First Timer - Help!

[Emmabelle]

It's our first cruise April 18 on Sovereign and I have some questions. It's just so overwhelming. :)

 

Do they leave your luggage in the hall and if so, how do you know when it's out there if you're out by the pool?

 

Do they provide any non-alcoholic beverages free and if they do what are they and is this just during meals?

 

Do you make reservations if you want to eat breakfast in the dining room or do you just go during the hours they are open?

 

What's the best excursion to do in Nassau?

 

I just like to have a feel for what to expect beforehand, I guess I'm a complusive planner.

 

Thanks! :)

[madforcruising]

It's our first cruise April 18 on Sovereign and I have some questions. It's just so overwhelming. :)

 

Do they leave your luggage in the hall and if so, how do you know when it's out there if you're out by the pool?

 

Do they provide any non-alcoholic beverages free and if they do what are they and is this just during meals?

 

Do you make reservations if you want to eat breakfast in the dining room or do you just go during the hours they are open?

 

What's the best excursion to do in Nassau?

 

I just like to have a feel for what to expect beforehand, I guess I'm a complusive planner.

 

Thanks! :)

 

Haven´t sailed on the Sovereign, however I think most of the questions can be answered for any ship.

 

I think you are talking about the luggage on embarkation day. It will be delivered to your cabin door and placed in front of the door in the hallway. You won´t know that it´s there unless you go and look for it.

 

During meal time there are served non-alcoholic drinks like water, ice-tea and lemonade, coffee, tea, milk served for free. In the Dining room you can get juice for free too. During breakfast juice is served for free too.

Throughout the day you can get these drinks from the windjammer when it´s open. If you go to the bar you´ll have to pay for everything.

 

For dinner in the dining room you´ll have your assigned seating (early or late). Breakfast and lunch is usually served as open seating. No reservation needed, just show up and you´ll be assigned to a table.

 

I can´t comment on Nassau

[Emmabelle]

Thanks "madforcruising" for the info, looking at your cruise history I can see that you have experience in this field. :D

[K&RCurt]

We haven't saild on RCCL yet so I'm glad you asked the questions you did. On our HAL cruise our luggage was layed out on the bed (with a protective mat under it) when we returned to our cabin after a brief exploration of the ship. I'm kind of dissapointed that RCCL just leaves it in the hallway by your door and you have to schlep it in yourself!

 

As far as Nassau is concerened IMO the best excursion in that port would be to stay on the ship! You should have free reign on prime chairs by the pool and anything else you might want to do. It should be a better time than anything you'll see in Nassau.

[dc-snoopy]

My two cruises were slightly different.

 

It's our first cruise April 18 on Sovereign and I have some questions. It's just so overwhelming. :)

 

Do they leave your luggage in the hall and if so, how do you know when it's out there if you're out by the pool?

Cabins are supposed to be ready around 13:00. The porters/stevedores bring the luggage up when they have them and put them in the hallway. The cabin attendants prepare the cabins. When the cabins are ready and the attendant has time (s)he is supposed to move the luggage into the rooms. It all depends on how busy the attendants are that morning as to when they can move the luggage into the cabins. Last month on the Jewel, we checked our carryon luggage around the corner from the gangway when we boarded (around 11:50). We then wandered around the ship exploring, went to the WJ for lunch. At 13:10 when we went to our cabin, the carryon luggage was already inside our cabin. We went out for the afternoon and sometime before 16:00 when we returned to our cabin, our luggage showed up and the cabin attendant put it inside the cabin.

 

Do they provide any non-alcoholic beverages free and if they do what are they and is this just during meals?

There is a drink station on the deck outside the WJ. You can visit it and get drinks anytime you want. It isn't very far to walk from the pool area. They usually water, hot water (for tea) and coffee and decaf. For lemonade and/or iced tea, you can go into the WJ.

 

Do you make reservations if you want to eat breakfast in the dining room or do you just go during the hours they are open?

The DR is open seating during breakfast and lunch hours so just go when you want (but remember to check the breakfast hours in the Compass).

 

Enjoy your cruise!

[Emmabelle]

Thanks everyone, we're started to get so excited, only 25 days to go! :)

[Max Circus]

You will have a great time - it is hard not too.

 

I bet it will also be great to get away from the winter. I see you're from Mass and have had a record-setter. I recently moved from Plymouth to Tampa and all my friends back in Mass ask me if I "miss" the snow.

[SoonerDan]

FWIW,

 

On our cruise on Mariner, our luggage was delivered into our room while we were out exploring the ship.

 

Our steward told us that the luggage is delivered to the floor and then it is there job to deliver it to the rooms, so I would guess that it would vary by steward as to whether it was placed in your room or in the hall.

 

Our cruise was on Mariner.

[dlbutler5]

I like to scuba dive in Nassau. It has some of the best shark diving I've done. If you don't dive, wich I recommend if you are going to cruise a lot, you can snorkle. Not much else worthwhile in Nassau.

[Emmabelle]

Not much else worthwhile in Nassau.

 

I bet the Bahamians may disagree with you. ;) lol

[Flossie]

For anyone that has not been to Nassau before I would say to visit Alantis.It is really something to see.

[Crew32]

I just got off a three nighter on Soveriegn. Got on board around 2:30 and my luggage was in my room by 3:30. The best advice I can give on what to do in Nassau is this... visit the Bahamas website and research Nassau. It will tell you everything that you can do from beaches, shopping, historic siteseeing, scenic sightseeing, animals, charters, etc. Read about them, decide what you might be interested in and go on your own. The cruise excursions are way too expensive and way too structured time-wise, IMO.

[Emmabelle]

good idea "Crew32", I'm going to try that. :)