Vision Review - April 9-16, 2016

[birdylady]

We got off Vision a week ago Saturday. I would have posted this review sooner, but unfortunately I came down with a very bad cold the next day and it was a long foggy brained week. I also was trying to get our pictures into Photobucket so I could add some. That isn't going so well either. So, here goes.

 

First – People sailing. Hubby and myself were sailing with my parents (I hate to say elderly, but it’s true) and two UK friends we met a few years back on Freedom. All our reservations were connected and we were scheduled for early dining in MDR. As a little back story, our friends, hubby and I tried to do these ports 2 years ago out of Galveston, but due to an oil spill, our cruise was cancelled. I’m happy to say we made all our ports of call this trip.

 

Prior to sailing, we tried to make reservations at Chops for 6 people. This was not even an option. Finally, we were able to book 4 people at 6pm for Thursday and 2 at 5:30. The dining manager (or whomever my mom spoke with) said to have us all just show at 6 as they hold reservations for 2 hours.

 

Embarkation – We got to the Port of Tampa and dropped off my parents and check luggage. Our UK friends would be meeting us on the ship. One item to note, porters would NOT accept our bottled water to be sent to the room as other ports had. We drove around to park at the parking deck. It appeared easy enough, except it routed us through and under the parking deck and back to a back street. Then we had to drive around the block and take to rights to arrive about 100 feet from where we started. I guess they just don’t like you taking lefts in Tampa. We paid ($105 for 7 days) and they gave us a yellow token to use to get out. When we were leaving the car, they had big painted signs saying take your token with you. They have machines downstairs that say to submit your ‘chipcoin’ to pay and then you have 10 minutes to leave. Long story short, we didn’t need to bring the coin. We could and should have left it in the car as not to potentially lose it. When we did leave the parking deck, we just put the coin in at the exit booth and off we went.

 

We met up with my parents and went up to check in. Like other ports they had the lines broken by suites and C&A status. As we are Diamond and in a JS and my parents are Emerald and in an OV, we were told to go to different people to check in. I asked as we were linked and they said different credit card/payments, then different people for check in. No big deal, but odd. It only took a few minutes for each of us to check in and then we went to sit down and wait for boarding. They started boarding shortly thereafter and we were on the ship in minutes. One thing we liked was that the ramp to board was an even, straight ramp. Not looping up or down 2 or more times.

 

Once on board we went to check our table in MDR. We had a table for 6 right next to the captain’s table. Having had a table like this on a sister ship a few years ago, we didn’t want it as they played the piano through dinner and we couldn’t hear anything but the music. We tried to change tables but there was nothing else available. The Matre’D stated they don’t play during dinner (even though there was a piano). Thankfully, he was right and it turned out to be a great table with excellent servers, Jorge and Emirah.

 

I also went to speak to a representative at Chops (display table sales person) and asked if it was possible to change our reservations from Thursday night to Wed night for 6 people as that was our actual anniversary and our friend’s birthday. The woman said that shouldn’t be a problem and they would call and let us know. I didn’t receive a message, but stopped by the next night and they said yes, we were switched and were all set. In regards to the phone vmail system, we left a message for a friend and they didn’t get it till a day later. They said they left us a message and we never got it. Don’t count on that system working correctly.

 

We then went to lunch at the Windjammer. The first server we met was Olivia who, as were all the other servers we met, was personable, sweet and excellent at her job. The food was good and after eating we cleared out so others could have a table. Come 1pm we headed to our cabin the beautiful, corner aft JS, 8588. It was all we could have hoped for. What a beautiful, big, wrap around balcony. As we were under the salon, we never heard any noise from above and after 10pm the lights were off so we could enjoy the night sky. The other aft cabins were under the waiting area of the spa so those lights were always on. We met our cabin attendant a little later on. Ryan was so personable and efficient. Couldn’t have asked for better.

 

At dinner this night, we met our head waiter, Cecilia who looked so familiar. I asked what other ships she sailed on last year. She said Legend. AHA! She was our head waiter last year too. She is always all smiles and happy to help (more on this later).

