Anyone Interested in a Voyager Review, 8-15 March?

[TLex]

With all of the events that have transpired in the last three weeks, especially the changes in C&A benefits and the recent discussion on our CD on Voyager, before posting up, just wanted to know if anyone out there would still like a review of Voyager of the Seas from the week of 8-15 March 2009. Please be forewarned: it is massive. I will break it up into sections and post photographs as soon as we (re)locate our CD's. I just finished it, posted it up on the Review Board (where I understand they are backlogged), and Voyager, sadly, departs for Mediterranean in less than a month so there's only three full cruises left, I think, and one departs in about three hours.

 

But if anyone out there would like this review, please let me know.

 

This includes Internet Whiz or Crazy4Cruisin' !!

 

BR,

 

T Lex

[Lawnordergeek]

I'm interested - I'm on this ship on July 5th, 2009 Europe itinerary, but I'd love to hear what you have to say about the ship! Thanks :)

[Cindy]

I think you should post it here on the boards...it might provide some interesting diversion from reading all the depressing posts about C&A changes!

I just finished writing my review from the 15th, and I'm going to post it on the review board and hope for the best. I too have hundreds of pictures to deal with before they can be shared!:rolleyes:

[DanielleRB]

 

But if anyone out there would like this review, please let me know.

 

T Lex

 

I am interested! Please post it here - or a link to it. There is nothing like a personal experience review...post away!

 

(the boards have gotten to be a bit overwhelming to me with the negative rants...I cruise because I am lucky to be able to - in any format (suite, inside, you name it)...every cruise line has it's pluses and minuses...nobody will be happy all the time. I have been on about 20 cruises as an adult over the past 15 years...never chosen a line because of the loyalty program)

[crazy4themouse]

I'm definitely interested! Please post it!

[Rancher Dave]

Always like to see how others like the ships I have sailed and liked. Please post it sooner rather than later...need some nice exciting posts to read.

[mikaula]

Yes, please post your review!! I would love to read it.

[Cindy]

I went ahead and posted mine on the board. The review section has been slow to post new reviews, and I thought we could all stand a change of pace from the doom and gloom posts!:rolleyes:

[CruisinManiac]

Another vote for posting it here.:)

[TLex]

Rancher Dave: you and the posters convinced me. And if it's REALLY too long, everyone was forewarned!

 

FIRST AND FOREMOST, A DISCLAIMER AND APOLOGY:

 

Having noted a number of postings imploring those of us who have recently sailed, especially on Voyager of the Seas out of Galveston, Texas, to submit our reviews, I have succumbed and decided to try my hand on one of these. But I profess no special knowledge, no sacrosanct ability to discern whether any particular moment on a cruise vessel, be it of any line or model, is the “best” or specifically suited to anyone else’s tastes. Accordingly, please accept my review, dilatory as it is, as just that: “my” review and to the extent that you have experienced similar circumstances as I relate and enjoyed them, great, or did not enjoy them or even positively loathed them, fine. I hope that my somewhat worn recollection (q.v., apology, next) is of use to those of you who will travel on Voyager of the Seas out of Galveston, Texas; if not, I hope that this wasn’t a waste of your time reading this and, if it proved to be just that, I respect that. As for the apology, I recognize that this extraordinarily late review will most likely be posted with less than three full weeks of cruising left in the season for Voyager in Texas 2009 and I regret that. Unfortunately, like many of us, I returned to a crushing workload that often precluded me from even turning on my personal computer for consecutive nights. While that’s somewhat indefensible for my dilatory posting, I deemed even more inexcusable failing to recount what I and my family so thoroughly enjoyed during our cruise on the Voyager of the Seas and sharing those observations and experiences with any who might be interested. So, late or not, my review (and, fair warning, it’s long! To misquote President Lincoln, “I regret that this has to be such a lengthy correspondence; I did not have time to compose a shorter one”) now follows (and, for any interested, my spouse, who in our lexicon is “DW,” assembled a hoard of photographs, but so far I haven’t yet uploaded them and I apologize for that, too: I hope to do so as soon as I can).

And with one last rapid preface, let’s get started.

 

ONE LAST PREFACE AND EXPRESSION OF APPRECIATION:

 

I’ve been reading posts on this board for over five years and especially appreciated those who have sailed out of Galveston and shared their experiences, observations, concerns, and kudos with us. Although each of us will undoubtedly “see” our own vacations perhaps quite differently from others, from my perspective, it is extremely helpful to read these posts and learn something fresh each time. In that spirit, let me acknowledge all of you who have sailed from Galveston since Rhapsody of the Seas first docked there so many years ago (and, for the record, we loved that ship, too, and sailed her in 2002, 2003, 2004, and 2007 just before she left for Asia) as well as Splendour of the Seas (we sailed on her in 2005) and now Voyager since December 2007 and even more so, all of you who have posted your comments and reviews on those sailings. You helped me and my family far more than I can articulate, whether those who forewarned us of the construction on IH-45 (and, yes, we bypassed it on Saturday, 7 March, via 288 to Texas 6 only to later learn that the work had been completed!), the state of the city after Hurricane Ike (we stayed at Moody Gardens the night before the cruise, not least of which was our intent to put something back into the island’s economy), the refreshed terminal (many thanks to “CruiseLoverandAgent”), and, of course, Voyager. Since I would undoubtedly and inadvertently omit someone whose review I leaned upon (yes, I printed them out and took them with me), I eschew names with two exceptions: Rancher Dave, or whatever is your real name, thanks for so many posts (even if you didn’t answer mine which was buried in a small thread on a different board!) and comments and Snooozeman, whoever you are, for what has to be the most prolific, prolix, and downright superb review of any cruise we’ve ever read. I don’t know how you did it, recalling your exact meals for each day, each site you visited, and in such clear writing, but thanks for taking that time (and I grudgingly admit you weren’t as late as I). I literally leaned upon your review as we sailed the exact same itinerary, albeit with far, far better weather (in the words of Jimmy Buffett, we “took the weather with us” and Bexar County has been nothing if not warm and dry for far too long!).

 

BOTTOM LINE UP FRONT (BLUF):

 

In terms of the quality of the services, cruise experience, and just our overall enjoyment, this has to rank as the best or one of the best cruises (we’ve had thirteen) we ever experienced. With due recognition to those cruisers who’ve noted slight (or perhaps more than slight deficiencies) in the condition of the ship, we saw nothing that diminished or detracted from our vacation onboard. In fact, Voyager proved to be “our destination” as we did not do many off-ship tours on this sailing (and to those who might be interested in our take on Roatan and Costa Maya: which we’ve previously visited and enjoyed, sorry!). The dining room and alternative dining sites were just wonderful; with rare exception, the food was either quite adequate and, on occasion, exceptionally good (and, yes, we are WELL aware of the criticisms leveled at the quality of the food over the years). What entertainment we attended was very good with the exception of the ice show which was downright spectacular, more so for such a confined space on a moving vessel. And, most importantly, we relished the topnotch service of the best housekeeper (room attendant) we’ve ever met (and we’ve met some very, very good ones), dedicated and professional waitstaff, and, above all, the concierge, Martin Sanchez, who, in our estimation, is quite literally an invaluable asset to the company. Some of you who have had access to his services have previously expressed relatively good report of him, but our personal, direct experience with him indicates that he exemplifies the term “personal service.” For those of you who do choose to select a grand suite or higher on this ship, I only hope that Martin is still on board when you travel.

 

SHIP’S CONDITION

 

As noted above, the vessel was in superb condition given the time lapse (she launched in 1999) and the fact that she has been, in the immortal cavalry term, “rode hard and hung up wet.” I suspect that this attests to the attention RCL pays to maintenance of its ships and while we could – politely – argue over the ultimate outcome of that attention (some might say it’s quite thorough; others might disagree), from our own observations, Voyager of the Seas remains a splendid, exhilarating ship. For what it’s worth, I checked to see if the carpet was as worn as some have noted and while I don’t discount what they wrote, I didn’t see anything beyond what might be called “fair wear and tear” and, frankly, not much of that. What I did see was on-going replacement of carpets and other fixtures, polishing, vacuuming, and a myriad of work – usually quite late at night as I once discovered at 0200 in the morning – to keep the ship as clean and attractive as possible. We were in cabin 1320, an Owner’s Suite on Deck 10, and I had some trepidation concerning the quality of the furniture and overall appearance of the stateroom since an earlier OP, who had sailed in that cabin, had noticed significant wear. Well, I concur that the couch and the chairs were certainly not new and appeared to have been used, and used often, but I didn’t see fraying, tears, cuts, or even dirtiness and I scrutinized each piece. In any event, the ship is going to undergo drydock in May of this year and should emerge much refreshed. But my DD, who at age 10 has now been on three cruises of Rhapsody and one of Serenade out of San Juan, remained awestruck at the sheer number of venues and opportunities for fun that exist on this ship. In some measure, having now seen the deck plans and venues for Oasis (and we were already familiar with the Freedom class layout), I seriously question how people will have time to do even one-half of all that there is to do on an RCL ship. We tried during our week on Voyager (and recall that we spent even more time aboard in port than normal), and we failed. Not by much, mind you, but we just couldn’t do it all. No wonder so many of us are “repeat cruisers!”

