MARINER REVIEW & answers to all those questions

Hey everyone! Well, we have returned from round 2 on the Mariner and enjoyed it just as much as the first. What a wonderful ship and an absolutely great crew.

I will try to give an outline since maybe you don't care what I did minute by minute and then give answers to questions that are always asked on this board.

Our first cruise was on Mariner last year and was the Hurricane Jeanne delayed cruise. So this was our discount cruise. Our party was my and my DW and our two good friends who brought thier 9yo DD. We also sailed with two people who were apart of our CC group last year. BIG HOLLA TO ALL THE 9-26-04 Mariner crew!!!!!!

We left Oklahoma on SWA on Friday and connected through Houston to Orlando. Easy flight, SWA is great and employees are always so nice and fun.

We did Hard Rock and Universal on Friday night. Got up early and Sea World on Saturday before driving to PC on Sat about 7pm.

Checked in at Radisson. We had stayed there before and enjoyed it. This time was no different. We went over to Grill's and had a great dinner. We ate it all, crab, shrimp, shark, steak. If i have to recommend one thing at Grill's TRY THE SHARK!!! It was great!

Sunday morning we got up and were getting ready and the power in our building went out. Kind of wierd. Stayed out for about 25 minutes. We saw how backed up the shuttle's were so we called a cab. It ended up costing us $2pp to get to the port. We sat in traffic for 1 hour getting into the port. I started asking around because normally you hear how fast and efficient PC is in embarkation. I deduced that two factors slowed the process down....1) Mariner was cleared by customs late and that slowed down debarkation 2) East Coast was on fall break so there was a much higher % of people driving their own cars to the port and this was causing a massive backup at the parking area.

So once we got into the terminal 15 minutes,we are on.

Our main staff for this cruise was Captain Gerry (gary) Larsson-Fedde and the CD was Ken Rush. These men were both absolutely marvelous. I assume that Ken Rush is the #1 CD because he launched Navigator, Mariner, and is the launch CD for Freedom next year. He leaves for Finland in March to go oversee the delivery.

First night dinner was great. Maitre'D was great as for some reason (I think TA related) our party was not originally at the same table. They were very accomodating about the change. We were absolutely appalled at the way some people treated the staff that was trying to help them. Yelling, screaming, carrying on. Most of these people had noticeable New York accents. Not an indictment just an observation. =)

The Enterntainment on this cruise was GREAT!

First night comedian Richie Minervini was good and also did a good adult show the 2nd night that really wasn't that dirty. Just adult themed.

Dominc Allen- previously of Foreigner, Days of Our lives was fabulous. He played sax, clarinet, banjo, piano, and guitar all in the span of an hour. Also his drummer Brian was absolutely the best i have ever seen. And i have done some professional drumming. He did a 3 minute solo where he literally played all over the stage. Including on mic stands, monitors, and the stage itself..phenomenal.

One night we had celebrity impressionist Fred Travalena and his show was very good as well.

Last night was comedian George Cantor who was very good.

We had heard rumor that RCI was upgrading their celebrity shows and this cruise lends credence to that rumor as everyone was good and had good credentials.

The Mariner singers and dancers did two shows, Pure Energy and Front Row. Both were very good and entertaining but they were the same shows we saw last year.

Love and Marriage and especially QUEST were great.

Activities during sea days were fun and well organized. DW was a jockey for one of the first horse races, but didn't win either race. Came in 3rd and 2nd. But we had alot of fun.

We were very active and participated in nearly every sporting event on the ship. From free throw comp. to volleyball, to mini-golf. Got to meet so many neat people that wouldn't have met otherwise.

Played bingo where the final snowball ended up being 15K.

Our traveling companion won the blackjack tournament and $830. I finished third last year so we have had good luck with that tournament.

We watched Karaoke and everyone took it a little to serious. When one guy got up and had fun, alot of people started leaving. But the people who were leaving and took it serious were horrendous singers.

Food- was great as always. We did Chops on the Caribbean night (wednesday) but don't remember every having anything we didn't like. I really liked the Pork Chop. It was good and something different, as I am normally a steak guy.

Ports-

Nassau- just a waste of time, would really like to see them just put a private island stop in. We went over and saw Atlantis just to say we saw it. The aquariums were cool, and it was a neat place to see.

St Thomas- Immigration was a breeze. five minutes and were were done. we were going to head to Trunk bay but because of the rain and mud the waters were murky so we stayed and went to Sapphire Beach. Probably should have done Magen's Bay but will do that next time. Not really big shoppers so that didn't interest us to much. Overall, liked St Thomas alot

St Marteen- absolutely loved am now considering a land vacation there. We went to Maho beach because I am an aviation junky and always wanted to go there. AWESOME!! Everyone should do it. There is a bar Sunset Beach Bar right on the beach and the beach itself is gorgeous. Next time we may do Orient Beach but this was everything we wanted.

Both buffets (poolside and Grand Gala buffet were great). Had access to the Concierge lounge because our friends had GS and concierge allowed us in as long as they were with us. She was great. Greatly reduced our alcohol bill.

