Navigator of The Seas Review -- B2B (June 17th - June 24th)

[Itried4498]

We completed a back-to-back on the Navigator of the Seas yesterday, which was both our first back-to-back cruise as well as our first cruise with Royal.  What follows is a narrative of our trip, although there were tons of activities and food we did not try out!  I thought it might be helpful to some planning a trip.

 

DAY 1 (Friday): We booked our cruise literally days in advance (thank you to all the great advice we received from this forum!), and as this is a weekend cruise, the remaining arrival appointments were early -- but I had to work a full day, so we arrived at the cruise terminal shortly before 2:30PM.  The final half-hour was extremely stressful (as if navigating LA traffic isn't stressful enough), as we received a push notification at 2PM saying 'government regulations require all passengers to be onboard by 2:30PM.'  But when we arrived at the cruise terminal, there were literally hundreds of people waiting, and several dozen people arriving -- I was told this was common for the weekend cruise :).  We were told there were about 2,300 people on this cruise (and 2,800 on the prior).  

 

We had a nice lunch buffet, then enjoyed the sail away party.  In our opinion, Mey was a FANTASIC cruise director -- well-engaged, extremely highly energetic and gave it her all!  Absolutely amazing, and quite remarkable considering she's probably older than the average CD (although it doesn't show :)).  Anyway, her dancing was a lot more provocative during this sail away party than the next.  As the sail away party was ending, the ship slowly began cruising toward San Diego.  On this particular cruise, from the time we boarded, the pools and hot tubs were completely filled, the line to El Loco Fresh stretched through the adults only section and a large group of people knew the sail away dances, so presumably for many, this wasn't their first cruise on this ship/itinerary.

 

After a lovely dinner, we saw the "ice show," and then attended the 70s party.  The "ice show" well exceeded our expectations -- similar in quality to a traveling production show.  The 70s party was very fun!  Afterward, we had a snack (watermelon) at the Promenade Café and went to bad.  

 

DAY 2 (Saturday): This is a sea day.  The coast of California, stretching into Baja Mexico, historically is blanketed by cloud coverage during the summer months (referred to locally as May Grey, June Gloom, No Sky July, Fogust).  This cloud coverage has been decreasing in recent years (leading to historically comfortable temperatures to swell), but has been in full swing this year.  Thus the ship circled the area around San Clemente Island, searching for sun and using the island to shield minimize the winds.  So it ended up being a slightly chilly day, but was still very enjoyable.  We had breakfast and lunch in the buffet, sat in the pools / hot tubs for several hours and enjoyed the Belly Flop competition.  We checked out the slides, but waiting in long lines in the chilly air wasn't something we were interested in doing 🙂.

 

We had another nice dinner, then caught the Showgirls production show.  It was interesting and enjoyable, but very amateurish.  I wasn't sure if this was playback or live singing, but either way it wasn't very good -- at one point, three performers were to sing presumably in harmony, but they were way off.  I have no idea if this was intentional or not, but it was pretty bad.  I'm not familiar with Royal's entertainment, but I doubt this is a true "production" show, staffed with experienced  entertainers.  On the second cruise, the show's cast did a choregraphed dance routine in "flash mob" style right before the sail away party.  They all looked young & American and I pondered if they were part of the entertainment crew that did the 70s/80s parties/etc.  That would make sense -- the "ice show" cast performs their show four nights per week and assists with open skating on two other nights... Showgirls is done two nights per week -- what else does their cast do?  After a very leisurely day, we went to bed.

 

DAY 3 (Sunday): We've been to Enseanda many times and know that's probably the worst port to visit in North America.  It's a city, not a tourist trap, and is served solely because no touristy Mexican port can be reached on a 3/4-day cruise.  It seems like every couple years, a plan to turn Ensenada (or create a replacement port nearby) into a tropical destination is announced, but nothing materializes.  We debated whether or not to get off the ship and decided we would, just to walk around the port area.  So, after getting up late and having a late lunch, we spent a couple hours touring the cruise port area, which had weekend markets set-up to greet the Navigator of the Seas and the Carnival Radiance.  

