SusieQT

We had a great time with Cozumel H2O in July. First rate!

I was able to turn off my kids charging but it was not a popular move from the sneers I got from the guest services staff. They had the refreshmeng package so drinks were covered. After the fact I don’t think it was necessary. My kids are 14 & 17. I was a bit concerned they would lose their seapass cards & wow bands.

You can also just show up. We were on Harmony with 6500+ and it was not a problem. They publically say that they accomodate everyone who shows up.

 

Generally speaking, I don't think cruises are a great choice for a family with kids under 3, though we did have a great Carnival cruise with our 2 year old as he really enjoyed their complimentary camp program.

I could not disagree more! We cruised with Disney & Celebrity when our kids were under 3. Both were top notch & this was 10+ years ago. We also had a Royal Suite on X for a 10 night PC cruise that was completely amazing. We were able to get in-room babysitting. We used the nursery on Disney.

Cruising is great with young children- no cars, everything is stroller friendly, wide range of food choices, activities to meet all kinds of needs.

We just cruised again for the first time in 8 years, our kids are now older teenagers. I much prefer land vacations once they could walk and hike and swim and I am definitely not Loyal to Royal or even cruising.

If you go on a tour, remember that you'll have a snorkel vest on, so the depth of water won't be a problem, and they don't really take you in the really deep water, as in 1500 feet deep. You can tell where it's deep by the color of the water. The darker, the deeper.

We did not have snorkel vest with Cozumel H2O but they did offer life jackets. The water is so salty there is no need for a vest. I would say at the most you are in 40-60 feet of water. Sometimes much more shallow than that.

We went with Cozumel H2O 2 weeks ago & they were fantastic. What do you mean by more than fish and coral? We saw 1 turtle, really huge cool starfish, a few stingrays.

We went out with Cozumel H2O last week and had a blast.

We are definitely thinking about that on our Anniversary Tuesday 17th. I’ve watched the Wonderland reviews I would definitely want the dessert but I’m too picky of an eater for the rest

 

 

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You can go just for dessert. Ask for Pedro.

That’s a known bug on Royal IQ compatible ships. The same was true on Anthem two months back. Unfortunately, not on Adventure.

We were not using the Royal IQ app, just the wifi. I would still wait until you are sailing and try it before you spend the $.

We could use imessage for free last week on Harmony. My approach was to wait and see what happened on the ship after we were sailing. We even received iMessage is from home. Saved us $40. Phones on airplane mode with wifi connected to royal wi-fi

Cozumel is one of the top snorkeling and scuba destinations in the world. I would snorkel or do discover scuba if they like adventure. We just did it with my 14 year old and he LOVED it. We used Cozumel H2O and they were fantastic.

We looked at doing a snorkel tour through Cozumel h2o before switching over to their introduction to scuba tour through them, which we are doing in July. They get very positive reviews on TripAdvisor and the cost is quite reasonable. Thus far, their communication has been excellent and we are very much looking forward to it.

We just did a snorkel/discover scuba tour with them - 3 did scuba and 6 did snorkel. Simply the best!

We just did snorkeling and discover scuba with Cozumel H2O. They were fantastic, everyone together on the same boat - we had ages 9-71 in our group. Check them out if you are willing to do an independent excursion.

We'll be on board in 2 days :)

- Which day is the 2nd formal night....is it Day 5 or day 6? trying to figure out which night for specialty dinning.

- Anyone noticed how crowded is the kids splash-away area?

 

We'll be cruising with a 3 and 10 year olds.

 

Thanks in advance!

The 2nd formal night is Wednesday. Ours was a bit off as they changed the lobster menu to Friday. I would do specialty dining the first night, the MDR is a mess.

I didn't notice it being very crowded but we did have quite a bit of cloudy and rainy weather. I didn't notice a lot of little kids or strollers.

We have only sailed Disney (7 times-all ships), but are trying RCCI with Liberty of the Seas that has two of the ports you had.

1. Comparison of the two lines?

2. Any favorite excursions for Falmouth and Cozumel?

3. What do you like to do on the ships for cruising days? Any activities not to miss? Our kids are all in college now-they would love the sushi making class if the Liberty has one!

4. How long is the port exit Times, can we be off the ship right at the times posted or are there delays?

Thanks!!!

