Never thought I would do this, but....

[tuckermom]

I have booked a cruise on RCCL Mariner of the seas. Can anyone out there give me a first hand account of what to expect? We have been on 2 Disney cruises and absolutely loved every minute. However, our kids (11 & 12) are starting to think they are too old for the Disney thing. So, we are branching out into the unknown. The worst part? We will be leaving on the Mariner out of Port Canaveral on a Sunday, which means we will have to pass by the beautiful Wonder............

 

[Firegoalie23]

haven't been on the mariner, but have sailed on her older sister, the explorer. Beautiful ships with ALOT to do, you will not be dissapointed.
Richie

 

[JOANNEL]

We just sailed on the Mariner in May. It was very nice. The service is not up to Disney standards. The room was bigger. We had a balcony room for less than an inside room on the Magic. We have sailed on the Magic twice. My teen agers loved it. I missed the Magic but for the differnce in price it is well worth it. Labadee is not a Castaway key. You will be very disappointed. There are not as many chioces on the dinner menu's. The food was never really hot and the desserts were never really cold. But the food was good. Wait staff is not as fun as Disney but they were good.

But it was a great trip. I would do it again in a minute.

 

[tuckermom]

Thanks for your imput! We too are going to have a balcony for about $1200 less than an oceanview on Disney. I think we will have a good time if we just keep it in perspective. Thanks again!!

 

[BethA]

We just returned from RCL Adventure of the Seas---it was okay. They did have the rock climbing, mingolf, ice skating--but only at certain times. Leaving from San Juan almost all the teens were Puerto Ricans, so my older son did not meet anyone and said all the teen things were in Spanish. We did not enjoy the shows and found there was a lot of time with nothing scheduled. You had to make your own fun. Lots of bars--I think about 19-- and the casino.

Missed the food on deck. Pool was larger but salt water. Desserts were awful. No good deck parties or sail aways--the one deck party was all Latino. Self serve ice cream was good.

We found the wait staff adequate, but not fun. No magic for us!

Beth

 

[erikthewise]

You won't have to literally pass by the Wonder. But you will be docked next to the Wonder all Sunday afternoon, and last-minute repentances will do you no good! On our 4-day, the Carnival Fantasy left about 4:30, and the Wonder left at 5:00, with the Mariner still in port.

 

[westjones]

You may want to read through this recent posting. I have thought about trying it, but just can't seem to bring myself to do it:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=832555

Hope you report back to us when you return!
DJ

 

[scrappy910]

We were on the Mariner this past February. It is a very nice ship. We had a room with a verandah. I liked the stateroom on the Mariner better than our verandah stateroom on the Wonder. The bed is next to the verandah so when you come into the room, the room seems to be larger because you don't have the bed sitting right in the middle of the room. I do believe the rooms may have been a bit wider. I liked the split bathroom on the Wonder better. Our bathroom only had a shower, no tub. This wasn't a problem for us, but if you have little ones and you need a tub for them it could cause a problem. My DD and SIL stayed in a Jr. Suite, and that was fantastic. They actually had a walk in closet that would have been big enough to set up the pack n play in. They have 2 little ones and this room was great for them. Not sure what it would be comparable to on a Disney ship. I agree with previous posts about the quality and choice of food. Didn't seem to have as many choices, especially in the dessert category. I too missed not having the food places at the pools. The Mariner has bars in the pool areas, but couldn't find any with food.

If the Mariner leaves before Disney, you can go to the back of the ship and watch as the Wonder leaves and hear the horn. Of course, that could just make you sadder that you aren't on the Wonder. I would prefer a Disney cruise, but if cost were a factor I would go on RCCL again rather than not cruise.

