Mitsugirly is finally sailing with RC again!

[lazydayz]

I agree, OP does great reviews. Can’t wait for her fresh take on a Royal cruise.

[Luke gs Daddy]

Our family is sailing on this same cruise and looking forward to it.

We have read many of your reviews and used your experiences to book some of the same tours.

What part of central Ohio are you from?

Also, are you a nurse?

[mitsugirly]

Typically there are movies by the pool nightly. Not always young kid friendly though if that matters.

 

Yes kids club is open the first night. It opens at 8. Other nights it opens at 7.

 

I've never done Family dining as we prefer My Time Dining. I tend to get a reservation around 6:15 as the 5:30 early seating is too early for us. We eat and then drop off the kids at the kids club around 7.

 

Jewel is a Radiance class ship. Make sure you sit outside to eat outside the Windjammer.

 

So great to hear that the kids club is open on the first night. I always found it odd that CCL does not have it open the first night.

 

 

We are signed up for My Time Dining. Do you have to have a reservation for that? (Since you mentioned it). What's the latest you can go to MTD?

 

I can't wait to see the glass walls and sit on the outside part of the Windjammer. It sounds awesome!

 

Don't get me wrong, I like RCI... however this is where CCL, in my opinion, has them beat. If you eat normally after 9pm, I can promise you, you will need to make that adjustment for a cruise on RCI, or you are going to be stuck with pre-made cold sandwiches, or room service ($7.95 per delivery, not bad items, mostly comfort food.) the sandwiches are like muffuletta, turkey, ham. All pre-made and on display in a window. Nothing like the deli on CCL. They do have some nice cookies there usually. My best suggestion would be to get my time dining, and go as late as possible to the MDR.

 

I too have always loved the choices on CCL like the Deli, Mongolian Wok etc., and am looking forward to Blue Iguana, Guys, and whatever else there is on the Horizon.

 

Now.. my opinion, and I have sailed the Serenade of the Seas & the Jewel of the Seas (both radiance class) and the ships on Royal blow CCL ships out of the water in design & beauty. The Radiance class are wonderful with tons of windows to the ocean everywhere you look. They are similar to the Spirit class, but no where near as gaudy.

 

Yes, we will definitely have to adjust if everything seems to close down at 9pm. Ugh.

 

 

I can't wait to see the glass walls. I'm looking forward to it!

 

Family time dining. Say early seating is at 6. You and your family pick that time, at 6:45, they come into the dining room and get the kids. But if that is too early to eat, take the kids to Wndjammer and drop them off at the kids club at 7.

 

I think you will enjoy the Jewel. Beautiful ship and not too big.

 

We enjoy Royal but miss Guys Burgers.

 

If you pick 6pm and they pick the kids up at 6:45pm, RC must have some really quick service!!! 45 minutes is fast. I don't believe I have ever experienced dinner that quick before. Hmm, I'm not really sure about the family dining thing. I was thinking maybe it was something like CCL has where the kids get to eat with each other. My daughter really enjoys eating with her friends. If it's just eating with us there, that's not really what I was looking for. I might just not worry about it and just eat when we want to.

 

 

First - can't wait to see your review!

 

The Cruise Planner is when you log into RCL's site to book excursions and such. You can book specialty dining, buy drink packages, photo packages, internet there. It is often cheaper to do so before the cruise, and they sometimes offer a special discount. They also offered a combo package of drinks and internet for my last cruise, so it was a better deal to do that.

 

I am not sure how much the photo package is but the photos themselves are $14.95 for the smaller one and $19.95 for the regular ones (I think it's 8 x 10?) I don't often buy photos but we did buy two on the last trip. I am just gold on Royal but had a coupon for a discount off the second photo. I also remember they had a special price if you bought a certain number of photos but I can't remember the details, sorry!

