Navigator Review 1/28 - 2/4 Gay Charter (LONG)

[floridaken77]

Atlantis Cruise

Departing 01/26/2006

Miami

Departure Day:

 

Getting up bright and early (hey..I couldn’t sleep, I was excited). We got to the pier at about 11am, and managed to get aboard pretty quickly. I would say we were on board by 1230, in time for a quick lunch and some exploring time around the ship.

 

Before getting to the review—there are a few things to get out of the way:

 

(1) This is a chartered cruised, chartered by Atlantis—which caters to the Gay and Lesbian Market—if that offends, please keep it to yourself, You are not required to read any further.

 

(2) This cruise is different from other cruises—in that some of the things done by Atlantis, Inc are specific to their cruises.

 

Now with that out of the way…. lets continue (just a note, this is written daily, so it flows stream of consciousness)

 

First Impressions:

 

The Navigator is a beautiful, gorgeous ship…. just walking around I am awed by the spectacle of everything. My last cruise was on the other line (you know..with the big red fins) when I was a senior in High School. On this first day, so far, we have toured the ship to see what is what…enjoyed the scenery (both on the ship and the HOTTIES around the ship…..) Had a little lunch, and now are relaxing a bit before the dreaded Mustard Drill. We also bought the soda package (for those of you who will ask, it was $42.00 plus 15% gratuity). We did smuggle a little hooch on board (one bottle of 100 proof absolute vodka in its original bottle, and some rum from the house in a water bottle). Both were checked, both made it okay (we did not fly). We had some delicious cookies, and a nice bottle of wine awaiting for us in our small stateroom (on deck 2, with a porthole). There wasn’t really much room to unpack—so we did the best we can. The Ship was a little rocky for most of the trip—but not too much to handle. We took Dramamine the first night, toughed it out the second and by the third it was fine.

 

Coming up…Charo (yes…Coochie Coochie Charo). This being one of those Atlantis things..we get fabulous entertainment for fabulous people. There is a surprise entertainer later in the week---but I will never tell (at least until we get there).

 

As we continue through day one, Charo was absolutely amazing….didn’t look a day over 103, and was vibrant and vivacious and bawdy (but hilariously so)…. Of course we got her “coochie coochie”, and she is an amazing guitar player. That woman knows to kick off a party. The Cruise Directors were: Ashley, Malcom & Gordon – there very funny very high energy people.

 

Dinner was open seating (on special arrangement with Atlantis) and I had Shrimp Ravioli (eh) Vidalia Onion Tart (pretty tasty) and chocolate fondue which was really just pudding. The funny thing was this was after the first show—so apparently they were ready to get rid of us, and during dessert all the bright lights popped on, then almost all the lights went out. It was like last call at a bar.

 

Finally—there were two welcome aboard parties. One in Studio B (The Ice Rink) with DJ Bret Heinricheson and one in the Dungenon with DJ Manny Leahman. Both were packed to the gills full of shirtless pretty people…and the music was probably kicking into the weee early hours. But we—for the first night—opted for an early turn in at 0105am! Tomorrow-a day at sea.

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Sea Day:

 

Today was a sea day…which means we were just lazy all day. Sat pool side—took a lunch break, went back to the pool. Not a huge problem with Chair Hogs. Lunch was marginal at best….I had the Thai chicken Wrap, and cold avacado soup (which actually was fabulous). The day turned out to be pretty great….we rested on the deck, we went ice skating, walked by the art auction (waaaay outta our price range).

This afternoon we had one of many T-Dances – DJd by Tony Moran (you know—if you are reading this from the link from the RCCL boards – your probably don’t know who these DJs are….but they are HUGE in the party circuits.) The T-Dance was absolutely AMAZING, almost spirtual. Imagine (if you can) 3000+ men (most of them shirtless) dancing away in the setting sun. Very high energy, very amazing…the words really can’t describe it—so I have included pictures. This evening is a comedy Showcase featuring GLBT comedians Shann Carr, Poppy Champlin, Bruce Daniels (Margaret Cho’s opening act from her last tour if you saw the DVD) and Jim David. Tonight is also the Mardi Gras parade, followed by another party on the pool deck. This time complete with lights, lasers and the whole nine yards you would find in any club. More on this later!!!

 

Shaan was Fabulous, as was Jim David (who is on comedy central). Poppy was HILARIOUS!! I think she was the surprise of the evening, as we didn’t know who she was—but was super fabulous!! Bruce Daniels---was terrible. His jokes weren’t doing well, and he walked off after a few minutes. We poked into the second show—and he bombed it as well.

 

Dinner tonight was good. I had Roast Duck—which was delicious. Was served with what looked like twinkies (but was taters).

 

The late show tonight was EDIE – who is going to be on Broadway with the Three Penny Opera. She was a drag queen who sings live (quite well). Her bit on this show was kind of an Austin Powers 1970’s. Let me tell you—she is like 6+ feet tall, and has legs that REAL women would kill for!

 

To anyone who passed might have seen us at sea, and wondered what the heck was going on---it was the light show. You have never seen anything of the sort—lasers shooting in the sky, disco lights high energy dance music, thousands of men (and a handful of women) jumping around on the pool deck having the time of their life. The DJ for this particular event was Warren Gluck.

