Onboard Enchantment February 17-25, 2022

[rafinmd]

A few bits of documentation.  Depending on your setup you may get the actual document or an offer to save the file:

 

Day 1 compass:

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2022/02/compass17.pdf

 

Day 2 Compass:

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2022/02/compass18.pdf

 

Officer bios:

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2022/02/officers.pdf

 

Roy

 

 

[LorraineP]

22 minutes ago, rafinmd said:

There's also Chef's table and Park Cafe a bit later.  Dancing would be Boleros, Spotlight Lounge and Viking Crown Lounge (all assuming one is vaccinated).  Not attractive for the unvaccinated.  The only dancing not requiring vaccination is the Centrum 6-7PM.

 

Roy

Wonder how good the Chef’s Table is on the Enchantment. Have people been dancing. Will be on for 16 nights & hope I didn’t make a mistake booking so long on a small ship. 

[Biker19]

1 minute ago, LorraineP said:

. Will be on for 16 nights & hope I didn’t make a mistake booking so long on a small ship. 

You should know by turn around day. 

[shipgeeks]

We were on last week's Enchantment cruise.  A small number of people danced in Bolero's (outstanding band and singer), a number of dancers in Centrum.  We heard that many danced in Viking Crown (silent disco, etc.)

The theater reserved the main level for vaccinated, and the balcony for non-vac.  I was not aware of any such distinction in MDR or WJ, only that upper level of MDR was MyTime dining, and lower level for set dining.

We had an excellent 12 days aboard, and met quite a few people who are aboard for 2, 3, 4 consecutive cruises, as well as one who is aboard for three months.  No complaints from any of them.  We all enjoyed the lower passenger numbers, with no waiting for elevators, no crowds, and service from crew even better than before.

[DragonOfTheSeas]

22 minutes ago, shipgeeks said:

 

 We all enjoyed the lower passenger numbers, with no waiting for elevators, no crowds, and service from crew even better than before.

We are on Enchantment March 25.  We hope they are still controlling numbers by then. 

[LorraineP]

33 minutes ago, shipgeeks said:

We were on last week's Enchantment cruise.  A small number of people danced in Bolero's (outstanding band and singer), a number of dancers in Centrum.  We heard that many danced in Viking Crown (silent disco, etc.)

The theater reserved the main level for vaccinated, and the balcony for non-vac.  I was not aware of any such distinction in MDR or WJ, only that upper level of MDR was MyTime dining, and lower level for set dining.

We had an excellent 12 days aboard, and met quite a few people who are aboard for 2, 3, 4 consecutive cruises, as well as one who is aboard for three months.  No complaints from any of them.  We all enjoyed the lower passenger numbers, with no waiting for elevators, no crowds, and service from crew even better than before.

Good to hear. Doing B2B 3/17 & 3/25. 

[Rogueperson]

2 hours ago, rafinmd said:

There's also Chef's table and Park Cafe a bit later.  Dancing would be Boleros, Spotlight Lounge and Viking Crown Lounge (all assuming one is vaccinated).  Not attractive for the unvaccinated.  The only dancing not requiring vaccination is the Centrum 6-7PM.

 

Roy

Love Chef’s table, but we’ve had the same menu more or less since 2017.  I’ve done it on Grandeur, Navigator, allure, Mariner and Brilliance.  Only dessert changed.  😔

[LorraineP]

9 minutes ago, Rogueperson said:

Love Chef’s table, but we’ve had the same menu more or less since 2017.  I’ve done it on Grandeur, Navigator, allure, Mariner and Brilliance.  Only dessert changed.  😔

Have you done it on Enchantment recently?

[Rogueperson]

18 minutes ago, LorraineP said:

Have you done it on Enchantment recently?

I plan to when i board her on March 5th.  I should mention that the last 5 were more or less the same menu.  In 2016, on Anthem, it was different as well as on grandeur on 2015.

