Enchantment of the Seas August 4th-8th Preview and Review

[kwazi07]

After one last walk before the cruise!!!

Our room.

Pretty nice bathroom with the tiny shower (not pictured).

The balcony was much bigger than I thought and almost as big as the Hampton one.

Our room faced the 'industrial' side of Port Canaveral.

[kwazi07]

Formal night.

Turtle!!!

Seagulls hitched a rise from CocoCay to Nassau.

Nexus Band singer and drummer.

Marc at Captain's Reception.

Captain Gus at the Captain's Reception.

[kwazi07]

Some of the officers.

Parade of flags.

The start of the 70s party.

People got really involved in the 70s party. It was kinda scary.

 

 

There are more pictures to come, but they will come as I post about them.

[kwazi07]

Compii

[kwazi07]

Edited August 14, 2014 by kwazi07
why is there an aquarium?!?!

[kwazi07]

[AlexanderBeetle]

Great review so far. We are sailing Enchantment in October.

 

So you had 5 on the cruise, did you get two balcony cabins or try to squeeze into 1?

[kwazi07]

Great review so far. We are sailing Enchantment in October.

 

So you had 5 on the cruise, did you get two balcony cabins or try to squeeze into 1?

 

We had one balcony on deck 7 and an OV on deck 3. Very nice arrangememt. My sis, mom and I are all very clean and OCD while my brother and dad are messy. We bad the balcony ;)

[AlexanderBeetle]

We had one balcony on deck 7 and an OV on deck 3. Very nice arrangememt. My sis, mom and I are all very clean and OCD while my brother and dad are messy. We bad the balcony ;)

 

That's a good way to do it. We are a family of 5 already and have been thinking of the various options available when the whole family goes on a trip.

[kwazi07]

Day 3: Nassau

We woke up pretty early. We saw Atlantis and the little lighthouse. It felt like all of the TRs I read were coming true.

 

We had a nice view of downtown Nassau.

 

We ate breakfast at the Windjammer. The Windjammer is so much better than the Lido Buffets on Carnival. While eating breakfast we watched the Norwegian Sky and Gem pull in. Later, the Carnival Fantasy pulled in blocking our view of Nassau :(

[kwazi07]

Next, we went off of the ship. After getting a map at the visitors center, my sister got her hair braided by one of the *certified* hair braiders. Not really sure what makes them better :rolleyes:

After that we sat in Rawson square getting our bearings. We then continued to Queens staircase. It was a little longer than I thought but was not far at all. When we were walking, it started raining. We got lost and his under a spiral staircase to some house to wait the rain out. The staircase was impressive and very steep.

Once at the top we walked to Fort Fincastle.

However when we saw the $1 entrance fee we decided not to go. Earlier in the year we went to Fort Pulaski near Savannah Georgia. Fort Pulaski was much more impressive and we decided that we would rather save the time and money. We did have a good view of the ships from the top of the hill.

We walked back down Queens Staircase. It was actually pretty scary going down!!!!

We walked back to the ship to eat lunch. It was pretty quiet. On the way back we saw a cool policeman.

[kwazi07]

That's it for now. Tomorrow is my first day of high school (a 'freshie or 'fresh meat' according to some juniors I met in the elevators near the teen club and Adventure Ocean), so I am preparing. I'm a little nervous TBH. I get back from school around 2 P.M. maybe for then.

 

As always, if you have any questions ask!

[SMN73]

That's it for now. Tomorrow is my first day of high school (a 'freshie or 'fresh meat' according to some juniors I met in the elevators near the teen club and Adventure Ocean), so I am preparing. I'm a little nervous TBH. I get back from school around 2 P.M. maybe for then.

 

As always, if you have any questions ask!

 

Enjoy your first day!! Everyone was new once and you aren't alone.. Everyone in your grade will be nervous tomorrow. You'll get the hang of it quickly. Have fun!!

[kwazi07]

Very sorry for no recent posts, school is crazy!!!

