Monarch of the Seas - don't go

[CruiseDreaming]

My DH and I were on this cruise as well. It was our first 4 night cruise and the smallest ship we've been on. I heard it was a party boat, but I didn't find it so. The staff were attentive. Our stateroom was on deck 7, a few cabins down I guess their toilets overflowed but we were unaffected and except for the staff cleaning for hours there we didn't even notice there was a problem. I did notice a lot of staff in training, but have no complaints. The bed was in need of replacement, but I figured this ship gets used hard. We enjoyed ourselves and the ship. We have decided we like bigger ships but I would do Monarch again. We went Sea Kayaking in Catalina and I recommend it, it was fun. I'm sorry the OP had a stinky room, that would have made me unhappy too. I hope the next one is fabulous.

 

Kerrie

[bbqbears]

Thanks for all who responded to my post. Our tickets arrived yesterday, and I see that they do have the park listed as a shore excursion. Given the number in our group, we would have to rent 2 cars (vans?), and that increses the possibility of complications exponentially. I think we're going to take your advice and do the ship's tour. Kathy

[bbqbears]

momthecruisedirector-wonder if you can give me some specific info on renting golf carts. We will have my 92 yo mom with us, and although she is amazingly healthy, she isn't able to walk long distances. The golf cart sounds like an ideal way for her to see some of the island. How far is the golf cart rental from where the ship docks? TIA, Kathy

[Coralc]

Catalina is a tender port. From the tender dock it is probably about 2, maybe 3 blocks on fairly level ground to the golf cart rental location. You could always seat her, somewhere near the dock, and then walk down and rent a golf cart, and come back and pick her up. :)

 

If she has mobility problems, you may not want to take her on the Avalon casino tour, it is uphill walking, up the ramps, and a bit of a hike.

[Happy ks]

I've done the golf carts a few times and do not remember them being any more than a hundred yards or so from the tender. I would worry more about getting off (and back on) the ship from the tender boats than the walk to the golf carts. The crew is great, there will be plenty of assistance getting on and off the tender boats, but it is a bit precarious (sp?) at times. Use caution if a person has mobility problems. The golf carts do run out, so either try to get there early or you may have to wait until some return.

 

I think if you walk 3 blocks, you would be at the other end of the downtown area, it's so small!

 

Personally, to anyone still interested, Wild Animal Park may be a bit too ambitious for the day. Realistically, you're in San Diego for 9 hours, but you really need to get back to the ship at minimum a half hour before sail-away. Getting off the ship takes a few minutes, too, so knock off an hour. Then, travel time to and from the park, 30 minutes to an hour, knock off two more hours. You are left with 6 hours to see the park, it's really an all day affair. If I were you, I'd go to the Zoo, it's wonderful, or Sea World, I love it there. Both are local enough to get there in minutes, you would have more time to enjoy those parks. We have also enjoyed the Old Town Trolley, a great way to see a lot of San Diego in a very short amount of time.

[maggie27]

Thank You all for the great infor. Can someone tell me if there is a frig in the cabins? 1 month to go:D

[Coralc]

Not to disagree, but it as at least a block into town. And the golf cart rental place is another 2 short blocks after that. Past the side street up to Von's. Maybe we are talking about different rental places? We were on Monarch in both Oct. 04 and July 05.

 

We had a fridge in our Junior Suite, I don't know about the other categories.

[minniegidget]

Can anyone who just got off the ship this past month tell me if the CD was Gavin. If so how was he. I was hoping the John Blair would still be on the ship when I sailed in January. I guess the just switched in Sept.

[ronandannette]

wonder if you can give me some specific info on renting golf carts.

 

Just another little bit of help; when we were on Catalina, the golf cart vendor required a CASH deposit (refundable, about $40.00 as I recall). They absolutely did not take credit cards or debit, and if you don't bring cash, the nearest machine would be in the 'downtown' area, a good 1/4 mile walk. We also found that the carts sell-out very quickly, so unless you want to wait for one to come back, I'd get mine as soon as I got off the tender. (We missed out as we had a kayak excursion booked for the morning). Happy sails,

 

Annette

 

p.s. :) We actually really liked our trip on the Monarch (May/04) and are debating going again with first-time cruiser friends. We're concerned that the state of the boat has deteriorated; anyone know anything about the rumored refirb in January or another boat taking over this itinerary?

[Happy ks]

Not to disagree, but it as at least a block into town. And the golf cart rental place is another 2 short blocks after that. Past the side street up to Von's. Maybe we are talking about different rental places? We were on Monarch in both Oct. 04 and July 05.

 

We had a fridge in our Junior Suite, I don't know about the other categories.

 

Well, it has been a while since I was there, perhaps the first golf cart rental off the tender boats has moved! There was one across the street, just about 100 yards from the boat drop-off place, then another perhaps another 100 yards or so, right before you walked into the downtown area. Maybe you think of a block as a shorter distance than I do! I think of a block as around 200 yards or so. Both of these places were before you got into town.

 

Please excuse me if I mislead anyone, you just normally don't see a lot of changes in a small place such as Avalon.

 

When we have been on Monarch, there were no safes, no fridges and no seapass/room key combo in the regular cabins. It would be nice to know if they have converted the doors to electronic so you don't have to carry around separate keys. Can anyone answer that, please?

[Happy ks]

I think it's kind of amusing how this post has turned from a negative mini review into a positive helpful thread. Threads usually go the other way!

[bbqbears]

Thanks to all who responded. This has been very helpful information. I didn't realize this was a tender port, so something to think about. My husband is handicapped (walks with a cane), and he manages to get on and off with help from the crew. I'm guessing my mom will be able to do the same, but convincing her to try may be another matter... Re: the wild animal park, we may need to rethink that one as well. We all live in California, so perhaps we can see that one another time.

