LobsterStalker

9 hours ago, RogerDodger247 said:

 

If I remember they had some light breakfast items in the morning (juice, danish, etc) but other than the amazing lunch, I don't remember any other food options.  There is a bar of course (and drink service at your chair) so no problem with drinks.

 

I was completely stuffed after the lunch and didn't have the need to eat again until back on the ship.  But if you are still hungry, you can always wander down to South Beach and hit the Snack Shack.  The full Coco Cay is available to you if you wish to leave the Beach Club and come back (they were doing wrist bands when I was there for re-entry... not sure if they've switched to scanning your seapass like at Hideaway).

Roger that !

Thx

11 hours ago, Gerbilicous said:

My issue with Haiti stop right now is most governments, at least mine has a do not travel advisory which means my travel medical insurance would no longer cover me there. I don't plan to break a leg or anything sitting on the beach, but it they are accidents for reasons.

Heart says it's all good and go enjoy yourself. Brain says stay on ship (not to go into debt if something happen, at least so far am not worried about safety so far on Labadee)

Staying on the ship , I believe you still travelled to Haiti .

??

Cheers

10 hours ago, RogerDodger247 said:

I've done both and personally prefer the Beach Club (but my wallet prefers Hideaway).  I would jump on $125 with the way prices have been lately.

 

Beach Club is a quiet relaxing day at the beach (or pool) in a smaller, exclusive area.  The lunch is a sit down meal with really elevated food options.  I did the "surf and turf" which was really good and would love to try some of the other options if I go back (the grilled grouper or lobster sandwich perhaps).

 

Hideaway is a huge area and is a non-stop party at the pool.  Yes, you can find quieter areas further down the beach but there is no escaping the music from the DJ, the sound carries.  I thought it was fun but at my age, after 5 hours of non-stop beats I had to leave (yes even at 9am there were beats but they were a little more "chill").  There are different food options at Hideaway but it's typical grab-and-go stuff.  I didn't find the pizza to be that amazing but thought the shrimp basket was pretty good.

 

It really depends on what you are looking for.  I attached a Beach Club lunch menu from August 2023.

 

Curious as to how the beach club menu works ?

Is it a typical restaurant sit down meal , (starter/entree/dessert) , or more like the MDR on the ship (feel free to order multiples) ?

Also , are there any other "grab'n'go" options ?

Edit: Never mind part A ,i see it was answered . But any other options for food ?

Thx

13 minutes ago, Nolefan95 said:

This isn’t misinformation. The 36 minutes isn’t even the nearest point of the closest big city Cap Haitien. 

My apologies 

I picked the wrong post to quote. I assumed you were talking about Port Au Prince.

1 hour ago, d9704011 said:

Care to elaborate?

I believe I clearly quoted a couple of clear examples , but suffice it to say that if you have read through the entirity of this thread and the recent others on this subject and you haven't seen  misinformation , ?

Hmmm...... Seems you might just be lookin for a pot to stir

Cheers

On 3/4/2024 at 12:29 PM, leaveitallbehind said:

I think @firefly333 touched on the concern in terms of holding up service.  But I am going to take it another direction as you indicate that you will be at a table for two.  The scheduled times are not just for the convenience of the passengers, they are also to keep a pace for the servers and preparers as there are other scheduled times to follow yours. 

 

If you are consistently late you will be compressing the timing of the servers who will already, as example, be serving appetizers to the rest of the room when you are just arriving.  This, IMO, could be inconsiderate to the servers who now will have to alter the intended pace to accommodate you.

 

If you don't want to consistently arrive until 5:15 or 5:30, my suggestion would be to consider scheduling My Time Dining, so that you can arrive at your convenience.  You also can just arrive at MTD without reservations and wait until a table opens.

So ... Let's say your servers have 8-10 tables..? Your assertion is that the food for all 10 tables will arrive and be served simultaneously for the convenience of the server . I respectfully disagree , and assert that if the servers tables randomly seated themselves at slightly different times  , (In a reasonable 15-20 minute time span) , that the servers would have a much easier time serving in a timely manner .

Cheers... And Bon Appetit

1 hour ago, jcc1025 said:

Labadee is on the oposite side of the island from Port-au-Prince were all the problems are and you can only get there by boat. They have huad this issue down there several times over the year and it has never effected Laberdee because of its location and there is so significat benifit for the rebels who are trying to take over the goverment and if they do will need every tourist dollar they can get. I would not go down to the south, but have been to Labadee during previous uprising like this and Royal monitors the situation and we never felt threatened. So I would tell my college age kids not to worry but by the way don't go to walking around in Jamaica.

