Review - Jewel of the Seas 11 day Panama - NOT GREAT!

[ivansbride1955]

Following are my comments on the Jewel of the Seas 11-day Ultimate Panama Canal Cruise, from which I just returned on 1/14/2011. It will be rather lengthy.

 

EMBARKATION/DISEMBARKATION:I think the smoothest/fastest embarkation and disembarkation we have ever had. We arrived at the port about 11:30, where checked in and waiting in the terminal by noon and on the ship by 1:00 -- no arrival photos, though. (I was told you had to request one, but didn't see any photogs around when we arrived).

 

We walked our own luggage off the ship at 9:30 and were in a cab before 10:00. Well done!

 

STATEROOM: 7066 is a balcony stateroom, portside, aft, near the atrium. Although this is advertised as a balcony cabin, be warned that this part of the ship is where the lifeboats are and you will have the "roof" that is over the lifeboats extending out past your balcony, so you won't get the typical view of the water you would normally get. :( Shame on me for letting the RCI rep talk me into this stateroom instead of the one I was ready to book on-line! It is also a connecting stateroom, but we didn't hear our neighbors at all. 7066 is also above the casino and we did hear the cruise director in the casino one night with a microphone, but it only lasted about 45 minutes. We never saw or met our stateroom attendant, but he/she did keep the room tidy. Although we did leave a request for ice to be filled twice per day, but that never happened.

 

The bed was super comfortable and well slept like the dead every night.

 

TUXEDO RENTALThis cruise had two formal nights, so we booked a tux for DH via the internet. Normally the tux is in the stateroom upon arrival. Not so this time as the tux guy had a family emergency and had to leave the ship. When the tux did arrive just in time for the first formal night, the pants were too long, the jacket was too small, the shirts were two different sizes and we didn't get the bow tie or cufflinks/studs that we had ordered. After four trips to guest relations, and a visit from the "tailor" the tux situation was finally straightened out just in time for the second formal night. BUT, they also charged us twice for the tux. Two more trips to guest relations to get the second charge removed from our bill.

 

ON BOARD ENTERTAINMENT:Shows in the Coral Theatre were pretty much standard cruise fare: a comedian, a singer/comedienne, an impressionist/singer, a hypnotist, a ventriloquist, a juggler, a violinst, Tango Buenos Aires and Your Three Tenors. Two staff production shows. About 50/50 on the enjoyability scale. The ventriloquist was very good, enjoyed about the first 20 minutes of Tango Buenos Aires and then it got old. Your Three Tenors was good. There are several other music venues throughout the ship: Rosario Strings, a trio, piano player. However, the volume of the music which oftentimes is being played simultaneously in many different venues (ie Rosario Strings in the atrium, piano player in the Schooner bar, Karaoke in the Safari Club) is too loud. It is nearly impossible to find a quiet place to sit and chat with new friends without having to shout over the music that is coming at you from all directions. Also, by the end of the 11-day cruise, the repetoires of the various bands had repeated so often that it got to the point that you wanted to scream if you heard "that" song just ONE MORE TIME!

 

FOODWe had early seating in the main dining room, at a table for 10. If we hadn't enjoyed the company of our tablemates so much, we would have eaten in the Windjammer; at least the food would have been hot! Main course selections several evenings were so poor that most people at our table just ordered the sirloin steak from the "alternate" menu. DH tried the prime rib on two separate occasions and said it wasn't good at all. Tablemates who tried it also agreed. And, what's up with the Indian dish on the menu EVERY NIGHT:confused: There are many wonderful vegetarian dishes that aren't Indian! A couple of desserts were good, most were just "passable." Not very sweet and a lot of "fill"/gelatin.

 

Surf and turf consisted of two slices of beef and three shrimp! (And that is one of their "signature" dishes).

 

We ordered room service breakfast twice and it was stone cold both times. Hubby ordered hamburgers from room service on three different occasions. The first time the burger was great; the second and third times, he got a ball of mystery meat (perhaps veggie burger) on a bun.

 

Service in the MDR was wonderful, but quite honestly, we've had better food on Carnival.

