Rewind

Tugs are here - let's get this cruise movin!

Yes, I had to change my password in order to get into the app. I discovered that yesterday when I was trying to fill out the health questionnaire. My wife's phone still had her logged in... until today. She had to change her PW today to get back into the app.

Internet - Vision has Starlink and at least while sitting in port, the speeds are pretty good.

We made it to our cabin and finally surprised the DW with our Royal Up upgrade. We were able to score a balcony for just a bit over the minimum bid amount. The other surprise which I was curious to see if it would happen, did happen. For this cruise, because we lost a day from our itinerary, each stateroom would get some OBC. Interior cabins get $75 but balconies get $200. Well we ended up getting the $200 OBC. It's great as that should pay most of the gratuities. As for the stateroom, the balcony cabin is a pretty decent size and the bathroom is larger than we expected.

We found our muster station and checked in, went up to the WindJammer for lunch and now we are sitting in the nice and very quiet Solarium as we wait for our room to be ready - I think they said 2pm.... Nevermind - they just announced the rooms are ready as I was typing this at 1:15pm.

We checked out of the hotel just before 11:00am, walked the two blocks over to the cruise terminal. There were a few people in line, but we wanted to explore a bit so we just dropped off our bags and walked over to the nearby mall to check out the 757 Creative ReUse Center. It was neat but we didn't need to bring any of it with us. Then a quick walk back to the port. We were walking up to the terminal while the giant screen on the Nauticus museum said it was 11:45am. There was no line outside, we walked up the stairs (just because), showed our boarding passes, and walked into the building. There was a short line to get through security, and then a short line to check in. We chatted with the check in agent for a couple minutes. She said that the port side agents were bussed in from Baltimore (some the night before, some this morning). After the chat, we walked past the photo ops, up the gangway and onto the ship. We stepped onboard at 12:03pm. It ranks up with the smoothest embarkations we have had.

Walked over to the water, saw a couple military ships, walked past the Vision as people were disembarking, and then headed to the Selden Market and found breakfast at the Granby Waffle Shop - it is connected to both the market and the library. We got a Queso, Egg, and Bacon waffle and a Grandma Waffle (chicken, egg, and berries) and both were excellent (although the DW didn't care for the queso on my waffle, I thought it was great). Afterwards we walked just a bit more, stopped by the visitor center, and then back to the hotel to check out (in about 45 minutes).

Good morning from Norfolk! Due to the Royal login issues, we never were able to fill out the health questionnaire yesterday; we will just have to do that at check-in. We have received emails stating that their turn around times are not going smoothly so they "kindly ask that you please arrive one (1) hour later than your selected arrival time". I had bumped ours up to 11am when the home port changed, but they say they don't want people to arrive before 12:30pm. But for now, time to go find a place for breakfast and wander a bit.

Made it to our hotel at the Marriott Waterside. Don't know if it is because we got in so late, but we ended up with two double beds instead of a king. Doesn't matter too much to us - we each get our own bed to spread out in. Time for bed.

The Baltimore airport has some informative signs outside the restrooms. It updates in fairly real time.

We made it as far as Baltimore so far. Our second flight got moved back up to it's original time so we will at least get to Norfolk "today". Time to grab dinner.

Hi all and welcome to our live cruise notes sailing from Baltimore... I mean Norfolk! We booked this cruise way before the Baltimore bridge incident and we are flexible enough to make the change to the new home port. We are flying out in a few hours but of course we have been informed that our second flight of two is delayed and we won't get into Norfolk until VERY late tonight. The current itinerary: 12th Fri - Norfolk 13th Sat - Sea 14th Sun - Charleston 15th Mon - Port Canaveral 16th Tue - Freeport, Bahamas 17th Wed - Sea 18th Thur - Sea 19th Fri - Norfolk 20th Sat - Norfolk (we are staying an extra day on our own) We originally were set to stop in Nassau on the 17th and not come back until the 20th, but that stop was cut so the ship could get back a day early and arrive in Norfolk on the 19th. Why you might ask? It turns out that Norfolk is hosting the Nato Parade of Nations and that just happens to be right where the ships dock. There was no way they could get the people around the parade or the parade around the people and since the parade was scheduled first, our cruise had to make way. But this is also part of the reason we are staying the extra day; we figured as we were there already, we might as well check it out. We are going to miss Nassau - I know, many people have been there multiple times (including us) but we haven't been there since the new port facilities have opened and were looking forward to checking them out. I know it isn't much, but it would have been fun. We originally booked an interior cabin but were able to win a Royal-Up bid for a balcony. We did have to resubmit the bid three or four times - my hunch is they canceled the bids after the bridge incident. I'm guessing the ship will be less full than originally expected, but I will find that out in a few days. We do have an internet package on board and will be curious to see how internet speeds are on an older ship. And of course right as I'm about to answer the health questions for check-in, the Royal site won't allow me to log in. Stay tuned, more to come!

