Enchantment of the Seas August 4th-8th Preview and Review

[TheBrowns]

We love the Hampton at Cocoa that's where we stay before our cruises.

[FL Donna]

We will be going 8/22. First time bringing our 16 y/o grand daughter. What is there to do for the teen crowd?

[prekteacher]

Can't wait to read the rest of your report. I hope you had a great cruise! I think I'll make sure my kids have a camera (phone) to take pics on our cruise in November. I love reading about cruises from a different perspective. Keep up the good work!

[jayblue]

Hi, Andy!

 

I am looking forward to your review as well. I would love to see it through the perspective of someone in your age group. I have a niece your age who would love to read it as well.

 

jayblue RCCL cruiser

[kwazi07]

We will be going 8/22. First time bringing our 16 y/o grand daughter. What is there to do for the teen crowd?

I didn't go to the teen club but I got the teen Cruise Compass and I will post it soon.

Can't wait to read the rest of your report. I hope you had a great cruise! I think I'll make sure my kids have a camera (phone) to take pics on our cruise in November. I love reading about cruises from a different perspective. Keep up the good work!

I really wish I had my pictures! They were on my phone but when I uploaded them to my computer they disappeared. DarthGrady has some GREAT pics. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=40715178#post40715178

Hi, Andy!

 

I am looking forward to your review as well. I would love to see it through the perspective of someone in your age group. I have a niece your age who would love to read it as well.

 

jayblue RCCL cruiser

Sure! Thanks.

 

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[kwazi07]

Day 1:

Boarding was so easy. We used the Radisson to park. We hopped in the shuttle and we were in the port in 5 minutes. It only took us about 20 minutes to get on board. Once we were on the ship, we went to the Park Cafe. I thought I would love it, but it was just OK. I had a cold sandwich and a cup of soup. I later went to the Windjammer. The buffet food was GREAT. Especially compared to Carnival (I will do a comparison later).

 

We started to explore the beautiful ship, and I was so impressed. The whole way through, I was like "this is so much better than Carnival". Around 1 o'clock our rooms were ready. We had a balcony room on deck 7. These are not my pictures but this is very similar to our room.

 

The bathroom was very nice, but the shower was tiny. Some tips on how to shower later ;) My mom loved the bowl sink and the back splash. This room was awesome compared to our room on the Carnival Paradise.

 

We then changed and went swimming. For those of you who are wondering, the pool with the metal fence separating it is salt water and the other one is fresh. The big screen by the pool is not too obnoxious. During the day it plays music accompanied by pictures of the beach and ocean. In the night time it is movies. However, all of the movies are the same at the same times. Frozen at 5:45. Draft Day at 7:15. Captain America 2 at 10. Every single day.

 

After swimming it was time for muster. Quick and painless. During the drill the cruise director Marc (bing bong!) said that they have a code of conduct aboard the ship, which included all of the usual stuff like vandalism etc in addition to being a fan of Justin Beiber. He is a very funny man.

 

After muster we went back to our room to watch sail away. Our balcony faced the industrial side of PC, so it wasn't as nice as viewing Fishlips, Rustys, and Jetty Park.

 

Up next: dinner, welcome aboard shows and Cruise Compii (thanks familygoboston!)

 

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[kwazi07]

After sail away, we started getting dressed for dinner. This took me MUCH longer than it should have. The day before our vacation, it was tax free day in Florida so we went to our local mall. I had bought a plaid shirt from H&M, so I just threw it into my suitcase. Little did I know that it would be the most complicated shirt ever. I wanted to cuff my sleeves and roll them up a little, but they were rolled up in the weirdest way. When I unrolled them my self and tried to roll them it looked really ratchet. So I just gave up and wore them down. I was not comfortable at all. I HATE long sleeves. That took me like 20 minutes!!! OK enough for the clothes stuff.

 

We had early dinner at 5:45. The traditional seating was on the first floor of the dining room. There was a large lone collecting outside of the dining room. We later found out that the crew members were squirting purell into everyone's hands. This took quite a while. It was mojo night but nothing really appealed to me on the menu. Instead I got shrimp cocktail and escargots. The shrimp cocktail was delish but instead of serving it with the sauce that came over later and gave you a scoop. Also, it was served on a huge bed of lettuce. I mean it took up the whole bowl. No one ate it. What a waste. The escargots we available. There were six little pieces of it. It was my first time trying it...it was interesting. Kind of like shellfish. The butter and garlic sauce was very yummy. For an entree I got the linguine pomodoro off of the classics menu. It was very good but a bit plain. Finally I got the BBB creme brulé for dessert. It was the best creme brulé in have had. It wasn't too eggy but it was very vanilla-ey. Dinner was good but the servers we very rushed and it was so loud in there.

 

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[kwazi07]

Will resubmit pictures of Compii, not working right

Edited August 9, 2014 by kwazi07

[kwazi07]

 

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[kwazi07]

 

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[dacsmom]

Glad you had a great trip. I agree with you, I love Marc as a cruise director.

