Review of Mariner Sailing 7/11/04 (Eastern)

Mariner of the Seas Review 7/11/04 Sailing (Eastern Itinerary)

I went with my parents, brother, sister-in-law and 2 teenage (13 and 16) nieces. We were celebrating our parent’s 50th wedding anniversary, which is this year.

Pre-Cruise night: We flew into Orlando, met my brother and his family, got our luggage and headed for the Ron Jon Cape Caribe resort in Cape Canaveral. Our room wasn’t ready yet. We had rented a 2 bedroom deluxe which was a one bedroom and studio connected together. We met some of our Cruise Critic friends here, which was a nice beginning! Since we had to wait a bit, we took the tram to the beach (it’s a long walk!) to see what it was like. We didn’t get into our room until about 4:15. Once we got our room, we were in the front section, 1st floor right by the pool. We walked out of our balcony and right into the pool area…very nice! The hotel was very nice, clean and colorfully decorated. Wish we could have spent more time there, but maybe some other time! We went to Grills for dinner around 5:15 or so…had to wait about 45 minutes for a table, but were able to watch the Carnival and Disney ships go out…they pass right by Grills. Went back to the Ron Jon for a night swim and hot tub party and went to bed fairly early.

Day 1, Sunday, Embarkation Day: There’s no breakfast served at the Ron Jon, so my dad and brother made a McDonald’s run for biscuits, English muffins, juice, milk and coffee. Also, they don’t provide coffee at the Ron Jon, so you’ll need to bring a small pack. They provide filters though. About 10:30 we loaded up our van and dropped it off at the Budget rental office, where we took their shuttle to the port. We were able to get right into the port and into the line to register. We were able to register right away, but had to wait until 11:45 for them to open up the ship for us. Got on with no problems and since the rooms weren’t available yet, we went up for lunch and set out to explore the ship. We were all on Deck 7, midship…evenly between the forward and back elevators. My nieces and I had 2 Promenade rooms, which were adjoining, and my parents and brother, and sis-in-law had balcony cabins right across the hall from us. We mostly just explored the ship that day, and then went to dinner…we had early seating. We had Mel and Metin for waiter/asst. waiter and they were wonderful! Giorgio was our headwaiter and he was always around! They were so good with us…. catered to the girls a lot and showed them many tricks and how to fold the napkins in different ways. Our stateroom attendant team was Henry and Adriana…they were married and were also wonderful. Had chocolates every night and towel animals from the 2nd night on. They kept ice buckets filled and were very kind and friendly. We went to the Welcome show and thoroughly enjoyed it…the comedian (Tom Briscoe) was hysterical and had us laughing (even the teens) until our faces hurt!! There was also an act called Duo Claudio who did acrobatics….kind of hard to describe.

Day 2, Monday, Nassau: Everyone slept in and since it was Nassau’s Independence Day and a Sunday…. almost all of the shops were closed. We walked to the British Colonial Hilton (was a longer walk than we thought…we taxied back!) …and got day passes for their beach/pool for the day. By the time we got there, 2 of our Cruise Critic friends and their families were there. It was practically deserted and we mostly had it all to ourselves! The beach was nice, and the water calm. We could see our ship from the beach. It was a nice day. Since we left at 2:00, and had to be back onboard by 1:30, we went back to the ship around 12 and had lunch at the Windjammer. That night was the 1st formal night, so we all dressed up for dinner. Show that evening was The Platters. This was the one show I skipped.

