Transatlantic Brazil to Spain April 10-24 2016 - First Cruise

[Sand$!]

Outline Style of this review - It is a review of our 14 Transatlantic Brazil to Spain April 10-24 2016. It is only words as I need to find out how to post photos!

 

I am doing this review because of all the help I got on here....and I loved reading other reviews.

 

I have no opinion other than my own which is highly selective and slightly mad – The main part of the review is about my preconceptions about taking a cruise and my planning (eight months)

 

Then I will tell you about how it all happened on the cruise (14 days)

 

And lastly …. what happens next …. (4 mins)

 

About Us

 

Couple in our early fifties, have never cruised but travelled extensively around the world. Originally from UK, now live in Australia.

 

Our recent travel for ourselves (post holidays with children) has been city and travel based, we like to walk cities and visit highlights by ourselves. We do not like tour groups or planned activities or long beach days. We are 27 years married and still find ourselves chatting to the early hours of the morning.

 

We both work mad hours and because of DH night shift and my long business hours often in a different city to home we are often not together mid-week at all. Holidays are very, very important to us and not to be wasted.



I love holidays and I love more having them paid for …. As much as possible up front so DH does not have a chance to say well it is a bit expensive let’s not bother!

 

Reason for Trip

 

I like to travel back to the UK to see family about once a year if possible, I usually have longer holidays than DH so we mix and match where we go sometimes meeting up after my UK trip. This time he took the longest holiday ever and joined me for the whole 5 weeks, around the world.

 

The Cruise was a destination in itself to relax for 14 days travelling from Brazil to Barcelona, we had been in Buenos Aires to tick a bucket list item of dancing the tango and then needed to be in Spain to see family there. DH managed to also get in a quick flight back right at the end of the cruise for a single day for his sister’s wedding!

 

The cruise was something I had played with idea of many times but never really fancied getting on a ship and cruising to a few places and back again. I know there are many, many options but needed to find the one that suited us best.

 

When the destination was decided for this trip to be Argentina and Buenos Aires I then had a quick fleeting look at Transatlantic options on a cruise ship – hey ho there it was! Right time of year etc Rhapsody of the Seas and Royal Caribbean. Seriously it was all about the timing and seriously reasonable cost that made me book it in 48 hours from checking details on line. So no pre consideration to cruise line, ship, ports of call or anything only start and end point of the cruise!

 

Then my moment of panic set in...I had booked a cruise!

[Sand$!]

Cruise Outline

 

Rhapsody Of The Seas – 14 night transatlantic Sao Paulo to Barcelona

 

Calling at Rio De Janeiro, Salvador de Bahia, Tenerife, Malaga and then Barcelona

 

Six days in the middle were at sea 

 

Booked an ocean view and got 3096 – mid ship as advised

 

This was all I knew when I booked – well that and it was costing me less than $100 US a day each including gratuities for an ocean view.

 

Planning

Then the serious business of planning started for me! I am an A1+ planner and need to be in control of the whole outline so I can relax and go with the flow – sound mad? Yes! but it works for us.

 

Buenos Aires and the tango part of the trip had a full spreadsheet and over the eight months from booking trip I managed to have private lessons/tango evenings, dinner evenings and days trips all packed in. Including ensuring we got in a home game for Boca Juniors! Amazing – the spreadsheet was for husband and then I added to it as he had flights of fancy of what to add.

 

The Cruise planning – wow I nearly panicked after I made the booking, what did I know about cruising…. not a bloody lot! Lots of on line reading lead me to the Cruise Critics forums and I fell in love with all the great people on here.

 

I did not write masses but read a lot. I focused on new cruisers and the Royal Caribbean forum. I am an avid reader and enjoyed every review – the effort people go to is amazing. My hats off to all the contributors you really made my life easier. So I will break down a few of the items I pre planned from the information given and then lead up to how it all went.

 

Travel – the legal stuff!

As an Aussie and a Brit I need to check out what is what when it comes to passports and which one to use when. We decided to travel mostly on the Aussie one except for Europe of course.

 

This meant we needed visa for Brazil and a reciprocal payment for Argentina. These are expensive, but something I had checked out, paying out over $300 each before leaving is a pain and sending off passports for nearly four weeks to get correct visas in place can be hectic so I did leave plenty of time. Having been to Russia and Vietnam I pretty used to it.

 

My travel advice – do not book cruise before checking out visa and travel documentation it can seriously increase costs. We also had to get vaccinations that Australian rules ask for when visiting a south American country which of course came at another cost.

 

Adequate time on passports is something we need to think about twice and lucky DH still had over six months on the British one but now as I am writing this I need to start getting that updated in case.