 

After returning to the ship, we went to the hot tub (yes, we were lazy) and then to an early dinner.  The ship cruised nearby the coast, providing some beautiful views during dinner.  We took a quick nap (as I mentioned, we were lazy) and then saw the 80s show, which was absolutely fantastic!  We tried our luck with the slots for an hour, then called it an evening.

 

DAY 4 / DAY 1 (Monday): We booked guaranteed rooms, so we had to change rooms.   This was a minor inconvenience; even if we had stayed in the same room, we were required to check-out of the current cruise / get cleared by immigration by 9AM, and were asked not to report to our staterooms until after 2PM, not to interfere with cleaning.  We entered the lounge with the rest of the B2Bers shortly after 9AM, were taken off the ship around 9:30AM, and returned 15 minutes later.  Soon after, general boarding commenced.  We toured the ship, as there was little else to do -- the pool deck didn't open until after 11AM, the lunch buffet at 11:30AM and our special B2B lunch at 12PM.  A neat thing to experience once, but a large waste of time to be honest.  If I were to do B2B again, I'd probably exit the ship early, go to work, and return late.  

 

There were over 3,100 people on this cruse -- so 800+ more people compared to the weekend cruise.  Also, the crowd on the weekend cruise was nearly exclusively from SoCal, but people came from all over on this one (although I'm sure the lion's share were from SoCal).  And compared to the weekend cruise, there were a lot more families, including tons of high school graduates celebrating.  

 

At 12PM, we went to the special lunch in the MDR.  It was a very nice touch, but there were only 3 options for each appetizer, entrée & desserts, and of the 9 total options, 8 had been on the previous nights' menu.  Had we known this, we would've dined at the buffet instead.  The B2Bers were on one side of the dining room, whereas the Key Program was on the other.  Presumably, they had an upgraded menu.  

 

While eating lunch, an announcement was made that state rooms were ready, so after we finished eating we changed into our swimsuits and hit the pool deck.  Boy, what a change from Friday -- the loungers, pools and hot tubs were empty and remained so while we were on the deck.  I'm guessing most passengers were first time cruisers and unaware they could immediately enjoy the facilities.  After 4PM, the cast of Showgirls performed a flash mob-style dance routine, then Mey lead the sail away party.  There were very few participates watching or dancing, and after three songs, a visibility annoyed Mey - who did her best to build a crowd - gave up and left.  The ship then once again began cruising toward San Diego.

 

Since we ate in the MDR earlier, we opted to go to the buffet for the evening (our one and only time eating at the dinner buffet).  I believe the theming was "French" but there was tons of variety and we were full before fully exploring every station!  We spent an hour in the casino, enjoyed some music in the lounge, then went to bed.

 

DAY 2 (Tuesday): This was a sea day, and very much replicated Saturday.  Similar ship course, similar weather, etc.  We lounged around the pool deck all day, caught an early dinner, re-watched Showgirls, re-watched the 70s dance party and then attended the Girls vs. Boys interactive show.  We didn't stick around for dance club portion, and instead headed to bed.  Only a small crowd showed for the second showing of Showgirls, and the 70s dance party had about half as many people watching as Friday's.

 

DAY 3 (Wednesday).  This was our first visit ever to Catalina Island.  A round-trip to the Island from Los Angeles runs about $75 round-trip these days, so this definitely added value to our trip.  Getting off the ship wasn't easy -- I went to pick-up a tender ticket mid-morning, and was told it'd be after 12PM, so we enjoyed a long lunch at the buffet and waited for the crowd to thin.  We left mid-afternoon, so we only had a couple hours to explore, which was fine with us.  Catalina Island is absolutely beautiful, and we plan to return soon!  

