Review of Enchantment 5/31 3 night cruise

[NJsharon]

Well I think I will post a separate review of where I stayed (Hampton Inn, Cocoa Beach) so look for that soon!

 

We got to the ship at about 10.20am, I had early boarding as I had sprained my ankle pretty badly so was in a wheelchair. Checking in was easy as I had done all the required online check in stuff. Staff were very friendly at Port Canaveral terminal, room you wait in was nicely air conditioned.

 

By about 10.45am we were going on board, (me plus 4 friends who also had priority boarding). Got on board & went straight to Excursions Desk to put our names on list for cabana for Coco Cay, but that did not open until 11.45am. So went to Guest Services to sort out our cabins. Me & another guest had to switch cabins! Pretty big mix up.

 

Guest services were very quick, pleasant to deal with & sorted out our problem efficiently.

 

Got the drink of the day to start our vacation off right. A mai tai in a tall plastic glass which was really good!

 

Then we went back to Excursions to wait on line, 3rd on the line & yes, the 2 parties in front of us were booking cabanas also! We put our name down when it opened up & were told we had to come back for 5pm to see if our name was called & if so we could choose our cabana then.

 

Off then to Spa to book an up-do for Saturday formal, for 4.30pm, so got that booked. Then had lunch at the Park Café (in the solarium) together. I had the create your own salad & it was so good! Loved the Solarium, it was our hidden gem! Was peaceful, quiet, not crowded & not too hot either (heard other complaints about it being hot in here, not what we found).

 

Around 1.30pm we went to check out cabins. Didn't have our luggage yet, but did have our cabins open, so dropped off the hand luggage.

 

I had an oceanview cabin 2088 (category I) & although small was adequate. Only major complaint was that the bathroom was super small & shower had a curtain, which I hate! Friend was on the same deck, same category but had a door to her shower, which was much nicer! Got my soda cup for the unlimited soda drinks.

 

Participated in the muster drill at 3.45pm, which was easy & not too long. Was interested to see you don't have to wear lifejackets now. Always had to do that on other cruise lines. Kind of good & bad to that. Good is that nobody is stepping onto the straps that seem to trail on the ground so not tripping people up. Bad is that I think it is still important to see how to actually get the life jacket on yourself (yes they do show you, but not the same as putting it on yourself).

 

Participated in the spa raffle/giveaway but didn't win. Then at 4.45pm got to the excursion desk to see if we got our cabana. We did! My friend really wanted the beach view, rather than the view over the rocks, so we chose Cabana number 1.

 

Then right after that we met up with my group of friends (there were 7 of us) & got a group photo taken on the stairs.

 

Then time to go get changed for dinner!

 

We had 6pm seating time at Deck 4. Two big tables next to each other 148 and 150 with our waiter Yogesh. He was great! I think I had scallops for my starter, cannot remember my main course or dessert, but it was all great, I remember that!

 

Went to the Welcome Aboard show & compared to other cruise lines I have travelled with (HAL, CCL & Norwegian), I was a wee bit disappointed. Just a very tiny bit of singing/dancing, one short comedy act & then the rest was the cruise director (John Blair) doing/saying things to get the crowd involved. Just would have liked more singing/dancing, but more info about the ship, activities coming up etc. But friends that were first timers enjoyed it!

 

Signed up for the slot tournament & I think I did bingo the first night too? Did the machine where you pay around $30 for 24 cards to play one game. Not bad I thought. But didn't win! I did got check out Cool Cash Colin's balls though & got a free drink of the day out of it. LOL

 

Played at the casino a little bit that night I think too.

 

SATURDAY was Nassau. Went for breakfast in the Windjammer. I went around 7.30am & had no problem finding a window table. I had a lovely prepared ham & cheese omelette, turkey sausage & some bacon. Turkey sausage was a bit dry & a little bit spicy I thought. But I do like mild non-spicy food.

