Thrifty Couples Adventure of the Seas 2/1 to 2/9 Trip Report

[cgolf1]

 

Muster Drill

Normally this wouldn’t get a blurb but the people behind us were ridiculous. It took all my willpower not to say something to them. The muster drill was to start at 4:30. We happened to get there about 4:15 and a group of 3 people were already there with a bunch of other people. Not long after we got there they started complaining about it not starting and how disorganized RCCL was, mind you this was 4:20. Complaining continued and was both amusing and annoying to listen too. At 4:30 the complaining intensified when ‘rude’ people were showing up after the alarm sounds went off. Not long after that one of the ladies left before the lecture we have all listened to many times. I felt like calling out that she left but I didn’t. It sounded like these people were frequent cruisers. 

[robnmo]

I am looking forward to following this. We booked the Adventure in August. This will be only our 2nd cruise.

Cruised last year on NCL.

 

[nbsjcruiser]

Thanks for the review - we board on Saturday for an 8 day!

[lbjen]

2 hours ago, cgolf1 said:

 

Muster Drill

Normally this wouldn’t get a blurb but the people behind us were ridiculous. It took all my willpower not to say something to them. The muster drill was to start at 4:30. We happened to get there about 4:15 and a group of 3 people were already there with a bunch of other people. Not long after we got there they started complaining about it not starting and how disorganized RCCL was, mind you this was 4:20. Complaining continued and was both amusing and annoying to listen too. At 4:30 the complaining intensified when ‘rude’ people were showing up after the alarm sounds went off. Not long after that one of the ladies left before the lecture we have all listened to many times. I felt like calling out that she left but I didn’t. It sounded like these people were frequent cruisers. 

Sounds like the genius parents at our school that get in the car pool line at 1:30pm then complain that they’re still in line when the dismissal bell rings at 2:35pm 🙄

 

Looking at Adventure for March 2021, looking forward to your review! 

[brillohead]

19 hours ago, cgolf1 said:

The only small complaint is it is really tight to get to the side of the bed. It is actually easier to get in bed from the end. 

If one of you can manage not having a nightstand, you can move the bed against the wall on one side and put both nightstands together on the other side of the bed -- makes for a more manageable walkway on the side of the bed.

Or, since I travel solo or without a bed partner, separate the beds and put both nightstands in the center.  That makes the walkway between the beds a continuation of the space in front of the vanity and couch, which really opens up the room and makes it seem much larger.  

[cgolf1]

1 hour ago, brillohead said:

If one of you can manage not having a nightstand, you can move the bed against the wall on one side and put both nightstands together on the other side of the bed -- makes for a more manageable walkway on the side of the bed.

Or, since I travel solo or without a bed partner, separate the beds and put both nightstands in the center.  That makes the walkway between the beds a continuation of the space in front of the vanity and couch, which really opens up the room and makes it seem much larger.  

For us it really ended up being a non issue. I could see people with mobility issues struggling with it though. Honestly never understood why Celebrity and RCCL stuff such large beds in. Wish they would downsize them a bit and the money they save on the downsize could be put into a better quality mattress. Ours wasn’t as rock hard as I remember them, so maybe it had a foam mattress pad on it from someone else. 

[cgolf1]

Rest of night

Due to the timing of the muster drill and our early seating I ate my first dinner in shorts and a T shirt ever. Wasn’t happy about it, but really didn’t have much of a choice with the 5:15 time slot. Dinner was good and our servers seemed nice. After dinner we went to the welcome aboard show. The comic was Rick Corso, who we have seen before, but he was still pretty funny.
 

We also went and listened to Lyndon play piano in the Schooner bar until we were ready to crash after exploring the ship. He puts on a good show and always drew a crowd. He didn’t have a dynamic voice, but knew what he was capable off and stayed nicely in that lane. Not sure if he is one of the more popular piano players, or if all are that popular. 
 