 

I have not done family time dining but it is basically you eat at the early dining time and the staff will come pick up your daughter so you don't have to take her there. Given you guys like to eat later you may want to just drop her off yourself and choose the later dining time. There is a note in the Kids Daily Planner that says "My Family Time Dining - Parents you can meet the Adventure Ocean Staff at the Dining Room entrance so you can quickly return to your dining experience. Your children will be signed in by an Adventure Ocean staff and escorted to the Adventure Ocean facility." The location is probably specific to the ship I was on You do also have the choice of Adventure Dining - Kids, come join us this evening for dinner with your Youth Staff, Children need to be signed up by 3pm in Adventure Ocean. They will take the kids for dinner (it was from 5:15 to 6:45 on my sailing). I think you have to sign up by 3 that you are going to do it, then make sure your child is there before 5.

 

Free dining choices are more limited I think, but the Windjammer offers lots of variety, so burgers are there instead of separate (like at Guys on Carnival).

 

 

Thanks for the compliments. I can't wait to try out Royal again. It's been so many years.

 

 

Ok, I did snoop around and found the Cruise Planner. I think I'll go ahead and book the soda and internet package since that will save some $$ it sounds like.

 

 

It sounds like the photo prices are in line with other cruise lines so I'll expect to pay the same. Do they have anything like NCL/CCL where each time you buy so many pictures you get a free gift?

 

 

Adventure Dining=YES! This is what I'm looking for. My daughter likes to eat with her friends and enjoys it. That's what I was looking for. Good to know they offer that.

 

 

Not sure if this was answered, probably and I just missed it. As to VOOM, if you get a "one device" plan, you can log off with one device, like your cell phone, and then log on with another, like your computer. It means only ONE device can be logged on at any time. BUT, be sure to LOG OFF when you're done or they say it'll stay logged on for 2 hours so you won't be able to log on with a different device for that time.

 

 

Thanks for the info. That's what we'll get. I take it they don't have just a button when someone else is trying to log on it says "log off other device" then right? I hate this about NCL...the other person has to log off first before you can use it. CCL is so simple, just hit a button and it automatically logs the other person off. Easy-peasy...especially if you forgot to log off a computer back in the room or something.

 

 

I believe on Jewel, the pizza and pre-made sandwiches are in the Solarium. It has been a while since I cruised this class of ship so others can weigh in here. The sandwiches are odd to me given they are many times a weird combination of items. I believe there is hamburgers/hotdogs in the windjammer when the cruise compass lists that venue as "snacks". Others can confirm. The free food options during the day and night are one item I struggle with on RCCL. I know this is important to you based on your reviews, so did not want you surprised.

 

Good to know about the hamburgers/hotdogs for the "snacks". I was wondering what that consisted of. This is going to be a challenging "food" cruise for sure it sounds like. ;p

 

I have never been on the Jewel, however assuming all RCCL kid's club programs are run the same, the first night the program is 8-10 (also open after 10 for a fee). Then every other night it is open from 7-10. My family time dining was great on the Allure, went to 6 pm dining then they got my kids and took them up to the kids club by 6:45. The wait staff knew this so they had a meal waiting for my kids before we even arrived.

 

Thanks for the info. Do you know what other times the kids club is open for morning and afternoon?

 

 

 

I hope rccl is paying you to go on them, because you will bring a lot of people over to try them. We tried ccl because of your reviews, loved the cruise line, and have 3 booked with them next year. You should get a commission! Thank you for your reviews!

 

Aww. thanks so much. I appreciate the compliments. (and don't I wish they would! :D)

 

 

Ditto. Love Mitsugirly's reviews and would love to hear her thoughts on Jewel. We have often selected our port days thanks to her.

 

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You guys are too kind. I can't wait to do a review on RCL myself. It's going to be fun. I'm glad my reviews have helped you out with some ports. That's the main reason I do them...to help out. Everyone here has helped me out so much in the past and I like to play it forward.

 

 

 

I have read your reviews also and enjoy them. If this helps, on our recent trip we signed up for the 8 p.m. traditional dining. I would take my 10 y.o. son to the WJ at 6:15ish and get him dinner, then take him to the kids club at 7 when it opened. We did this every night except the first night which was New Year’s Eve and the last night as his birthday was the next day so he came and ate with us, had cake, etc.

