mamagina

I just read through this entire very interesting thread and I was surprised no one discussed what bothers me. The perks for the suite guests or the people in the Haven are really "getting what you pay for" but what bothers me is what I saw on Princess, and I would prefer not to sail on Princess again because of it. When we sailed on Princess about 3 years ago, one had to know on embarkation if they wanted to pay extra for a chair in a special area where there was shade and they offered water and light snacks during the day while you lounged. There was an extra charge but you could only purchase it when you got on the ship. The ship was very crowded on this sailing and most days unless you got up at 6am and hogged chairs you could not sit--anywhere! However, every time you passed this special area, it was empty??? Just empty chairs sitting in the shade and sun behind a gate. There was a sign saying that a day pass was available, but when you asked they said "sold out for the week" We rarely saw anyone sitting and this really irked me. That experience alone, after 35 cruises, totally turned me off to ever going on Princess again.

At least it doesn't seem that any other cruise line has this. Even the ropes on RCI don't bother me as much asthis "empty area!" Does Celebrity have anything like this???

Is there a sauna and a steamroom in the spa? Is the use of those items free or do you have to buy a spa pass like on NCL? Is there any sort of an indoor pool or hot tub on the Summit?

Thanks!

Malcolm was the CD on our cruise that began 3/9 and returned this past Monday. He was the one who made the announcements. We thought he was a very good CD.

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You are so right! Really delish! All six burners working but still a very long wait. Never less than a half hour. Even when it looked short at the end of lunch you still waited. I left my husband at the table to get a drink one day at the end of lunch and the line looked short so I jumped on and by the time I got back to the table my husband was ready to put an APB out on me! Lol

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There was priority disembark in Nassau on the Splendor. They really didn't announce it in Port Canaveral or Freeport although Guest Services told us it was only for Disembark in NY:

On the evening before Nassau we asked Guest Services if there was any sort of Priority disembark for Platinum or FTTF because the cruise director asked everyone for cooperation getting off in Nassau because there usually is a rush in that port because everyone wants to get on with their private excursions and plans quickly. He specifically said not to come down to the gangway until he made announcements to do so even though we will be docked for a while--local authorities have to clear the ship.

We are Platinum but guest services said priority disembark was only for our departure in NY. Well, we were sitting having breakfast and the cruise director reiterated his warning not to come down to the gangway and then only five minutes later he says "OK, we will begin our disembark with our Diamond, Platinum and FTTF guests who should be ready now on the Starboard lobby staircase." LOL! We missed out on that!!!

We just returned on Monday on the Splendor:

I can't believe how uninformed the Guest Services staff is. On the evening before Nassau we asked if there was any sort of Priority disembark for Platinum or FTTF because the cruise director asked everyone for cooperation getting off in Nassau because there usually is a rush in that port because everyone wants to get on with their private excursions and plans quickly. He specifically said not to come down to the gangway until he made announcements to do so even though we will be docked for a while--local authorities have to clear the ship.

We are Platinum but guest services said priority disembark was only for our departure in NY. Well, we were sitting having breakfast and the cruise director reiterated his warning not to come down to the gangway and then only five minutes later he says "OK, we will begin our disembark with our Diamond, Platinum and FTTF guests who should be ready now on the Starboard lobby staircase." LOL! We missed out on that!!!

Despite what Guest Services may tell you about disembarking in Nassau, THERE IS PRIORITY FOR Diamond, Platinum and FTTF guests!! We were told there wasn't on the night before docking yet the cruise director announced it that morning and we weren't ready for it. Those groups were the first allowed off at 7:30am.

We found Guest services to be very uniformed and usually wrong about many other inquires on this ship. First time we ever experienced that. :confused:

We are back--all in all a great cruise despite the disappointment and miss information!

I can't believe how uninformed the Guest Services staff is. Another crazy response from them: On the evening before Nassau we asked if there was any sort of Priority disembark for Platinum or FTTF because the cruise director asked everyone for cooperation getting off in Nassau because there usually is a rush in that port because everyone wants to get on with their private excursions and plans quickly. He specifically said not to come down to the gangway until he made announcements to do so even though we will be docked for a while--local authorities have to clear the ship. Guest services said NO.

