Back from my cruise

[Scarlett]

I really enjoyed it.  My friend and I were together every second of 10 days and it was fabulous.  
 

Our suite was so so nice.  We had a huge balcony, a separate dressing area with a third sink, a jacuzzi tub and a bidet!  3 mornings we did room service for breakfast and enjoyed coffee, pastries, fruit and yogurt on our balcony.

Scheduled ports were Costa Maya, Mahogany Bay in Roatan and Cozumel.  I was most looking forward to Roatan but a storm came up and we sat in the port at Costa Maya all night. So that was disappointing but glad we did not get caught in the storm.

I would probably do it again, but I might possibly be ruined now from staying in that nice suite.  I definitely could not do an interior room.

I am also happy to announce there were no terrorist or pirate attacks.  And my dog and husband were still here when I got home. 

 

[MercyA]

I'm so glad you had fun!!! 🙂 

[PeterPan]

Yay, sounds like you had an amazing time!!! I'm taking a girlfriend with me on a cruise next year, but she likes to read and do quiet things and isn't quite as crazy as I am. And it won't be a suite, haha, though will we hit the spa and sweat our sins out.

Well good! Yes, cruise again. Interior isn't so bad. I just do whatever is cheap and don't fret it. There are times when interior would break your heart and times where it won't matter. When we cruised to Alaska, we went balcony, which was really sort of a waste. It was so early in the season that it was unpleasantly cold out on the balcony and the light kept disturbing our sleep, even with the curtains drawn. A well placed interior (near the stairs, within 1-2 decks of a good observation point) can be like having a balcony while saving you a scad of money. 😁

Missing Roatan is heart breaking. One time we got rained out, so we just shopped and enjoyed the hot tub on the ship. Usually though it's a great port. Maybe book an ABC cruise or something a bit more eastern caribbean next so you can hit some new ports. You can watch and see if they throw you any bounceback offers. You could also watch for last minute deals. 

Have you looked at transatlantic cruises yet? 🤣

Edited December 5, 2023 by PeterPan

[Kassia]

Glad you had a good time!  

[Bootsie]

Wow!  Glad you had a great time.  What a wonderful suite.  I have never cruised in a suite before--what luxury!  

I understand what you mean about being spoiled by the room, but I have cruised in an interior room before and enjoyed it also, especially when I have cruised with DD.  It is quiet, dark, and snuggly in the room--I slept very well.  We took the cheapest room possible on a ship that had a thermal spa where you could get a week pass and spent money on that and on excursiosns.  But, when DH and I travel we enjoy sitting out on the balcony with a cup of coffee and don't do as many excursions, etc.  

Glad you weren't caught in a storm and that there were not attacks--terrorist or pirate.

[marbel]

Welcome back! Glad you had a good time!

[Grace Hopper]

That sounds like a dream! So glad you were feeling well and could really enjoy it. 
 

I’m with you on not being able to do an interior room again - I don’t get seasick (knock wood) but dh was miserable in our interior cabin and much better in our room with natural light (and less noise from adjoining cabins). We haven’t cruised since balconies became common, though! I’d love that. 

[mommyoffive]

I am so glad you had a great time.  Yay.  Sounds amazing.

[Mrs Tiggywinkle Again]

Oh that sounds like fun! We are going on a cruise in May. DH is going to hate it but I managed to get a junior suite so hopefully he can sit on our balcony and hate it a little less.

[Grace Hopper]

20 minutes ago, Mrs Tiggywinkle Again said:

Oh that sounds like fun! We are going on a cruise in May. DH is going to hate it but I managed to get a junior suite so hopefully he can sit on our balcony and hate it a little less.

He can just eat himself into a delicious abundant food coma which will distract him from hating it. 
 

(tbh I don’t like the thought of cruising on a really big ship, but the food, someone else fixing it and cleaning up the dishes for a week…delightful!)

[Scarlett]

27 minutes ago, Grace Hopper said:

He can just eat himself into a delicious abundant food coma which will distract him from hating it. 
 

(tbh I don’t like the thought of cruising on a really big ship, but the food, someone else fixing it and cleaning up the dishes for a week…delightful!)

This is what I really really liked about the cruise. 
 

I love a good beach trip…..my friend rents a big beach house a couple of times a year and has family and friends join her……but we were discussing the negative of that which is cooking ad cleaning..  

[Kassia]

1 minute ago, Scarlett said:

This is what I really really liked about the cruise. 
 

I love a good beach trip…..my friend rents a big beach house a couple of times a year and has family and friends join her……but we were discussing the negative of that which is cooking ad cleaning..  

yes, there's an Onion article about the mom doing all the same things she does at home but with a better view.  I could definitely relate to that.  