 

PORTS/SHORE EXCURSIONS ARUBA: Very nice beaches. Did the Sail/Swim/Snorkel/Swing excursion and snorkeled at two locations. However, the crew did not ask if everyone had snorkeled before and consequently gave NO instruction to the newbies on how to wear the mask, inflate the vest, et. If my DH hadn't been at the bottom of the ladder when one newbie entered the water, we fear she would have drowned. She jumped into the water with the snorkel in her mouth and breathed in a snorkel full of water. DH pulled her out of the water by straps on her vest and helped a very terrified woman back on to the boat.

 

Watered down rum punch was served after snorkeling, but the third stop to offer swimming in shallower water didn't happen as was promised. Our 4-hour excursion lasted just over three hours. We have always had a blast on these types of excursions before and were very disappointed in this one.

 

CARTEGENA: Did a small group tour with Dora, which was arranged by other Cruise Critic members (thanks Nathan and Elizabeth). Visited La Poppa Monestery, stopped for photos at the old fort (time constraints didn't allow a tour :(, the dungeons and the old walled city. I did, however, have enough time to go in debt for a Columbian emerald:cool: Would book a tour with Dora again in a heartbeat!

 

PANAMA: Rained in the morning, but cleared off later in the day. Did the Gatun Lake Eco Cruise with a stop at the Gatun Locks. Were able to see a few monkeys and sloths from a distance on the boat cruise. Can't blame RCI because the critters didn't cooperate, but would not take this excursion again, not worth the money. Canal Authority is raising the rate for cruise ships to go through the locks (currently as much as $400,000). Personally, not worth it to me to pay the additional cruise fare to transit the locks.

 

COSTA RICA: White water rafting was a BLAST:cool: Again, it rained in the morning and by the time we got to the river and on to the rafts we were soaked to the skin, but WTH, we planned to get wet anyway! Well worth the money. A very good Costa Rican lunch was provided after rafting (one of the best meals we had on the trip). And, a 3-shot Rum and Coke was only $2.50!

 

GRAND CAYMAN: Did two tank dive then went to 7 mile beach; very nice beach, but food and drink prices were ridiculous. A 12 ounce glass of beer was $5.75 and a hamburger was $11!

 

Again, we've had much better shore excursions with Carnival.

 

ERKY FROM TURKEYErky, the activities manager is a hoot and should have his own show! He did the "Who Wants to be a Royal Caribbeanaire" game show and it was one of the funniest things we have ever seen on a cruise. The Activities staff were very nice and fun, but again, typical cruise activities; bellyflop contest, bingo, line dancing by the pool, karaoke, music trivia, etc.

 

COMPLAINTSRCI really needs to stop nickel and diming their customers to death! $3.95 for bottled water, really!!??

 

Turn up the air conditioning in the public rooms a few degrees. Public rooms were uncomfortably cold! I wore a sweater or wrap to dinner every night and was still cold. The solarium was so cold people sat in there fully clothed with towels wrapped around them. If they would set the air a couple of degrees warmer, that would save them money! I took a Caribbean cruise in January because I wanted to go where it was warm. If I wanted to be cold, I would have stayed home!

 

$20.00 for photos, really??? Perhaps if RCI lowered the price of the photos (that they have already printed anyway) they would sell more and throw away less.

 

Drink prices are ridiculous. Also, give me what I order! When I order a Gin and Tonic, ask me if I want top shelf liquor before charging me for top shelf liquor. DH ordered an Appletini one night, it was $11.00!! Again, drop the price of drinks and people will buy more. We averaged one drink per day and our bar tab was over $300.00 - ridiculous.

 

Save the Waves Program: We tried to be environmentally conscious. We would hang our towels up to use again the next day and every day we got clean towels. RCI needs to educate the room stewards about the Save the Waves program as much as they do their guests.

 

Basically, we enjoyed the cruise because we went to five ports we have not been to before, the Jewel is a beautiful ship and the staff and crew (for the most part) were great, but we feel we got a Carnival Cruise at a Royal Price.

 

Okay, now let the flaming from the RCI cheerleaders begin:rolleyes:

[Debde]

Thanks for the review.

Originally-I was upset when I heard they will no longer be doing this cruise as I thought it was one to look into. Once I found Princess has a 10 day Partial that actually goes through some locks and it's cheaper, it was a no brainer on which one to choose!!

[fpcruiser]

On our last cruise in September on Mariner, we also hung our towels up everyday only to be given new ones.

