GirlGoneTexan
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Posts posted by GirlGoneTexan
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Thank you so much for these wonderful tips and reviews!! I am getting more excited about our upcoming cruise and only hope and pray that the weather holds up Labor Day week!
Fingers crossed for ya!
The weather was horrible leaving Galveston, and we had pretty rough seas heading down to Roatan. It was reallllly windy in Roatan (like 30mph sustained winds). This was the first time I ever felt seasick on a cruise ship. I brought my seasick patches just in case, and I did wear them for the first 5 days of the cruise. I've been deep sea fishing a lot, and I find prescription Transderm Scop patches work much better than sea bands or anything else. Coming home, seas were calm and I had no issues.
They really did a great job steering around weather; we had lovely sunny skies every day, just seemed to be differences in wind and seas more than anything else. Came home to rainy Galveston this morning! :rolleyes:
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Thanks for the honest review! We've been on Freedom and Indy, been wanting to cruise on Liberty to get the set but living on Florida coast it's just too convenient to go from here! I also agree with the dress code. We are actually skipping formal night on our next cruise as I don't feel like putting on a jacket and tie and feel underdressed if I didn't. Shorts and sweatpants should definitely be no-go's in my book, but it seems to be more and more common.
Next time in Costa Maya, give Maya Chan beach resort a look. All-inclusive food and drink with only a limited amount of people allowed in, worth the extra few $$ IMO.
I understand -- we're in Houston so Galveston is most convenient to us! I believe Freedom was in port at Cozumel when we were there. They look pretty identical from the outside except Liberty has the slides. Liberty was a really nice ship, and it was well-kept.
I get people not wanting to dress up. Maybe they need to offer different dining times or floors for formal and not-so-formal. But I still stand by the belief that the dinner dress code should be somewhat nice. Even a collared shirt with pressed khakis is better than some of the forms of casual I saw!
RE: Costa Maya, we had looked at Maya Chan. But we were doing excursions in the other two ports, and so we really wanted something less planned and inexpensive. We did some shopping too, so really it was fine, just more crowded than I expected. Kids didn't care!
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More random comments...
Ice Skating
We'd heard to bring long pants and socks for skating so we were prepared. Got down to the rink after the session started and there was a long line. We waited almost 30 minutes. When we got up there, they told us they'd been completely full since the start of the session and were only having people sign waivers (which we'd already done electronically). No reservations. Come back for the next session at 12:30 but get here at least 30 mins early to secure space in line. The only other session was on day 5 during formal dinner at 7:30. So we said, no thanks and didn't end up skating at all. This was somewhat disappointing for my kids, but honestly, the rink was TINY!!!
Breakfast
I had thought room service would be the best way to go. However, MDR was not crowded and they do a quick service that you can get in and out of pretty quick. So we did MDR for breakfast nearly every day in port.
The first two sea days, the MDR was INSANE. We got turned away at 8:30am because they were too full. Went up to Windjammer which was insane too. Lesson learned. Go before 8 !
Shows
Note: They do have bar service in all of the shows before it starts.
In the Air - we arrived in the theater about 20 mins before showtime to secure seats for the later show. This was not necessary but we did get pretty good seats. Could've waited another 10 mins and been fine. This show had some fantastic stunts and songs, and then other parts of it were very mediocre. It was a strange mix. But overall enjoyable, and the kids liked it too.
Ice Show - was much better than expected. The rink is small so the fact the performers can do what they do on such a small rink is amazing. It was nice to have shows during the afternoon so the kids weren't half asleep. They offered this show 4 times during the cruise.
Saturday Night Fever - I decided not to take my kids... I'd seen the movie and honestly it's not that great, and with an 82 minute run time and being before our 8pm dinner res, I wasn't sure my kids would be able to handle it. Plus I'd heard the themes were mature. So we skipped. Our friends went and took their kids (same age)... they said dancing was great, singing was really not good in some places, and overall it was just OK. So we were glad we chose to watch the sunset in Olive or Twist (the kids felt special they were allowed up there).
We did not watch any of the comedians, but I caught part of it on the TV. Seemed pretty lame.
