Reader G. writes:

“Can you do a post on how you go about booking cruises? Do you use a trusted agent? Or do it online? Can you explain your process in the near future? I am a complete newbie when it comes to cruises but I am determined to blow our Capital One points on a RC cruise in 2012.
Always put it off as traveling by air with miles and staying in nice hotels w/ pts seemed so easy:-)

One more question: Any RC to avoid? Any RC ship that is above the rest? They all look fine to me but, like I said, I am a newb.

Thank you.”

First of all, thanks for your question. This is one I get from friends from time to time, and I’m happy to discuss it here on the blog because I expect a lot of people have the same question. First of all, how do I book? Typically, I book our cruises with our travel agent. I haven’t always used a travel agent to book, but began exploring the possibility in advance of MrsMJonTravel and my honeymoon a few years ago. After seeking a little input on Flyertalk.com about thoughts on using American Express Platinum Travel Service, an experienced traveler commented to me that I should find myself a Virtuoso Travel Agent and stick with them. I did a tiny bit of research on travel agencies and discovered that Virtuoso catered to travel interests that typically mirrored my own. While I kind of suspect that I’m in the middle income range (at best) of a typical Virtuoso customer, I’m pretty certain that our “DINK” status affords us the opportunity to spend a higher portion of our income on travel than many. Rather than word of mouth, I simply submitted my information on Virtuoso’s website and I was contacted the very same day by the person whom it turns out we would be working with still today.

My thinking on travel agents has evolved over time. I certainly don’t need one to book an average 7-night cruise, but I always book through an agent. Frankly, I can list what I believe our next 2 or 3 “big” vacations will be in the next 3 years, and all of them can benefit from the services an experienced, and better yet, connected travel agent can provide. There is no way I would have been able to replicate on my own the experience we and our 4 friends enjoyed on our private tour of Ephesus, Turkey last year with a good Google search and a review on TripAdvisor. So…my advice, find yourself a good travel agent and work with them. If you have friends who have a trusted agent to refer you to, all the better.

There are a lot of online agencies out there, and not just the one’s you know…Expedia, Travelocity, etc. Some online agencies actually specialize in cruises. I’ve never used one, so I can’t comment positively or negatively. I sometimes see deals offered from online agencies that I doubt a typical agent can or will replicate, and I’m ok with that. From my perspective, if you are going to book with an “online” agency, you may as well just book direct with the cruise line.

Which brings me to the next way to do things…yourself. I don’t mind or fear doing things on my own, especially for simple trips. In fact, all things, being equal, I probably prefer some things that way. There’s nothing wrong with any particular method of booking your cruise, I’ve just found something that works for me. The cruise line websites I’ve used are not nearly as well developed at selling their product as your typical airline site. Most of them I’ve looked at are frankly, kind of clunky. That said, they usually work, and our first several cruises were booked directly with the cruise line. In fact, our next big cruise was booked directly with the cruise line, on board our last cruise. That’s an “in person” booking with the onboard booking specialist. In our case, our booking was immediately transferred to our travel agent to manage between now an the cruise next November. That’s a good way to do things because there are typically some perks provided, such as in this case, a $300 dollar on board credit, and we get the benefit of working with our travel agent throughout planning for the trip. Everybody wins.

Regarding your question about Royal Caribbean ships to avoid. I have to admit that I am a special case when it comes to cruising. I love all the ships, from small to large, Flowrider or no Flowrider. Royal Promenade or a simple 3 to 4 deck centrum…. I just like being at sea. That said, I am always a little leery of recommending someone take their first cruise on a ship like Allure of the Seas or the next smallest ships of the Freedom Class. But I have to admit, I’ve become something of a junkie for the Royal Caribbean ships that offer at least a spectacular Royal Promenade, lined with shops, bars, and entertainment. I would not say you should “avoid” any ship, just be aware that the older ships don’t offer the same number and quality of amenities that the newer and larger ships do.

I typically recommend that someone who has never cruised before begin with a shorter cruise….a test sail if you will. One of the best for that is the 4-night cruise aboard Majesty of the Seas from Miami. Majesty is not the newest ship in the fleet, but is well cared for, fully renovated this century, staffed with a great crew, and the ports of call in Nassau, Coco Cay, and especially Key West are great ones to get your feet wet with cruising. That’s by no means a recommendation you have to follow to do this right, just something to think about. If you take your first cruise on a ship like Allure of the Seas, I’m not sure anything else will ever measure up. Just sayin’. You won’t go wrong with any of the Royal Caribbean Radiance Class ships either. No matter what you decide to book for your first cruise, I hope it’s a great one!!

Thanks again for reading, and by all means, comment to the blog with additional questions.

