LIVE from the Mariner of the Seas Barcelona to Dubai

[ARCruisinNana]

Royal Family Suite 9394: WOW. Let me begin saying we are spacious people…who isn’t? But we also prefer to travel more frequently, spend more on “extras”, etc. than to pay exorbitant prices for cabins on a ship. This would change “just a bit” when we found the great prices on this specific cruise and decided to give it a try because of the 10 days at sea…and we are glad we did! It is actually more space than we need; two separated rooms, each with a king sized bed and several closets, two full bathrooms (one with a tub, one with the shower), a walk-in closet in between (to share), a big living room with a small dining table, and a huge balcony facing aft. All of it for three people! It is actually supposed to carry 5-8 people but the waived the minimum requirement because of the repositioning and, most importantly, with no extra fees…we should do these cruises more often…:rolleyes:

 

Is it worth it? Do we like it? What about suite perks? Well…stay tuned and I’ll tell you! I need some rest now…very stressful day, you know…

__________________

~Rico

 

 

We were in 9394 on Mariner last year for spring break. We had many meals on the awesome balcony. What a perfect cabin for a long cruise:)

[TPCRUISER2]

Rico: Great review and pictures!

Could you ask if a bartender, Celia is still on board? Thanks in advance!

[kruzinkel]

was on the Mariner for a 12 night Med cruise in 2011. Such a beautiful ship!

[tertour]

Rico - I am loving your LIVE review!!! I will be following along!

[gaechann]

Hello Rico

 

Thanks for taking the time to post your photos and comments on this beautiful ship.

 

Here in Australia we have been fortunate to have her sister the Voyager of the Seas visit us for our just completed summer cruise period and I was fortunate to enjoy a 14-day cruise on her.

 

We have read where Mariner is coming here later this year but wonder if she replacing one of the other RCCL ships we usually have here - Rhapsody and Radiance - both of which we love.

 

If you can manage to speak to someone in the know, we'd appreciate finding out if she will be added to the existing RCCL fleet to visit us here or will be replacing one the other ships.

 

Enjoy your cruise! I'll be following along with your posts!

 

Gae

[39august]

Mariner has just undergone a refit to reflect her new itineraries out of Singapor and catering to the Asian market. No reason to think she will be coming to Oz any time soon. Her Asian itineraries are on the RCI web site.

[gaechann]

Mariner has just undergone a refit to reflect her new itineraries out of Singapor and catering to the Asian market. No reason to think she will be coming to Oz any time soon. Her Asian itineraries are on the RCI web site.

 

You're quite right!

 

Perhaps it will be the following year Oct 2014 to March 2015?

[RicardoC]

Wednesday, May 8 – At Sea

 

Good evening! First of all, thank you for following and all the great comments; Internet connection has been pretty bad at times (getting lost or not even being able to get connected) so I haven’t been able to update you guys as much as I originally wanted:(. I will answer each of the comments once we get to Alexandria (on Friday) and I have both my phone’s Internet and a total of 6 hours on a bus :D . I tried uploading this last night but couldn’t connect so this is what I wrote then. Thanks again!

 

Today was another “chill” day, actually even more relaxing than our first day at sea (which we spent getting “housekeeping” stuff done). After having breakfast at our balcony, which is becoming a habit, we picked up our passports at the Concierge Lounge (already with the Egyptian stamps on). They were available for us in the morning, but there were times set for each deck to pick them up at the MDR. Today was also the day we got this :eek:

 

 

We headed to the main pool to catch some sun, read, and enjoy the amazing weather near Malta. We have been cruising really slowly, not rocking at all (at least for us), but I still think we might either arrive earlier in Alexandria or have to go in circles for a while…my (unreliable) opinion. After the pool we headed to Windjammer for the first time in three days (which I find crazy as we had always had the first lunch there but this time decided to go for a snack at Café Promenade) and, though it wasn’t completely packed, it was nice having the option to seat at Chops Grille. We tend to forget about these “details” as we are not used to them, but they are always a good surprise as it was to have several tables available next to the windows.

 

The afternoon was mostly spent at one of my favorite spots onboard: our balcony. And and this is when I answer my “first verdict” on our suite: we are in love.

