LIVE from Wonder of the Seas Transatlantic April 2022

[laurieal]

Day 14 Compass

 

 

 

 

[laurieal]

Day 14

 

On our last sea day, we were docked in Palma de Mallorca. The last time I was there was in 2016 during the Harmony westbound crossing and I had done the Castell de Bellver using the Hop On Hop Off. That day, my plan was to inquire about the accessible shuttle (there was one back in 2016) and then do my own thing in town. 

 

However, I had a maintenance issue with my wheelchair and I decided to stay on board and not risk running into further issues while in port. Instead, I visited my friend the coffee machine in the Diamond Lounge. After spending most of the morning trying to fix my wheelchair issues, it was the latest I had ever been in there 

and the food offerings were a bit different. 
 

 

 

 

 

Cappuccino in hand, I headed up to the Solarium. With a lot of people off in Palma, it was very quiet and peaceful in there. Also, the temperature was just right. I took the opportunity to have a closer look at the pool lift they have for one of the hot tubs. 

 

 

 

 

 

I worked on my review for a while and then went to Central Park for the last kümmelweck of the trip. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After a quick detour to the Promenade to investigate the cookie situation (they had chocolate chips!), it was time to return to my stateroom and pack. Ugh. 
 

 

 

 

I thought it actually went quite well. After eating all the snacks, I was surprised with how much room I had left in my luggage (hint hint), even with all the t-shirts. By the time I was done, the sun was out and one of our neighbours was sounding their horn and sailing away. 
 

 

 

I thought my very excellent packing job had to be rewarded with a drink, so I headed up to the Cantina Fresca and ordered a sangria, which I took with me to my favourite table at the Lime & Coconut. 

 

 

 

Quick note about the Casitas. I don’t remember exactly how much they were on the Cruise Planner, but at one point I saw them being advertised at $50. Despite the lowered price, the only person I ever saw using a Casita was a rubber duckie. 

 

 

I was meeting my friends in Central Park, so I spent some time there with this lovely person while I waited for them.

 

 

 

 

 

A couple of my friends still hadn’t ridden the Rising Tide Bar, so that’s where we went for pre-dinner drinks. I got an espresso martini, which definitely had alcohol in it. It was very good. 

 

 

After all the packing we had done, we all felt like having a relaxed dinner experience where people bring us food, so we went to the MDR. 

 

I started with a cosmopolitan. For my appetizer, I went with the escargots again (delicious). I wasn’t vibing with the entrées, so I asked for two portions of the coconut shrimp appetizer and a small portion of the garlic mashed potatoes. What I actually got was two potions of the coconut shrimp appetizer and enough mashed potatoes to feed the whole table. I said I didn’t want anything for dessert, which our waiter didn’t think was an acceptable answer, so I got the pavlova because apparently I can’t handle peer pressure. I actually enjoyed it a lot. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

After dinner, we went to the Boardwalk for one last ride on the carousel. The Boardwalk really is lovely at night with everything illuminated. Because Izumi didn’t work out for me on this trip, I went to Sugar Beach to get some noodle candy.

 

 

 

 

 

Oh, and I got this little guy! Someone asked about the price in an earlier post: it was $19.99 and worth every single penny. 

 

 

I went back to my stateroom to put the last bits in my luggage and put it outside. 

 

 

Then, we met at the Lime & Coconut on deck 15 (yes, 15, this is not a typo) for one last look at the pool deck and one last drink voucher (a Papa Jac). I was going to have an early night, but I think none of us wanted the vacation to end and we stayed there chatting for a while. 
 

 

 

[Eragon666]

Thank you so much for the excellent review, really enjoyed reading your updates every day. Now I am even more excited to go on board may 15th for our trip 🙂 And I might do a transatlantic some day, it sounds really cool to just be on the boat for 14 days and having all the extra activities like the Wonderful Race. 

Have a safe trip home!

[Margarita Jane]

@laurieal So glad to see you got your little pink buddy!

 

i think that is a picture of my friend in the Rising Tide Bar!

Edited May 5, 2022 by Margarita Jane

[October17]

Thank you so much for this thread, I'm sad that your trip is ending and will mss reading your lovely posts!

[RoperDK]

I have so enjoyed reading about your cruise experience.  Thank you for taking the time to post here.  I know it was very time consuming and it is much appreciated! 

[purpleally]

I’ve enjoyed your cruise very much.  Thank you for taking the time to do this. 
You did a great job, very enjoyable to read. 

[AUgirl]

I wonder who's more sad that your cruise has ended? You or your followers??!! This was soooo much fun, thank you so much and can't wait until you sail again!  🙂

[sunskywaves]

you bring a cruise to life, both for yourself and the rest of us

looking forward to your next voyage

[topnole]

The hardest last day and night has been Transatlantics for me.  You get so used to the ship and all the people you’ve become acquainted with.  It’s always a sad feeling to leave such an accommodating environment.  
 

Thanks for taking us along.  You are simply marvelous,or as I said prior, tip top.   Cheers and safe travels for the remainder of the journey.   

[Norwich Cruiser]

Fantastic review and pictures a big thank you.

[laurieal]

Day 15 aka Get Off Our Ship Day

 

What a sad day. I was originally scheduled to fly out of Barcelona on that day, but Air Transat had changed it to the next day a few weeks ago. Since I was staying in Barcelona for the night, I wasn’t in any hurry to leave the ship, so I was assigned luggage tag #34 which was set to be called around 8:30. 