[Grace Hopper]

Just now, Kassia said:

yes, there's an Onion article about the mom doing all the same things she does at home but with a better view.  I could definitely relate to that.  

Yes at one point I learned to ask dh “is this a vacation with a restaurant budget or a resort remote work week?”

[Scarlett]

1 hour ago, Kassia said:

yes, there's an Onion article about the mom doing all the same things she does at home but with a better view.  I could definitely relate to that.  

Girl trips with no kids are fun because we can eat girl dinners.  And some husbands help more than others for sure. My husband and his brothers do for sure.  

Edited December 6, 2023 by Scarlett

[PeterPan]

4 hours ago, Mrs Tiggywinkle Again said:

Oh that sounds like fun! We are going on a cruise in May. DH is going to hate it but I managed to get a junior suite so hopefully he can sit on our balcony and hate it a little less.

I love it!! Are you going on Celebrity or something else? You had wanted to earlier and had not been able to, right? Or did you ever get to go on that one? 

Will the kids go with you?

Just a suggestion, but for someone to like cruising they have to find what they like on the cruise ship. I don't like 80% of what goes on on a cruise ship, because I just don't like those things. I don't drink, I don't hang out with people, I don't like loud places, on and on. I go to the spa, I eat, and I go to the spa, and I watch movies. That's it. When on land I go do the most dangerous, sensory seeking, outrageous excursions I can find. (cliff jumping in Bermuda, wild boat rides in the swells around St Maarten, lots of snorkeling, anything with WIND because I'm insane for wind...) Sometimes I try to go to shows, but most are too loud for me. It just depends.

So he might have more fun if you help him find the things on the cruise ship he'll enjoy. I always scope out the deck plans, memorize them, and then go to the quiet places. We were recently on the, ahem, at one point one of the largest ships in the world, and it was just a nightmare for finding comfortable places to be. They have a walking track/promenade deck, so I'd go down there 3-5 times a day and do laps. Their spa sucked, so I only went there once a day. Normally if the spa is good I will go 1-4 hours a day, multiple times a day even. I will sometimes go to the hot tubs after most people are gone and just sit and look at the stars. I really like to walk around in the dark on the ship and look at the stars. 

I try to go to comedy shows on the ships, but I fall asleep, lol. Social humor is clearly lost on me. 🤣 But I try, yes I try. I people watch. I do enjoy people watching. I don't drink alcohol, but a waiter once hooked my up with a nonalcoholic frozen drink that was the bomb. He might have something like that that could become an unexpected favorite. 

I'm really picky about dining. You can ask for a quiet location (just ask the maitre d!!!) and even the direction you face can make a difference. I like to sit looking at the water. On our last cruise I sat the first night facing people and found it very disruptive. After that the maitre d who was taking care of us (because there had been issues) faced me toward the wall, which sounds punitive and awful but actually made me feel so much better!! I could focus just on the person I was with and enjoy conversation and not have all that visual distraction in the background.

So there are these little things that can make it more comfortable to cruise, if that makes sense. Also taking a familiar item. Cruise ships never provide enough weight with blankets, oh my. I beg/steal/scrape. There may be an extra comforter in the cabin you can steal. Maybe even book a couples massage!! Would he like a massage? He might. 😁

Edited December 6, 2023 by PeterPan

[Mrs Tiggywinkle Again]

I’ve cruised before, he hasn’t.

He doesn’t like crowds, shows, rarely drinks, is very picky about food(he’s developed a gluten sensitivity and of course all of his favorite foods have wheat, he hasn’t really liked the alternatives), hates sandy beaches.  He’s had one massage and it inflamed his bad shoulder so much that he hurt for a week: We were originally going with his best friend and wife, which would have smoothed over a lot of that, but now they’re getting divorced so it’s just us.  I’ve checked the excursions and there’s nothing he’ll really enjoy, though he’ll do one or two with me. Basically my husband likes to work, build things, go hunting, and sit around a campfire. His absolute favorite thing is to rent a little cabin in the woods with a hot tub somewhere where we hole up together for a few days and that’s his idea of a romantic getaway. 

We are going on a 6 night/7 day Royal Caribbean to Bermuda. No kids.  I love cruising but after this I’ll probably just take my daughter with me.

Edited December 6, 2023 by Mrs Tiggywinkle Again

[PeterPan]

1 hour ago, Mrs Tiggywinkle Again said:

His absolute favorite thing is to rent a little cabin in the woods with a hot tub somewhere where we hole up together for a few days and that’s his idea of a romantic getaway. 