1. We haven't been on Disney in several years. IMO, the food is much better on DCL, the decor is more nautical, and no port in the Caribbean holds a candle to Castaway Cay!

But I think with teen/adults they will love RCCL. Lots of activities geared for the older crowd (meaning 10 +).

2. I was not getting off the ship in Jamaica, but we did and spent $800 on jewelry - should've done an excursion! ;p;p:cool::cool:

In Cozumel we did a snorkel and scuba tour with Cozumel H2O - they were fantastic. No need to be certified and you can have snorkelers and scubas on the same boat. We loved it so much we are planning to go to Cozumel for spring break to get certified with Cozumel H2O. In the past we have enjoyed Paradise Beach.

3. My family really liked the sushi class. If there is anything that you must do, book it before your cruise. My kids also did the semi private flow rider lesson the first day. They also did the zip line, ice skating, abyss, mini golf, and water slides. We also liked hanging out in the Solarium. We are a pretty quiet group. I like the margaritas at Sabor. Harry Potter trivia was stupid hard. We surprised the kids with the refreshment package and that was really fun to try fruity drinks, fresh juice, etc.

4. We left our stateroom at 9am and it took 45 minutes. I really think you can leave the ship at any time you want, they called groups but I didn't see anyone checking. I would for sure give yourself enough time. Our flight wasn't until noon at FLL so we still had plenty of time. There were plenty of taxis and it's about 5 minutes to the airport.

I am interested to know the size of the OP and your groups. Possibly the size of the group was more than on server could handle and caused it to be slower service? I noticed on Oasis, larger tables were there eating appetizers when my family of four arrived & we usually finished dessert before they did. Edit- should have kept reading, i just saw OP was party of 9. OP- did you only have one server, helper or four people total helping?

1 server & 1 asst. We were right by the entrance so the head waiter was near - but unhelpful. We ordered everything at once & quickly. We spent 30+ minutes after apps were cleared waiting for mains & the same mains to dessert. I left before dessert twice & my family brought it to go. Once because I had a headache and the last night so I could finish packing.

Thanks for the review..we are on HOTS in November..next time, do MTD at 6:30-6:45 the latest..you went at prime time ( 7-8 pm)..NEVER go past 6:45, it gets too busy..I know it can be hard to get everybody to go a little early, but we have had NO problems going early and many more problems going late..also TELL the waiters you are trying to "make a show" at "XX time" ( like 9 pm tell them..)..we do that everytime and on 36 cruises, we have never missed a show...just some FYI..

 

Big Al

We tried for earlier but no luck for a party of 9. We would get there by 7:15-7:30 so as soon as our table was ready we would be seated. We also told them we were in a hurry. The team was the problem. Nothing made it faster....

How were the seas? I'm on Harmony next year the week of 4th of July and my family is a little worried about rough seas (usually we only cruise in the Spring). I know that seas change and such but thought I would ask.

The seas were smooth. A little rainy. This week is completely different though so it’s just luck!

Well worth it if she likes different & interesting food. I loved it.

You could also order the night before to keep the servers moving on schedule.

Was on Harmony as well. There was face painting, balloon making and a hot dog eating contest on the Boardwalk. There was a 6:30 rock concert in the aquatheater by the house band. Also, a massive balloon drop on the Royal Prominade.

And a big cake of the USA! :)

There was plenty of shade on columbus cove.

We asked for a mattress pad for the couch on Harmony. We did 2 ov balconies for 6k the week of 4th of july with $325 obc per cabin. It pays to shop around.

Are there formal nights on the cruise? Did people participate. Are slacks and a polo acceptable?

2 formal nights. People were very dressed up the 1st night, I was quite surprised at the number of people. We were in long dresses and suits. But you will be fine in anything. The 2nd night was much less - they changed our lobster night but kept the formal night for the 4th of July.

I have a cabin booked on deck 14. How did you like it? Did you have any issues with noise from the deck above?

Not really, We were in 14576 and 14574. A few deck chairs being moved in the AM. The hallways were very loud with people running and talking loudly. I called guest services the 1st night but it still went on until 2am.

We had a portable Bose speaker and we turned on our white noise app and I slept really well after that!! I would've been in trouble with just ear plugs.

The location was great - close to Solarium and pool decks.