to let you know how it was if you're going after us.

 

And many thanks, CapnLars for a fantastic review!

[mamaza]

Hey Mamaza - we're in the same situation as you. We've cruised Voyager, Mariner (3 times) and Indy, so we are a little worried if Monarch might be too small for us. But everything I've read on these boards has been really positive. We also booked a 4-night in a JS on 8/31. When are you sailing? I'll be glad to let you know how it was if you're going after us.

 

And many thanks, CapnLars for a fantastic review!

We're not sailing until Jan 4th, 2010 (Anniversary Cruise). I think this will be a great adventure. We almost did the Navigator in Dec or Jan but Cozumel was the only port and we've been there (want to go back) and we thought a trip on our Anniversary to the Bahamas where we've never been would be nice. This will be our 4th cruise, so we're fairly newbees at this.

 

Thanks. I'll be anxiously awaiting your review. marc_mary_zahn(@)hotmail(.) com

[capnlars]

We're not sailing until Jan 4th, 2010 (Anniversary Cruise). I think this will be a great adventure. We almost did the Navigator in Dec or Jan but Cozumel was the only port and we've been there (want to go back) and we thought a trip on our Anniversary to the Bahamas where we've never been would be nice. This will be our 4th cruise, so we're fairly newbees at this.

 

Thanks. I'll be anxiously awaiting your review. marc_mary_zahn(@)hotmail(.) com

 

It's definitely going to be different than being on a Voyager class ship. There's not the things like the ice rink, promenade, mini-golf. The 3 nighter isn't quite as "elegant" as the longer cruises. No concierge lounge or specialty restaurant. Rooms are a bit smaller. On the other hand, though, there's not as many crowds. It really is nice for a 3 day weekend or 4 day short cruise though.

[PH8]

 

We had tried to arrange to see 2 of our friends who were working. They are not normally allowed in public areas or to mix with the guests, and they could not free their schedules to meet in Nassau on Saturday night. I talked with the Hotel Manager (Frank), to see if there was any way we could meet them. He told me to have them see him and after filling out a form they would be able to meet us in a lounge for drinks. These are people we’ve kept in touch with since October of last year, and really wanted to spend some time with them. They were able to free their schedules up to meet after 9:30p. Turns out no one could find any of the forms that needed to be filled out, so we were not able to see them. That was a bummer. They did arrange to “bump into” us departure morning, so we did have some time.

 

.

Paperwork :confused: Oh~maybe you're talking about crew,not staff??

 

anway,nice review.............I agree about the crew/staff.......they're great......its like coming back to family everytime we go:)

[mamaza]

It's definitely going to be different than being on a Voyager class ship. There's not the things like the ice rink, promenade, mini-golf. The 3 nighter isn't quite as "elegant" as the longer cruises. No concierge lounge or specialty restaurant. Rooms are a bit smaller. On the other hand, though, there's not as many crowds. It really is nice for a 3 day weekend or 4 day short cruise though.

I though they had a specialty restaurant. That's okay, I can live without the forementioned amenities. I just relax and read and go to the shows at night. I'm sure I won't be bored.

[PH8]

I though they had a specialty restaurant. That's okay, I can live without the forementioned amenities. I just relax and read and go to the shows at night. I'm sure I won't be bored.

The only "speciality=pay" restaurant is Jade.....the one on deck 12,not to be confused with the Jade one might see as part of the Windjammer

[mamaza]

The only "speciality=pay" restaurant is Jade.....the one on deck 12,not to be confused with the Jade one might see as part of the Windjammer

Happy Birthday in advance.

What is "Jade" like? I might be tempted to book it for our Anniversary dinner.

[PH8]

Happy Birthday in advance.

What is "Jade" like? I might be tempted to book it for our Anniversary dinner.

It is a very quiet place(cuz hardly anyone goes there)........serves sushi and tempura............also they have Black Rock(or is it stone??:p) cooking........they bring a really hot stone and you cook your own steak or chicken or fish and veggies.......I think its a lot $$$ for the little bit of food.(avg $9-$15)..........but I guess its all an experience!!

 

All meals start with a cup of miso soup with tofu in it.........

 

You can go check it out when you get onboard,look at the menu(its outside the restaurant and see if you want to do it...........

[RosieKate]

We were also on this cruise and I will post a couple additional comments.

STAFF - I can't say enough about the staff. Everyone was friendly, the wait staff even learned our names. And our room steward was attentative and friendly - even for those of us who could only afford deck 3!

FOOD - the food was excellent. Anyone who isn't satisfied with the food must be really picky, because there are so many choices in the main dining room. If you want a second entree they are more than happy to get one for you. I was a little disppointed on Saturday morning in the Windjammer. Since we didn't dock until late morning everyone slept in and came to breakfast late. The line was long because they only had the breakfast line open in the Jade. But again the food was tasty.

ENTERTAINMENT - the comedian the first night was just okay. We didn't make the show on Saturday night - it didn't start until 10:45 - too late in my opinion. The show with the singers and dancers on Sunday was excellent.

LINES - I agree that the lines to get off the ship in Nassau were ridiculous. We had excursion tickets and no one told us we could go to the head of the line! They should have a separate line or time for excursion ticket holders.

NASSAU - We booked a sail/snorkel through the ship and we had a great time. However, walking to the boat from the ship and back was not pleasant. Nassau is very dirty, there are people every two feet selling water, or hair braiding or "themselves". I have been in many ports in the Caribbean and for all the money that the cruise industry brings to Nassau they could clean up the port area.

COCO CAY - This was a beautiful island and we enjoyed our day there. We booked a Wave Runner excursion and had a great time. We got to go fast and went a long way - it was about an hour. Just a note, when I booked the excursion on the website it stated those 16 and older could drive the jet ski. However, when we arrived at the hut for the excursion I found out that if you are under 21 you have to show your driver's license and you can't drive if you only have a learner's permit.

DEBARKATION: We did the self-assist where you carry your own luggage. We were off the ship by 7:50 and our personal shuttle dropped us off at MCO by 8:30. We had plenty of time to catch our 11:00 am flight.

This was overall a great short cruise and as always we will return to crusing with Royal Caribbean.

[madderlake]

Seriously? There's a pay restaurant called JADE on the Monarch? What kind of food is it?

 

I'm on 8/31 sailing too....

 

Thanks!

 

Stacey

[Nano]

Seriously? There's a pay restaurant called JADE on the Monarch? What kind of food is it?

 

I'm on 8/31 sailing too....

 

Thanks!

 

Stacey

 

Hey Stacey,

There are quite a few of us sailing on the Monarch on 8/31 (weather permitting). Come join our roll call thread!

Nancy

 

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=982336

[capnlars]

Seriously? There's a pay restaurant called JADE on the Monarch? What kind of food is it?

 

I'm on 8/31 sailing too....

 

Thanks!

 

Stacey

 

They have limited Japanese/Sushi, and this thing called Black Rock. It's a slab of rock heated to like 1000 degrees. You then cook your stuff at the table using the rock. It was quite good - I had that and a Spicy Tuna Roll. The roll was not what you'd normally get at a sushi place - it was much better, and better than I expected. There's some nigiri sushi/sashimi and rolls too.