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Cozumel:

 

When we awoke this morning, we were in Cozumel. Had Breakfast in the WindJammer—and were excited about a nice day in Cozumel. Now—regardless what you have been told—the devastation is instantly recognizable when you pull into town on the tender boat (the tender process was smooth). Everything was open—except for the mall at the pier. Also, Senor Frogs and the Hard Rock were not yet opened. After being hassled endless for Cuban Cigars and Silver and everything else under the sun, we decided it was time for beers @ Carlos & Charlies. After dos Dos Equis – it was back on board for lunch. After lunch, we decided just to stay on the ship for the rest of the day. This was about two o’clock. I was exhausted, found a nice chair in the Solarium and slept for an hour and a half. Then we stayed there until we pulled out at 6 (an hour late mind you—but we finally left).

 

Dinner tonight was Venetian Feast—I had the best Lamb, it was delicious, moist and just plain YUMMY. I also ordered the Tiger Prawns to go with my Lamb—also very tasty. For dessert my partner and I had Tiaramisu, Chocolate Cake, and Raspberry something. All very very very very good!!

 

Tonight we went to see Matt Yee (who is a sing a long leader). I haven’t laughed so hard in ages. It was the funniest thing ever. A bunch of semi-drunkish gay men (and two women who kept running away) singing show tunes, and diva tunes from Whitney to Britney.

 

After the show we went to see Poppy’s full one woman show. She was one of the funniest comedians I have ever seen. She was interacting with the audience, and making it part of her comedy routine. Very quick on her feet. Super!

 

 

By this time I was exhausted—but we tool up to the pool deck to see whats going on, and its another party with Bret Heinrichsen. I don’t really care for him—but he was spinning a couple of good songs, we so sat there and watched and enjoyed for a bit. Although—I was sleeping on the deck—and if you are sleeping through very loud thumpa thupa—you MUST be tired---so it was off to bed. There was a ship that looked like a carnival vessel out there---so if you saw laser lights and flashing—that was us!

 

Tomorrow is Grand Cayman. Looking forward to that as we have a Jeep Rental lined up. And as long as we don’t get there too late—we should be able to tool over to Rum Point.

 

***************************************

Day 04 – Grand Cayman

 

Though we were an hour late leaving cozumel, we got to Grand Cayman a half hour early (Thanks Capt’n)! A little background on the gays and Grand Cayman – in a word, unwelcome. An Atlantis cruise was turned away about eight years ago, because the community did not want us around. This time we were able to disembark, but there quite a few protestors around. We gathered quite a crowd. On the plus side, there was a small group welcoming us, with rainbow shirts, and welcome signs. All in all, after renting the jeep—we drove over to Rum Point. It was VERY busy ! Disney apparently ran a cruise excursion through. But we had lunch, and enjoyed a nice drive across the island. We rented with AVIS (www.aviscayman.com)--they were VERY helpful and extremely easy, not to mention affordable ($81.00 for a Jeep, including gas, insurance, and license.) With us in GC were six other ships, the Granduer, a celebrity, Disney, NCL, and Holland America and a Carnival.

 

After that it was a busy night. The Ice Dancin’ show—which was tweaked a little for us, but not much. Still wonderful! Dinner, and then the RCCL Now and Forever show. Was very entertaing (Mamma Mia)……

 

After that I crashed, big time. I was just exhausted. Thankfully tomorrow is a sea day

 

 

Day 05

 

At Sea—not much new to add. It was an at sea day. We slept in , and I spent most of the day napping in the Solarium. There are a lot of shows going on tonight—so it should be quite fun! As we were sailing by Cuba, the Classic Disco T-Dance started up, so it was quite interesting. Lots of fun costumes (you know us Gays…can never just do something a little LOL) See the pictures, it was quite FUN!

 

 

Day 06/07

 

As the week wore on, I drank more, and was able to write less! Day six was Labadee, which was my favorite port! We had the best time just laying in the sun. Rented floatees, and did a little shopping. This is where I finally got my sun burn.

 

This was also the night of Margaret Cho (Hilarious) and the phenomenal white party….we saw a few ships on our way—so you may have seen the battlestar galactica go by!!

 

The white party lasted until 1230 (the next afternoon)….but I crashed about 430. Due to some pretty heavy duty partying, I was gone on Friday—so we slept. Slept by the Solarium, slept in the room, slept by the pool deck……

 

I will be uploading pictures soon—so look back for the link.

 

General Impressions:

 

This (contrary to popular belief) was not a floating bathhouse – unless that is what you wanted it be. My partner and I had a great time, did not “play” and still enjoyed everything the navigator had to offer us. Rich did a GREAT job of making sure there was always something to do—often times there were MANY things to do at the same time. All in all, I was impressed…the food was okay, the ports were decent, and the ship was fabulous. I had an excellent time, I would strongly recommend an all gay cruise to anyone looking to have a great time. Any questions, please, ask me directly on the board.

[kenandlaura06]

Good detailed review...thank you.

