Monarch of the Seas June 1st-4th (pictures, but mostly Coco Cay)

[Tigerss]

Hello Everyone!

 

Bare with me, this is my first review. Hopefully I do an "ok" job!

 

First off - most of my pictures are actually of my room and Coco Cay (where we rented one of the Clamshells - the Royal Caribbean policy on the cabanas/clamshells changed just starting the week of our cruise - more on that later). Cliff notes - the clamshells are definitely worth the money (especially if you plan on renting snorkeling gear / floating mats).

 

I did not take many pictures of the main areas on the ship itself (was too wrapped up gawking to remember I had a camera!). There are many wonderful reviews full of pictures of the main areas of the ships - for example a very thorough and picture full recent review by ChampionCruiser (link - http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1644623

 

Onto the review!

 

Day 1:

 

I live locally, as well as my mother (whom I cruised with - a nice relaxing mother/daughter weekend vacation), so we made the 50 minute drive to Port Canaveral. The port is a breeze for parking, each cruise line has its own parking garage/spaces (you can see the ship from where you park - its that close). You pay when you leave (it was $60 for the 3 day cruise). We were able to park in the garage (which is wonderful with the Florida heat). We arrived about 11:30am and walked right through the whole check in process. There were no lines at all.

 

Immediately upon arriving to deck four - we ignored the tempting arrival welcome drinks with their flashy lights and got into line for the Excursions deck. We had decided that after reading the reviews on the Coco Cay Cabanas, we really wanted to make this a priority on our short vacation. Upon reaching the front of the line we were informed that Royal Caribbean had JUST changed its cabana policy. Previously it was first come first serve (Wwth suite guests having priority to reserve pre-cruise). Now - the policy is that all suite guests have until the muster drill (I'm assuming) to reserve a cabana/clamshell. They no longer have to reserve pre-cruise to guarantee a cabana. Anyone in a non suite (junior suites and below) are put on a waiting list (first come, first listed). You are required to return at 4:30pm (go down there immediately after muster drill as the line fills up fast) and cross your fingers that the cabanas have not filled up. If you are not there to book your cabana at 4:30pm (or whenever the excursion deck is set to re-open post muster drill), you loose your waiting list spot to anyone else asking for one.

 

On our cruise, when the excursions deck had reopened after the muster drill, all the Cabanas had been booked by suite guests. Having done our research and after speaking with the excursion desk staff, we were more than happy to book a clamshell (details on the difference between cabana and clamshells will be on day 2 review).

 

Backing up - after putting ourselves on the waiting list for the cabana list - we explored the ship. I had done a decent amount of research, but its hard to really have an understanding of the size/feel of the ship until you are there in person. This was my first cruise since I was 14ish, so I really had no expectations. For me the ship was big enough, with plenty to do (but I can understand how it seems small to people used to the Oasis class ships). We grabbed lunch in the Windjammer - perfectly decent food.

 

By then it was after 1pm, and we were allowed into our room. I had booked a Junior Suite - because I really wanted a balcony:

 

 

(our room before we had the bed split into two twin beds)

 

 

(view from the bed, facing the balcony)

 

 

(balcony)

 

 

(balcony opposite view)

 

 

(bathroom)

 

more to come...

[Tigerss]

Day Two:

 

We arrived in Nassau to a cloudy day. We had no set plans (which in hindsight I'm very happy we did it that way). We left the ship about an hour after they started letting people off. The line was long but moved VERY fast (that was a trend I noticed throughout the cruise, even if there was line - we never waited more than 5 minutes to do anything). We strolled around the shopping area of Nassau and went to the pirate museum (my nephew is a HUGE pirate fan so I took a bunch of pictures for him). The museum itself was cute, its nothing extremely special, but it was well done, and well maintained. If you have children who are big pirate fans, I definitely recommend it.

 

At times there were downpours, however being a recent resident of Florida, I am used to my day being interrupted by sudden downpours. The weather didn't affect my enjoyment (I do feel bad for those with excursions where it may have been affected).

 

Day 3 - The Big Day!!!

 

Coco Cay was the part of the cruise I was MOST excited for. I love the ocean, I love the sun (my skin and subsequent sunburn may not agree - but well worth it ). We took one of the first tenders off the ship. Again a decent line, but no more than 5 minute wait to board the tender ship. I grew up on boats and have spent some time on research vessels, so I'm used to the rocking movement of waves. If you aren't well experienced, make sure to keep your hands near the rails when boarding, as the gangplank can move and roll.

 

 

(view of the Cabana area from the tender ship).

 

We arrived to Coco Cay and were greeted by wonderful music and bright signs directing us to every place on the island.

 

 

We made our way first to the Cabana area to drop off our stuff:

 

 

More details on the Cabana area. We booked a Clamshell - which was 50 dollars for the two of us. What is included with the Clamshell:

 

- our clamshell (pictures below)

- share the same private area with the cabanas (less traffic, less noise, tons of staff to help you with any questions/needs you may have).

-private bathrooms you share with the spa

- private bar

- two 1 liter bottles of water on ice with cups (you can always got to the bar and ask for a cup of ice water if you need more)

- fruit plate

- 10 dollars off snorkeling per person

- free floating mat rentals

- fantastic staff, they bend over backwards to help you in anything you need

- a wonderful buffet, all your meats are cooked specifically to order, thus are fresh.

- NO lines for the buffet

- private tables with umbrellas to eat at

 

Its just a wonderfully quiet place to get away, and not have a care in the world. The snorkeling beach is right behind you, where you can snorkel, swim, float away on the mats, etc.

 

We left all our stuff there - without any concerns. The staff will keep an eye on it for you.

