United We Stand
From: "Billy Steen" <billy.steen@gmail.com>
Date: Tuesday, December 2, 2008 at 13:19:20
Subject: Cruise Review - Navigator of the Seas - November 10 - 22, 2008
Navigator of the Seas
Trans-Atlantic Cruise from Barcelona to Fort Lauderdale
10-Nov-2008 to 22-Nov-2008
Background
There was 5 of us on this cruise, myself, my wife and 18 year old daughter,
plus my in-laws. This was our 5 cruise and third Trans-Atlantic cruise.
We had a outside stateroom on deck 2 mid ship and my in-laws had a balcony
stateroom on deck 6.
Travelling & Embarkation
We travelled from Edinburgh to Barcelona via London City airport. It was a
very early start with a 6:30 flight out of Edinburgh, but we all seemed to
get up with spring in out step as it was holiday time.
We arrived in Barcelona at 12:30 and were met just outside baggage collection
by the RCI rep, who pointed us in the right direction of porters; this was
the last we saw out luggage until we were on the ship.
There was a short 20 min bus ride to the port where we were sped through the
check in process. Having now attained Platinum status we were very lucky to
join a very short queue and within 30-40 mins we were on the ship. After a
getting slightly lost, we found our stateroom which was still in the process
of getting ready. Sammy our stateroom attendant met us, what a nice guy. Nothing
was a problem for him, and always seemed to be smiling as we met him coming
and going.
The Ship & Crew
Having been on both the Mariner and Explorer; we all had a basic idea of the
layout so it didn't take us long to to figure out where everything was.
We knew that the Windjammer was going to busy so we headed for the Promenade
Café on deck 5 for a few snacks.
The ship it's self is still looking like it just came out the dock. Everywhere
we looked someone was polishing or cleaning something.
We can't praise the staff and crew highly enough, everyone we passed in the
corridors had a smile or a nod to acknowledge we were there.
I'll give a special mention to our Waiter, Judith and her assistant (who for
the life of me I can't remember his name), plus Ray our Head Waiter, honestly
the best Head Waiter we've ever had. Normally in the past we've found they
only show face, smile and move on, but this guy took the time to speak to
all of us. We would regularly meet him in the Windjammer always taking the
time to chat.
I'll also mention the bar tenders we got friendly with. Richard in the Theatre,
who only after the second night knew what we were all drinking. One more was
in Vintages (and I'm truly sorry I never got his name). Again he knew what
I was drinking and before my bum was on the seat he was over handing me my
drink, now that's service.
At this point I'll mention our Cruise Director and his staff, Kieron Buffrey
was for me just about right. Not in your face and subtle, which I don't think
went down well with our American friends.
Once again thank to the CD staff who after my wife wrote to Kieron arrange
for my daughter to do a backstage tour as she is studying stage management
and lighting in the theatre at collage.
He had a great partner in Cuddy who managed to bounce off Kieron just nicely.
I hope he makes a CD in the future.
For me the only cloud on the silver lining was Captain Bang, for us he was
as dully as dish water. His daily announcement were tedious, all we seemed
to here was hear was his name then a became garbled with long periods of silence.
I'm sure in person he's a very interesting person but on the stage of pubic
speaking a small improvement is needed.
Ports
We didn't have many ports of call on this cruise, which is one of the reasons
we choose it.
The first up was Cartagena in Spain. The ship had never been docked here before
so it was bit of an adventure for guest and crew alike.
We did manage to get on an open top bus trip for €13 each, taking about
an hour for the tour. Very nice and condensed city full of naval history.
After the tour we took a stroll up to the shops.
After 2 days at sea we arrived at the port of Ponta Delgada in the Azores,
where we had 16 hours to kill. We’ve never organised a tour via the
ship as we can normally find something to do. With this port we really struggled.
The tourist information desk should be done under the trade descriptions as
they weren’t helpful at all, telling us most of the buses were off or
broken. So we had to fend for ourselves. The town it’s self is very
compact and we managed to wander through the small streets taking in the all
the sites and sounds.
After returning to the ship for some lunch and a change we went back off the
ship and struck lucky. It seemed we were there on the day all the Christmas
lights were being switched on. It truly magical place, full of marching bands,
Santa and kids playing.
Our last stop came after 6 days at seas and we arrived in the port of Nassau
in the Bahamas.
After a small delay waiting for another ship to dock we got off and headed
for the hotel Atlantis. Having been to Nassau in the past we knew where to
go and how to get there so no time was wasted.
We wandered round the hotel checking out the aquarium and casino, then headed
back to the main town for a drink at the local Hard Rock Café. It was
then back to the ship and prepare for the big off load at Fort Lauderdale
the next morning.
The Sea Days
As I’ve said before we choose this cruise because of the amount to days
at sea, which for us the must relaxing time you can have. In total out of
the 12 days 8 of them were spent at sea. The only down side to this was the
weather wasn’t the most favourable, it was warm but for the most part
overcast. To say the sea was lumpy would be a small understatement, for at
least 2 days it was pretty rough, so much so when we looked our stateroom
window it wasn’t unusual to see the sea hitting it. We did spend this
time doing all the stuff around the playing golf and roller blading and ice
skating etc. The rough waters didn’t stop us have a great time; sometimes
you have to take the rough with the smooth. We were just lucky on all the
port days the sun was shinning.
Entertainment
This was a real mixed bag for us. We though the RCI dancers done a good job
working under the conditions they do. However some of the star turns were
a bit poor. Darren Day was really bad and never seemed to connect with the
audience. Brenda Cochran tried very hard and has some real talent but I don’t
think the theatre was big enough for her voice. The real star turn was Mr
Nobody (Yacov Noy). His three legged man was just classic.
We did manage to see 3 showings of the Ice Dancing and we all still watch
with open mouths how these people to do the things they do. With leaps, jumps
and back flips it’s all very cool. We just managed to stand up on the
ice when the ship was moving all over the place how they do it is beyond me.
Food
I can’t really do a review without mentioning the food. Overall it was
really good. The choice within the Windjammer is amazing, if you can’t
find something you like you must be a very picky eater. Somethings could have
been hotter. I do feel like people behave extremely badly and can be very
rude within the Windjammer. Pushing in when queues have been formed, loading
plates up like all the food is going to run out. I’ve always subscribed
to you can go up as many time as you like, don’t waste good food.
We ate every night in the main restaurant, and there wasn’t a night
gone by that I couldn’t find something to eat. The steak was always
done the way I like it. I never walked away thinking hmm I need more to eat.
In fact most nights I thought that was a lovely meal, and I don’t have
to do the dishes.
Disembarkation
We were very lucky that managed to be one of the last one off the ship, and
also being Platinum member we had access to the our own waiting area, which
was in the restaurant on deck 4. This made for a more pleasant experience
than sitting in the theatre. By the time we got off the ship there were only
a few cases left in the hall so we could spot our luggage without any problem.
Clearing immigration was only a problem as some people seemed think it was
a good idea to fill in their green cards when they arrived at them immigration
officer. On the whole we were on our way to the airport within an hour from
getting off the ship.
Overall
In conclusion this was a very enjoyable cruise, well worth the money we spent.
Will we be doing another cruise, you better believe it, and will we choose
Royal Caribbean, most defiantly yes, they tick all the right boxes for me.