Kathy

[CRUISER94044]

We have just returned from the 4 day cruise on the Monarch. I will try and answer some questions. Overall, we had a wonderful time. It was a great trip, the ports were lots of fun, the food was better than we had on Vision of the Seas a year ago. We usually cruise one time a year for 7-10 days, but had a free week and decided to book this cruise. The last time we had done the 4 day was on the Viking Seranade.

 

The captain is a younger gentleman by the name of Jorn Kausen. The cruise director was Marc Walker. We thought they both did a great job. We had one comedy showtime with Steve Smith and Mike Wilson.... it was fantastic and not to be missed.

 

Yes, the ship is showing its age and in need of refurbishment.. but we didn't let that spoil our good time.

 

We were in cabin 4587. There was a smell in the hall which seemed to eminate from the cabin 4589 or 4591. We didn't have any smell in our cabin. We didn't notice the smell any where else, except the very bow of the promenade deck while taking our evening walk. We didn't however spend time in other cabin areas.

 

You can expect the sound level to be on the higher side around the ship in the evening... alot of energy on the short cruises.

 

We enjoyed our port days, however we didn't take any shore excursions so can't help you there.

 

 

I'll try to answer any other questions. We knew we were going on an older ship, with the 4 day crowd, and this trip exceeded our expectations for a short cruise.

 

Hope this helps.

[bbqbears]

Cruiser94044, thank you for your post. We are a group of 11 family members, celebrating my 50th birthday. As long as people are respectful of others and property, the noise won't bother us. For that matter, we may be contributing to the din (my husband gets a bit loud when he sings "Happy Birthday" off key). The way we look at it, every cruise line/ship is different, but all have something to offer, and NONE are perfect. Thanks for the tip re: the comedy show. Kathy

[bbqbears]

:confused: After much consideration, including the information you have all provided re: Wild Animal Park, my family has elected to forego the park and go to the San Diego Zoo. Now another question....approximately how much should it cost to catch a cab at the port to go to the zoo? Are taxis plentiful? TIA (again!)Kathy

[MszKitty]

I've been on the Monarch 3 times this year...Feb, June, and Oct..and we have a group going again next Feb. We've only had a couple complaints in those three cruises. On the June cruise, there was some sewage odor while we were docked in Ensenada, but as soon as we left, the odor went away. On the February cruise we were with a large group of 52 people. We had an area all together in the dining room. At two of the tables, the wait staff was the worse I've ever had in 16 cruises. But yet the other tables in our group had great service. So, I guess it really depends on the luck of the draw.

 

As far as the captain on the Monarch. On my cruise two weeks ago, I spoke with Captain Jorn Klausen and he said he will be leaving the Monarch in January when she goes into dry dock and will not be coming back.

 

Hopefully, all the "smelly/odor" issues will be taken care of when she goes into dry dock in January.

[bbqbears]

MszKuitty-I read (at least I think I did!) that the formal night is on the last night of the cruise. This seems a little odd, given that bags have to be packed and out in the hall by that night. Given your recent experiences, how did people manage? Thanks, Kathy

[MszKitty]

MszKuitty-I read (at least I think I did!) that the formal night is on the last night of the cruise. This seems a little odd, given that bags have to be packed and out in the hall by that night. Given your recent experiences, how did people manage? Thanks, Kathy

 

Sorry... I can't help you with that question as I've always done the 3 night (Fri-Mon) sailing and the formal night has always been on Saturday night.

 

But, it would make sense to me that formal night on the Mon-Fri cruise would be on Wed, not Thurs. I've never been on a cruise where formal night is the last night.

 

Maybe someone will chime in here and give the correct answer for you.

[MszKitty]

When we have been on Monarch, there were no safes, no fridges and no seapass/room key combo in the regular cabins. It would be nice to know if they have converted the doors to electronic so you don't have to carry around separate keys. Can anyone answer that, please?

 

Fridges are in the JS and above. 2 weeks ago I was in catagory SO (Superior Ocean View), there was a safe.

 

And yes...they have converted the doors. One card is all you need for the door key and seapass.

[MszKitty]

When we have been on Monarch, there were no safes, no fridges and no seapass/room key combo in the regular cabins. It would be nice to know if they have converted the doors to electronic so you don't have to carry around separate keys. Can anyone answer that, please?

 

Fridges are in the JS and above. 2 weeks ago I was in catagory SO (Superior Ocean View), there was a safe.

 

And yes...they have converted the doors. One card is all you need for the door key and seapass.

[PhoenixCruiser]

And yes...they have converted the doors. One card is all you need for the door key and seapass.

 

They were seperate in August :confused:

 

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[MszKitty]

They were seperate in August :confused:

 

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They were all one in the last weekend of Oct. So somewhere between Aug and Oct they switched it.

[Ericknow32]

Just wanted to chime in hear. I just got off my 4th sailing on her and she is a great little ship. While I did encounter the scent that is commonly mistaken as sewage (It's Fuel I think but I know its not sewage) it did not do anything to ruin my great experience.

[Coralc]

BBQBears, formal night is either Tuesday on Wednesday on the 4 day. And I think it is on Tuesday. I won't be doing photo albums until Thanksgiving week, it is DEFINETELY not on Thursday evening. Regarding your cab question, I have no idea how much cabs even cost in my own town, let alone how much they would cost from here to there in a port city. (Someone may have taken one to the zoo) We took the trolley, and did get off at other locations, but not the zoo.:)

[Coralc]

It was sewage smell coming out of the drains in the Schooner bar, Eric. That's why Derick kept pouring bleach down them. It's not a big deal, though. It is slightly off setting and occaisional. We really like the ship and the crew, we've always had a nice time, overall.:)