Carol

 

[Mmketeer]

Hi,

I sailed on the inaugral Western cruise for the Mariner and I absolutley loved it! I have to say it was the first time I sailed out of Port Canaveral that I wasn't the least bit disaapointed that I wasn't sailing DCL. Okay, so when you get on board you don't get your family name announced and theirs no Disney magic in the air, but oh my is the ship impressive! You'll be so busy looking at the massive size and million dollar artwork that you won't even notice it. It is soo beautiful and I had such a great cruise that I am now a RCCL fan. I sailed in a balcony cabin and I found it very simiular in size and feel to Disney. The ship is classy and of course since I was only the second group to ever sail on the ship it also sparkled. The service was great, the staff was friendly and we got a towel animal in our stateroom every night. I can say however as large and beautiful as the main dining room was, I did miss DCL's rotating dining experience a little. We were never bored on the ship, which was something I really researched before we sailed on any ship for our first 7 nighter. The ammenities and services that are available is why I choose the Mariner. I love DCL, but I am not so sure I could 'personally' do a 7 nighter on her. After sailing DCL 5 times I just think hubby and I would be bored. I would sail the Mariner again and reccomend her. Heck, RCCL sold this Disney girl and I have now sailed and will sail them again based on that one exeperience on the Mariner. If you wanht you can email me and I can give you more specifics.

Mmketeer....next cruises: RCCL-SOS 12/05 & DCL-Wonder 2/06

DCL Wonder & Magic (inaugral year)
RCCL Enchantment & Mariner
CCL Fantasy & Miracle

 

[westjones]

For those of you who have sailed on RCCL, where do the kids sleep? Does the sofa convert to a bed?

DJ

 

[BethA]

Some rooms have the 2 pulldowns and some have a very hard futton type couch--not comfortable!!

I also missed the dining rotations and the themed nights at dinner.

The storage in the cabin did seem much better.

 

[westjones]

I just priced a 7 night on RCCL for our spring break in 2006 and in 2007, and I was surpised that the price difference was only $100 difference. The 2006 price was $100 more than the 2007--so I guess early booking isn't as big of an advantage with RCCL as with Disney (which is nice, you don't have to make a decision about a vacation 2 years away).

I am not sure about it yet, but once DCL comes out with their prices, I may look at it.

DJ

 

[pediatric-rnp]

We just took the leap, also and are booked next summer on RCCL for the Freedom of the Seas 7 day western carrib. cruise - brand new ship which is currently being built in Finland, I think, and will be in service late spring of 2006. DH and I would go back to DCL in a heartbeat -we absolutely loved everything about it. But both DS's, who will be 18 & 20 at the time of sailing, feel DCL has little to offer their age group, and I have to agree. They really need to address that. Both boys are very active, and spent our 3 day DCL cruise playing basketball every spare minute on the ship, but would have loved some other options onboard. We are going out of Miami, so thank goodness do not need to worry about seeing the Wonder or the Magic and getting that huge lump in my throat. But I am excited to be trying another cruiseline, and also to be on a brand new ship!! We booked a cabin with verandah, which we also had on the Wonder, and in comparing the prices, it was much less $$. DH and I may return to the Magic or the Wonder by ourselves next time!!

 

[westjones]

We just took the leap, also and are booked next summer on RCCL for the Freedom of the Seas 7 day western carrib. cruise - brand new ship which is currently being built in Finland, I think, and will be in service late spring of 2006. QUOTE]

Is this the ship that is suppose to have a water park for their pool and a big trampoline/bungee thing? I think I saw something about that on the Travel Channel. It looked like it was going to be very nice!
DJ

 

[disneyholic family]

I have booked a cruise on RCCL Mariner of the seas. Can anyone out there give me a first hand account of what to expect? We have been on 2 Disney cruises and absolutely loved every minute. However, our kids (11 & 12) are starting to think they are too old for the Disney thing. So, we are branching out into the unknown. The worst part? We will be leaving on the Mariner out of Port Canaveral on a Sunday, which means we will have to pass by the beautiful Wonder............

it's nice to try new things, and if you don't like it you can always go back to DCL next time around...

 

[pediatric-rnp]

We just took the leap, also and are booked next summer on RCCL for the Freedom of the Seas 7 day western carrib. cruise - brand new ship which is currently being built in Finland, I think, and will be in service late spring of 2006. QUOTE]

Is this the ship that is suppose to have a water park for their pool and a big trampoline/bungee thing? I think I saw something about that on the Travel Channel. It looked like it was going to be very nice!
DJ

Yes -this is the one with the water park for their kids pool. There are 2 adult pools -one for swimming and one for water sports, like water volleyball, water basketball, etc. My DSs are really looking forward to that. This will be the largest cruise ship in the world, once it is completed. I'm not sure about the trampoline/bungee thing tho - haven't heard anything about that, but they haven't released all the info of their amenities yet on the website, so it's possible - DS (almost 20) would LOVE that tho!!

