Jewel of the Seas Nov 1st Trip Report

[Folk Singer]

Excellent Photos and wonderful review.

[glad2go]

Neda...we were at the party in your suite and it really got our cruise off to an excellent start....it was so nice of you to host all your CC friends ....Love your review...it's like virtual cruising for me....Hope you and your family have a wonderful Thanksgiving....Kathi & Greg

[Familygoboston]

I love Adventure, I sailed on her several times when she was year round in San Juan! The southern Caribbean definitely has the best itinerary in my opinion.

 

I remember reading your awesome Paul Gaugin review a while back when I was considering a similar cruise on that ship. Your pictures were beautiful, I remember drooling over them! My main goal on the islands is to stay one step ahead of the crowds, usually I'm pretty successful, but sometimes things change and it's a miss. If you can do the boat charter in St. Thomas, definitely go for as it's an awesome day (if you like boats). There is a company called pocket yachts that has really reasonable rates for a charter, I may try them next time as it was hundreds of dollars less than most companies. Have a great trip!

 

Neda

 

Thanks!! That is very kind...I have to give credit to my hubby for the wonderful photos!! I'll look into the pocket yachts!

 

The funniest and most memorable incident was on a beach in Barbados on the same cruise I mentioned Martinique in earlier when we didn't know any better. Mary was looking at sarongs at some tents they set up on the beach and moved onto the next "stall" to look at another, when out of nowhere the first vendor ran out and grabbed her arm telling her not to buy from the other lady. Now the other lady gets into it and grabs Mary's other arm threatening to stab the first vendor with a pair of scissors. They literally each had one of Mary's arms and were playing tug of war with her. Before I could react, my mother caught wind of it (we took her on this trip), came running over to rescue Mary and started yelling at the two in her little accent to "leave her alone" at the same time hitting them with her pocketbook trying to get Mary free. OMG, I couldn't stop laughing it was soo funny to watch as my mother was this little tiny thing and the other women were at least twice her size! They knew to back off when she came around though.

 

 

Ok, this story cracked me up!! Poor Mary! It must give you some joy to have such wonderful memories of your trips together with your mother- I love that once a mother, always a mother, you just go into mother bear mode, despite your age or size ;):D!!

Edited November 25, 2014 by Familygoboston

[mn1111]

I am so sorry your vacation had to end with so much anxiety and worry. I have loved your detailed review and your excellent port and pre-cruise plans. You have provided information on several different activities that I have not seen mentioned before. We have two weeks scheduled in Jan/Feb on the Jewel so your review is extremely helpful. I love your suite pictures, that would be a fantastic way to spend a week. Hoping your home news was better upon your return as that hopeless feeling had to put a damper on the end of your marvelous vacation.

 

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Tablet using Tapatalk

 

Hi,

 

Thanks so much for your kind words! I would love to do a back to back someday, especially in the winter like you are doing. I hope you have a wonderful trip!

 

The news definitely didn't get any better at home, my cousin Lissa was killed in a car accident on her way home from work that Wednesday afternoon. She was driving on a two lane road and another car came into her lane and hit her head on, she died instantly. It really hit home as I lost my brother to a work accident two years ago, so our family has really had a rough few years. I flew home Saturday night and had to go to her funeral on Sunday morning. She has three young children so it was a pretty emotional time.

 

Neda

[mn1111]

Excellent Photos and wonderful review.

 

 

Thanks, I'm glad you are enjoying it! I'll try to finish up by tomorrow night, I got a little sidetracked with life the last few days.

[mn1111]

Neda...we were at the party in your suite and it really got our cruise off to an excellent start....it was so nice of you to host all your CC friends ....Love your review...it's like virtual cruising for me....Hope you and your family have a wonderful Thanksgiving....Kathi & Greg

 

 

Hi Kathi & Greg,

 

It was so nice meeting you guys and so glad that you came to the party! I really had a good time meeting everyone and be able to host a party in the suite. It felt like we won the lottery! Happy Thanksgiving to your and family also. Hopefully we will cruise together again!