 

I did Mariner last September and Brilliance in December

Edited February 18, 2022 by Rogueperson

[LorraineP]

13 minutes ago, Rogueperson said:

I plan to when i board her on March 5th.  I should mention that the last 5 were more or less the same menu.  In 2016, on Anthem, it was different as well as on grandeur on 2015.

 

I did Mariner last September and Brilliance in December

If you can please post how it was on Enchantment. Trying to talk my DH into going but his response is “we don’t enjoy wine” plus he’s a plain eater.

[LorraineP]

Any pizza on ship. Sometimes we’re too involved to eat dinner & eventually have a slice or two. 

[Rogueperson]

53 minutes ago, LorraineP said:

If you can please post how it was on Enchantment. Trying to talk my DH into going but his response is “we don’t enjoy wine” plus he’s a plain eater.

This was my live thread in December on Brilliance.  On post #85, that's where my Chef's table post and pictures are if you're interested.  This menu has been more or less the same since 2017 apparently across several different ships.

[rafinmd]

11 minutes ago, LorraineP said:

Any pizza on ship. Sometimes we’re too involved to eat dinner & eventually have a slice or two. 

Definitely Park Cafe.  Not sure about other places.

 

Roy

[LorraineP]

17 minutes ago, Rogueperson said:

This was my live thread in December on Brilliance.  On post #85, that's where my Chef's table post and pictures are if you're interested.  This menu has been more or less the same since 2017 apparently across several different ships.

Thank you for posting. Same menu that comes up on my RCL App. Now to get my DH to agree to come. He’s not adventurous at all when it comes to food, meat & potatoes guy. To me the menu & your pictures look amazing. 

[Happily@Sea]

7 hours ago, rafinmd said:

There's also Chef's table and Park Cafe a bit later.  Dancing would be Boleros, Spotlight Lounge and Viking Crown Lounge (all assuming one is vaccinated).  Not attractive for the unvaccinated.  The only dancing not requiring vaccination is the Centrum 6-7PM.

 

Roy

 

I'm not a foodie either. I would be very disappointed  with WJ not being open for dinner. What kind of menu is in the Park Cafe? It could be an alternative. Thanks

[Smhp]

5 hours ago, LorraineP said:

If you can please post how it was on Enchantment. Trying to talk my DH into going but his response is “we don’t enjoy wine” plus he’s a plain eater.

We were on the Feb. 5th Enchantment and did the Chef's Table. We loved the waiter, Eduardo. He was so good explaining the wine pairings. We also loved the conversation we had with the other dinners. There were 3 couples and we talked until 10:30 (it starts at 6:30). The menu is exactly what you see on the app. The filet minion was amazing.  And the desert was so rich and delicious. Here are a few photos.

[Smhp]

46 minutes ago, Happily@Sea said:

 

I'm not a foodie either. I would be very disappointed  with WJ not being open for dinner. What kind of menu is in the Park Cafe? It could be an alternative. Thanks

Breakfast- little sandwichs, fruit, pastries, oatmeal, breakfast burritos

Lunch- pizza, carved roast beef, sandwiches, wraps, salads, and deserts.

[shipgeeks]

10 hours ago, Happily@Sea said:

 

I'm not a foodie either. I would be very disappointed  with WJ not being open for dinner. What kind of menu is in the Park Cafe? It could be an alternative. Thanks

Is there a reason you don't want to go to MDR?

[rafinmd]

Day 2, Friday, February 18, 2022, at sea (Formal), Enchantment of the Seas

.
I think on previous cruises on Enchantment and Grandeur the coffee station outside WJ has had coffee   hours a day.  This time it is listed as 6:30-20:30 but crew were about 15 minutes early.  I thought Park Café staff was early as well but just rechecked the Compass and they actually open at 6, so that will be my go to place for morning coffee.  

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2022/02/icecream.jpg

 

My morning got off to a slow start with internet troubles but I think I am finally starting to catch up.  With the outer decks solidly closed off due to the weather I walked about 30 minutes on the ship’s interior corridors.