Aww, that's sweet!! And cruising can be that. Is this Liberty of the Seas? We did Symphony of the Seas this year and it was a real mixed bag for someone with tastes like mine (which it sounds like are similar to your dh's). I'm just trying to think here of ways you can make this better so he might enjoy it more. I'd encourage you to lean in on what he DOES enjoy, kwim? He's telling you there: quiet, less people, hot tubs, romance. That's all great stuff!

-specialty dining-does he like to eat? Oh you said gluten free. Have you been on Royal since the new menus? I had never been before, and I found the MDR food bland, unmemorable, and downright inedible at times. Other people on our cruise (2 weeks) who were gluten free lost significant weight. If it's in your budget, I would urge you to consider booking specialty dining several nights. You can see the menus and figure out which would work best for you. You can eat in Bermuda for dinner while you're there. I'm looking at the listings for Liberty and there are 4 nice restaurants. https://www.royalcaribbeanincentives.com/ship/liberty-of-the-seas/dining/  I suggest booking each one, NOT the dining plan. Book each so you have your preferred time slot, kwim? Me, I book the VERY FIRST time slot of the dinner hour. Now I didn't eat specialty on SOS so it may be Royal's specialty isn't that great either, but it's probably adequate. Usually ships seem to book those restaurants slow the first slot and then ramping up, which means going their first dinner slot is the quietest. If he likes food, it might make a radical difference in his enjoyment of the ship, RADICAL. I'd probably lean in on Chops and Sabor because I don't see how the Giovanni's can be fun gluten free. Maybe they nail it, so check the menus. 

**I would consider fixing the food an immutable expense.* Give it to him for Christmas, whatever. I know it will bite.

-food in Bermuda-I spent our 2nd day in Bermuda tromping all over the island, which was the greatest thing ever. Why are you booking excursions if he doesn't like them? Does he like to golf? Many of the men on the ship were going to GOLF. I have no clue why you'd sail all the way to Bermuda just to golf, but there you go. You'll also be there overnight, so you could fish. Hire a private boat and get some WIND in his face. He likes hot tubs, so he probably likes wind. Sand aversion makes sense. The person I'm taking with me on my next cruise can't do sand, sigh. It's kinda tricky when everythign is beaches, lol. 

-look on Airbnb Experiences or Viator for other ideas. Don't book excursions you know aren't a good fit. You don't even need excursions in Bermuda, mercy. You can take the bus for stupid cheap and get everywhere you need to go. They have these fish sandwiches that are EPIC, unbelievable. I just don't know if they can be gluten free. There was a little restaurant we ate at on an excursion that would be worth trying to go to. You could rent an electric car (yes!!) and go where you like to go together. You could eat lunch, do the forts (which are really great) and the gardens. Does he like to snorkel? If he doesn't like to be in the water for snorkeling (which doesn't involve sand), then maybe book a sailboat tour, kwim? 

-If you rent the EV, then you could dump him at golfing one day while you go hit the beach. I agree, to be there an not do the beach would just be a travesty. But you don't need or even want it via excursion, mercy. Does he like to read? If you get to the quieter beaches (which are a farther walk), lots of people will find their own cove and just sit and read for hours. Does he like to *float*? I've known people to take inflatables. Now when we were there the waves were big, but it was hurricane season, lol. The rocks and vegetation are amazing and it's so peaceful in the coves. Some are too rocky to swim and that's where people go to read and be quiet.

-There is a steam room and sauna in each locker room (men and women). Bummer is that means you can't be together, but nice part is it's probably free!! If he likes steam or sauna rooms, he should go there every night!! I have a whole routine, a ritual where I eat dinner then go to the spa. After that I go to shows if anything is quiet enough to be sane/tolerable. Then I go watch movies on the big screen (does this ship have that?) and finish out the night walking to look at the stars. 

-shows-What you might do is go ahead and make the reservations for the shows in the app if this ship does that. That way it's easy to go if you want to go. It's saying they have some cirque style shows, and he might enjoy those more than the musical. Royal seems to have a philosophy of MORE WOULD BE MORE on entertainment, which completely cracks me up. It's like this great cacophany of visual wonder. I thought sitting in the front was way better than sitting back, mainly because I could see what interested me (how the ropes work), whether the shoes all matched, rather than paying attention to what the show was trying to get you to notice. But it's LOUD which means I wear earplugs. You can get 32DB earplugs at Target/Walmart, flesh colored. Now they have noise canceling swanky bluetooth things, but I don't know how much actual attenuation they have. You could even take headphones if it made it tolerable. You'll never see people again so do what works, kwim? 