 

Neda

[mn1111]

Thanks!! That is very kind...I have to give credit to my hubby for the wonderful photos!! I'll look into the pocket yachts!

 

 

 

Ok, this story cracked me up!! Poor Mary! It must give you some joy to have such wonderful memories of your trips together with your mother- I love that once a mother, always a mother, you just go into mother bear mode, despite your age or size ;):D!!

 

Your hubby definitely knows how to take great photos! I felt like I was there through your whole review.

 

It was definitely a riot watching my mother swing her bag around at those vendors. She was a lot of fun to take on vacation and a great sport (you wouldn't believe the things we got her doing). I was very fortunate and blessed to be able to travel with her as often as I did.

[mn1111]

Day 10 Cont'd

 

At 9:00PM we headed down to chops for dinner. They started the new menu there and to be honest, we weren’t too impressed, but figured we would give it a shot. This had to be the worst meal of the week. I don’t know what happened, maybe they were too busy or had an off night, but every entrée came out terrible.

 

We all started with shrimp cocktail appetizers which were OK. Elise got the veal chop, but made the mistake of ordering it medium well for some reason (she always orders medium rare), so it came out really tough and she could only take a bite or two before giving up. Mary’s branzino was inedible; it was crunchy on top and way over cooked, but was probably a bad choice for that venue to begin with. I got the filet and to be fair, it would have been good if they didn’t overcook it, as it came out medium instead of medium rare which is too done for my taste. Mary ended up eating some of it and thought it was good, but truthfully I wasn’t in the mood to eat anyway so I didn't care. I don’t remember what sides we ordered, but they were all really good, so it wasn’t a total waste. We didn’t bother with desert as by the time we got our dinners it was almost 11:00PM.

 

For us, Chops was definitely a bust and a waste of money as we probably would of had a better meal in the main dining room. We all agreed that we would give it one more try though, in the hopes that it was just an off night. I really miss the original more comprehensive menu when they had the rib steak and better deserts. I wish they would just upgrade the menu, make it a true steak house and charge more. Maybe something like a cross between the Palm and Craftsteak. I truly believe that most people will pay more for true quality, but I'm guessing Royal did some research and decided on this path of cost cutting. That being said, other people must really like it as unlike Portofino, Chops was fairly full most evenings of the cruise.

 

After dinner we all hit the casino, I really didn't want to be left alone to my thoughts, so I ended up staying really late until right before they closed and actually won a little bit that night.

[mn1111]

Day 11-Nov 7th-At Sea

 

Mary and I woke up at about 8:30AM for our one and only sea day and headed down to breakfast at chops at around 9:15. Elise decided to sleep in as she had another late night. I'm not usually too crazy about sea days, but after the busy week we had, this one was pretty welcome. I definitely like having the sea day on the last day vs. the first as it makes the week go by a little slower.

 

Our roll call scheduled our slot pull at 10:00AM that day and we didn't want to miss it so we made our way over there just in time (or almost just in time) to buy in for $15.00 each. We had about 15 participants playing that morning and everyone seemed to be in good spirits and ready to win! We didn't have much luck at first, but after everyone took their turn we kept going and someone hit it for $200 so we all got most of our money back. Before the cruise, I was teasing that Barbara was going to hit the big one and make us all rich, but that didn't happen that day, so now she owes us one!

 

After the slot pull, we spent a good part of the morning in the casino on the slot machines and lost more money (Mary just a little and me a lot). We really wanted to have lunch in the main dining room as we both like the salad bar they have there and this was the only day it was open. We were really disappointed when we showed up at 1:10 only to find out that it closes at 1:00. In hindsight, we should of checked the compass, but for the life of me, would never imagine a restaurant serving lunch closing at 1:00PM. We decided to head over to the windjammer for the first time that week and it was mobbed with people everywhere! We did run into Elise who had the same idea, so we ate together up there enjoying the sea views.