[Merion_Mom]

Hey, Laura, I bet that you had been wondering WHERE Ken was last week, eh? ;)

[kenandlaura06]

Hey, Laura, I bet that you had been wondering WHERE Ken was last week, eh? ;)

 

LOL! He was out very late one night last week!:p

[Merion_Mom]

Coming up…Charo (yes…Coochie Coochie Charo). This being one of those Atlantis things..we get fabulous entertainment for fabulous people. There is a surprise entertainer later in the week---but I will never tell (at least until we get there).

 

As we continue through day one, Charo was absolutely amazing….didn’t look a day over 103, and was vibrant and vivacious and bawdy (but hilariously so)…. Of course we got her “coochie coochie”, and she is an amazing guitar player. That woman knows to kick off a party. The Cruise Directors were: Ashley, Malcom & Gordon – there very funny very high energy people.

Just wanted to let you know, Ken, that Charo's been working Royal Caribbean ships regularly for quite some time. She was on our Explorer New Year's Eve cruise in 2003, and stayed on for a few weeks then. She has been reported on since then, too.

 

Not that she wasn't wonderful for you ............... just not exclusive. :D :D

[kenandlaura06]

Just wanted to let you know, Ken, that Charo's been working Royal Caribbean ships regularly for quite some time. She was on our Explorer New Year's Eve cruise in 2003, and stayed on for a few weeks then. She has been reported on since then, too.

 

Not that she wasn't wonderful for you ............... just not exclusive. :D :D

 

I would love to see Charo on Freedom...she cracks me up!

[cincicruisers]

Thanks for sharing your review!

Sounsd like you had a great vacation.

[merrysunshine320]

I think I would FREAK OUT if Charo were on my cruise!!! That is so awesome!! I grew up on a steady diet of "The Love Boat," where I just lived for the Charo episodes. I'm already excited that my cruise next month leaves from L.A. and that we're going to Puerto Vallarta. If that isn't enough to turn me into Vicki Stubing, I don't know what else will? I've got my blue blazer, white pleated skirt, and knee socks all ready to go!! :)

 

Anyway, terrific review! Thanks for sharing it with everyone!!

[nanfromatlanta]

I want a light show on my next cruise.... WAAHHHHH !!!!!

[floridaken77]

I hope these work:

Atlantis Dance Parties:

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/floridaken77/album?.dir=/1b86&.src=ph&.tok=phO_AXEBqKbBTsRL

 

Port Pictures:

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/floridaken77/album?.dir=/bdbe&.src=ph&.tok=phIDBXEBKAhjKGt9

 

 

 

There will be more to come tomorrow (as I am exhausted from the trip.....) Should be two more albums: Ship pictures, and pictures of us on vacation.

 

These photos taken with 2 digital cameras:

 

Fuji FinePix A550

 

Canon Sure Shot A85 (I think). Pictures uploaded on regular basis to laptop, then transferred to Yahoo Photos. If the links do not work, visit http://photos.yahoo.com/floridaken77

where you will find two atlantis links!

[Merion_Mom]

Look while you can, guys. I predict that this link will not be here long.:eek: :eek: :eek: LOL.

[HurricaneSally]

Where are the lesbians? I didn't see even one in those pictures. Looks like everyone was having fun though.

[fireguy091]

Was this particular week avail. to the public or was it a private charter.

[floridaken77]

This was a totally private charter, though you could have booked through Atlantis if you really wanted to go.

 

I did meet some really great lesbians...there were a total of about 23 ladies with us--and even a handful of straight friends (including some one's eighty year old mother!!)

[Cruise Gopher]

Pics and review are great! We would like to maybe go on Atlantis one day.

 

Did they reveal any information about the Atlantis Freedom of The Seas charter for 2007? We would LOVE to go on that one but not if it does the standard Freedom of the Seas Itinerary. We have done Western Carrib. twice now. So I hope they change it and go to some different ports.

[KamloopsCruisers]

Thanks for posting your review and pics. When we sailed on the Voyager last January, the Atlantis Navigator ship departed Miami just ahead of us. When the ship sailed past us I was able to witness the sail-away party. What fun! (Ours paled in comparison.) I commented to my husband that I'd like to abandon our ship and head over to the Navigator - what wonderful eye candy :D and everyone seemed to be in a real party mood. Despite having to feast my eyes for the rest of the week on mainly flabby middle-agers, we had a nice time - but not a "rockin good time" that you experienced.

 

P.S.

Charo performed for us on the Voyager and we thoroughly enjoyed her.

[andy1962]

:) what a wonderful review and pictures wish I was there too....

[Lemarier]

Hey Ken

 

Seeing as there were ony 23 ladies on board maybe you met a friend of mine - her name is Risa - curly dark hair?

 

Kathy

[KelJ]

I can see why you took the picture of the guy in the blue bathing suit!;) Picture 105 was it? 106? Geez, you guys know how to party!!

[KelJ]

I can see why you took the picture of the guy in the blue bathing suit!;) Picture 105 was it? 106? Geez, you guys know how to party!!

 

I mean 206. I went back to doublecheck, for the sake of accuracy of course.;)