 

It was a long wait to get back to the ship.  We then cleaned up, enjoyed a nice dinner, and re-watched the "ice show" (definitely an underrated production!).  Afterward, we headed to the theater to watch the Love & Marriage Show - probably our favorite interactive long-time cruise favorite.  What a MAJOR disappointment!  The crowd was lackluster... I'd bet there were fewer than 100 people in the audience.  They initially struggled to find participates (the "experienced" couple was married 20-something years), and the ones they did find were terrible -- they mostly avoided "naughty" questions, and played the ''I wouldn't change a thing about my partner - s/he is sooo perfect' game.  We look forward to this show, and I would've never anticipated walking out on it, but that's exactly what we did.  Mey tried her darndest, but when the response to the question 'you're on a deserted island.... which of her relatives do you least want to see' is 'I love all people, and her family is perfect, but I'll say mother-in-law because even though it's not true- I love her - it's what you want to hear.' --or-- 'yes, he farts a lot, but how is that a bad habit?  Everybody farts, some of us release gas more often then others, and it depends on what you eat and your environment.  It's totally healthy, it may not smell good, but there's nothing wrong or annoying about it.'  Again... thank you for working your heart out Mey!  After the show, we went to bed.

 

DAY 4 (Thursday).  The ship returned to Ensenada, but we treated this as a sea day.  Apparently so did pretty much everybody else :).  We spent most of our time on the pool deck and braved the wait and enjoyed the waterslide.  It was great fun, but the water is cold!  Afterward, we had dinner, packed our bags, enjoyed the 80s show again and tried our luck in the casino for an hour before heading to bed.

 

DAY 5 (Friday).  On Monday, we departed an empty ship and walked through an empty immigration hall at 9:30AM.  Today, we went to the breakfast buffet at 7:45AM, left the ship at 8:30AM... and finally cleared immigration at 10:30AM (and there was a HUGE wait behind us).  I can only speculate that Monday's crowd was eager to get to work, but today's crowd wasn't in a hurry.  Fantastic week nonetheless!

 

Some final thoughts: 

- We thought the food was very good/excellent.  I had only one meal I would consider to be poor the entire week.  

- The service was outstanding!

- The ship's public spaces are beautiful -- you'd have no idea this ship is approaching its 20th birthday.  The staterooms, OTOH... the rooms were well though out but clearly well worn.  We had maintenance issues with both rooms -- the refrigerators weren't working in either room (anything you put in the fridge remained at room temperature) and a light was out in our first room.  In the second room, the sink was clogged and the air wasn't working (in the first room, we'd put the dial in between hot & cold; in the second room, we'd crank it as cold as possible and the room would still feel warm).  They addressed the light & clogged sink, but not the other issues.

 

 

 

 

[neverbeenhere]

We agree with about everything you have said. We’ve been in 5 Navigator cruises so far this year with 5 more to go. Won’t be going to Showgirls ever again, but the ice show I can do again. Mey or Hey Mey does a good job. And yes, the staff is great as always. 

[soremekun]

From the Voyager class, I've sailed Navigator and Adventure so far.  I have a cruise on Voyager coming up.  Am I a cruise snob if I feel these ships have outdated decor and they won't be my preference going forward?

[smokeybandit]

1 hour ago, Itried4498 said:

We've been to Enseanda many times and know that's probably the worst port to visit in North America.

 

Worse than Nassau or Grand Bahama?

[smokeybandit]

42 minutes ago, soremekun said:

Am I a cruise snob if I feel these ships have outdated decor and they won't be my preference going forward?

Every ship would be outdated after 5 years then.

[Coralc]

3 hours ago, smokeybandit said:

 

Worse than Nassau or Grand Bahama?

