Photo review: Adventure OTS, Hurricane rerouted itinerary

[dacsmom]

Love your review so far, your pictures are beautiful

[ali3pt14]

Cindy,

I'm loving your review - thank you for taking the time to post! We are leaving Thursday for our cruise on the 12th. I'm voraciously reading everything I can. We are staying in GS 1256 which is just a few doors down from you. Did you hear any noise from the pool deck above?

Ali

[cyntil8ing]

Did you hear any noise from the pool deck above?

Ali

 

Only out on the balcony. We could hear music and announcements out there. Inside, we couldn't hear a thing.

[cyntil8ing]

Cruise Day 3: Sea Day

 

Our family loves scavenger hunts. We’ve done at least one on every cruise we’ve been on. And quite often, we win. Today was no exception. The first hunt, we had to find things around the ship.

 

 

Next, DH and DD tried ice skating. I tried to convince DS to try, but he was not interested. This was DD’s first time on ice skates. I think she likes roller skating better!

 

 

We found the helipad!

 

 

Later that afternoon, we returned for a photo scavenger hunt. Unfortunately, our luck did not hold, but we still had fun and laughed a lot.

 

We made our first visit to the Concierge Club. We found the games and had a great time playing a silly game called Snort.

 

[cyntil8ing]

Cruise Day 4: Aruba

 

Our morning view.

 

 

We were visited by window washers.

 

 

 

 

We had only 24 hours to “plan” our visit to Aruba. We rarely do ship’s excursions, preferring to plan our own ahead of time or wing it when we come off the ship. Today, we decided to wing it and found a $20pp ($10pp for kids) five hour tour.

 

Our ride

 

 

Our tour

 

[YOUTUBE]4ocA1-2-OXc[/YOUTUBE]

[cyntil8ing]

This tour included about two hours driving and three hours at a beach. It was a party bus atmosphere, but drinks were purchased separately. Fun, but again we agreed, a rental car would have been better.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[cyntil8ing]

We returned to the ship and the kids joined my parents for a game of mini-golf.

 

 

 

 

Our second towel animal:

 

 

Deck party creation:

 

[swandie27]

Great review so far! I've seen quite a few reviews complaining about the itinerary change so it's good to see someone who took it in stride. I'll be on the Adventure on October 31st so I'll definitely be taking notes on the ship activities at least. The itinerary for that sailing is quite different from all other sailings.

[cruiseturbo]

Great review so far, Thank you!

 

We are in a grand suite on the Adventure next September and our ports of call are supposed to be, St Marten, Aruba, Curaçao and Bonaire. Definitely looking forward to the rest of your review and hearing about any suite perks you guys enjoyed!

[bonvoyagebites]

Awesome that you didn't make the worst out of port changes. To me, it seems RCI did their best to make things "right" and keep everyone safe.

 

Following along. Thanks for posting. We are on a Navigator cruise out of Galveston in October, and it will be our first RCI cruise.

[Rom Com]

Funny you should mention that. I used to play golf there when I was in the Navy and Roosevelt Roads was open. They offered a special for military that was hard to beat. We would play 18 holes then go to the Casino. ( This was many years ago). Then the designated driver would be stuck taking a bunch of drunk sailors home.

[cyntil8ing]

Funny you should mention that. I used to play golf there when I was in the Navy and Roosevelt Roads was open. They offered a special for military that was hard to beat. We would play 18 holes then go to the Casino. ( This was many years ago). Then the designated driver would be stuck taking a bunch of drunk sailors home.

 

The golf course was deserted while we were there. I think I saw maybe two or three groups the whole time. Fairways were in rough shape. I didn't see any of the greens. And the casino is now a big, empty karaoke bar with a few pool tables. It's definitely a family-friendly type place now. I imagine it was glamorous back-in-the-day.

[cyntil8ing]

Cruise Day 5: Bonaire

 

My kids aren’t into snorkeling, so we left them on the ship with my parents and DH and I took a RCCL water taxi excursion over to Klein Bonaire. It was just so convenient to come off the ship and hop onto the water taxi on the same pier. This was the first time we had used Ryno, the concierge. We walked into the Concierge Club and had tickets to the water taxi in our hands a minute later. We went back to the room to change and grab our snorkeling gear and were off the ship and on the water taxi than 20 minutes later.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[cyntil8ing]

 

 

After returning to the ship, we found the kids and went swimming.

 

 

 

While we were in the pool, the captain announced that due to Tropical Storm Erika, we would be changing our itinerary again. We had been scheduled for a sea day and then a call in St. Thomas. But the port of St. Thomas was scheduled to be closed until at least 9:00am Friday. So, instead we would visit Curacao the next day and then a sea day before our return to San Juan. In St. Thomas, we had planned to ferry to St. John, so again we were disappointed.

 

That evening, we had been invited to dinner with the captain and senior officers in the Windjammer. Our table guest was Frederick, head of housekeeping, from Jamaica. We had a great time.

 

[cyntil8ing]

Cruise Day 6: Curacao

 

Last year, my daughter read a story in school, THE CAY, that was initially set in Willemstad, so she was very excited to visit and see the Queen Emma Bridge and the Venezuelan market.

 

Again, our bad luck continued. The Queen Emma Bridge had been dismantled and removed for repair. But the market was there!

 

 

 

 

So instead, we ferried across.

 

 

 

[cyntil8ing]

 

 

 

After returning, DH and DD climbed the rock wall. Again, my cautious DS just preferred to watch.

 

 

 

[cyntil8ing]

Our final towel animal

 

 

Cruise Day 7: Sea day

 

It was windy and rainy outside. The outer decks were closed most of the day. We hung out in the cabin quite a bit.

