Majesty from Charleston, SC

[Needtobecruisin']

Hi,

 

My husband and I are considering booking a 7 night Caribbean cruise on NCL's Majesty round trip from Charleston, SC in November.

 

Just wondering if any of you have been on this particular cruise? If so, what can you tell us about it? Anything we need to know before booking? Is it a good cruise, did you like this ship, etc.

 

Any information you can offer will be much appreciated. :)

 

Thanks,

Pamm

[Sea Cucumber]

Here is the link to my review of the same cruise, we did it December last year and have just rebooked for this year too.

I hope it helps.

 

http://messages.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=111685

[Needtobecruisin']

Sea Cucumber........thanks for your reply. I went over and read your review and sounds like you had a wonderful cruise. Makes me feel better about booking. After reading some posts from other people, I was afraid that the Majesty wasn't a very nice ship.

 

If everything works out like I am hoping it will, I would like to drive down to Charleston a day early, see a few of the sites, spend the night there and then board the ship the next day. Any suggestions on a nice clean but inexpensive place to stay in Charleston? :cool:

[beachesandsunsets]

Terry & Pamm

 

We just got off the ship today! I would have loved to go right back out on her even though the ocean was really churning last night and this morning....my hats off to the captain and crew for keeping us safe. Sea Spray from the waves was as high as the 9th deck and we were holding our water glasses to keep them from tipping over during lunch and dinner while off the coast of FL GA SC yesterday/last nite. We stayed in our cabin after 7 pm last nite just because it was so very hard to walk! I'd like to add this was the same storm the Dawn was experiencing.

 

When we cruise again.......we'd like a lower bigger cabin as it was really rockin (we were on 8). Love sailing out of Charleston as we can drive there in 2 hours.... We will also book our own shore excursions from here on out when we choose to snorkel (in Cozumel, for a 6.00 taxi ride and 10.00 rental fee for gear) We snorkeled in a lovely spot called Duz Hu (SP?) complete with a grass umbrella table and chairs and loungers over looking those beautiful blue waters. Might I suggest the sunset sail with champagne, wine or beer with a hearty sweet conch chowder on The Union in Key West.....I want to hold the sunset pictures in my mind forever!! We loved snorkeling the Cayman's and Cozumel. I picked up some really lovely jewelry in Cozumel (be sure to be ready to negotiate!) Was a bit cool in Key West and glad we'd had our fill of snorkeling/beach on the other two stops.

 

As the other poster provided you a great description.....I have to say the food was wonderful .... the wait staff superb....housekeeping did a great job and I came home reluctantly but feeling so very pampered. We could find a quiet deck (7 or 8) or a party on deck 10.....the casino was a blast....and I wish we had a few more days! Got room in your suitcase for a stow-away????

 

Have a great trip!

[Needtobecruisin']

Thanks to you too Beaches for a nice reply. Sorry the ship was rockin' and rollin' last night. I really feel sorry for those folks on the Dawn too. I can't imagine how scary that must have been for them.

 

SURE you can go with us. I have some pretty large suitcases. ;)

 

Sea Cuke and Beaches........come on and go along with us. Y'all already know the best things to see and do so it will save me some time thinking about what to do next. LOL

 

Thanks again,

Pamm

[ncarolina111]

Terry and Pamm, We went on the Majesty out of Charleston on 3-26-2005 and had a wonderful time. Loved the Majesty. We had large group that went with us. In my family when we got the tickets there is a informational brochure on NCL with lots of info and a booklet describing western caribbean excursions. I collected several daily activities sheets and if you are booked on the Majesty and would like the info I will mail it to you. Someone on this site sent me the daily activites for the Majesty and I read them before our cruise and this was really nice. So let me know if you want them. My email address is :

ncarolina111us@yahoo.com.

[john697]

We (wife, stepdaughter, her husband and 2 kids) sailed on Majesty from 12/18/04 to 12/25/04.

 

It was a great trip! The crew and staff were wonderful! Food top notch!

 

At Grand Cayman we had a driver take us around the island. She took us to the turtle farm and to "hell". I think we paid about $80 for the 6 of us. Sadly, a lot of the island (away from the tourist areas) was still beat up from Hurricane Ivan.

 

At Cozumel we went on the 4x4 Safari and Snorkeling outing. That was the highlight of the trip. After snorkeling they took us to a nice seculted beach. They cooked a mexican lunch and you could play volleyball, but the ocean was too rough for swimming.

 

Took the Trolly tour of Key West. It takes about 1.5 hours and you get to see a lot of the historic part of the town. There is always a lot of activity going on at Mallory Square where the ship docks.

 

Great entertainment on board, the sea was rough the 2nd and last nights out, but not too bad. Also enjoyed just having to drive the 4 hours to get on the ship in Charleston.

[Needtobecruisin']

John.......our thoughts are the same about the drive to Charleston. It sure beats a 10 hour drive to Florida!

 

Someone told me that there used be a cruise a couple times a year out of Wilmington, NC. Do you know anything about that?

[MizzCard]

John.......our thoughts are the same about the drive to Charleston. It sure beats a 10 hour drive to Florida!

 

Someone told me that there used be a cruise a couple times a year out of Wilmington, NC. Do you know anything about that?

