B2B ~ Independence ~ April 20th & 26th: My Diary

[Tropicalgal2]

Jane,

Thanks so much for your reviews. They are SO helpful to all who read them. Look forward to your Freedom review too! :D

[Ocean Boy]

 

As always' date=' I will end this thread with a toast to all our cruise buddies.....live and VICARIOUS. We so enjoy cruising with you.[/color'] This was a great two weeks and we look forward to doing this again when the Indy returns to this side of the pond.

 

 

MAYBE some day we can cruise together and actually be on the same ship!.:p

[maxs mom]

Jane

 

 

Just caught up with your cruise report, fantastic as always . Al , Phyliss , John and yourself are looking well as is George.

 

Hope to cruise with you guys in the future.

 

 

Bryce

 

Bryce! So good to hear from you! We had the best time chatting with you on Facebook while we were sitting at the pool at the Marriott in St. Kitts!

 

We have GOT to all cruise together again. Would be so fun!

[maxs mom]

Jane,

Thanks so much for your reviews. They are SO helpful to all who read them. Look forward to your Freedom review too! :D

 

Thanks so much! Always good to hear from you!!

[maxs mom]

MAYBE some day we can cruise together and actually be on the same ship!.:p

 

OB.....That would be so fun! Let's do it!

[Oma 1]

Enjoyed the review. We'll be on Indy next April.

[smelly]

Sunday ~ May 4th ~ Fort Lauderdale to Port Canaveral

 

Up very early this morning (5AM). Grabbed some coffee in the CL. We finished up our packing. We were proud of ourselves for doing a good job yesterday......not much left to do this morning.

 

We had early tags and would be called off first after the walk offs....supposedly at 7 AM.

 

We went on down to the dining room on deck 4 around 6:45.....and sure enough' date=' we were off at 7 as promised! Disembarkation was a breeze as far as those go. Everything moved along very quickly.....good thing because we were a little anxious about getting to our car (which we hoped was still there), repacking our suitcases, and getting on the road to Port C.

 

Everything went very smoothly and we were on the road by 8. We stopped at a McDonald's along the way and got breakfast.

 

We pulled into the Park and Cruise on Merritt Island, where we had reservations, at about 11:45. Not bad!

 

Apparently, I was very negligent about making any pictures of this process!! I'm slipping. But we were very pleased at how everything went. We were able to get on board Freedom just a little later than we usually would have, had we spent the night in Port C.

 

I'll start a new thread for the Freedom cruise, so please stop by in there and say hello! (We actually went in search of the real Mud Pie there!)

 

As always, I will end this thread with a toast to all our cruise buddies.....live and vicarious. We so enjoy cruising with you. This was a great two weeks and we look forward to doing this again when the Indy returns to this side of the pond.

 

Not sure when we are cruising again except for the Jewel in Nov/Dec, so stay tuned. I'm sure we'll find something in the meantime! (Right, Al and Phyllis?)

 

So ........cheers! And thanks for reading!

 

 

Loved your review. Thank you. Can't wait to read your next one

[maxs mom]

Oma.....thanks so much! They are fun to do and help me re-live the trip!

 

Smelly....hopefully the Freedom review will be started either tonight or tomorrow. Stay tuned.

[kruzerci]

Oma.....thanks so much! They are fun to do and help me re-live the trip!

 

Smelly....hopefully the Freedom review will be started either tonight or tomorrow. Stay tuned.

 

Jane I loved the review. Freedom is our favorite ship and we are giving the Indy a try next year.

 

Without spoiling the Freeodm review, how did the two stack up? Did you prefer one? It looks like Freedom gets much better reviews, so I'm curious what you thought.

 

We booked Independence with your suggestion of the Marriott in St. Kitts in mind so I'm excited to try a new port :).

Edited May 28, 2014 by kruzerci

[The Big Booper]

Been busy with some post tax season work that had to be done before our June 9 Vision cruise so I finally got back to your thread today.

 

We will be bookending your Nov-Dec Jewel trip with our own b2b on the Jewel in July and our just booked Jewel California Coastal in Sept 2015 from Vancouver to LA. Jewel is the only Radiance class ship we haven't been on.

[maxs mom]

Jane I loved the review. Freedom is our favorite ship and we are giving the Indy a try next year.

 

Without spoiling the Freeodm review, how did the two stack up? Did you prefer one? It looks like Freedom gets much better reviews, so I'm curious what you thought.

 

We booked Independence with your suggestion of the Marriott in St. Kitts in mind so I'm excited to try a new port :).

 

Hey...thanks so much!

 

Well.....to be honest......we much prefer Independence, but they are basically the same ship. There are some things that we like better on Freedom, though. I think we just have more friends among the Indy staff and crew and that makes a huge difference. There are some things that Freedom does differently than other ships and I guess I just don't like change.

 

When you go to St. Kitts......beware of the guys with the little monkeys in the port area. They will put a monkey on your back before you know it and want twenty dollars to take him off! St. Kitts is beautiful. A day at the Marriott is so relaxing!!

[maxs mom]

Been busy with some post tax season work that had to be done before our June 9 Vision cruise so I finally got back to your thread today.

 

We will be bookending your Nov-Dec Jewel trip with our own b2b on the Jewel in July and our just booked Jewel California Coastal in Sept 2015 from Vancouver to LA. Jewel is the only Radiance class ship we haven't been on.

 

I love the Jewel! Sounds like you have some great cruises booked. I hope Capt. Gustavo is on board when we are. Have fun on Vision!

Edited May 28, 2014 by max'smom

[Ocean Boy]

Hey...thanks so much!

 

Well.....to be honest......we much prefer Independence' date=' but they are basically the same ship. There are some things that we like better on Freedom, though. I think we just have more friends among the Indy staff and crew and that makes a huge difference. There are some things that Freedom does differently than other ships and I guess I just don't like change.

When you go to St. Kitts......beware of the guys with the little monkeys in the port area. They will put a monkey on your back before you know it and want twenty dollars to take him off! St. Kitts is beautiful. A day at the Marriott is so relaxing!!

 

You and I will get along better than you could imagine.

[maxs mom]

You and I will get along better than you could imagine.

 

LOL!! I think you're right!!

[chellecruise12]

Thank you for your review!! We are on Indy for the 1st time next March for an 8 night. Any suggestions in San Juan for the short port day? We have never been there before..

[maxs mom]

Thank you for your review!! We are on Indy for the 1st time next March for an 8 night. Any suggestions in San Juan for the short port day? We have never been there before..

 

Great....the 8 night is a great cruise.

 

I think a lot of people love to go to the fort. It's really neat. I remember going there years ago and loving it. If you are in good shape, you can walk all over Old San Juan and just enjoy the architecture. There is a tram that you can get from one place to another, but we have never used it. There are lots of great shops and stores for shopping.

[chellecruise12]

Great....the 8 night is a great cruise.

 

I think a lot of people love to go to the fort. It's really neat. I remember going there years ago and loving it. If you are in good shape' date=' you can walk all over Old San Juan and just enjoy the architecture. There is a tram that you can get from one place to another, but we have never used it. There are lots of great shops and stores for shopping.[/size']

 

Super!! Thank you!!

[cruiselife4me]

Max's Mom-

Thank you for a great read! I've cruised on Liberty but not the Indy. May have to book that when we're onboard Adventure!

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[maxs mom]

Here is the link to our next week on the Freedom. I have just got it up and running! Please stop by and say hello over there! Thanks for reading!

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2048856

[descotes]

 

Back to the cabin and our luggage had arrived' date=' so we were able to get unpacked. We put a couple of luggage tags on a case of water, and that arrived, too![/font']

 

 

 

 

Can you bring a case of water on all RCI cruises? If so why do I need the water package? We are going on the Freedom in July. Can I bring it on with me or do I have to put it with the luggage?

 

Thanks

[maxs mom]

Can you bring a case of water on all RCI cruises? If so why do I need the water package? We are going on the Freedom in July. Can I bring it on with me or do I have to put it with the luggage?

