LIVE! Dragon OfTheSeas and the Snowbird Migration from Quebec to FLL Oct 7-20, 2019

[LuCruise]

2 minutes ago, DragonOfTheSeas said:

Yes--so sorry!  

Oh no worries.  Thought maybe I had missed that it was on Adventure (we're going in Dec).  I think I saw something similar on Brilliance so it was possible.

Really enjoying your review.

[DragonOfTheSeas]

We missed the ice show a few nights ago so we went to the matinee performance.  I think the ice skaters are very talented. 

 

 

It is a very small rink to be doing the lifts and jumps they do. 

 

 

 

The costumes were excellent.

 

 

 

This was a really cute segment.  These skaters were seated on 3-legged stools and skating from a seated position.  I have never seen that before. 

 

 

Look at the legs of the stool.

 

 

 

They has 4 lead skaters that did solos.

 

[DragonOfTheSeas]

Since we are in port until 7 pm tonight the Diamond lounge put out a goodbye seafood buffet for Happy Hour in the Imperial Garden.  [many will not get back onboard until their dinner time and miss Happy Hour] They had the usual chicken fingers, empanadas, cheese, etc. 

 

 

I am not a fan of sushi, but these platters were very popular. 

 

 

There were a few things I could not identify.  I stayed away form those. 

 

I am more of a shrimp girl myself. [far right] The crayfish made a very colorful display. 

 

edit:  One interesting thing is that they are running out of some wines and liquor.  We saw a line of trucks deprovisioning the ship this morning. 

Edited October 19, 2019 by DragonOfTheSeas

[DragonOfTheSeas]

After dinner we went to the production show, "Can't Stop the Rock."  The singers and dancers put on a very energetic show.  I could see why they postponed this show on the day we had bad weather.  There was a metal set and lots of running up stairs and climbing through the set.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[DragonOfTheSeas]

The final activity of the night was the 70s show on the Royal Promenade. [last for us anyway] 

 

I took pictures from both ends of the Promenade.  You can see there was a big crowd singing and dancing below the staff.  There were people watching from all of levels.

 

 

These two pictures are taken from different ends of the Promenade.  It gives you an idea of the crowd. 

 

 

The 70s party is not complete without a rendition of YMCA.  

 

 

[DragonOfTheSeas]

You can see why I was tired last night--too much fun. 😁

 

Today is a foggy rainy day.  We had planned to stay onboard today to have a quiet pool day.  The pool is out.  I might try the hot tub later.  Do you see the lifeguard is still out there in his rain coat. 

 

 

 

[gatour]

4 hours ago, BananaMama66 said:

Regarding the non-refund of port fees for Halifax, the explanation that I was  given by Guest Services is as follows (and this is their explanation which I had to ask the rep to explain to me twice):  originally the itinerary was to be all Canadian ports (Charlottetown, Sydney, Halifax, Saint John) followed by US ports. When the itinerary was changed and we were going to Saint John after visiting 2 US ports, apparently all of the port fees charged went up in price. 🤔. So the amounts that we all pre-paid for port fees were not adequate so RCCL made up the difference. When Halifax was cancelled and the port fees refunded, RCCL decided to keep the money to make up the shortfall that they had to pay to cover the increase in port fees. 
 

I am curious to hear if any other Cruise Critic members have ever heard of this or had this happen to them. 
 

And thanks Dragon for the excellent review!

 

BananaMama

Why would changing order, change the port charges for those ports?

[BananaMama66]

I don’t know and wondered the same thing myself.  The Guest Services rep made it clear that this was what they had been told in regards to the port fees for Halifax. For comparison purposes, we checked the port fees for next year’s Snowbird Migration cruise and they are almost $100 per person more than what we paid for this cruise so I don’t dispute that the fees may have increased. 

[DragonOfTheSeas]

Someone posted  on our cruise roll call a link to an article about the Coast Guard helicopter transport of the medical emergency onboard the ship. 

 

Here is the text of the article and the link to the video.  The video is very dark--but, it was a night rescue.

 

Thank you @JuliaMS

 

57 minutes ago, JuliaMS said:

https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.app.com/amp/4027884002

*****************************************************************************

ATLANTIC CITY – A cruise ship passenger suffered a stroke aboard Royal Caribbean’s “Adventure of the Seas” and had to be airlifted to AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center from more than 100 miles off the Jersey Shore, according to the Coast Guard.

The medevac took place after the Coast Guard was contacted by the ship’s crew via satellite phone about 6:20 p.m. Thursday, authorities said.

The ship, which is 1,020 feet in length with a crew of 1,180 — and which can accommodate more than 4,000 passengers — is on a 13-day, one-way cruise from Quebec City, Canada to Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The voyage began Oct. 7 and is scheduled to end Sunday.

On Friday night, the vessel was moving south off the coast of Beaufort, South Carolina.

An Air Station Atlantic City-based MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew was launched to conduct the airlift. Elsewhere, Air Station Elizabeth City in North Carolina dispatched a fixed-wing, Lockheed HC-130J for support in the operation, according to the Coast Guard.

An EMS squad waited for the helicopter to land when the passenger was transported to the regional trauma center.

[ Published by USA today Network]

 

[DragonOfTheSeas]

The weather is getting worse.  I feel sorry for those that have excursions to Cape Canaveral and Disney World.  They are very expensive and involve time outdoors. 

 

We are having tropical downpours and a tornado watch. It is hard to describe how hard it is raining. 

 

 

Over 300 guests left the ship this morning.  They live in central or northern Florida and wanted to disembark closer to home.  To leave before the end you need to make arrangements with Royal Caribbean ahead of time and pay a fee.  This is used to pay CBP.  I heard it was $65 per stateroom--but, I do not know that for a fact.  