 

 

And went to the ice show.

 

Deck chairs were packed and stacked.

 

 

The Solarium deserted.

 

 

So, we went to Johnny Rockets and got milkshakes.

 

[cyntil8ing]

Final day

 

Our vacation had nearly come to an end. But our flight home wasn’t until 4:00pm, so when we came off the ship, we booked San Juan Happy Tours for a tour of new and Old San Juan with an airport drop off.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[cyntil8ing]

 

My DH is always the photographer, so I had to throw in one of the few photos I got of him this vacation.

 

 

 

 

[Hijump24]

excellent photos!

 

we are in 1274 on our Adventure cruise:D

 

 

Same with us we are in 1274 next August on adventure... Loved the review. How is the overhang on the balcony ? Does it block a lot of sun?

Edited September 9, 2015 by Hijump24

[cyntil8ing]

A few random final thoughts

 

Since we didn’t get to experience the original itinerary, we decided to book again for next August. We also booked another Grand Suite. I hope we’re not setting a precedent!

 

The cruise nearly started off on a bad foot. The kids and I went to check out our dining table while we were waiting for DH and my parents. We were surprised to arrive at a table for four. I had verified that our bookings were linked, so we were expecting a table for the six of us. A quick visit to the maître d at the dining room entrance fixed the issue. I found it a bit disconcerting that he pointed out to my son the importance of having the gold card. Would it not have been fixed otherwise?

 

The food on this cruise was really disappointing. I was never impressed with the food in the main dining room. We did not go to Giovanni’s Table. Windjammer was unimpressive too. It was also always crowded, hot in the aft section and just generally unimpressive. Our one experience with room service took over an hour to receive our order of cookies and a slice of cheesecake. We fell asleep waiting for them! It’s a good thing we don’t cruise for the food!

 

Departing from San Juan is the best! My parents, DH and I are wine drinkers. We enjoy a bottle (or two) every night with dinner in the dining room. Before we left on Saturday, Dad, DH and I went back into the terminal to buy our allowed two bottles of wine for each cabin. We noticed there was an employee checking the duty free shop bags, but it was only for liquor, not wine. Between the three of us, we carried on 12 bottles of wine. I had four, which I showed to the employee. He verified it was just wine and sent me on my way. We never had to buy wine!

 

We have Diamond status because we are Elite on Celebrity. This allowed us into the Diamond Lounge, but we didn’t use it much. Between our kids not being allowed in during the evening and just a general unwelcoming feeling we got the two times we visited, we just were more comfortable in the Concierge Lounge. I am sure most of the discomfort was our own, but because we didn’t make it in the first couple of days, it seemed everyone was already in groups and no one ever tried to join us. I think I would have felt weird telling anyone it was only my second Royal Caribbean cruise anyway. And since my parents have no status nor were they in a suite, we didn’t spend much time in either lounge anyway. But we did make good use of the coffee machine!

 

We didn’t spend much nearly as much onboard as usual. Our alcohol bill was way below normal. I am sure it was because of the wine situation and also having access to the Diamond and Concierge Lounges. We would get a round of drinks for us and the kids once or twice a day, if we were on the ship in the afternoon. And the Diamond free photos saved us our other usual expense. We ended up getting a refund of most of the OBC given to us by our TA, a first time ever ending up with a credit.

 

The kids never used the kids’ clubs. My DD was newly eligible for the teen club, having turned 12 just two weeks before the cruise. She went once, but I think felt young and out of place, so she never went back. DS never expressed an interest to go. I have weird kids! They were content with each other and hanging out with the grandparents and us. We did take DS to the Adventure Ocean party in the disco one evening, but we were the only ones there! We had the dance floor to ourselves.

 

We missed all of the parades and activities on the Promenade and nearly all of the shows. I think this was due to our late fixed dining dinner time. After dinner, we were usually just ready to call it a night. We went to one production show and it was awful. We didn’t go back.

 

We still don’t have a favorite cruise line. Personally, I think they’re more alike than different. There are more bells and whistles for the kids on Royal and Carnival than Celebrity, but for the activities that my family prefers, it really doesn’t matter where we are. We always have a great time!

 

Thanks for reading. Happy to answer any questions.

[paget]

Great review Cindy, I really enjoyed reading it! See you on the Adventure next August!

 

Maria

[Marylandteachergirl]

Thank you for the great review and the beautiful photos. Regarding the Ravens - I don't care what team people follow, or not! It's just what drew my attention to the fact that you are from Maryland.:)

 

I am also intrigued with El Conquistador Resort. I think I see a golf course nearby!

 

Sailing from San Juan remains our favorite - and Aruba is on our to visit list now - your photos, again, show a great day.

 

Thank you for sharing, and may your days until the next cruise pass swiftly.

[EJPhilly]

Since you toured San Juan your last day, what did you do with your luggage? What tour did you take, was it booked thru RCCL? Thx

[cyntil8ing]

Since you toured San Juan your last day, what did you do with your luggage? What tour did you take, was it booked thru RCCL? Thx

 

We used San Juan Happy Tours. It was $25pp and our luggage was in the bus with us. They are set up right outside the terminal. When we left the ship, we grabbed a porter and told him what we wanted to do. He took care of everything. We just settled ourselves in the bus and waited for it to fill, which took about 10 minutes.

 

The last time we traveled out of San Juan was on Celebrity, but they have the same tours as RCCL. We booked the Rain Forest with Airport Drop-off. We were put on a creaky old unairconditioned bus while our luggage went in a trailer to the airport, where it sat outside with just one attendant watching over all of the luggage from all of the tours. When we arrived at the airport, we really could have picked up any luggage we wanted. :eek: