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My review: Navigator 11/22-11/27/08 ... or ... kewlguy is a nice guy

silentbob007

By silentbob007,
in Royal Caribbean International

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uksimonusa

uksimonusa

Posted
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The Staff and Crew

 

I will say upfront that because I did not go to any show but the ice show and was usually in bed by 11:30-12, I really had no interactions at all with the cruise director. From my brief views of him on the television during his morning show and the love and marriage show, he seemed more suited to a European cruise than a Caribbean cruise (which makes sense). I enjoyed talking to the cruise director's staff and Vitality staff, especially Lara from Boston who ran the activities all day in Jamaica. My room steward, Elvie, was phenominal and we'd spend time every day chatting in the hallway about various topics. I'd also rate my wait staff fairly high (and I feel bad that I can't remember their names). Javier and Allan in the CL did a good job, I thought, in keeping the show moving during the busy times, and both were very easy to talk to when it slowed down a little.

 

As for the crew in general, I thought it was kind of a mixed bag. I was not usually greeted by other room stewards as I walked past them, nor others working on the deck. The bartenders all seemed very friendly (as is their job, right?), and the bar waiters seemed to be polite and non-harassing if you sat in their venue (for trivia, etc) and not making any purchases. I thought that the girls in the perfume shop blew me off a little, but who knows ... maybe they figured that the big money would be coming from the women buying makeup and not the guy just looking for a single bottle of cologne.

 

In terms of service, I thought that the low points for me came in the casual eating venues. The Windjammer greeter in the morning was always smiling, friendly, and easy to engage, but everyone else seemed fairly shut down. I remember walking into the Windjammer for lunch on the last day and saying hello to the greeter who was standing there stoicly. She looked at me, clicked her counter, and made no other expression or return on the greeting. In terms of service in the Windjammer, I thought it was a little lacking in comparison to my previous cruises. My plates were not cleared, and only once in the whole trip was I offered beverages (in my past experience, when sitting down for breakfast, usually 2-3 people would ask if I would like coffee each morning, etc).

 

I was probably most irritated by the service at Johnny Rockets ... and this is such a minor thing in the grand scheme, but boy it made me mad. Anyway, I made the classic mistake of forgetting to use my JR coupon until the last day, a sea day, which is of course the absolute worst time in the world to visit JR unless you want to wait. I showed up after Bingo to a packed house with long line, so I came back around 3, and while it was still packed, I was the only person in line (until others joined, of course). As I'm standing there, the officer in charge comes up to me, says "There's a wait. I'll seat you later." and walks away. OK I think ... as I see some people about ready to leave. The people do leave, and the table is not bussed for about 5 minutes. At this point, the officer doing the seating has disappeared and I'm wondering if I should just go sit or wait. Another 5 minutes pass and a group of younger kids (8-10ish) by themselves push into the restaurant and of course go to the empty seats. At this time the officer returns, looks at me, then says something to one of the waiters who proceeds to grab menus and hands them to the kids who have just sat down in front of me and about 6 other people in line. At this point I'm just mad (at having wasted my time) and I walked out because I realized it was no longer worth my time or energy. I realize that they were busy and that no one really wanted to kick the kids out and tell them to wait their turn, but come on ... service on the last day counts for more, in my opinion, because that is what sticks in your mind.

 

We sailed on the Navigator in July, out of Rome, our second cruise on her, the first was outof Miami. Our friend who works on the ship said that the moral among the staff was very low, and that the Europeans did not treat them well, I was hoping that once the ship came back to the US, that we would see the normal moral among staff, obviously this is not the case yet:(

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cruise pup

cruise pup

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Nice review of Navigator. Have sailed Navigator before and going again 12/11. Navigator is our favorite ship.

Was Keiron Buffery the CD ? Was Captain Bang still with Navigator on your cruise ?

 

Yes and yes on the transatlantic which ended 11/22. Don't know if they changed since.

