Santo23

Did you order your coffee each night for the next morning thru the online room service? I think I heard only continental breakfast is complimentary any more...is this true?

 

Thanks! Sailing August 5th!

Susan

Hi. Yes, continental is free and honestly, included several basic items like coffee, tea, yogurts, pastries, etc. There are room service cards in the cabin which we filled out every night, selected the desired delivery time window (in half hour increments) and placed on exterior door knob before going to bed. They usually call just before delivering and we tip two bucks each time. They would bring the tray right out to the balcony for us. We love it cause we get to enjoy some quiet morning time on the balcony before getting ready, either watching the waves or admiring the Port we’re pulling into / just arrived at.

Please can you stop by 150 Central Park and get a photo of the Menu, and could you ask if it is the same one for the whole time or does it change ? Many thanks

 

 

Hi. I was able to swing by 150 Central Park on our way to disembark the ship yesterday. Here's a pic of the menu. I confirmed with the staff, the menu stays same, no rotation or changes.

Thanks! No pic, but I found it on the rcc website. (I’m norwegian so also had to google «tide packets»;p) learning something new every day:)

Staying 3 days in Barcelona first so think I’ll pack my suitcase almost to the max, and see if I can find some tide packets in the shop. Kind of expensive to use the laundry service so I’ll try to avoid that.

But the price for dry cleaning my suit looks like it is a lot cheaper than at home so I’ll probably take advantage of that.

I have access to a PC so attaching picture should work now. Let me know if it doesn't show up.

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=424753&stc=1&d=1531156355

Sea Day - we took the chance to sleep in a bit, skipped coffee on balcony and headed straight to Solarium Bistro for breakfast, grabbing lounge chairs at the pool by around 8:30a. Great day chilling poolside. We grabbed takeaway lunch at El Loco Fresh and sunned til 2:30. We caught the 3p water show “Aqua Nation”, walked around the sports deck, Solarium and other areas to take in the various ship venues. A brief nap in cabin before showering and heading for quick dinner in main dining room, then off to Royal Theatre for 9:30 comedy show (it was just so so - the staff comedian Simeon is funnier than the special guest comedian.) We then went to Casino for our free slot spins (part of onboard perks for Emerald) and to Royal Promenade afterward for the 70s party - not without grabbing quick slice of pizza at Sorrento’s.

For the first time we opted to carry our bags off the ship so we got ready this morning, had everything packed, left stuff in room, had relaxing breakfast in Solarium Bistro and departed the ship around 9:45. Taxi line took about 45mins and we processed through airport pretty quickly. All that remains is flight home.

All in all the cruise was very good, Symphony is a beautiful ship. We were disappointed by food, service and price in Chops ($53pp) while impressed by food and service in Main Dining Room - the prime rib and chicken dishes were much more tasty than the filet and rib eye at Chops. The entertainment remains very good (wth exception of comedy show) - although we do miss fun stuff like Quest, Love & Marriage from the US itinerary sailings. The ship amenities and facilities are great. The service was good but not same as experienced few years ago - I personally believe it’s been a slow and steady decline from the earlier days when it was outstanding. We remain loyal to Royal - it’s very good at fair and moderate price.

Getting on in Rome Thursday. I assume the formal nights are day 2 and day 6 from the Barcelona departure, correct?

Hi. Yes, formals are Day 2 & 6. Two things to note: very casual dress on this sailing (many people wearing shorts in MDR) and no lobster night - when asked, we were advised it’s on US itineraries only.