 

 

As I previously stated, it is too much space for us, but I guess that’s better than less space than we need, right? One of the best parts of it is, in our opinion, the two bathrooms and lots, LOTS of storage space. Imagine this is a room to fit eight people...and we have all the storage space for only three! Needless to say there are lots of empty drawers…I should probably start renting some for an income…heheh. Off course there are many other great aspects that have been “wowing” us in the past couple days: the AHmazing bedding, the fruits, cheese plates, etc. always placed on the table, and obviously one of the largest balconies onboard, to say a few. We have also been impressed with the perks offered; as I said, it’s great having breakfast from the MDR delivered to our balcony table (haven’t had lunch/dinner yet), having the reserved area by the pool (though it hasn’t been that hard to find chairs), and having all help and attention from the Concierge Lucca. I guess the last one can be generalized to the entire ship as service has been exceeding any (already good) expectations, but that is something I will touch on later.

 

Terrible picture but you can have an idea. I have only taken pics of the whole cabin with my phone but still have to do it with my camera (so you have them larger, nicer in here).

 

I’m off now to get some rest before a last sea day before finally getting to Egypt. Once again, thank you for joining us and I will talk to you soon!

[RicardoC]

Thursday, May 9 - At Sea

Greetings from somewhere near the coast of Libya! Earlier today the Captain said we were a bit over 200 nautical miles from Alexandria, and that the closest land was about 50 miles from us...I thought it was cool. I finally found out my room has its own ac controller so for the first time in three days I woke up woth no headache; it was way too cold the previous nights (and if we say so it's extreme because our house has been nicknamed "North Pole" by many) and both sides of my family have headache problems for a variety of reasons...I guess I inherited all of them! So no headache is a relief, but no headache on a cruise means life cannot get any better.

 

The parents had breakfast in the balcony (what else is new), we figured this way we eat less since we can't go back for more. I preferred to sleep some more and only grabbed one of their fruit plates before trying to post my text from earlier today. The wifi in our room failed again (as it's becoming an habit - maybe because its at the very aft of the ship? I have no idea...) so we headed to the Diamond Lounge to grab an espresso and see if the connection was better up there.

 

Turns out the place was perfect; internet was much better and we got our espressos. Remember the machine at the Concierge Lounge was broken? Luca, the concierge, told my mom they usually make 80-100 espressos a day at there, but this cruise has reached 500 already and that's why it has been broken...I thought he wanted to imply it was her...which wouldn't surprise me at all :rolleyes::p

 

Anyways, even though the weather looked like it was about to rain we ventured to the pool to try getting some tan; it was great because you couldn't really feel the sun but it was burning so it was pretty "fresh", if you will. I got a quick lunch at Windjammer, the parents got a hotdog at the Boardwalk Doghouse (which looks pretty popular all the times - though I'm not a fan of hot dogs - but with no major lines), the sun came out...and the day passed by. I'm impressed with the amound of people staying by the pool all day long every day; it's almost like they're on a mission (almost like me, but in a higher magnitude) to get a tan. It's funny to see those who just lay there (like lizards, as we say in Brazil) with no caution and then look like lobsters later on:eek:...heheh

 

So the day before our first (and apparently extremely tiring, as everyone mentions) port was spent in between the pool chair and the pool, the pool and the pool chair, like there is no outside world and no problems, which is great. After a run (yes, I have gone running twice already and have been using mostly stairs, congrats Rico!) I'm laying on our balcony and just chilling under the sun and writting this. It's great because since we're going (generally) East the sun is right over the aft balconies all afternoon, which is also the time it's the most clear, so all balconies get used. I personally really like our (almost) 180 degree view with the constant sunshine...life is good:cool:.

 

 

Tomorrow will be an exciting day ad we'll finally, after multiple attempts, reach Egypt. We have a day tour to Cairo (arranged by Chris from our roll call) with Alex City Tours. Because we have to be up early we decided to make reservations at Giovanni's Table (wasn't a problem to make it today at around noon). We figured it'd be better to eat earlier (at 7 instead of the MDR at 8:15) to try to go to sleep a bit earlier too. We'll ser how Giovanni's goes as we have been to it once at Oasis' inaugural which can also be considered its own opening...my sister was on Oasis last week and said it was their favorite restaurant (even more than 150 Central Park!). We'll find out soon...

 

Excited to know about Giovanni's Table? Then stay tuned! :D

[Cindy]

I'm really enjoying your live report! Thanks so much for sharing your cruise with us!

 

The wifi in our room failed again (as it's becoming an habit - maybe because its at the very aft of the ship? I have no idea...) so we headed to the Diamond Lounge to grab an espresso and see if the connection was better up there.

