October 4-11, 2009 AOS cruise

[want2know]

This cruise left out of San Juan. We have taken 4 other cruises with RCCL. I will briefly cover some of the changes we observed from the previous cruises (Rhapsody & Liberty).

- They adhered to the no carry on liquor rule. They did allow a bottle of wine or Champagne if it was for a special occasion.

- The nightly shows don't attract as many people as in the past. You do need to still get your tickets for the ice show in advance - this is the show not to be missed!!! DH who was not into this kind of show even had him clapping constantly and cheering.

- Beer prices have gone up again. They did have two days where you can buy 2 Buds (no Bud Light) and get one free.

- The deck games have pretty much stayed the same.

- They have changed the gratuity process from charging it to your sea pass to giving you the envelopes to hand out. Note: if you do the anytime dining, you do not have a choice and the gratuities are automatically added to sea pass.

- Dress attire for the dining rooms have eased up quite abit. Saw a lot of casual jeans, t-shirts, flip flops, etc. We are casual people who do not like to dress up; the head waiter finally called us on the 4th night to say they missed us. When I explained our dress preference, he told us not to worry - come anyway. We did not do the formal nights, so I cannot say how dressed down people were on those nights.

- Finding ship photos are now organized by a number on your sea pass, so all pics taken of you are in one packet on the board to view.

- Windjammer food has pretty much stayed the same. They do not hide the chocolate milk at breakfast anymore. The officer in charge of the staff in the Windjammer is weak on leading his staff. The staff prefer to stand around twirling their trays rather than checking on the seated guests and cleaning tables when vacated. Seating becomes an issue when they close off portions of the dining area, forcing people to search for any seat, even asking others to sit with them, or push the dirty dishes aside to make room for your party.

- The elevators and halls have minimal a/c. Elevators become quite stuffy when people are coming back on board from a port.

- No more chocolates on the pillows - that is good for me - less calories!

- Announcements are not broadcast in the staterooms. Good and Bad. Good if you are trying to sleep in or take a nap. Bad if you are depending on them to inform you ship is cleared and ready to let people off.

- (I don't know if this is applicable for only Puerto Rico). Going through customs on the last day was quick! They did not even check passports - just your declaration form.

I'm sure there are many other changes, but these were the ones I noticed the most.

Good or bad - things do continue to change. It is not the cruising of yester year.

Overall, DH and I both agree this was a great trip! We feel this is due in part to what you make of the trip. Forget the minor bumps and enjoy the ride!

[yogimax]

Thanks for the review!