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One afternoon on our most recent cruise, I was sitting outside when I noticed a 30something woman stumble and sit down on a lounger. The two men and woman that were with her stood around talking to each other. About 20 minutes later she threw up and "her" guy covered her up with a towel, then they helped her away 10 minutes later. I finally let one of the employees know what happened. It looked like someone had just spilled some food on the chair and ground, so it probably would have just been wiped away instead of thoroughly cleaned. Ick!

Original poster here, it ended up taking about two and a half hours for the entire departure process. This was our sixth cruise out of Galveston, so we're used to the chaos, this was just worse than we had ever experienced. Eventually we were told it was due to the new alcohol tax law and two of the passport booths being closed for a while. We survived and I would happily do it again next year! :)

ETA The first group departure time was 9:15 and the last was 10:00, that's a lot of people trying to disembark practically at the same time.

The port in Galveston is terrible today. My worst experience here ever. After almost two hours there is still no end in sight.

UPDATE. We did not go to Dallas because I looked at the government requirements, which did not say the id had to be laminated. We got him a TX id card, which is temporary (paper) but still has a photo and is signed by a government rep. (Employee). We are all on, no problems at all.

My family just voted for you ( ;) ) and it was unanimous for the first itinerary. Roatan is AMAZING, Belize is very pretty (although the city is quite poor and not much to see), and Cozumel is fun. Hands down, the first one.

Thank you for all the suggestions. Texas doesn't give you an ID card immediately, it takes a week or two. Tomorrow my son and I are driving to Dallas, where we have an appointment at a regional passport agency. Hopefully my son will be able to get his passport in 24-48 hours.

A rep for Royal Caribbean told me we are supposed to have a valid government issued ID for our son, but that we should go to the pier and explain the situation and maybe he will be allowed on the ship. Prayer and positive thoughts that it works, please!

We are going on a closed loop cruise very soon and my son, age 16, has an expired passport and a birth certificate. He doesn't have a driver's license or student or government identification card. Will he be allowed to board?

And a very merry Christmas to you!

Thanks for the info, we sail in a week.

My family almost always orders breakfast from room service. Between my husband, son, and I, we get scrambled eggs, cut fruit, bacon, hash browns, pastries, toast, yogurt, granola, milk, orange juice, and coffee. You can order several servings of anything.

I love, love, love to lie on the bed with the balcony door open and read on my Kindle, then ease into a nap.

The suitcase with most of my clothes (and my 14 year old son's). We realized it when we were unloading the car in the EZ Park lot. We had to speed over to Walmart and do a quick shop.

Ship - Mariner of the Seas

Deck - 7

Stateroom # - 7550

Stateroom Category – E2

Starboard or Port Side - Starboard

Quiet Stateroom? (With comments on problems) – Pretty quiet, occasionally you can hear people (usually teens) walking in the hallway, but nothing from next door or upstairs.

Was stateroom a connecting stateroom? - No

Balcony View - Give comments on view, noting if location of any obstructions was an issue. – Great view, no obstructions

Balcony Size? Normal or oversized for class? - Normal

Was wind a problem? - Wind is usually not a problem.

If an aft cabin, was soot a problem? - No

Any specific problems with this cabin? - Nope

Any other comments? - Great location--near the elevators, very close to the Cafe Promenade, love the flat screen television.

I use a lanyard, too.