After eating lunch, we changed and went swimming for a but. My sister and I also went 'exploring' again. We really love the Viking Crown (feels like we are President Snow looking over the Capitol from the Hunger Games--we are fanatics) and the R Bar area (not the bar, of course. The chairs are comfy). This time, we got two pastries from Cafe Lattetudes. Some are good and some not so. The espresso brownies are quite good but not very espresso-ey. The cookies are OK. The mandarin oranges crumble cake was awesome. But the worst was the chocolate chip scone. Hard as a rock and I could feel the granulated sugar crunching under my teeth.

 

After swimming and exploring, we decided to do the bungee cord (I have done many of these at local fairs and was looking forward to doing it for free). On the first day, we forgot to register for the bungee cord. We did register for the rock wall. So, due to our ignorance, we had to stand in the HOT sun, dripping sweat. Once on it was fun and I had a GREAT view. I was at first disappointed I didn't have one over the bow, but o loved the one facing the pool because I could see Nassau! I could even see Fort Fincastle. Next came a dumb decision: I did a flip. No one told me not to, so I did it. I somehow got my finger caught in the cords and lost my finger!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Just kidding, I only sprained it. For those of you who believed me, did you know if you say 'gullible' really slowly it sounds like oranges!!!

 

Any who, I didn't really feel it at the moment. It hurt a little, but not that much. It was my left middle finger. I still jumped for a while afterwards. I was so hot so I just stopped jumping and floated in the air. Once I got off my finger hurt so badly. I could see it swelling around my joint. However, my trusty mom (who is a nurse) went down to the Windjammer, got some ice, and wrapped my finger with a washcloth and ice. She let it sit for about 15 minutes, then I wrapped my finger in a washcloth. I walked around with that on all night.

 

Dinner was the Pomodoro menu. I got the shrimp cocktail, French onion soup, creamy rigatoni, and key lime pie. The shrimp cocktail and soup was good as always. The rigatoni was OK, but noting better than Olive Garden. Royal's pasta dishes kinda let me down. The key lime pie was very good. I have been to the Keys many times and this was the best I have had out of the Keys. It was YELLOW (can anyone tell me why it isn't green), had a little curd on top and a mini lime candy.

 

After dinner I went swimming again. Of course Captain America 2 was on. The cool water made my finger hurt so I spent most of the time in the hot tubs. By the way, my sister went to Adventure Ocean every night besides the first one. She LOVED it. That was all she would talk about. Now at her birthday party, she wants to play Gagaball--she said it was soccer with her hands. But to me, it seems like Adventure Ocean is superior to Camp Carnival-the counselors seem better.

 

After swimming I dried off and sat on the balcony for a bit. It was so nice, just looking at downtown Nassau (by this point the other three ships had left port). After relaxing, my dad and my brother got back on the ship form Nassau and we went to the love and marriage game show. It was hilarious and Marc kept things lively. However there were some points where I wanted to cover my brother's ears ;) That ends day 3.

 

Now for a pic!

Sis and towel animal.

 

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Edited August 22, 2014 by kwazi07

[LiveLAUGHLove21]

I am enjoying your review, thanks for sharing! not much recent stuff on Enchantment of the Seas :) great job as well!

[poodog]

Great. Review thanks

[kwazi07]

I am enjoying your review, thanks for sharing! not much recent stuff on Enchantment of the Seas :) great job as well!

 

Great. Review thanks

Thanks guys! More to come soon.

 

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[kwazi07]

I am out of the house currently so I cannot post the day 3 Compii, but I will continue with day 4.

Day 4: At Sea

We had a leisurely breakfast on the MDR. On sea days we enjoy breakfast in the MDR because the Windjammer is packed and we have LOTS of time on sea days. It was the chocolate day, which I WOULD HAVE loved, but I thought it was extra charge! Oh well.

 

I don't understand the fuss over the fresh squeezed orange juice, the regular stuff was good. I had an omelet and some potatoes. It was very good. One odd thing was that on Carnival MDR breakfast was very long. On Royal it almost seemed rushed. After breakfast we went back to the room to relax on the balcony.

 

After that we went shopping. The shopping area is considerably larger than on the Fantasy class ships of Carnival. I bought a mouse pad and a mug. A pic to come soon. We decided to sign up for C&A while we were there. We still haven't received our number...

