First Time Cruiser's Impression-EOS 10/14/13 (w/Pics)

[Sinppu]

Our take from the various trivia wins. Be jealous.

 

Oh I am!! I've never gotten a hat!! :eek::eek:

[FinallyCruisinIn2014]

Thank you! We are sailing Enchantment in April and it is our first cruise also. Same 4 night and our balcony stateroom will be right down the hallway from where you were, I believe - 7060.

 

I especially appreciate the information on the cabanette - I didn't know they were an option. Although we want to snorkel and I'm thinking from your description, it's on the other side of the island from where you snorkel??

[annabell08]

How Long did it take you to get to Orlando? When I mapquest And google map it, it shows over 7 hours. I don't remember it taking that long. We are in Marietta.

 

I live in Snellville. It takes me seven-eight hours to drive to the port using I-95. We learned on our first Monarch cruise to stay away from Orlando and the toll road.

[Paulette3028]

[Took room service for breakfast. They called beforehand to let us know they were on their way. I guess they've had enough of people answering the door not dressed or still sleep and not answering the door at all.

 

The food was NOT the business. While the room service menu is limited (and understandably so) the food was not up to the quality of the Windjammer. The hash browns were a small puck, the toast was more stale than toasted, the eggs institutional tasting. The coffee and bacon were OK. If you are not incapacitated and can leave the room it is advisable to eat all of your meals in any of the other dinning establishments. ]

 

My husband and I have ordered room service for 'early breakfast' on many of the RCCL cruises that we have taken. We do it so we can have a 'light bite' before we head off to the gym. After the gym, we will go to the WJ for our REAL breakfast. I personally wouldn't expect a hot breakfast to be ordered from room service to be the same quality as one served in the dining room or from the WJ buffet. Coffee, cereal, Danish/fruit/OJ....is good for a light room service order for me. I can also say that when we have ordered a fruit platter or desserts to be delivered via room service for a late night snack, it was WONDERFUL.

[Scotty G]

Whoa! Marc's contract is up? RCCL would be doing themselves a REAL disservice if they don't renew his contract.

 

Never fear. Mark has been with RCI for nearly 20 years. This is a normal crew rotation. Here is a quote from the CC website: "Enchantment OTS - Marc Walker from June 7 through Nov. 8, then John Blair from November 8 through January 8, then Marc Walker returns on January 8 for approx. 4 months, followed by John Blair for approx. 2 months."

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=40386722&highlight=director#post40386722

[boogerwolf]

Loved your review! As someone who was on EOS as her first cruise, this reminded me of some of things I didn't include in mine! I laughed at your picture with the caption "2500 of our closest friends". I agree that the breakfast in bed isn't that great :p. And we also sent out our clothes on the first day to get dry cleaned! Imagine that haha. Great minds and all :)

 

And your review was great too.

/Am originally from LB, CA

[boogerwolf]

Never fear. Mark has been with RCI for nearly 20 years. This is a normal crew rotation. Here is a quote from the CC website: "Enchantment OTS - Marc Walker from June 7 through Nov. 8, then John Blair from November 8 through January 8, then Marc Walker returns on January 8 for approx. 4 months, followed by John Blair for approx. 2 months."

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=40386722&highlight=director#post40386722

 

Cool. Wouldn't want future cruisers to miss that dude.

[boogerwolf]

If you're thinking NYE this year, it's going to terribly pricey. The holiday cruises are really at premium prices ... even when you book over a year in advance. We booked a mid-December cruise in late May out of Baltimore and the price has climbed considerably from the time we booked. It's been sold out for some time now, and the cost of the occasional cabin that pops up due to a cancellation is outrageous.

 

A cursory check after reading this confirms this. Wow! They really do jack up the price.

[seabeew]

Thanks for the great review. I didn't know about the cabanettes. I'll get straight to the point--is a bathroom nearby or do you have to walk/catch a ride back?

 

Also if you go back to Nassau, check out the Fish Fry area. It consists of 25 or so local restaurants serving local seafood. Any cab driver can take you there--it's about $10 each way for two. The restaurants are open all day.

[sailingawaysoon]

Awesome review! My husband and I are going on the Enchantment for Christmas. We can't wait to try out this ship. Happy future cruising~

[boogerwolf]

Thanks for the great review. I didn't know about the cabanettes. I'll get straight to the point--is a bathroom nearby or do you have to walk/catch a ride back?

 

Also if you go back to Nassau, check out the Fish Fry area. It consists of 25 or so local restaurants serving local seafood. Any cab driver can take you there--it's about $10 each way for two. The restaurants are open all day.

 

Lol, yeah, unfortunately you'll have to catch a ride to the restroom.

And will-do on the Fish Fry.

[Brandywine_101]

This is my me and my wife's first time cruising and I wanted to give you all my impressions from the perspective of a first-timer.

We gleaned a lot from CC (thank you very much). And this is my way of returning the favor.

 

We sailed on the Enchantment of the Seas 4 night cruise. If you aren't familiar, the itinerary is Coco Cay, Nassau, then back to Port Canaveral.

 

I'll break it up into days. In hindsight I wish I would have taken more pictures but I was in the moment a lot and didn't feel like taking a lot of pictures. I'm what you'd consider an enthusiast photographer (http://www.keyoflifephotography.com) but did not want to lug my Nikon SLR around. Hell, I'm on vacation! So I bought a Canon S90 point-and-shoot that I can still control manually but in a MUCH smaller package. I could keep on my hip.

 

I'll start with our arrival and accommodations in the Port Canaveral area.

 

THE DAY BEFORE

 

I am an airline employee so we usually fly stand-by. But I didn't want to risk not being able to get down to Florida, even the day before. Also didn't want a luggage snafu where our bags get on but we didn't. SO we drove from Atlanta. Not a bad drive until...

 

We got into Orlando.

 

Now, I know that there are two tolls between MCO and Port Canaveral, as our initial plan was to fly in and rent a car. But driving in I didn't do my homework as to the other tolls in and around Orlando (which I have taken to calling "Tollando"). So, plan ahead or just take I-95 south if you can.

 

We stayed at the Courtyard By Marriott in Cocoa Beach on A1A. We opted for their Cruise and Park deal where for $147 plus tax we stayed overnight, left our car there until Friday and a shuttle to and from the port. Seemed like an OK price. The room originally was $89 without the parking.

 

Our room. Very clean and comfortable

 

The room at the Courtyard was great. Clean, spacious and with a balcony on every room. Our room overlooked the (big for a hotel this size) pool and a narrow view of the river. The hotel is not on the ocean but you can walk a short distance (about 100 yards) directly to the beach which we did on embarkation day. There is a nice lobby with a bar and a fire pit out back. Well worth the money. We did a little running around and ate at Roberto's Little Havana. Can't recommend it. I won't turn this into a food review but suffice to say, I've had MUCH better Cuban food.

 

The pit o' fire. Not that it was cold or anything.

Thank you for your review. I haven't even read this entire post yet, but as a first timer on Enchantment (Feb 23!) and in Florida, this will be SUPER helpful! I'll read the rest when I get home.