beachsands

We have used them several times. Loved the experience. We stayed at the Hampton Inn at Titusville. They use a larger Greyhound type bus and they pick up at several hotels in the Titusville area. The only thing that was a bit of an irritation was when we returned to port a week later and disembarked, the bus to Titusville didn't leave until 9:00ish. Other then that for the money its a sweet deal.

The information presented is a bit confusing!! Was the large bus a hotel shuttle or from the travel company goportcanaveral??

 

My other question is why this Days Inn so far from the Port along I-95 versus one of the many hotels in Cape Canaveral or Cocoa Beach?

Its a large bus from goportcanaveral. (Greyhound type)

I guess these hotels were solicited by goportcanaveral to be in their program. goportcanaveral has hotels for the cruise in Orlando as well. Days Inn is only about 20 mins from the port whereas Orlando hotels are closer to an hour.

~~Joel~~

Well hoping it is all good as I went ahead and booked for February ....the price is reasonable for sure. Was everything ok at Days Inn? Transfers to and from the ship go ok? Car safe for the week?

The shuttle is a large bus that will pick you up around the 11:00-12:30 time frame. They also picked up others at a couple of other hotels as well. Car was fine all three times we left it there. The only thing I didnt care for was the last time this past October when they picked us up to transport us back to the hotel we had to wait until 9:00 ish...but the savings was with it me. Also a walmart nearby...Cracker barrel and many other places very close to the hotel.

Joel

Yes we have. What would you like to know ?

I have also done Park N Cruise across the highway at the Hampton Inn twice

~~Joel~~

I have stayed there twice in the last year and found it to very suitable. There is a Walgreens across the parking lot. I believe that a walmart has opened across the street in the little Plaza area. It's easy to get to the cruiseport from there.

~~Joel~~

This is very true but if not then it will cost her the price of a passport.

Yes she only has a couple of years left on the passport, so I suspect she will opt for bringing their marriage license.

Thanks for all the great posts. Expeditiously as well !

~~Joel~~

Hi Everyone !

We are taking our first cruise on the Carnival Magic in April. One of the ladies that is coming with us got married since she had gotten her passport. So the name on it differs from the one on her drivers license and cruise documents. Is this going to cause any problems getting on the ship and/or going through customs?

~~Joel~~

We have stayed here several times without any issues. Its not fancy but I just want it clean and able to shower, bathe etc.

Breakfast is OK. Again nothing fancy.

My wife and her mother just stayed here in Nov. and it was good. Free parking, and free shuttle to the port and back.

Again OK but not fancy.

~~Joel~~

How much is a taxi or uber from Hampton Inn to the cruise port? I know the hotel offers a shuttle to the port but we have to get back via taxi or uber.

 

Thanks

I took a taxi 3 years ago from the port back to the Plantation Hampton. They charged me $40.00

~~Joel~~

I have debated as to whether or not I would share my overall feelings about the food onboard, however I have decided I will, with the caveat that food, and one's opinion of it, is very subjective.

 

This is, without a doubt, the most disappointing MDR food experience I have had in all of my cruises. I'm not sure what the reason is? True that many favorite items have indeed been removed from the menu and replaced with cheaper versions i.e. Prime rib gone, strip loin replaces it. The filet of beef is also gone, and was replaced with a cheaper cut of meat that I didn't like at all.... The appetizers were not all that appetizing [emoji52] The escargot was served room temperature and the butter was tasteless, shrimp cocktail is no longer available every night, and the countless other apps we tried were definitely not what we have become accustomed to. I strongly believe there are issues in the kitchen of the Freedom.

Let's face it, the menu is static week to week, there shouldn't be any surprises, and the food should be great considering all the practice the chefs have making it! I've said it previously, but worth mentioning again, I am not a foodie, and I don't allow a negative food experience to ruin my cruise, however after 30 cruises, I have come to expect a certain level of quality. I didn't dream this up, Royal put me here! There have been so many cruises where the food has been outstanding, that when it's not, I really notice [emoji1361]. I do hope that they figure out what's going wrong in the kitchen and fix it ASAP. The major issues (mine as well as feedback from other guests) is : food lacks taste/flavor, too salty especially soups, meat over cooked even when asking for "medium", food temperature luke warm, desserts lacking in flavor and texture, baked Alaska served melted on a warm plate last night [emoji15]

 

The flipside is that overall I have really enjoyed the Windjammer, at all 3 times of day. Plenty of selection, especially at dinner. In fact we are dining there tonight.

We did not end up trying Chops or any other specialty restaurant, although in retrospect maybe we should have?

My advice is to keep an open mind, and form your own opinion based on your own experience. These are my thoughts....yours may be very different? One last thing..... the pizza wasn't good.

Okay, enough on food.

