rjrpar

Even though the sail-in to and sail-out from Venice is breathtaking, you can't help but also feel that having such huge ships coming into the canal is an environmental disaster.

 

That being said, I agree, book your cruise now!

An environmental disaster?? How do you come to that conclusion.

I think it's all about $$$

Book very early, watch for price drops, and get a good TA who will give you OBC or prepaid tips. We usually get about 9-10% of the cost of the cruise from our TA in some type of credit.

The ship is great! We love the Explorer. But the MDR food was just super awful on our last cruise in August. Food and taste is very subjective. And it has not been that bad on our prior Explorer cruises. Having said that, the Windjammer had excellent food.

Been on Explorer 4 times and the food is good, but not great. we find most cruise ship food to be very similar. I think some people expect to get higher end restaurant food, but remember, they are cooking for 40000 people and their food budgets are pretty low.

We had our first aft after about 15 cruises and did not like it at all. Long walks but what we disliked the most was the view. The view never changes, it's always the wake. When arriving or departing ports, the view is very limited

We had some problems with Spencer Ambrose. Very crowded beaches, no place to sit for lunch, and an argument trying to get on the boat back to our ship. Some people wanted their money back. Take this for whatever it's worth, I expect the Spencer Ambrose lovers to tell you that he is great. He may be some of the time, but not always.

I think you probably worded your question incorrectly. Try again

MIL and FIL want to cruise on Quantum, and I would like to get on the boat too. But I am not thrilled with the itineraries out of NJ. Too many days at sea! (It almost seems like RCCL wants you to spend more time at sea than onshore. But that can't be possible, can it?)

 

Part of me wants to wait for Anthem of the Seas, but I don't know where that will be based. Has that been announced yet?

 

I do like the NJ home port, as I could drive there (14 hours) and that would allow me to buy one of those 4-5 liter bottles of liquor for my bar. What a conversation piece!!

 

I could also drive to NO, and will probably do that someday.

 

I'm just looking for other thoughts on the Quantum itineraries. I was initially against private islands, but we had a great day on Labadee. And some of that was based on the feedback I got from other cruisers.

 

So, please, I want you to convince me!

I don't think the number of sea days is a corporate conspiracy to get your money, it is based on the distance the ship travels.

We are on the 12 day with 6 ports and think it's great.

Never have understood the fascination people have with captains, cruise directors, or most other crew.

It would be great to have an Oasis Class ship out of Bayonne. I think they are too big tho to fit under the Verazano-Narrows Bridge....

We just got the newest RCI ship, let's enjoy her before we start wishing for something else. Some people are never happy.

I agree that the MDR is like an average hotel serving a banquet style meal. The MDR is not as good as a mid-priced steakhouse, Just take a look at the shrimp cocktail, salads, soups, or the tasteless desserts and ask if you would be satisfied if served the same quantity or quality in any mid-priced restaurant. I would not.

I also don't think any steakhouse on any mass market cruise is comparable to a Morton's or a Smith&Wollenskys.

We love to cruise and enjoy all our meals in a great environment, but we realize we are getting mass produced food

For us it's an easy decision, The Legend

Spencer Ambrose obviously provides some good tours; lots of good reviews. However, he must not be consistent because we and many other folks had a very negative experience on his land and Sea tour. I think Spencer overbooks and cannot always provide a good product. My point is that there is risk with booking with Spencer.

We did this beach with Spencer Ambrose. Unfortunately, we arrived at lunch time and the beach was overcrowded. Turned out to be a bad experience for many of us - due to the size of the beach, lack of chairs, and Spencer's attitude. Personally, we will avoid St. Lucia on future cruises.

Up to 400 people out of 3, 4, 5000 isn't a lot.

 

I don't really get the obsession people have with what other people do or what the crew makes. If the cruise line really wanted to stop it they could simply make it a non removable service charge but clearly they want to leave it up to the discretion of each guest. And per your own post, they said more people pay now than before. Unless it becomes mandatory there will always be people that remove tips. That is the risk you take when accepting a tipped position. No different that a server at your local restaurant. Every table does not tip. It's just the way it works. It's not my business how other people chose to spend their money.

Agree 100%. Some people have too much idle time

We took a taxi there for $20@. That included the $6 entrance fee into the National Park and rt from the ship (which was only about a 15-20 minute ride away). There are no restaurants in the park, but we did see a couple bars just outside the park. The beach there is beautiful and pretty protected. Snorkeling was very good, too. Since we took the taxi there instead of a ship tour, we had the beach to ourselves for an hour or 2 before the tours arrived. I wouldn't hesitate to do this again!

Trying to understand how far Pigeon Island is from the cruise port and how much a taxi would cost. Seems like I've seen a couple of different answers.

Thanks in advance for any info

Loved, loved, loved our cove on the Breeze! Would book another one in a heartbeat. My favorite catagory so far. It was great being so close to the water. Just do your research on location to avoid noise issues from above.

Totally agree, we had a good one on the Magic

We used Spencer last week and it was WONDERFUL!! My entire group had a fantastic time. We did the Jalouise Beach Break. I have also used him in the past for the Land and Sea Tour, as well as sent clients on his tours many times -- all were exceptional and I had happy clients. He was very quick to answer emails and questions and it was very organized and our favorite excursion for the week.

 

I would use him again in a heartbeat. Please do not be worried. He's a wonderful person and you will really enjoy your day.

Don't know how you can say this, we were there last week and didn't enjoy our day at all.

The beach is beautiful, but the section for non-resort guests is small, rocky, and not a good experience. We just were there on 2/28/13 with Spencer Tours and had a terrible time - overcrowded, cold food, no ice, and arguments on the dock as we left between Spencer and some guests. Find something else to do in St. Lucia.

Just did Spencer's tour last Thursday - stay away. It was overcrowded, not enough beach chairs, cold food, and poorly organized. He did mention that he had 160 people take his tours that day, most ever, and there were issues

We have been on 14 cruises and have always tipped the standard+. I believe tips do motivate service personnel to provide better service so I'm against the new plan. I know some people claim prepaying doesn't affect service but when it's across the board, it very well might.

We did the tour last Feb and loved it. Based on our experience, I would recommend including the lunch in the package. We got good service, excellent food, and a few extra drinks were thrown in.

Good looking new menu. Is there a schedule for implementation by ship?

Just returned from the Explorer of the Seas. Spent a day in Antigua doing the segway tour. Had a great time, the package deal with lunch, taxi, and the segway tour is easy, safe, and was the highlight of our trip. Good food and real nice people.

Used RIL for Rome and Naples on our 9/25/11 12-day Carnival "Magic" cruise. All I can say is they did a great job; on-time, knowledgeable, very friendly, flexible. Their minivans navigate the busy cities much better than tour busses and are much cheaper. They also recommended very good restaurants in both cities.

Some advice: go with the private guide in the Vatican and Pompeii.

Bob