 

One other thing I wanted to mention. I have read lots of reviews on here and the RC kids club is about the only thing that has gotten close to universal approval. My son, like many, was not sure he wanted to go since he didn’t know anybody but within 5 minutes he was playing soccer. The counselors knew his name by the second night and by the last night he was asking if he could go. Hopefully you’ll have the same experience.

 

Thanks for the compliments. We are signed up for My Time Dining so we'll see how it goes. Our "hunger" schedule is usually different every night, so we don't like to be tied down to just a certain time if we are not hungry.

 

 

There won't be any problems with my overly friendly munchkin. She loves everyone and makes friends super easy. She's never worried about meeting new friends and looks forward to going each time. For the most part, I haven't been on a cruise yet (that I can think of) that most of the counselors didn't know all the kids names by the next night (at least the regulars). They simply amaze me with their ability to remember so many names each week. If only I could remember where my cabin was and the number I'd be doing good. :o LOL

 

I agree, OP does great reviews. Can’t wait for her fresh take on a Royal cruise.

 

Aww thanks so much. Glad you enjoy them.

 

 

Our family is sailing on this same cruise and looking forward to it.

We have read many of your reviews and used your experiences to book some of the same tours.

What part of central Ohio are you from?

Also, are you a nurse?

 

Well I hope you have a wonderful time on the cruise! I sure plan on it.

 

 

So glad to know that you have found my reviews helpful with some bookings.

 

 

We are from the outskirts of Columbus...(Grove City). Yes, I'm a nurse.

[mitsugirly]

Oh gosh!!! I almost forgot...one of the most important questions I'll ever have....

 

 

Are we allowed to bring our own pop/soda onboard? If so, how much? (I still always buy the soda package on board...can you say addiction?). :')

[Clarea]

Oh gosh!!! I almost forgot...one of the most important questions I'll ever have....

 

 

Are we allowed to bring our own pop/soda onboard? If so, how much? (I still always buy the soda package on board...can you say addiction?). :')

Technically it is against Royal's rules to being any beverage aboard, other than the two bottles of wine per stateroom. However, they usually look the other way in the case of water and soda. If you are cruising during Spring Break, there is a better chance they will enforce the rule.

[mitsugirly]

Technically it is against Royal's rules to being any beverage aboard, other than the two bottles of wine per stateroom. However, they usually look the other way in the case of water and soda. If you are cruising during Spring Break, there is a better chance they will enforce the rule.

 

 

Well crap! If it's their rule not to bring it on board, I won't buy it and bring in hopes that they might look the other way. I follow the rules...even when it involves my pop. :p

Darnit!

[Denversail]

I can’t wait to see your review. We did the kayaks to Pinel Island last year based on your review. We loved it! Yes, the loading area smelled terrible. Lol

 

 

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[bearette]

I am Diamond on RCCL, but having sailed both, the buffet, 24hr food and flexible scheduling is done better on NCL. I have fed my kids at 10pm from the late snack offerings on RCCL and pizza and sandwiches area are your only options. Usually the snack area has salad,fruit and a desserts too. The cruises we did had grilled cheese so my kids survived. RCCL is better for the dinning room and ice shows. regardless

You will find things you like better, and things done worse from both cruise lines so enjoy the comparisions.

[Luke gs Daddy]

So gre

 

Well I hope you have a wonderful time on the cruise! I sure plan on it.

So glad to know that you have found my reviews helpful with some bookings.

We are from the outskirts of Columbus...(Grove City). Yes, I'm a nurse.

 

 

That's where we are from. DW is a school Nurse for Columbus City.

[MamatoJack]

Kids club on sea days is open 9 to 12, 2 to 5, and 7 to 10. At least on our last cruise. They have the adventure dinner and you can pay for them to stay after 10. Port days vary.

 

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[Rogueperson]

I should add a couple of things.