 

After lunch, I made some phone calls home from the cabin and then Mary and I took a walk around the ship to some of the areas we didn't see as we really spent a lot of time in the cabin that week and barely saw any of the ship. We bought some stuff in the store and the Walk for Wishes T-shirt that the senior staff were signing up on deck. We also ran into Lori and Michelle who were trying to get some sun on the pool deck in between the clouds.

 

After a little more time in the casino, it was time to pack which was a big chore as we had lots of stuff everywhere and didn't know who's stuff was who's so it took a while to figure it all out. In between packing we squeaked in our last wine and cheese hour before heading down to dinner. Lori, Michele and stopped by to say goodbye and exchange contact information. We would see Gabi the next day as we still had the whole day in Puerto Rico and Gabi was going to hang out with us for a while.

 

We really didn't feel like going to the dining room that evening, but we were doing cash tips so had to show up though we probably could of just ran in there and handed off the envelopes and went elsewhere. We said our goodbyes after dinner and all three of us hit the casino again. The crap table was actually pretty good that evening and I got to play almost until closing without losing my shirt for a change. Then it was off to bed for our last night in that killer suite.

[Familygoboston]

Hi,

 

Thanks so much for your kind words! I would love to do a back to back someday, especially in the winter like you are doing. I hope you have a wonderful trip!

 

The news definitely didn't get any better at home, my cousin Lissa was killed in a car accident on her way home from work that Wednesday afternoon. She was driving on a two lane road and another car came into her lane and hit her head on, she died instantly. It really hit home as I lost my brother to a work accident two years ago, so our family has really had a rough few years. I flew home Saturday night and had to go to her funeral on Sunday morning. She has three young children so it was a pretty emotional time.

 

Neda

 

Neda,

So sorry for all your losses, a terrible time for your family :( I do hope you can all find a way to comfort each other during the holidays.

[Folk Singer]

tTank you Neda for your review and take care you and your family over the Holidays.

Edited November 26, 2014 by Folk Singer

[mn1111]

Neda,

So sorry for all your losses, a terrible time for your family :( I do hope you can all find a way to comfort each other during the holidays.

 

Thanks so much! The holidays have been rough, but thankfully we are all close and help each other through. I wish you and your family a Happy Thanksgiving!

 

Neda

[mn1111]

tTank you Neda for your review and take care you and your family over the Holidays.

 

Thanks Don! Happy holidays to you and yours as well. I'm getting ready to finish up the last day tonight and then will add some final thoughts hopefully tomorrow morning.

 

Neda

[mn1111]

Day 12-Nov 8th-San Juan

 

Morning came all too quickly that last day as the three of us all closed the casino the evening before and I spent another half hour at the customer service desk paying off my bill so none of us had much sleep. We met Gabi who was joining us for the day at Chops for a quick continental breakfast at 7:30 sharp. She was lucky enough to be doing a back to back and was looking for something to do on turn around day for awhile. Diego was going to escort us off the ship at 8:15, so we didn't have too much time. He wasn't joking about escorting us as he took us all the way through right to the cab stand. It was literally only about 7 minutes from the time we left chops to the time we were in the cab, including picking up our luggage.

 

We were going back to the Ritz in Dorado for the day because we had a late 8:40PM flight and therefore had the whole day to spend. When cruising out of Puerto Rico and flying out the same day, I like to either get a flight where we go right to the airport and get on a plane or take a late one to have the full day. I try to avoid afternoon flights as much as possible because even if the flight is at 4:00PM, you still have to be at the airport at 2:00 which doesn't allow you to do much, whereas a late flight allows many more options for the day without having to worry about the time. I did look into getting an earlier flight home after getting the bad news on Thursday, but the available flights weren't going to get me home in time to get to where I needed to go so we ended up just leaving everything as is.

 

Originally, the hotel was going to send a car, but we got off the ship earlier than anticipated and when checking the taxi fare vs the car service we found out that it was over $100 less just for one way! We immediately called the hotel to cancel the car service and hopped in the cab which was $62 to Dorado.