We had stateroom 6622 (hump balcony) and loved it. Room service was always on time in the morning and very nice. They were even able to decipher our scribblings on our breakfast card. Everything was just great. Friends and GS 1574 on deck 10 and our other friends had 7688 aft corner on deck 7. So we had the gammet of rooms.

One of the highlights was the farewell show. It really was marvelous. They had been telling us all week that there would be a special suprise. I guess this was Ken Rush's first week onboard but he was on last week getting prepared to take over. And he had discovered a secret.

Well right after the opening of the show, they close the curtain and introduce Captain Gerry, the master of the Mariner. The curtains open and he is in full uniform but with a guitar around his neck. He played and sang (very well i might add) Brown Eyed Girl and Tears in Heaven. It was great and the crowed roared. Apparently at different times he would come down and perfom impromptu in the bars and this is how Ken discovered him. He was also very informative in the Captains Q&A. Here are some things we found out. Some of them talked about alot on this board.

- it takes one gallon of gas to move the Mariner....17 inches.

- Captains shifts are 14 on 14 off.

- Original budget for Freedom of the Seas was 600 million but that was revised to 750 million and could run as high as 850-900 million.

-Mariner has 103,000 horsepower in the rear engines.

- we had 3,629 passengers pre-Nassau and 3,627 after ...oops

- we had 1,201 crew

One main discussion was the pilot issue in ports. Someone asked what they do. The Captain said they mainly come on board and eat sandwiches and drink coffee and are there to advise IF THE CAPTAIN NEEDS IT. THEY NEVER TAKE OVER CONTROL OF THE SHIP. Captain Gerry said this is because they are not liable for any damages and the captain will never give control to someone who cannot be held liable.

The one exception is in US ports when the pilot gives commands to whoever is driving the ship but if the captain believes that the pilot is endangering the ship then he steps in.

Anyway, those were the facts i learned. Great cruise, great staff, and great experience. Any questions, let me know.

Thanks for the info! Hopefully I'll be on the Mariner again soon...

Great review. We'll be on the Mariner next month and your review gets me even more excited to go!

I really regret not meeting you guys.You sound like a lot of fun.I think I saw you at the Hotel waiting for the shuttle.I know there was a guy who decided not to wait anymore,and get the cab.We were the family in the matching Mariner shirts..

Your review sounds a lot like mine...Except I was a little dissapointed in the food this time.Mainly for choice,not taste..

I guess its a good thing we decided not to watch the Tex/OU game together huh :( :p Oh well...you guys can give us at least one huh?

glad you had a good time...Great review!

Hi Daniel!!:D Wonderful review....however, re-living last week through your review is making my PCD worse than it already was. We are already checking out cruises for next year. It was sooo great hanging out with y'all again....I am glad this time our cruise was hurricane-free. Hopefully our cruise paths will cross again soon. (Freedom...next year....y'all should go!!!)

Kristin,

We had a great time as well. I guess we are now cruising buddies. Let us know what you decide. I keep Yasha reading more and more about Freedom and she is starting to get the cruise itch.

brn2crz- wish we could have met too and yeah glad we didn't watch the game together. I can't remember why we missed the meet and mingle but we did. okay, i checked my compass- wife was participating in the horse races as a jockey for which she received- free alcohol and free bingo.

Captain Johnny is on board Mariner as Captain starting this week and will be on until first or second week of Decemeber when Captain Gerry will come back aboard.

SoonerDan...Thanks for the interesting review. We'll board her on Sunday, and hope to have as good a cruise as you did.

Hook em Horns

What and when is the poolside buffet? I haven't heard anything about it.

Thanks for the great review!

You should come with us in December...they are removing Nassau and putting in Coco Cay! This starts in November...

Hi Dan,

I was part of the Canadian Girls Gone Wild group and am looking for anyone who took photos at The Quest. I was a team captain (winning team) and no one in my group took any photos.

We all enjoyed the cruise and have no complaints. We tried to go to as many things as possible and "Get Out There".

One piece of advice for anyone cruising- always know where your sea pass card is as they can be stolen from you very easily as 2 of my friends found out the hard way.

Nice review.

Sorry we didn't meet.

Vanessa

This review is getting me so excited for my 12/18/05 cruise!:)

FAbulous review! Thank you so much. I am heading out in 2 and a half hours to begin my Disney/Mariner vacation. This review just made my night (now if only I could sleep but I am too excited).

Welcome back and thanks for the review!!! :)

The poolside buffet (on the eastern route) is Wednesday night at 11.15

Right after the love and marriage show.

They have buffets on both sides of the deck a pineapple bar and dancing on the dance floor

Dan - thanks for the shout-out! We need to cruise together again next year.

We stayed at the Radisson too and was in that mess. From what I understood one of the machines that that you put your sea pass through was down-you know to debark we have to put our seapass through so they know we have left the ship. That was why things got so backed up.

