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“It isn’t that life ashore is distasteful to me…but life at sea is better.”
~Sir Francis Drake
 Top deck on Royal Caribbean's Majesty Of The Seas
We booked our cruise directly with Royal Caribbean through their online reservation system. Our friends traveling with us booked theirs at the same time so we were able to choose staterooms nearby each other and made sure that all of our preferences were the same. We were even able to link the reservations to each other to ensure we sat together in the dining room. The only thing that we couldn’t confirm is that we’d be on the same flight going and coming. They required an additional $50 fee to ensure we got flights together (they also charge this fee if you want to choose your flight). While we ended up on a flight REALLY early in the morning…we did end up together without having to pay the fee.
As far as flights go, the benefit of allowing Royal Caribbean choose the flights is that should anything go wrong with your flight…they will cover any expenses to make sure you get on the boat. They also provide transportation from the airport to the pier. However, if you were willing to risk the chance of flight changes through and outside airline and provide your own transportation to the pier…you can probably find cheaper flights on your own. The positive side- we enjoyed having all of these details taken care of ahead of time and not having to worry about any of this stuff. The negative side, we didn’t receive our flight confirmations until a few weeks before we left and only after calling Royal Caribbean, asking that they send it to us. One other slight negative is that they do not send the complete “final package details”, which includes your transportation vouchers, flight information and other vacation details until 2 days before the trip.
Since our flight was so early, we arrived at the boat about 2 hours before we were supposed to board. Graciously, they allowed all of the early passengers to board the ship early and provided an amazing lunch buffet for us! (More about the food later…)
The ship itself is beautiful. When you’re in the interior of the ship, it’s hard to believe you’re not in a 5 star hotel. The main levels, theaters, lounges, dining rooms, and casino were all top notch. Of course, nothing beats the view on the decks of the ship or that feeling of nothing but the vast ocean all around you!
The rooms are small, but as long as you don’t expect anything more going into it…you should be pleased to know that they are quite comfortable. You truly don’t spend much time in the rooms anyway. The bathrooms are tiny, but adequately serve their purpose.
Service on board is impeccable! We had top rate service from every staff member on board!
Our first stop on the cruise was Cococay – Royal Caribbean’s private island. This was by far my favorite port of the trip! The ocean was beautiful and it was nice that it was only open to us. Our friends had a great time snorkeling while Tim & I found a lovely spot on a perfectly placed hammock! They have a small straw market where you can buy Bahamian tokens, clothes, etc. They offer parasailing, hiking, some sort of water park on the island as well (we didn’t do any of that stuff).
Our second stop was Nassau. I’m honestly not a huge fan of this place. We spent most of the day shopping (where unless you’re prepared to drop some cash on some designer jewelry or hand bags…it’s not very exciting). Royal Caribbean will also push a VIP shopping coupon booklet for $20 to use on your visit to Nassau. DO NOT FALL FOR IT! It’s a huge rip off! The book contains about 30 coupons for Nassau while the rest are for other places in the Caribbean that you will not be visiting.
Also on Nassau is Atlantis. It’s a beautiful hotel, but unless you’re willing to spend an additional $30 per person to walk through the Aquarium, I’m not sure it’s worth the taxi ride over to it. BUT, if you do decide to visit it...take a car/ van taxi. We took the water taxi and unless you really enjoy long walks in the sun...take the taxi by car. It is about the same price per person...and they drop you at the door.
As for one of my favorite benefits of cruising…there’s an unlimited supply of food!!!! The Windjammer Café provided a lovely array of Breakfast, Lunch and what they called Light Snacks which included hamburgers, sandwiches, and desserts…basically an entire extra meal. Dinners were in main dining rooms with first rate service! You have the option of choosing Main seating or late seating for dinner. I recommend late seating so you get the most out of your day in the ports without having to rush back and get ready for dinner. Our waiters were fabulous…and I’m not just saying that because our main waiter was Indian!
All in all…it was an amazing vacation. I recommend vactioning with a small group of friends. I recommend Royal Caribbean. I recommend our waiter, Sandesh Shetty. I recommend eating 4 meals a day. I recommend Cococay and it’s hammocks. I recommend cruising!!!! Submitted by TuesdaysTraveler reader Tim and Surupa C. - their second review. To discuss this review visit our Travelers Forums . |