 

Turns out the place was perfect; internet was much better and we got our espressos. Remember the machine at the Concierge Lounge was broken? Luca, the concierge, told my mom they usually make 80-100 espressos a day at there, but this cruise has reached 500 already and that's why it has been broken...I thought he wanted to imply it was her...which wouldn't surprise me at all :rolleyes::p

 

We'll ser how Giovanni's goes as we have been to it once at Oasis' inaugural which can also be considered its own opening...my sister was on Oasis last week and said it was their favorite restaurant (even more than 150 Central Park!). We'll find out soon...

 

Excited to know about Giovanni's Table? Then stay tuned! :D

 

 

Luca's explanation makes me laugh...the machine in the CL was broken on our April 14th cruise!:rolleyes:

We loved Giovanni's Table on the Mariner. Enjoy your meal!

Edited May 9, 2013 by Cindy

[RicardoC]

We are LIVE from Cairo! Just visited the Egyptian Museum and now having lunch before heading to the pyramids. I'll try to answer the comments on the way back to Alexandria and then write about today when we're back at the Mariner (with my laptop).

 

See you all!

 

[RicardoC]

Enjoy your first evening on board. It is ALWAYS the best! :)

 

Thank you! It was great! :)

[RicardoC]

Really looking forward to following. If you run into our friends on board be sure to say hello - Jeff and Lorraine from Australia - are travelling from Barcelona to Singapore with you and are a load of laughs:D

 

I will make sure I pay attention if I see them! Thanks for following!

[RicardoC]

What an amazing cruise...looking forward to following you.

 

Thanks for following!

[RicardoC]

awesome job and pix

 

Thanks :D

[RicardoC]

Rico!!

Loving your review and pictures! Barcelona is so beautiful. Thanks for sharing!

 

Thank you! I'm glad the pics are turning out ok :)

[RicardoC]

I'm really enjoying your posts - i'm boarding Mariner next month in Singapore for a short cruise and you're helping to whet my appetite!

 

Hahah that's great then! You'll love her...I'll make sure she's ok till then :D

Thanks for following!

[RicardoC]

Lucky you!! The RFS is a great room. On our first Baltic cruise we booked an OS but two weeks before our sailing date a RFS was offered on RCCL's website, and we immediately took it!! With a family of four we don't meet the minimum five people requirement for this category!!

Loving your review Rico!!!

 

I was always unsure about the Voyager/Freedom classes' afts and didn't understand how people loved them so much...well now I know heheh

Thanks!

[TPCRUISER2]

Great review. And thanks for posting the info reguarding your drill to prepare everyone for the possible pirate adventure. Captain seems ready. Yes, will be along for the entire cruise. Your are going to places I will not see in my lifetime. Awesome cruise!

[I-Cruiser]

I am looking forward to see the pictures from the transit of the Suez Canal.

 

Keep up the good work Rico.

[RicardoC]

I’m back! The past two days in Alexandria have been, as you may expect, very busy and tiring. Friday night we got back at 9pm and only got time to shower and eat before sleep. We left Alexandria yesterday afternoon and I decided to start catching up on writing. I finished the first day and then, off course, Internet decided to stop working exactly when I was posting it…fun. Let’s hope internet up on deck 14 is better; I will start only posting from there.

 

First of all, Giovanni’s was great! I actually forgot to tell my sister when we talked to her on the phone but she was right in the sense that it may be the best restaurant onboard the Mariner too! The place is surprisingly big, just like Chops (where we have had lunch and breakfast a couple times) since they are mirrored on deck 11 before what I like to call the “Windjammer Complex” (so many rooms, sections, etc. hahah). The restaurant looks nice, and the large windows only add to the experience…too bad it has been getting darker earlier everyday (as we go south) and it was very empty. Food was so good (especially the warm prosciutto with mozzarella, the fungi risotto, and the tiramisu) that we all agreed we will have to go back at least once during our six consecutive days at sea next week. We have a wine tasting dinner at Chops tomorrow night so we can see what’s up with the other side of the hallway and compare both. Now, off to Egypt!

 

 

Friday, May 10 – Alexandria, Egypt

 

We finally got to Egypt, one of the oldest countries in the world. I have been watching and reading a lot about Egyptian history (which I was never really interested in, I don’t know why, up until now) and I just find it amazing how most places we visit are a couple centuries old or maybe a bit over a millennium and then there’s Egypt, with objects dating as far as five thousand years and a history said to be as old as seven millennia. Yes, it’s really old but at the same time it has been constantly changing all the time, much more than many countries out there, including my own. I find all this really crazy, different, and interesting.