-movies--https://gangwaze.com/cruise-lines/royal-caribbean/liberty-of-the-seas/things-to-do/activities/outdoor-movie-nights  It says they do movies. If he likes movies, this may be a winner for him. It's usually quiet, peaceful, under the stars, and Royal seems to pay for very good movies. Some don't even show movies and others just do the cheap movies you see on the airplane. Royal was showing current/recent movies and themed movies, so it was really fun. You'll see the schedule in the app and on our cruise sometimes ones got added at the last minute. 

-buffet--Ok, I'm trying to think about my tips for this. On SOS only the indian food and cookies were edible. Oh but I forgot, on the buffet they had a GLUTEN FREE section every single meal!! Seriously. The buffet may be a winner for him. You could do the buffet and go to movies afterward and skip the MDR entirely. Maybe you can find the MDR menus to see what their GF options are, but even the regular food was so anemic, so boring, that he might stand a better chance in the Windjammer. I was checking to see if they have a smaller one to get the noise down and they don't. Fwiw, on Symphony they had dal, etc. at lunch every day. They also had really consistent fruit and salads.

-24 hour service--The Cafe Promenade will have food 24 hours a day which can snag him some fruit at least. I don't know if they have gluten free things, but they have actual food there. Nothing worse than the joint closing down and being hungry!! Also they will probably have a hot tub open somewhere on deck 24 hours a day. That BLEW MY MIND as most ships shut them all down. Royal is unusual in that sense and it might appeal to him. Did you say you got a suite? So you'll have robes, cool beans. Oh I forgot, don't suites eat at Coastal Kitchen? Oh that will help!!! I haven't been in there but it looks to be better. I guess look it over and see. You may still need to do specialty dining some nights. 

I hope you guys have a wonderful time. If he can work through his anxiety and find the things he enjoys in cruising (which could happen!), it could work out. 🙂

Edited December 6, 2023 by PeterPan

[PeterPan]

1 hour ago, Mrs Tiggywinkle Again said:

Bermuda

Art Mel's Spicy Dicy--easy with an EV or you can take the bus then walk a ways. Fish sandwich on raisin bread is out of this world. Not sure if there's a way to do it gf, sigh. But worth the effort, oh my. Swoon. I took mine and ate on the cliffs. There are many places to eat fish sandwiches but this is supposed to be the best.

House of India--A friend who used to live there said this was the bomb. Is indian food GF? 

Fort Hamilton--surprisingly interesting. There is this weird moat filled with curated overgrowth and rat traps. 

Queen's Sculpture park--Interesting to walk through. 

Aquarium, botanical gardens, etc.--If you rent a car, these would be easy to do. I haven't done them, but they'd be fine.

cliff jumping--We did an excursion through the ship where you hiked in the jungle, did cliff jumping, then snorkeled. It was seriously awesome and wore my ds out so much I had the next day to myself. 🤣 

Pizza House restaurant--This unassuming place had the BEST ginger beer on the island! It's really unique, made with some flowers. Is ginger beer (which is non alcoholic) gf? So then you could go all over the island trying them out, becoming experts. 😁 Seriously, why do what everyone else does? LOL That's where they took us on that $200 a person jungle/caves/snorkel tour and it really was delish. No clue about GF for food, but their ginger beer, which they make in house, was worth the drive. Actually it would be worth a plane ride. It was THAT GOOD. You'll know you have the right place because it's right across from the airport, meaning you can be entertained by the landings and take offs.

Well good luck! 🙂

Edited December 6, 2023 by PeterPan

[Scarlett]

@PeterPan you know waaaay too much about cruising!  Lol

@Mrs Tiggywinkle Again your cruise sounds wonderful.  I hope you guys can be rejuvenated together. 

[PeterPan]

1 hour ago, Scarlett said:

you know waaaay too much about cruising!  Lol

Yeah, you could say it's my current obsession. Someday I'll have another, but for now this is fun. 😁 And even though @Mrs Tiggywinkle Again says her dh is not thrilled, you'd be *surprised* how many people don't think they'll enjoy it and then find their way. It's just really important to be honest about what you like. 

You know, another tip for her would be to take something he enjoys, like a card game or board game or anything, and take that out in one of the lounge areas and play it! People will join you or stop by, and you might make friends. If you make cruising friends with similar interests, then fun things happen. Does he have any particular interests to lean in on? They do themed trivia that some people like.

I definitely think if you lean in on what you really like, it can be surprising. You could tell your room attendant you want towel animals each day, good ones. Hand him $20 when you ask. 😁 They're a little overworked these days, so some are getting them done, some aren't. 