Edited June 2, 2016 by Sand$!

[Sand$!]

Flights

I had the major part of the holiday organised in flights around the world with Qantas – I am a high tier frequent flyer so this made packing (which I will come to later) so much easier as I have additional baggage allowance.

 

This left me with one crucial flight to organise. The one from Buenos Aires to Sao Paulo in Brazil. Seriously this was the second most organisational headache of my cruise itinerary (Biggest organisation headache coming later).

 

I asked on the sites and of course the recommendation was fly in the night before – yikes by that time the easier and cheaper flight to get was the morning of the cruise and already booked with TA! The original flight time did not land me in time to get a Royal Caribbean transfer which was a worry but I had some back up private transfers organised.

 

In fact, I tried for two months to move it every time I panicked I called the TA for a check-up (the quotes to change flight would have paid for another cruise!) – the flight itself was then rescheduled by the airline to 7.00 am of the Sunday morning and this meant I now fell into the window for the cruise transfer…..excellent now I just had to hope there were no issues with the flight 

 

Another small issue with flights was I could not get a connecting one world flight (my frequent flyer program) that did not cost the earth so I booked a flight (actually was a return flight, as it was cheaper!) but the baggage allowance was only 20kg per person, which was way below what we would be travelling with for five weeks. Ah well we would see what happened and planned on having funds for some excess baggage at $US 8 a kilogram we were planning of around $200 an extra cost at the airport (could not pre-book).

 

Now I know the advice is to fly in before but trying to fit the cruise in with the main attraction of Buenos Aires was proving difficult and we only had so much time off work. Would I change the planning in hindsight – yes I would, some of the stressful thoughts would not have happened, I would book an extra day off work even if it was unpaid.

 

Planning for five weeks away with four or five stops is difficult at the best of times so fitting in the cruise was a bit of logistical nightmare at times, but also a godsend at others. Why a godsend, family could not make us change our plans – the ship was taking us Brazil to Barcelona started on 10th April and ending in Barcelona on the 24th April 2016 – so no we would not change our plans…………..well almost no change to plans

 

I will admit that I also had full back-up plans of getting to Rio in time to get on the ship there if we did miss out in Sao Paulo. Rio was the next day after boarding so just on case I had flight details to get me to Salvador!! Which was four days after the cruise start.

[Sand$!]

Planning highlights

 

Now you can have the biggest laugh, I read every bit of advice on cruise critic I made lists and plans and rewrote lists and plans ……. And re wrote lists and re read peoples experience and panicked and then the process dawned on me

What would two active people do for 14 days – majority at sea – when we do not like planned activities – we are not complete joiners and really thought the idea of sitting down with the same people for dinner each night was some devils plan to make us miserable.

 

Well one of the things with being a planner is I also know how my DH and I tick – forced relaxation for a period of time is just what we needed after our last few years at work, some real time to reconnect – so once I found out about My Time dinning I was more relaxed.

 

The rest of the planning time was around packing the right things to keep us amused / clothes to wear and my biggest organisation worry – which flaming drinks package!

 

The Drinks Package Dilemma

 

Oh my gosh the number of questions asked on this forum about drinks packages….and I lapped every one of them up!!! I had worked out the maths of minimum usage per day vs maximum. I plotted my drinking consumption (I am an off and on drinker) I had even found most of the wine lists and prices because I am a very picky wine drinker who does not drink a lot of spirits.

I plotted and planned and drove my DH mad …… his idea was “get on with it and buy the top one then so what! It will be paid for you can relax”.

 

You see there was no question my DH would get the benefit but 14 days for me was a massive quandary and I hate wasting money even if I can afford something. I booked the top Ultimate package for both of us two/three months out so it was booked and paid for. I fully planned to cancel mine and use the money to pay as I go……. then just before departure time RCLI had a 20% sale and I cancelled and rebooked with a decent saving…. ha relaxed a bit!

 

I for one did not mind the same question being asked every other day on the site, it was amusing when I was in my “it’s a definite for me” mood, but boy did I recalculate and re ponder when I read a different perspective.

 

So all up 8 months of planning and replanning the drinks package – my thoughts if you can afford it and think it might be value, get it and stop haggling with yourself.

 

The non-event of internet

 

The price of $20 per day per device had me switched off before I left, I am connected usually 24hrs a day and did travel with my laptop. BUT the plan was for us time and for 14 days I was at the mercy of finding free Wi-Fi on shore trips. As a transatlantic there where not masses of those!

 

I will say this was a massive plus for our holiday as well as a source of total amusement in stopping for coffee with free Wi-Fi and having to get connected.

[Sand$!]

Packing

 

So I have over 40kg plus worth of personal allowance (think DH was about 30) – I needed clothes for dancing in Buenos Aires and myself and husband love dressing up both formal and day to day. BUT what of all those things Cruise Critic people have recommended I take! One of my planning lists is three pages long and that is just for the cruise.

 

So I went with a few of the things that seemed to make sense to me

 

• I sent hubby out to buy an over door shoe hanger as we always have bits and pieces – DH did not read the small print and did not come back with a clear see through one, so seriously, scrambling around in each black pocket every time we thought we had something in there, defeated the purpose we bought it for – fail for us
   
   
  
• High lighters – yes used on first day on the compass – then we just took to having it with us and highlighter was forgotten relegated to one of the black pockets in the shoe hanger. The computerised “what’s on “planners on every level of the ship and each crew member usually having a compass on hand also helped 
   
   
  
• Lanyard – I often wear one for work (and had my latest one in my computer bag) so didn’t care either way but actually found I carried my (bought for the whole trip) small handbag that needed to carry husband’s glasses and other bits and pieces – I smoke also so carried cigarettes. Horses for courses and all that – go with what suits
   
   
  
• Magnets for the wall – had a clip one and this worked well for dinner and day planner, post it notes not really with two of us communicating did not need to be via post it notes
   
   
  
• Zip lock bags – had a few and used a couple for toiletries but no more than a couple
   
   
  
• Had Sellotape – used in airport to attach RCLI luggage tags once off the plane not used again
   
  

 

Major pluses I did find in packing for me

• Wipes – both facial for cleanings and antiseptic for cleaning – easier than lotion bottles and worked a treat on lots of occasions.
   
   
  
• Really paring down my make up to essentials, this always works for all the travel I do
   
   
  
• A good body/facial scrub – light one not excessive, made me feel great after shower and less inclined to put lots of make up on
   
   
  
• Flip flops (thongs) and flats that look good with everything – I loved my heels and had two different pairs for the evenings (and others for dancing) but easy smart flat shoes proved invaluable – not my trainer – walking shoes type. Planning shoes really helped me keep down the luggage weight
   
   
  
• A good basic t-shirt and leggings routine meant I could swop many outfits around and still have fun. I made sure they could all go through the wash and I took advantage of the $30 wash and fold bag twice on the trip – and this meant we still had masses of clothes for the Barcelona part of the trip and the initial days back in the UK
   
   
  
• I love dressing up and I had two really formal outfits with me that could mix and match (three formal on this cruise) but we often dressed for dinner. Hanging clothes as soon as on board and using the pressing service helped here
   
   
  
• For DH and I we took our backgammon set and card and crib board – this suits us because we play a lot but there was a games cupboard on the ship and card are easily bought.
   
   
  
• Books – we took three each and swopped between us – there is a book cupboard but hard to find something in limited choice. I do not like Kindle for me but think this is actually the way to go if you read excessively. Actually I usually read a lot more than three books on a week’s holiday but seriously did not find the time to!!!
   
   
  
• Camera – small one, small video and phones – every opportunity to take a photo - brings back memories. We did not carry all of them all the time but having a good small digital meant we took more photos than we usually do.
   
   
  
• Husbands clothes took up more room than mine he has dress shoes, trousers and shirts and jackets and waistcoats and bowties (real ones! That usually had me leaving the cabin or hiding in the bathroom as he got them right!) I have no hints and tips on this but to seriously smile and say you look lovely darling! He works as a printer and is in a uniform of “hard yakka” gear 50 weeks of the year so dressing up is a real part of our holidays.
   
  

So packing in summary – each to their own – we started out with four suitcases, two cabin luggage size and two large, I had a handbag and computer backpack, husband had a large satchel – we bought another large collapsible bag in Malaga two days before end of cruise and used it!!! Then to tell a tale we then spent two weeks in Europe and left with nearly 100kg between us. I believe we started with 50kg checked luggage?!

[Sand$!]

Did I need all the clothes..........No not at all, I just had so much to fit in all sorts of activity on the whole trip.

 

If going again I will take the advice we are all given - plan wisely and take half the clothes!

Edited June 2, 2016 by Sand$!

[Sand$!]

Pre Bought Cruise extras

 

To reiterate something, I said earlier - if I organise and pre buy and pay for holiday extras there is a lot less chance of my husband thinking something sounds expensive and then questioning if we really need it. There is no way he is a skinflint – indeed a very smart man who bought me some beautiful Tiffany jewellery in Barcelona on a whim but pre reading about Royal Caribbean possible up sales and knowing DH, I thought a little clever pre bought stuff might ease the pain.