[Trickie Dickie]

No flames from me! :D I did this exact cruise in late November and I agree on some things. The desserts are not sweet anymore! What is up with that? I found the sugar free desserts were actually sweeter than the regular ones. I don't mind the small portions at dinner as it seems we are eating constantly all day. I noticed a lot of people complaining about the declining quality of the food. I myself was happy with the food, not the desserts though. :D

 

I sleep like the dead as well on a ship...I wish I could bottle that.

 

All in all I really liked our 11 night Jewel Cruise to the Southern Caribbean and will never do a 7 nighter again! Too Short!

 

Aruba is still calling to me in my dreams. :D

[HoneyDad]

COSTA RICA: White water rafting was a BLAST:cool: Again, it rained in the morning and by the time we got to the river and on to the rafts we were soaked to the skin, but WTH, we planned to get wet anyway! Well worth the money. A very good Costa Rican lunch was provided after rafting (one of the best meals we had on the trip). And, a 3-shot Rum and Coke was only $2.50!

 

How was the bus ride to the white water rafting location?

[Sunkissed Mommy]

I appreciate the review, we did the same itinerary last November.

 

White Water Rafting was our favorite!! Rio Reventazon?? We want to go back! It rained most of the day for us as well.

 

I'm sad to hear of some of your review because last year we didn't have those issues, but I've noticed since the introduction of two huge ships there have been many more complaints across the RCI fleet.

 

I think drink prices are relative to where you live. The ship drink prices are comparable to the bars and lounges where I live, but in other parts of the country they are lower.

[EVALUATOR]

We did the ten night (no Aruba) in December.

 

We had similar issues with cold food. On the lobster night, the "melted butter" they brought out was so cold it looked more like sour cream or bearnaise sauce. The mint jelly on lamb nights actually was thinner than maple syrup, but you could actually stack up scoops of melted butter like mashed potatoes. The food and service was so bad we actually went to the Windjammer for dinner one night. Service and food there for dinner was outstanding. We should have went there a lot sooner in the cruise. Actually better than some of the times we went to the specialty restaurants.:confused:

 

In the MDR after complaining about the food being cold, they came up with a solution. After our orders were plated, they put them in the oven for ten minutes to warm them up before serving.

 

All that did was overcook the food, then burn you if you accidentally touched the plate.:mad:

 

We slept like the dead also. At least until they hit the pipe in the water outside Cartegena at 5 AM.

[negc]

 

I'm sad to hear of some of your review because last year we didn't have those issues, but I've noticed since the introduction of two huge ships there have been many more complaints across the RCI fleet.

 

I think drink prices are relative to where you live. The ship drink prices are comparable to the bars and lounges where I live, but in other parts of the country they are lower.

 

Can't say that I have noticed any uptick in complaints since Oasis and Allure began sailing. Most of the complaints are similar both in quantity and substance to what we were reading in the months and years prior to the introduction of those two ships. Perhaps you have just become more sensitive to the complaints and have linked them to the introduction of the new ships.

I agree with your statements about the cost of drinks but again, this is a theme that has been the topic of discussion almost since we began cruising in the eighties. Drink prices at land-based bars and restaurants vary widely across the country with prices in some locations being considerably less than the cruiselines charge, while being considerably higher in others.:)

[RALBERT95]

I also was on the Jewel 1/3/2011 cruise and let me add some of my observations:

 

They seem to have drastically cut down on activities: The cruise director Keith was no where to be seen except to introduce the shows at night and occasionally on the docks at Port.

 

The cruise directors staff seems to have been shrunk in size...... that might explain the lack of activities.

 

There also were less wait staff in the Windjammer visible. Tables were left uncleaned for extended time.As a result, it was difficult at times to find a clean table.

 

Scheduling left a lot to be desired. On the last sea day.....most of the activities started at 10a.......the rest of the day was quiet.

 

There was little variety in the Cinema......the same movie played all day. They used to alternate 2 movies daily. Also, every projector on the ship seemed to be out of focus.

 

Also there was this wierd time change on several days where we lost an hour at 12 noon instead of the middle of the night. The only reason that I could think of is that this way they had one less hour of programming that day.

 

The cruise seemed very quiet....when they showed the cruise in review on the last night....it was apparent there was no feeling of excitement....more boredom.

 

Don't get me wrong ....we love the Jewel...this was our 6th voyage on it.