My only formal activity for the morning was the Crown and Anchor Top Tier event at 11 in the Spotlight Lounge.  Captain Ivo (I is pronounced like an E) is TALL.  He was the first to speak and had good news and bad news.  The bad news is that with the storm we may be a bit late at Port Canaveral.  The good news is that the storm is moving north while we move south, although I have not yet seen any improvement as of 3:30PM.  I saw a question either here or on our Cruise Critic roll call about the number of guests onboard.  Loyalty host Anshul read the numbers by Crown and Anchor level but I wasn’t prepared to write them down. My best recollection is that there were roughly 1,000 past cruisers on board.  Including first timers I would guess the total occupancy is about 1,200.

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2022/02/toptier.jpg

 

Breakfast and lunch both came from the WJ except for toast at the Diamond Club Continental Breakfast.  I was surprised bu the WJ closure for dinner as it has always been open in the past.  I expect it may be a staffing issue with the reduced number of guests and all the extra work doing things like sanitizing everything and serving everything rather than allowing self service.  The protocols have changed a bit even on this cruise and I am hoping things will continue

Things had not changed when Captain Ivo gave his noon update.  It sounds like we will still be somewhat delayed at Port Canaveral but I don’t think by a lot.

I think Cruise Critic Meet and Mingles are on hold for the rest of the year due to Covid.  There had been talk of an informal gathering by the Rock Climbing wall at 2PM today but with the outside decks locked town tightly it apparently did not happen.  I did check by the deck 10 doors and by the Solarium but saw nothing.

 

I‘m beginning to think the dining I have may be pretty close to the best of both worlds.  One thing I tend not to like about flexible dining is new waiters every night but it appears to be pretty easy to keep Raul and Alan each night while the possibility exists to change my time., and I’ve been finished in about 45 minutes both nights.  Tomorrow will be interesting as the WJ will be closed all day for maintenance.  Good thing to have it on a day when most people will be away for lunch.  The Park Café evening menu appears to be pretty much like the lunch menu.  In fact, at dinner I forgot to photograph my salad and the second panel will be Park Café Pizza.

The featured entertainment was “Brittan’s Finest” , a Beatles Tribute Band.  I wouldn’t call them the finest (neither would they, they said they were emulating the finest) but they put on a very good show.

 

The storm continued through the night and at 6AM the outer decks were still solidly locked down, Things started opening a bit around 7 and I walked about 30 minutes between decks 5 and 10.  I caught just a hint of a sunrise as I crossed the bridge where the ship was lengthened.

My parting shot today is a musing about loyalty programs.  It’s not just Royal but the trend in the industry seems to do events only for those who have reached some form of upper level.  I would have thought from a business point of view that a person taking their second or third cruise is probably just wondering if it’s right for them and that is someone I would really want to go out of my way to feel special.  The person with 20 or 30 cruises is probably really committed and not going anywhere.  Makes sense to me but not what is happening most of the time.

Roy

 

[Rogueperson]

18 hours ago, Smhp said:

 

what is this?  This is different from lobster salad thats usually here

[Smhp]

15 minutes ago, Rogueperson said:

what is this?  This is different from lobster salad thats usually here

That is the lobster salad. I asked for no cilantro so maybe that is why it looks a bit different. 

[Happily@Sea]

8 hours ago, shipgeeks said:

Is there a reason you don't want to go to MDR?

 

It usually takes too long - for what little I eat. Spending that much time sitting waiting for the next course. I usually only have an entree, and those are usually too fancy.  I like just plain food, quit mixing something else in. That's fine for others but a waste for me. 🙂 Buffet style is better.

[Rogueperson]

1 hour ago, Smhp said:

That is the lobster salad. I asked for no cilantro so maybe that is why it looks a bit different. 

this was how mine looked.  Each chef does put their own little spin on them

[erewhon]

@rafinmd Roy, thank you for your reports.

Hope you will have a successful visit at Port Canaveral.

[BND]

12 minutes ago, erewhon said:

@rafinmd Roy, thank you for your reports.

Hope you will have a successful visit at Port Canaveral.

They were in PC today and are on their way to CC.