 

We woke up early, as our tour would meet as soon as we got clearance. We docked a couple minutes after 7 and were out at around 7:30, when they checked our visa stamps at the gangway. The cruise ship terminal building in Alexandria was actually nice, probably one of the nicest (as in well maintained) buildings we saw these two days. Once we got off the terminal there were dozens of guides each with a sign but nothing chaotic at all, they were all lined-up so we quickly found Alex City Travel. I actually found this company in our roll-call for this cruise and decided to book with them since both days cost the same as the ship charged for just the second “half-day” in Alexandria itself. There were four buses from Alex City going to different tours (as in overnight, day trip, etc.) and, as far as I know, two were doing the same itinerary. Since we only booked a month before the trip we were mixed with a party from Canada, not the Cruise Critic group, but there were a couple others from CC and the Canadians (with whom we’d tour the second too) were nice too. Hany, the contact we all had for reservations, showed up to welcomed us and thanked for choosing them, which I thought was nice, and then we were off.

 

My very first impression, right after we left the Port, wasn’t as good as I expected. There are parts of Alexandria that are incredibly dirty, with trash pilled on the sides of the streets, and degraded buildings. As some of you may know there were lots of rebellions in the city center and I believe part of this “mess” still goes back to the recent revolution. My perception would change though, and I knew we would have to look through some “issues” as one has to do anywhere his not familiar with. Cairo is some three hours away from the port, but it wasn’t an issue since everyone was pretty excited. Our guide, Mo (short for Mohammed), also helped giving us a detailed lesson on Egyptian history, the different periods, the revolution, and every-day life, all while pointing out details on the way. As I mentioned, it amazes me how many times they have been occupied, changed government structures, and are still in the process of change. Mo mentioned the fairly peaceful religious life in Egypt (as he said, there will always be extremists) where, for example, the veil is an option made by both Muslim and Christian women, not a law as in many other Arab countries. I also found it interesting when he mentioned they are not Arabs, though everything says it, but originally Egyptian and Arabs were just another group that conquered them. Unfortunately one of the things that shocked me the most was the fact that tourism, the second most important economic activity in the country (after the Suez Canal), has decreased dramatically since the revolution; up to a 75% decrease, according to his numbers, which is sad considering we felt safe the whole time.

 

We didn’t even feel it took three hours and out of nowhere we were there; first, passing some outside neighborhoods (people are starting to go away from the city – after all, Cairo is the second most densely populated city in the world), then we started to see the top of the pyramids behind the buildings and through the heavy pollution. I’m not gonna lie, it is pretty cool!

 

Cool, huh?

 

We started the tour in Cairo heading to the Egyptian Museum, located at Tahrir Square, the heart of the revolution. There, Mohammed took us around to see the amazing collection (far larger than I expected) of ancient Egyptian objects, pillars, statues, etc. If you really want it is possible to stay a whole day at this place, or even more! Mo took us to Tutankhamen’s collection, which has all (or most) objects found in his tomb back in 1922. We saw carriages, thrones, beds, and sarcophaguses…a shame you can’t bring cameras inside (to preserve it all). I kept thinking how amazing it was that all that survived so long locked underground; even earthquakes and what not! Unfortunately we didn’t have time to visit the separate exhibition that has his mummy (though we saw other mummies…couldn’t stop remembering the movies when they jump out of nowhere…heheh); I guess this museum is already a reason to return to Cairo.

 

The building to the far right was the overthrown government's headquarters. It was burned two years ago during the revolution.

 

Following lunch by the museum we headed for our short cruise on the Nile. It was nice, but I would have preferred to spend some extra time at the museum and visit Tutankhamen (well, his mummy, that is). The cruise was nice to give us an idea of the city, its rise in the second half of the 20th century and relatively recent downfall. The Nile represents the “prime” real state of Egypt (95% of Egyptians live in 5% of the land, surrounding the river and/or the Mediterranean) so its banks are filled with 1960s, 1970s buildings, some are somehow preserved, others in need of help. I did see lots of constructions, though, such as the huge work being done at Tahrir Square (to have a new, cool, Ritz Carlton at a renovated building, for example), which is good. One thing that wasn’t nearly as bad as I expected, and the cruise proved it, was the weather that was pretty nice; I live in Florida, so probably can’t be taken into account when rating the warm weather…but it wasn’t bad at all. Off to the pyramids!