Wow

1 hour ago, Nolefan95 said:

This is a false rumor that has spread over the years. Labadee is a 35 minute drive from the large city of Cap-Haitien. It is not some isolated place like many say it is. 

Wow

As should be clear for me this is not about taking sides on the argument  , but the misinformation and misguided opinions on both sides somewhat blow my mind !

Cheers... and safe travels

5 hours ago, ATC cruiser said:

Not sure how staying on the ship will protect you in the just about zero percent chance that an armed gang breaks thru security around labadee. They’re not breaking down the fence to stop at the buffet. 

..... Exactly

Amazing how this gets so oversimplified Soooooo many times on here !

Cheers

1 hour ago, NJ&Ozzie said:

 

Guess we're more concerned about what if we are stuck on the ship or in a foreign country.  

Cheers

Cheers

5 hours ago, bobmacliberty said:

I'm always looking forward to your reviews.  Should be great as always.

 

Warning if you're flying Delta first class (which I think you often do)...don't count too much on the  lunch.  Lunch on our last 2 Delta FC flights were cold box lunches.  The first flight we were in row 3 of 5 FC rows and they were already out of turkey sandwiches.  Second flight we were in row 5 of 5.  Turkey sandwiches were again gone and I got the last chicken meal.  Micheline got stuck with the cheese plate (I offered her my chicken 😉).  They no longer have extras to ensure that you get what you want.  I complained to both flight attendants and both commented about cutbacks hitting in several places.  Delta First class ain't what it used to be.

If that's First Class service , imagine what "steerage"must be like >>?!

Cheers

24 minutes ago, kuku77254 said:

Trying to decide if I should buy a photo package pre cruise. I usually like to get a few of the professional photos so I wouldn't buy more than the 10 digital package. Does anyone know how much that package is once onboard? Or how much a single digital is onboard? Current package is 20% off. This is for Oasis if ship makes a difference. thanks

My experience is your best pricing on almost everything is PreCruise

1 hour ago, dunrobbin said:

Hubby and I are going Fulltime in an Motorhome in a few months, when we retire.

We are leaving from Canada and plan to see as much of North America as we can in the next few years.

Love cruising, even with the issues abound with food and service.

We hope to pickup last minute cruises as we travel around the coastline. (If we can afford it!!)

Does anyone have a magic formula for finding these very last minute cruise gems?

I do check out the 90 Day Ticker from Vacations to go.

Has anyone dealt with Royal on the phone looking for last minute?

Any advice you can share would be appreciated!

Thanks Robby

 

 

Not what you were hoping to hear on the last minute deals side but hey Congrats on the retirement and the plan... Sounds awesome

Cheers

9 hours ago, link99 said:

Just add this to your thoughts. Your at the Pool with your kids. They happen to need something from the room. You send them without another thought about it.  No parent should have to worry about a person hiding in there room much less a cruise line employee. its just sad.

 

Yes its just another thing to worry about. If it happens once it can happen again.I am serious about checking under the bed and sink each time we enter the cabin.We will be boarding in two weeks. 

Many from some other threads who just automatically think that kids ( young kids ) are SOOOO safe on a ship and that nothing could ever happen to them , therefore they should have total "Big Kid" freedom , need to read stories like this and take note . 

Enuf said 

Cheers

Many from some other threads who just automatically think that kids ( young kids ) are SOOOO safe on a ship and that nothing could ever happen to them , therefore they should have total "Big Kid" freedom , need to read stories like this and take note . 

Enuf said 

Cheers

17 hours ago, Aaron3 said:

We’re doing Freedom 4 night straight into Explorer 9 night in april

Based on previous threads, we aren’t expecting a royal transfer between ships (but will ask and if we get something it’s a bonus)

 

is there a way to know which terminals each ship will be in to determine if it’s walkable ? 
or would taxi/uber/Lyft be the only option? 
will they be happy with such a short trip (I’m assuming ok as they’ll get another trip from that terminal)

They will provide a shuttle for you . 

They will also promise a seemless transition and early access to board Explorer immediately when you get there etc. Don't buy any of the B.S. though  , as when we did the same it seemed everyone we approached for help and instruction just passed us down the line . 

Starting with customer service pre cruise telling us GS would look after it once on board . Then GS telling us terminal agents will guide us . Then terminal agents telling us roadside agent will line us up . ...Handed off through 5 different agents roadside , before someone finally got us to the right place ( where shuttle had already left). But they did return and get us there eventually , where the new ship agents treated us like any other new passenger !