[TLex]

PRECRUISE DAY 0 SATURDAY 7 MARCH

 

We live in Bexar County, in Stone Oak for those familiar with that location, and after a very hectic week of work and preparation and packing (does anyone NOT undergo that ordeal?), we actually took a few hours off on Friday, 6 March, just to try and complete all of the preparations (and, for the record, I had booked this voyage in August 2007 so it’s not like we didn’t know it was coming!). If at all possible – and I suspect many of us do so – try to get down to the port a day early, just to “build in” for any contingency. And that’s what we did: we left at about 1030 CST (we “lost” our hour of sleep that weekend due to DST) and headed East towards Galveston. And I successfully got us almost to the Luling junction when MIL, DW, and DD insisted on a brief visit to – what else, as anyone who drives IH-10 between Houston and San Antonio must know- Bucccee’s. Well, I concede, that store is amazing for a host of reasons. One half-hour later (“brief”), we were back on the road and since I’d been devouring all information on the roadword on IH-45 to Galveston, even got maps from AAA just “to be sure,” I drove straight through to Beltway 8, decided to head south, got off at 288 (Nolan Ryan Expressway) and took State Highway 6 via Alvin and Santa Fe and Bayou Vista. It wasn’t too bad, but good grief! Seemed like a “gazillion” stoplights. So that probably added about 45 minutes to what otherwise would have been a “straight shot” through Houston (and I am native to all three cities, if possible, Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio, and I know that there is no such thing as “light traffic” on any of our major expressways, even, maybe especially, on weekends). We arrived in Galveston a little before 1500 and I decided to tour through the city down Broadway to Seawall rather than turn and go directly to Moody Gardens. That may have been a mistake because we hit a slew of traffic on Broadway, not to mention longer lights than I had recalled from 2007. Nevertheless, it was fascinating to see how much the city has recovered. To those who worked so long and tirelessly to restore Galveston, and that includes many of those who read and post on these boards, Bless You! We love Galveston, always have, and were interested to see how much evidence of damage would be there. As it is, we saw more “blue roofs” en route on Highway 6 than in the actual city (although, in confession, we didn’t stray too far off of the “main roads” and we did see significant damage still in the residential neighborhoods). With the exception of the McDonald’s – which may have been deliberately unrepaired – we didn’t see major wrath of the hurricane on Broadway. It was quite a sight to view the Flagship Hotel, however, and the dismantled concrete access to it. One word of warning which hopefully is now “OBE” (meaning outdated): we stopped for gas at the Walmart Murphy and the gas pump literally “ate” my Walmart card. In plain terms, I pumped about $20 worth of gas and the pump registered $50. The attendant quickly and promptly refunded the difference but advised us that these were “new pumps” and were having “some problems.” No kidding! And, with that, and a few missed turns since the traffic lights don’t work, we arrived at the Moody Gardens Hotel at about 1530.

 

Moody Gardens has been one of our favorite places to lodge since 2001. It’s expensive and the cruise package was, in hindsight, probably too expensive, but we wanted to see the hotel post-Ike. As an aside, I literally called in our reservation the Friday of the storm; had to renew it, of course, with all of the losses in electricity and computer reservations, but we knew we would be back to Galveston and we knew Galveston would be back, too. Nevertheless, some of the changes were sad. The salt water had infiltrated into the underground pipes and wiring and while the hotel was immaculate and crowded with hordes of dancers for a statewide contest, we noted that there aren’t the fish and tortoises in the lobby pond and the parrot has gone. The staff was very cordial and professional and we learned that once all repairs are completed, they hope to restore the pond to its pre-Ike state. Further, due to the dance contest, the Terrace Restaurant, where DW “has” to order her shrimp fines herbes, was relegated to a bland dinner buffet and rather expensive sandwiches and soups. That was also very disappointing (although DW got her shrimp fines herbes at the end of the cruise, q.v.). Our room was sufficient for the family and the next morning, DW and MIL enjoyed the breakfast buffet that comes with the package and DW and I walked the gardens and around the grounds. It was pleasant and we were happy to see that frangipani and the ubiquitous hibiscus were returning. But it was also interesting to see all of the fractured tree trunks and limbs. Even after six months, vestiges of the hurricane’s fury could be seen.

 

And one last disquieting piece of information awaited. The evening before, I had asked our bell attendant if we needed to give our information to the valet stand so we could leave as early as possible. I was informed that I had to fill out a new form (which I did) and turn it into the valet stand by 0900 in the morning. I did that even earlier and was told we would have priority for the first bus to the terminal. However, that first bus is NOT until noon! The evening before, we had repacked and offloaded unneeded clothes and items in the car (another reason we like to go down a day early); I had my revised packing list (thank you, ScubaMark, a fellow cruise critic on our trip, for your recommendations: they were lifesavers in one instance) and got the luggage repacked, relocked, and down to the pickup site by 1130. But no bus. We stood there at the front entrance and waited for nearly half an hour before we were informed that we needed to run to a different lobby and different entryway to board the shuttle. Which we did.

 

 

 

 

DAY ONE SUNDAY 8 MARCH

 

And, at 1215, our cruise adventure “officially” commenced. The bus was actually larger than we expected and we met a young couple, an older lady traveling alone, or so it seemed, and another couple who regaled us with their story about their experience cruising on the Conquest last September. They were part of the vacationers caught by Hurricane Ike; they had to debark in New Orleans, lost their car and everything in it, and had a memorable, if miserable, experience that year. Our driver navigated through the crowded traffic, past Terminal 1 (we were all embarking on Voyager), and then got stopped by a sedan that just took forever to unload the passengers and suitcases. For nearly ten minutes we idled less than 50 yards from where we were supposed to get off of the bus and finally he moved us up and we raced to get our suitcases down and to a porter. Since there weren’t any porters in the vicinity of our bus at that moment, I walked to the entry to the warehouse and asked one of them to come with me. And he did. We tipped generously (well, we had tipped generously at the hotel and maybe too generously on board but that’s a matter of opinion) and he swiftly found our luggage, all six pieces (GAAH), and in a frenetic swirl of people and valises, we got the information we needed from our driver and entered the building.

 

What we found was a strange scene. We fully expected to encounter a lot more people since we were so “late” (about 1230) but there were multiple lines through the blue ropes. The one on the left was for “Diamond/Platinum/Suite” guests and it was packed! The other lines weren’t labeled (there was no placard) and yet there was hardly a soul in either of them. So I went up to the representative with our sailaway pass and documents and asked if we could use these lines. She said, “Sure,” and after checking our documents, she let us go in and over to the line to the X-ray machines. I recall that there were two stations. It was quite rapid. Now, we don’t “smuggle” water, soda, or alcoholic beverages on board – not a judgment, just a fact- and we only had a few carry-ons (such as my briefcase, the bag with our electronics, cameras, toiletries, and some change of clothing just in case. But we were whisked right through and then I was moving towards the area that appeared to be for suite guests, Diamond, and Platinum cruisers and an attendant directed me to the other lines. So I told her we were Diamond and in a suite and she told us, OK, go the other way. We were almost immediately to the counter. However, from what I could tell down the line, virtually no one, at that point, had much of a wait to get to the representative.

 

Our in-processing was professional and smooth. I’d also write “as always” which is true, but the fact is that we received excellent service and I don’t think it had a thing to do with where we were staying on the ship or our “status.” We did get to see CruiseLoverandAgent, thank her for her help prior to our departure, and give her some Mardi Gras beads which was how the Meet and Mingle planned to recognize each other. We were issued “gold cards,” something new to us, although, again, thanks to this board, I’d already learned we would receive. These cards are issued for cruisers staying in the Royal Suite, Royal Family Suites, Owners Suites, and Grand Suites. And they did have some valuable (to us) amenities associated with them.

 

At this point, I’ll “break” and address up front, but just briefly, the issue that seemed to be such a hot topic on the board recently, viz., the perceived dichotomy between “first class” (that is, those who had suites other than Junior Suites) and “steerage.” From our perception throughout the cruise, no one complained or articulated to us that they had received less than excellent service due to their stateroom location. There was no “class treatment” from what we could observe. There WAS a distinction between Diamond and Diamond Plus (we’re Diamond), Platinum, and Gold Crown and Anchor (C&A) members in that there were additional receptions and a luncheon (which was not one of our highlights, more on that much later in the review). Now, there has been much discussion and give and take concerning the amenities RCL now affords those with the “gold card” (forgive me the expression, it’s just a lot easier to type than all the suites) and I don’t have a particular “take” on this one way or the other. As I noted earlier, this was not our first cruise by a long shot and we enjoyed all of our other vacations, “perks” or no perks. But it IS nice that when one spends the extra money for a suite, and that’s a matter of choice and personal taste and there is NO right or wrong here (many of our friends far prefer to book staterooms at the cheapest possible price and they use them just to change, sleep, and shower and that’s perfect for them: and they also cruise a heckuva lot more frequently than we do), that the line provides some additional amenities. And we did use them. They enhanced our cruise experience and we were grateful for them. So I will mention these as they become relevant in the review but that’s all that they were: cruise enhancements, appreciated but certainly not a return to “class status” on cruise ships.