 

[tuckermom]

The price difference for us is $1200 less on RCCL w/balcony as compared to a cat. 8 oceanview on Disney. That also includes discount from booking on board with Disney. We could have gotten a Jr. Suite on RCCL and still saved $600! Don't get me wrong, I have LOVED the two Disney cruises we have taken. We just feel the need to try something different. Our DS (12) was somewhat bored on our May '05 cruise. I really hope that Disney comes through with a "tween club". That is one of the most common complaints I hear from friends with kids 12-14. Having said that, Disney is certainly going to be a tough act to follow.

 

[tezb]

We just took the leap, also and are booked next summer on RCCL for the Freedom of the Seas 7 day western carrib. cruise - brand new ship which is currently being built in Finland, I think, and will be in service late spring of 2006. DH and I would go back to DCL in a heartbeat -we absolutely loved everything about it. But both DS's, who will be 18 & 20 at the time of sailing, feel DCL has little to offer their age group, and I have to agree. They really need to address that. Both boys are very active, and spent our 3 day DCL cruise playing basketball every spare minute on the ship, but would have loved some other options onboard. We are going out of Miami, so thank goodness do not need to worry about seeing the Wonder or the Magic and getting that huge lump in my throat. But I am excited to be trying another cruiseline, and also to be on a brand new ship!! We booked a cabin with verandah, which we also had on the Wonder, and in comparing the prices, it was much less $$. DH and I may return to the Magic or the Wonder by ourselves next time!!

Hey, we too recently booked on Freedom for June 18, 2006! My 2 older boys will also be 18 and 20 at time of sailing...youngest will be 14. When is your cruise date? We have been on the Mariner once and DCL 3 times. We didn't regret trying RCCL last summer and had a great time. We will probably not cruise DCL any time soon...my boys have more to do on the Voyager Class Ships so we will probably stick w/ them.

 

[pediatric-rnp]

Hey, we too recently booked on Freedom for June 18, 2006! My 2 older boys will also be 18 and 20 at time of sailing...youngest will be 14. When is your cruise date? We have been on the Mariner once and DCL 3 times. We didn't regret trying RCCL last summer and had a great time. We will probably not cruise DCL any time soon...my boys have more to do on the Voyager Class Ships so we will probably stick w/ them.

We're sailing in July - too bad, tho -with our sons being the same age, it would have been great for them to be able to meet someone their age who would be on board! Are you on the inaugral sailing? I'm going to miss DCL, but I really don't blame the kids -at their age there is much more for them to do on this RCCL ship. I'd love to hear a report from you next year about your June cruise on Freedom of the Seas - I know it's a long ways off, but would you mind if I pm you around the time you return? (Now, for me to remember to do this!!!)

 

[tezb]

We're sailing in July - too bad, tho -with our sons being the same age, it would have been great for them to be able to meet someone their age who would be on board! Are you on the inaugral sailing? I'm going to miss DCL, but I really don't blame the kids -at their age there is much more for them to do on this RCCL ship. I'd love to hear a report from you next year about your June cruise on Freedom of the Seas - I know it's a long ways off, but would you mind if I pm you around the time you return? (Now, for me to remember to do this!!!)

Hi Carol....No problem to PM me whenever you like. Looks like we will be the 3rd cruise...so everything will be sooo NEW! We cruised the Mariner when she was 7 mos old and I thought that was new but only 3 weeks... I can't wait. The Freedom is more expensive but I decided to book now and hope we can afford by then...can always cancel by April if things don't look affordable...but somehow we'll find a way. Didn't cruise this year so we'll see. Your boys will love the ship at their ages....so much more to do. Looks like you're a nurse? I"m not a nurse but have always worked in medical field/hospitals. Take care....