No. Not really. It is a Mexico (near) border city, not a tourist destination really.  There are no real resorts and no airport. Some nice locations and wineries, small enterprises in the countryside. There are vendors out at the blowhole, which is nice to visit once. There are a couple of fun bars. It is actually nicer now, than when we first went there in the 80's. It is an okay stop. IMO. 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited June 26, 2022 by Coralc

[Merion_Mom]

4 hours ago, neverbeenhere said:

 Won’t be going to Showgirls ever again, but the ice show I can do again. Mey or Hey Mey does a good job. And yes, the staff is great as always. 

 

My opinion is the opposite on both of those topics.

[Itried4498]

1 hour ago, Coralc said:

No. Not really. It is a Mexico (near) border city, not a tourist destination really.  There are no real resorts and no airport. Some nice locations and wineries, small enterprises in the countryside. There are vendors out at the blowhole, which is nice to visit once. There are a couple of fun bars. It is actually nicer now, than when we first went there in the 80's. It is an okay stop. IMO. 

 

Most Americans associate cruising with fun, sun, tropic, exotic, etc.  Nassau and Freeport yield this, even if they're notorious tourist traps.  Meanwhile, Ensenada tries to be a notorious tourist trap -- it's literally an ugly/ slummy city, featuring odd smells, aggressive young children vendors, horses carrying American tourists down busy streets, pick-up trucks painted as and making train sounds, etc.  The 'beautiful, world class' beaches long featured on Ensenada marketing material have been closed by the Mexican government (!!!) due to unsanitary conditions.  If you want a decent mediocre beach, you'll have to travel 45+ minutes to Rosarito (and the ride won't be cheap).  The cruise lines know this -- every few years we hear about a brand new deep water port coming soon, featuring world class beaches and shopping....

 

1 hour ago, Merion_Mom said:

 

My opinion is the opposite on both of those topics.

 

Different strokes for different folks but the "ice show" is a high-quality production, created for RCL by a third party, featuring highly skilled performers.  It can compete with any traveling production show I've seen.  Meanwhile, Showgirls appears to have been created in-house, and rather than using production staff, appears to be using entertainment staff.  Like I said before... they were singing out of key + out of harmony, costumes fell apart, a dancer fell, etc.  

 

 

[Merion_Mom]

3 hours ago, Itried4498 said:

 

Most Americans associate cruising with fun, sun, tropic, exotic, etc.  Nassau and Freeport yield this, even if they're notorious tourist traps.  Meanwhile, Ensenada tries to be a notorious tourist trap -- it's literally an ugly/ slummy city, featuring odd smells, aggressive young children vendors, horses carrying American tourists down busy streets, pick-up trucks painted as and making train sounds, etc.  The 'beautiful, world class' beaches long featured on Ensenada marketing material have been closed by the Mexican government (!!!) due to unsanitary conditions.  If you want a decent mediocre beach, you'll have to travel 45+ minutes to Rosarito (and the ride won't be cheap).  The cruise lines know this -- every few years we hear about a brand new deep water port coming soon, featuring world class beaches and shopping....

 

 

Different strokes for different folks but the "ice show" is a high-quality production, created for RCL by a third party, featuring highly skilled performers.  It can compete with any traveling production show I've seen.  Meanwhile, Showgirls appears to have been created in-house, and rather than using production staff, appears to be using entertainment staff.  Like I said before... they were singing out of key + out of harmony, costumes fell apart, a dancer fell, etc.  

 

 

 

I think that the ice show is awesome, as it is on all of the ships.

 

I also think that Showgirls was a fabulous production, with talented singing and dancing.

 

And Mey is meh.  She is in over her head.

[Norwich Cruiser]

11 minutes ago, Merion_Mom said:

 

I think that the ice show is awesome, as it is on all of the ships.

 

I also think that Showgirls was a fabulous production, with talented singing and dancing.

 

And Mey is meh.  She is in over her head.

Your opinions obviously.

 

But we’ve also just arrived home from a b2b and thought Mey was very good not the best but certainly a lot better than many Royal cruise directors.