Royal has given us no choice but to look elsewhere as they are moving the ship to 5 day 2 port voyages.

[Arizona Cruz Chic]

While we didn't do the exact itinerary as the OP, we did cruise on the Jewel in Oct when it repo'd from BOS-FLL. We found the food to be very good, always hot and never a problem.

 

Drink prices are what you would pay at a resort, I thought they are actually lower than some high end restaurants.

 

Sorry you thought RC nickel and dimed you.....bottle of water $3.95. What does Carnival charge? Free?

 

I really had to laugh at the comments about the tux rental. While it isn't funny that the whole thing was a total screw up, BUT.... the mental picture of too long of pants and jacket too small was too much! :D

 

I thought the cost of the photos were very good, you could never get that kind of price from a studio.

 

Hope your next cruise is more to your liking, weather it be RC, Carnival, or another cruise line. ;)

 

***

[RALBERT95]

I also thought it strange that we took three days to get to Aruba...only to get 5 hours in port there.

[dcruisers]

We were on this cruise and I can't agree. We all have our individual opinions..so please let me express mine.

We had wonderful food-hot when it was suppose to be. Food was really very tasty. We had second seating with some of the best wait staff ever.

Entertainment was awesome. Although we have seen the same type of shows on our other 16 cruises, RCL had the best of the best in their individual talent. We thought Melissa the lead singer was truly talented. We have seen Broadway shows that lacked her vocal skills. But all 6 of us enjoy going to the shows and appreciated the varied talent on the ship.

All 6 of us that traveled together thought the service, food and entertainment was well above standard.

Staff was wonderful. Our cabin steward was one of our best. Very attentive and friendly, Even gave us robes quickly after our request. That was for all 3 rooms! We had balcony rooms on the 8th floor and enjoyed the location.

We loved our trip with Claudia in Cartegena -our first time there.

All in all we were very pleased.

Plus I won $675 in the casino...very excited about that.

[Mary Ellen]

Thank you for sharing your experience with us.

[The Big Booper]

Just curious, what were the specific areas and things that you feel RCI was nickel and diming you?

 

We haven't been on a Radiance ship since 2006, Can it be that they are turning them into quasi Celebrity ships with fewer activities (and poorer food) on the assumption that the people who want a livelier ship have gone Voyager /Freedom /Oasis?

 

We should start a thread here on this topic, from people who sail the Radiance class all the time, like NEGC (Bill).

[caribbeanboy]

It takes 2 full sea days to get to Aruba and not 3

[RALBERT95]

Lost track of time....my mistake.

[dcruisers]

After cruising Princess (3), Carnival (4), NCL (3) Celebrity (1) AND rcl (5) I have to say that RCL was the least in hawking drinks by the pool...NCL especially always almost forced drinks on passengers laying at the pool. Not so with RCL..also, the other items i.e. bottled water, bar drinks, photos are prices very much the same as the other cruise lines. We don't buy pictures any longer..we did when we first started cruising.

So..all in all...RCL's pricing of incidentals are not anymore/less than other cruise lines.

We were on Carnival Miracle last New Years Eve and their prices were the same.

Plus..we got better quality service in a more elegant environment! Again, just my opinion.

[ivansbride1955]

How was the bus ride to the white water rafting location?

 

The bus ride was very nice, about an hour and 15 minutes, past banana and pineapple plantations, the rainforests and the smoking volcano. There was a short walk down a small hill to get to the rafts, but the 80+ year old couple on our bus made it down the hill. Staff were very attentive and assisted where needed.

[Schooner Bar Girl]

 

I thought the cost of the photos were very good, you could never get that kind of price from a studio.

 

Hope your next cruise is more to your liking, weather it be RC, Carnival, or another cruise line. ;)

 

***

 

Why compare the cost of the photo to that of a studio?????:confused::confused::confused: Most of these pictures on the ship are not studio quality either.:rolleyes:

[ivansbride1955]

Just curious, what were the specific areas and things that you feel RCI was nickel and diming you?

 

.

 

May be all cruise lines are now charging $3.95 for a bottle of water, but it used to be that you could carry on your own.

 

Soda cards are $7.00 a day for fountain pop only. Again, seems really steep to me.