 

(front entrance area of the Cabana area with the bar to the right)

 

(our clamshell - plenty of room for two people, some have screens in a few of the sections, all can be lifted upwards to provide more sun protection)

 

(one of the big cabanas)

 

more pics to come...

[Tigerss]

(the new huts that are being built, looks like they plan on expanding/upgrading the cabana area)

 

(standing with back to the huts being built - looking at the cabana area)

 

 

 

 

(the buffet - the grill with a chef is just off to the right out of the picture)

 

 

 

(view of the snorkeling beach)

[Tigerss]

Day 3 continued:

 

We really felt the money for the Clamshell was worth it. You received 10 dollars off each for the snorkeling equipment and free floating mat rentals. So even if you were planning on using one of those (let alone two), the overall cost ends up being 30 dollars.

 

As we were one of the first tenders, the snorkeling area was relatively empty. We dropped off our stuff and rented our snorkeling gear. Is the place full of brightly colored reefs and exotic fish? no. Is the place full of interesting things to see and tons of people friendly fish thus providing a fun experience? yes. I suspect the fish are hand fed, as at times we were literally swimming in schools of larger fish, that did not swim away. They tended to hang out and see what we were doing (great opportunities if you have an underwater camera - we didn't have one). The place I personally saw this happen most was way out by the airplane wreck.

 

I am not the most experienced snorkeler, but I felt completely safe, they have 3 lifeguards staffed out in the middle of the snorkeling area on tall roosts with waverunners waiting at the bottom.

 

After about an hour of snorkeling we decided to call it quits and headed back to the cabana area. We went on a tour of the island (the water activity area looked like a blast! as well was the water slide!) and checked out the Coco Cay straw market.

 

Side note: we went to the Nassau straw market. Overall, you will find the same trinkets (literally exactly the same - though Nassau has a bigger selection) at both the Nassau straw market and the coco cay straw market. If you are a good bargainer, you can get a better deal on trinkets at the Nassau straw market (For example a wooden fish I bargained down to 10 dollars at Nassau was 15 at coco cay). However, the clothes/dresses/tee-shirts are much higher better quality at the Coco Cay market. My mother purchased a really cute Bahamas tee-shirt for 5 dollars at Coco Cay (you wouldn't pay less at Nassau and the shirt was much better quality).

 

By the time we returned the buffet was ready and we had lunch. Lunch was great. My understanding is it is similar/same food as you can get at the main buffet on Coco Cay - just minus the long lines and with made to order meats. There was plenty of tables to eat at, while a few tables were occupied throughout the whole buffet time, never were all full. Plus you can always eat at the bar if you can't find a table.

 

After lunch we laid out, and then borrowed the complimentary floating mats and drifted around in the ocean. We decided to return to the ship around 230pm (we arrived about 9am, and had some events we wanted to attend that afternoon).

[iloverags2]

Ah, CocoCay. So peaceful!

[Tigerss]

Overall Thoughts:

 

Dining: Each night we did My Time Dining - and met wonderful people that we tended to see throughout the cruise. One of the most unique experience of the cruise was being able to meet people of different ages, with different backgrounds, who live in different places. It was wonderful to find both common connections and hear about new experiences. Complete highlight of the trip

 

Staff: I never met a staff member who didn't bend over backwards to make your experience more enjoyable. I also noted that continuously the maintenance staff was working. Be it painting or cleaning, they were always out and about working on improving the ship. The Monarch of the Seas may be one of the oldest ships (and retiring soon), but they still take great care in keeping it maintained and looking good.

 

Shows: The shows were enjoyable. On this cruise they had a comedian, a comedian/juggler (sounds like a weird combo, but it completely works and had the audience laughing throughout), and the cruise ship singers and dancers (who put on a great show the last night). The Love and Marriage game show had me in tears laughing so hard.

 

Activities: The ship really seemed to have something for everyone. There were so many events each day/night, that you couldn't possibly do them all. There really seemed to be something for everyone. You could do as much or as little as you wanted.

 

Kids: I would see teenagers throughout the ship, but they were all well behaved and having a great time with each other. We were staying on deck 10, where there is a small open play area with toddler toys, it was adorable to see parents hanging out with their kids playing with the toys. The kids activities seemed to last all night. We were on the same floor as the kids area (the teenager area was one floor up) and sometimes as we were heading to bed (We aren't wicked late nighters) we could still hear kids playing.

 

Additional show note: On our ship there was two performance groups. A youth dance troupe (only caught part of one of their shows - but it was fantastic) and a high school marching band from Missouri (I think). Those kids (and their chaperones/band director) spent 24 hours on a bus traveling to the port. Their show was outstanding (as a high school band alumni - they had a very well performed and high difficulty show). The best part was the look of excitement on these kids faces as they performed. If you have time, I highly recommend checking out when any special groups are performing on your cruise and go see them. These kids have most likely been training/practicing for months for their one performance on the ship. The bigger the audience the better.

 

 

If anyone made it through my wall of text - thank you and I hope this helped in some way. I brought home all of my compass flyers. If anyone would like copies of them, let me know and I can scan them (don't want to take the time to scan them if not needed, but I did keep them just in case).

[NorthCarolinaBelle]

Tigerss, thank you for a great review!!

[PathfinderEss]

Thanks for taking the time to write and post a review of your cruise. Glad you had a good time, great pictures.

[vivavegas]

Sounds like you had a good time! Thanks for taking the time to write your review and share with us! Nice pictures too!:)

[WeIsCruisin]

Thanks for the tips on the clamshells. Could you post the pictures of the Compasses? We are going on the Monarch on July 20th.

[dacsmom]

Thanks for the great review. I was on the Monarch in May and CoCo Cay was my favorite port. I like the idea of the clamshells. I did not want to pay the price for a cabana but the clamshell looks perfect.