 

We thought the so called comedian was hopeless.

 

His welcome aboard routine was almost the same as the goodbye show.

 

He struggled for laughs and many departed mid show.

 

I’d miss him rather than showgirls which was ok.

 

Ice show superb as they all are.

 

Superb crew and thought Navigator was in good condition.

 

Catalina Island was as usual excellent and Ensenada certainly improved since last time we were there.

 

 

 

 

[soremekun]

13 hours ago, smokeybandit said:

Every ship would be outdated after 5 years then.

I still appreciate the decor of Anthem of the Seas which is seven years old.  And it is very similar to Quantum, a year older.

[Itried4498]

9 hours ago, Merion_Mom said:

 

I think that the ice show is awesome, as it is on all of the ships.

 

I also think that Showgirls was a fabulous production, with talented singing and dancing.

 

And Mey is meh.  She is in over her head.

 

I'm sure you're not alone with your opinion of Mey :); one of us thought she was trying too hard.  That said, I loved her because she was highly energetic and gave 100%.  On Thursday, shortly before the 80s show, we saw her in the casino, rushing toward an employee entrance bright faced and screaming (in Spanish, presumably) into a phone/walkie talkie.  Moments later, she was happy-go-lucky Mey on stage, giving 100%.

 

Based on her comments, I'd guess she's in her 40s if not 50, which would make her older for a new CD and would partially explain why she's trying so hard.  Nonetheless, turnout to various entertainment was poor and if she can't get it to improve (no matter how hard she tries), she will be held responsible.

 

9 hours ago, Norwich Cruiser said:

Your opinions obviously.

 

But we’ve also just arrived home from a b2b and thought Mey was very good not the best but certainly a lot better than many Royal cruise directors.

 

We thought the so called comedian was hopeless.

 

His welcome aboard routine was almost the same as the goodbye show.

 

He struggled for laughs and many departed mid show.

 

I’d miss him rather than showgirls which was ok.

 

Ice show superb as they all are.

 

Superb crew and thought Navigator was in good condition.

 

Catalina Island was as usual excellent and Ensenada certainly improved since last time we were there.

 

 

 

 

 

I forgot about the comedian.  We saw the closing adults only show Sunday night, but skipped the other performances (I'm not certain if it was the same comedian for the 4-day cruise).  It was obvious he lost the audience as he turned to toilet humor to try to regain it, but comedians are always hit or miss IMO; even the best can present material that's not well received.  When we traveled on the Carnival Panorama in early May, one of the comedians totally tanked that the audience heckled him (never acceptable IMO - just leave)... and he's had numerous specials on Comedy Central over the years that I've loved.

[rmurray847]

On 6/26/2022 at 3:06 PM, Itried4498 said:

 

I'm sure you're not alone with your opinion of Mey :); one of us thought she was trying too hard. 

This was my thought about her as well.  Trying to hard...forced laughter and energy.  Now, having said that, the CD job is very difficult when you think about it.  They have to be having the time of their lives ALL the time, even if they are completely worn out.  And when they give a lot of energy, but the passengers just don't reciprocate (which does happen, for sure),  then the desperation level goes up.  I try to appreciate how hard their job is, even when a bit grating, like Mey.

 

Re: the comments on SHOWGIRL.  There were no big production issues like the OP described with their experience when we saw it in April.  These are NOT the team that does the things like the sail-away party or the 80's theme party...those are Assistant Cruise Directors.  The SHOW GIRL team, whether you think they were good or not, ARE, in fact, professional entertainers who do not take part in the "party" events, although sometimes they do individual performances like at the clubs or piano bars.

[kjunea]

Thank you so much for your review!  We are doing the same B2B in August, starting like you did on a Friday.  The only difference is we are traveling from Tennessee to do it!  Loved your insight. 