OK…it’s not the first time I’ve ever used Expedia, but its certainly been years since I have done so.  I might have mentioned that Mrs MJ on Travel and I have booked “back 2 back” eastern and western Caribbean cruises aboard Royal Caribbean’s most awesome Allure of the Seas in late October/early November.  I nabbed our flights down a while ago….as I just didn’t see things getting much cheaper than $90 dollars per person one way.  But the flights back have been pricing in the 200 dollar per person range.  I’ve been poking around, and while prices have come down, prices at the times we can actually return are still not what I’d call dirt cheap.

Nonetheless, I was sniffing around the other day and found US Airways’ 2pm nonstop back to DCA in the $150 range.  There does not appear to be an awful lot of seats sold, and prices could drop a little more, but I wanted it done.  And $150 one-way is in my reasonable range, so there.  I actually found a slightly cheaper Continental flight via Cleveland, but considering it could snow there in November I went with the nonstop US Airways flight.

But back to my purpose here.  I was doing my searching on Expedia and intended to just go to usairways.com to book, but then I thought, why bother?  Expedia no longer charges a booking fee.  All of our necessary information to travel is already loaded on the site.  And better yet, Expedia will let you enter partner frequent flier numbers (since I’ll be crediting this flight to my United account).  The whole process took less than a minute.  I had our seats, and our confirmation in seconds, forwarded that email to TripIt, and our trip was all set.  Granted, I could have accomplished all of this on usairways.com, but I don’t have much in the way of information saved to my usairways.com profile so this did not take as much time.

All in all, I’d say I like Expedia’s booking interface.  It’s clean, simple, and quick.  I also like the fact that I could build a multiple airline itinerary pretty easily if I wanted to.  I don’t know if I’ll use Expedia for every booking, but this was easy enough that it makes me want to try it again for something a little more complicated.

I’m pleased to share the details of my recent cruise aboard Royal Caribbean’s Majesty of the Seas with you.  This was my 5th cruise aboard Majesty, so she’s obviously a favorite ship of mine.  While not the biggest or equipped with most bells and whistles, she’s still a wonderful ship. What is lacking in gadgets and surfing machines is made up for in spirit and great service.  Majesty’s 4-night itinerary is a favorite of mine because it includes a stop in Key West, which is just about my favorite place on the planet!  This particular cruise was a gift to our mothers for Mother’s Day, and as it turned out, a much needed respite from work for Mrs MJ on Travel and I.  We got our mothers on the ship, and they pretty much did their own thing from there.  We shared a dinner table each night to swap stories about our daily exploits, but other than that, we all pretty much did our own thing.

Administrative Items

We booked this cruise while aboard our last Royal Caribbean cruise.  The benefits of booking onboard can include special discounts and onboard credit (OBC) that can be used for spending while aboard the ship….or in the case of Mrs MJ on Travel and I, defrayment of huge bar expenses.    Additionally, your travel agent (if you have one) receives full credit for the cruise.  We do have a travel agent, Michelle, of McCabe World Travel in McLean, Virginia.  McCabe is a Virtuoso travel agency, and if  you are going to use a travel agent, I suggest you find a Virtuoso agent near you.  I don’t necessarily need the services of a travel agent for a simple cruise like this one, but I like working with an agent, and building a relationship with them.  Working together over time, they’ll get to know your specific needs and wants for all kinds of trips which is beneficial.

We traveled to Miami the day before our cruise aboard Delta Air Lines, and our pre-cruise hotel of choice was the Conrad Miami.  I will post a separate review of the hotel.  And with that…let’s get to the cruise.

Embarkation Day

Our day began with a workout in the hotel gym followed by coffee.  I’d planned on a 10:45am departure from the hotel to get us to the port at exactly 11am.  My experience with other Majesty cruises is that the ship typically begins boarding in the 11 to 11:30am timeframe even though your cruise documents indicate not to arrive before 1:30pm.  Taxis are plentiful at the Conrad, but Mrs MJ on Travel and I wanted to do something special for our mothers, so I booked an SUV with Carey International so we could all travel together to the ship in style.  As usual, Carey was waiting for us when we went downstairs at 10:45am on the button.  Our driver loaded up the Lincoln Navigator with our mothers’ huge bags and our carry ons and off we went.

The Conrad is not far from the port at all, but with traffic, construction, and the driver proceeding at just the right speed for a little sightseeing on our part, we arrived in front of the Royal Caribbean terminal at the Port of Miami at 11am on the dot.  We unloaded our bags, tipped the porter, and headed inside.  Several of our fellow cruisers were already arriving, and it seemed a few stragglers from the prior cruise were still lurking around too.  Entering the terminal you get an initial document and passport check, and then proceed upstairs for security, and then check in.