 

 

[Hoopster95]

2 hours ago, DragonOfTheSeas said:

It is hard to describe how hard it is raining. 

 

To leave before the end you need to make arrangements with Royal Caribbean ahead of time and pay a fee.  This is used to pay CBP.  I heard it was $65 per stateroom--but, I do not know that for a fact.  

 

Hey Dragon! Interesting re the CBP. Thx for sharing that. I was wondering how that worked.

 

Sorry to see the weather has definitely

been a challenge on this sailing. How has the crowding been on the ship with everyone stuck

indoors? I assume relatively bad?

 

Your blog here the last couple of weeks has me inspired and thinking about putting up a delayed (shorter version) review of my sailing 3 weeks ago... same ship, same itinerary and a totally different sailing. I didn’t do the things as you in any port, so would be good for others reading this review to see any differences. I feel an October sailing is a total crap shoot regarding weather... early Sept isn’t guaranteed either however a better chance for decent weather but barely any red foliage. Pick your poison I guess.

 

Safe travels as you finish your cruise and thanks again for this review. Great job! 😀👍

Edited October 19, 2019 by Hoopster95

[DragonOfTheSeas]

29 minutes ago, Hoopster95 said:

 

Hey Dragon! Interesting re the CBP. Thx for sharing that. I was wondering how that worked.

 

Sorry to see the weather has definitely

been a challenge on this sailing. How has the crowding been on the ship with everyone stuck

indoors? I assume relatively bad?

 

Your blog here the last couple of weeks has me inspired and thinking about putting up a delayed (shorter version) review of my sailing 3 weeks ago... same ship, same itinerary and a totally different sailing. I didn’t do the things as you in any port, so would be good for others reading this review to see any differences. I feel an October sailing is a total crap shoot regarding weather... early Sept isn’t guaranteed either however a better chance for decent weather but barely any red foliage. Pick your poison I guess.

 

Safe travels as you finish your cruise and thanks again for this review. Great job! 😀👍

Actually the first part of the cruise the weather was very good.  We kept hearing this is as good as it gets.  . . . and actually the rain here in Port Canaveral has passed.  We now have sunshine.  The fall leaves were terrific.  I do not regret selecting this cruise.  In fact, I would do it again.  

 

All of the venues on the ship have been more crowded than a typical cruise.  That has gotten old a few times.  We would go to 3 bars and there was not a seat at any of them.  I am really glad we had a balcony cabin.  Not that we sat out very much early on the cruise, but it gave me a bit of personal space. 

 

For sure review your cruise.  I know I looked for all of the information I could get before we left.  I look forward to reading it. 

[purduemom1]

On 10/18/2019 at 12:10 PM, ace1zoe2 said:

 

We were on this same cruise. Sad that we missed Bar Harbor. We are on Anthem next week and keeping our fingers crossed that we get there this time. The worst part for us was coming back in to Manhattan where our hotel was and trying to get around. All the electric was off, the subway was closed due to flooding, the buses were reserved to transport people back across the bridges. We did a lot of walking that weekend. Our flight home the following day had a total of 8 passengers and the airport was deserted.

 

I hope you have great weather and that you are able to visit Bar Harbor.

 

Yes, I recall several pax were worried about how they would get around because they were flying out of JFK or LGA. Our flight out of EWR was about 2/3 full. In spite of the ending, I loved that cruise and really enjoyed our  pre cruise days in Old Quebec. 

[purduemom1]

On 10/18/2019 at 10:35 AM, DragonOfTheSeas said:

That is some cruise.  You will always remember that one no matter how many you take.  

 

 

 

Yes we will! As I said earlier, in spite of Sandy it was a great cruise and I have happy memories. Your pictures of the Halloween decorations in Quebec City reminded me of how much fun we had walking around Old Quebec where there seemed to be displays everywhere. 

[DragonOfTheSeas]

1 hour ago, purduemom1 said:

 

, I loved that cruise and really enjoyed our  pre cruise days in Old Quebec. 

That is the way I feel.  We had some weather issues at the end of the cruise.  But, we were gone 17 days.  If I were at home I would have poor weather at least 2-3 of those days.  We created some wonderful memories.  

[DragonOfTheSeas]

It is time to leave Port Canaveral.  It has turned out to be a beautiful evening.  

 

 

Time to turn around to head out to sea.

 

 

 

 

 

I wish you could see the red in the sky. 

 

 

 

 

[Tee & Chilli]

Thank you for the great review.

[DragonOfTheSeas]

2 hours ago, Tee & Chilli said:

Thank you for the great review.

You are welcome.  

[#55worktoplay]

Thank you for a great review. I have followed silently but enjoyed your writing and pictures immensely.

 

 

[Labmom3]

Thank you for the tip on the restaurant The Bicycle Thief in Halifax, we just returned from our Canada/New England cruise on Athem and stopped there for a delicious lunch.  Our server, Mary, I think was the best waitress we have ever had the pleasure of meeting.  Thanks again for your excellent review.

[cruise wizard]

6 minutes ago, Labmom3 said:

Thank you for the tip on the restaurant The Bicycle Thief in Halifax, we just returned from our Canada/New England cruise on Athem and stopped there for a delicious lunch.  Our server, Mary, I think was the best waitress we have ever had the pleasure of meeting.  Thanks again for your excellent review.

 

So happy that you tried it. Sometimes I am reluctant to suggest restaurants as peoples taste differ - but I felt that I should point out this place because there are lots of places to choose from. We will be there for lunch in June when Grandeur stops - we love this itinerary and especially Bar Harbor.

[cruise wizard]

Thank you "Dragon" for taking us along - we will be doing the Snowbird Migration next year on Vision..............only 11 more months!!!!!