Naples - coffee on balcony, quick breakfast in Solarium Bistro and off the ship to meet our tour guide for “Daily Amalfi Coast Group Tour” which we booked through Viator, operated by Worldtours. When booking this excursion we opted for the small group option (max 16 pax), which was about $10pp more - we didn’t want to be on a full size coach/bus all day. Our guide Giuseppe was standing right outside the terminal holding sign with our name on it - doesn’t get easier than that! He phoned the driver who came right over, 2 other couples who were staying in Naples were picked up before us, and we were on our way. First stop was a Limoncello factory for a tasting - the cream version was fantastic, we bought a bottle to bring home. The tour included lunch at a beautiful cliff side restaurant not far from Positano (salad, pasta and cake.) We also made stops in Amalfi and Ravello - our guide offered optional boat ride in Amalfi (€12 pp extra) and our group jumped at the opportunity - boat was waiting at the dock and we rode for about 45mins seeing the full coastline of Amalfi - a fantastic opportunity to view the coast from the sea. As we were returning to Naples our guide inquired if we had tried local pizza yet, we hadn’t so we asked to be dropped off outside the cruise port on our return. We grabbed quick pizza at a place our guide recommended, then walked 15mins back to the ship. Yum, it was worth the €5 and short walk back to ship - we boarded around 6:30p. We saw multiple Worldtours vans up and down Amalfi coast so seems they are popular tour company - we would recommend them for sure.

After quick nap we had dinner (8:45 seating in main dining room), then caught 10:45 show “Flight” in main theatre, a little walking around and then to bed. Tomorrow is last day, a sea day, so now need to soak up every remaining moment before reality sets in on Sunday

Civitavecchia / Rome - we repeated our routine of coffee on balcony while getting ready followed by quick breakfast in Solarium Bistro, then met up at 8a in Royal Theatre for our “Rome in a Day” shore excursion through Royal Caribbean. Our group boarded the bus and off we went to Rome. To be frank, this excursion was frustrating as we didn’t have enough time at any one stop to do what we wanted - lines at Colosseum were to long for us to get in within the allotted time for that stop, same for St Peters and for Trevi fountain and Spanish steps we barely had enough time to walk to both and spend but a couple mins at each. Maybe it was busier than usual but definitely only an opportunity to view these sites, not experience them. Bus returned to cruise terminal by 5:30, we went right back on ship - dinner, water show (Hiro), walked the Royal Promenade and to bed. Next time, we’ll take train to/from on our own and commit to experiencing one of the sites completely - maybe the Colosseum.

Thanks for your review! Was there a favorite among the places you went for tapas in Barcelona? We’ll be on the Symphony for her Transatlantic in October, so that’s the only port we share, but I love hearing about the boat!

 

Also, if you happen to make it to Park Cafe, could you perhaps look to see if they sell specialty coffees there? I know they do on the oasis, but I’m not sure in the larger format.

 

Thanks again for the live review and taking time from your vacation to keep us Cruise Critic people informed.

I’m so sorry, forgot to answer your question about places in Barcelona for Tapas - our bike guide recommended Lobo (which was close to our hotel), we went and it was great - very nice outdoor scene, good food and delicious sangria. We also ate at Ambos Mundos within Placa Reail which was good too.

Thank you for answering all those questions. Enjoy your cruise :D

 

Following for my family. We've done the free shuttle in Marseille until La Joliette and enjoyed the walk to the Vieux Port, where we boarded the Petit Train. There was a taxi strike that day.

 

Since my family travels with small children --

Did u notice if there were taxis to take at the port?

 

About Cinque Terre --

 

I've noticed that the ferry took almost 2 hours to reach Monterosso. Is that correct?

Again, I'm taking into account the small children and trying to give them the best options -- train v. ferry.

 

Thanking you in advance for your replies,

Hi. I did not see any taxis around the cruise port itself or specifically near the free shuttle drop off location but it was early in the day and would probably be easy enough to hail a taxi or have security call one for you at shuttle drop off location.

For the Cinque Terre ferry, yes, was just short of 2 hours from departing Le Spezia port area til arrived in Monterroso. The train is definitely faster but walk from cruise Port to train station is further (25mins), but not overly strenuous.

Le Spezia - the early morning storms cleared quickly. We grabbed breakfast in main dining room and headed off ship by 9:15. Quick shuttle bus to cruise terminal (all passengers must shuttle as immediate area around ship is industrial and no walking or taxis allowed), purchased ferry tickets (cash only), walked 10mins to ferry dock and caught the 10a ferry to Monterosso. It made quick stops in each town to drop and pick up passengers - we arrived to Monterosso around 11:50. We walked around each village and took train back (Cinque Terre Train Card €16), stopping at each one. Each village has its own personality but still similar experience - restaurants, bars, shops. We ate lunch in small restaurant In Monterosso, purchased a blanket/throw from street vendor, purchased wine in Riomaggiore to bring home. The trains were just ok, lots of time walking to/from stations as well as waiting for trains. Would consider ferrying back on future visit.