 

I have already mentioned the drinks package – yes husband thought this a smart move and I believe he managed his total cost in five days! We will get to my expenditure on the drinks package later….

 

Dining Package – to buy or not to buy that was another question I read a lot about on Cruise critic. Coming from Buenos Aires we had a couple of marvellous dinner evenings including a closed door restaurant planned, so I then decided possibly the only evening for DH and I, on the cruise, was the Chefs Table…so I purchased one.

 

Then I spent another four months reading all about other venues on board!! Having never dined on a cruise ship before now and reading all the reviews of the main dining room fare --- from hogs’ swill – to great – to has really gone downhill - has really improved – I decided to wait!

 

How would all the different restaurants on all the different ships rate on trip advisor and all the other dining rating sites, I cannot hazard a guess. There are various offerings now on pre booked dining that represent good value (and I love good value) but there were only three other after Chefs table venues on Rhapsody for additional up charge dining, they are Izuma, Chops and Giovanni’s. I decided to wait.

 

I had pre booked My Time Dining and had been on line and booked each evening at what time seems to suit our usual plans – also knowing I could change those bookings. I had also read that the tables in My Time Dining can be as close to each other as if you had booked Main Dining – any hoo decided this was a better option for us.

 

My basic thoughts where I would see how the main dining went and if not great for us I had the choice of a buffet…………ah forgot to tell you DH and I feel buffets are a fun giggle night out – as in not for serious dining. Gosh now I am sounding up my own backside but that is not what I mean. I like a good buffet but if I am spending time with DH the evening is all about us sitting down and enjoying being served as we chat.

 

Spa/Salon – pre bought NOT

 

Nothing…nada…nought…. I could not get over the pre-set prices! Here in Australia most of the services offered are a darn sight more reasonable so decided if this was something husband wanted …he could get on with it. Will need to note here I do my own nails, hair colour and cuts!

 

The Photo Package

 

Not for me no no no…..then as I checked out the prices of the individual ones I might like (just to know the cost of course) I started realising that if I wanted a few photos on the cruise DH was going to have some serious issue with cost if I wanted a few of them………so I rethought and checked out the packages and then just after Christmas I treated myself secretly and bought the full thing! $276.80! That was for all prints and the originals on a disk. And a photo Frame.

 

Just as I like things - pre bought and paid for. It was our first cruise and possibly the only one. We were not going to run around and ask people to take our photo all the time so I argued it was worth it………let see......

 

I will note there are more than enough wonderful people around to take photos if you want and more than gracious if you ask.

[Sand$!]

Gifts/Decorations etc.

 

There are marvellous choices on the RC website for surprises and I spent a few hours wondering and thinking…but I will seriously admit I thought they were all a bit expensive for what they were but I wanted to get DH a nice surprise. I went for the dressing gown.

 

As newbie cruisers and highly informed via CC for the stateroom I had booked on Royal Caribbean, I knew I would not be getting one in the cabin and thought it might be something hubby would like. Well it was lovely quality and I use it now I am home but seriously hung on the back of the bathroom door for 14 days!

 

Shore excursions

 

I read everything about the excursions on offer and even printed off the list and made DH read every one – remember we do not really like tour groups – so we decided on only one. Up to see Cordova and Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro. I think as one of the wonders of the world it had to be a must.

 

So one trip planned and very well warned that if I wanted to see something else I might miss out but because this was not a trip about ports I decided I could take the risk.

 

I also knew I could have arranged my own very easily as a seasoned traveller I have well organised plans and trips but think this was also part of my pre planning for an uber relaxed time I was going to switch off from organising the other 4 port days.

 

One small fly in ointment…or is it?

 

Some reviews of the Rhapsody on the Brazilian sections of her cruises have been somewhat negative based on language issues? Or dining expectations? Anyway a various number of issues rasied, different strokes for different folks type thing I think.

 

Whatever the issues I really was of the opinion SO WHAT. I have nothing to compare the product against – I travel to many countries where English is not the main language and usually get on with it. Not that I am total dismissive of cultural clashes as they do happen and can make both sides sometimes feel awkward. Usually on being asked to attend cultural awareness sessions years ago I would ask when was the one for other people to get to know how to get on with a grumpy mad Irish women.

 

As for future cruises Royal Caribbean have pulled out of the lower south American trips for now – but if you get a chance to do other cruise lines in this area Go For It. My one piece of advice was do not look for an issue and plan to be positive when the holiday is slightly out of the norm – I will make a bet the positive plan will work.

