Monarch Of The Seas - I'm Ready To Get Lamnasted

[cruzy-sue]

Let me just say that we are a couple in mid-forties, have been on 5 previous cruises and we just got of the 4 night Monarch of the Seas.

 

1. (Positive first): A. The ports were very nice, San Diego - did the old town trolley - you can hop-on and hop-off -I spent 6 hours seeing all of SanDiego. Catalina was pretty -I did the Avalon tour (will discuss in the negatives) and Ensenada -I went to Bufadora - and loved it!!! B. There were safes in the room C. There were plenty of "non-smoking" areas in the Viking Crown lounge - which was practically empty every time we went there.

 

2. The food on Monarch is simply "adequate"... We didn't go hungry, but it was very blah food. The choices were horrible and even the desserts were "institutional" i.e.: like hospital food.....

 

3. We paid boo-koo bucks for a junior suite (with a balcony) and it was not worth the money. The size of this "suite" was equal to a double on Carnival or Celebrity.

 

4. (Now here is where I know I will get lambasted): The people on board this ship were quite the bunch. Many seemed as if they had never traveled anywhere - and particularly not on a cruise! I know 3 of the 4 nights are "casual" but my tablemates (3 other couples) didn't have a clue!!! I don't feel that ripped jeans, tie-dye t-shirts and flip flops are appropriate for any cruise ship dining room - EVER! I am trying to be as nice as possible when describing - AND I AM NOT A SNOB - but this group was tacky!!!

 

5. In Catalina -we booked the 1 hour city tour - thank God it was only an hour!!! This was the worst guided tour I have ever been on - the driver was the most gruff, unfunny and uninformative guide you will ever encounter - DON"T DO IT, MON!!!

 

I am glad that this cruise was only 4 nights - I have never looked forward to the night before disembarkation - but this time I did!! I am also glad that we spent 6 days prior to the cruise seeing other parts of California, so as an add-on it was just ok.

 

One more positive: If you have a suite, embarkation is great - we got right on, passing a bunch of other people. BUT suites mean nothing at disembarkation... The best way to make the quickest break is if you have a U.S. passport - we did - and I'm glad!!! Oh, the way they organize the luggage as you leave the terminal was also a positive - they put all the suitcases in seperate rooms - I think by luggage tag color - made it much easier to find them.

 

Any questions?????

[critterchick]

Cruzysue, no flaming, just a couple of comments. You're absolutely right about the crowd onboard Monarch. Many of them ARE first-time cruisers from LA, where uber-casual (we old farts would call it slob-o) attire is a 24-7 event. I guess I'm just surprised that you would be expecting elegance on that particular sailing. DH even wore jeans in the DR on the first night because so many others did and he thought he would join the rebellion. He was suitably attired in his tux for formal night, though (and all alone in our section of the dining room).

 

We always pay for the balcony on the JS because we're fresh air freaks and spend a fair amount of time in our cabins. They seem to be about the size of a D-1 on a Radiance-class ship, but that may also be because they're dark due to the overhang from Deck 10. Remember that Monarch is an old lady by current standards, so her cabins are smaller than the newer generations.

 

If you ever go again (sounds unlikely), just do Catalina on your own. You can walk to the Casino and get a great guided tour, you can hike to the Wrigley Botanical Garden (or rent a golf cart to do it), or just wander Avalon for a bit. We stay onboard in Ensenada because we've been there, done that, and we've just about had the ship to ourselves. It's a wonderful way to spend a day!

 

As for disembarkation, Suites don't get preference, but since they debark by deck and you're on the top, I should think you would get off after early flights and the super-early debarkation program that they offer. Also, if you only have carryon bags (and surely for a 4-nighter you can do that:D ), then you can debark at will. The customs issue is a Port of LA one, not the Monarch's.

[cruzy-sue]

I meant lamBasted -

 

I realized prior to the cruise that it would be: a lot of locals, first time cruisers, people who might not be able to afford a 7 nighter, etc., etc. And, like I said, it was an add-on as a part of our California trip where we stayed in Palm Springs for 4 nights and Beverly Hills for 2 before the cruise.

 

KYRIECAT - Yes, thank you for reminding me..... The cruise director was hysterically funny - we went to one show and they showed "A day in the life of a cruise director" sort-of short film.... hysterical!! and then a magician/comedian who was fantastic..... Thank you for reminding me of this.

 

We met an executive onboard of RCCL - very nice young guy from Miami - who even said: and I quote "The Majesty is a dump" - was referring basically to 3 and 4 nighters. - SO WHY DO THEY BOTHER?????