 

After we received our cards – and I won’t forget the representative telling me to “relax, take it easy, you’re officially on vacation” – I gathered up our carry-on bags and moved directly to the table at the left of the counter where they had flutes of champagne. I asked if we could have one and the waiter said that they were for Diamond and Platinum C&A members. So I showed him my card and gave me glasses for DW, MIL, and me. We drank them and move on through the entry door to where we found the photographer waiting for the obligatory Welcome Aboard photograph. And we, of course, obliged. Next it was through another entry door to where there was a table for the children. Since DD is ten, she was issued a green wristband (which just last night she finally took off!) which designated her Muster Station and provided the required information in case we were separated during an emergency. At that point I noticed a bit of a “stack up” at the machines that took the holographic photographs for the seapass cards and we eased into line, waited our turn, and got our photos. But as soon as we passed through the point, I saw what was the reason for the crowding. At a table, surrounded by passengers, the waiter were selling the Wine Packages (as always) but also the soda packages and something new for us: water packages. I do not counsel for or against: many will write that these are a complete waste of money and maybe that’s correct. But I was overruled and we bought the soda package and got the cup for DD (and she did use it but….) and 16 bottles of Evian water. The more one purchases up front, the greater the discount off of the standard price of $3.50 per bottle. From how we used that during the cruise and for the convenience of not having to trudge up to the Windjammer to fetch water at night, it seemed to be “worth it.”

 

Having survived this maelstrom, we finally got onto the escalator and walked up the “jet ramp” into the ship. The elevators, surprisingly, weren’t crowded and we rode directly to deck ten where we saw that our stateroom was immediately adjacent to the starboard aft elevators bank and directly through the entrance to the hallway. We were greeted by the “Bon Voyage” sign (which I’d earlier ordered), entered a remarkably well maintained suite, and saw that the remainder of our decorations had been hung from the ceiling directly over the sofa (which would also open into the queen size bed). An arrangement of tropical flowers was on the small commode directly adjacent to the head (bathroom).

 

Our suite was spacious and yet not quite as well laid out as our Owners Suite on Serenade. Voyager, like the next two ships in its class and the first two ships in the Radiance class, sacrificed some of the balcony space for a “picture window” with space for a chaise lounge that we never used except for storage. However, what this did was to effectively “seal off” our balcony in the sense that one side of the balcony was the bedroom portion of our suite and the other side was a metal wall. Thus, we had full privacy (although we could hear our neighbors in the Grand Suite to our right and I know that they could hear us, too). The suite has a plasma television mounted on a swivel pole; DVD and sound system which often bewildered in terms of switching from TV to DVD; ample lighting, a spacious dry bar with tons of shelving on top and on the bottom, and a wonderful bath. It comes with a separate shower, whirlpool tub, double sinks, toilet and, for reasons I’ve never yet deduced, a bidet. At first, having just come from the hotel and our own home, the stateroom seemed small; by week’s end, it seemed positively huge.

 

After depositing our carry-ons, I went first to the concierge lounge but initially, the white key wasn’t working. So all of us went topside, first to check on our seating at Portobelo’s, then for what turned out to be a somewhat lengthy tour of the spa, and finally back to the MDR to find our table. We were pleased to find it: we had Table 536 immediately adjacent to the rail on deck five, Magic Flute dining room, with a spectacular view of the chandelier and MDR and grand staircase. We then went back up to deck twelve to Adventure Ocean. We had just missed the raffle of prizes, but we finished the paperwork to sign up DD. Having now wandered through the Windjammer and Island Grill (but we didn’t stop for lunch, at least not immediately), we went back to our room and found that three of our six suitcases had arrived. I started the unpacking while the ladies went up for lunch. By this time, the champagne and strawberries arrived. They were complemented by the fruit plate and water. But I was concerned for our luggage and I went outside to see if the suitcases were arriving: no such luck. When I returned to the suite, the doorbell rang and I met Martin Sanchez for the first time.

 

This was not our first correspondence. Martin had already graciously returned my E-mails, the first more than five weeks earlier, to assist us in arranging dinner reservations at Portofino and then spa hair appointments for DW and MIL. He introduced himself, offered any assistance, and when I recounted that I was wondering where our luggage may have been deposited (and at this point, it was nearly 1545 or just thirty minutes from muster and an hour and a half from departure), he told me he would look for it. I then met our stateroom attendant, Ms. Johanna Ordillas from Manila. She, too, offered her concerns for our luggage and told me that many of the other passengers had not yet received theirs. Johanna was nothing less than outstanding: gracious, competent, unobtrusive, and always one step ahead of any request we could have conjured. She brought us extra towels; ensured the ladies had plenty of Vitality toiletries (the suite comes with a full range of toiletries and amenities in the bath); constantly maintained our ice bucket (we never asked her, once, for ice) and the condition of the room, as I noted above, was spotless. By 1610, all of the family was back in the suite but we still had not found our luggage. And then the muster blasts occurred and we had to go.

 

Following muster, we all went to the top decks for sailaway. I found our Meet and Mingle group (we were wearing our Mardi Gras beads) on Deck Eleven near the Sky Bar (which soon became one of my favorite locales not to mention…bar). I’d opened the thread in March 2008 and watched it mushroom into over 100 potential cruisers; some, who well know who they are, became mainstays of the thread who made a lot of the arrangements for our Meet and Mingle, provided suggestions for enhancing our cruise, and shared valuable information. It was great to meet many of them as we sailed away from Galveston.

 

We had splendid weather: not too hot, not cold, with a bright clear sky and a moon that was nearly full. As the ship slipped away from the pier, turned, and headed down the channel to the Gulf, we took turns at the Peek-a-Boo bridge, watching the Master and crew steer the vessel into the open water. And it happened in such a relatively short time: before we knew it, Galveston had slipped into the sunset, literally, and we were gliding past the oil platforms well into the night. It’s a great feeling with the wind, the sky, a darn cold Margarita from the Sky Bar…..

 

Since we had late® seating (2000), we eventually returned to our cabin, checked through the Excursion Sheet and Compasses and got ready for the Welcome Aboard show and dinner. Before going to the La Scala theater, we stopped by the Concierge Lounge. I got a quick drink and asked Martin if he had any news of our luggage. He informed me that many of our fellow passengers had yet to receive any of their luggage and he would check into it after the cocktail hour ended. At the theater, the Cruise Director (CD), as I had remembered him from the Rhapsody in 2007, was Eric Dowis. You may have read glowing reviews of Eric and I won’t dispute those. He was as funny and down to earth in 2009 as I remembered him on the Rhapsody and he was “in his element” as he welcomed us aboard Voyager. Even though he has to prime himself week after week to do it, Eric seems to genuinely enjoy his interactions with the audience and always, always has a ready smile and quick wit. Sadly, we wouldn’t see as much of him during this cruise, not out of intent, but just the way things worked out. The opening show featured a brief routine by the ship’s company of singers and dancers and then a comedy routine featuring George Kantner. We’ve seen worse; we’ve seen better. But all in all, the show was above average. Our only problem was finding seats for the four of us: we got to the La Scala theater late and whether it was right or not, most of the seats were being “held” or reserved for family members who had yet to arrive. We didn’t confront anyone or try to take any of those seats and we were fortunate in finding four on the far left side of the theater. But that was the last time we did that.

 

Immediately after the show ended, it was time to head for the MDR for dinner. As in most RCL ships, our dining room was directly aft of the La Scala which, of course, is directly forward. What made the journey a bit more challenging is that the Voyager layout, old news to all of you who’ve sailed her but not quite what I thought from memorizing the deck plans in the brochures and on-line, doesn’t allow you to go directly from deck four (top floor of La Scala) to the MDR (La Boheme) and up to Magic Flute. For those of us who remember Rhapsody, where the balcony was on deck five, you could walk directly through the Schooner Bar or Moonlight Bay lounge and the Centrum back to the MDR. Not here. To exit, you have to go up the stairs (deck three) to deck four to deck five or if you choose to go deck four, the only pathway is through Schooner Bar and the casino. In short, you can’t bypass the casino. Well done, RCL! But for all of the smoke and noise and glittering lights, I liked this casino (maybe because of them) and the floor, which I won’t spoil for those who haven’t sailed Voyager yet, is definitely unique (and similar to what they did for Adventure Ocean).