 

Erika

[Clarea]

Nice start, looking forward to more.:)

[Keith1010]

Erika, enjoying your review.

 

Keith

[birdylady]

Thank you for your feedback.

 

The next day was a sea day. We had a Cruise Critic Meet & Mingle scheduled for 11 at the Viking Crown Lounge. The interesting things about this was they never posted that on the RCI link through CC and the invite we received had the date for the prior sailing on it. We also didn’t get any ‘tickets’ with the invite. When we went to the M&M, they asked for the invite (duh, we forgot to bring) and they checked our name off a list and gave us a raffle ticket. Elvis Pinto, the Activities Director came and ran the Mingle. Not to take away from our CD (Mike Hunnerup), but Elvis was excellent. Anything he did, had you captivated. Personable, animated and professional.

 

Directly after the M&M, we had a hometown gift swap that was a lot of fun. And after that we went to the Casino to have a Slot Pull we coordinated. The Casino Host Florin was there waiting for us at the machine we picked and he had prizes for the top winners and key rings for all those that participated. He even stood there and helped to cheer us on. Although we all ended up losing a few dollars each, everyone had a great time.

 

Tonight was the first formal night. Everyone looked great. It's always nice to dress up once in a while.:)

Erika

[birdylady]

The first port was Roatan, Honduras. We had booked through Bodden Tours. We had a private tour for the 6 of us. Tex was our driver. Very nice, friendly and knew his way around. He asked if we were interested in doing the iguana farm. We had originally wanted to but at that point, we said no, not important. To be honest, I don’t remember why he asked or why we decided not to do it. We then headed out. First stop after about a 10 minutes’ ride was at a ‘grocery store’ that looked more like a corner gas station type store. We don’t know why he stopped there as we didn’t ask. Next stop was an overlook with a great view of the ship and a small flea market. The we visited Victors Bodden’s Monkey Business. We paid for the whole tour at this time and then went to go visit the animals. We were asked to leave purses and such outside the monkey cage, and as the little guys were skilled pick-pockets, I’m glad we did. The tour guide took our camera and took oodles of pictures of the monkeys playing with us. Then we left and went to look at some of the other animals they had. We then entered an aviary where we got to hold a macaw and an amazon. They took more pictures of us. After we were done, we asked to get something for lunch. Tex recommended a ‘buffet’. It was actually a grocery store that let you pick prepared foods to make a meal. I had no idea the cost. One meal had 2 stickers on it, 1 sticker for $79.99 and another for $19.99. As it turned out, 2 meals and some sodas only cost $11 USD. The food was excellent. We then stopped at a chocolate factory. The gentleman there gave us a history of chocolate, how it is processed and how it was used in the Mayan culture. We also had a number of samples. Needless to say we had to buy some as it was excellent. On the way back to the ship, we stopped at the cameo factory. Unfortunately, it was closed so we didn’t get to see anything.

 

Erika

Edited April 26, 2016 by birdylady

[vickiw0318]

Great to hear about 8588 since I have that cabin in September. I do love going outside at night to say good evening to the stars. It is also nice to have feedback on Elvis. He's soon to be the CD on the Enchantment. (I am trying to psych myself up to go with the flow, but I am not doing a good job of that this morning.) I am traveling with a friend in July and want everything to be perfect on that cruise. Sounds like he's going to be great.

[birdylady]

Great to hear about 8588 since I have that cabin in September. I do love going outside at night to say good evening to the stars. It is also nice to have feedback on Elvis. He's soon to be the CD on the Enchantment. (I am trying to psych myself up to go with the flow, but I am not doing a good job of that this morning.) I am traveling with a friend in July and want everything to be perfect on that cruise. Sounds like he's going to be great.

 

You will LOVE 8588. That balcony is wonderful. I have photos but for whatever reason, I can't seem to get them posted here. If you want to see them, just email me (addy is in my signature) with header about 8588 photos and I'll be happy to send them to you.

 

As far as Elvis is concerned, so glad to hear he'll be a CD. We actually wrote on the review that he would make an excellent CD.

 

Erika

[cruiseapril]

Enjoying the review. Interesting report of Roatan excursion.

[birdylady]

Next Port – Belize- This is a tender port and from prior reviews it sounded like it was going to be a nightmare getting off. We were lucky. We walked down at almost 8am and were second in line for the next tender. There was a ship tour that came around us to get on a tender, but luckily they had their own. On our way to land, we kept slowing down. The captain announced that a belt was broken and they would be able to change it out quickly. I’m guessing they did as we eventually got moving. What should have been a 15-minute ride took about 40 minutes. Once we got off the tender it took all of about 2 minutes to find the folks from Cavetubing.bz. Their excursion was all they said it would be and more. We walked over to our bus (just for our group of 21) and they gave everyone a bottle of water for the ride. We had 3 guides, Robin, Leo and Andy. On the ride out, they gave us all sorts of interesting information about Belize. Once we got to the park, we had the opportunity to change and then leave our extra stuff on the locked bus. We were then each given a life vest and helmet with a light. We then walked (and hiked) up and down a path. There were some steps and a narrow passage, but we all handled it fine. During the Robin shared all sorts of interesting information about some of the different plants and trees that grew along the way and the different medicinal values many had. When we got about 50 yards from the river by the entrance of the cave, we each picked up a tube that they brought and inflated there. They strapped the tubes together and we all got in the water. Then the guides, pushed, pulled and drifted with us through the caves pointing out all sorts of interesting information. There were times we had to be ‘butts up’ so as not to scrape the rocks. At these times, the guides really worked extra hard pulling us all through. Once we came out of the caves, we noticed people ahead of us getting out of the water and hauling their tubes with them and climbing up steep stairs. We on the other hand, continued down river tubing to the end. After we got to the end, we only had a short walk back to return the equipment, after which we were able to change into dry clothing. Once we were all back on the bus, we went to their office and were served a wonderful Belizean lunch of rice and beans with the most flavorful and tender chicken along with rum punch, water and/or soda. They got us back to the pier with plenty of time to shop. Luckily the tender return was much quicker.

 

 

 

Erika

[birdylady]

Last port- Cozumel. There were 7 ships in port this day and parked right next to us was Oasis. As our Captain said ‘Beauty and the Beast, you can decide which is which’. LOL We grabbed a cab to the Forum Shops as usual. Much to my confusion, they MOVED it. NOW the forum shops is blocks closer to the piers. SO.. instead of starting there and walking back ‘towards’ the ship, we actually started there and walked towards where the Forum Shops used to be. We did some shopping, and one shop had an item I was interested in. I wasn’t ready to drop the money at that time so we continued on. We ended up eating at Panchos Backyard in Los Cincos Soles. The food was good and the ambiance was nice. We stopped back in on the way back after lunch and right after we put the cash $5 shy of the asking price on the counter, the manager gave us another price, HIGHER than the last one. At this point, I took our cash and said ‘YOU’RE RAISING the price with cash on the counter? NO!’. The manager took the item put it away and gave us a RUDE goodbye. Needless to say, I was happy to share with other folks we knew after that to skip that store. I shared this story with Ellie, our shopping coordinator and her eyes rolled and said she’s heard all sorts of horror stories about them. Needless to say, they weren’t one of the approved stores, although they ‘tried’ to make out that they were.

 

Last day was a sea day and we tried to relax and enjoy as much as we could, even though we had to pack as we were getting off the ship the next day. We went to the Captain’s Corner where they handed out an interesting information sheet about the ship. Later we went to the Farewell show and the comedian Ritch Shydner was very good.