 

Twenty minutes later, we all arrived to the same greeting we had before with popsicles, water and about 4 staff members welcoming us with smiles. They gave us a special day room rate which was still expensive, but worth it as we thought about renting a room at the Caribe Hilton for the day and it was only about $120 less over there so we felt the extra money was well spent as we really like it here.

 

After checking in we opted to take a ride in the golf cart over the spa to change since the room they had intended for us wasn't ready yet. We had intended to tour the spa on our previous visit because we heard it was something to see, but never got around to it, so we were happy to have a chance that day. Spa Botanico sits on five acres and they put a gazillion dollars into making it a posh zen like haven. Upon entering what they call the apothecary our mouths dropped as it was so beautiful. Every nook and cranny of the entire spa area was beautiful and really well thought out. We snapped a bunch of pictures and I also pulled some from the web to show some features we couldn't get on our cameras.

 

Spa Main Entrance-It smelled really good in here.-Photo taken from RC website.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Area where the changing rooms are

 

 

Reflection Pool

 

 

Couples treatment area-Taken from RC website

 

[mn1111]

Tree house massage area-Photo taken from RC website

 

Hot and cold pools-I really wanted to splash around in here, but you can only use the facilities if you have a treatment. I'm not a spa person, but would definitely suffer through a manicure or something simple like that to use these pools. First photo from Ritz site, second one we took.

 

 

 

 

The following is a link to the spa website, if anyone is going to be in San Juan and is interested in stopping by for a treatment (non hotel guests can use the spa).

 

http://www.ritzcarlton.com/en/Properties/DoradoBeach/Spa/Default.htm

[Folk Singer]

Thank you so very much. See you soon on a cruise.

[chickadee1]

Neda - I have sure enjoyed reading all about your cruise! Although we were on the same cruise, you wouldn't know it!! Very different! We had a great time and it sure looks and sounds like you did, too! Many of my opinions of the ship are the same even though we spent no time in casino and did walk around and see all of the ship, which we felt was beautiful!! Agree with you about the food - have had better! But, I didn't have to cook it or clean it up so it was a good respite from home!

 

Remember we are going to have lunch? Did you find out about the restaurant on Mill Plain? I know I mentioned Molly Darcy's but I really was thinking about Rosy Tomorrows! Let me know!!

 

Happy Thanksgiving - Be thankful for the times you did share with your family!

 

Barbara

[mn1111]

Neda - I have sure enjoyed reading all about your cruise! Although we were on the same cruise, you wouldn't know it!! Very different! We had a great time and it sure looks and sounds like you did, too! Many of my opinions of the ship are the same even though we spent no time in casino and did walk around and see all of the ship, which we felt was beautiful!! Agree with you about the food - have had better! But, I didn't have to cook it or clean it up so it was a good respite from home!

 

Remember we are going to have lunch? Did you find out about the restaurant on Mill Plain? I know I mentioned Molly Darcy's but I really was thinking about Rosy Tomorrows! Let me know!!

 

Happy Thanksgiving - Be thankful for the times you did share with your family!

 

Barbara

 

Hi Barbara,

 

I hope you and George had a good Thanksgiving! Glad to hear you enjoyed the trip, it was definitely a good one for us as well. I didn't forget about lunch, I had some things come up late last week, but am clear next week so we can just pick a day. I did get the name of that restaurant on Mill Plain. I'll give you a call tomorrow if you are around and we can work out the details.

 

Neda

[glad2go]

Neda...so much fun reading your review...we made some donations at the casino too...we'd like to go back and visit our money sometime....sorry your family was hit so hard these past two years...glad you were able to have some time to cruise and relax...hope the new year brings better times ahead....and always good luck at the casinos....Kath & Greg

[dreaming paradise]

We are cruising in January. Can you share the contact or website for the house for $355 per night?

[dreaming paradise]

Can you share the website or contact info for the $355 house?

[ksadonnab]

Yes - Great review. I really enjoyed it. Thanks!