We are Platinum but guest services said priority disembark was only for our departure in NY. Well, we were sitting having breakfast and the cruise director reiterated his warning not to come down to the gangway and then only five minutes later he says "OK, we will begin our disembark with our Diamond, Platinum and FTTF guests who should be ready now on the Starboard lobby staircase." LOL! We missed out on that!!!

Love to hear when the pool is fixed.

Keep us posted.

Beach day at the grand lucaya resort. Just beautiful. Really perfect. $5 to get here and $15 to use the facility. Chairs umbrellas beach. Beautiful pools and hot tub. Pretty grounds. Free wifi. I am posting this from a hammock on the beach!

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Beach day at the grand lucaya resort. Just beautiful. Really perfect. $5 to get here and $15 to use the facility. Chairs umbrellas beach. Beautiful pools and hot tub. Pretty grounds. Free wifi. I am posting this from a hammock on the beach!

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Exactly. I wish I knew there would be no spa pool when I paid for an upgrade just three days before sailing. If I had waited it would have only cost the $99. They are now charging for the spa pass and I would have been happy with my regular balcony.

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Guest services confirmed there are no jacuzzis in the ship that are adults only. Even the spring break college kids can't get in. They do take them over after ten but there are still plenty of kids.

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We got a call from guest services pretty early this morning, actually woke us up, to tell us that the spa pool will not be fixed during this cruise. Otherwise we are having a good cruise. Thanks. Don't appreciate the sarcastic poster with the 100 percent refund comment. The purpose of this board is to inform. Those on future cruises should know what's up Before they go. Guest services should be aware of the facts and not try to get away with something. One other poster here confirmed that the pool broke last cruise. Why try to lie.

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Yes there was a man overboard alert and we had to go to our cabins. The ship doubled back but it was a false alarm.

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So they say the spa pool will not be fixed this cruise. Now it is a school vacation week in Canada. All other jacuzzis are loaded with kids. I was told at guest services that no jacuzzis are adults only. Must say we are very disappointed. Kids were even jumping into the jacuzzis at 11 last night. Guest services was less that receptive about spa pool situation. Guy at desk even got confrontational with me. He claimed it was not broken last week when the people at the spa told us it was. He accused me of calling him a liar! They are giving $15 pet day credit. Not satisfactory. I paid way more than even the pass price over our regular balcony room. Spa passes are being sold at a deep discount but we heard no takers. Without the pool all you have are two steam rooms. Big deal! I guess I'm even more upset that the guest services rep was so nasty. Really surprised at that. Never really had that on a cruise. Usually they are do polite.

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are taking about the Thelassotherapy Pool in the spa????

 

 

 

Trouble and delays checking in?? Glad I'm not wasting my money on FTTF.

Yes. We are platinum. We and fttf went on after zone 5. People in the lounge were very angry! Very disorganized.

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On the splendor now. They had the parade yesterday. The second sea day. No brunch yet.

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On board now. Spa pool broke down on the last cruise. Will not be working this cruise. Disappointed because we booked a spa cabin. Selling spa passes at a reduced rate. Lots of trouble checking in. Computers were down for a while. Departed a little late because people were still getting on. Everything else fine. Looking forward to a great cruise. Beautiful sail away. We were outside till 6:00pm. People are already in the hot tubs. Crazy! It was fine with a coat though!

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I came back to read your review again after my son pointed out all the recent negative member reviews of the Splendor. I'm hoping that our experience is more like yours than all the negative Nellies.

 

A common complaint seems to be lack of things to do, especially on sea days, and bland food. I'm not concerned about the food because we're pretty easy to please ( if I don't have to cook it, I'm happy), but now I'm concerned DS15 will me bored, and I should have picked the Breakaway.