 

My friends were in a similar state of non-hurry, so we met for breakfast at the MDR around 7:20am. It was my first time having breakfast in the MDR on disembarkation day and I really enjoyed it. The whole thing was so quiet and relaxed and it felt good to not be rushing. 
 

 

 

 

My number was called soon after breakfast and I said one last goodbye before heading out. There was no line to get off the ship and soon I was in the terminal. There were a few people waiting the passport check, but that went quickly and at around 8:45 I was ready to pickup my luggage and go on my next adventure. 

[sgmn]

18 minutes ago, laurieal said:

Day 15 aka Get Off Our Ship Day

 

What a sad day. I was originally scheduled to fly out of Barcelona on that day, but Air Transat had changed it to the next day a few weeks ago. Since I was staying in Barcelona for the night, I wasn’t in any hurry to leave the ship, so I was assigned luggage tag #34 which was set to be called around 8:30. 

 

My friends were in a similar state of non-hurry, so we met for breakfast at the MDR around 7:20am. It was my first time having breakfast in the MDR on disembarkation day and I really enjoyed it. The whole thing was so quiet and relaxed and it felt good to not be rushing. 
 

 

 

 

My number was called soon after breakfast and I said one last goodbye before heading out. There was no line to get off the ship and soon I was in the terminal. There were a few people waiting the passport check, but that went quickly and at around 8:45 I was ready to pickup my luggage and go on my next adventure. 

Enjoy your 24 hours in Barcelona and safe travels home. I've enjoyed reading your blog 😊 

[laurieal]

Well, that will be it from me for this trip. Thank you so much to everyone who was along for the ride and who reacted or commented on my posts. It was my first time doing a live review and I found it a great way to sit down and enjoy doing (almost) nothing, which is something I usually struggle with. It was a very special trip and part of this came from sharing my experience with you.

 

Since this review was a bit all over the place (it was basically just my train of thoughts), would you be interested in me doing a summary of what I thought regarding my stateroom, the food, the entertainment, etc?

 

Also, if you have questions, don't hesitate to send them my way. It would be a nice distraction 

[loug1601]

Hi Laurieal,

 

I am just a lurker and have not chimed in, but have followed your review since the beginning. It has been a lot of great fun! We sailed on the Wonder on April 1st, 2022. Loved the ship!

 

I, and I’m sure the rest of your followers, would love a recap of your thoughts. 
 

Safe travels home!

[lazydayz]

Would love to see your recap, but also our thoughts on Barcelona!  "I've never been to Spain," so it is on my bucket list.  

[Wink87]

3 hours ago, laurieal said:

Well, that will be it from me for this trip. Thank you so much to everyone who was along for the ride and who reacted or commented on my posts. It was my first time doing a live review and I found it a great way to sit down and enjoy doing (almost) nothing, which is something I usually struggle with. It was a very special trip and part of this came from sharing my experience with you.

 

Since this review was a bit all over the place (it was basically just my train of thoughts), would you be interested in me doing a summary of what I thought regarding my stateroom, the food, the entertainment, etc?

 

Also, if you have questions, don't hesitate to send them my way. It would be a nice distraction 

Summary...yes!!!!!

[bobmacliberty]

[laurieal]

1 hour ago, lazydayz said:

Would love to see your recap, but also our thoughts on Barcelona!  "I've never been to Spain," so it is on my bucket list.  

 

Sure, I'll put a post together about my time in Barcelona! I think it's a beautiful city that's absolutely worth visiting.

[kirian]

Fabulous review and great pics!!! Thanks so much for taking the time to share your wonderful trip with us 🙂

[FionaMG]

Thanks for sharing. It's been very enjoyable following you on your trans-Atlantic adventure. Safe travels home. 😊

[AUgirl]

8 hours ago, laurieal said:

Well, that will be it from me for this trip. Thank you so much to everyone who was along for the ride and who reacted or commented on my posts. It was my first time doing a live review and I found it a great way to sit down and enjoy doing (almost) nothing, which is something I usually struggle with. It was a very special trip and part of this came from sharing my experience with you.

 

Since this review was a bit all over the place (it was basically just my train of thoughts), would you be interested in me doing a summary of what I thought regarding my stateroom, the food, the entertainment, etc?

 

Also, if you have questions, don't hesitate to send them my way. It would be a nice distraction 

Ummm, Yes, Please (on the summary if you have the time and energy)! Either the summary or hop on another cruise and let us live vicariously through your awesome writing!! 😉😊  Thanks again for taking the time to share your transatlantic with us!!

[dolphingirl47]

Thanks for sharing. I got some invaluable tips by reading this. Thanks to this review, I think I found my “spirit cocktail”. Loved the Sangria Swirl. Unfortunately I had to say goodbye to Wonder this morning. 
 

Corinna

[dleahy4444]

Thank you for your review. I’m on the wonder next month. I booked stateroom 6640 which appears to be across from the shore excursions area and above the bionic bar. Any idea is noise will be an issue? Thanks 

[laurieal]

2 hours ago, AUgirl said:

Ummm, Yes, Please (on the summary if you have the time and energy)! Either the summary or hop on another cruise and let us live vicariously through your awesome writing!! 😉😊  Thanks again for taking the time to share your transatlantic with us!!

The next cruise I have booked is the Anthem TA this fall, so I’ll need to live vicariously through everyone else’s reviews until then. I wish I could just jump on another ship right now 😊