 

Also a wonderful piece of advice I hear on here and other places when reading reviews of any product, read the terrible and the great and the answer lies somewhat in between.

 

SO I AM READY………………………..I think!

 

But I will tell you more about that if interested over the weekend I am off to bed now it is 1.20 am here in Sydney and I am shattered

[$hip$hape]

Wonderful review !

For a moment, it reminded me of something from, "The Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night".

 

“From Basrah we sailed, day after day, night after night, over the sea, visiting island after island and land after land, selling or bartering our goods at each.

One day, after some weeks of sailing out of sight of land, we saw an island in the sea with such fair greenery that it appeared like one of the gardens of Eden.

At once the captain made towards this delectable land and, when the anchor had been cast and the ladder lowered,

allowed his passengers to disembark.”

 

How lucky we are, being shattered in a good way.

Are we all looking for the same Eden?

Regards,

Michael

Edited June 2, 2016 by $hip$hape

[Sand$!]

Wonderful review !

For a moment, it reminded me of something from, "The Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night".

 

“From Basrah we sailed, day after day, night after night, over the sea, visiting island after island and land after land, selling or bartering our goods at each.

One day, after some weeks of sailing out of sight of land, we saw an island in the sea with such fair greenery that it appeared like one of the gardens of Eden.

At once the captain made towards this delectable land and, when the anchor had been cast and the ladder lowered,

allowed his passengers to disembark.”

 

How lucky we are, being shattered in a good way.

Are we all looking for the same Eden?

Regards,

Michael

 

Thank you kind sir - I think!

 

I write in a style that it a sort of - stream of consciousness - also known as interior monologue, it is a narrative mode or device that depicts the multitudinous thoughts and feelings which pass through the mind.

 

For closer friends this is translated as Sandra is waffling again.

 

For no other reason now that it is amusing me and bringing back wonderful memories I will continue as I can always cut and paste this back in to a document and make my children read it as a punishment :D

 

cheers Sandra

[Sand$!]

…ah one last planning moment before we join the ship…Roll Calls and Meet & Mingles

 

I really did not know the form and how active one was to be on these threads but after lurking and reading most other people’s information I tried to join in on the Roll Call – not sure if I helped in anyway but did start to get a few names and hear interesting stories from people who were coming from all over the world to be on this trip.

 

I signed up for the Meet and Mingle and a great guy on the thread organised a gift exchange and a slot pull. Putting yourself out there to do this type of organisation sometimes puts you in the front row for criticism if things do not go well.

 

I was impressed someone was going to the effort so decided come what may I would attend and participate. DH had other ideas and thought I was mad planning to meet people I did not know on a holiday. Obviously it is not something you do when going to a hotel resort for a couple of weeks and I kind of got that, but I wanted to try lots of new things on this once off holiday so I signed the grumpy bum up as well.

[Sand$!]

Now for My Cruise

almost we have to get there first....

 

Sunday 10th April - We left Buenos Aires on the 7.00 am flight, lucky it was the ‘local’ airport so we had less travel time first thing and only hand to be getting up at 4.30 am. It was at this point we had a few things on our mind…would we have delays and would we get the luggage on without too much expense.

 

It all seemed quiet in the airport but that just 5.30 am for you. The check in guy was a sweetie and put three of the cases through and let us take one cabin size on with us for a total cost of $0. We also had laptop bags and satchels as well so I was impressed. So far so good but I seriously thought we were facing a large charge at that point.

 

There was another thread on these boards about flying through South American countries where people all seem to cue up for the flight even before they see the cabin crew arrive and that was so true on this flight…I got excited at one-point thinking oh yes we must be leaving as people have formed a queue. Nope it all dragged on and 7.00 am was approaching and no flight information was displayed. We moved towards the queue and sat down! More and more people joined the queue even moving from the seats right beside the queue to join in…..and stand

 

…. eventually a couple of flight crew turned up and we were off the queue moved straight through the gate and we followed them on a to a half empty plane. Three hours later and plenty of seats to stretch out in we arrived in Sao Paulo.

 

Collecting luggage was a breeze and then someone was gathering people up by asking cruise, cruise, cruise – no signs no badges at this point so we followed like sheep gathering more in the flock as we went through customs to a very large hall and then out to the curb and then waited and waited and people from the group started wandering off.

 

Then by default I wandered back into the terminal and found a lady checking names. So name given we started standing about again. One gentlemen had a gaggle of ladies with him and he herded them along and then lost one or two and started over. He looked so forlorn and confused my DH was even trying to help but we had no more clue than he did about where we were supposed to be or doing. None of us spoke the same language and there were no signs at this point.