Hi,

I think you are on our 3/9 cruise too. We went on the Breakaway last spring and while we were initially impressed with the size and all the extras, in the end it was the extras that disappointed us most. We had a great cruise but it was too much work. You has to reserve everything and sometimes it just didn't work out. The Rock of Ages show had sound problems and they cancelled it quite often. After all the waiting it was just OK. The people who didn't know they had to reserve were very disappointed and they all walked around complaining. The specialty restaurants were too expensive for what you were served. We had to go to the buffet after (except the Brazilian BBQ if you like meat). Our cabin and balcony was TINY. You had to sit sideways on the balcony-our knees didn't fit if the chairs were strait. Probably the only thing your 15 year old would like would be the ropes course on the back of the ship--which was closed most of the time due to wind--so he would get to go on it maybe once or twice and then be bored with it :). We went on the Carnival Legend at the end of last summer, which is a much smaller ship than the Splendor and we were so glad to be back. Carnival is just so much easier with everything available. All the crazy extra cause too much stress. If I want to see a broadway show, go to cirque du solei or do a ropes course I'd rather do a "real" one and save my cruise as a cruise.

I'm sure your 15 year old will have a blast. Tell him he's not missing anything.

Hi. Carnival is usually at pier 90 which is right next to pier 88 (where NCL docks usually).

We usually get dropped off around 12th and 49th and cross the street right there to the ship. :cool:

Thank you. I thought it was just two more blocks. Someone said 56th street. Now they are predicting like 45 degrees on Sunday but a chance of rain. We'll see what the weather is like before we start walking. Trying to just bring just one "carry-on" each. We have been able to do it when the weather is warm. I don't know if we can do it with some warmer clothes added!:)

For the poster Mamagina who asked about Freeport_

When we were on the Splendor last month, we had lots of options in Freeport. We chose to do the snorkelling at Paradise Cove.

We pre-booked with the owners and it was wonderful experience. You don't pay until you get there and they pick you up.

$35. pp includes all the gear, ride to and from the port and entrance to the place.

We stayed for the full 6 hours but you can go for less time if you want. Shuttles leave after 2, 4 and 6 hours with enough time to do some quick shopping around the shops by the pier.

 

The snorkelling was amazing!! We snorkel a lot and this was one of our best experiences. Saw sea turtles, a nurse shark and LOTS of beautiful rays, corals, fish. Would highly recommend!!

Just make sure that you check the tide schedules before you book. IF the tide is low, it would not be as good a time as when it is high tide. We arrived when it was high tide (great) and left at low tide which made for the best snorkelling experience.

And we went in late January and the water was nice and warm! No shivering or wet suits needed for us.

 

The other options- which we decided to leave for our next trip- were to take a bus to the Grand Lucaya and spend some time at the beach OR take the bus to the Junkanoo Resort and spend some time at the beach. Both of those options would have cost about $25. pp for transportation and entrance to the place/use of facilities.

Thank you for the great information. Lots of options. I was leaning towards just going to the beach but the snorkeling sounds excellent. wow. We just can't wait.

Thank you for the information! I'm pretty sure we will go there next Thursday!!

That's great info! Thank you!! I think we will pay the $30 at the Sheraton/Melia because I heard that the chairs are a little old and saggy at the Wyndham! But then again I'm a little old and saggy! :)

I read on another thread that the Wyndham is now charging $30 and you cannot use the Sheraton/Melia property any more because they are doing an "all inclusive."

Does anyone know what the new deal and price is at the Sheraton/Melia?

does anyone know what the new price and "all inclusive" is at the Sheraton is?? Our cruise leaves Sunday and we were planning to try the Sheraton this time.

We are leaving on our cruise Sunday and I hear they have new pricing and some sort of "all inclusive" deal going on. Does anyone know what it is??? It was $30pp no lunch, no drinks. We have done the Hilton--$60 with $40 towards lunch or drinks--no cab. Very easy.

We did Sheraton a few years ago--the only real difference is a prettier view from the beach. We were going to go to the Melia this time but I don't want to pay $100pp for an all inclusive if that is what it is.