 

 

As I mentioned, these are the “stars” of Cairo. Well, they thousands of years old, still standing, and dominate the horizon above the sea of buildings…I guess they deserve it. It is a shame there is so much pollution in the air; I can only imagine the views if the skies were more clear…or from a plane…or at night (with the light shows). Yes, we need to go back to Cairo. I thought the project of the new Egyptian Museum (already under construction) to be next to the pyramids is cool; this way you have all the pieces together in a new, open museum that they deserve. Just be aware, the vendors are inconvenient, they will follow you, just don’t stress and it’s all-good. We had a security guy with our tour but he never needed to do anything; the vendors are just trying to sell their things, they’re not monsters. I think some people overthink about it…you don’t make eye contact, they wont insist that much; you talk to them, they will follow on your dreams…easy! When you get to the overlook of the pyramids at Giza you forget about the pollution, you stop hearing the vendors, smelling the Camels’ “stuff”, and feeling the dust…you just stare at this and remember why you came all the way there.

 

 

Our first day in Egypt was actually a lot of fun; it got me thinking a lot, taught me more than I expected, and gave me the opportunity to see the only lasting original wonder of the world. The country is going through changes, and that is tough for anyone, but I think the media generalizes too much and people end up with a distorted preconception. To be honest I wasn’t really worried about coming here; I knew it was a delicate situation but was more alert for political news the months prior to the trip (for planning and possible changes in logistics) than violence or anything like that. I think the events in Boston last month showed us that there is no really safe place out there, and so Cairo is no more dangerous than anywhere. They need the tourists and they like them: you can see it by complete strangers waving and smiling at the bus driving by, a recurring scene these past two days.

 

Look, it's your reporter!

[RicardoC]

Saturday, May 11 – Alexandria, Egypt

 

 

So today was a more relaxing day (as compared to yesterday) because we had to be back on the ship by 1:30pm. The first day (yesterday) we got back onboard at around 9pm and I ordered room service, which was nice to relax before sleep and get ready for our second day. We got up before 6, had breakfast, and headed out to meet up with our Alex City tour at 7:30. Once again, the four of them were great; from the driver to the guide, who gave us some more insight on everyday life in Egypt. She talked about school, religion, marriage, and their customs in general. I found Alexandria, as many have previously mentioned, much calmer and “Westernized” than Cairo; it is the favorite summer destination for Egyptians filled with hotels and beach condos, so we were lucky it wasn’t that full just yet.

 

Our tour wasn’t that long (about 4 hours), but we were able to visit the main points in the city such as the Qait Bey Fort where the famous lighthouse used to be, Abu Al-Abbas Al-Mursi’s Mosque (the largest there), and the gardens surrounding King Farouk’s last royal residence before fleeing to Italy during the revolution…beautiful place.

 

 

After all Alexandria is a nice city by the Mediterranean; it just needs some care and new buildings to complement its natural beauty, and I think the Library is an example to be followed.

 

 

Our city tour ended with a visit to the famous Bibliotheque Alexandrina, built in 2002 where the famous library (that was burned down with all records from ancient Egypt) used to be. The building is amazing for anyone who likes architecture and modern buildings; it was designed by a Norwegian office that won the contest and has a shape of a rising sun from the water symbolizing education’s endless positive effect in the world…cool. The building has 11 floors, some underground and others over street level, several sections (such as for kids, maps, and disabled people), as well as many exhibitions. The library currently holds 1.8 million books but has the capacity for 8 million…WOW. It was a great visit, though we couldn’t visit President Sadat’s exhibition because of a water leak that made them close the room. My parents thought it was weird to visit a library, but I knew it was worth it. Now they also know how cool it is…I wish my college’s library looked like that.

 

The main room was designed so the sunlight illuminates the whole place but rays don’t go through.

 

Our half day in Alexandria was cool; I also feel that one needs more place to explore the city, so will add it to my “someday future trip to Egypt” list…heheh…off to Suez!

 

[High C's]

Wow!!!! Thank you so much for the photos and your descriptions. Definitely raised this one higher on my bucket list!! Thank you.

[susyq 1967]

Brilliant review thank you. So wanted to go to Egypt last year but the cruises we could do were cancelled. We went to Russia instead which was pretty amazing too. Going to the website now to check out your cruise. Keep it coming and enjoy yourself :)

[foxesden1]

More pix of the suite!,,