 

I went on land at Nassau but not for long. Done it many times, so just went to the local supermarket for some groceries (British foods that I miss from back home in England!), Tortuga for some rum cake for the husband & then Del Sol for shirts for my 2 girls (and color changing nail varnish). I did have to wait to get on board the ship as people were still coming off. Waited only about 10-15 mins though & then could go back on board. Took a nap in the afternoon & rested my ankle (as it was badly swollen by this point!).

 

Got changed into my formal dress then limped up to the spa for my updo. My foot was pretty badly swollen still, could just about slip on my shoe for formal night on that foot! Can't remember who did my hair at the spa, but she was a girl from South Africa & she was lovely. She did such a nice job & even put on some special soothing gel that reduces swelling on my leg, ankle & foot too. So sweet of her!

 

Then headed to our formal dinner. I had lobster bisque, again cannot remember my entrée or dessert though. lol But it was all good again!

 

After dinner I went to bed pretty early, did not stay up to watch any shows.

 

My friends went to the Quest show & said it was hilarious! One of the friend's husbands even participated a bit & got 2nd place. LOL

 

SUNDAY was CocoCay. I got up around 7.30am, went to the Park Café & had a lovely breakfast of lightly toasted bagel with salmon cream cheese with smoked salmon on top. Divine! Plus again so peaceful in there! We were anchored by about 7.45am & they started tendering passengers ashore. I left around 8.15am, walked straight onto a tender & then once ashore I went straight to the cabana area.

 

Cabana area was nice, number 1 is right next to the entrance to the Oasis (private cabana area) so good & bad to that. Easy to go in & out of the area, but you had people coming & going right next to your cabana, most of the day. Private bathroom right there, nice big bar right there. Did not have any waiters coming around offering drinks to us, but bar was literally about 12 steps away! Linda checked me in & saw me to the cabana. Had a bottle of champagne on ice, 4 bottles of water & a small fruit plate. My 5 other friends arrived before lunch too. Yes, they advertise 4 per cabana online, but at the excursion desk they told us 6 to a cabana.

 

Went for a walk & got my hair braided. Half head with beads was $50, so gave her $60. Kind of pricey compared to getting hair braided in Nassau, so recommend getting it done there. I think I have paid $40 in the past in Nassau.

 

Lunch was 11.30-1.30am & again, was a private BBQ area, about 30ft away from us, right behind the bar! Got a hot dog which was good, corn on the cob which was good, jerk chicken (waaaay too spicy for most of us!!!) & another fruit plate.

 

Also got a Coco Loco drink from the bar, which was very good & served in a reusable plastic cup with straw.

 

Headed back on a tender around 2.45pm. We had had to wait about 10 mins for a tender, so not too bad, but they packed us in so it was completely full! Had to do a lap around the ship when we got back as there was already a tender unloading.

 

Went to the slot tournament at 4pm, I didn't win, but one of my friends got 2nd place. There wasn't a lot of people competing, it was $25 to enter & I think the 1st prize winner got $140, plus a t-shirt etc.

 

Ran to bingo & lost there. Then got ready for our last dinner night. Dinner was good, I think I had steak (filet piece) & dessert was the bread & butter pudding (very good) & also tiramisu (pretty good)... yes, I couldn't decide so got both!

 

Then went to the farewell show together with friends. That was good, singers & dancers doing screen to show special. So lots of singing & dancing. They performers were great, but choices of songs & choices of shows were a little bizzare, lots of psychedelic songs/backdrops which I had no idea what shows they were??! Then staff/crew came on stage at the end which was nice!

 

Back to cabin to pack & put my suitcase out for disembarking. :(

 

Went to casino & spent too much there, but then I did hit for $1000 on Wheel of Fortune ($1 machine), I was playing with $20 on that machine, so was very happy. Stayed up late gambling & then went for late night snack at the Park Café with friends. I had the cheese pizza which was really good & they had nachos with chili & queso sauce which looked sooo good too! Then bed!