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silentbob007 "Live from...." Rare

silentbob007

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The ill-gotten cabin

 

I was of course thrilled with the cabin upgrade, and it turned out to be a very nice cabin. I was placed in 6334, which was a balcony towards the aft a little off the hump (I think it was a D1 or a D2 but I'm bad with colors). It was essentially the same cabin I had had on Explorer, though obviously with just me instead of 3 in there, it seemed much more spacious. ;) Actually, the cabin was really very nice overall with very little wear-and-tear on the furniture. The balcony was great, of course. For those of you who have never had a standard balcony on RCCL, it came with two chairs and a small table.

 

Entertainment

 

I did not make use of a lot of the entertainment onboard, but there seemed to be quite a bit available depending on your tastes. There were of course nightly shows (many of the late shows were pre-dinner) including two production shows (All-Access and the usual Broadway revue), the Welcome Aboard show, what was I believe a Motown show, and the Farewell show. The ice-show was Ice Dancin' and there were no tickets needed ... seating was first-come, first served and at the show I went to (second one on the first sea day), there were plenty of empty seats. There were also two parades in the Royal Promenade(first night and second to last) as well as a 70s dance party with the "Village People" making an appearance on the bridge. I believe that there was an piano player in the Schooner Bar and some sort of entertainment provided in the pub (Two Poets) as well. Sorry I can't be more helpful here, but to be honest, I hit the sack pretty early each night (keeps me out of the casino). :) There was also a midnight comedy show one night with Hal Spears.

 

Concierge Lounge

 

The lounge was very busy the first night with almost all of the chairs, couches, and extra chairs in use. After that night, it was my experience that the lounge ranged from quite busy to almost dead, depending on what time you went in. I usually headed in about 6:30-7 to drink/talk until 8:30 dinner. Usually it tended to get more crowded around 7:30-8 when the first seating folks came up for post-dinner drinks, but to be honest, past that first night, there seemed to be seating available as long as you were willing to make new friends and take the available seats.

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Tropixx

Tropixx

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Nice review!

 

The DW and I were on the Majesty back in September with you. We came to the M&G kind of late if that helps ;)

 

The Majesty was our first cruise and we had a blast! Now you've just reviewed the ship we're about to sail on from Dec 15-20th for our 10th anniversary. Small world eh? I hope they get the water problem cleared up by the time we sail - either way I'm bringing some bottle water with my Diet Pepsi just in case.

 

Good luck with your studies.

 

J & Shelli

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silentbob007 "Live from...." Rare

silentbob007

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Food

 

I'll put in a disclaimer here, just FYI, but I don't mean it to be negative. I'm currently taking Advair, which is inhaled steroids. One of the side-effects for me is that most food tastes awesome. With that being said, I thought that the food on the Navigator was quite good. I'll admit that it was a little boring (the same stuff I've seen in the Windjammer and dining room for a few years), but things seemed to be very well prepared. My standout "new for me" item were the triple-chunk cookies at the Cafe Promenade ... quite tasty. Lobster was offered on Grand Cayman night and though the tail was small, I thought it was prepared quite well and was actually not rubbery or mushy. My main complaint though, as always, is with the desserts. With the exception of a few nights, the desserts in the dining room were very forgettable. The desserts in the Windjammer, in my opinion, are mostly downright awful because they have a gelatin base between the nice looking (and tasting) topping and the crust. You could always tell that something was going to be fairly tasteless when your tart/pie wobbled when it was on your plate ... I'm sorry, but a piece of peanut butter pie should not wobble!

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rednancy1

rednancy1

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Concierge Lounge

 

Usually it tended to get more crowded around 7:30-8 when the first seating folks came up for post-dinner drinks, but to be honest, past that first night, there seemed to be seating available as long as you were willing to make new friends and take the available seats.

 

To us the Concierge Lounge is perfect for making new friends. :) That is the best perk of all.:)

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Host Kewlguy

Host Kewlguy

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I'm enjoying reading your review Chris. The cruise for us was a mixed bag. No complaints with the food in the main dining room. Although the portions seemed smaller than usual. Service was fine. We had a great stateroom attendant named Alvaro. We had the pleasure of dining with Captain Bang on the last night of the cruise. He's a great guy. Also had a bridge tour which is always fun.