We had dinner in main dining room (food has been very good), then caught 10p ice show iSkate 2.0 - another great performance. We stopped by Royal Promenade for 4th of July celebration - music by live band, huge cake and balloon drop (7000 balloons.) Then headed to bed for early start for day in Rome.

Thanks for your review! Was there a favorite among the places you went for tapas in Barcelona? We’ll be on the Symphony for her Transatlantic in October, so that’s the only port we share, but I love hearing about the boat!

 

Also, if you happen to make it to Park Cafe, could you perhaps look to see if they sell specialty coffees there? I know they do on the oasis, but I’m not sure in the larger format.

 

Thanks again for the live review and taking time from your vacation to keep us Cruise Critic people informed.

We made it to Park Cafe this morning, no specialty coffees :(

Arrived in La Spezia to a thunderstorm, and despite not waking to another beautiful sunrise, watching the storm from covered balcony was a great experience. Storms are supposed to clear by noon so we’re slowing our schedule, enjoying an extra cup of coffee on the balcony before grabbing breakfast in main dining room (a first for us), then heading onshore once storms clear - around late morning. We’re in port til 8p so still plenty of time to experience Cinque Terre.

We are going on Symphony at the end of the month and am following your review. Do you know what time of night Playmakers stop serving food and if you have tried it what do you think of it?

Ha, we hadn’t heard of Playmakers until you asked - still learning :) We haven’t tried it but will have to find it and give it a look. Cruise Compass shows it open 6p-1a.

Following, departing Rome on the July 12th.

 

I had a reservation at Central Park but canceled it looking for 3 dinner package on board to save a few bucks (I'm paying for 6 people). What is the specialty restaurant availability like on board?

Our practice has always been to go to speciality restaurant(s) immediately upon boarding the ship and book our reservations. Their popularity has increased as has pre-cruise booking of reservations so it may be tough to secure desired day/time so if getting a discounted package, you’ll probably need to be flexible and do later seating. Sorry i didn’t have more detailed information to share.

following..thanks for taking the time to take us along!! :)

 

in a symphony report from last month, the couple described marseille as being rather "sketchy" near the port...(i guess on the way to the free shuttle)...

did you experience that?

Definitely not sketchy near free shuttle, maybe it’s because industrial area so doesn’t look touristy. We walked through Old Town all the way to Port Vieux and back, never felt uncomfortable. I will say that there is graffiti everywhere and many buildings have bars on windows but that’s very common for many European cities - saw same in Palma de Mallorca and Barcelona.

On same cruise in October. Where to stay in Barcelona so we are near transportation for sightseeing or walking to them conveniently. How was your hotel, where did you get breakfast on the run in city...best sights to see.

 

on the ship, let us know how cinque terre goes as we are going to do that too.

We stayed at Eco Boutique Hostal Grau (found on Booking.com) - very reasonably priced, great location and comfortable accommodations. It’s located just off Las Ramblas and very convenient to walk, metro and Placa Catalunya (Aerobús from airport.) Numerous restaurants, pubs, stores within a few doors from the hotel - a breakfast place right next door, Starbucks within 3 min walk and grocery (Carrefour) within 4 min walk.

We used metro to access La Sagrada Familia and walked for everything else. Took a taxi to get to cruise Port (€15) All areas were safe to walk anytime, just beware of pickpockets.

Following. Thanks for the info about the Marseille- shuttle. No need paying if you can get the same for free. I am boarding in Barcelona in 5 days.

I have a question about laundry, perhaps you or someone else can answer me...

Is it possible to wash a bag of clothes? (Typicly a few t-shirts and a couple of short pants)

Just trying to figure out how much to pack for my first cruise ever:D

I’ve seen where a few days into the cruise they offer a small bag at discounted rate but hasn’t been offered yet on this sailing. Otherwise, we bring tide packets and hand wash couple items we want to rewear. Here’s pic of the laundry options and pricing.