 

I was up at 7am, so got ready & went to Dining Room on deck 4 for breakfast at around 7.45am. Had 2 eggs over easy with bacon. Really good. I asked for table for one & they seated me at a large table with 6 other people, which was actually really nice. Love to chat to other people, so was good.

 

Disembarking was very organized, you had set areas where you wait for your number to be called. I was waiting on deck 6 I think, in the centrum area for a wheelchair. Was off the cruise ship pretty early (soon after they called luggage tags 4). Found my bag on the carousel, cleared customs, then took my shuttle off to the hotel again!

 

All in all a great cruise! Would I cruise with RCI again? Yes! Would I recommend them? I guess so, but preferred HAL or CCL actually.

 

 

Minor things we didn't like:

 

Not able to use your sea pass card in casino & charge it to your room (had never not been able to do that before, always did that on other cruise lines!).

 

Casino was not open 24hrs. I understand being closed when in certain ports or by the USA. But when out at sea?

 

No room service on last morning? There was no note or announcement about this. My friend who was in a junior suite, put the room service card on her door the night before asking for 7-7.30am drop off. 7.40am she looks outside & cabin steward comments that there is no room service on the last day! He could have knocked & told them & they really should have made an announcement or noted that in the paper the day before. Again have ordered room service on other cruise lines on that last morning & no problem.

 

Windjammer was not open 24 hours or for late morning, late afternoon or late night snacks. Used to there being a bigger buffet area open 24hrs.

 

No fan in the cabana. It got a little warm, even in the shade of the cabana on Coco Cay & we said a ceiling fan would have been great. Have even had misting fans in other cabanas, with other cruise lines.

 

Did not see anyone vacuuming carpets on the final morning or cleaning public areas. Always used to seeing them vacuuming, dusting etc on the last night & early morning & just didn't see me, so made me wonder how thoroughly they clean the ship.

 

Friend's cabin was not cleaned! She found an opened bag of Cheetos in her room, jewelry box next to the safe. So obviously the room was not cleaned thoroughly. Bit worrying & wondered if they even bothered to do the sheets!

 

Cabin steward did not greet us by name. A little peeve of mine, but nonetheless I always make a point of greeting the cabin steward, introducing ourselves to them. Then normally greeted by "Hello Miss Sharon, or by Miss 'last name', how was your day?!" Did not receive any chat from our room steward unless I said hello to him & then I got a hello back.

 

 

Overall, just little things wrong. I would go with RCI again, but just not in a hurry. But the company I was on the cruise with, was what made it. Had a great time with them!

 

So that being said, any questions, ask away!!!

[NJsharon]

Wow, sorry it is sooooo long! But hoping it helps some upcoming cruisers!

[Eriksgarden]

We learned about no room service the last day the same way. Why can't they just say it?

[rednancy1]

Nice review. Thank you for sharing. :)

[NJsharon]

View of my cabin from by the door...

 

 

 

View from by the window of our cabin...

 

 

Looking inside our tiny bathroom!!

 

[NJsharon]

Band playing in centrum on formal night...

 

 

 

View of ship when heading on tender to Coco Cay...

 

 

 

Entrance to dock area at Coco Cay...

 

 

 

Welcome to Coco Cay!

 

[NJsharon]

View from inside Cabana number 1 on coco cay...

 

 

 

Sitting area inside the cabana....

 

 

 

 

View from the back of our cabana, you can see the bar straight in front, blue topped building has bathroom in it. Then BBQ was just behind the bar.

 

 

 

Champagne & waters in the cabana...

 

 

View from cabanas (I think by cabana number 4) looking out to sea & the ship!

 

[IslandSpud]

Nice review. Thanks for sharing. Going on Enchantment in July for 4 night. Has there been a change to using sea pass in the casino? Thank you.

[NJsharon]

You can go to the casino cashier & use your sea pass to withdraw money somehow (I didn't do this, but I know a friend did this). But you cannot simply put in the sea pass card & use it basically as a credit card, charging $20 or $100 to your card etc.