EASY ? NO

SIMPLE? NO

ACCOMMODATING? NO... but we got there 

Cheers

2 minutes ago, not-enough-cruising said:

11 minutes ago, LobsterStalker said:

Exactly

There is also a government and Police force in the city . How are they making out ?

I do not think there is a huge likelihood of problems in Labadee , but that said ,I find it humorous how many think that a few guards and some walls would be any match for the gangs, (And now add 3500 more) , that have been terrorizing the city for years .

 

 

Terrorizing the city for years and have yet to make it to Labadee. I don’t think there’s much chance that’s going to change

I stated the same. My point is not about the likelihood , rather that so many seem to think because (it's so heavily fortified) , that it would be an impossibility. 

Glad so many are happy with their heads in the sand

Cheers

12 hours ago, mashisback said:

I get that, and im not overly worried personally, 

however.... it sounds like it has become lawless over their and with 1000's of prisoners escaping and gangs running the show, surely it would be ignorant to think things could not effect somewhere in the same country just because there are walls and guards.

 

Dont get me wrong I am far from knowledgable in this... but after seeing some of the most advanced places breaking into wars etc, my perception of safe and stable areas has changed.

Exactly

There is also a government and Police force in the city . How are they making out ?

I do not think there is a huge likelihood of problems in Labadee , but that said ,I find it humorous how many think that a few guards and some walls would be any match for the gangs, (And now add 3500 more) , that have been terrorizing the city for years .

13 hours ago, BND said:

I don't think some understand exactly where Labadee is in relation to the really populated areas and how far it i from Port Au Prince.   It's 130 miles.

ya , and with 3500 prisoners on the run , Noone would ever stray 130 miles ?

Cheers

11 hours ago, cusematt4 said:

Thanks!  How was the entertainment and live music?  Hope you had a great cruise.

Entertainment was as expected . Saturday Night Fever was good , Only watched the family friendly version of the comedian , which was OK. He did have a gentleman in front of me LITERALLY sweating bullets , which I had never witnessed before . It was like watching something from a cartoon , so that was something . The Juggler was amaziing , but I could have done without the LOOONG video he played down memory lane

CHeers , hope you have a great cruise

1 hour ago, alfaeric said:

It depends on how much it matters where you sit. If it doesn’t, just before showtime is fine. If it does, doors open 40-45 min before the show.

We were showing up 10-15 minutes before showtime and sitting 4th row isle . 

There were however more kids on this sailing than i have ever seen  , so maybe more families were not attending...??

3 hours ago, jean87510 said:

I agree with the review.  

 

We did a 3 day on the Indy out of Port Canaveral, attended a work conference in Savannah then a 4 day out of Jacksonville on the Elation.  Crowds were the same although the Elation crowd was better behaved.  Food overall much better on Carnival.  Service for our room better on Indy (room attendant on Elation never once cleaned our room or gave us new towels.  We had to call housekeeping).  Entertainment was better on Elation to the point we actually for the 1st time in 30 plus cruises, sat and watched the pool area activities on the 1 sea day.  People were much friendlier and fun on Carnival.  I found some Royal people always seemed mad about something and always look miserable.  

What Did he do ?

Guard the door

Doorman?

39 minutes ago, cusematt4 said:

Would 20 min early suffice for an ice shoe and Saturday night fever?  Or even earlier for good seats?

just reyurned from B2B ... surprised how empty venues were 15 mins pre show .

Cheers

6 hours ago, Engineroom Snipe said:

@LobsterStalker,

 

So,  I always follow the golden rule, be worth more alive than dead.

 

This reduces the temptation to scrap the barnacle encrusted hull until every penny of profit can be "squeezed" out of it (pun intended).

 

🤣

I made the mistake a few years back of telling my family how much I am worth Dead !

Now I tell them it's all gonna be left to the dog ... but I still sleep with 1 eye open

On 2/20/2024 at 11:14 PM, Engineroom Snipe said:

Thank goodness my wife has your kind eyes.

 

I need some attention and a make-over but she has not decided to put me in dry-dock yet!

 

😁

It's not drydock you should be worried about , It's the scrapyard to turn you in for the newer model !

Cheers

13 minutes ago, pyrateslife4me84 said:

I wouldn’t be disappointed if, at booking, I could pick 5 pm, 6:45, or 8:30. I’d pick what I want and be happy when that actually happens. 

I think you completely missed the context you replied to . 

If you booked 6:45 because that time works for you , to get on board to find out it had been changed to 6:00 or 6:15 you may feel otherwise.

Cheers