Jump to content
Cruise Critic Community

10/30 Serenaders - How was it?

kitty1

By kitty1,
in Royal Caribbean International

Recommended Posts

kitty1

kitty1

Posted
Posted

Anyone just off the 10/30 Serenade to the S. Caribbean? We leave on Sat. How was it? Any problems embarking or disembarking in San Juan?

 

We usually skip dinner on the first night, but want to know what was on the menu for Sat. Anyone remember?

 

What was the entertainment? Is Allen Brooks still the CD?

 

How was the weather? We've already been on the Serenade, so we know about the ship.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
kitty1

kitty1

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Is there anything that you did (shore excursions) that you wished you skipped because they weren't worth it?

 

Did they put anything in at the Pan Am pier (stores, etc) or is there still nothing there except where you get on the ship?

 

How long did you wait to get on the ship?

Link to comment
Share on other sites
kitty1

kitty1

Posted
  • Author
Posted

MBOWAN,

 

On a 7 night cruise usually the 2nd and 6th nights are the formal nights. The 2nd formal night is usually the same day as the Midnight Gala Buffet also. On the first formal night they usually have the Meet the Captain Cocktail party before each dinner seating, where you have your picture taken with the captain etc.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
soulsister

soulsister

Posted
Posted

Hello fellow anxious cruisers,

 

I'll be back with a report tonight. I saved all my cruise day intineraries and kept a daily journal of the menu and stuff. At work..so i can't write too much. This was my first cruise and I had the most amazing time:

Some highlights:

  • Boarding was FAST! Very impressive - didn't have to wait in line that long. (boarded around 4pm)

  • Windjammer Buffet - pick and choose what you want to eat, healthy choices avail if u want, you will quickly find out what to skip and what to get as days goes by

  • Evening Dinner - menu was hit and miss. Had a great waiter, could order more than entrée or something else if you weren't satisfied, the low fat desserts taste like LOW FAT dessert, indugle and go for the good stuff

  • Formal Nights - really formal - many were dressed to the nine. Could get away with being somewhat casual…but you might be feel somewhat out of place
    First dinner was at 6pm, second was at 8:30p

  • Final Bill was $115 - only bought 1 cruise photo, played bingo once and bought some drinks

  • St Thomas - cheapest Alcohol prices, take $3 cab from pier into town and then arrange to take a tour around island with one of the local cab drivrs (shouldn't cost more than $20).

  • Didn't spend on the Soda card - $42 for week - don't drink that much pop anyway. Drank water and lemonade from the windjammer

  • Wrapped alochol in black clothes, towels or plastics bags - scanner never picked it up - was able to get alcohol from each port, EVERY TIME

  • St Maarten - take Ferry to the 2nd stop to get more local deals. Will encouter some very pushy people at times..but good shopping nevertheless
    Will have details about other ports as well.

  • Disco wasn't really packed..
    Theme nights included: 60's, 70's and 80;s and Carribean nights -

  • I'm a 20 something cruiser - so events on the ship like the belly flop competition didn't interest me, didn't see any of the shows

  • Stateroom was small but no complaints- amazing stateroom attendants!! Comfortable beds - DON'T TAKE A NAP - you will end up falling asleep!

  • No need to pack nighlight or clotheslines - little lamp beside bed - would back clothespin- have a mini clothes inline in shower (good pressure btw), DEFINETLEY pack the GRAVOL - the motion sickness affected more than I thought, dollar store laundry bag to pack the dirty clothes, travel iron, glade plug in
  • Departing was long - was in the last group (however, technically you could leave with any group as they don't really chk - this is more for their organzational purposes.) The only benefit of being in the last group was that it was easier to find my luggage since most of it was gone already, anyhow. BRIGHT LUGGAGE tags to distinguish yours from the rest is probably a good idea. They called my group at 10:15am..didn't actually get out until 11:30am:( - only down side of it. Luggage must be packed by 7pm the night before. Must be out of your room by 8am the next day
  • Had the choice to pay suggested tipping charge: $68.70 or pay money in envelopes. Ended up paying more than the standard since my stateroom attendants and waiters were suberb.
  • Try to settle or close your account the day before (early in the am) or early in the am (before 8am) on last day- otherwise expect some long lines
  • Didn't do much shopping on the ship - except some ship sounvenirs
  • Stayed an Extra Day in San Jaun - will have more details about that
    That's all I have for now..will try to think of more stuff later!!

hope this helps a little!