Would have liked to see some more upbeat rock type or contemporary bands playing. The Bubba Feathers country was good, but they played a lot of old country, so the crowd was older (no offense... just sayin'!). The latin band was good, but my kids weren't interested. Enjoyed the piano guy in Schooner, plus one of the girls from Saturday Night Fever came and sang a few songs with him, so that was entertaining.
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How was the wine? Any chance you were able to get pics of wine lists? If you buy the drink package, can you use it in MDR and specialty restaurants?
Thank you
We did not go to the Specialty restaurants, so I can't answer that, but I assume if it's in the price range for the package, it should covered.
You can use the package in the MDR and any bar on the ship. For the premium package, I was covered for wines up to $12... anything over I had to pay the difference plus gratuity. So for example, I loved the Oberon cab they had in MDR, but it was $15. So I was charged 3.54 when I ordered it. The MDR and Vintages had the best selection of wines. The other bars had wine, but in some locations options were much more limited.
I'm attaching the wine list from Olive or Twist (one of my happy places) and MDR. You can see lots of options for $12 and under by the glass. Just to keep wine in the room so I wasn't running up and down to promenade, we brought on a couple bottles of wine too. Room steward got us wine glasses and opener to use.
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Observation
In defense of Costa Mia , they experienced a direct hit hurricane in the last couple of weeks. Fact they were open for business is astonishing . :(
Actually it hit 200 miles south, so they were lucky they escaped the brunt. According to the locals, Mahahual was boarded up pretty well from what I understood. Costa Maya itself is just a cruise ship port, and it looks like it can be closed up pretty well for bad weather.
My main complaint was the crowds, but certainly the trash could have been blown in. There was a fair amount of sea weed too, but that is expected after a storm (and living in Houston/Galveston area, you get used to the sea weed anyway!).
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Bulbasaur, Charmander, and Squirtle costumes. ;-)
Hahaha... :)
To my son's dismay, Pokemon Go only worked in ports. Although Costa Maya had tons of Pokestops....
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Thank you!! One more question....What time do the pools and hot tubs close for the evening?
Pools & hot tubs are open 7am-11pm, sport pool open for lap swimming 6-9am.
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Thank you for your review!! We are on LOS in 2 weeks! :) We are traveling without kiddos so will be able to utilize the adult pool. Was it always crowded?? What time would you suggest is a good time to arrive to avoid crowds/chair hogs?
Have a great cruise! We enjoyed our time, despite the annoyances :D
Main Pools --go in the morning and later in the evening. All the pools get worse in the afternoon from like noon to about 5, then they empty out after about 5. It seems like most people go to dinner between 6-7:30. If there is a contest (Belly Flop etc) there will be more crowds, but if you can get a seat to watch, it's hilarious.
Adult pool is packed in the afternoons. And it's small. The cantilevered hot tubs are adult only - we snagged some empty space in one during the early afternoon on a sea day, but there didn't seem to be consistency as to when those were full or not. But never saw them empty even early in the AM.
The pools all have ledges you can sit in a couple inches of water, which is where we spent most of our time since all the chairs were saved. But it was cooler sitting in the water so wasn't bad, and there is bar service around the pool (even with a drink package, additional tip can help make the service better !!)
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My 10 yr old son wore pants (khaki or navy) with a collared shirt (polo or button down) each night, and on formal night he wore a tie with button down shirt (no jacket).
It seemed very appropriate. And in some cases, he was better dressed than some adults. It didn't seem (at least on the Liberty) like dress code was enforced at all, given the t-shirts and basketball shorts they allowed in the MDR.
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Thanks so much for posting this. I would like a little more info on LFK if you can. We are booked with them for September.
Sorry to hear about the smoke. I often wonder about that issue. I am an x smoker so just the smell can be an issue.
LFK - you actually have to walk out of the port, past the taxis and all the vendors, and even beyond the security gate. Turn right just outside the security gate, and Larry and Dave are there waiting. We were loaded on an air conditioned bus. Ride was interesting through Roatan, and it took about 20 minutes or so. Once we arrived at Frenchy's, we did have to wait about 15-20 minutes in line until we got up to the desk to pay. Pay for everything in cash to avoid Honduran tax 15%. We did the package that was 2 drinks per person, lunch, and use of the beach stuff.