 

The VOOM wifi has been intermittent at best. I get booted off constantly and have to reconnect. It will boot you off after 2 hours of inactivity, but I get booted off after 10 minutes lol!

 

I'm sitting outside the pub watching guests scramble to purchase last minute gifts, a live band is playing, and it seems that everyone is happy, as they should be on a cruise!

 

Feel free to ask any questions and I will try to answer them all [emoji3]

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

My wife and her mother are on this cruise too. She said the same thing about the food. Very Lacking was her assessment. After having been on a few other Royal cruises its a bit disappointing to hear of the food issues.

Thanks for the review it was great !

Joel

My wife who is also on that cruise said that they took a girl off and handcuffed her on the pier right under their cabin. She said that no sooner did they cart that person off that the Emergency vehicles pulled up, that must have been the medical emergency. Sounds like all kinds of excitement to get a cruise started off right.

Still haven't departed at 6:37

We have used Park N Go twice before, both times with great results.

Watch their online specials, if you pay online you will get a better rate.

I believe the last time I booked the parking it was like $6.99 a day.

They loaded up our stuff, took us to the port, unloaded it and they were waiting when we got back into port. The lot is fenced in, so I don't think there is much to concern yourself with as far as the safety of your car is concerned.

When we exited they gave us two bottle of cold water.

~~Joel~~

I have used stay123 with good success but I have also seen on line reviews that complain that their credit card system is a bit suspect. I did not have a problem in the two times I used them. I was always able to find a place to Stay, Park, & Cruise with them.

beachsands

We have stayed here several times. No complaints from us. Its not the Hilton or Hyatt but what you get for the money is very good. As long as there isn't any pestilence in the room and the toilet isn't overflowing i am good.

The breakfast is just the usual free stuff that you get at motels. In an hour or two I am going to be eating at the buffet on the Ship......so I am not hard to please.

If your really fussy, don't stay here its a plain Jane kind of Inn. The shuttle has always been prompt to take us to the ship and never had to wait more then four or five minutes to be picked up and head back to the motel.

We are on her on Wednesday!

I hope its in tip top shape for you ! Have an awesome cruise !

Joel

Does this mean she's been fixed?

I hope she is fixed. We are on her April 10th. Sad that some of these newer ships are having issues.

Joel

This will be a little different, and you may/may not be interested.

 

I have been a couple times down through the years, and last year I did it again. The place is called Magic Ice. (You can Google to find out about it/where it is located in St. Thomas.

 

It has all kinds of ice sculptures. You would think you would freeze (I'm the first person to get cold) just thinking about it, but it is a neat place. They give you a poncho to wear, as well as gloves, and wamers tio put around your legs if you wish. It is recommended that you not wear toeless shoes, but I think you would be fine. You walk through and see people, animals, different settings, all made out of ice. Very unique to see. When your just about through, you will come to a long ICE bar that they serve you Coke, or coke/rum. As I said, I am the FIRST person to get cold, but I actually got pretty warm in there, wearing the poncho. That is my "must see" in St. Thomas.

Did you take the ships excursion to the Magic Ice or did you just "wing" it and find your own transportation and tickets?

~~Joel~~

Thanks to everyone who replied. Very useful information

~~Joel~~

Back in 2012 we were on the Coral Princess and I purchased the Unlimited soft drink package (or whatever it was called then). I frequently got a Pina Colada mock tail. You were able to get them all over the ship in various places. When I looked at the Drink package description it doesn't mention Pina Coladas at all.

Quench your thirst with one of our alcohol-free mocktails, like a Sunshine Daiquiri, Fruity Rita or a No-jito.

Are these the only mocktails you can get or is this listing just some of the mocktails. In case you haven't figured it out I am partial to Pina Coladas.

We are on the Royal in April and since it doesn't look like milkshakes are realistically available, if my mocktail isnt available, I seriously don't think we will get the Ultimate Drink Package.

Thanks, Joel

Fascinating reading. We will be at Princess Cay in April. I may have to take a walk and view the site.

Joel

I have gotten my assignment the day after I booked a gty. I have gotten my assignment a week before the cruise.

 

I am sitting on two unassigned gtys right now. It is a big old waiting game!

So what is reasoning for picking Gty cabins? Are they a better value than picking an known assigned cabin?

~~Joel~~

I use an online Cruise agency. I saw our cabin on the Royal had dropped by about $350.00 Per person. Called our company this morning, they upgraded us from a basic balcony to a mini-suite. Also upgraded my kids from an inside cabin to a balcony. No extra charges of any kind. They wont refund any money however.

Joel

Don't forget the Carnival Triumph debacle. That didn't help the stock price either.

Thanks Everyone !

That's the one we will take. An all encompassing view is what I am looking for.

Thanks Again,

Joel