[kwazi07]

The welcome aboard show was great. Marc was very funny and so was the impressionist. His Forrest Gump impression was the BOMB! The singers and dancers were OK. The singers were pretty good but the dancers not so much. So uncoordinated and some lame moves. Maybe I am spoiled at Busch Gardens with their European dancing troupe. Burn the Floor Untapped from Busch Gardens Tampa:

That is a great show right there. If you have never been you should watch the video...amazing tap dancing, ballroom dancing and singing.

 

That is it for day one, day two to come soon.

 

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[beachlover777]

Thank for the photos and info! Can't wait until our trip in December!

[kwazi07]

A few things I forgot

Our steward introduced himself, and he was very nice. We didn't ever see our steward on Carnival.

 

We had traditional dining yet we sat by ourselves.

 

Now for some tips for showering in the Hunger Games transporters ;)

 

Face the curtain so you don't spray the curtain and get the floor all wet.

 

Make use of the handle thingy- Once I didn't, and I was trying to lean to wash my legs, and I fell!!!!

 

When you are not using the handle, move it all the way down to the bottom if the rail.

 

5 pumps of the shampoo is good.

 

I always do but if you normally don't bring your pajamas into the bathroom so you don't have to walk au naturel to dry your hair- there is not outlet in the bathroom.

 

Another note on bathrooms:

 

Sometimes the toilet does not flush. If it doesn't, just push the button and it will flush later. This happened on our first full morning on the ship. Our steward said that this is due to people flushing things they are not supposed to flush. It clogs up the system and they have to shut off the whole "block" of rooms to fix it. Just remember, when you are getting a new plumbing fixture installed in your house your water has to be shut off. Its just like that.

 

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[Familygoboston]

Thanks! And yup I'm showing my mom all my posts.

 

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Good to know^^^^ safety first as I tell my teens :D And they say, "oh Ma!" But they are still alive, sooooo....

 

You liked it!!!:D this makes me very happy. Are you disappointed about your pictures? Maybe try a search!? You were doing a great job with your photos so I feel bad that didn't work out. And people do love to see the Compii ;)

 

Sounds like you liked the ship and the CD (we had Marc too, he's good I think, but he was so sick when we sailed and you could see he was a gamer, but man, it's gotta be hard to do that job when you don't feel tip top!) Looking forward to hearing about your ports, and more adventures! Loved your comparison to embarkation day to "coronation day" nice descriptive language there!

[kwazi07]

Good to know^^^^ safety first as I tell my teens :D And they say, "oh Ma!" But they are still alive, sooooo....

 

You liked it!!!:D this makes me very happy. Are you disappointed about your pictures? Maybe try a search!? You were doing a great job with your photos so I feel bad that didn't work out. And people do love to see the Compii ;)

 

Sounds like you liked the ship and the CD (we had Marc too, he's good I think, but he was so sick when we sailed and you could see he was a gamer, but man, it's gotta be hard to do that job when you don't feel tip top!) Looking forward to hearing about your ports, and more adventures! Loved your comparison to embarkation day to "coronation day" nice descriptive language there!

Yes, I am a little bummed about the pictures. However in the review I linked above nothing has changed. My mom has some pics on her phone so maybe I can post some of those later. And the cruise was so great, I would go in the ship again but on a different itinerary (more on that later). My mom didn't *love* cruising on Carnival but now she likes it... Which leads to BIG NEWS! I was going to wait till the end, but I can't. First off, we enrolled in C&A. That was one sign that my mom liked the cruise. Also, next year, we have to visit our in-laws in June. We stay at their houses, so it isn't expensive. My dad goes on many business trips in August, so that is out of the question...which brings up November!!! My mom said if we're can find a good deal with a balcony (she is hooked on balconies) we can go on Brilliance of the Seas over Thanksgiving break 2015!!! That is pretty far out though. The choose your wow sail isn't great so far. Since you have been on Jewel, I have a few questions for you.

 

What category are the aft balconies?

Hump vs aft?

I know the balconies are indented, if I am correct the deck 7 balconies are extended but have that white wall level with it. Therefore deck 7 is a no go. Are deck 8-10 balconies' view down blocked much by that wall?

 

Thanks!!!

 

Edit: And don't feel bad about the pics! Many are on my Moms phone as well, so I can post those.

 

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Edited August 10, 2014 by kwazi07

[kwazi07]

Day 2 Coco Cay

 

The night before at the welcome aboard show, Marc said that due to Tropical Storm Bertha we might not be able to make it to CocoCay. However, we did! The Norwegian Gem followed us from PC to our respective private islands. We got off of the ship around 9:30. There was quite a long line to board the tenders but it want by quickly.

 

Once on the island we expected a map but we didn't have one so we just wandered around aimlessly. We ended up setting put near the end of Coconut Willies Beach, under some palm trees. The water was so shallow and we couldn't find the snorkeling area!!! However the water temp was nice, and the island looked just as beautiful as I thought it would.