 

Jewel does not have the O3B system as far as I know. This means the Voom internet will be the slower variety. That being said, i HAVE been able to stream netflix and hulu on this, but it can be a little frustrating sometimes.

 

Also, I BELIEVE what is also offered is Nachos during late night. Its not the best, but hey, you can't beat chips and hot cheese!!! It was at the Park Cafe on the Grandeur but I don't think Jewel had a Park Cafe. I haven't been on the Jewel since 2009..

[Clarea]

... Also, I BELIEVE what is also offered is Nachos during late night. Its not the best, but hey, you can't beat chips and hot cheese!!! It was at the Park Cafe on the Grandeur but I don't think Jewel had a Park Cafe. I haven't been on the Jewel since 2009..

It's not called Park Cafe, but Jewel does have a food venue with late night snacks in the Solarium.

[twinmommy08]

My family time dining: in our experience, you have the first seating for traditional dining.

You let the wait staff know you are participating and they bring out the children’s meal fairly quickly. About 45 mins after the start of dinner, the parent (adult) walks the kids to the front of the dining area on a certain deck and check the kids into the club with the adventure staff. The staff walks the kids up to the club and the adults can go back to enjoying their dinner.

I have not tried it with MTD but I suspect you could take the kids to the meeting spot at the right time if you were MTD. The club also has “adventure dining” where they take the kids to the windjammer for an early dinner and then takes them back to the club.

Our kids enjoy the adventure dining. The staff are great with the kids.

 

 

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[mitsugirly]

I can’t wait to see your review. We did the kayaks to Pinel Island last year based on your review. We loved it! Yes, the loading area smelled terrible. Lol

 

 

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Thanks and glad you enjoyed Pinel Island. It's such a beautiful place! Loading,...yucky!

 

I am Diamond on RCCL, but having sailed both, the buffet, 24hr food and flexible scheduling is done better on NCL. I have fed my kids at 10pm from the late snack offerings on RCCL and pizza and sandwiches area are your only options. Usually the snack area has salad,fruit and a desserts too. The cruises we did had grilled cheese so my kids survived. RCCL is better for the dinning room and ice shows. regardless

You will find things you like better, and things done worse from both cruise lines so enjoy the comparisions.

 

Yea, I'm thinking that there's not many out there that can compare to NCL when it comes to the 24/7 food options. They just rock at that.

 

 

SUPER GLAD to hear the snack area has salad and fruit. When I can't find something I like to eat, I resort to a salad. You can't go wrong with that! Grilled cheese is awesome too and that will work as well for limited options.

 

 

Does the Jewel have an ice show??

 

Yea, there's good and bad in them all and they also vary from ship to ship within a line too. I'll cope and have a good cruise no matter what. Hey, maybe I'll lose some of these cruise pounds I've managed to pack on over the last several cruising years. ;p

 

That's where we are from. DW is a school Nurse for Columbus City.

 

That's awesome. Sakari goes to CCS (not my choice but her particular school is good).

 

 

Kids club on sea days is open 9 to 12, 2 to 5, and 7 to 10. At least on our last cruise. They have the adventure dinner and you can pay for them to stay after 10. Port days vary.

 

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Awesome. Thanks for the info.

 

 

 

I should add a couple of things.

 

Jewel does not have the O3B system as far as I know. This means the Voom internet will be the slower variety. That being said, i HAVE been able to stream netflix and hulu on this, but it can be a little frustrating sometimes.

 

Also, I BELIEVE what is also offered is Nachos during late night. Its not the best, but hey, you can't beat chips and hot cheese!!! It was at the Park Cafe on the Grandeur but I don't think Jewel had a Park Cafe. I haven't been on the Jewel since 2009..

 

No clue what O3B is, but if it's a slower internet system...that sucks. I'm still in school and will have to do my homework, which includes a test on Tuesdays, a paper on Thursdays and a discussion board x2 on Saturdays. Blah. Not looking forward to that. Other than that, I just need instant messaging to check on the kid(s) back home and my animals...then of course social media to show them how much fun I'm having and scold them for not coming along this trip. :D

 

Nachos...yep, that's good too!