Did you mean 6654? That is the one we stayed in and I might have a pic. It was a wider room but shorter - overall more square.

Already made our flight changes. If anyone is staying in Norfolk through the 20th, there is the NATO Parade of Nations.

I'm crossing my fingers that they will reimburse a hotel night for after the cruise. Now just need to find out what to do in Norfolk.

Also noticed our Apr 12 sailing is now only a 7 night sailing and not an 8 night.

Just got the email - it has moved to Norfolk.

On the April 12 here.

There is a news station reporting that Royal will also use Norfolk for Vision of the Seas: https://www.wfmynews2.com/article/news/local/cruise-chaos-royal-caribbean-carnival-cruises-from-baltimore-will-now-port-in-norfolk-ginny-maurer-cruise-planners-talks-travel-insurance-for-cruisers/83-2f8cc024-f92c-4133-9205-bce513f63ef3 I wish Royal would release a statement to those who have cruises booked directly.

Just wanted to drop in - my full review was posted here: https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=710287 Super condensed summary - we would sail Virgin again as long as the price is right.

Unless it's raining... 🙂 Our first two days were rain so everyone was inside and decks 15 & 16 had nobody there (unless they were working out or in the Galley). Deck 6 has the shops and the Casino and the bar under the stairs, but I'd say most people were on 7 either in the games area, the dock house, or the Sip lounge. But yes, I do think inside spaces are a bit lacking on sea days.

I'm going to write up a summary of thoughts in the next couple days - I've got some notes to sort through but also have a couple last minute gifts to wrap and family events to attend. But the quick highlights: Virgin has amazing food. Entertainment is outstanding. Venues on the ship are great. Not a fan of the overall layout of the ship - I think public space is lacking. There are a LOT of daybeds but not many loungers. More later!

And now that it is X-mas eve day and the next set of cruisers are on-board, here is the surprise that was left in our cabin:

We made it home - but I need to finish up the last day at Bimini. We booked the Cultural Heritage tour of Bimini through Virgin. You meet the tour at the end of the pier right across the street. They want you to be there 15 minutes early but also note that it takes 15 minutes to walk to the end of the pier - possibly more if you stop and look at the sharks in the water. Our first stop was at Joe's Conch Shack. Nice place to learn a bit about Conch, how they get them out of the shell, and a bit of info on how they use it. The next stop was a small craft market, probably the best place we saw to pick up any souvenirs. Next was the Gallant Lady shipwreck from 1997 (the driver kept saying 1993, but all data says 1997 including our guides on our half of the tram). Then was a stop at the Dolphin House built by Sir Ashley Saunders, Poet Laureate. We got to meet him and he loves to show people around the house (he lives on the first floor but tours the 2nd, 3rd, and roof). Quick rest stop with a snack, and then back to the initial meeting point. We walked back to the ship, ate lunch, and then went back out to catch the tram to the Bimini Beach Club. It's maybe a 7 minute ride and they pickup on the dock and drop you at the front door of the club. By the time we arrived around 3pm, they had run out of clean towels but we did find a pile of 5-6 left that were clean. We found some available loungers - there were plenty at that time but we spaced ourselves out from others a bit. Don't expect a real relaxing beach day here as the music from the pool area is quite loud. The music did end around 4pm and we just lazed around for a bit. We dipped our toes in the water but it was a high of 72F that day and the water was cooler so we didn't feel like getting completely in. Around 4:30 we decided to head back and it did seem like the staff were starting to close up. Back on the ship, we got cleaned up and headed to the bar at Razzle Dazzle as that is where my DW had her favorite drink of the trip, "The Old Sport". After chatting with the bar tender a bit, we went to get in line for the Ship Show. Annoying comment - we are ok if you are holding a place in line for one or two people, but when there are two of you and you are holding spots for your party of NINE, let the rest of them get in the back of the line! The show is a variety show with a set dinner menu (you pick chicken or fish). There is a small band, a host, four dancers, and five other performing acts. The food is good but portions are small (head to the galley after if you are still hungry) and the show is a great time. Then it was back to the room to pack. Shark: