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“It’s Been a Lovely Cruise!” Majesty of the Seas 4-Nt Bahamas Review & Pics May 6 '13

LuckiStac13*Majesty*
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LuckiStac13*Majesty*

LuckiStac13*Majesty*

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I think finally around 2:00, we decided to head back to the ship and hit the pool. We relaxed there for the rest of the afternoon and then listened to One Love play as we sailed away from Key West. Now is when the depression starts setting in, trying to figure out where I can hide on this ship so that they won’t find me. Dyre said that he could hire me as his assistant—but I said that I don’t want to WORK, I want to CRUISE! He just laughed…nice guy, always laughing. I enjoy people like that. He mentioned during one of our conversations that he likes gummy bears and also that he has a collection of magnets and postcards from his travels, so in KW I grabbed him some gummy alligators, 2 postcards and a magnet for his collection to leave with his Gratuity Envelope. We also turned in a WOW Card for him. I think he really appreciated it, and I was glad to do it. I believe that sometimes it’s the little things that gets you through the day, small things you can do for people that may help or make them smile at least.

 

One last look at Majesty:

 

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LuckiStac13*Majesty*

LuckiStac13*Majesty*

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At about 3 a.m., I was in a dead sleep when the all the drawers in my chest and in the other room flew open. The bathroom door came flying open then slammed shut. I thought, what the...??? Then I saw some pretty intense lightning so there must’ve been a storm going on out there. The ship was swaying from side to side. I figured we were pretty close to the channel going into the POM, but I didn’t go out to check. Went back to sleep immediately, and then….

 

Friday, May 10th, 2013

Day 5, Miami, FL

 

Drink of the Day: Water 

No Song of the Day

 

I woke up for good and It’s all over. Time to get up, get ready, and GET. OUT. Ha! I always get a kick out of this routine, how when it’s time to go, it’s time to GO. They want you off the ship quickly. Then another, brand new group of cruisers, brimming with excitement, climbs onboard and sleeps in your same bed. Sits on your same balcony. How can this be??!

 

We took early debarkation tags, and I had arranged SAS to pick us up around 8:30-9, so we just went down to Deck 4 and walked off the ship. I don’t like hearing that last “ding” of the Seapass card. That is a bad, bad sound.

 

We went down into the terminal to grab our bags, which only took about 15 minutes, had the same porter again (!!), and soon we were on our way. I called Steve with SAS as we were walking out of the building and he said he was sending a van to pick us up right away. It was a madhouse, but the driver found us within about 10 minutes. We had to go back to pick up a couple from the Carnival ship that was also docked, and we were off for Ft. Lauderdale aiport to pickup our rental car for the remaining 2 days of our vacation in Ft. Lauderdale.

I would highly recommend SAS Transportation. We have used them several times and they are always reliable, professional, and quick. They charge $15 per person from the POM to the FLL Airport.

 

My review will basically end here. We picked up our rental car and enjoyed two more beautiful days in the Ft. Lauderdale Beach area before flying home on Sunday, Mothers Day. We chose the Bahia Mar for the final leg of our vacation and absolutely loved our stay with them. The location is perfect as the beach is right across the street, and they have a nice pool area as well. We alternated between the pool and beach, and generally just hung around, went out to dinner, and visited one of our favorite spots, Lauderdale By The Sea a couple of times. It was a great way to end a vacation, though I was sad to see it end as this is one of the best vacations I’ve ever had. It was great from start to finish.

 

The Majesty still has it. She is still magical. Though the crew is different than what I remember (not bad, just different), and some aspects of the ship have changed through the years and with her refurbishment, she is still a gem and I feel blessed to have been able to sail on her again. When she completes her cruising life with Royal Caribbean and moves on to Pulmantur, I will be sad, that will be difficult to watch, but nothing lasts forever. I hope she still has many great sailings ahead of her before that time comes. I did ask while onboard and was told that she is staying in the fleet until 2015, so I hope that is accurate. I may be able to jump on her at least once before she leaves. I’d like to do one last B2B on her, that would be great! We’ll see what the future holds.

 

I really hope you guys have enjoyed this review. I realize I didn’t review the shows or the food, so if anyone has any specific questions, please let me know and I’d be happy to answer to the best of my ability.

 

Couple things before I close:

 

1) Shops were stocked with all kinds of cool stuff, but barely any “Majesty of the Seas” shirts, hats, etc. They must not be making any more of that stuff. When we used to sail her, that logo shop would be jammed full of t-shirts, hats, jackets, hoodies, etc. I could open a store with all of my “Majesty of the Seas” memorabilia!! But at least they had ornaments, magnets, key chains, ship models, lanyards, mugs, cups, travel items, etc. We stocked up on the mugs in case we don’t get to sail her again. I wanted to get a new hat, but there were no nice ones.

 

2) Never got pics of the shops this time or of the rock wall or the basketball court. I have spent many nights on that court shooting hoops in the past, so I am disappointed that I didn’t get any pictures this time. Just slipped my mind.

 

3) Viking Crown Lounge-went up there once and did not take any pics, unfortunately

 

4) They took Ben and Jerry’s out! It used to be by the Shops, on Deck 5. I went to get a scoop of ice cream, and some other strange café was there. I wanted Ben and Jerry’s! That surprised me a bit..must have not been selling it?

 

 

5) The new brown pool decking on Deck 11….W…..T……….H……were they thinking? I have never stepped on such a hot surface in my life. I literally burned the bottoms of my feet going from my chair in the first row to the pool. 5 ft! Bring back the blue/green carpeting, that was best. Or there has to be something else they can use that is better. I heard many people commenting on it.

 

6) Visited the casino a few times, but…I’m at work today so the outcome was not what I was hoping for.

 

7) Hot tubs jammed the entire time. I wasn’t going in one anyway (I’m leary) but why do people get in there and sit for hours? I’m talking even at night, when no one used to be up there at all. You couldn’t get in one if you tried.

 

8) I still miss the good old days of all those good desserts. I wish Royal would improve that aspect of things. Many gelatin-based options. However obviously I did not go hungry…just ate more donuts ;)

 

9) Bar servers. I was literally ignored twice when I was standing at the Pool Bar waiting to order drinks. Because I am female? 2 separate times I approached the bar, it wasn’t busy, and both times it was like I wasn’t there. I had to go to the other side and ASK if I could order drinks. I saw some bad attitudes with this crew. But the majority were great.

 

Okay, I think that covers it. I’m just nit-picking with my negatives, really. It was a fantastic cruise and I can’t wait to go again.

 

Any questions, let me know! Thanks again for hanging in with me and for all the nice comments and posts.

 

I will leave you with the theme of this review, Jimmy Buffet’s “Lovely Cruise” lyrics in case you’d like to read them:

 

Drink it up

This ones for you

It's been a lovely cruise

I'm sorry it's ended

It's sad but it's true

Honey it's been a lovely cruise

 

These moments we’re left with

May you always remember

These moments are shared by few

There's wind in our hair

And there's water in our shoes

Honey, it's been a lovely cruise

 

These moments we're left with

May you always remember

These moments are shared by few

 

And those harbor lights

Aw, they're coming into view

We bid our farewell, much too soon

 

So drink it up

This one's for you

Honey, it's been a lovely cruise

Yeah baby, it's been a lovely cruise

Oh darlin' it's been a lovely cruise

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Ocean Boy

Ocean Boy

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Great write-up. I really enjoyed seeing Key West as well as Coco Cay.

 

There are not many worse feelings than reading the sign at the gangway and the next port of call is.... the ship's home port. And then to rub it in you get to your cabin and find all that "as you depart" information. But the ending always comes. Hopefully, we will both find our way back to sea soon. :) It is one place that I always find peace. Get the Chesney CD I mentioned. It helps bring me back to the magic of the Caribbean for a few minutes when I really need it.

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KeywestK

KeywestK

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Stacey, thank you so much for your great review and all the fabulous pics!!! Key West is one of my all time favorite places on the planet (ergo my CC name!) so seeing all the pics made me happy....also sad, as I have't been there in a few years:(

 

I'm really glad you were able to highlight so well how special the older and smaller ships can still provide a fabulous cruising experience. Thanks again!:)

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odiesam

odiesam

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Thanks again for the great review!

 

Do you have a recommendation for our pre-cruise (Majesty) 2 day stay? We are flying in to Miami - no car; enjoy laying on the beach or by the pool. Any recommendations?

 

Thanks again - more excited to sail the Majesty!

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LuckiStac13*Majesty*

LuckiStac13*Majesty*

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Great write-up. I really enjoyed seeing Key West as well as Coco Cay.

 

There are not many worse feelings than reading the sign at the gangway and the next port of call is.... the ship's home port. And then to rub it in you get to your cabin and find all that "as you depart" information. But the ending always comes. Hopefully, we will both find our way back to sea soon. :) It is one place that I always find peace. Get the Chesney CD I mentioned. It helps bring me back to the magic of the Caribbean for a few minutes when I really need it.

 

Thanks, glad you got to see a little bit of CocoCay and KW. I hope we both find our way back out soon, too. I feel at peace when I am out there, too. No feeling like it.

 

I bought the KC CD on itunes that you recommended, haven't had a chance to listen yet. Over the weekend, for sure!

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LuckiStac13*Majesty*

LuckiStac13*Majesty*

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Stacey, thank you so much for your great review and all the fabulous pics!!! Key West is one of my all time favorite places on the planet (ergo my CC name!) so seeing all the pics made me happy....also sad, as I have't been there in a few years:(

 

I'm really glad you were able to highlight so well how special the older and smaller ships can still provide a fabulous cruising experience. Thanks again!:)

 

Karen, thanks again. I noticed your CC name and thought that you must love KW. It's such a neat place.

 

You will make your way there soon, don't be sad!

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Aquahound

Aquahound

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Thank you sir! You were so kind to lend me your RFS for the week, but I must ask....will you let me stay in it again? I LOVED THAT CABIN!

 

Lol! Consider it yours. One of the JSs was named the Mario Suite, so I see no reason why we can't rename yours. From now on RFS stands for Reserved For Stacy. :D

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LuckiStac13*Majesty*

LuckiStac13*Majesty*

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Thanks again for the great review!

 

Do you have a recommendation for our pre-cruise (Majesty) 2 day stay? We are flying in to Miami - no car; enjoy laying on the beach or by the pool. Any recommendations?

 

Thanks again - more excited to sail the Majesty!

 

Hi, I can recommend something as I've stayed in Miami many times. I wish you were flying into FLL as I'd want you to stay at the Crowne Plaza in Hollywood. You would really enjoy their pool area.

 

I do not care for South Beach or Miami Beach, so if you wanted something in that area I really couldn't help. I have always stayed downtown, or have gone to the FLL area.

 

As far as downtown Miami, if you are okay staying there, I would recommend either the Intercontinental Miami on Chopin Plaza (though it can get a little pricey) or the Doubletree Grand Biscayne Bay. The Hyatt Regency is also very nice but their pool area is smaller.

 

With the Intercontinental, you could spend 2 days easy there as you can walk safely to Bayside Marketplace for dinners. Are you familiar with that at all?

 

IC also has a nice pool area overlooking Biscayne Bay and you can see the ships docked. Same with the Doubletree Grand. With the Doubletree, you'd want to take a quick taxi to Bayside and back.

 

More specific questions, let me know, and I understand if you're looking for something more on Miami Beach. That part I can't really help with.

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smeck

smeck

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I can't believe I forgot this....my absolute favorite picture of the trip.

 

 

 

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I LOVE IT!!

 

Off to softball practice. Maybe later on I will add some more pics from our Ft. Lauderdale stay if anyone is interested.

 

Excellent balanced review, job well done.

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