My wife and I are sailing Symphony now, left Barcelona Sunday July 1st, thought I’d capture some points and offer to answer questions.

Barcelona - we arrived in Barcelona three days early for general sightseeing, explore the city and bit and take in tapas and sangria. We did an ebike tour, visited La Sagrada Familia and lots of walking, mainly Las Ramblas and Barre Gothic. We grabbed a taxi at 11:30a on Sunday, were onboard the ship within 15 minutes. We carried 3 bottles of wine (no inspection) and 12 pack of bottled water (porter would not allow us to check the water.)

Symphony is beautiful, as would expect the of new ship. Many subtle updates from earlier Oasis class ships - mainly in the decor and appointments, small touches that make it current. We’re in 2C category Large Balcony Stateroom on Deck 14 - hump cabin. Cabin is very nice, includes a couch, two wardrobe storage units, desk, flatscreen and balcony that has two loungers and a table. We dropped our bags in stateroom immediately after boarding but our luggage didn’t arrive til 6:45p - leaving us only 15mins to get ready and make our 7p Chops reservations. Muster drill was quick and easy, our muster was in a Studio B (ice rink) - drill now consists of live demo of life jacket + watching James Bond style video that educates while entertaining. We were released from the drill when video ended - approx 20 mins total.

We love Chops Grill but at $53.90pp it made us indecisive so we paid a visit to Chops. They have the 3,4or5 restaurant packages but that was more than we wanted to do. I proceeded to mention that on prior sailings there was a deal when dining at specialty restaurant on first night - they said it is the Buy One Get One (BOGO), told us not offered on our sailing but since its enabled in their system they’d give it to us if we wanted but had to be early seating both Day 1 & Day 2 - so we took it. Ended up paying $57 each ($114 total for wife and I) for two nights of specialty dining - half the price if we booked at regular rate. We grabbed latest seating, 7p, and Chops for both nights. All in all a decent price for multiple

course, great steak dinners.

After Chops on Day 1 we went to the ice show, 1977. Consistent with what I read from others, the storyline is a little confusing but the talent is amazing. The show opened with a music / light show using mini drones - incredible how Royal continues to innovate with their entertainment.

Palma de Mallorca - we did a bike tour through Callandridemallorca. We had coffee delivered to our room, ate at Solarium Bistro, then departed ship and walked about 25m to the meeting place (10a meet up), had a great tour guide, and wonderful 3 hour tour, mostly around the city center. Would recommend. We walked back to the ship and enjoyed rest of afternoon poolside. Dinner #2 at Chops, then grabbed seats at the 9p water show - another confusing theme/storyline but incredible talent nonetheless. We then walked around checking out shops and venues around Royal Promenade. ** Note: we like hanging out at Schooners for some sign along music but this venue on Symphony is ‘off’ - we can’t figure out if it’s the mix of guests, the piano player or the venue layout where piano is not the main focus of the room - or combination of all three things. We’ve been there both Nights 1 & 2 and neither night has there been any energy in the crowd, more like a lounge with piano player.

Marseilles - coffee in our room, breakfast at Solarium Bistro (much busier today), headed off ship around 9:30, took free shuttle and walked rest of way through old town and Port Vieux, checking out open markets, vendors and general sightseeing. Headed back to ship around 1p. Lunch was at El Loco Fresh (Mexican, cafe style.) Now spending rest of day poolside. ** Note: despite a paid shuttle being promoted by Royal onboard in Cruise Compass, there is a free shuttle which is about 10-15m walk from ship. It takes you to Joliette, about 15m from main area of Port Vieux. Directions and map available at information desk in building after existing the ship.

Tomorrow is La Spezia where we are doing Cinque Terre - ferry out to Monterosso, stopping in each village I n way back via train.

That’s all for now. Glad to answer any questions anyone has.