 

Our waiter was Shimrei Shimrah and our assistant Waiter Lina Maria Sepulveda. They were simply outstanding. We didn’t get to meet our headwaiter, Joao Machado, until the third night, but he, too, once we got to know him, was very attentive (and he would literally “save our bacon” on the last day of the cruise). And, in homage to Snoozeman, I recorded the first meal. Since he’d had the Vidalia onion tart, I did, too. It was a bit chewy and “pasty” but otherwise good. For my entrée, I had the pasta and finished with the savarin dessert. Not gourmet, but not bad either. By dinner’s end, approximately 2130, we were so tired and full we didn’t have a lot of energy. Until the ladies found the shops. As they were hitting all of the shops, I wandered past the Pig and Whistle where Derek Lewis was holding court with his Adult Daycare. All that I can add to what’s been written previously about Derek: it’s all true and then some! The organizers of our Meet and Mingle were there and the DH became one of the first “superstars” of the voyage. I vowed to avoid the place and Derek like the plague. I would utterly fail that vow (luckily). So when I returned to our cabin, I walked in to see that Johanna had already made up our beds, left the chocolates on our pillows, and….in the corner, behind the small dining table and chairs was all of our luggage! I later learned that Martin had himself gone down into the bowels of the ship, located our missing suitcases, and got them to our cabin. He didn’t have to do that: but he did and the relief I felt closed the day on a positive note. Only after reviewing some threads on our board did I learn that the reason for the delays may have been increased scrutiny of the bags for liquor or other items, but that’s sheer speculation on my part. I can attest, however, that in all of our RCL cruises, this was the absolute latest we ever received our luggage.

 

DW, DD, and MIL returned to the room shortly before 2240 and we were all very tired so we missed the Party Around the World Parade at 2245. From what we heard later, it was fun, noisy and raucous, a good way to commence any cruise. I did go down after 2300 to check out the stores, specifically the liquor store, and was surprised to learn that for this cruise and allegedly the Spring Break cruises after ours, the store would not be permitted to let us purchase alcoholic beverages and return them to our cabin for packing on the last day. Presumably to prevent improper or underage consumption, the stores were directed to hold all liquor purchases until the Sunday of debarkation where they could be claimed from 0600-0800 prior to debarking. As it would turn out, the passengers who did this informed me that the process wasn’t all that tedious; nevertheless, because I didn’t want or need yet another potential headache on debarkation day, this was the first cruise on which I didn’t buy something from that store.

 

But while we were discussing this new policy, I overheard a young man say that he had just heard an “Alpha, Alpha, Alpha” and that someone had said that a person, perhaps an elderly lady but I wasn’t certain, had fallen and had to be assisted. That particular call is for an injury on-board ship, actually a medical emergency, and I wondered if it would have any impact on our cruise. As it turned out, it sure did.

 

But at that point, I was too tired to stand. I had come downstairs to try and win the raffle at the liquor store and, in keeping with my usual luck (which prevailed all week long), I had lost. Exhausted, disappointed (well, slightly), overstuffed and quite happy to have finally started our cruise, I walked back to the stateroom and fell asleep, the rest of my family having sensibly retired around 2300.

 

End of Day One.

 

TO BE CONTINUED

[TLex]

DAY TWO MONDAY, 09 MARCH AT SEA

 

I awoke before 0700, groggy and unsure whether I really wanted to lace up my shoes and go running. But I had promised myself to get that exercise that seemed to elude me in my quotidian life, so I lurched out of bed and got on the running shorts, shirt, and shoes. And that’s when I realized that I had never slept as well on an RCL bed as I just did. The “joy” was that in our stateroom, we actually had a queen size bed which really felt almost as large as a king size bed and it was an actual full bed, not twins shoved together. The mattress was firm, the pillows extremely comfortable, and as I could see the waves break, end on end, through our picture window, I genuinely wanted to chuck the exercise routine and go back to sleep. But I didn’t.

 

Fortunately, my MIL is extremely athletic and she had already awakened and dressed to go do aerobics and work out in the gym. So she prodded me out of the room and we walked up the staircase to deck eleven, the pool deck, and then one more flight to the running, OK, jogging track on deck twelve. The breeze was terrific; not just in the sense that it felt good, but in the sense that I could barely run into it. The Captain had forewarned us that we would generate about 40 knots across the deck and he wasn’t joking. Add the extra weight of life in Bexar County, MUCHO extra weight, more years of experience – and rust – and my general distaste for all mornings, anywhere and under any circumstances, my run, no jog, no, slog began at a very slow pace. But as I kept on going, the wind became bearable if not beatable and the air cleared my head. There’s something wonderful and almost indescribably exhilirating about exercising on-board a ship sailing at near top speed when most passengers are still sleeping or at least not stirring on a bright clear morning. The colors of the sea and sky often intermingled and created astounding hues and textures. And after what the trainers and sign on the deck stated were three plus miles of this, I stopped a little before 0800 and wandered down to the pool deck to find coffee. I didn’t find any, nor were the bars open for a Bloody Mary, but I did find that there were two sections of lounge chairs roped off between decks ten and eleven on either side of the bulkhead that were reserved for suite guests. This proved a g-dsend later in the day when we went upstairs to get some sun. I met a heavily tattooed gentleman reading a book early in the day: he had staked out what would be his area for much of the remainder of the cruise and we got to talking. I learned that there had, indeed, been a medical emergency the night before but we didn’t know at this point if anything had happened in respect to our cruise. So I went down to clean up and have breakfast.

 

As part of the “amenities,” we learned that suite guests are permitted to get their food in Windjammer or Island Grill, but may sit in Portofino from 0800-1400 which can be another blessing when the informal dining area gets crowded on “at sea” days. Day Two was a whirlwind of activity for us. After we cleaned up and got DD up to Adventure Ocean, the ladies went to bingo and I went to the Shopping Lecture hoping to win some prizes. But Sean was loquacious and informative and though the program stated the lecture was from 1000-1100, at 1055 I realized I had to meet the ladies for our Meet and Mingle at the High Notes on deck 14 (part of the Viking Crown Lounge) at 1100. As it turned out, I’d more than get my opportunities to meet Sean and his lovely assistant (fiancée), Adriana, during this cruise (thanks a heap Sean and Adriana!). The place was packed and we had a wonderful time. I didn’t partake of the snacks and what appeared to be lemonade (I defer to my fellow Meet and Mingle cruisers), but Eric Dowis arrived to emcee the raffle of such incredibly valuable items as RCL key chains, a really deluxe key chain (which I believe my MIL won), and other assorted schlock (well, it was, but it was GREAT schlock!), up to the coveted RCL computer mouse complete with a floating Voyager in it (since I’d already won that in 2006, I couldn’t complain about my bad luck…again). What made it memorable, as always, was Eric himself, cracking jokes, cracking all of us up, just plain cracked (and being from Georgia, a….let me stop and I rebuke myself). Frankly, we were laughing until we cried. But all good things have to come to a “let’s go we have another reception” because right next door was the Captain’s Cocktail Reception for Concierge Suite guests. Unfortunately, by the time we arrived, Captain Martinsen had departed, but we met Silvio, the Food and Beverage Manager, an extremely engaging and charming person, and Rufino Moreno, the Chief for Bars (of whom I was immediately in awe). Rufino is from Panama and immediately struck up a warm rapport with DW and MIL who are, wait for it, from Panama. I went to Adventure Ocean and got DD so she could join in the fun. We met more fellow Meet and Mingle cruisers from our Roll Call, had a great time, and literally filled up on the cocktails (they had a plethora and afterwards either the ship was rolling or it was I) and the food.

 

After the reception, DD and MIL decided to do more shopping and play Bingo. I decided to head back to the room and recover my sea legs. So I took a brief nap and then took DD up to deck thirteen to play miniature golf and try in-line roller skating. She did fine: I stood to the side, wobbly but supportive. Unfortunately, we also missed the usual poolside contests and fun sports that mark a day at sea but during our reception, when the Captain made his noontime announcements, we learned that during the night, the ship had turned back to Galveston to meet a Coast Guard helicopter which evacuated the lady who had been injured. The final story I got was that she had fallen on some stairs and fractured, badly, her leg and had to be taken off of the ship. So the Captain determined that we would have insufficient time to get to Cozumel on Tuesday and he postponed our port day to Friday, added the sea day for Tuesday, and noted our first port of call would be Roatan, Honduras. So in one sense, this cruise would parallel earlier cruises where the itinerary had to be adjusted.

 

At this point, since this review has now gone well outside the solar system and may approach the galaxy’s edge, let me forego more recitation of our meanderings on board. I can answer any questions to which I remember the proper answer but suffice to say we saw as much of the Royal Promenade as possible, the Sports Deck, and everything in-between. However, as we were lounging in our stateroom, we realized that we were going to be late for the Ice Show in Studio B scheduled for 1530. Martin had previously obtained our tickets and had them delivered to our room the night before. So we raced out and I led everyone on a wild goose chase around the aft until I realized, to my utter chagrin, that our elevators WERE the aft elevators (so much for 19 months of memorizing deck plans!!) and we raced downstairs and through the maze to get to the Ice Rink just in time. Fortunately, as in La Scala, there are reserved seats on the far side for suite guests and we found seats on the front row.

