All things Monarch of the Seas

[hillhouse]

1-Are the doors on the Monarch metal?

 

Just got off the Monarch Monday - yes, the doors are metal. We saw some signs taped and some magnetic.

[critterchick]

I hope the doors are metal..i am bringing my Pirate magnet!

We set sail tomorrow...do any of you west coasters have anything or anyone looked up for or said hello to???

WOOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOO!!!!

 

If you see this before you leave, please tell Desmond and Darryl on the Cruise Director's staff that Weird Auntie Jean says hello.:)

[kruz]

If you see this before you leave, please tell Desmond and Darryl on the Cruise Director's staff that Weird Auntie Jean says hello.:)

 

Sorry...I didn't get a chance to see your note..

 

I wrote a kinda brief review for peeps I sail with alot, figured I would post it here too...if anyone has any questions I will try to answer. It is tough to see everything in 3 short days! I need to go back again anyway! LOL!

 

Well..this Pirate is home now and at work:mad: the weekend litterally flew by! Roblyn, I took your place with Celene on the Electric Slide dance floor..I only stepped on one ladies foot ...a few times! Opps!!

I have to say there were soooo many pirates there at every turn it was hard to hide! hehe..only kidding! I think we have recruited some new ones as well!

 

Let's see...after we had our wonderful,awesome cabin attendant re arrange some furniture and open the connecting doors we were living large in a 2 bedroom 2 bath condo! It worked perfectly and we all fit just fine..at times with company too!

 

The Monarch is a very pretty ship, very easy to get around and see what you may want. The Windjammer is in the front of the ship and we found it a good place to meet for breakfast and watch us approach the Bahamas! The food of course was wonderful....not sure how anyone could

complain, although at one point I did go check to make sure the toaster was actually plugged in as it took near 10 inutes to toast a bagel( yea, you had to do it yourself!) I found the service in the Windjammer to be a bit of a disappointment especially after the excellent service we had received while sailing Sovereign.(more later)

There were 3 other ships in port with us in Nassau. The recession is hitting everywhere and the British Colonial Hilton is one of them being hit. The pool bar is not open. They can't afford to man it. So sad. And the new "coupon" program, well they were not used to it at all. So, since we are pirates and we hate waiting we quickly learned to order our drinks 2 at a time! We strolled around a bit and then hit Kafe Klick..again, another business suffering the signs of the economic times with very few ingrediants available for their extensive cocktail menu.

Denise- no chocolate maritinis this trip :( no godiva chocolate, no rasberry..not sure what else..and we were the only ones there.While we sat there all of a sudden a ship comes in and low and behold it is Monarchs' twin Majesty! They had tried to visit Cocoa Cay and the waters were rather choppy so they came to spend the night in the harbor. We departed a few minutes earlier than our 11:59 time as everyone was on board and ready to roll. I expected it to be really rocky but Monarch takes hte seas very well..

The entertainment was awesome. There was an impersonator on board..Mitch, help me out here, I forgot his name! He was hillarious! And the production show was the first one ever I have not either napped in or walked out of!

We did miss Cocoa Cay which for some was sad but I never heard a single passenger complain about it. Activities were quickly re-scheduled and a full packed day was enjoyed by all.

A bunch attended the welcome back party for Platinum and Diamond members. Captain Karin is A #1 in my book as well as some of the other officers who came around the room and spent time chatting to us!

They are still in thier "inagurial" phase but are quickly becoming used to us east coasters!

Emarkation and debarking was painless as can be. All liquid gold items made it through the scanner with flying colors! Even had a couple girls check in a case of beer..right thourgh the walk on with no problems at all!

Staff and crew alike did a great job and were very friendly..think they just have a couple bugs to iron out in the Windjammer and they will be right on! I am thinking they may not have realized just how many enjoy the casual dining on a 3 day cruise!

While I didn't have the opportunity to speak with the CL she received high

fives from David and Nancy.

 

 

As always it was great to be together and many more sailing as well! I would highly recommend the Monarch, I would highly recommend the Obstructed view deck 8 cabins too. It was a very easy deck to get to anywhere within minutes.The elevator was rarely used.