Overall day 1 went very smoothly. I think a lot was due to the similarities with the Freedom, we felt like we knew our way instantly. 
 

The next part I will leave to the mods if they want to remove it or not. The artwork on the ship in my opinion was tasteful, but some American parents may not be super happy having their kids see it, or at least initially be shocked. These aren’t pictures, but my wife’s words about the art just totally cracked me up, wow there are a lot of nipples🤯 we mostly used the aft stairs, so not sure if this was in the forward stairs as well. Also managed Day 1 without using an elevator. 

Edited February 11, 2020 by cgolf1

[cgolf1]

Day 2 Cruise Compass

 

[cgolf1]

After breakfast we stopped up watched the pickeball briefly, it was a full court. We played mini golf a time or two that day. We wanted to do the 10 am trivia, but they were on question 5 when we got there at 9:55. We were a bit bummed but took it in stride. 

 

We did hang out a bit on deck 4 reading and just looking out at and listening to the ocean. This has always been our favorite spot on a ship. You can get some sun if you want or like me can hang out in the shade.

 

There was a confusing announcement about the port shopping show, making everyone think it had started 15 minutes early. The port shopping was the least informative of all that we have been too. I know the shows are repetitive, but we have won some stuff at them, and in the past we had learned something about the ports and some places to pick up good souvenirs. It was all about the bling at this talk lol.

 

We had lunch in windjammer and it was packed at 12:30. There was even an announcement telling people to bug out after they finished up. Luckily we had no issues finding a seat towards the back with a good view out. Do miss the outdoor seating of the Brilliance.

[cgolf1]

After lunch I did the sports trivia solo. I got 14 of 20 right with zero internet help, and I had changed one right answer so should have had 15. The winning group had 17. I felt I did flying solo, and I am pretty sure on some of the trivia winners are google supported;)

 

We had a lazy afternoon and the main dining room was packed at 5:15, guessing due to the super bowl. Service was really slow, but the food was decent. We did notice the menu wasn't changing much, and the cold fruit soups my wife likes were not on the menu any more. We watched part of the Superbowl in the theater, fun to see the different fans reactions, and then we went to the ice show. We stayed for about 5 minutes and the noise of the skates on the ice got to my wife. Also saw the lead female skater under rotate on a couple jumps and end up on her backside, growing up my mom loved Olympic figure skating and I got to watch too, yeh me lol.

 

We went back and watched the end of the Superbowl and then saw Rick Corso's adult show after the game. He does put on a funny show and we enjoyed it. It seems like he changed his act up some, or I forgot it lol. After the show, we crashed after a long enjoyable day.

 

One note about the theater was that it seemed overly loud, and my hearing isn't the best.

 

So far this has been a very enjoyable trip and is just great to get away from work.

[Ocean Boy]

No cold fruit soup in the Windjammer either during my week aboard.

 

I don't think the ice show on the ship has changed since the ship went into service 20 years ago.

[cgolf1]

44 minutes ago, Ocean Boy said:

No cold fruit soup in the Windjammer either during my week aboard.

 

I don't think the ice show on the ship has changed since the ship went into service 20 years ago.

It was a bummer for her, she really enjoyed the soups on the Brilliance. Maybe it was a slow mover so they dropped it. So far the food wasn’t what it was two years ago. 

[brillohead]

2 hours ago, cgolf1 said:

We did notice the menu wasn't changing much, and the cold fruit soups my wife likes were not on the menu any more.

I found the Strawberry soup in the MDR on a sea day lunch recently.  That one's always been a favorite of mine.  

[Ocean Boy]

7 hours ago, cgolf1 said:

It was a bummer for her, she really enjoyed the soups on the Brilliance. Maybe it was a slow mover so they dropped it. So far the food wasn’t what it was two years ago. 

Slow mover or cost cutting. I'm not sure which but I'll give them the benefit of the doubt. But in general I think the variety of food has decreased in recent years. I can always find something I like but definitely less options that I like.