 

I am very glad we went. The “Ice Odyssey Showtime” was, IMO, the best entertainment we observed on the Voyager. Sadly, we later learned that some of the cast finished their contracts on this cruise and departed back to Russia when we disembarked. But as good as the international cast (with guest star Alexey Sirota) performed, on such a miniscule rink, what was even more amazing was the quality of the story being told, the props and the theme that was developed through intricate and delicate skating. The show ended at 1615 and we had to race back to our room for at 1630, DW and MIL had to go get their hair done for the formal night, I had to ensure that DD got washed and cleaned (I put on a DVD for her afterwards which seemed to keep her attention), and then I got dressed. We left as early as possible for the Captain’s reception in the second theater which is Cleopatra’s Needle on deck five. We arrive early enough (since Main Seating had started) to take some formal photos and be one of the first in line to meet Captain Martinsen. We then found seats at the front of the dance floor and patiently waited for everyone to fill in and the show to begin. But even though we were offered cocktails and the band played various dance songs from all of the eras, no sign of the Captain and staff. This was strange because we had analogized this to the C&A Welcome Back reception held on the first formal night on Rhapsody. But we soon realized that the Captain was not going to come to the stage at Cleopatra’s Needle because the main event was going to be in the Royal Promenade. We left, took more formal photos, and went to dinner.

 

Formal night….one of my favorites! We took our Mumm’s champagne for this dinner and what was left, I took back to the room. For dinner, I decided to feast on one of my favorites, which I eat nowhere but on a cruise ship, the escargot. Not only does RCL somehow, to my taste, at least, prepare excellent escargot, but their sauce is to die for (and, again, IMO: I am sure some may share it, others may have very different views of this dish). Well, I ate six platters. From gourmet to gourmand. Something like thirty-six escargot and I had an urge to go climb a wall. But I didn’t stop there: I also had orange carpaccio and shrimp penne alfredo. And at that point, my DD started to feel queasy (she may have eaten some sort of steak each night, not necessarily a good thing but she loved it and she won’t get that again for a long, long while) and I was “elected” by DW and MIL to take her back to the room. And there we found the first of our animals, a tortoise, I believe. Johanna had fixed the room beautifully and I got DD to bed and fell asleep myself. Thus, DW and MIL attended the show with Bobby Arvon, featured singer, and said he was very good. More importantly, they had “discovered” the reserved seats in the balcony mezzanine and one particular stretch affords outstanding views without craning over others’ heads. We would sit there for the remainder of the cruise.

 

And since it was now nearly midnight, we all fell asleep.

 

End of Day Two

 

TO BE CONTINUED

[TLex]

DAY THREE 10 MARCH AT SEA

 

Since we hadn’t planned to be at sea today, I awoke somewhat concerned about our tickets for the dolphin excursion in Cozumel. I needn’t have worried: Martin had already obtained the replacement tickets for Friday and they were in our papers that Johanna left with us. In fact, we didn’t have to seek a single ticket or invitation the entire cruise: every day, Martin and Johanna ensured that we received everything and placed it in a folder on our coffee table in the “living room” area of our suite. Yet another “kudo” for Martin Sanchez

 

This morning I decided to get in a decent workout so I left even earlier than Monday, jogged/slogged three miles on the track and then went to the gym to lift weights on the machines. Even though there was a decent crowd in the gym and Spa center by 0800, I had no difficulties finding open equipment and I was impressed that it was also well maintained. My MIL attended aerobic sessions while I was on the weights and she later informed me that she enjoyed them (many, if not most, are free of charge). Since I worked out until nearly 0900, I didn’t enjoy the rest of the family for breakfast upstairs but decided to try another “amenity,” viz., being able to order from the full breakfast menu during regular breakfast hours in the MDR. That was a mistake. No, the breakfast, when it finally arrived, was good (eggs benedict, kippered herring and potato, pastries, juice and coffee): it just took the better part of an hour to get to the room. By the time I had eaten, cleaned up, and was ready to leave the room for our attendant, it was nearly 1030.

 

I had promised DD that I would take her swimming and when we arrived on pool deck, it was packed. Again, perfect weather and a bit less wind across the decks so both pools were jammed and nearly every chair was taken. Thankfully, we found two left in the reserved section and we stayed there for nearly two and a half hours (long enough for the Captain’s mid-day announcements and a contest to make jambalaya). I noted that there was a major buffet line set up for barbecue and lunch but I also noticed that there was a MAJOR crowd of folks lined up for that lunch so we skipped it. I have no idea to this date where DW and MIL went: presumably they played bingo (lost by two numbers) and shopped some more.

 

Anyway, Tuesday became a typical “sea day,” chocked full of activities and no time to do them all. I wanted to go to the wine tasting at 1500 (they had scheduled another wine tasting event for this unexpected Sea Day) but since the ladies took off and left me with DD (and I didn’t want to “park” her in Adventure Ocean), I missed it (and that with a C&A coupon for a free admission). So DD and I went back up to the sports deck and played there for nearly an hour. Late in the day, as the Rock Wall was winding down, she asked if she could try. I said, sure, go ahead. And with the assistance of the Sports Deck staff (they were all very attentive and helpful), she got into her swiss seat, put on a helmet, and after realizing that the “blue rocks” were for more seasoned climbers, took off on her first climb and made it to the top and rang the bell. I’d have been overjoyed had I not realized when I tried to videograph her that the battery in the camera had expired. Still shots were OK, but they didn’t capture the moment. Another lesson learned.

 

By the time we returned to our cabin, we had to clean up and dress for dinner at Portofino (but couldn’t resist yet another whirlpool in the Jacuzzi tub: for me, this was [almost] worth the price of the suite!). DD couldn’t attend, of course, so we ordered her dinner through room service and this time, the service was prompt and her dinner was good. We all then went to the show, a musical review entitled Broadway Rhythm and Rhyme. While we’ve seen many (maybe too many) of these productions, this time I was intrigued by the fact that the show selected less well-known songs from the musicals. But the singing was good and the dancing up to par. And we thoroughly enjoyed our seats and vantage point!

 

Before we left, I’d stopped by the Concierge Lounge (as I tried to do each night) for a quick cocktail and some pleasantries with Martin and other guests. And I’d also enjoyed a cocktail during the show. And that may not have been the wisest course because, as I wrote in my ship’s description, when the production ended right at 1925, I literally raced all the way to the back of the ship to ensure we didn’t lose our reservation at Portofino which was set for 1930. And I even stopped by the room to pick up the bottle of wine I’d purchased the previous evening in the MDR as part of the Diamond 20% off package for our dinner. But there was a line at the entry and I had only been seated for three minutes or so before DW and MIL arrived, having dropped off DD at AO.

 

Our dinner was leisurely, with superb service from Pedro of Nicaragua and outstanding appetizers (antipasti). And, during our dinner, Silvio came by to see us (he had gone to our regular table in the MDR and upon learning we were in Portofino, made a special trip) along with Erfan (I hope I didn’t misspell his name; if I did, I apologize). Overall, it was our consensus that Portofino is well worth the extra charge (it was only $20 and I understand the price is higher for Chops Grille on ships offering that specialty restaurant). Our only disappointment was DW’s entrée, a somewhat dried shrimp and risotto (she later told me the similar dish in the MDR was actually tastier).

 

We left Portofino after 2200 (so, lesson learned, make sure you allow plenty of time for dinner there) and I went to get our DD from AO. At that point, I was directed, again, to go back to the Royal Promenade for yet another raffle (this one was for jewelry) and I lost, lost, lost. It was then nearly 2330 so I returned to the room and went to bed.

 

End of Day Three

 

TO BE CONTINUED

 

DAY FOUR 11 MARCH ROATAN ISLAND, HONDURAS

 

DW and I had spent time in Honduras during the 1980’s and 1990’s so we weren’t especially excited about visiting the island (I’d declined an offer to go there in 1993 and regretted it during my diving days). As earlier noted, the ship, more than any port, was our destination. The weather was good, but as typical in the “summer” in Central America (the dry season), there were puffy clouds in the morning that spoke to the possibility of a late day thundershower (we didn’t get one that I could notice in Honduras, but did in Costa Maya). We let the ship “empty” as the passengers poured out to excursions and, unable to convince my DD to go to the West End or West Bay, I checked out Fins and Flippers from our balcony with my binoculars and re-read what Snoozeman had informed us. It seemed reasonable and certainly close to the dock, but DW nixed spending $25 pp for a trip to the beach (should note that DW and MIL are allergic to sea water and don’t particularly like the ocean or the beach). And I cratered. But we did go off ship and wander around the new port area that is not directly in Coxen Hole but appears to have been constructed, similarly to Costa Maya, for the cruise lines. The buildings, roads, and parking all around this area are clearly quite new.

 

One interesting tidbit: we were shadowed all day by a US Navy ship, 58, couldn’t discern for certain whether she was a frigate or destroyer. Appeared to be a frigate. We could make out the crew and armaments easily with our binoculars from our balcony. In some ways, it was reassuring to have the US Navy present whether it was there for interdictions or exercises or actually had some “protective” mission as well. Caribbean waters are much safer than most, but not entirely safe.