We took a taxi to ship too and did not wait for the shuttle. We did this because I was not feeling well. Our driver charged us $6 a person but I was so happy NOT to be standing in the sun waiting for a taxi I did not care. It was only $12 for us because we had already dropped of my daughter and our friend at 11 so they were able to board early. We did that because we were down for the 1p.m. shuttle and swa no reason for all of us to wait for the shuttle. Then as things had backed up the way it did we were really glad we had done that. I am sure our shuttle would be 3p.m. or later as at 12:30p.m. the people who had the 11:30 shuttle were still waitng.

I did like the Radission. We booked a suite since our friend was with us too. We had a hot tub which we thought would be great except it was OPEN in the bedroom-a bedroom with 2 king sized beds so it was meant for a family and NOT a couple-so if we got in it we had to wear our suits.

I was disapointed in that but we did get 2 free breakfasts-which we gave to my daughter and our friend-hubby and I just did the Mac Donalds thing as they said the breakfast was not very good-so we saw no need to pay $8.95 for each of us to eat there.

We ate at the Italian restuarant next to Radission's on Sat. night. It was very nice and I actually had a greek salad and that greek dish which is sort of like a quiche but the crust in done with phillo dough-which I really enjoyed. The rest of my group had manicotti which they said was very good also.

So anyway I would gladly stay at Radisson again-I just think next time we will book 2 rooms instead of a suite.

We had atruim cabins (2) on ship. Hubby and I were in 7593 and loved it. Meg and our friend was in 7583 which was not as good. there was a linen closet close to them that they heard a lot of noise from and they also heard a good bit from that irish pub on deck 5 in the promanade. they were right above it 2 floors. They said they would have preferred a basic inside cabin because of the noise.

Oh well-live and learn I guess-I guess if we had looked closer at the diagram of the ship we would have know their cabin was not a good spot-so I guess that is important to check and see where your stateroom is on ship huh?

As far as rocking-our cabins were perfect-midship. We just did not consider linen closets or that there was a bar 2 floors below.

Thanks Sooner-Dan for your great review, looks like you had a great time.

Tessa

Seems this particular Captain really loves his job and makes a great inpression on his fellow passengers, look forward to sailing with him again.

Well done Captain Gerry.

:)

Thanks for the great review. We are booked on Mariner for Jan. 8 and it sounds like we too will have Captain Gerry and Ken Rush who was the CD on our Voyager cruise 2 1/2 years ago. He was hysterical then. We had so much fun with the Quest and the love & marraige game. Your review makes us all the more anxious for Jan. to get here.

Your comments on Nassau mirror my feelings exactly. We have been there several times ourselves and Atlantis and the delicious conch chowder we've had in a downtown restaurant there are our only fond memories of Nassau. We were delighted to find that our cruise is going to Coco Cay instead.

It was funny when our TA said, "Now you realize this cruise is not going to Nassau but to Coco Cay and we said, "YES!!" Thats why we like it!

Thanks again for the great review!

Great review Dan. It brings back great memories. This was our first time on Mariner. DW and I also love her. We were on the Sept 18 - Eastern route and missed Nassau because of Rita. Did San Juan instead and had a great time there. Got to spend the evening there. I totally agree about Capt. Gerry. I spent a few minutes with him in the Wig & Gavel. He said that he couldn't believe how lucky he was to do what he does. He played his guitar in the Wig & Gavel on Thursday night. He's not bad at all. Next time your in St.Thomas, catch the ferry and check out St.John's. You won't want to leave. Its beautiful, not one bad beach. St. Maarten is also our favorite. We've been twice. This time we rented a small car and hit each beach. French side is rather expensive though, Euro's...Had lunch in Marigot, split a salad and escargot, couple of beers each, tip... $50... view...priceless... I can't wait for Dec. 18. All the family (12) is going for Christmas. Doing the Western this time. Everytime we get off we start planning another...

SCCruzer,

You didn't happen to bring home your copies of the Compass did you? I have been looking for the (recent) eastern itinerary in all the usual places with no luck.

I did bring them home and can try to get them scanned in and sent to you. Am not real good with the scanning but can try.

SCCruzer,

 

You didn't happen to bring home your copies of the Compass did you? I have been looking for the (recent) eastern itinerary in all the usual places with no luck.

Nanner10,

I don't have a scanner but can give you some highlights...

Day 2 & 5 were Formal nights

Headline Entertainment: Day 1, 2, 5 & 7

Royal Caribbean Singers & Dancers : 3 & 6

Ice Show: Day 4 & 6 ( get tickets day 3 @ 9:30 - Studio B )

Gala Buffet: Day 6 ( viewing 11:30p - 12:15 / opens 12:30a )

Karaoke Idol: Day 2, 6 & 7

Port days: Mon. Nassau ( we had a sea day and went on to San Juan because of TS Rita )

Wed. St Thomas Thur. St Maarten.

Hope this helps. If need anything else...

SCCuzer, thanks for the summary!

SoonerDan, if you have any luck that would be great!!!!!! My email is listed in my signature. I have not had much sucess with my scanner either!

Nanner, this is from September 2005. I wasn't the one that posted them (Jep617 did), but was one of the ones very glad to see them!

Here is the link: http://members6.clubphoto.com/jennif...r-0b91-1.phtml. They are very legible online, I just didn't have good luck printing them out for some reason.