[Itried4498]

12 hours ago, rmurray847 said:

This was my thought about her as well.  Trying to hard...forced laughter and energy.  Now, having said that, the CD job is very difficult when you think about it.  They have to be having the time of their lives ALL the time, even if they are completely worn out.  And when they give a lot of energy, but the passengers just don't reciprocate (which does happen, for sure),  then the desperation level goes up.  I try to appreciate how hard their job is, even when a bit grating, like Mey.

 

Re: the comments on SHOWGIRL.  There were no big production issues like the OP described with their experience when we saw it in April.  These are NOT the team that does the things like the sail-away party or the 80's theme party...those are Assistant Cruise Directors.  The SHOW GIRL team, whether you think they were good or not, ARE, in fact, professional entertainers who do not take part in the "party" events, although sometimes they do individual performances like at the clubs or piano bars.

I’m aware of the historical division between the entertainment and production show staff.  As I wrote in my OP, I was merely speculation.  I couldn’t identify any other shows performed by the Showgirls staff, so that means they work twice per week.  Usually production staff is contracted for 5-6 nights per week.  For comparison, the ice show cast performs four nights per week, and participates in the open skate two other days.

 

As a cost savings measure, Cruise lines have moved toward including hybrid productions and itineraries from Los Angeles are often the red headed stepchild (since typically  no other ships from the same line cruise to those ports).  

[Itried4498]

12 hours ago, kjunea said:

Thank you so much for your review!  We are doing the same B2B in August, starting like you did on a Friday.  The only difference is we are traveling from Tennessee to do it!  Loved your insight. 

Glad you enjoyed it!  You’ll have a great time - cruises from Los Angeles are chilly most of year, but August is the perfect time to go!!!

[Itried4498]

Last Friday, we got a super deal on the Navigator of the Seas; since it would trigger an Amex offer (initiated by the above B2B trip), it cost less than staying home, so we went again!  I may do a pictorial review, but I wanted to add the following:

 

- 3800 people on this cruise (4JUL - 8JUL), the most on this ship since it re-entered service late last fall.

- It's a period of heavy transition -- several employees told us they had just joined the ship, and when we were getting off today, there was a ton of crew luggage being inspected & loaded onto a truck (presumably going to LAX).

- Several of the entertainment options that were present on our B2B cruises, were not present on this one. 

- The buffet was excellent, but on the B2B cruises it was superb -- on the sea day, it filled every single station, and included an elaborate dessert bar featuring a chocolate fountain.  On port days, it featured a special dessert; for example, a huge apple pie with ice cream.  This time, no special dessert and on the sea day, it was the same as non-sea days.  Like the reduction in entertainment, I suspect this is a cost cutting move.

- There was a special Fourth of July show -- a couple of line dancing songs, sandwiched between the Cupid Shuffle, ending with balloons dropping.  It was interesting, but you could tell how disappointed the crowd was :).

 

One thing I'd like to see -- now that the ship is ported out of Los Angeles instead of Miami, can we convert the Caribbean theming to Mexican?  At the very least, replace Caribbean night in the buffet with Mexican.

 

On 6/29/2022 at 10:49 AM, rmurray847 said:

Re: the comments on SHOWGIRL.  There were no big production issues like the OP described with their experience when we saw it in April.  These are NOT the team that does the things like the sail-away party or the 80's theme party...those are Assistant Cruise Directors.  The SHOW GIRL team, whether you think they were good or not, ARE, in fact, professional entertainers who do not take part in the "party" events, although sometimes they do individual performances like at the clubs or piano bars.

 

I struck up a conversation with one of the cast.  I was told most of the cast are Royal Caribbean Dancers, which is inferior to full production staff.  Currently, the dancers are joining the entertainment staff for sailaway plus performing Showgirls.  The person told me that the ship is poised to do two, seven-day runs per month for the late fall/ winter/ early spring season, and that RCL may bring in a production staff but the ice show and dancers will go on hiatus (presumably their contracts are up anyway) for that time.  We will see!