 

DW and MIL shopped in some stores on the mezzanine and we purchased a few souvenirs. But relying on what I’d paid nearly 20 years ago for mahogany (caoba) and other Honduran goods, I was reluctant to shell out what seemed to be much higher prices for 2009. And when I engaged the clerks in conversation (English and espanol), I learned that the actual owner of the shop was from Ecuador. In fact, I’d learn that most of the owners of the shops and kiosks in this area aren’t from Honduras at all but Mexico, South America or Europe. And, of course, DI is owned by Mr. Gad now of New York but from Israel (and DI certainly has its empire in the Caribbean). DI had just opened a new store in Roatan but I successfully convinced DW and MIL to by-pass it. My luck would not hold for Costa Maya.

 

When the ladies returned to the ship, I stopped for a Port Royal (cerveza) at the kiosk immediately next to the entry. The gentleman there was very amiable and we talked for a long time about Honduras, what was transpiring in the last few years, and the major changes in Roatan now that the larger cruise lines had “discovered” the island. A cold beer in what was becoming a humid and very warm afternoon was a welcome pastime.

 

I don’t recall at precisely what point I met with Sean and Adriana, the Shopping Coordinators. I believe we saw them in Roatan and then we talked later on the ship. They were very gracious when I explained how my wife had been looking for something like a watch or small jewelry on board the ship and whether we could actually find genuine deals at any of the ports (NOTE: before anyone questions either my sanity or experience, let me profess that I have been to Cozumel at least a dozen times and Costa Maya now thrice and I am well aware, having read multiple threads, of the reputations [often well deserved] of these vendors and many of the so-called “deals” in ports; again, our experiences were our experiences, perhaps like, and very likely, perhaps NOT like anyone else’s and I do not presume to tell or write anyone whether to go shopping in port. I will note that we won’t buy gemstones or silver or gold except under the most exceptional circumstances. Name-brand items that could be confirmed as genuine, that’s a different story…), they agreed to meet with us in the Concierge Lounge. I was at least somewhat curious about the engagement ring he’d bought her with the new Crown of Light cut (curious: not about to purchase….).

 

One specific note: we would discover that Voyager offered very little to do on-board after docking. That’s somewhat obvious since the shops must close until the ship reaches international waters. But we were sort of surprised that there were no organized activities other than some Caribbean dancing poolside at 1300 (MIL went but said it had been cancelled) and the major sports activities like rock wall climbing, in line skating, anything where a sports rep was required were closed. MIL went off to a movie at the screening room on deck two and liked it (she would see three this week). I took DD back to the pool and burned like a Maine lobster in a boiling pot. So much for my sunscreen. Christian and Mauricio at Sky Bar did their best to quell my pain (and with great success, I must add) (excellent libations!). We visited with a number of passengers who decided to remain on-board and it was a bonus that so few folks were actually at the pool making obtaining chairs, towels, etc., quite easy.

 

We were somewhat tired by late afternoon, so we didn’t do much until dinner. The main show was the Ice Odyssey (1830 and 2030) and since we’d already seen it, we skipped. Tonight was much more casual (Hawaiian shirt sort of thing) and we had a good dinner, but nothing memorable. I had the shrimp cocktail, spinach dip and onion soup with smoked salmon pasta for my entrée. DD had yet another steak (she has broken this habit, thankfully, upon return to dry land). But DW and I tried some of the Indian cuisine and for such a mass production in the kitchen, it was excellent. We had the rice biryani but Shimrei was happy to find us another curry offering and we loved it. Dessert was the key lime pie: well, it was yellow (and not commercial green) but that’s about it.

 

We didn’t want to go to Love and Marriage (even though many previous OP’s had informed us how hysterical Eric and Tracy were working together (and we saw that the next day when we watched the video on our television: BTW, just noted that there is some discussion concerning Eric’s future on Voyager and with RCL; don’t know and don’t need to know details, but absent evidence that he has done anything significantly inappropriate for a CD, losing Eric would be a grave loss to the vitality and “enjoyment” factor for this ship. His personality is infectious [hopefully, though, not contagious] and always uplifting). The ladies turned in “early” (about 2145) and I wandered back to the Royal Promenade for yet another wait at a raffle. Which I lost. And that was a humongous error on my part because I got roped into the Pig and Whistle when I heard Derek Lewis singing Jimmy Buffett. I had to go see. And standing there in my Hawaiian shirt, looking like a total dork, probably sandbagged me because as soon as I walked in, I was “invited” to come up and sing. Which I did.

 

Wine and margaritas can combine to create a powerful release on one’s intelligence and internal governor. I let Derek set up the Beach Boys rendition of “California Girls” and now fully enmeshed in the hoots and carousing of a small, but utterly dedicated band of Adult Daycare refugees, I followed with my own – thankfully, brief, due to Derek’s intervention – of Buffett’s classic for a cruise (“The Weather is Here, Wish You Were Beautiful). Well, the song itself is great even if my rendition wasn’t. But I became yet another in a long list of “Superstars” at the Pig and Whistle, made a small gratuity (since I was clean broke in my wallet), and sat down to egg on others. Derek Lewis can single-handedly carve mania out of maturity in otherwise “normal” adults. If you miss his show, you have done yourself a major disservice. I never got back to pick up my CD or his extensive collection, ranging from what appears to be a mainstream CD through what he called his “naughty CD’s” (and, yes, I learned his rendition of “You Picked a Fine Time to Leave Me Lucille” – I’d wager even Kenny Rogers would have liked it) up to and including the one in the plain white wrapper. I have no idea what’s on that one; if we get back to Voyager and he’s still there, I will make the requisite “contribution” to Derek’s jar to get it.

 

By the time I stumbled from the Pig and Whistle, it was nearly 0100 Thursday morning. Yet I realized I’d not visited the Connoisseur Club, also on deck five next to Cleopatra’s Needle) so I wandered inside. Jose was more than willing to let me stay until 0130 and I purchased what I thought was an inexpensive and probably not very appealing cigar. I was dead wrong. It was a Rocky Patel, a brand I’d not recalled from my thinner and cigar days in the mid-90’s. But I met with a gentleman who advised me that it would prove to be excellent and he was correct. When we finished and left, it was nearly 0200. And there was a raging crowd STILL in the Promenade Café. Doing what, I have no idea, and they weren’t teenagers. I slogged on through the Promenade and up the stairs, noting that each deck was abuzz with cleaning and polishing and scrubbing. The work never stops on the ship.

 

End of Day Four

 

TO BE CONTINUED

[TLex]

DAY FIVE 12 MARCH COSTA MAYA

 

As would be expected, I didn’t wake up early on Thursday. Again, we didn’t book any excursions. I was singularly unsuccessful trying to convince even my MIL to go to Chacchoben Mayan ruins even though another DD and I had loved it in 2005. And from what I heard, it was still a very interesting and engaging tour. DW didn’t want to kayak or bike or otherwise visit Mahajual and that left one option: Costa Maya itself, a man-made artificial plaza of dozens of shops, some local artisans in tents or at least not concrete buildings, a large pool with a small “beach” (actually lounge chairs and some palm trees), and restaurants. Now, I must concede that after nearly two decades in Panama and Central America, I don’t mind artificial if it’s clean, safe, and convenient and Costa Maya meets all three criteria in my estimation. For those of you who prefer rugged, native, and natural, this is not your favorite port but the outlying tours of the ruins are fascinating from all I’ve seen and heard.

 

This day proved to be the rainy one in the afternoon. I slogged three miles on the jogging track, cleaned up and then Martin had set up a meeting for me with the Loyalty Ambassador and I booked a future cruise on Voyager, different itinerary. Went back to see Martin and have a bloody mary. There was a brief shower in the morning so we didn’t walk the upper decks. Everyone seemed to be off of the ship (although we saw a constant flow of passengers between Voyager and the older ship from Barbados) by mid-morning so we enjoyed the time to ourselves and then left DD in AO (by her own volition), got dressed, and went ashore. Immediately, we were in the throng heading to and from Costa Maya itself and we stopped so I could go to the top of the tower in the center of the plaza and take some photographs). We shopped in a number of stores, making better bargains and deals with the local artisans than, of course, in the shops where prices appeared to be more “fixed.” We bought dresses, some Talavera ladles, and a chess set for our DD. And then I went back to the ship to get DD and let her go swimming in the pool and upon my return learned that my DW had “discovered” another DI. To worsen matters, Sean and Adriana were there, and when I hailed them, were all too happy to come “assist.” I am still bleeding. But in the end, I was treated (or did I pay for it, too?) to three shots of Tres Mujeres tequila and that soothed the pain.

