Stealthdog

We couldn't hear it. There was an iron gate that blocks access to the area, with a security officer inside the gate to make sure guests did not access

Day 4 Daily We did not make the comedian on Day 3 (Don Gray) - we finished up at Chops for dinner after his early show started and we lost track of time at the casino and missed the late show. It looks like that was the only time he was performing, so a bit of a bummer. Last night (Day 4) we were at the Chef's Table for dinner. I will post pictures and thoughts about that later. Today is Aruba day - off to go snorkeling! A few things I want to post about in the next few days are the Casino, the Solarium, the Seaplex, and Two70.

Day 3 - Labadee Labadee is a great stop! The area is easily walkable, and the beaches are clean with tons of umbrellas and chairs. I don't know if its normal, but the water was really murky and not clear like other locations in the Caribbean. I'll post of a picture of the map later (have to transfer it from my phone to laptop). There are 5 different beach areas, the huge zipline is a blast to watch, and there are plenty of places to eat/drink. The food at Labadee is basic compared to CocoCay, and there aren't as many sporting activities, but we could spend a whole day there just laying on the beach. The Dragon's Breath Lookout Point was closed because of tides and waves, but the security lady was kind enough to allow us to take a few pictures. In typical fashion, you will be greeted at the end of the pier with music and local dancers. We did walk through the market on the way back to the ship, and yes the vendors are pushy and a little aggressive, but not as bad as other port stops.

I need a little help with this one - I found this yellow duck on the top of a painting frame hidden behind by an emergency exit sign. I've seen reference to these, but never really read those threads. What do I do with this? I don't use facebook, so won't post it on the "cruising duck" page. Do I just re-hide it somewhere else?

Some pics of the North Star. As mentioned earlier, its free for the Basic Experience on port days, with 30 minute bookings. Bookings can be made on the Royal Caribbean app. On sea days, they have an extended version that can be reserved for a fee. Then entrance is the side of the Lime and Coconut. The globe takes you up around 300 feet above the ship and does some rotating to give you great views - the views of Labadee were awesome. With a max capacity of 14 passengers, there is plenty of room to look around 360 and get some great pictures. It does get hot - it doesn't seem the fan or AC that they use is very effective.

Day 3 Daily Note - didn't mention it before, but on the Odyssey just ask your stateroom attendant for the paper copies and he/she will deliver it to your room the night prior. No need to go to guest services.

Day 2 dining - Brunch MDR; Lunch Chops; Dinner Giovanni We went to the MDR for brunch of Day 2. Its nice to be able to sit down and get a meal, but it just took too long for service and the food wasn't any better than what we got in the cafes on Day 3 and the Solarium on Day 4. If you like to just sit and enjoy a meal, you may like the MDR. The MDR is beautiful - is spans 2 decks and has an open ceiling concept makes it seem alot bigger (a pic of the MDR below from the 5th deck). Chops (Menu below). Chops is probably going to be our favorite restaurant on the ship. Wonderland and Chops are the only two specialty restaurants that have a "classy" feel to them. The other restaurants have a much more laid back, and casual feel. If you like casual, then you will probably prefer Giovanni's. Can't comment on Central Kitchen because we haven't seen it. The Chops lunch menu is more limited to its dinner menu. I'll post the dinner menu when we go back in a few days. The mushroom soup and the filet were the highlights during lunch for us. Giovanni's dinner menu is exactly the same as its lunch menu, with the exception of veal and filet being available at dinner. We are trying the non-veal/filet options for lunches and got the veal and filet for dinner. Both were really good. The deserts at Giovanni's are also fantastic. One critique in general to the ship is all the specialty dining on Deck 5 have window seating and all you can see out the windows are the ugly white and yellow life boats. For me, that is really bad planning in the ship design. You really want people to have an experience and enjoy the atmosphere and ambiance of the restaurant, especially when they are paying extra. Seeing a big yellow boat while you eat your filet mignon is a big planning error IMHO.

Day 2 Entertainment - Went to see the Effectors in the Theater. The kids will love it. It was cute and fun. If you are looking for something a little more mature, you may not enjoy it. The concept, performers, and music choices are good, the projection of the story seems to be lacking. I think it would have been better if each hero was limited to 1 song/set piece, and the rest of the show was typical group production telling the story. As it is now, it felt like 4 mini shows, and writers realized they had to hastily finish telling the story in the last 5 minutes. The special effects were great, with interesting lighting, holograms, and the use of the drones. I would go back a second time, but with some work Royal Caribbean can make it a much better and polished show. Recommendation - sit in the theater's 2nd floor balcony seating. If you sit in the first floor, you will miss some of the special effects and lighting.

Reposting the Entertainment Schedule with the description that was on the back of the flier.