Boat ride was pleasant and quick. Once we arrived, we were met by Maria who assigned herself to our group for the day. She found us a shaded table, brought us drinks, snorkel equip, etc. The lunch was excellent - lobster, beef, chicken, rice and beans, slaw. The Monkey La La drink was like a milkshake with a slight coffee taste. The local beer (Salva Vida) was very good. We did SUP, kayaking, snorkeling, swam, and played in the sand. Snorkeling wasn't great, but we didn't venture beyond the swimming area.
Recommend water shoes because there are rocks. I did okay without them but they would've been nice to have. We brought our kids' masks and snorkels, but we borrowed masks for ourselves.
We spent probably $100 additional on drinks and extra snacks including tip for Maria.
We left the ship about 9am and returned about 3:30. It was a lot more crowded at LFK than I expected but it was still enjoyable.
Other questions?
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Yall have a great time sailing. I don't know if you like wine but I'd really appreciate updated wine lists :)
Have fun!!
I got the one from MDR and Olive or Twist. I was going to try to get one at the Vintages Wine Bar, but the bartender lectured me for 30 minutes on wine drinking in America, so I forgot!
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Just off Liberty. Family of four (kids ages 7,10) on our first RC cruise, had a great time!!
The Good
MDR! Favorite dishes: Rack of Lamb, creme brulee, french toast, eggs benedict, and the never ending lobster on formal night #2 (seriously the waiter just kept bringing us more!) Generally for all meals, service and food were good in MDR.
Favorite bars: Olive or Twist (except when it turned into the lame disco at night), Schooner
Promenade Rooms Adjoining 7611/13 - I have to say, my kids had a total blast with the window overlooking the Promenade. Our friends had a balcony, which was nice for the adults, but the kids all wanted to people watch..plus we got to watch the night events in the Promenade. So big thumbs up for the room! The room was really quiet (except during 70s parade night until about 11pm or so).
Premium Drink Package. I easily drank my money's worth and it was nice to know everything was already paid for so I could try lots of drinks. Pina coladas, frozen Mojito (yum), sangria, bloody marys, beer, wine, BOTTLED WATER... was totally worth it. They would allow me to get a bottle of water with every drink. Most of the MDR wine by the glass were within the $12 limit so I never had issues ordering wine.
Ben & Jerry's - small cup for $3.50 wasn't too crazy pricing, and the ice cream was 1,000 times better than Sprinkles, where kids are practically licking the dang dispenser. YUCK.
Room service - Cheese plate was delish! Our afternoon snack every day. Call 1 hour ahead. Always. Breakfast was right on time the one morning we had pre-ordered with the door tag - however, the milk was warm :(. Kids loved the burgers from room service, said they were better than MDR or Windjammer...not sure why???
Waterslides - the kids loved them... but go early. They get very crowded.
Nice minigolf !!! Kids played many times.
Little French Key on Roatan. Was great! Booked directly with LFK.
Karaoke was fun (and as a seasoned karaoke-er, great sound system!) but song variety/choices was strange.
Digital photo package - LOVE my photos(89)! Got it for $149 pre-cruise. Was worth it, but we made sure to seek out the photogs everywhere!!!
The Annoying
My Time Dining... yes you might have a reservation, but we waited at least 10-15minutes every night to be seated with 8pm reservations.
Voom Wifi - was speedy the first few days, then it just got really slow after day 5... just for Facebook and texting.. don't even try to stream even a YouTube short. I think in the end Voom was worth it (got the pre-cruise 9.99 /day deal) but it was not as reliable as I'd hoped.
I was a little disappointed in Sorrento's and Cafe Promenade. Not many choices, and breakfast at Cafe were not great... kids thought donuts were too dried out.
Transport in Costa Maya was confusing. We ended up where we wanted to be (Krazy Lobster) but lordy it was crowded! The people working there were very kind, food was good, but water was murky and some trash. Vendors came by non-stop. Spent about $75 on food and beers (no cover), but definitely would consider a private beach next time.