 

MIL had waited to watch our DD and when we returned, she and DW returned to the ship. I stayed with DD for awhile and as I saw the clouds begin to thicken, got her out, dried her off, and we also returned to the ship about 1500. We then went straight to the Johnny Rockets and it was nearly deserted. For us, that was great! I used our coupons, got the meal for free (and paid for the Heineken which wasn’t much more expensive than the amber cerveza I bought at Costa Maya) and we had a very pleasant experience. Again, I’d read very mixed reviews of Johnny Rockets and a gourmet dining experience it is not. However, if you don’t like crowds, go there on port days in the late afternoon, following the normal lunchtime, and having been swimming and walking and exerting to get back to the ship, the casual and, yes, greasy 50’s fare wasn’t all that bad. For me, the smokehouse burger was delicious and her chocolate dessert was outstanding (but not the best complement to Heineken!). And it filled up DD and was her dinner. We took her to AO instead of dinner because she wanted to go to the movie at the screening room. I got lost taking her down to deck two but we just made it in time.

 

I was tired and so skipped the showtime production, Music in Motion. MIL and DD loved it. DW slept. We cleaned up, waited for MIL and DD and went to dinner. Ironically, the menu had been “switched” somewhat for what I had downloaded from the threads and we had another Italian dinner. And, in some ways, it competed well in terms of food quality with Portofino. I had Antipasti, the creamy roasted garlic soup, garlic tiger shrimp, and more Indian curry. Before arriving, I had sworn that I was still far too full from eating at Johnny Rockets so late in the afternoon, but by the time I finished the appetizers, I was ready for the garlic shrimp and curry. But I did skip dessert (DW had tiramisu and liked it) and by Day Five, like DW and MIL, I was drinking tea instead of coffee for our after-dinner beverage.

 

By the end of Day Five, we were beginning to “wear out.” This occurs all nearly all of our cruises of more than five days length. Since we had missed the show and neither DW nor MIL wanted to go to the 70’s Disco Party much less “The Quest” (still an all-time favorite), we shopped for various items. I got some cufflinks in the fashion store for what seemed to be a very reasonable price. DW didn’t want the perfumes and by the time we finished browsing (and, of course, stopping by the P&W to hear Derek hold court), it was time for me to go topside and get our DD. The wind was really whistling after 2200 but I found her back in AO and we all went to bed a little before 2300. I didn’t even have the energy to slip back to the Connoisseur Club for a cigar and brandy.

 

End of Day Five

 

TO BE CONTINUED

 

DAY SIX MARCH 13 COZUMEL

 

By Day Six, I was no longer even pretending to try and get up early and go work out. MIL stayed the course but even though she’s got many years on DW and me, I think she’s younger and sprier than us both. I ordered a room service continental breakfast since DD and I were taking our excursion today to swim, interact, and ride with dolphins. We slouched through cleanup (by this time, BTW, we had a zoo of towel animals ranging from a tortoise to an alligator to a monkey and I had teased Johanna that she could probably do one of me) and DD and I left the ship at 1000 to be a bit early. We were WAY too early. However, we soon found our spot in the International Pier area, met a group of Illinois college students who were on their way to go “ATV’ing” and generally just enjoyed watching all the people come by.

 

As an aside, we were on the starboard and for this trip, that meant we were always facing the ocean and rarely got much of a view of the land unlike other trips. And…since we had re-routed to go to Cozumel on Friday, we had an abbreviated visit, meaning we had to be back on board the ship by 1530 since it was scheduled to sail at 1600 sharp. That was awfully quick for us. So it turned out that our excursion was…it. No shopping downtown in San Miguel, no Margaritaville visit (although I’d heard pros and cons about visiting this particular one), no real flavor of Cozumel as in the past. Snoozeman, I liked your style and routine MUCH more!

 

But we did get a couple of interesting moments. After we had docked, we saw two Carnival ships, the Conquest and another, come bearing down on us and they also docked at the International Pier. I noticed a woman with a small white dog coming off of the pier and presumed she must have been on the Carnival ships. I concede that this was the first time I’d seen a pet (other than seeing eye dogs). But, no, she was on Voyager and if anyone’s interested, there is a thread that discussed her “passenger.” My DW actually saw her in the photo gallery with the pooch in the formal shots. Interesting….

 

But back to our excursion. We had booked it through RCL in advance (and paid in advance, of course) which somewhat violated my own predilections to use local tours and pay for my own excursions. NO question that doing it yourself is far cheaper. But….where there is limited time and no guarantees, I prefer to pay the RCL price, exorbitant as it may be, to ensure that we don’t miss our ship. We heard, anecdotally, that someone may have been left behind in Cozumel on our cruise, but there was no hard evidence and our attendant said if that had occurred, it would have been the talk of the crew. And she had heard nothing. Nevertheless, I was glad to use the RCL tour but not so glad when I first learned that we weren’t going to Chankanaab Lagoon and park, but rather to something called “Dolphinaris” which was on the road to San Miguel. At this juncture, I wondered if I’d overpaid for a different experience. But we were pleasantly surprised. Dolphinaris is manmade and certainly, compared with Chankanaab, a more “artificial” experience. However, the location is very close to the International Pier (by the bus, it was less than five minutes to get there); the facilities are literally new; the locker area, showers, and overall appearance were clean and orderly, and the staff was very pleasant and knowledgeable. Locker rental is $3.00 and well worth it IMO to store all of our stuff. We also had to shower off all of the sunscreen. Since I was already well on my way to becoming a fully broiled lobster, this hurt! All you take down to the pools are your swimsuits (well, HOPEFULLY!), goggles, and water shoes or flipflops. You store those inside a wooden cubby that’s built into the gazebo by the pool. There are three or four pools, I think, and in our pool (BTW, I am using the term pool to specify the portion of the water area that is set off for our dolphin encounter; think of it more as a cold water salt pond lined with stone) there were two groups. In our group was a family of four and one other couple plus DD and myself. Our facilitator/leader was great: our dolphin was an older female named Athena and she was not simply well trained, but also very friendly. I asked how they got the dolphins and learned that some are rescued. In all, I believe that there were thirteen dolphins active that day; one had just given birth and was nursing. You get about 40 minutes of interaction on our tour. The instructor shows you how to stand on a ledge in front of the deep water, to prepare for being pulled by the dolphin, get the dolphin to “pose” or “smile” for you and then after all of the routine encounters, our group swims out into the deep water and the dolphin swims among us. All this time, a photographer/videographer is recording the interaction.

 

As soon as we finished our set, we returned the life vests (oh, yes, everyone must wear a vest during the encounter) to the wooden cubby and retrieved our stuff (glasses, towels, shoes) and we walked back to the main building where they usher you right into the photo area with about a dozen computers already processing the photos. I chose to purchase one set with the DVD and it was expensive (over $100) but since we had not been able to take our own cameras (they won’t allow underwater cameras either), and I don’t plan to do this again, I wanted to have the memories for DD. Unfortunately, we found the DVD when we returned but the CD of photos is misplaced. And we also, ---sigh--- bought T-shirts and a cap. All in all, not a cheap excursion.

 

Was it worth it? To anyone who may have read this far, I suppose that answer has to be for each individual’s tastes. In hindsight, I wouldn’t have paid $144 pp for the encounter. I also recognize that some might consider having an enclosed site for dolphins (although I must note that the facility is quite large and the pools are not “cramped” in terms of allowing the dolphins to swim through all of the pools in the facility) is not the best for a highly intelligent marine mammal. But one can also argue against enclosed zoos as well and without taking sides (for each has very valid points), I can state that to allow DD to encounter a dolphin, respect if for its intelligence and worth as an advanced animal, just like humans in many respects (gregarious, social, playful, and curious), may have been “worth” the price if it taught her to respect them and to understand them. And I think it did. I also wrestled, as noted above, with paying what, from my review of their website, appears to be a higher price than if I’d booked it myself on-line with them. Since the taxi back to the ship (the tour paid for the taxi and tip) was, again, a five minute drive, had I known for sure where we were going and how easy it was to get there, I probably would have booked it myself. Accordingly, I’ve tried to recount the experience as accurately as possible and leave it to everyone to make up their own minds on it. It is, however, certainly one of the most expensive excursions.

 

By the time we finished at Dolphinaris and returned through the International Pier area to the ship, it was nearly 1500 and since everyone was supposed to be on board by 1530, we didn’t go out again. We rested a bit in the cabin, cleaned up for the dinner and DW and MIL again left for the hairdresser. We watched Voyager turn and tracked our route past Cozumel until the tip of the island appeared and faded in the binoculars. Then I raced with DD down to the Conference Room on deck two for Shabbat services: we didn’t have many folks at all, but the ship had made challah or the special braided egg bread and it was delicious. Everyone was allowed to take a piece back to the stateroom. By 1745 we were dressed formally, again, and off to take more formal photos. DW and MIL declined to go to the show (Mosaic) so I acceded and I can’t report on how it went. But we took a slew of photos as DW demanded and by the time we’d finished, it was time for dinner.

 

The formal night was the typical second formal menu. Of course we all had the fisherman’s platter for the miniscule lobster tails (and they were a bit tough) but DD had one last steak, MIL ate the Thai BBQ chicken breast and DW had a fish dish. Our waiters had sung “O Solo Mio” for the Italian night and this night I recall that they didn’t sing, to the best of my recollection, but we had a superb dessert sampler and tea to close the dinner.