 

Erika

[birdylady]

After having read so many reviews of people saying the ship was old, in bad condition, not the greatest crew, etc… we were a little nervous about the cruise. But, we had nothing to be nervous about. You can tell the crew takes great pride in their ship. She was in excellent condition and the crew were all friendly. Captain Marek had a great personality. We loved it when he thanked a few folks for getting their last minute shopping done after one port. And then the next day suggesting they not do anymore last minute shopping. LOL The captain also wished passengers and crew, by name, happy birthday each day. And he actually came to the disembarkation spot and spoke to us as we were leaving the ship. That was a first for us. The only things I have that I could even begin to complain about is, like others, the casino really didn’t play and payout for anyone I spoke to. And there weren’t any of the popular, more current machines. And that the Diamond Lounge was small and hot (probably due to the number of people in there). But the Diamond Lounge host, Vojtech (V) and his guys worked amazingly hard and were excellent. We enjoyed our nightly visits there. All in all, excellent weather, great ship and crew and another wonderful RCI cruise.

 

Thanx

Erika

[jamon]

Thanks for the review...didn't the ship also dock at Costa Maya before it went to Cozumel??? Would like to hear review of this stop...thanks....

[birdylady]

Thanks for the review...didn't the ship also dock at Costa Maya before it went to Cozumel??? Would like to hear review of this stop...thanks....

You are correct. I swear I posted this. Must have been when my pc timed out. Darn doing important things like cruise info while being interrupted at work. Oh well, need to work to cruise :mad:

 

Costa Maya was after Belize, but before Cozumel From all the research we did, it seemed like the big thing was go to a beach. As we are not huge beach people (I BURN way to easily), we just walked off the ship and walked around the port a bit. There were a lot more shops than I had expected. There were actually more shops here than in the port at Roatan. They also had a pool in the port area alot of people used. It was very nice. They also had people dressed up in Mayan type 'costumes' and you could have your picture taken with them (of course they wanted a donation). And they had performers in the square that did 'maypole' type performances.

 

 

 

It was pretty hot, but made for a leisurely day before our second formal night, and our dinner at Chops, which of course was excellent as usual. Tonight was one of our favorite activities on all cruises…The Quest. We had a great time. It was in the Some Enchanted Evening Lounge and they broke the crowd into 40 teams of 7 people. To many groups with too few members. It was a more abbreviated and tame version than we are used to.

 

 

Erika

Edited April 27, 2016 by birdylady

[Crusin-Suzan]

You will LOVE 8588. That balcony is wonderful. I have photos but for whatever reason, I can't seem to get them posted here. If you want to see them, just email me (addy is in my signature) with header about 8588 photos and I'll be happy to send them to you.

 

As far as Elvis is concerned, so glad to hear he'll be a CD. We actually wrote on the review that he would make an excellent CD.

 

Erika

 

We have the cabin next to this on our next Med cruise! Is there lights shining on this cabin😆? Thanks!

[birdylady]

We have the cabin next to this on our next Med cruise! Is there lights shining on this cabin😆? Thanks!

From what I could tell, the cabins, starting with cabin 8590, had the lights above in the waiting area of the salon on at night. From my cabin, I couldn't tell how far over that waiting area lit up.

 

And the lights don't really 'shine on the cabin'. It's just when you're out on the balcony and look up, you'll see the lights.

 

Erika

[bcarney]

Great to hear about 8588 since I have that cabin in September. I do love going outside at night to say good evening to the stars. It is also nice to have feedback on Elvis. He's soon to be the CD on the Enchantment. (I am trying to psych myself up to go with the flow, but I am not doing a good job of that this morning.) I am traveling with a friend in July and want everything to be perfect on that cruise. Sounds like he's going to be great.

 

We were on this cruise the week before the original poster (Apr 2-9). Other than Drew Devine on Oasis, I couldn't name a single CD from any cruise, much less an activities director. I will never forget Elvis, he was funny, engaging, and got people moving. He added a lot to our cruise, so much so that I'll be looking for his name on future cruises I take (Enchantment's on my shortlist now!).

[vickiw0318]

More positive feedback about Elvis. Whoopee!

 

I have had corner afts on the Rhapsody, but it's been a few years back. They are the best. Just very glad to hear the news about the lack of evening light. I hate it when I know I am in the middle of the ocean and there are millions of stars out there and I can't get a good view because of the lights on the ship.