I can't wait till we all get to sail together again!!

[JJ2sail]

1-Are the doors on the Monarch metal? We are making signs for our doors and wondered what was the best way to attach them.

 

2- We arrive back to port at 6:30am, and my daughter(1yr) does not wake up until 7:00, then we need to get her dressed and fed. What is the schedule for the morning? Do we have to start getting off the boat at 6:30, or can we take a little time and start getting off around 7:30 or 8? I know there are crazy long lines to get off, and standing in a line at 6:30 with a sleepy baby is not fun for anyone. So any suggestions or info would be great.

 

 

Yes the doors are metal.

 

Disembarking will probably actually start around 7:00 am, they will give you colored tags the night before to put on your luggage, then when they call your color you will get in line to get off the ship. They start with Express, Suite guests and Diamond members, then move thru the colors.

If you want to be last off the ship just ask for those tags from your steward. They do want you out of your cabin usually by 8:00 am, but you may be able to stretch it abit, and then go have breakfast.

[tinkerme1]

Jean, FYI, in Port Canaveral, we had to do the full Immigration check. It went fast though and we were off the ship by 8:00 AM since we had a limo waiting.

 

For those enjoying the Monarch, thanks for writing such nice reviews! We certainly do miss "her". She was definitely part of our family as were all the folks we cruised with over the years.

[Virga]

Just wanted to add here that I posted a (long) review and scans of the compass for the 14 November sailing.

[critterchick]

Jean, FYI, in Port Canaveral, we had to do the full Immigration check. It went fast though and we were off the ship by 8:00 AM since we had a limo waiting.

 

For those enjoying the Monarch, thanks for writing such nice reviews! We certainly do miss "her". She was definitely part of our family as were all the folks we cruised with over the years.

 

Celia, did you do the Western itinerary, then? On the Eastern last year we did the "run through the dining room so they can glance at your passport" in St. Thomas, which was our last port, so we just waltzed off the ship in PC.

 

Karen, I'm glad you had a good time! As it turned out, I had a nice chat with Desmond the other day. :)

[Doug R.]

I have sailed the Monarch about 25 times since 2000. I produced the Whodunit mystery theme weekends aboard her. She was our home away from home. And the staff was amazing! Anyone sailing her has to look for Trudy the Purser, Gerald the Group Coordinator, Seamus the Maitre D and Romeo the Head Waiter. Tell them Shauna sends her love. I miss this ship here in LA. And so does everyone else! And you MUST check out Boleros and catch Trudy and Gerald cut up the dance floor! Salsa Kings! My favorite spot on the ship..and the best Mojitos outside of Cuba.:o

 

We will be sailing on her this weekend. In a way it is a completion of our interrupted honeymoon. When we married in 2001 we were supposed to sail on her out of San Juan. We had to cancel because Marj's daughter was diagnosed with lymphoma (she is happy, healthy and still spending my money at age 20 :eek:). We got to do the Southern Caribbean route last year on the Crown Princess.

 

Thanks for the info on Boleros, we have a cabin on that deck. Marj loves to dance however the dance instructor on the Caribbean Princess called me "The Train wreck in the Hawaiian shirt." :D

[critterchick]

I have sailed the Monarch about 25 times since 2000. I produced the Whodunit mystery theme weekends aboard her. She was our home away from home. And the staff was amazing! Anyone sailing her has to look for Trudy the Purser, Gerald the Group Coordinator, Seamus the Maitre D and Romeo the Head Waiter. Tell them Shauna sends her love. I miss this ship here in LA. And so does everyone else! And you MUST check out Boleros and catch Trudy and Gerald cut up the dance floor! Salsa Kings! My favorite spot on the ship..and the best Mojitos outside of Cuba.:o

 

Sadly, the dancing duo is no more. Gerald went on vacation a few weeks ago and Trudy just went to Serenade to fill in for the vacationing GSM there. I used to love dancing in there - Gerald was always nice enough to teach me some salsa moves and by the time of the last cruise I think I was doing a fair job keeping up with him.