 

There were about 40 of us milling around and then someone seemed to think we should be at another terminal – a very brief glimpse of the back of Royal Caribbean coloured shirt led me to suspect someone had been told something - so off we went to get a transfer bus, it was serious chaos and a lot of Latin gesturing. We had landed on time at 10.00 am and I knew the transfer buses ran up to 12.00 am so I did not think 40 plus people would be left so decided not to get upset and see what happened.

 

We struggled onto a transfer bus with all the cases and then some of the group started to get off, what!? Anyway we stayed put and the people got back on. I was even starting to see the humour in all of this.

 

The transfer bus arrived at another terminal and one of the group let out a yelp he could see a Royal Caribbean sign. Off we trouped off the bus following blindly this other group who seemed to know where they were going. NO NO the shout went out our group was to go into the airport terminal and get stickers. Like a gaggle of geese, the group changed direction and bumped bags and cases over into a terminal building. Yeh – there was an official person with a list and stickers!

 

We lined up (not true the gaggle of geese do not do lines) and they pushed and shoved and shouted loudest to the lady- she was surrounded.

 

In due time (we were last with the forlorn looking man) we got stickers which denoted our coach number and we are then told to hurry up and wait. We sat around for another hour. Believe me at this point I did not care I was counted I had a sticker and I was on time for my cruise I was NOT going to have to fly to Rio or even Salvador I was there!

 

When the time came the driver took bags and we all climbed on including every Royal Caribbean staff member (and there where now 6 of them) – we were the last bus. The coach trip down (and I mean down) took around 2 hours – it was seriously boring for the first hour and then we started climbing down a mountain side – amazing and sickening at the same time. I could see seas glimpses at various point and was starting to get very excited. I knew at that point I had never mentally got past the age of 12 going to the seaside. I was bouncing like tigger. I wanted a glimpse of the ship and thought I saw it for a fleeting moment…..The Rhapsody

[Sand$!]

At this point I will tell you I had read enough to know it was one of the smallest ships in the fleet and also one of the oldest – care factor on these points was zero. I just knew I was going to make the most of whatever she had to offer because it was all new to me.

 

Now I had read about the disorganised entry onto the ship at times and decided I could hold on to my good mood a little longer and wait for whatever greeted us in the embarkation hall. I was rewarded with long lines of roping and no queue, none whatsoever. Our weary band of travellers from the Buenos Aries flight who had wandered around Sao Paulo airport had done our penance and waiting time already....

 

The boarding moment. I was in love with the whole process at this point I was about to do something that I had planned and read about for ages. The pre reading on CC meant I was very well informed of course so had all my documents ready actually at this point in Triplicate and in different bags in case one got lost. I only needed the one in my back pack. The checking in people were very nice and because there was virtually no one getting on now at around 2.00 pm it was a breeze.

 

Now for the pre boarding photo shoot. DH was by now informed of the photo package and I told him to relax it was paid for and there was very little he could do but bear with me. Then off for the actual on board moment. I have read here about the first ding and it was as some people have said......for me it was the moment the cruise started.

 

Ding….we are on board

 

We went on at deck 2 and had to walk up to get to the foyer and our stateroom. Wow and wow I loved it all at first sight. It was fun and I was determined to have a blast.

 

We went straight to the middle of ship and the Centrum to try out my drinks package! I wanted a sail away drink or three and to make memories as I had read on the boards.

 

Ha ha I can plan for everything including knowing there was a specific wine on the package I could drink, and on all that I had seen to date in was in the price range….NOT. Kim Crawford Sauvignon blanc had been moved to the $17 range. Poop I fell at the first hurdle on the drinks package. I nearly dropped then and there and cancelled the damm thing. Barman was understanding and tried to be nice he left me try a sip of a few others – I wish I had a tasting bin because most of what I tried would have been in a spittoon.

[Sand$!]

I know I know...

 

I sound like a petulant little girl who cannot have her way. But I seriously have issues drinking some wines due to the sulphates added and would rather do without than suffer the consequences.

 

DH is saying drink what you like and pay the difference per glass of course – I think he has already had a drink finished by this point. Kim Crawford is $14 a bottle in Aus dollars so I was baulking at paying bottle prices for a glass.

 

Oh get over myself I start internally shouting it is a holiday do not spoil it. Bartender gets me to try a nice Pinot Gris – sure why not – I cannot fall further through the floor.

 

It was nice…quaffable at least and not from California which is usually a no no for me because of sulphates. I smiled weakly thanked and tipped him well – he was a credit to RC that he helped this quivering wreck of an A1+ planner who dreams had been shattered!