 

We decided to return to the room to start packing early. When I entered, I noted that someone had apparently walked into our cabin by mistake. But when the lights came up, I saw what “he” was: Johanna had crafted an entire person out of my cap, sunglasses, pillows, bathrobe, and towels and propped him at the table. Scared the heck out of DD at first! But it was the culmination of a week of creative and funny creatures from her. And after we had packed up the formal clothes and gotten about halfway through the rest, we all went to bed. So much for the party animals!

 

End of Day Six

 

TO BE CONTINUED

[TLex]

DAY SEVEN 14 MARCH AT SEA BACK TO GALVESTON

 

As always, the last day at sea is hectic, frantic, and full of everyone trying to cram as much as possible into the last day on the ship. And that was the relaxing part of it! We dined upstairs and ate in Portofino again, then we finished packing. DD went back to AO to play while MIL and DW finished last shopping (which, of course, didn’t really end until well after 2300!). DD and I took a bridge tour offered through our concierge at 1100 which was fascinating. Then DD and I hit the sports deck where she did in-line skating, climbed the rock wall again (and won a water bottle for reaching the bell), miniature golf and then down to the Ice Rink where she donned ice skates for the first time in her life and made a credible effort, actually skating instead of walking and falling. There we learned that two of the performers from Russia were leaving the ship with us on Sunday to return to Moscow. MIL caught one last movie during all this; DW kept on shopping and buying tons of photographs. We went back to the pool deck for a little while but, as can be expected on the last sea day, it was crammed full of folks. At 1600, all of us went on the Galley Tour which was hosted by the executive sous chef and we were able to see the food preparation areas and the bakery. Then, we returned to our cabin and by the time we had finished all of the packing and preparation and gone to as many venues as we could, it was time to dress for the last show and dinner. Eric, as always, was hysterically funny and we had earlier seen his departure video which may have been the most amusing I’ve ever seen. The show consisted of the comedy of Chas Elstner (good) and the bizarre comedy and juggling of Reid Belstock (very bizarre, but also good). And there was the farewell from all of the cast and performers as well as many of the executive staff, crew, and chefs. Having gone through the line, shaking hands and expressing our appreciation for an excellent cruise, we went back to the MDR for our final dinner. I had bay scallops and crab meat gratin, an excellent pasta, and more Indian dishes and curry. Stuffed to the gills, we took photos and handed out our gratuities (we chose to pre-pay but the line provides envelopes and vouchers to which we added), and I remember that the entire staff sang to us (I believe it was “Hey Look Me Over” but others may recall differently). I made sure that all of the luggage was out of the cabin by 2230 and then went down to the Island Frenzy Parade at 2245 which was a riot of color, singing and dancing by the performers on the catwalk over the Royal Promenade, mocko-jumbies and wild masked dancers. The promenade was packed but that didn’t prevent DW from hitting the stores just before they all had to close for good. We couldn’t fall asleep until nearly midnight and we weren’t happy about it.

 

End of Day Seven

 

TO BE CONTINUED

 

 

DAY EIGHT END OF THE LINE SUNDAY GALVESTON 15 MARCH

 

Voyager must have docked earlier than 0700 because I recall that we were at the pier when I awoke at 0630 and dressed. We had all cleaned up and finalized the evening before and were ready to leave the room by 0800. We had a sad but appreciative farewell with our attendant, Johanna, and I ran down to bid good-bye to Martin Sanchez and have a quick cup of coffee. After all the gratuities had been rendered and we had our bags, we went to the Seville Room to await our call to debark.

 

Which was a serious error on my part. The day before, I had asked Martin if we “had to debark” on the white “1” tickets and he said, no, since you are driving back and no rush, he swapped them out for Pink 2 tickets. So when the call went out about 0715 for the self-debarkation, I figured we’d be off of the ship by 0830. I figured very, very wrong.

 

White 1 may have left at 0745 or 0800 but Pink 2 didn’t debark until nearly 0930. Moreover, when we got to the Seville Room, they had stopped serving breakfast. We didn’t want to race back up to the Windjammer so we just sat at one of the tables hoping a waiter would come by with coffee. They didn’t. Finally, I saw Joao, our headwaiter, and he was able to find some of the last scrambled eggs for our DD. Apparently, the kitchen had shut down breakfast at around 0800-0830. So we let her have breakfast, we waited and waited and waited. Martin was dashing around, helping all of the concierge guests to debark but we didn’t see him from 0840 until close to 0930 when he finally let us go. We had no difficulty getting back up to deck four and debarking but when we got into the terminal, down the same escalator that we’d gone up just a week earlier and turned to where the luggage was placed, we were in for a shock. We hadn’t been in Galveston on a cruise since August 2007.

 

There are (or were) for our cruise two lines: one for those passengers who didn’t need a porter and one for those who did. There was also an impromptu “third line” for all of the crew because this week, everyone on board had to clear US immigration. So it was a zoo and packed to the seams. I was allowed to let my DD and family wait in line for the porter (and they were picking up passengers very slowly, one by one) and go search for our bags. It took awhile but I finally located them all and moved them into a stack. About fifteen minutes later, we got a porter and then went into the single line that literally snaked through almost the entire side of the warehouse. It took what seemed like twenty minutes or more just to get to the customs and immigration area. And then we waited forever behind one family until we got our turn. And then…MIL had forgotten part of her immigration forms and DHS personnel were very polite and professional and assisted her in preparing a new one, but no one on-board had mentioned this to me (unlike years past where non-US citizens had to clear immigration while on-board and get their paperwork approved before debarking) and I didn’t realize that she lacked the proper paperwork. By the time we provided our porter a generous tip (he had been with us for almost an hour) and got to the pickup point for our bus, it was well past 1100. We then returned to Moody Gardens Hotel, our car was waiting so we packed it up, and had lunch (DW finally got her shrimp fines herbes and I had a great lobster bisque, far better than what had been served on-board). We left Galveston around 1245, stopped only once (at Buccee’s, where else? And it was overflowing) and finally got home after one gas stop by 1700 CDT. IH-45 had been repaired and we “flew” up the interstate through Beltway 8 to IH-10 and home. Three weeks of unpacking, recovering, and working ensued before I could set one letter down in electrons. And obviously so much has transpired (q.v. Eric and C&A changes) since that short time.

 

WRAP UP AND LESSONS LEARNED

 

As I wrote in the beginning, I very much apologize for what turned out to be a stream of consciousness review and more of a “diary log” but I just didn’t have time to write less and edit more. Further, since this is the best memory I’ll have of the trip, I wanted to do it now and leave it my fellow Cruise Critics to parse it as they choose and offer comment, criticism, or additional information. I’ve certainly overlooked some things we did and I didn’t mention everyone by name or position. The little memory recorder I have worked wonders but it didn’t capture all.

 

If I bored or offended, let me apologize here. But, again, I keep reading everyone begging for reviews so I wanted to do what I could. In some ways, this was for me, to allow me to remember a wonderful cruise vacation long after my actual memories faded. But to the extent that I and my family were helped and aided by the reviews of those who went before us, I hope that this will help those who sail after us and even next season.

 

Lessons Learned: don’t bring too much clothing (gaah); for me, I brought sports coat I never wore (why? Why? Why do I do that?) and too many knit shirts. Don’t decline the opportunity to be the first off of the ship whether self-debarkation or assisted. Don’t expect breakfast on the last day except in Windjammer or early in MDR. And always sail with plenty of patience, good humor and common sense.

 

All in all, this was a top-notch experience I cannot recommend RCL and Voyager more highly. For us, we experienced the best in their touted “Gold Anchor Service” whether it was from the bars (and, again, a special thanks to Christian, Mauricio, Valentin, and all of the bar staff especially Rufino Moreno), the MDR waitstaff, the Windjammer and Portofino waitstaff and chefs, housekeeping, and all of the personnel under the Hotel Director. De Gustibus Non Disputandum – an old Latin phrase meaning “there’s no accounting for tastes” and I don’t intentionally or inadvertently intend to impose mine or ours on anyone else reading this. But if you like cruising and you like RCL cruising and you like cruising RCL from Galveston I believe I can safely advise that you are going to love cruising on Voyager of the Seas.

 

And with that, thank you for being here at the end (masochistic?) and if you have any questions, I’ll do my best to provide good answers. -30-

[Tyron]

What a great review. Thanks so much for sharing your experience with us. :D:cool:

[p2lockhart]

Thanks for the thorough review. We sail on 4/12 in a GS so I am most interested in hearing about all of the new suite perks.

 

Patti

[DanielleRB]

And with that, thank you for being here at the end (masochistic?) and if you have any questions, I’ll do my best to provide good answers. -30-

 

Bravo! I don't know how you remembered all the details, but it was well worth the read. You conveyed details I want to know about the experience, but always forget to ask!

 

Thanks - definitely worth the read!

[alexkrn46]

Nice review thanks for posting.

[missbogota]

Really enjoyed your review...I am now considering a trip on the Voyager!