[Biker19]

10 hours ago, cgolf1 said:

and I am pretty sure on some of the trivia winners are google supported;)

Or, have been to so many trivias they already knew the questions/answers.

[cgolf1]

2 hours ago, Ocean Boy said:

Slow mover or cost cutting. I'm not sure which but I'll give them the benefit of the doubt. But in general I think the variety of food has decreased in recent years. I can always find something I like but definitely less options that I like.

Overall I agree the selection of food in the main dining room didn’t change as much as it did in the past. Overall I liked everything I ate, but the selection was just different than two years ago. I ended up having the New York strip 3 nights. My wife did say a couple of the meals she had missed the mark flavor wise. 
 

the desserts were tasteless so we ended up skipping desserts and going to windjammer to get a pavlova. Speaking of windjammer it seemed like the selection of food was the same for breakfast and lunch every day. Only lunch the last sea day seemed to have any major differences. This also seemed different than what we remembered from 2 years ago. 

[cgolf1]

Day 3 Cruise Compass

[bonsai3s]

cgolf1...what are the early and late dining times in the MDR?  Thanks!

[Tom47]

I'm enjoying your review.  We board March 14.

[cgolf1]

1 hour ago, bonsai3s said:

cgolf1...what are the early and late dining times in the MDR?  Thanks!

5:30 and 8:00. I will also post the rest of the cruise compasses as a larger image size, I just noticed they didn’t zoom well. 

Edited February 13, 2020 by cgolf1

[Newleno]

We booked this last minute new orleans 7 day round trip  departing feb 15, did not really care for the ports but got a smoking rate(the only reason why we decided to go), so great to get out of the cold. 

Got flights for $78, then using hotel points (earned thru work on the companys dime)to pay for a $312 priced room near bourbon street area, gonna take the express airport bus (2 stops) for a total of $3 bucks to get to hotel then the next day walk the mile  to the port, gonna bring some samiches on the plane to eat before we get to new orleans, first cruise on royal since 2012 (no loyalty here always go with the lowest price) to bad the majesty aint such a great ship but the weather is supposed to be 70-80 every day,  cruising on the frugal here -  so i know what you are talking about.

Edited February 13, 2020 by Newleno

[cgolf1]

Day 3 we really slowed it down. Checked on pickle ball and their were no open courts again. We had fun playing ping pong in the wind and some mini golf too. We tried the pools, but the felt too cold so we used the hot tub for a bit. We relaxed some on deck 4 and enjoyed formal night. I did notice one gentleman wearing a hat in line, but not sure if they kept it on. I wore a short sleeve button down shirt tucked into dress pants, and I would say in general I fit in. In the Caribbean I don’t believe in wearing a jacket. 
 

I do want to go back briefly to night 2 when I saw at least 4 gentlemen wear hats into the main dining room. All I will say is they were definitely older than us. I don’t care about any of this, but I know some are interested in how people dress. 
 

After supper we watched a Mind of a Tenor, Darryl J Williams. He is a great singer, but I am torn on if he talked about himself too much. His personal story was interesting, but at times it felt it was taking away from the performance. Probably explaining it horribly so hope you get what I mean. I did really enjoy his singing and recommend seeing his show. 
 

we then went to the finish that lyric game show and it was ok. The host had some weird rules, second chances, that made it seem a bit clunky, but it was ok to watch. We went and watched Lyndon on piano again and it was standing room only. This guy continues to draw a crowd. watched this until we were ready to turn in for the night. 
 

We did notice staff constantly painting and maintaining the ship. They were redoing a fair amount of the railings. They seem pretty serious about keeping the ship looking good. 
 

 

[cgolf1]

Day 4 Cruise Compass

[cgolf1]

I know the dress code has been relaxed, but I was a little worried about what we would see this night🙈

[Wildcatfish]

I know that MDR dress suggestions have become more relaxed in recent years, but "undressed" for the MDR might be a step too far!

Edited February 15, 2020 by Wildcatfish