 

I hated those mojitos, though. Actually I only had one and that was enough. I think the bartender bruised the mint to the point where it lost all its flavor.:eek:

[tinkerme1]

Jean, we did the Eastern route. We had St. Thomas in the middle of the cruise, before St. Maarten. We did just breeze through the dining room for the Immigration check and our pretty "smiley faces" on our SeaPass cards. Unfortunately, we had regular Immigration on the way back.:;) All's good though, since the Immigration lines in the AM weren't all that bad and our luggage was very easy to find.

[crazy 4 cruising]

I found the service in the Windjammer to be a bit of a disappointment especially after the excellent service we had received while sailing Sovereign.(more later)

 

..think they just have a couple bugs to iron out in the Windjammer and they will be right on! I am thinking they may not have realized just how many enjoy the casual dining on a 3 day cruise!

While I didn't have the opportunity to speak with the CL she received high

fives from David and Nancy.

 

 

As always it was great to be together and many more sailing as well! I would highly recommend the Monarch, I would highly recommend the Obstructed view deck 8 cabins too. It was a very easy deck to get to anywhere within minutes.The elevator was rarely used.

I can't wait till we all get to sail together again!!

 

good review. we were on the "inaugural" out of PC. I am a little curious about what you saw as a couple of bugs to iron out in the WJ? The reason I ask that is the WJ was EXACTLY like it was every other time--3 others--that I sailed MOnarch out of LA. I agree that it is a logistical MESS--too small a place for so many folks, BUT I continue to eat there & write that on my comment survey. Having not been on any other same class ship, I am curious how it is different from the other 2. I actually saw no difference in the number of passengers who ate in the WJ when she was out of LA or PC, so they are used to lots of people in there, they just don't flow them very well --ESPECIALLY at lunch embarkation day.

 

Did you mean the LA instead of CL? I can not remember her name, sorry, but she was absolutely wonderful!!!! from South AFrica & had been on the Sovereign. I highly recommend her.

 

We were on her 11/14. I agree. The service was excellent. There also appeared to be new tile in the main public area bathrooms. They were taking lots of carpet off at Nassau. We really enjoyed the food. I never saw anyone with soft serve, which is on some of the other ships.

 

isn't that new tile beautiful? we noticed it first in the bathroom that is between the WJ and pool deck & then noticed it other places.

[HRHPrinceJim]

I used to love dancing in there - Gerald was always nice enough to teach me some salsa moves and by the time of the last cruise I think I was doing a fair job keeping up with him.

 

Fair job? You were dancing like a star! :D

 

We will be sailing on her this weekend.

 

Doug, if you happen to meet Sy, Gaby or Mike (bartenders), please tell them Mr. Jim says hi. Go to the Bar Flair show and watch them perform!

[kruz]

Fair job? You were dancing like a star! :D

 

 

 

 

good review. we were on the "inaugural" out of PC. I am a little curious about what you saw as a couple of bugs to iron out in the WJ?

 

 

 

 

I only meant that we never once had any type of service at all( except fopr someone to come take away our plates!)...even in the evening when we dined in there! It seemed very under staffed ..i do love hte food and every other aspect of the Windjammer and will continue to eat all my meals there. When I was on the Soveriegn we seemed to have our own waiters, and we tipped as we would have in the DR.:D

[crazy 4 cruising]

 

 

I only meant that we never once had any type of service at all( except fopr someone to come take away our plates!)...even in the evening when we dined in there! It seemed very under staffed ..i do love hte food and every other aspect of the Windjammer and will continue to eat all my meals there. When I was on the Soveriegn we seemed to have our own waiters, and we tipped as we would have in the DR.:D

 

wow, that is a shame. we did have service & ended up sitting in basically the same area every morning and most lunches because we liked the staff that were in that area. There used to be a crew memeber that had a beverage cart & horn that he would push throughout the WJ & honk the horn --he called himself Pappa & was great, we missed him.

 

I wonder what happened between our cruis & yours? I agree with you that they do need to straighten that out.

[rednancy1]

There used to be a crew memeber that had a beverage cart & horn that he would push throughout the WJ & honk the horn --he called himself Pappa & was great, we missed him.