 

Thanks

 

You always run the risk of them saying no. We've taken a few bottles on board in our carry on before, but the last few cruises we've just put a luggage tag on a case and sent it up with the luggage. If it goes through, great....but if not....no big deal. We've never had a problem. I think their prices for water are a little ridiculous.

[mamabear79]

Hi - Can you tell me the cab fare to Palm Beach? Myself, dh and dd are thinking of going there when we're on Indy for Thanksgiving. I've never been to Orient beach and I don't care for crowds. This looks perfect. Thanks in advance!

[maxs mom]

Hi - Can you tell me the cab fare to Palm Beach? Myself, dh and dd are thinking of going there when we're on Indy for Thanksgiving. I've never been to Orient beach and I don't care for crowds. This looks perfect. Thanks in advance!

 

It is $7 pp. The cab drivers always want to drop you off on the opposite side of the beach, but they will take you to Palm Beach after they drop others off there. Be sure and tell them you want to go to Palm Beach. It's all the way at the other end. It takes about 4 or 5 more minutes to get there. hope you enjoy it!!

[mamabear79]

Thank you! We can't wait!

 

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[Dorset Cruiser]

Hello All!

 

Well.....Max's Mom and Dad...aka Jane and John.....are back from another cruise...or two....or three!! It all started with finding a great price on the April 26th cruise on Indy....so we booked that and called our good cruise buddies (Al and Phyllis in Orlando) and they booked' date=' too. A few weeks went by and we found a great price on the April 20th cruise as well....so we booked that. Then right before we left The May 4th sailing of the Freedom dropped.....so WTH....we booked that, too. (Love the Book & Go!!)

 

So off we drive to Florida from North Carolina, stopping in Jacksonville on the way down. We ended up at the Days Inn at the FLL airport where we found a great price for a room and we left our car there for two weeks....no charge. Worked out great.

 

We are D+ cruisers and have been cruising with RCI for 29 years. We are both retired now, so it's fun taking advantage of some last minute price drops. We've gotten some great deals this year.

 

There was a small outbreak of norovirus on the Indy the week before our cruise, so our embarkation was delayed until 1:30. RCI notified everyone by phone call, text, and e-mail. Looks like everyone got the message because when we arrived at Pier 29 a little after one, there was only a small crowd there.

 

 

Even with all that notification, we met a family at the hotel that had no clue about the delay! Amazing!

 

Fortunately our D+ status got us into the zip line and we got very close to the door. They opened up promptly at 1:30 and we quickly got through security, then up to the check in counter, then on to the ship. There was a guy at the check in counter that was part of the sanitation team. He would go and wipe down each counter after each person checked in.....seriously!!

 

 

As soon as we boarded we went up one level to Deck 5 and found a comfy place to sit in the Champagne Bar. We got notices that the cabins would not be open until 4:00 because of all the deep cleaning that needed to be done. no problem.....I was glad that they kept us very informed about all of this. So we got settled in, got some snacks, and were OK there. I went on up to Chops and made our reservations there, then back down to the My Time Dining desk and got our reservations there for the rest of the week....no problem at either place.

 

We had too many carry ons to go to the Windjammer, so we just stayed right there at the CB and I got ham and cheese croissants from the Café Promenade for us for lunch.

 

Promptly at 4 they said we could go to our cabins. We were able to snag one of the big family ocean view cabins for this leg at a great price. Our cabin this week is 9200.....allllllll the way forward overlooking the helipad. Something different. This cabin is huge! It sleeps six. We had two big porthole type windows, a very large king sized bed....bigger than other cabins. There is a separate sleeping area as soon as you come in the door with two bunk beds. Also a large sleeper sofa and another sitting area by the windows. We were quite happy with this cabin! We even each had our own closet and one left over!

 

 

 

 

 

This cabin was great. I would not hesitate to book this category again. The only thing is that it is a loooooong ass walk to anywhere!!! Even farther than to the aft. but we managed!

 

We had one of the family cabins a couple of years ago. Great cabin but I ended up having to have 6 months intensive physio on my knee due to all the walking from one end of the ship to the other.