 

Next we decided to do the nature trail. I didn't think it would be so rocky, but it was still fun in flip flops. Half way through the trail we stumbled upon those little Cabanas. BAD ATTITUDE ALERT We really needed to know the time so we can get back to lunch. We were at the edge of the cabanettes area. We know that it is for gold cards only. We asked the first woman we saw in the cabanas and she said we need to get out of the area because we are not paying for a suite. This was a passenger!!! It isn't like we are asking you to scooch over and let up plop our selves down!!! To make it worse, we asked another lady in that cabanettes area for the time. We got it, but not after a sigh and a 30 second SLOW look through her purse. Well after that incident we went back on the trail to the end. It wasn't a bad walk but the walk back was. We had to walk on this white sand road. It was so hot. We were getting dehydrated and hungry, we live near the beach (5 mins and $1 away) so we decided just go get back on the ship and relax.

 

Overall Coco Cay was nice, but not as great as I thought it would be.

 

Once we were back on the ship, we went to the windjammer for lunch. Familygoboston, I know you had 400 quincenera girls on you ship. We had 40, but I could see why they were obnoxious!!! In the buffet they were like vultures! Actually, I saw them the week before at Busch Gardens and my friend said she saw them at Disney as well.

 

After lunch, we sat on our balcony. It was noisy as the tenders were right below up, but it gave us satisfaction to see full boats leaving the ship. More people off, less crowded pool for us. My brother decided to do the Wii Tennis challenge in Boleros, but there was no one there so he went against my dad. Meanwhile, my sister and I decided to go exploring. When we explore, it goes like this. We go to Cafe Lattetudes to get a pastry. Then, we eat half of pur pastry at the bottom of the Centum...most comfy chairs ever. Then we go all the way up to Viking Crown. It has a nice view, but nothing is ever going on, it smells like dirt, and if you whisper is seems like you are shouting. Is the Viking Crown on other ships different?

 

While my sis and I were exploring my mom was in the solarium. She said get her when we were ready to swim. My sister and I changed, then we tiptoed into the solarium. We stayed in the Park Cafe area, but we still felt like a criminal. Once we got her, we took her out to the pool and it started raining, so she went back in and my sis and I swam on both the pool and the hot tubs. I liked how the hot tubs were covered, we didn't get rained on!!

 

After the pool, it was time for dinner. It was formal night. Once we were dressed we headed down to the MDR. Service was a little slower. This is one thing we did not like! The servers on Royal seemed so overwhelmed. I got the shrimp cocktail, double boiled dumpling soup, filet of beef, and the lemon merengue pie. It was all very good, except for the soup. There were only two tiny dumplings!

 

Up next...captains reception and 70s party

 

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[kwazi07]

Sorry for no recent posts, I have an English project to complete and I have been playing too much Kim Kardashian Hollywood ;)

 

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[kwazi07]

Will post more soon but will answer questions. To you guys have any? And sorry for all the typos as I have been trying on my phone and tablet.

 

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[Southerngal410]

What are the dinner menus for each night? All that I know is Mojo the first night.

 

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[kwazi07]

What are the dinner menus for each night? All that I know is Mojo the first night.

 

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Hmm this is a little difficult... But as my memory serves it is Mojo

Saffron

Pomodoro

Pimento

 

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[poodog]

Good job we love to sail on this ship

[PathfinderEss]

Enjoying your review, looking forward to the rest of it.

[kwazi07]

I'm back!

 

The captain reception was pretty entertaining. Before they had this great band called the Nexus Band. They were very good and they played in the Centrum. The captains reception was VERY entertaining. Especially the parade of flags! For the countries with more employees, they did a little dance. I clearly remember the Barbados one...twerking, using her flag as a.... Um...pole.

 

After the reception I went swimming. It was nice but not really fun without siblings. After that, I really don't remember what we did, I think my mom and ik walked around and went to the Viking Crown and discussed our next cruise :) :) :)

 

The 70s party was, well, interesting. Personally, I do not like 70s music and I thought maybe :rolleyes: they would play some current music. I guess not. My sister and I sat and watched in those super comfy red Centrum chairs. (My dad said in the cruise in review video my sis and I were in it...and knowing me I would be itching my nose or something :rolleyes: )People really got into the whole 70s thing. They had lots of fancy lighting for an atrium in there, I wonder why they didn't add the aerial show. Does anyone know why? Near the end, there was the Village People. I couldn't really see them lol. My mom later went to the adults only comedy, which she said was great and not too raunchy.

 

Day 2 Compii and Day 3 up next!!!

 

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[kwazi07]

Before the Compii, here are some of my moms pics.

Monster pizza!

Exploration Tower

Neato sinks in the tower.

Freedom, Dream, and Sensation in port.

Me driving the pilot in 'dangerous' conditions.

An adorable cat who like to hang out near the beach access path of Hampton Inn. He's so nice!