 

We took a peek at the main pool which was packed to the gills already, so we didn't swim. After relaxing and taking a nap (I fell asleep reading a book for school), we did the general knowledge trivia. My mom and I thought we could master this, but WOW. We missed a lot. While there we met the daughters of a grumpy old husband from the love and marriage show. They were pretty cool.

 

After the trivia we decided to have an early room service lunch. We got the honey stung chicken and spinach dip. The honey stung chicken was good but I wasn't sure if it was REALLY honey stung chicken. It was a little sweet (maybe it was my head) and had a tasty panko breading. The dip was mediocre. It was a slice of cold american cheese over lukewarm dip. It was tasty however. In the meantime, my dad and siblings watched the cake decorating show. Neither of my siblings at the cake as they got a piece saturated with booze.

 

We decided to do the towel folding demonstration. Even though we did it on Carnival,we decided to do it again. Unlike Carnival, where you actually make the animals, they make them on the Centrum stage. It was pretty entertaining and certainly less frustrating than the Carnival one. Next, we went to the napkin folding thing. I didn't participate, but it wasn't that boring, actually. I was a little hungry and I went to the Park Cafe to get a watermelon cup and a tomato, mozzarella, and basil panini. I wish I would have discovered this earlier. It was a great snack.

 

The Harry Potter trivia came next. We were really rusty on the topic. Also, the whole Boleros lounge groaned as the host said that it was based off of the movies. Other than trivia, the Boleros lounge was hardly used. More on that later. We really lost the Harry Potter trivia. After that, half of my family decided to see the FIRST EVER (not) CHUBBY BUNNY CHALLENGE. I didn't feel like going to it due to the risk of public vomiting. I went to the room and watched Friends for a little. I heard that my brother even preformed a magic trick for the Centrum!? My dads video is horrible, so I'm not sure if Marc saw him do it. Once the Chubby Bunny challenge was over the SeaPass issue came up. It is pretty complicated, so here I go as I try to explain it.

 

Originally, we thought the $12 a day was ridiculous so we decided to lower the tip to $10. I know, how cheap of us. Really. So, we only brought enough money for $10 a day pp. Then, we decided to change it to the correct $12. However, I brought $50 bucks to spend. With my money, there would be $5 leftover on the account after my purchase earlier in the day and the full tip (I could use it for B&Js or Sbux). However, since it was my birthday (more on that later), my awesome little sis bought me a cup for my homemade Frappucinos and a cocktail glass for my mom, thinking she had $20 on her account. She didn't though, so we were officially $15 in the hole. She ended up returning the glass, which cost $7. My mom put $10 on the account because she had change. I still really wanted B&J, so I threw $2 on the account.

 

P.S. about OBC:

It may not show up until your second day. Still, only half ($25) showed up on our account. So we had to calk our TA, who was out of office. We ended up calling the TA agency (she worked for a larger travel agency).

 

My sis and I shared a cup of Phish Food. It was awesome!!! We watched some band in the Centrum. Now I fully understand the obsession over B&J, it is awesome stuff. I bought some yesterday.

 

After the account problem, we went we got dressed and went to our last dinner. I got garlic soup and shrimp cocktail for apps, then got this priccuto wrapped pork tenderloin with a truffle reduction sauce with scalloped potatoes. It was awesome!!!! For dessert, I got a slice of the red velvet cake from Chops AND raspberry chocolate mousse AND bread pudding!!! I was in heaven.

 

After dinner I went swimming for a bit while my sis was at AO. It was empty, especially in the saltwater pool (the one with the separate kiddy pool). Draft Day was on and I could watch it in peace. The hot tubs weren't crowded either.

 

My mom and I walked around for one last time. We walked on the promenade and walked right past people in the dining room!! I had no clue those big windows were the top floor of the MDR!!! Then, we went to the Schooner Bar to listen to the pianist for a few short minutes. He stopped playing early for some reason. We the went to the spotlight lounge to look over the aft, but they were starting Kareoke so we ran out of the re so fast. Before picking up my sis from AO, we walked around the deck above the pool. It was so nice.