Well have fun!!

[PeterPan]

Ok, this is just another suggestion for @Mrs Tiggywinkle Again. I'm not a big people person, noise person, etc. but I *do* enjoy shared tables for breakfast or lunch in the dining room. See how your ship does it, but on SOS you lined up and they just said filling a table for 8 or 2 or whatever shared and let you jump the line. I'm very anti line, lol. And for those small groups like 2 or 8 or whatever, I find it very comfortable. It's just enough that you can talk and feel like you know SOMEONE on the ship but not so much that it's uber complex and overwhelming. Since you're not going with the friends you had been planning on, it's another way to get some of that camraderie. 

[PeterPan]

Btw, when you have allergies, gf etc. they will have the chef make your food on a separate, freshly cleaned grill. It's another good reason to go into the dining room for breakfast at least, because it's a way to get that level of service. The food on Royal is no better for breakfast in the dining room than in the buffet (well slightly, not a lot) but the service and customization could be. 

[Mrs Tiggywinkle Again]

Haha the hard part is he’s really interested in nothing. He doesn’t golf, doesn’t fish. Doesn’t like or play card games, board games or video games. He’ll play old Mario games with his forty year old Nintendo with the kids sometimes. Hates reading. Will watch movies sometimes but usually sleeps through them.

He does not want to meet new people on the cruise. Sitting at a table with other people will make him miserable and he probably will have no interest in talking to them.  It would not surprise me if he would prefer to just get room service; neither of us are foodies. Oddly enough, he does actually like  Broadway musicals(such a random thing for a guy like him) in person, so hopefully it will be either Mamma Mia or Grease since those are his favorites. But that at least will be a score.

He’ll do a glass bottom boat tour with me, and would probably like the all access boat tour that’s offered.  If I could find something related to lumber/sawmill/woodworking that would be a hit but that’s not really something you’d find on a cruise.  He loves sourcing beautiful and rare logs, cutting them on his sawmill and building furniture with them.

I love him but cruises will definitely not be his thing. But my daughter would love one so maybe I’ll start planning one for the fall.

 

[PeterPan]

1 hour ago, Mrs Tiggywinkle Again said:

Will watch movies sometimes but usually sleeps through them.

Is he really tired or he doesn't follow the stories? 

1 hour ago, Mrs Tiggywinkle Again said:

actually like  Broadway musicals

That's something to work with!! So maybe next time depart from NYC and spend 3 days going to scads of Broadway. Actually fly to London. So so worth it. We just saw Les Mis in London and spent the whole performance bawling. It was *100x* better than any traveling Broadway performance I had seen in our state. It was radically better than the one show we've seen on Broadway in NYC (Wicked). The sets, the quality of the singers, everything was amped up. So maybe next time take him to London.

Btw, you can cruise from Southampton/London, and he might enjoy the UK cruising vibe better. And if you go north (Amsterdam, Norway, etc.) you don't have sand.

1 hour ago, Mrs Tiggywinkle Again said:

If I could find something related to lumber/sawmill/woodworking that would be a hit but that’s not really something you’d find on a cruise.  He loves sourcing beautiful and rare logs, cutting them on his sawmill and building furniture with them.

Oh that IS interesting!! Let me think. I went into a thrift/resale store in Bermuda. It's near a delish french bakery btw on the way to the park, etc. I mentioned. They had interesting furniture. 

Wood carving is so a thing where we live. If he likes the ship tour, that's still in that engineering vein. Norway would have lots of wood, viking houses built from wood. Bermuda and wood... They build ships there maybe... Does he like nature walks to look at trees? That jungle walk is through the woods (in Bermuda) and the trees are quite interesting. The guides will be conversant on them.

There's weird stuff that happens with trees in the Caribbean. Remember the British came in and stripped out valuable resources. Mahogany trees were taken to build furniture, sigh. So actually the trees are a very interesting story in the Caribbean and something guides always point out!

Ok, google *bermuda blanket chest* and see if you can find a shop with them. If you rent an EV, you can go to a furniture for him and see these really unusual constructions, then do something that pleases you, alternating. Maybe get a walking tour in the jungle, swim in the caves if he'll swim, etc, then drink ginger beer.

[PeterPan]

2 hours ago, Mrs Tiggywinkle Again said:

eautiful and rare logs,

He might like to drive the coast of Oregon. Lots of logs and wood stuff in Oregon. 🤣 You can eat at lumberjack restaurants, buy things made from Myrtle, see the world's largest of all sorts of trees, etc. They have wildlife too. And volcanoes.