The Bad
Windjammer in general. Food was mediocre at best, and it's just too crowded at main dining hours. Honestly I avoided this place as much as possible.
Kids running down the halls. All. The. Time. I have kids, and we have rules: No running in the halls. Be respectful. Generally there were a large number of kids AND adults that need to learn some manners when it comes to standing in line, elevator etiquette, stopping in the middle of walkways for no reason oblivious to others, etc.
Cupcake place- the kids loved the decorating class, but they did not like the cupcakes at all. Dense dry cake and the icing was just weird. Disappointing.
Pools...not enough space for thousands of people. Even early in the morning. It was a full ship, and clearly everyone was in the pool! And the pool chair saving thing is just out of control. No one is monitoring, and people just save rows of chairs and never go back to them. Adult pool was no better.
Cozumel excursion - we did the Chankanaab Sea Lion swim which was amazing!! However, they absolutely refused to negotiate at all on the photo prices. $220 was the best they would do. Also my 10 yr old got sick from the buffet at the restaurant there, so stick to the menu for ordering!
Smoking... I expected minimal, designated smoking areas. But people seemed to be smoking everywhere. Anywhere near the casino is smokey. If you go on the one side of the pool deck, it's all smoking. When the wind blows the wrong way, no matter where you are in the pool, you get smoked out.
And my biggest pet peeve.... dress code.
I'm just really surprised people show up in a nice dining room for dinner in t-shirts and sweat shorts. I didn't see anyone turned away for shorts in MDR. And just because you have kids or teens with you, you can't put them in a collared shirt or at least something decent besides basketball shorts and a ratty t? I just find it disrespectful.
Biggest surprise? Getting on and off the boat in Galveston was not so bad. We arrived at port at 9:45 and were on the boat by 11:15 (we were not Suites or any special level of RC cruisers). For getting off, self assist in Group C (3 of 4) and it took 1.5 hours from initial queue (8:30am) to getting in car (10am).
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I am on the Liberty right now with a premium beverage package and am a wine drinker (normally $12-15 bottles retail at home).
I've had no problem with wine selections. Some of the smaller bars only have one or two types of each, but MDR, Olive & Twist, and the wine bar all have decent selection on my plan. If I want something over $12 I just get charged the difference (i.e. $15 glass, I pay $3).
I'm a red drinker mostly; in MDR, 10 of the 12 Reds offered by the glass are at or under $12. Whites 8 of 11 are $12 or under. Not many champagnes (3 of 8) although I've been getting a decent prosecco within my package limit.
As a note, my wine snob friend got the ultimate package thinking she'd get higher priced wines but she is also limited to $12 glasses (however her bottle discount is higher 40% for bottles under $100).
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Yall have a great time sailing. I don't know if you like wine but I'd really appreciate updated wine lists :)
Have fun!!
I drink wine... I will try to remember! :D
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If you do internet search for it's position, you will see that it is currently in the Gulf getting close to Galveston. It better be on time! :D
Curious how the seas are???
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When we were on Liberty a few years back in the Med it DID fill up well in advance.
So how do you make sure to get in before it fills up? Just show up early to the session time?
Thanks everyone for your responses!!!
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Leaving this Sunday for our first RCI cruise on Liberty. This is our first cruise with kids (ages 7,10) and we are travelling with another family with kids of the same age.
Adventure Ocean - I've read a lot about the offerings, times, age groups, etc. A few questions:
1. Do you sign up in advance for each session? If so, how early and do they fill up?
2. How early do you need to get them there before each session?
3. For the after hours care (after 10pm) do you have to go back and check them into the after hours care from the evening session, or do they automatically go over to that?
4. What exactly do they do in after hours care (for ages 7,10)?
5. My kids are "early to bed, early to rise kids" by nature, so I'm hoping they will be ok staying out late at the after hours care a few nights. Can they crash at after hours care if they get sleepy?
6. In room babysitting - is that appropriate for these ages in case the late nights in the kids club doesn't work out?
Thank you!! :D
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Thanks for the great review!