Day 3, Tuesday At Sea: Nice day at sea. Hung out by the pool. My mom, sister-in-law and I went to a “Color me Beautiful” Seminar…which was fun! She picked on my Sister-In-Law who was wearing the wrong color and then she picked on my hair, which I knew was a disaster. I had wanted to be “blonde” for the cruise and it was not a good job, and was fading by the minute. She made an appointment for me to color it to a more natural color for my skin type on Friday. My 13 year old niece and brother climbed the Rock wall that afternoon…. my brother made it to the top of one of the easier courses without help and my niece made it to the top of the hardest one with the guy spotting her helping out a bit! She was thrilled though! Our Meet and mingle was scheduled for 1:30 at Ellington’s. We had 65 signed up, but only about 20 showed. Later, some said they didn’t receive the invitation or got too busy and forgot. They had a raffle and gave out prizes such as a baseball hat, computer mouse and my dad won a portable drink cooler. The show that night was “Front Row” by the RCCL Singers and Dancers. It was very good.

Day 4, Wednesday, St. Thomas: We didn’t have anything planned here. My brother and nieces had wanted to Snuba, but they didn’t book it in time and it was sold out. The guy at the excursions desk suggested Coki beach and so we got a taxi there. They were able to Snuba there while the rest of us enjoyed the beach. The water there was beautiful. Very pretty scenery there too! We had our taxi driver pick us op there at noon and take us downtown to do some shopping and eat lunch. He recommended the following:

Cuzzin's Caribbean Restaurant & Bar - Conch Creole, West Indian-style fish, local drinks - sea moss, maubi & ginger beer. Vegetarian plates available. Open L Mon-Sat, D Tue-Sat. Back Street, Charlotte Amalie. 340-777-4711 $/$$

It was great…a bit pricey, but fantastic food and atmosphere. Then we walked around and did some shopping. I bought a beautiful Aquamarine/diamond ring (my birthstone). Dinner was Caribbean night…. I had the Jerk Chicken…was excellent! Entertainment that night was Wild and Haines. Hysterical duo who juggle and do comedy. I’d seen them before on the Grandeur a few years back…they were fantastic!

Day 5, Thursday, St. Maarten: Here, we had already pre-booked the America’s Cup Regatta excursion for my dad, brother and myself. We did the early morning one (8:45) and it was amazing! We were on the Canada II and raced and beat the Stars and Stripes. It was a very windy day, so it made for great sailing. I didn’t want a hard job, so I was the bartender! My dad and brother both had strenuous jobs though…but they really enjoyed the experience as well. After we returned, I met my mom, sis-in-law and nieces for some shopping. We had a wonderful sandwich at some little French shop on a side street. They had fantastic baguette sandwiches! Did some more shopping and returned to the ship. This was our night to attend the ice show “Ice Under the Big Top” and it was amazing. I had seen the one on the Navigator last fall, and although this was a different show, it was just as fantastic!!

Day 6, Friday, At Sea: This was my hair color appointment morning. It came out great….everyone complemented me on it! Spent a lot of time by the pool that afternoon…it was a nice relaxing day at sea. Dinner was the 2nd formal night and the food was delicious again! The show tonight was “Pure Energy”, which was the singers/dancers performing music from the 80’s like Wham, Boy George, The Bangles, Flock of Seagulls and Duran Duran etc… I think I was the only one who got it, knew all the music and enjoyed it in my family (I’m 40 and was in high school/college in the 80’s!)

Day 7, Saturday, At Sea: My mom, 13 year old niece, brother and sis-in-law attended a cooking demonstration and watched one chef cook and season some fillets, while another chef made tiramisu and another did a carving demonstration with a watermelon and some other fruits/vegetables. Did more pool time and spent some time packing. :( Dinner that night was International theme. The Farewell show was good, another comedian (Rick Corso…not quite as funny as the first guy) Duo Claudio again and a few songs etc…Captain Johnny rode onto the stage on his Harley Davidson Scooter and did his farewell address.

Day 8, Sunday, Debarkation: We had breakfast in the Windjammer and had to vacate our cabins by 8:00. We waited in the comfort of the Savoy Theatre, where they were showing some videos. We had Lavender I luggage tags (about the 4th one called) were off the ship by about 8:30. The longest thing we had to wait for was the customs line, but it moved…just kind of slowly. Our luggage was there in the baggage claim area and we retrieved it and went to get our private car transfer back to the airport.