 

As for the cost of photos, maybe that is now the going rate, but the photos were hardly "studio" quality like one poster referenced, and they even printed the bad ones (eyes closed, mouth in mid word, etc). And the photographers are NOT professionals like you would get at a studio either. It just doesn't make sense that they go to the cost of printing all those photos, only to throw them away at the end of the cruise.

 

If you want a good steak in the MDR, it will cost you $14.95.

 

If you say you are serving surf and turf then serve surf and turf, not sliced beef and shrimp.

 

Asked if we could share a dinner in Chops because the portions are huge, more than one person could possibly need. The response: Yes, you can share a meal, but it will still cost you $25 per person to come thru the door. A "sharing" fee would be reasonable and RCI would still make money and less food would be wasted.

 

A $3.95 service charge for room service after midnight. Hubby only ordered from room service because the only other option after midnight was crappy pizza or crappy hot dogs. Turned out he paid for crappy mystery meat burgers from room service instead!

 

No more mints/chocolates on the pillow and really, technically no turn down service, just removed the blue cover and turned on the light.

 

Its those little losses that add up to the feeling of nickle and dimeing.

[dcruisers]

We noticed, also, no mints/candy on our pillow at night. But we weren't surprised because we didn't get them on Carnival last year either. I think all the cruise lines are cutting back.

As far as photos...I think it is crazy that ALL the cruise lines print pictures that are never bought and then throw them away.

As far as the "surf and turf"..we were told by our waiter exactly what to expect. And it was surf and turf -beef and seafood!!!

We will cruise on Princess in August to Alaska. Haven't cruised them in about 7 years. I look forward to comparing RCL to Princess.

All in all, we -the six of us-got off the Jewel with very positive memories.

[Arizona Cruz Chic]

Why compare the cost of the photo to that of a studio?????:confused::confused::confused: Most of these pictures on the ship are not studio quality either.:rolleyes:

 

 

You know...you're right. The ships photographers are terrible. We have avoided them the last few cruises.

I've heard a few families comment on them while looking at their photos....we could never afford do have this at taken like this at home.

 

***

[negc]

Let's face it. The prices are what they are and many cruisers have indicated that they are pretty much the same on every one of the mass market cruiselines. If the photos on the ship aren't studio quality, they certainly approach it on occasion, and if they are not up to your standards you aren't forced to accept them. How likely is it that you can go to a studio for photos and not pay a fee just to have them taken, whether you purchase them or not.

Almost all of the things you are complaining about are totally discretionary expenses and if the cost seems unreasonable to you, simply decline to make the expenditure. As far as the nighttime chocolates are concerned, I have heard from fairly reliable sources, that a large proportion of them ended up being discarded by guests and that their elimination saved the line more than $1 million annually. If so, that bit of cost-savings seems quite understandable.

It is easy to use the chocolates as a symbol of the cost-cutting, but actually, did their absence really negatively effect your enjoyment of your cruise?

[HoneyDad]

How was the bus ride to the white water rafting location?

 

The bus ride was very nice, about an hour and 15 minutes, past banana and pineapple plantations, the rainforests and the smoking volcano. There was a short walk down a small hill to get to the rafts, but the 80+ year old couple on our bus made it down the hill. Staff were very attentive and assisted where needed.

 

Thank you! I really want to take this trip but my wife hates riding in buses and if it where a difficult trek she might have a heart attack. :D

[EVALUATOR]

Let's face it. The prices are what they are and many cruisers have indicated that they are pretty much the same on every one of the mass market cruiselines. If the photos on the ship aren't studio quality, they certainly approach it on occasion, and if they are not up to your standards you aren't forced to accept them. How likely is it that you can go to a studio for photos and not pay a fee just to have them taken, whether you purchase them or not.

Almost all of the things you are complaining about are totally discretionary expenses and if the cost seems unreasonable to you, simply decline to make the expenditure. As far as the nighttime chocolates are concerned, I have heard from fairly reliable sources, that a large proportion of them ended up being discarded by guests and that their elimination saved the line more than $1 million annually. If so, that bit of cost-savings seems quite understandable.

It is easy to use the chocolates as a symbol of the cost-cutting, but actually, did their absence really negatively effect your enjoyment of your cruise?

 

 

Of all the people to "quote reliable sources":D:D:D

 

I heard they were going to take all the foil saved from the chocolates and build a new class of ships.