 

 

Pappa and his beverage cart were wonderful. He was always a pleasure. We didn't see him on our last Monarch cruise in Sep 08. :(

[mojitodiva]

Has anyone cruised to the Bahamas in Jan/Feb?? What is the weather like? Is it beach/swimming weather?

 

THanks :D

[crazy 4 cruising]

Pappa and his beverage cart were wonderful. He was always a pleasure. We didn't see him on our last Monarch cruise in Sep 08. :(

 

I can hear him--Pappa's in the house.....wakey wakey.....drinky drinky--he was a breath of fresh air!!!!

[rednancy1]

I can hear him--Pappa's in the house.....wakey wakey.....drinky drinky--he was a breath of fresh air!!!!

 

Music to my ears!!! :)

 

Love the dog in your avatar. :cool:

[kruz]

Wow..seems like I missed a great guy! LOL!!

Like I said on Sov we were always treated as if we were in the diningroom..only better because the guys in the Windjammer could cut up more! They would do napkin tricks adn spoon tricks..always a pleasure to eat iin there! For a 3 day cruise there is no place else I would wanna be!

I am going back again in January so I'll let you know if things have straightened out!

 

As far as weather, it is hard to tell in Jan/Feb...also if you are living in a cooler climate of course it will all seem much warmer but for us thin blooded Floridians that is a different story! I plan on a walking tour and maybe a tour of Atlantis in Jan...I hear prices have dropped there tremendously with the economy...and the temps should be perfect for that!

[jimslady15]

we went Feb 2008, we live in FL so the water was too cold for us but the sun was nice and hot!!

[crazy 4 cruising]

Music to my ears!!! :)

 

Love the dog in your avatar. :cool:

 

thanks Nancy. That is my almost 3 year old Golden Retriever Zoey--she is spoled rotten

 

Wow..seems like I missed a great guy! LOL!!

Like I said on Sov we were always treated as if we were in the diningroom..only better because the guys in the Windjammer could cut up more! They would do napkin tricks adn spoon tricks..always a pleasure to eat iin there! For a 3 day cruise there is no place else I would wanna be!

I am going back again in January so I'll let you know if things have straightened out!

 

As far as weather, it is hard to tell in Jan/Feb...also if you are living in a cooler climate of course it will all seem much warmer but for us thin blooded Floridians that is a different story! I plan on a walking tour and maybe a tour of Atlantis in Jan...I hear prices have dropped there tremendously with the economy...and the temps should be perfect for that!

a table mate on the Monarch knew one of the department managers at the Atlantis & they spent the day with her when we were at Nassau &

 

atlantis was going to have major lay offs that next week

[MuffyKismet]

For those of you that have also sailed on carnival, how do you compare the beds from carnival ships to royal carribean, We sailed Royal 7 years ago and I really don't remember at all. I have sailed carnival many times and just recently and really love their bedding........crazy comfortable!!! Just wondering what we can expect on Monarch on our upcoming trip Dec 19th. thanks :)

[crazy 4 cruising]

For those of you that have also sailed on carnival, how do you compare the beds from carnival ships to royal carribean, We sailed Royal 7 years ago and I really don't remember at all. I have sailed carnival many times and just recently and really love their bedding........crazy comfortable!!! Just wondering what we can expect on Monarch on our upcoming trip Dec 19th. thanks :)

 

haven't slept on a Carnival ship in almost 30 years, so can't compare, BUT, RCCL has upgraded bedding on all theri ships, sooooooooo & it is comfy comfy comfy.

[MuffyKismet]

thanks for the replay. I have to admit Carnival has awesome bedding! they even sell it on their web site, a friend of mine has bought it for both her girls and love it, I am very tempted.

 

But I will take your word for it that RCL's beds are comfy too :) I will find out in 10 more days :):D

[mommabean]

For those of you that have also sailed on carnival, how do you compare the beds from carnival ships to royal carribean, We sailed Royal 7 years ago and I really don't remember at all. I have sailed carnival many times and just recently and really love their bedding........crazy comfortable!!! Just wondering what we can expect on Monarch on our upcoming trip Dec 19th. thanks :)

 

RCI and Carnival bedding is similar and both are equally comfortable to me. I'll try out Monarch's tomorrow night for the first time. I don't expect to be disappointed.