 

That ended the cruise. The disembarkation was uneventful. The review is not over quote yet. Expect a few comments, a Carnival and Royal comparison, and some more pics!!

 

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[kwazi07]

Rainbow

Monkey towel animal

Our steward placed my sis's cat at the base of a heart, you can't really see it well in the pic.

Midnight

Pilot boat from Port Canaveral

A barge dredging sand near Jetty Park.

 

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[kwazi07]

PC :(

A pretty view on a sad day.

 

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[kwazi07]

Carnival to Royal Comparison!!!!!!!

 

Here we go!!!

 

Ship: We went on the Carnival Paradise. She is a year younger than Enchantment, but Enchantment felt MUCH younger. On Paradise, I really felt that we were on an old ship. On Enchantment, I didn't at all!!! However, the exteriors of both ships were a little worn looking. This seems to be an issue with the Vision class of ships. Carnival 0 Royal 1

 

Staterooms: Although everyone raves about Carnival staterooms, the Royal ones are more aesthetically pleasing and better designed. The Carnival room was like a square. The color scheme was ugly. The Royal room was very nice. We also had a large oceanview stateroom. Although smaller than Carnival, it was much better designed--room for a sofa! Carnival 0 Royal 2

 

MDR: Carnival hands down. While the heavy foods on Royal were excellent (see my meal I had for the last night) the light foods left much to be desired. Carnival had some great tofu and vegetarian dishes. Carnival 1 Royal 2

 

Buffet: Royal all the way!!! The buffet was very good. Actually, it was almost as good as the MDR. Carnival 1 Royal 3

 

Pools: Royal. More, a Solarium, and a freshwater pool. Carnival 1 Royal 4

 

Extras: A tie. I LOVED the Carnival waterslide. However, the bungee trampoline was so fun, and the rock climbing wall looked cool. Carnival 2 Royal 5

 

Bars and Lounges: Royal. They have better themes and are non smoking. Here are mini reviews of each.

Schooner Bar: nice, never too crowded. Loved the floor to ceiling windows. Cool smoky smell near the piano.

Spotlight Lounge: we were only in there once. We wanted to look out the aft windows but they were frequently covered. Also, it is odd how half of the chairs face away from the dance floor.

Centrum/R Bar: not really a lounge per se but the ambiance is great. On the bottom of the Centrum there are comfy couches and chairs, UNLIKE Carnival. Also there are nice chairs on decks 5 and 6, near more floor to ceiling windows.

Boleros: a disappointment. We love Latin music. There was never any live bands and when there was Latin music it was played very quietly.

Viking Crown: a little odd. On the first day the stairs were blocked off and elevators closed for the first few hours onboard. Inside, it was kind of stinky-it smelled like dirt. However, the views were awesome. It was always so empty though.

Carnival 2 Royal 6

 

Alternative dining venues: Royal. There was a specialty restaurant, a free Panera Bread type place (Park Cafe) and free pastries at the coffee shop. On Carnival they were extra.

Carnival 2 Royal 7

 

Kids programs: my sis LOVED Adventure Ocean. She said it was better than Carnival. The counselors seem better too, they seemed like they were more than glorified babysitters.

Carnival 2 Royal 8.

 

 

As you can tell I LOVED Royal. The ship was awesome and so fun. This is the end of my review. However if you have questions or if I remember anything else I will be sure to post back. Be sure to check out Darth Grady's review here, there are so many wonderful pictures of the ship.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=40715178#post40715178

[NemoCrownie]

What a fantastic review! I thoroughly enjoyed your cruise, through your eyes. Your parents must be wonderful to have such a great kid. Beautiful family, by the way. Thanks for taking the time to let us vacation with you.

 

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[kwazi07]

What a fantastic review! I thoroughly enjoyed your cruise, through your eyes. Your parents must be wonderful to have such a great kid. Beautiful family, by the way. Thanks for taking the time to let us vacation with you.

 

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Thank you NemoCrownie!

 

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[Southerngal410]

Do you know the internet price for this cruise?

 

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[kwazi07]

Do you know the internet price for this cruise?

 

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No, sorry. I never visited the Internet Cafe.

 

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