Summary: Loved the cruise, loved ship!! Captain Johnny and Becky "hello luv" Thomson were wonderful! Felt very little motion at all. Food overall was great, although the pizza could have been better!

If you have any questions, ask away!

Laura :)

Glad you had such a great time! We will be on this sip in September and look forward to our first voyager class cruise.

Great review!

I'm doing the same itinerary in September and am definitley looking forward to it!

Thanks JB and Adriene...you're going to just love the Mariner. I sure hope you get to sail with Captain Johnny!:D

P.S. you can see my photos by clicking on my link at the bottom of my message.

Laura :)

Laura,

I checked your pictures out....great pics! Thanks for the great review. We'll be on the Mariner in almost one month! I can't wait... :)

Thanks Besito20...you're going to love her!:D

Laura :)

Laura: Great review. Can't wait to sail in November. Quick question .. which company did you use for your transfer back to the airport and do you remember what time you were fully cleared from customs and baggage claim??

Thanks,

Sarah

Hi Sarah....we used Ace Luxury... but I don't recommend them. :( It's a long story, just trust me! They were on time, to pick us up at 9:30 though and we were out of the terminal having cleared customs with our luggage by 9:15 or so. We were about the 4th or 5th color tag called.

Laura :)

Thanks for the quick reply Laura. We have another company were are planning to use but are trying to figure out what time to tell them to pick us up.

Sarah

We could have requested the earliest tags and been off the ship by 7:45...but you never know how long the customs line will be...I'd say 9:00 or 9:30 at the earliest!

Laura :)

You said " we took the tram to the beach (it’s a long walk!)" at the Cape Caribe. I thought the hotel was on the beach, Am I wrong? Thanks ahead of time.

Echo..it is on the beach...but it's a huge resort. The condos around the pool are closest to the main building and are generally used for shorter stays...the condos out by the beach are a lot further away and are used for week or more stays.

Laura :)

Hi Besito20

Are you by any chance sailing on the Mariner August 15th to the Western Caribbean? If so--please register for the Meet & Mingle. We only need 8 more people (need 25) to have a great party w/ food,drink and prizes! Judy

Thank you so much for sharing your pictures and your review. Do you know how long Captain Johnny will be on the ship for?

Lisa

JLewis,

I'm actually on the 8/22 sailing...one week after you...which means...I have to wait one week longer than you... :rolleyes:

Thanks Lisa....I really don't know his schedule. I think he has so many months on, then so many off. I want to say I read somewhere on the RCCL boards that he had just started back recently...my friend that went on May 30 had him for a captain, so I know he's been on at least that long.

Laura :)

Laura,

What did you think about the beach?

Hi 4evercruzin....Which beach are you referring to?

Laura :)

Lisa,

I was on the May 16 sailing of Mariner and of course wondered about whether Captain Johnny would be on our sailing and he was.

I do remember reading other posts on this board just before our sailing that said he came back mid to late April 2004 as Captain.

I do know he was off the ship from about mid/late January until the April time frame. A girlfriend of mine sailed on Feb 1 and he was not Captain at that time.

So it seems like a 3 month time frame...

Laura...loved your review and your pics especially of the Ron Jon Cape Caribe resort...looked identical to the pics I took :)

Emmy :cool:

Thanks Emmy! Glad you got to sail with Captain Johnny too! He was fantastic!

Laura :)

great review and your pics are some of the best i have seen. thanks so much for sharing with us all!

judy

Thanks Jody...I just know you're going to love your cruise too!:D

Laura :)

Hi Laura

Thank You for sharing your wonderful family pictures!!

I too will be on the Mariner in December.This will be my first cruise with RCCL. We have a balcony and inside across the hall. Your review has given me some good ideas what to do on an eastern itinerary.

Thanks GC! Enjoy your cruise!

Laura :)

Hi ducklite!

Remember you from DIS! Thinking about RCCL?

Loretta