 

 

It's not called Park Cafe, but Jewel does have a food venue with late night snacks in the Solarium.

 

Awesome thanks. I am wondering though if the Solarium is an adult only place, how are kids going in there for food? How does this all work? It seems like an odd place to have a place for late night food and not want kids in the area.

 

 

My family time dining: in our experience, you have the first seating for traditional dining.

You let the wait staff know you are participating and they bring out the children’s meal fairly quickly. About 45 mins after the start of dinner, the parent (adult) walks the kids to the front of the dining area on a certain deck and check the kids into the club with the adventure staff. The staff walks the kids up to the club and the adults can go back to enjoying their dinner.

I have not tried it with MTD but I suspect you could take the kids to the meeting spot at the right time if you were MTD. The club also has “adventure dining” where they take the kids to the windjammer for an early dinner and then takes them back to the club.

Our kids enjoy the adventure dining. The staff are great with the kids.

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Yea, this doesn't sound like it's something I would like. While it's great that they quickly bring out the meals for the kids so that they can get done, I don't think I would like it too much. If we are eating dinner as a family, I like for everything to be served at the same time and we eat together. I also don't want to have to stop in the middle of my dinner and take my daughter somewhere to drop her off. That kinda spoils the whole point of having dinner together.

 

 

Adventure dining is more of what I'm looking for. Do they have this every night or just certain nights? She usually goes a couple times per cruise because she likes eating with her friends and usually what's on the menu (on Carnival).

[Clarea]

... Awesome thanks. I am wondering though if the Solarium is an adult only place, how are kids going in there for food? How does this all work? It seems like an odd place to have a place for late night food and not want kids in the area. ... .

The food venue is just inside the starboard aft entrance to the Solarium. No problem with children going in there to get food. However, they cannot use loungers, pool, or hot tubs.

[my_crib_too]

Kim:

 

Looking forward to the review. Running our of fresh NCL/Carnival ships to cruise on? :):)

 

Any new ports for you and your family? I hope your extended family is joining. Always adds something to your review.

 

Bruce...

[Rogueperson]

 

No clue what O3B is, but if it's a slower internet system...that sucks. I'm still in school and will have to do my homework, which includes a test on Tuesdays, a paper on Thursdays and a discussion board x2 on Saturdays. Blah. Not looking forward to that. Other than that, I just need instant messaging to check on the kid(s) back home and my animals...then of course social media to show them how much fun I'm having and scold them for not coming along this trip. :D

 

 

O3B is the faster newer internet at sea. Jewel has not been upgraded with that yet. What exactly do you need for school? If its discussion boards and test taking, I suspect the internet should be fine (never took online courses before), If there is video, buffering will be slower, but its still doable if the video quality is lower. But surprising, video CAN be streamed even without it, but its a little frustrating sometimes due to the high lag

[twinmommy08]

Adventure dining is more of what I'm looking for. Do they have this every night or just certain nights? She usually goes a couple times per cruise because she likes eating with her friends and usually what's on the menu (on Carnival).

 

 

The adventure dining is not available the first night. It was offered during most nights. On a 7 days, all but 2-3 I believe. You do need to sign up before hand and the attendance is limited. We never had an issue getting in but we always signed up during morning drop off. My kids prefer to eat with their friends too and I agree about the family meals.

 

 

 

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[mitsugirly]

The food venue is just inside the starboard aft entrance to the Solarium. No problem with children going in there to get food. However, they cannot use loungers, pool, or hot tubs.

 

Thanks.

 

Kim:

 

Looking forward to the review. Running our of fresh NCL/Carnival ships to cruise on? :):)

 

Any new ports for you and your family? I hope your extended family is joining. Always adds something to your review.

 

Bruce...

 

 

haha, never...they keep building more and Carnival has so many that I probably will never get to do them all. It was just the opportunity to go back to Puerto Rico, it was super cheap, it has new ports for us. It was just a win-win situation and a no-brainer. :D

 

We have a bunch of new ports this time around and I'm so excited about that. Only 2 previous visited ports (Barbados and St Maarten).