 

On other cruise lines I would sit down at a machine, put my card in, create a special code I think & then can choose how much I want to load up to the machine, such as $40. There after I would just sit at a machine, key in my code, & download the money to my machine. It was so easy. Dangerous to the player as you can lose your money quicker! Surprised RCI hasn't adopted that as they could make a bit more money I would think!

[IslandSpud]

Oh ok i got want your saying. Thank you. :-)

[NJsharon]

No problem, glad you understood what I was saying. LOL

[spanky]

Nice review and pictures...I work with someone who was on this cruise and she said her group won the Quest...It was a group of 5 women and 1 guy...not that I don't believe her but do you remember the winners?

 

Also, quick picture question...how do you post pictures in the thread? I tried but apparently the pictures I take are too big...

 

Thanks!

 

dave

[Keith1010]

Nice review.

 

Keith

[NJsharon]

Nice review and pictures...I work with someone who was on this cruise and she said her group won the Quest...It was a group of 5 women and 1 guy...not that I don't believe her but do you remember the winners?

 

Also, quick picture question...how do you post pictures in the thread? I tried but apparently the pictures I take are too big...

 

Thanks!

 

dave

 

 

Heh, I will ask my friends who came in 2nd place, they will know! I did not see the quest show as my ankle was bothering me so went to bed early. I just saw some of the videos on another friend's phone afterwards. LOL but will ask for you!

 

I uploaded the photos to a photo website (photobucket for me) & then clicked on the little icon in the message & added the HTTP address. Had to do one at a time. Took a while!

[island lady]

Thanks for the review Sharon! :)

 

Sounds like we were in totally different areas the whole time. :(

 

No wonder I did not get a chance to meet up with you.

 

Overall, I hope you had a nice cruise! Hope to actually meet

you on a next cruise!

[NJsharon]

Overall had a good cruise, like I said, any cruise is a good cruise!

Hopefully meet up next time!

[hoosierdaddy10]

Thanks for the Review. Perfect timing for us. My wife and I will be on the Enchantment in two days for the 3 day cruise.

 

We were planning on trying for a cabana on Coco Cay. It sounds like you didn't enjoy them. I'm second guessing my decision now. Do you think getting one that is not near the entrence would make it more secluded and worth the money?

[NJsharon]

Oh we loved the cabana, but yes, would advice getting number 4 or higher, along the rocky waterfront. Then that is a bit more private. I think you would also get some breeze off the water too, so would be nice.

 

Would do the cabana again there if we ever stopped at Coco Cay, it was worth the extra!

[Mande30]

Thanks for the pictures of the cabana. We are considering one for next year. Great review!!!

[poncho1973]

Thanks! Nice review and very helpful.

 

 

 

On a side note... I read your line about booking an "up do" at the salon and went "New Jersey?" in my head... scrolled up... YUP! Hehehehe

[NJsharon]

Thanks! Nice review and very helpful.

 

 

 

On a side note... I read your line about booking an "up do" at the salon and went "New Jersey?" in my head... scrolled up... YUP! Hehehehe

 

 

That is funny! I am actually from England, but guess I have been in NJ too long! LOL

[NJsharon]

Thanks for the pictures of the cabana. We are considering one for next year. Great review!!!

 

 

Thank you!! I definitely recommend the cabanas & would do one again for sure!

[hoosierdaddy10]

Thanks for all of the help. We had a Cabana last weekend and loved it. We took Number 7 and thought it was the best. It was completly private. No one else could see inside. It was the best thing we did all cruise.

 

We did get lucky though. I didn't realize that you had to be present at 4:30-5:00 when they called out who were lucky enough to get a cabana. We just happened to be walking by around that time and were checking to see if we were one of the lucky ones. I asked one of the other pasengers standing around if there were there to check to see if they had a cabana and he informed me they were going through the list just then. There were a couple of names called out that went unanswered. They next called out my stateroom number. If I hadn't came by then I would not have gotten our cabana.

[drarill]

Great review!! Thanks for sharing!!:):)