Semi-Live - Discovery - CA Coastal - Oct 1, 2022

[travelin.sisters]

thank you for sharing your voyage & all the interesting details, just booked on the Discovery (not until 2024, but never too early to start dreaming)

[like2cruise]

Thank you for all your work on this review, menus and the food pictures.  It is so helpful to so many people.  I am adding the Indian Buffet to my must do. Did they have naans?  Could you also please tell me if you find the indoor space on the ship more on the cooler or warmer side.  I am just starting to pack and this info will help.  Also, do you know if the Good Spirits at Sea Cocktail Experience that they have at multiple times each night are different each time or does the cocktail they are mixing, change only on a daily bases?  I'm very jealous of your 21 days onboard, but looking forward to coming onboard the 15th.  Any favorite bartenders and best place for martinis...please let me know 🙂!  Thanks again. Really great review!!

 

[like2cruise]

1 hour ago, cruzin4us said:

Today we are in Santa Barbara and the Marine Layer is just about gone and it looks like it might be a nice day.    It’s been gloomy all the way from San Francisco and I’m glad the sun is starting to poke its head out. 
 

This is a tendered port and you need to get a ticket before you leave.   They are giving them out at the Gastro Pub.   
 

An FYI, if you are in San Francisco they will charge you tax on your beverages, even if you have a drink pkg.  

 

 

Hope you enjoyed the nice weather. Do you know if you are Elite, do you still need to go to Gastro Pub to get ticket?  Was the taxes on the drink pkg only in San Francisco...not San Diego?  Thanks for this heads up so we don't waste time at Guest Services confirming the charges :)!!

[Kay S]

Thanks for doing this.  We are on the Discovery next month.  We will be doing Club Class, so I hope we can avoid those long lines at the dining room.  That's how it was on the Majestic, and it took forever to be seated.  The lentil pie sound delicious.  DH always goes for the Indian food at the buffet.  We were told there are many Indian crew members, so there is lots of food available for them and us.  (Of course the crew is not in the buffet line.)  DH is also the gambler and hopes the machines will be nice to him.  (They are never nice to me.)  Looking forward to more and especially your visit to Salty Dog pub.

[cruzin4us]

21 hours ago, JF - retired RRT said:

 

This area is now roped off and is the crew smoking area.   

[cruzin4us]

Here’s a couple of more pictures of the promenade deck 7 looking forward and a view of what you see looking out to sea.

 

The MUTS movie of the day was Bohemian Rhapsody 
 

Also a few random pics of stuff from around the ship.  

Edited October 5, 2022 by cruzin4us

[memoak]

38 minutes ago, Kay S said:

Thanks for doing this.  We are on the Discovery next month.  We will be doing Club Class, so I hope we can avoid those long lines at the dining room.  That's how it was on the Majestic, and it took forever to be seated.  The lentil pie sound delicious.  DH always goes for the Indian food at the buffet.  We were told there are many Indian crew members, so there is lots of food available for them and us.  (Of course the crew is not in the buffet line.)  DH is also the gambler and hopes the machines will be nice to him.  (They are never nice to me.)  Looking forward to more and especially your visit to Salty Dog pub.

I have never had more than a 1 minute delay in being seated in club class especially once they get to know you

[cruzin4us]

While I’m not typically a buffet person, I’ve found the buffet to be quite good with plenty of options.   Lunch and dinner are especially good 

 

They had the Lamb Shwarma again today (on the port side near the pool).   It’s next to the grilled mushrooms, squash, bell peppers and eggplant.   Mix those together and it’s really tasty.    
 

Next week on my 2nd leg of my B2B2B I’m going to skip some of the dinners in the main dining room and try Sabatini’s, the Gastro Pub and Bistro Sur Le Mar.   I’ll probably skip the Prime Rib night and Italian nights.     

Edited October 5, 2022 by cruzin4us

[CruisnDeb]

23 minutes ago, cruzin4us said:

This area is now roped off and is the crew smoking area.   

Are both sides for crew smoking? If only one side, can you tell me which side they smoke on?

[Crystabel]

We’re on deck 9 starboard aft. We can smell smoke on our balcony from the smoking area on deck 7 aft. Sometimes it’s so bad, it makes the balcony unusable. 

[CruisnDeb]

1 minute ago, Crystabel said:

We’re on deck 9 starboard aft. We can smell smoke on our balcony from the smoking area on deck 7 aft. Sometimes it’s so bad, it makes the balcony unusable. 

Dang....that's what I was afraid of.  We have an aft cabin on the same deck in March--it was going to be my first aft cabin and I was really looking forward to it.  Guess I'll be calling and changing cabins.

 

Do you happen to know where the other smoking areas are?  I want to make sure I pick a new balcony cabin on a side that doesn't having smoking below it.

[Crystabel]

Deck 17 starboard aft has an outside smoking area. There may be others, but that and 7 aft are the ones I know for sure. Indoors, the Casino and Churchill’s allow smoking. 

[DavidsNana]

12 hours ago, cruzin4us said:

 

They did have the watermelon caprese salad (one day) which was on the day we boarded (Saturday)

Thanks for the info and picture.  Hopefully, they have it on the Sky in late Feb.  It will make my son very happy.

[MsSoCalCruiser]

18 hours ago, cruzin4us said:

 

No, I haven't but I''m willing to try it.....the casino hasn't been real kind for me.....it's not a lack of trying!

I had the same problem but the volcano actually gave me a little bit of money to play with.  Good luck!  