 

When we boarded while we did receive our Diamond/Diamond Plus coupon books in our room we did not receive either a concierge lounge key or the bathroom toiletries we usually receive being at the Diamond Plus loyalty level. We had to get the card from Javier (formerly "the other" Carlos) who told us there were more Diamond/Diamond Plus on board than he was told. The other thing that annoyed us was speaking to many others who had received upgrades to balconies while we received none. I would think Royal Caribbean would reward their Diamond Plus members first with upgrades rather than the Diamond and Platinum members. No offense Chris. :) We spoke to the Guest Relations Manager Luis Martins who stated the upgrades were done by headquarters in Miami and he agreed the Diamond Plus members should get priority but he stated the computer program responsible for assigning the upgrades does not distinguish between different loyalty levels. I'm assuming he was telling the truth although I know for a fact of a few passengers who were upgraded or offered upgrades the second and third day of the cruise which we know didn't come from Miami.

 

I would say the Navigator is in need of a refurbishment as we did notice some wear and tear here and there. Hey that rhymes. And yes the water in our room was a yellowish color throughout the cruise. We walked to the straw market in Ocho Rios and found the locals rude and overly aggressive. The worst behavior at any port we have ever encountered. We wouldn't get off the ship next time unless we were on an excursion away from the port area. We only booked this cruise to see our friends from England who were also on the ship as we have another longer cruise on Explorer this Sunday. I would rate the overall cruise experience a 6 out of 10.

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Fran Harp

Fran Harp

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Great review. I enjoyed reading it. I hope the water was an insolated incident as we are sailing a 14 day ta in apr. We sailed on Enchantment in aug 07 & there was a massive problem with yellow & brown water for months on that ship. I have not seen anything written lately so hopefully they fixed the problem on enchantment. Glad you enjoyed the upgrade what a nice surprise. You never did say so I assume that your luggage arrived without a hitch. How did you enjoy the Cl & who is the concierge? Nice perk isn't it? We love the cl. Good for you that you brought along your last cruise sea pass. It's a good thing because as of late you cannot trust the C&A board.

 

We were on Enchantment in July 08 and there were no water problems for us - Deck 7 balcony cabin.

 

Fran in Toronto

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rubrrick

rubrrick

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Rick - you've been sailing! Love your avatar.....always wondered what you look like.:D

 

Silent Bob - what a wonderful start!

 

Fran in Toronto

 

 

Fran...........I think you can get a glimpse of me..........on the Monarch thread............something about "we had it all"

 

On the second page of the shots...........whether it be webshots or photobucket..............i'm on the first shot on page two........with the captain.........and another wonderful gentleman........that was the father of one of another senior officer.

 

Fran.......I wish I could get you into the pictures where we entertained the old............"Original Drifters".............sans most of them save one.

 

What a wonderful evening in our cabin.

 

 

Actually..............I'm not going to allow you anything until you send me something!!

 

Rick

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Clarea

Clarea

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Captain Bang is still on. Probably the Current Captains thread would have the date when he goes off.

 

Fran in Toronto

I've been told that Captain Bang and Kieron Buffrey will be aboard for our 12/15 Navigator cruise.

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sbell1

sbell1

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silentbob007,

 

Appreciate your review. How is disembarkation at Port Everglades? Can you tell me the earliest time you could leave the ship? How were the lines at immigration and customs? I am doing this cruise in January. I have a 3:00 flight home but would like to see if I can get off early enough to fly standby on an 8:30 flight. I would need "perfect" conditions.

 

Thanks.

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silentbob007 "Live from...." Rare

silentbob007

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silentbob007,

 

Appreciate your review. How is disembarkation at Port Everglades? Can you tell me the earliest time you could leave the ship? How were the lines at immigration and customs? I am doing this cruise in January. I have a 3:00 flight home but would like to see if I can get off early enough to fly standby on an 8:30 flight. I would need "perfect" conditions.

 

Thanks.

 

On the last sea day, there was the option of going down to deck 2 and getting express debarkation tickets. I'm not sure when it actually started, but it was listed to start at 7:45 (and we arrived exactly on time) and a lot of people on short cruises do self-debarkation. Will you be flying with checked bags? To be honest, I don't think there's a chance at all in getting to FLL by 8:00 in order to check-in on time.

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