 

As for the extended family...Kendra has been going back and forth about going and like always...she's missed out on the last interior room (this would be quite an expensive cruise for her because she actually has to pay for the flight to-from where I don't, which makes it cheap for me, and she would need an interior room). So, like always (and like last PR cruise), she'll probably continue to stalk the RCL website 4-5x daily waiting to see if one opens up. She snagged one that opened up on the Fascination out of PR last time just 2 days before the sailing. I swear she's not my kid...I would have heart failure booking this way!! But if that happens, I'm sure her and "B" will be along for the ride. We area sailing with our CC friend (Thrilled on here) and her children (same as last Spring Break) so we're going to have a blast!

 

O3B is the faster newer internet at sea. Jewel has not been upgraded with that yet. What exactly do you need for school? If its discussion boards and test taking, I suspect the internet should be fine (never took online courses before), If there is video, buffering will be slower, but its still doable if the video quality is lower. But surprising, video CAN be streamed even without it, but its a little frustrating sometimes due to the high lag

 

Oh ok. For school, I will have video lectures, online discussion boards and a test to do. I've done schooling before while cruising and I have to say it's the biggest pain in the butt with the slow connectivity. I'm not looking forward to it! blah. The hubby uses it too for his business with emails and uploading tracking numbers and so on. His is only about an hour a night of work. I suspect mine might be a little longer.

 

 

The adventure dining is not available the first night. It was offered during most nights. On a 7 days, all but 2-3 I believe. You do need to sign up before hand and the attendance is limited. We never had an issue getting in but we always signed up during morning drop off. My kids prefer to eat with their friends too and I agree about the family meals.

 

 

 

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Awesome information! I'll make sure to ask her every morning if she plans on eating with the kids that day and sign her up early. Of course this cruise is a very port intensive cruise, so she may only get to do this 1-2 times this cruise. Do they do it on port days as well? Obviously I wouldn't be seeing anyone to sign her up for that afternoon after returning from port so do they have sign ups the night before possibly?

[mitsugirly]

So next question...

 

 

Since we always sail at Spring Break, does Royal offer anything for the kids for Easter? As in an Easter party, egg hunt, treasure hunt and so on?

[Yorkvillain]

Looking forward to your review. I learned so much from your Baltimore cruise review a few years ago. It made planning our first cruise out of Cruise Maryland very enjoyable.

[Denversail]

So next question...

 

 

 

 

 

Since we always sail at Spring Break, does Royal offer anything for the kids for Easter? As in an Easter party, egg hunt, treasure hunt and so on?

 

 

 

We have been on cruises on Easter. They had chocolate bunnies piled around the buffet and plastic eggs everywhere. We never participated in egg hunts but I’m pretty sure they had those activities.

 

 

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[mitsugirly]

Looking forward to your review. I learned so much from your Baltimore cruise review a few years ago. It made planning our first cruise out of Cruise Maryland very enjoyable.

 

Thanks and glad you enjoyed the review.

 

We have been on cruises on Easter. They had chocolate bunnies piled around the buffet and plastic eggs everywhere. We never participated in egg hunts but I’m pretty sure they had those activities.

 

 

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Hopefully they will have something for the kids to do for Easter. My daughter looks forward to it on the other ships.

[mitsugirly]

Another question...

 

How does the casino work? I love the way CCL works with just using your room card and then it keeps everything separate and NCL makes you put money in.

[Denversail]

Another question...

 

 

 

How does the casino work? I love the way CCL works with just using your room card and then it keeps everything separate and NCL makes you put money in.

 

 

 

Do you play slots or tables? I don’t play slots but I think u can use your card. I think I’ve heard people comment that you have to do at least one spin once loading before cashing out to not incur a charge.

 

At the tables you can use cash. They charge 5% at the tables to get cash if u r not a VIP.

 

 

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