Galveston fogged in. Wonder can't dock

[Marc D]

I believe that the inside part, that used to be entirely the Outlook Cafe, has been divided so that only part is now the Cafe and the rest is for Concierge guests.

Yes, there's a very nice indoor Concierge lounge on deck 10 now, with an adjacent 2nd floor Cove cafe space where we spent a good deal of time reading last cruise. It seems to offer the same amenities as the lounge on Fantasy, with a buffet, coffee machine and cocktails before dinner. I was looking over the dividing wall sometimes.

We'll be on the other side of that wall in March 2018 and will probably spend a lot more time in the lounge than we do on Fantasy. That lounge is too dark for us to hang out.

 

[tcufrog]

Thanks for letting know. That was the only thing keeping me from sailing on the Wonder. I don't normally pay for concierge but having that quiet place is what made the trip enjoyable.

 

[mmouse37]

They also had an outdoor Concierge Sun Deck which I guess would be Deck 11 as it was above Deck 10. It had some nice seating areas and lounges (from what I could see from Deck 10).

They did split the upstairs of Outlook Cafe so non concierge has an upstairs area on Deck 10 and concierge has the rest of what once was Outlook Cafe. I would say the percent of space is 3/4 Concierge and 1/4 Outlook Cafe (from what was all of Outlook Cafe). Hope that makes sense. I did not take pics.

MJ

 

[mmouse37]

I know I should start a trip report and maybe I will but for now...I forgot to mention that I had not seen any reports before I left of the new hand washing stations outside of Cabanas on the Wonder so I was quite surprised to see them. Honestly, I thought while a good measure for hygiene, the time it took people to wash up and dry seemed long. I also kept getting my sleeves wet while leaning over the sink. Not sure if it will work long term. Some people just walked by and they were not stopped and the CM's were not handing out wipes so it sort of defeated the whole purpose of cleanliness.

I wished I had taken a picture of it. They are about 4 or 5 feet long with a stone trough type sink that is on a slight incline. The stations can fit about 3 people at once. A liquid soap (not foam) dispenser and faucet and paper towel dispenser (3 of each). I think the liquid soap takes longer to rinse off than a foam soap would. The paper towel dispenser was the kind that you had to reach up into and you wound up touching the bottom of it so I don't know how sanitary that is. I found the paper towel dispenser empty most of the time and a CM would be handing towels out. I didn't think the system was smooth.

MJ

 

[michellekcm]

We were on the same cruise as you MJ, and we thought the same about the hand washing stations. That definitely wasn't an improvement. It took a lot longer to get through that into Cabanas than it used to.

 

[mmouse37]

We were on the same cruise as you MJ, and we thought the same about the hand washing stations. That definitely wasn't an improvement. It took a lot longer to get through that into Cabanas than it used to.

I am really surprised that something that big could have been missed by me beforehand, unless no one reported about it. I honestly don't remember reading anything about it!!!

I think a motion paper towel dispenser would be more sanitary.

MJ

 

[Kontos]

I know I should start a trip report and maybe I will but for now...I forgot to mention that I had not seen any reports before I left of the new hand washing stations outside of Cabanas on the Wonder so I was quite surprised to see them. Honestly, I thought while a good measure for hygiene, the time it took people to wash up and dry seemed long. I also kept getting my sleeves wet while leaning over the sink. Not sure if it will work long term. Some people just walked by and they were not stopped and the CM's were not handing out wipes so it sort of defeated the whole purpose of cleanliness.

I wished I had taken a picture of it. They are about 4 or 5 feet long with a stone trough type sink that is on a slight incline. The stations can fit about 3 people at once. A liquid soap (not foam) dispenser and faucet and paper towel dispenser (3 of each). I think the liquid soap takes longer to rinse off than a foam soap would. The paper towel dispenser was the kind that you had to reach up into and you wound up touching the bottom of it so I don't know how sanitary that is. I found the paper towel dispenser empty most of the time and a CM would be handing towels out. I didn't think the system was smooth.

MJ

Taken from @ukintheus' trip report http://www.disboards.com/threads/re...galveston-november-10-2016-completed.3560865/

 

[mom2brooke76]

Sounds like they should invest in the hand washing machines at the Oceaneer's club/ lab

 

[mevelandry]

DCL doesn't cruise out of Tampa, but it's an issue there too.

During winter only or at all times?

 

[Dug720]

During winter only or at all times?

Mainly during winter, but when you are dealing with the sea and water and weather it is always a possibility.

 

[mmouse37]

Taken from @ukintheus' trip report http://www.disboards.com/threads/re...galveston-november-10-2016-completed.3560865/

Yep, I missed that post...I don't always read trip reports.

MJ

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Sounds like they should invest in the hand washing machines at the Oceaneer's club/ lab

You mean these?



They definitely seem like more fun than the trough-style communal hand washing.