 

Glass in hand and a mental check of the name of the wine….we went to walk around…The smile was soon back on my face. I had searched every picture of Rhapsody and it was all as good as I had hoped. The other point to me I noticed on boarding….where were all these 2000 plus people? the place looked empty.

 

This feeling lasted most of the cruise apart from a few times I will tell you about. The main feeling at had was it was so special for us and we felt it. The few people who know me well before the cruise thought it might be Bultins at sea for me, but, I had purposely read the negatives and given myself a list of what to not get annoyed about if it happened. Pity I did not have the wine choice on that mental list!

 

We checked out stateroom and thought it was decent enough, time would tell if we felt cramped once we had all the luggage in and 14 days of spreading ourselves about.

 

Three checked bags were in the hall one missing! Did I panic, nope I am a CC pre-reader and was pretty certain our bag would be in the naughty room. DH thought I was mad as I came out with this statement! We had not pre bought drink with us as who needed it with the drink package. I was right it was my bottle of heartburn medicine (taken for bad wine) but it only took me a sec to show the guys doing luggage checks and I was back with the fourth suitcase.

 

We usually throw bags in hotel rooms and dash off out at this point in normal holidays but as we had some nice formal gear we hung that up first this time and then actually spent another 30 mins unpacking and making ourselves at home.

 

Wine sipping as we unpacked I emptied bags and baggage and stored under beds and in cupboards - it was roomy, amazing considering the amount of c**p we had.

 

Cruise compass that I had heard and seen so much about was on the bed…but this one was MINE….off we went with guide in hand and off to find another wine (lapping it up at this point) and somewhere to sit and plan the remainder of the day before dinner.

[Sand$!]

And it all comes together….

 

I will not take you through day by day (I hear the big sigh of relief) just my main items and how we actually found things for us..... but as you know by now that possibly will not be short .....

 

The Evening Dining Experiences

 

From the first night we loved the Main Dining Room, My Time Dining for us worked a treat I had booked all but the chefs table night at 8.15 pm. When plans changed I called and cancelled or changed times.

 

The service on the first night was a little confusing for us but we loved our servers and they showed us the ropes – so much so we did ask to be seated in their area every time we went. Yes, the tables are packed in tight for the couples seating but you could easily keep yourself to yourself or chat depending on how one felt each evening.

 

The food was great – not over the top brilliant – I like being served and this adds to the ambience of what you are eating for me. I found the serving sizes a little on the large side for me and my servers worried I did not like the food if I had to leave something. Never had an issue with food and never found myself sending anything back.

 

Wine from the first to the last night was with us within minutes and our habits noted and catered for every time we arrived. Coffee and liqueurs as usual with desert etc.

 

My observations in the MTD room – it all seemed very organised and well attended every evening – people dressed in smart casual for the most part and a mixture of very formal to casual on the formal nights. Did I care what anyone else wore…nope not at all I possible only took a fleeting glance around as I entered and then enjoyed my meal with my partner. It really is true what they say on this forum, wear what you want within reason follow the guide of no beach wear and you will be right.

 

We enjoyed the MDR so much we never ever went to the Windjammer for an evening meal.

[Sand$!]

Up Charge Restaurants

 

Over the course of the 14 days we did meet some people (will let you know about that a little later) and joined them for two evenings one in Giovannis and once in Chops……. now this was excellent. Over 14 nights I now wish I had bought the five-night dining package but did not that worry me at the time.

 

The service was as always good and being on the drinks package meant our wine was catered for …. It helped both restaurants link up with the schooner bar behind the scenes and the bartenders in there knew by then our likes and dislikes. Meaning in my case only the one brand of Pinot Gris and lots and lots of ice. I was stuffed on these two evenings but still wanted to keep eating because I found it all delicious.

 

Lunchtimes

 

We ate in the Windjammer – fine – busy and sometimes the one place I found crowded. Food was more than adequate and I found something I liked enough to eat most of the time. I think we saw the BBQ nearly every other day on deck but never joined the queue – looked like a lot of hassle for us. Lunchtime was not a big deal for us as evening meals and the MDR was our point of reference for dining.

 

Mornings- breakfast

 

Never ate in the dining room – too much effort on our part, Windjammer came into its own here and found everything tasty and hot. To the end of the cruise we started skipping breakfast and settled for a coffee and tea with Danish collected from Café Lattitudes and back to Cabin.

 

We did try the breakfast in bed room service but seriously wished we had not bothered it was the one time the cabin felt crowded with dishes and trays and without a balcony there was little place to sit and enjoy. Note to self I am not paying for a balcony to eat breakfast!