[MsSoCalCruiser]

On 10/4/2022 at 3:42 PM, Crystabel said:

The International Cafe has BLTs, Chicken, and Tuna sandwiches without cheese. The server working there said you can order any sandwich without cheese, and they’ll make it for you. 

They actually said they would make any sandwich without cheese upon request?  I have been working on this for years. I have talked to Guest Services on every cruise, written to customer service and received calls regarding my emails but nothing had ever changed.  I even told them to look at how much money they would save by leaving cheese off of some of his sandwiches. Cheese isn’t inexpensive. You just made my night!!!  

[cruzin4us]

11 hours ago, CruisnDeb said:

Dang....that's what I was afraid of.  We have an aft cabin on the same deck in March--it was going to be my first aft cabin and I was really looking forward to it.  Guess I'll be calling and changing cabins.

 

Do you happen to know where the other smoking areas are?  I want to make sure I pick a new balcony cabin on a side that doesn't having smoking below it.

I took some pics of the smoking areas on deck 7 aft.   When we boarded the ship on Saturday, there was public smoking on both the starboard and port sides of the ship all the way aft.    But today, they removed the smoking boxes off the wall on the port side and now you can only smoke on the starboard side. 
the crews smoking area is roped off and they smoke on the very far aft facing area on deck 7.   It’s located more on the aft facing starboard side.   So, if your cabin is on the port side, you will get less if any smoke.  
The first 2 pics are of the starboard smoking side and the remaining are the non smoking port side 

There is also an outdoor smoking area on deck 17 above the wake pool and in Churchill’s cigar room (and the port side of the casino).  I think that is it.  

[cruzin4us]

[cruzin4us]

The internet is acting wonking today and super slow.   We are sailing between Santa Barbara and San Diego.   Up until today it's been awesome for the most part.

 

Tonight's dinner was kind of a let down.   The salmon/crab appetizer that should have been cold was room temp and the escargot, Beef Wellington, lobster and ravioli were all cold.   Normally the plates are warm, but not tonight.    It's almost like everything was pre-made in advance and just sitting on the plates.....dunno.     

 

The escargot is not like days of old.   There are 2 baby escargot in each little holder instead of 1 large one.   It's also not as garlicy/buttery as I remember.   My favorite part has always been dipping my bread in the garlic butter.   It was just kind of bland.

 

The crab/salmon appetizer would have been good if it wasn't room temperature.

 

I liked the ravioli except for the fact it was cold.  

 

The beef Wellington was cooked to perfection (just lukewarm) and the lobster was nothing to right home about.

 

It was just a bad night in the dining room, especially when the toddler cried throughout dinner.   Ya think the parents would take him out of the dining area.....he was so tired, you could tell he just wanted to sleep.    I didn't even wait for desert, I just up and left.

 

Tonight they had the white and gold party in the piazza.   It included a live band and gold/clear beach balls and balloons that dropped from above.   They kept pumping the fact that this was the first ever "Real Love Boat" party.    People were dancing and having a great time.

 

Tomorrow is San Diego, but since I'm from there, I may or may not get off the ship (I say that everyday).     

[rocklinmom]

Thanks again for this fabulous review! I have a question, I noticed in your photo of the Santa Barbara port info that masks are required indoors ashore and that you need to take proof of Covid vaccination with you? Is this in every port on your cruise? I didn't realize they are still requiring those things or maybe it's just the CA ports. 

[marden1970]

18 hours ago, Crystabel said:

We’re on deck 9 starboard aft. We can smell smoke on our balcony from the smoking area on deck 7 aft. Sometimes it’s so bad, it makes the balcony unusable. 

Please be sure to emphasize this on your post cruise survey.  Maybe if enough people complain they will do something. (but not holding my breath)

[JF - retired RRT]

39 minutes ago, rocklinmom said:

Thanks again for this fabulous review! I have a question, I noticed in your photo of the Santa Barbara port info that masks are required indoors ashore and that you need to take proof of Covid vaccination with you? Is this in every port on your cruise? I didn't realize they are still requiring those things or maybe it's just the CA ports. 

Probably depends on where you are. In our area, the only place masks are required is doctor/pharmacy.

[Tweedy]

I'm enjoying your live posting.  It makes me excited to join the ship on the same itinerary October 15.

[cruisecrazy82]

Thank you for taking the time to do this, much appreciated! 

[NownZen]

1 hour ago, rocklinmom said:

Thanks again for this fabulous review! I have a question, I noticed in your photo of the Santa Barbara port info that masks are required indoors ashore and that you need to take proof of Covid vaccination with you? Is this in every port on your cruise? I didn't realize they are still requiring those things or maybe it's just the CA ports. 

This is a strange sign. Masks have not been required (except for doctor's offices) for almost two years. No one will ask for your vaccination card unless you are getting a booster. No one wears masks anymore.

[cruzin4us]

14 minutes ago, NownZen said:

This is a strange sign. Masks have not been required (except for doctor's offices) for almost two years. No one will ask for your vaccination card unless you are getting a booster. No one wears masks anymore.

 

1 hour ago, rocklinmom said:

Thanks again for this fabulous review! I have a question, I noticed in your photo of the Santa Barbara port info that masks are required indoors ashore and that you need to take proof of Covid vaccination with you? Is this in every port on your cruise? I didn't realize they are still requiring those things or maybe it's just the CA ports. 

 

I think it was standard verbiage in case you went to a place that required masks, just to be on the safe side.    About 5-10% of people wear them all the time anyway.   Had I decided to go ashore, I wouldn't have taken either.     Same goes for San Francisco and San Diego.      

 

Some places do require masks such as doctors office/hospitals, so out of an abundance of caution they tell you to take the vaccination card/mask