Questions for experienced cruises

[kidless]

We have never sailed on RC but will be going on the Mariner in May and have a few questions.

 

1) Chops Steak House and Portifino I understand are reservation only is there an additional surcharge for these restaurants and how is the food compared to dining room.

 

2) I hear talk of an Ice Show on board do we need tickets? Is there a charge? How quick should we get them once we board?

 

3) What time do they usually actually start boarding and does a Jr Suite get you any kind of pre or early boarding priviliages? Any other perks with the Jr Suite?

 

4) Do they have only two dining room dinner seating times or 4?

 

5) What things on ship are for sure "Must Do's"

 

6) Is RC staff pretty good at keeping children out of Adult only area's such as Adult pool?

 

7) Any thing else you can fill me in on please do...............

 

Thanks

[Sue L]

1) Chops Steak House and Portifino I understand are reservation only is there an additional surcharge for these restaurants and how is the food compared to dining room. 20$ per person charge and SOOOOOOO worth it the food and service are wonderful, much more made to order. Make sure you go as soon as you board to get reservations.

 

2) I hear talk of an Ice Show on board do we need tickets? Is there a charge? How quick should we get them once we board? Yes, you will need tickets but they are free and the time to get them will be listed in the compass.

 

3) What time do they usually actually start boarding and does a Jr Suite get you any kind of pre or early boarding priviliages? Any other perks with the Jr Suite? Yes, JS get priority embarkation and you can arrive at the port around 11-11:30 and you should be on within a little bit.

 

4) Do they have only two dining room dinner seating times or 4? 2 dining times

 

5) What things on ship are for sure "Must Do's" Make sure you go to "the quest" It is an adult only show.

 

6) Is RC staff pretty good at keeping children out of Adult only area's such as Adult pool? Yes they are

[kidless]

Thanks very much for all the answers.

[Gonzo70]

I would second what Sue posted. Another "must do" if you like sporty activities is the climbing wall. If you want to do it, try doing it earlier on in the cruise as the lines seem to get a bit longer each day. There is no extra cost and they supply all the equipment and instruction you need (only thing you need to bring is socks).

 

Don't forget your camera for the Quest!

 

Enjoy your cruise.

[cb at sea]

And bring long pants if you wish to ice skate!

[CarolinaGirl]

I was on the Mariner last year and Chops was a HUGE disappointment. Service was absolutely awful, and the food was so-so. I will never spend my money there again. Both food and service were better in the dining room.

[CLQ]

I was on the Mariner last year and Chops was a HUGE disappointment. Service was absolutely awful, and the food was so-so. I will never spend my money there again. Both food and service were better in the dining room.

We've had good experiences at the specialty restaurants each time. Sorry to hear that you didn't have one. I hope it was an off night. Pretty hard to imagine Chops being so far off its game that the DR would be even comparable, much less better.

[DonnaK]

Just a tip regarding ice show tickets: The Compass says they are distributed at 9am on Day 2 outside Studio B (the ice arena), however on BOTH of my Mariner cruises, they startee giving the tickets out 20-30 minutes BEFORE the scheduled time, so that by 9am, the most convenient/desirable show for our dinner time was already "sold out". So, line up early!

 

(For example - we had early seating. On our western itinerary, the two choices for the ice show was Wednesday after dinner (no other show was scheduled for that night), or Friday before dinner, which was a port day and formal night (there was a show in the theatre after dinner that night). It was definitely more convenient to go to the Wednesday show than to be all dressed for formal night before 5pm to make the Friday ice show).

 

Also, get to the show early because seats fill up fast. RCI isn't very good at inforcing the "no saving seats" rule.

[CLQ]

Just a tip regarding ice show tickets: The Compass says they are distributed at 9am on Day 2 outside Studio B (the ice arena), however on BOTH of my Mariner cruises, they startee giving the tickets out 20-30 minutes BEFORE the scheduled time, so that by 9am, the most convenient/desirable show for our dinner time was already "sold out". So, line up early!

 

(For example - we had early seating. On our western itinerary, the two choices for the ice show was Wednesday after dinner (no other show was scheduled for that night), or Friday before dinner, which was a port day and formal night (there was a show in the theatre after dinner that night). It was definitely more convenient to go to the Wednesday show than to be all dressed for formal night before 5pm to make the Friday ice show).

 

Also, get to the show early because seats fill up fast. RCI isn't very good at inforcing the "no saving seats" rule.

I know some folks are allergic to having a schedule on their cruise. But because we were willing (okay, I got stuck with the job) to get up in line early and arrive a little early to the show--we got the nights we wanted and sat on the front row both times. DonnaK is exactly right. It's worth it.

[CLQ]

I just remembered that you asked about must-do's. We discovered how cool the Helipad was on our Voyager trip. At some point during the trip, you might give that a try. It's a different vantage point, and a good place for pictures. We didn't do the "king-of-the-world" shot, but some folks did. You can literally walk about to the forward nose of the ship there.

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[Mocorobabe]

I was on the Mariner last year and Chops was a HUGE disappointment. Service was absolutely awful, and the food was so-so. I will never spend my money there again. Both food and service were better in the dining room.

 

Have never been to Chops on the Mariner, but have been on two other ships. Was not impressed either with the food or the service. Tried two different steaks and neither was that good that it was worth the extra money.

 

Mocorobabe

[kidless]

I just remembered that you asked about must-do's. We discovered how cool the Helipad was on our Voyager trip. At some point during the trip, you might give that a try. It's a different vantage point, and a good place for pictures. We didn't do the "king-of-the-world" shot, but some folks did. You can literally walk about to the forward nose of the ship there.

 

 

Awesome .... Thank you so much!!!!!