We are leaving this Sunday on Liberty for our first RCI cruise (my kids' first cruise ever, my 2nd cruise).
Do people dress up for the 70's night? Were there any other theme nights? I'm just wondering if we need to bring anything fun for us or the kids (ages 7,10).
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This is my kids' first cruise. So I sucked it up and bought it.
We splurged on their first Disney World trip a few years ago and bought the photo package - was well worth it for some fantastic pics with ALL of us (even MOM) in them!
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I'm confused... if you have a beverage package, they're still asking you to sign for every drink? They added gratuity to my pre-paid package... so I assumed gratuity in general was covered for bar drinks.
I would tip more for good service, etc. but just curious if it's expected by the drink even with the package?
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Careful, you're just adding more fuel to the fire of those who somehow thing this thread is judgmental and are "laughing at this thread", because a couple people have expressed a preference for khaki pants over jeans. :D
To clarify, I was laughing at the argument of jeans being too hot or not :D
I actually appreciate your thread, OP. I am also taking my son, so I too am trying to figure out what the heck he can wear since we own few pants that fit him at the moment thanks to summer growth spurt :)
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So you just randomly pick one out? Are there good ones and not so good ones?
Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app
Actually as someone above me posted, I saw many recommendations for the Krazy Lobster on various travel sites, so we were planning on going there for lunch and a little beach time, shop a little, then head back to the boat.
We'll be doing all day beach activities in our Roatan and Cozumel stops, so we thought something more chill in the middle might be good.
Plus if we are bored, we can just go back to the boat and actually be able to swim in the pool in peace...our sailing is apparently sold out!
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I love investigating for our trips. It keeps me sane and looking forward to something all spring and summer till we go in August. I had looked at several different compasses over the last few months for LOS.
Several of the cruises seemed to have 2 formal nights and five casual, some of which were labeled something like island or Caribbean casual.
However some appeared to have 2 formal, 2 smart casual, and 3 casual. This is the formula I noted on any with our itinerary, Roatan, Costa Maya and Cozumel. Does the formula change based on itinerary?
Sorry guys, for once it seems harder to dress as a man than a woman, lol. My husbands bringing his suit for formal and sport coat for smart casual. AND, is it just me... smart casual makes me think business casual not sport coat.
Sandy
Leaving in 10 day for Galveston, omg f I n a l l y. YAY!
We must be going on the same cruise - feels like the wait has been FOREVER!!! We are SO ready!!
I'm laughing at this thread.
Jeans in the summer, to me - no problem (born/raised in ATL, lived past 20 years in Houston).
Now, a sport coat? No way! I feel for you guys!
The last compass I saw for Liberty (July 10th 2016 sailing) said no short pants at dinner, even on casual nights.
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We have a 7 and 10 yr old and are going on the Liberty in a couple weeks. We did not book an excursion for Costa Maya - did lots of internet research and it sounds like taking a cab into Mahahual and picking a beach club is the best bet. Some supposedly don't have a cover charge as long as you eat and drink there.
So that's our plan...
Just off Liberty...
in Royal Caribbean International
Posted
The family traveling with us wanted to get off the boat ASAP. So instead of disembarking with our assigned Group C, they went with the first group A which met at 7:15am I believe. She texted me at 8:45am to let me know they were at their car. So if you get in the first self-assist group, it is possible to be off by 9, but it may be tight!!
As far as breakfast and lunch, we enjoyed MDR for breakfast nearly every day. It seemed the first couple of sea days it would be better to go early to MDR (before 8). Windjammer was not as crowded before 8 either, but again, I felt the food in MDR was much better! Your teens may not care :)
We did WJ for late lunch most days (after 1) and it wasn't too crazy. I did eat a foccacia sandwich at Sorrento's one day which was pretty good. I tried their pizza which was OK, kids thought it was decent. The Promenade isn't so busy during the day the first couple sea days (it's crazy on the last one since the stores are all having sales).
I think they key is to go early for breakfast and late for lunch. If your teens sleep in, they can go to WJ until 11 for breakfast. I think MDR closes breakfast at 10, but they stop seating before that.