 

Chefs Table

 

I am not going over this in much detail – because I thought it was a waste of time and money for us. DH and I do many fine dining evenings and had had a ball in Argentina with fine food and excellent choices of wine. It was not to our taste and the wine pairing was deathly, cheap and nasty choices for the most part including a substandard port. No I did not drink any of it – my choice.

 

The table people were all lovely including another couple we had already met and had gone to the other restaurant’s with.

 

Summary – please experience this for yourself and not pay any heed to my thoughts, but at $100 a head this would have covered nearly the five-night dining package I wished I had bought.

 

Yes we still Tipped

[Sand$!]

Tipping

 

We are Aussie Brits and I hear we are not known for our tipping – well bull**** – we had pre-paid gratuities and did not remove these. We tipped extra at bars usually at some point in the evening. We tipped extra as we went along with our Cabin Steward three or four times. The service we received was deserving of extra and we never had an issue anywhere. We put extra in an envelope for the dining room staff at the end of the cruise and our steward. These are not massive amounts I am talking about but just an extra thanks from us. I have no opinion about other people and what they do and do not want to give – it is your choice – and feel relaxed about whatever choice that is.

 

Shore Excursions

 

The pre-planned one via Royal Caribbean was as good as one can be to the Christ the Redeemer. It is a tourist hotspot in Rio and as such needs 5 hours organised tour for 20 mins at the top maybe 40 mins depending on your slot. Lots and lots of queuing. The tour was on our first cruise day as is it only a short hop up from Sao Paulo port to Rio.

 

This was the one time I heard DH whinge on the whole cruise (well that and chefs table later) he wanted off the tour bus at end badly he was over it.

 

That set the scene for our other ports of call – no amount of anything was going to change his mind to get on another tour. Lucky for us as I said at the start this was not a cruise about the ports. One last stop in Brazil at this point and two ports before Barcelona. DH had been to Tenerife so nothing new there and Malaga in Spain was Spain for us – been there done it numerous times. I am not being dismissive I think planning trips on port days is important for many and if there had been something I wanted to do it would have happened.

 

We did notice at the next three ports plenty of individual cab drivers and tours offerings as you get off the ship – so with a little pre reading I think you can find out relative costs and compare these to RC and then probably get a reasonable trip for two people to wherever you want to go.

 

So what did we do on the three other port days – we got off ship and walked and walked – we found coffee shops and general wanderings found us in interesting places. Lucky for us all three ports are close by the cities and meandering was fun. Getting off the ship after the busses have left meant it was an easy and quick exit for us and usually no issue getting back on ship.

 

No pier running for us – but we did see an incident in Salvador de Bhai where it seemed that some people had to leave the ship – have no clue what it was all about only noticed it because it was right underneath our ocean view window.

 

One lovely incident on shore was meeting our forlorn man (the one at the beginning with the gaggle of ladies in the airport). DH had chatted enough to know his name and vice versus (language no barrier with smiles and gestures I think). Anyway he shouted to us in a shop and proudly showed off his purchases- handbags for his other daughter at home – he was smiling and laughing and having a wonderful time. In 14 days this was only the second time we had seen him and this was day 10 I think.

 

There was then time for us to spend time aboard a nearly empty ship so we had solarium time and general laying around – possibly the only time we spent around the pools. Not our thing usually. Yes sunny days could see the pool deck crowded – but it was nice crowded. Lots of dancing and music and people enjoying themselves – the South Americans like a party and many times it was fun to watch.

[Sand$!]

Events on board and evening entertainment

 

We went to virtually nothing – I do not know where the time went – we were so laid back – we did not make evening plans mostly lounging around chatting after dinner. I caught a couple of moments of the Arial display in the centrum – nice enough. I watched some different events happening in the centrum also, dance off and some other things. We went to the theatre one evening and watch some musical artist, again nice but left in break.

 

Like the singers and piano people in the schooner bar which was our most frequent haunt.

 

Dancing is something DH and I do as our thing and we actually found many places to do this and classes to join in. A couple of times I had to give up as the floor got so crowded with the South Americans – gosh they love love to dance and party as I said. No I did not walk off as a petulant child, I just sat down and watched more than danced.

 

Evening dancing was something we could do for at least an hour somewhere on the ship and we did frequently also.

 

I did see snippets of the Quest (a riot) and Love and Marriage (slightly flat) but is was not because I disliked anything or had an issue with any entertainment. DH had found our groove and we where enjoying each and every day in our own way

[Sand$!]

I have a little more to tell myself.....and will post that later this weekend I hope. Cheers for now

[limace]

This is so fabulous-thank you!

 

 

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