 

[MPS516]

I read the sinks were to be an alternative to the sani wipes from the tubs, if the CM were not posted handing them out it would derail the system. There would be no way to keep up with the flow of people coming in around meal times if everyone had only the sinks. People are unlikely to wait 5 minutes in a line to wash your hands in a sink at the entrance
.

 

[Marc D]

Honestly, I didn't have to wait more than 30 seconds at a time during my recent cruise, and that was because the family before us was talking in front of the four stations without washing their hands. We once went to the left door because there were maybe 5-6 people in line at the right and nobody was on that side.

It didn't create a crazy line and I didn't see people going pass the sink. The CM was handing out paper towels so maybe once did I take it from the dispenser. Hand washing with water and soap is superior to the wipes and we were very happy with the new system.

 

[mom2brooke76]

You mean these?
View attachment 215647
View attachment 215646

They definitely seem like more fun than the trough-style communal hand washing.

Yes! Even the kids don't mind using them. Now I feel very strongly about that because we got off the Dream yesterday and myself and apparently a few others from our DISboards cruise group have developed vomiting and diarrhea. We didn't actually meet these people, so I'd guess that it came from the ship. Hopefully nobody gets sick from this current sailing or future ones!

 

[cmph]

Honestly, I didn't have to wait more than 30 seconds at a time during my recent cruise, and that was because the family before us was talking in front of the four stations without washing their hands. We once went to the left door because there were maybe 5-6 people in line at the right and nobody was on that side.

It didn't create a crazy line and I didn't see people going pass the sink. The CM was handing out paper towels so maybe once did I take it from the dispenser. Hand washing with water and soap is superior to the wipes and we were very happy with the new system.

Same experience for me! If were were eating elsewhere, I made everyone wash in a real sink before anyway, b/c the wipes aren't enough for my liking. But it wasn't a time suck, and the CMs were politely blocking non-washers from coming in - dual purpose between that and handing out paper towels. They did let me pass without washing when I came directly from the bathroom there (where I had washed my hands).

But that kids' club hand washer... oh my, I LOVED that. Especially since I saw more than a few adults with kids walk out of the bathrooms without washing their hands at all, ick. If no one is teaching the kids how to wash their hands, I'm all for a machine there!

 

[mom2brooke76]

Same experience for me! If were were eating elsewhere, I made everyone wash in a real sink before anyway, b/c the wipes aren't enough for my liking. But it wasn't a time suck, and the CMs were politely blocking non-washers from coming in - dual purpose between that and handing out paper towels. They did let me pass without washing when I came directly from the bathroom there (where I had washed my hands).

But that kids' club hand washer... oh my, I LOVED that. Especially since I saw more than a few adults with kids walk out of the bathrooms without washing their hands at all, ick. If no one is teaching the kids how to wash their hands, I'm all for a machine there!

Exactly! Children and adults actually seem to look forward to washing their hands with this machine, so I definitely think they should provide more!

 

[Quellman]

Exactly! Children and adults actually seem to look forward to washing their hands with this machine, so I definitely think they should provide more!

Not my kid, the whirring noise frightens him. Not sure why, just does.

 

[mmouse37]

I am not against the new hand washing machines as washing hands is superior to wipes but in my experience (and it was my experience) people were bypassing the station and CM's could not keep up with handing out towels or directing people to the stations. There were some lines.

I think one of those automatic paper towel dispensers would be great there...not the one they have where you have to reach up inside the dispenser to get a towel.

MJ

 

[DisneyCowgirl]

I know I should start a trip report and maybe I will but for now...I forgot to mention that I had not seen any reports before I left of the new hand washing stations outside of Cabanas on the Wonder so I was quite surprised to see them. Honestly, I thought while a good measure for hygiene, the time it took people to wash up and dry seemed long. I also kept getting my sleeves wet while leaning over the sink. Not sure if it will work long term. Some people just walked by and they were not stopped and the CM's were not handing out wipes so it sort of defeated the whole purpose of cleanliness.

I wished I had taken a picture of it. They are about 4 or 5 feet long with a stone trough type sink that is on a slight incline. The stations can fit about 3 people at once. A liquid soap (not foam) dispenser and faucet and paper towel dispenser (3 of each). I think the liquid soap takes longer to rinse off than a foam soap would. The paper towel dispenser was the kind that you had to reach up into and you wound up touching the bottom of it so I don't know how sanitary that is. I found the paper towel dispenser empty most of the time and a CM would be handing towels out. I didn't think the system was smooth.

MJ

I just got off the Jan 13th Wonder, and the hand washing station was working. At buffet times, there was at least one cast member standing handing out the hand towels (two when it was busy) and they were making sure people washed their hands. I did not think it slowed things down significantly. Maybe with the cast members there it was working better.

Though I think the kids' club washers are neat, I always end up with wet sleeves on that one, and I noticed adults would just stick their hands in enough to get their fingertips washed.