 

SS

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Overtyme

Overtyme

Posted
Posted

Can't wait to hear more. I'm going on the 4th. I'm trying to find out what time they actually started to allow people to board. The ticket book says that they are letting people board at 4PM, but I know that my last trip to San Juan, when I took the Adventure, departure time was also 10PM and we were allowed to board at 12:30 (the book for AOS said to board at 2PM).

Link to comment
Share on other sites
FrugalTraveler

FrugalTraveler

Posted
Posted

Just got back from the 10/30/04 One thing not to do is shop in St Lucia. The vendors are very pushy and get mad if you walk away. We were only in town for an hour and it was too much. Now for what to do in St Lucia. Hire a taxi for a trip around the island right out side the cruise terminal with be bus tours (really a mini van) that holds 8 and for 30 dollars you will see the banana fields the waterfall, bring your suit you will want to get in and the drive in volcaneo , we drove into the rainforest and it make the trip for us. If you only shop in St Lucia you will come away with a bad impression the trip great impression. In Antigua do the Lawrence of Antigua he has a website to book under. on the sip the night were 50& 60 and disco night.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
tumper

tumper

Posted
Posted
Can't wait to hear more. I'm going on the 4th. I'm trying to find out what time they actually started to allow people to board. The ticket book says that they are letting people board at 4PM, but I know that my last trip to San Juan, when I took the Adventure, departure time was also 10PM and we were allowed to board at 12:30 (the book for AOS said to board at 2PM).
We also sailed Serenade on 10-30-04. We arrived at the Pan Am pier at 11:00 am and had to wait outside for about 30 minutes or so, with about 75 others. We were allowed inside the terminal and had to wait a few more minutes while the RCI reps got set up. We were on the ship by noon. Could not get to our cabin until after 1 pm - they had our hallway completely blocked off with the fire doors. Windjammer started serving welcome aboard lunch at 12:30pm.

 

I could not find a duty-free shop of any kind that was in or around our terminal, and I looked. There may be one in the other terminal tho (the Pan Am pier can accomodate 2 ships at once).

Link to comment
Share on other sites
tumper

tumper

Posted
Posted

Okay, a few more answers to questions posted so far...

 

Anyone just off the 10/30 Serenade to the S. Caribbean?

Yes.

 

We leave on Sat. How was it?

Great.

 

 

Any problems embarking or disembarking in San Juan?

No. Pretty smooth. We were the first on and last off (by ch oice) though.

 

We usually skip dinner on the first night, but want to know what was on the menu for Sat. Anyone remember?

Only the Key Lime Pie !

 

What was the entertainment?

The RCI dancers and singers were good.

 

Is Allen Brooks still the CD?

Yes.

 

How was the weather?

A little rainy and overcast first 2 days. Mostly sunny and

clear after that. Some rain in Barbados.

 

Share your thoughts/details - how was San Juan ?

Not sure what you mean - airport is alot better than it used

to be. Transportation by taxi to Pan Am was about $2 and easy to do. We did not do any excursions there, just airport to ship and back.

 

How was the food ?

Mostly good, but this is very subjective.

Windjammer was the best we've experienced so far after 6 RCI cruises.

 

How was the weather?

See above.

 

Is there anything that you did (shore excursions) that you wished you skipped because they weren't worth it?

Only excursion we booked was the Coastal cruise to the Pitons on St. Lucia.

It was a nice morning of sailing - with a great view of the Pitons (which you get later when the captain steers the ship past them).

 

Did they put anything in at the Pan Am pier (stores, etc) or is there still nothing there except where you get on the ship?

I could not see anything - and I looked. Maybe someone else found a shop there, but I did not.

 

How long did you wait to get on the ship?

Arrived at pier at 11 a.m. - on ship at noon.