 

We sailed her maiden voyage out of Charleston in November 2003. Embarkation was a fiasco. We were 3 hours late leaving port, so the Capt sailed at warp speed to make up the time *L*. This was our second cruise...Celebrity being our first, so we had something to compare it to. I was disapointed in comparison, but still had a great time. I'm sailing again in just a few days and opting to fly to Miami, so the 5 hour drive to Charleston isn't so appealing any more. They'd probably have to offer an Eastern Caribbean itinerary for me to even consider. I'd give Wilmington a shot if they did decide bring in cruise ships, as the 1 hour drive would be much more appealing!

[Needtobecruisin']

Donna........you are going to LOVE the Voyager! It is an unbelievable ship. Hope you have a great time.

 

Hope they have all the kinks worked out down in Charleson now.

[beachesandsunsets]

I'd give Wilmington a shot if they did decide bring in cruise ships, as the 1 hour drive would be much more appealing!

 

 

Its my understanding that the Wilmington port isn't deep enough to accomodate cruise ships.........I too wish Wilmington was an option as it would be an hour drive for us also!

[MizzCard]

Donna........you are going to LOVE the Voyager! It is an unbelievable ship. Hope you have a great time.

 

Hope they have all the kinks worked out down in Charleson now.

 

Thanks! I am so looking forward to this cruise. It was the Majesty cruise that some of the family had a chance to cruise for the first time. They were all "gung ho" about cruising again...but wanted a larger ship. Needless to say me and my BF were the only ones to book. So, we'll just have to have lots of fun without them!

 

As for Charleston....the kinks have been worked out. Had a group of friends sail just a couple weeks after us, and they had no problem.

You know that Carnival sails twice a year out of Charleston...May and October. It's just a 5 day cruise to the Bahamas. Check that one out too.

[MizzCard]

Its my understanding that the Wilmington port isn't deep enough to accomodate cruise ships.........I too wish Wilmington was an option as it would be an hour drive for us also!

 

Well NC should do something about that! It's not fair that Florida makes all the $$ from the cruising industry! :D

[Gimpster]

Check on the Hampton Inn on Meeting Street. Very nice, not expensive, and not too far from the pier.

[Needtobecruisin']

Beaches: I sure wish Wilmington was an option. Wonder if they could dig it out a little deeper? :rolleyes: LOL Can you imagine the business they would get down there if it were to become a cruise ship port?!?!

 

Mizz: My 1st and only cruise was on RCCL's Voyager. When we drove up to the port, my jaw dropped. :eek: It it HUGE!! Inside is like a city. Like I said - unbelievable.

 

RTT: Thanks for the hotel info. I will definitely check the Hampton Inn out and see what kind of rates they have listed. How close is this hotel to the ship? :confused:

[Needtobecruisin']

Where do you get the little "countdown to your cruise" things and how do you set them up?

[MizzCard]

Mizz: My 1st and only cruise was on RCCL's Voyager. When we drove up to the port, my jaw dropped. :eek: It it HUGE!! Inside is like a city. Like I said - unbelievable.

 

 

I've been in port next to the Explorer of the Seas, so I'm assuming they're about the same size.

 

Check out any threads that say "count down clock"...usually under "ask question". There's a link that shows you how to do your countdown.

[Needtobecruisin']

OK....here goes........let's see if this worked!

[Needtobecruisin']

WOO HOO!!!!!!!!!! :D

 

Thanks Donna. That looks so.............official. LOL

[MizzCard]

WOO HOO!!!!!!!!!! :D

 

Thanks Donna. That looks so.............official. LOL

 

Looks great! And before you know it, yours will look like mine!!

[Needtobecruisin']

Yeah, your clock is ticking away really fast. Are you all packed and ready to go? Can't wait to hear from you after being on the Voyager. Wish I could go too. :( Please let us know all about your trip when you get back.

 

Funny, but when I started asking my questions, I was saying that we were "considering" the cruise out of Charleston. Since then we have officially booked it and NCL has our deposit. :D We even have a hotel room reserved in Mt. Pleasant, SC for the night before. (some of the hotels are already booked for that Friday!) NOW.....we have the l-o-n-g wait until November.

[MizzCard]

Where are you in NC? Don't have to be exact if you prefer. We drove down the day of our sailing, and we also sailed in November. I wish I had more time to check out Charleston. As I recall it was quite chilly for sail away. Didn't really see warm weather until the next morning and then we were only off of Florida. I remember eating dinner the second night and we were off the coast of Cuba. The ports were great. I was amazed at how much I enjoyed Key West. Would love to go back again. I wasn't keen on the freestyle dining, but you may love it!

Will stay in touch and let you know how my Voyager cruise went. Already waiting on pricing for a group cruise back to the Eastern Caribbean for next April!

[Needtobecruisin']

We live in the Winston-Salem area.

[erby2283]

I sailed on the Majesty 11/27 and had a wonderful time. That was my first cruise and can highly recommend it. I also have a review posted if you want to check it out.

[thegoodlife247]

Terry and Pamm,

What week in Nov are ya'll cruising out of Charleston? I will sailing on the Nov 19th cruise on the Majesty. We are from florence so it is not a bad drive for us either. I love Charleston, lived there for 3 years during grad school. it sure seems like a long time till nov, but it will be here before you know it. I hate that it will be cooler to get on the ship, but it should be warmer by the next morning.