@steamboats, not sure that's completely accurate, let me try to summarize what I know as available options:

Royal offers:

- Royal app which connects to their wifi but provides no access to internet. Guests can use this app for guest-to-guest texting, at cost of $8 per person for duration of cruise. This does not enable texting with anyone not using the service or not onboard the ship. This app is basically virtual Cruise Compass and SeaPass so it's a great resource even if not using for the fee-based texting capability.

- Voom Surf or Surf and Stream packages which connects to their wifi and provides access to internet. Pricing is per day but must be purchased for entire sailing (e.g. $15.99/day x 7 day cruise.) Pricing seems to be best when purchases pre-cruise via Cruise Planner - watch for regular sales that occur. Guests would board ship with phone in airplane mode, with wifi enabled and use the provided code to login and use the purchased service. This is best option when needing data access for email, web, What'sApp, Facebook, etc.

Cellular carrier options:

- I use Verizon and when abroad I can use cellular roaming (with cellular data turned off) and costs $.50 to send texts / $.05 to receive texts - there is also fixed pricing for calling. This is good option when trying to stay in touch with family not sailing with me, and when I don't need data access such as Facebook, email, etc.

- Verizon also offers 'Travel Pass' at a fixed rate per day and location, with limited data. This is an option but isn't cost effective if using for data.

@Neilp - we're planning same itinerary for La Spezia on our cruise next week. For your return via train, was it one ticket (4 Euro) that covered all the way back including the stops in each town? And if you wouldn't mind sharing, which towns did you stop in / which did you prefer? Thx Joe

@CaribbeanBound - thanks for the post, very helpful. We're stopping in La Spezia in early July, planning to take ferry to Monterosso and train back from village to village. Is the 4 euro train ticket good from Monterosso to La Spezia including all stops or do we need to buy a ticket for each segment? (we were advised to validate tickets)

We're stopping in Palma de Mallorca during upcoming cruise on Symphony of the Seas (8a-4p). We're doing the Old Town Bike Tour through Callandride (10a-1p) and thinking about visiting a beach afterward. What's a good beach for us to visit within reasonable distance and convenient after bike tour and to get back to ship afterward.

Here's the list of current Onboard Savings for Platinum Members (same for youth and adults)

(1101) Buy any wine, beer or soda by the glass and get a second FREE

(1102) Purchase any glass of win, beer or soda and receive a 10% discount

(1105) Buy one, get one FREE Johnny Rockets Milkshake

(1107) Buy any coffee beverage and get a second FREE

(1108) One complimentary non-alcoholic specialty coffee drink with the purchase of dinner in any specialty restaurant

(1201) Receive $5 off a $30 bag of Wash and Fold Laundry on 5 or more nights

(1204) $5 off any dry cleaning or pressing services of $25 or more

(1301) 10% off one tuxedo rental

(1701) $3 off your Pets at Sea package which includes a pet and an outfit

(1901) Spend $25 or more on Royal Caribbean logo products and receive 10% off

(2001) Buy one photo and receive a 50% off discount on a second photo (Standard events only)

(2102) Buy a Bingo Package and get 3 FREE Jackpot Cards

(2202) Get 15% off any spa or salon service

(2502) Buy an internet package and receive 15% off

(2302) Two FREE Spin to Win at the Casino

(2356) 20% off Casino tournament entrance fee. Excluding Poker tournaments

For our 2nd time in St Croix we again rented from Budget Rent A Car and wow were we extremely disappointed. Three months prior to the cruise we reserved a Jeep Wrangler X (convertible), for pick up at 8am. We arrived at 9am and the office was closed, we had to wait around for someone to show up (approx 15 minutes.) They didn't have the Wrangler X, instead gave us a Grand Cherokee - not even close substitute. We argued the fact we reserved a sporty convertible 4x4, the price of the Cherokee was less, etc. - they wanted nothing to do with it - take the Cherokee or not was there stance. We had no backup plan and there were no other rental places around so we took the Cherokee. We had to argue with them for 15 minutes to even get 10% off. That was my last rental with Budget (personally and professionally)

@minn0315 - thank you! so very much for the review. We board Adventure this Saturday and your insights and perspective are very helpful, thank you again.