 

Can anyone tell me what the attire is for specific nights? What nights are formal?

Sunday and Thursday (our formal night Sunday was swapped with Monday's casual night because Halloween was Sunday.)

 

How early in the morning did you get off the ship?

Well, we waited as long as possible since our flight didnt leave San Juan until 4pm, so for us it was about 10:45 a.m. I think others were off by 8:30 a.m.

 

Did you tender or dock while in St. Martin?

We docked at the new pier. But you almost need to take the water taxi or regular taxi to take you into Philipsburg because it is quite a hike.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
micdee

micdee

Posted
Posted

Does anyone remember what time the muster drill was?

 

Are the stores on the ship open Saturday night?

 

Was thinking of trying Chops or Portofinos, what night would you suggest skipping dinner in the main dining room?

 

Did your sailing have a CC Meet and Mingle, if so, when and how was it?

 

Sorry for all the questions but thanks in advance to any who reply.:D

Link to comment
Share on other sites
tumper

tumper

Posted
Posted

poppy4kids you are welcome.

 

 

Does anyone remember what time the muster drill was?

Yes, 8:00pm Sat. night.

 

Are the stores on the ship open Saturday night?

I dont think so, since we sailed so late - but I'm not certain.

 

Was thinking of trying Chops or Portofinos, what night would you suggest skipping dinner in the main dining room?

Sorry, I have no answer to that one... depends alot on what your favorite dishes are...

 

Did your sailing have a CC Meet and Mingle, if so, when and how was it?

Yes. I dont know - we did not attend.

 

 

 

We also ventured into downtown Castries St. Lucia by taking the water taxi from the ship's dock (only $2 per person roundtrip). There is a nice shopping mall right where the water taxi drops you off called La Place Carenage, but outside of that are the local vendors and taxi drivers. We did not feel unsafe or threatened, but downtown is, well, downtown. We enjoyed the shopping at the Pointe Seraphine duty free stores (at the cruise ship dock). We felt that going into town to shop was kind of a waste of time, but we did get to experience more interaction with the local population. The people were generally friendly and the vendors and taxi drivers took "no thank you" without much persistence. Those on the ship who took tours around the island raved about the beauty of the St. Lucia countryside.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
njcruisebunny

njcruisebunny

Posted
Posted

Thanks for all your comments so far...

 

Did they have any bands or trios in the bars for some romantic dancing? Haven't been on a cruise where we didn't find some dancing...

 

Dinner was really 6:00? So did they have the Captain's Party are 7:30 or between dinners? How did that work? Or did early seating go at 5:00? That's too early to get dressed for dinner.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
dcruisers

dcruisers

Posted
Posted

Thanks for all the great info! We will be on the Serenade in Jan. and can't wait! Sounds like you had a great cruise.

Did anyone take the Barbados bar & beach hopping excursion or the St Barts excursion from St Maartens? I would love to hear from anyone who at least heard about these excursions from others. We are considering the St Barts trip because we have been to St Maarten many times.

I would appreciate any info!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
dcruisers

dcruisers

Posted
Posted

We are going Jan 15 -not soon enough!! When I get back, I will be happy to share info and/or answer any questions.

 

We thought it would be great to see St Barts-the home of the "rich and famous'!! But would really like some first hand info from some one who has done the excursion. I don't mind spending the $ if it's worthwhile.

Here's hoping that another cruiser will be kind enough to respond to our request!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing
  • Forum Jump
    • Categories
      • Welcome to Cruise Critic
      • Hurricane Zone 2024
      • Cruise Insurance Q&A w/ Steve Dasseos of Tripinsurancestore.com June 2024
      • New Cruisers
      • Cruise Lines “A – O”
      • Cruise Lines “P – Z”
      • River Cruising
      • ROLL CALLS
      • Cruise Critic News & Features
      • Digital Photography & Cruise Technology
      • Special Interest Cruising
      • Cruise Discussion Topics
      • UK Cruising
      • Australia & New Zealand Cruisers
      • Canadian Cruisers
      • North American Homeports
      • Ports of Call
      • Cruise Conversations
×
×
  • Create New...