I should have asked the Roll Call for someone to bring one. I checked 4-5 different dollar stores and couldn't find one. 😞

We went to Chops for lunch on Day 2 and Giovannis for dinner, and saw the show The Effectors. I'll post the reviews for those later because we need to get moving to our First Lunch now.

Day 2 - Veteran recognition After the Top Tier event, Royal Caribbean held a Veteran Tribute in Two70. Royal Caribbean also does a fantastic job with the vet tributes. There were about 50 vets (active duty and vet military and first responders) in attendance. A Ukrainian member of the band played taps. Funny story - my partner was wearing his US Public Health Service Commissioned Corps shirt (he is active duty) at the event and the Cruise Director (Anna) stopped us as we were leaving. She said he is the first one she has seen at these Veteran events and was glad he came. She normally only sees them when they are doing health inspections of the cruise ships. We were getting some awkward glances by several cruise staff throughout the day and was wondering what was going on. I told my partner he needed to take my notebook into the buffet, have a scowl on his face, and pretend he was jotting notes down as he walked through the buffet stations. He declined because he didn't want to terrorize the staff! 😉

Day 2 - Top Tier Event Staff at the Top Tier Event told us that there were about 4250 passengers on board, ~300 of them children. We heard that the previous cruise had about 1,000 children on board. 😮 One of the singers from The Book was the highlight entertainment at the Top Tier Event in Two70 (I'll post more about Two70 later). She was fantastic and great advertisement for The Book. We have reservations on Day 5. The band was also great. Love these Top Tier events - Royal Caribbean does a better job with these than other cruise lines....and who would turn down the free champagne and mimosas! Cruise Critic's own @Bette And Bill were honored at the Top Tier Event for being such awesome Royal Caribbean cruisers!!!!

Still having issues posting with the phone so a bit behind. Will try to get Days 2-3 done today - need to move photos from phone to laptop. Today is Day 4 and we are at sea. Arrive in Aruba tomorrow.

Day 2 Daily

I checked with Guest Services yesterday and they said they no longer do the photo & bio pages for the officers (at least on the Odyssey). I thought I saw them a few months ago and mentioned that to her, but she was adamant they don't have them on the Odyssey. I'll keep digging around, but I don't think I will be able to find them for you.

Thats terrible. I guess I have proof if things go missing because of my pictures. I bought everything at the dollar store, so for me its not sentimental. But, I feel for your daughter especially if the stolen items were important to her. 😞

Some Holiday decorations on the ship, on Deck 5. Deck 5 is the area where you embark onto the ship.

Dining Night 1 - Wonderland Compared to our experience with the Wonderland on the Symphony, the Odyssey Wonderland was fantastic. The room is one level, much smaller and more intimate. The decorations and decor are all well done, and it seems like they planned space rather than just throw things together. There is no Mad Hatter cast member walking around the restaurant (which we found a little annoying on the Symphony). Our server told us the smaller ships don't do the Mad Hatter. We even thought the food on the Odyssey's Wonderland was better. We definitely recommend Wonderland the on the Odyssey for the experience and ambiance. The food may not be to everyone's liking because it is really eclectic. If you do go to Wonderland on Odyssey, ask to be served in Shey's section - she was outstanding. Some pics of the food.

One show at 9pm but he does another performance on Day 4.

Lunch at Giovannis on embarkation day. It was empty - if you have the UDP, just walk in and enjoy. Good options and the food was quick. Caprese salad with truffles was really good, the meat/cheese board was standard. The pizzas looked really good - will have to go back and try then.

Want to show off our door decorations for this cruise. 2nd leg will be different. Hope guests and staff that walk by get enjoyment from it.

It was a pleasure meeting you and Bill yesterday too! We are going to brunch in the MDR soon. We will see you at the Top Tier Party and hopefully cheer you on if they announce you and Bill!!!

The ship itself is beautiful. The decorations and interior designs of the lounges and other spaces are very well done. The layout of the ship feels a little odd....but this may just be comparing it to an Oasis Class ship where the neighborhood concepts really divide and define the ship. There are stairs and elevators in the middle and forward of the ship, but nothing in the aft of the ship. So, if you are in the aft, you have to travel to the middle of the ship to go up or down. For this reason, if you have any physical handicaps or mobility issues, I highly recommend not getting a stateroom in the aft of the ship. Throughout the week, I'll post some pictures of the various areas of the ships to show what they look like.

We went to the Day 1 Headliner show, Finis Henderson. For us, it was a little bit of a disappointment and we decided to go to the Casino about halfway through his act. I'd describe his act as music comedy, and it just didn't work for us. We have seen better comedians on recent cruises and better singers on recent cruises, so the combination of the two was underwhelming. There were a lot of people in the theater that really seemed to enjoy it, so check it out for yourself.