 

To be honest, I'm a little po'd at my travel agent who was fully aware of the previous cruises we had taken..... She should have told me how these 4 nighters are. I really have a bad taste in my mouth altogether (from RCCL food???) for this cruiseline. Sorry folks - I tell it like it is.

[baseballmom]

Hi Cruzy-Sue -- no lambasting from me, either. I'm just sorry that your experience on Monarch wasn't as good as you had hoped. What a difference a year makes! My son and I were on Monarch last June for our first cruise, celebrating my 50th b'day and his graduation from jr. high. We also thought a 4-dayer would give us a good idea of whether we liked cruise vacations. Although I am a casual So. Californian, I assumed that in the dining room we would be expected to dress up a bit and my son wore dockers or something similar each night (oh yes, he did change right back into jeans and put his ball cap back on his head immediately after dinner). Our 6 other tablemates also dressed for the dining room. Anyway, overall, we were really happy with our vacation, (again keeping in mind that we did not have anything to compare it to, but we know what we like...and don't like). And, we liked it enough to take a chance on a longer cruise and just returned last week from Alaska on RCCL's Serenade of the Seas.

 

Re the excursions, I agree with Jean -- in Catalina we walked to the Avalon Casino and the tour was terrific. It was even more special to us because there is a photo of my son's grandfather (ex-DH's dad) on the wall when he played with one of the big bands. We also enjoyed walking around, so it was a nice day.

 

Again, I'm sorry your trip was a disappointment, and I hope you have nothing but smooth sailing and happy memories in the future!

 

Laurie

[AUNTDEBBA]

Sue

 

I have to agree our three day Monarch cruise in March was the worst cruise I was ever on but it was mainly the ship. It was very smokey and the food was barely edible. At least in the JS there are safes in the room regular rooms had no safes so you have to carry all your money and credit cards with you at all time. We were with a group of 27 who get together about once every year or so. We went on Carnival the time before and everyone agreed that we will stick with Carnival until they change out the Monarch.

 

I must admit the adult scavanger hunt that RCI does is great:D

[Happy ks]

It is surprising how many differing opinions you will get. We had the opposite experience. We have been on both the Monarch and Carnival short cruises (4 day) here. We would go back on Monarch again, any time, but will probably never step foot onboard a Carnival ship again. The only plus Carnival had was the cabin size was larger, but then again, we ended up calling it a camper shell rather than our cabin, it was so plastic and ugly. We have found we can book 2 smaller Monarch cabins for less than one Carnival cabin for the 4 of us.

 

We found the food and entertainment to be about the same on both lines. The biggest difference was the ambience of the ship itself. On Monarch, the pax dressed nicer, the service was better, the ship itself was far more attractive to us. I found that on the Carnival ship, there was no where onboard that did not reek of smoke, it was disgusting. We have better food service at our local Denny's than we had on our Carnival ship, the room steward was, for the most part, unavailable. One of the bunks in our room was coming off of the wall, we called to have it fixed, which was done promptly, early in the day. That was nice, but the mess from the fix was not cleaned up until after we left for dinner, late seating. They always turned the beds down early, around 4:30-5pm and we had to get the 4 of us ready for dinner every night with little head room in the cabin, the day of the "fix", we had to contend with sawdust all over the floor, counters, bathroom, it was nasty. The ship was far uglier than I could have imagined (Ecstacy) and I hope the current ship, Paradise is a little more attractive. Both ships will, of course, be filled with mostly locals and we definitely noticed a difference in the mix of pax between the two cruise lines.

 

Like the above poster, I could not wait to get off the ship, but for me it was Carnival, Not Monarch.

 

The best advantage RCI has over Carnival on this itinerary is the port stop in San Diego. Catalina is always nice and both ships stop there, Ensenada is a great day for staying onboard and having the ship to yourself.

 

I have no idea why someone would book this type of cruise and expect the same experience of a 7 day cruise on a newer ship. You have to go with the understanding that it is an older ship, without the same ammenities of a newer ship. It's a great value for locals who don't have to fly in for the cruise. BTW, the very best cruise experience we have had was on the now defunct American Hawaiian Independence, built around 1950 (we cruised her in 2000). So, it does depend on your personal expectations and preference. I would rather go on an old ship with less "stuff", but have beautiful ambience and good service than a new ship with all the bells and whistles. We don't go for the shopping, games, shows of the modern cruise ship, we go for the sea adventure and a little port time, we love the ocean!

 

Finally, I have to add that I would never pay for a suite on such a short cruise. You could book a 7 day cruise for that amount.