Check in is a pretty uncomplicated affair.  The counters are roped off by your stateroom deck with a dedicated check in for suite guests as well as Royal Caribbean’s top tier (Platinum and higher) Crown & Anchor Society members.  Since we’re Diamond, we headed for that line, and were queued up at the desk to be processed within 2 minutes.  After scanning our passports, verifying the credit card number we’d provided for our onboard charges, and giving us the usual welcome speech, we were on our way.  The time was 11:25am, and the ship wasn’t quite ready to board.  So for only the second time in 20 cruises, we had to wait a little while to get on the ship.  Fortunately, they were seating top tier Crown & Anchor members in their own area right by the escalator to the ship, and at 12:10pm, boarding commenced.  We were among the very first to board.

Staterooms typically aren’t available until 1:00pm, so in keeping with tradition, we went straight to the Windjammer buffet for lunch.  It was nice being onboard before so many others because we didn’t have to struggle to find a seat, which made for a more pleasant and leisurely lunch.  By the time we were done, our staterooms were ready so we were able to drop off our carry on bags and then head straight to the pool, which again…wasn’t yet crowded due to our being among the first to board.  We were able to stake out prime real estate near the pool.  (Note: Our stateroom was a standard oceanview, 5026, on deck 5.  No pictures due to technical difficulties but have no complaints about it.  Feel free to comment to the blog if you have a question.)

Majesty’s Viking Crown Lounge

A shot of the American Airlines Arena from aboard Majesty

A shot of Majesty’s pool area from above

After a solid several hours of pool time, and the required muster drill, it was time for sail away.  Majesty departs Miami at 4:30pm, and we slackened the ropes and cast off right on time.  The ship was moored in such a way that we would have to sail forward into the turning basin, turn the ship around, and then sail out, but this only adds a few minutes, and frankly, affords you some nice views of Miami.

Sail away

Sail away from Miami – May 9, 2011

Fisher Island on sail away from Miami – May 9, 2011

And with that, we were out on some of the smoothest seas I’ve experienced in a while, and on our way to Nassau.  The evening went on with the Diamond/Diamond Plus/Pinnacle evening event which was held in the Viking Crown lounge each night from 5pm to 8:30pm.  We enjoy the opportunity to socialize with our fellow cruisers, and I won’t lie….a little free wine doesn’t hurt either!  Here’s a shot from the Viking Crown on the first evening of our cruise.

Sun setting behind us as Majesty sails towards Nassau

Day 2 – Nassau

Frankly, we’ve been to Nassau more times than I can think of, and we did not intend to get off the ship.  That said, we did make a quick run into town for some incidental purchases and then headed back to the ship where we spent most of the day.  If you’ve never been to Nassau, it’s certainly worth checking out.  Take a water taxi over to Atlantis, visit Senor Frogs, or hit one of the ship’s excursions for a little snorkeling if that’s your thing.  Nothing against Nassau, we just wanted to spend the majority of our time on the ship unwinding, and that we did.  Mrs MJ on Travel and I had a couples massage booked at 1pm, and then I went for a hot shave treatment before stepping out for formal evening.  I did get an interesting picture from the Viking Crown during our evening Diamond event though.

Sunset from high above Nassau Harbor

Day 3 – Coco Cay

I really like Royal Caribbean’s private Bahamian paradise, Coco Cay.  The beach is beautiful, the water is bathlike, and the Coco Loco’s aren’t half bad either.    There were 2 ships tendered at Coco Cay during our last visit, and that made things a bit crowded.  But today, it was just us, and if you keep walking past the first cluster of activities, you can find some nice semi-private beach and a chair.  Did I mention that the water was warm? 

Coco Cay

As great as the beach was, one thing we really enjoyed was the private top tier Crown & Anchor event which was held on Coco Cay.  Usually these events are held onboard the ship, and I thought hosting the party on the private island was an especially nice touch.  The weather could not have been better!  The top tier event is a brief opportunity to mingle with the ship’s officers, the loyalty ambassador, and your fellow cruises.  Royal Caribbean provides appropriate adult beverages and some light snacks too.

The highlight of the event, if not the cruise, was the opportunity to actually meet Royal Caribbean “super cruiser,” Mario Salcedo.  If you haven’t heard of Mario, he is the person with the most Royal Caribbean cruises, well north of 300 by this point, if not 400.  He was an extremely gracious person and a joy to talk to.  He was half way through a month of sailing aboard Majesty.  When I first greeted him, I told him he was my hero!  Now you know why!

Mario Salcedo and Marshall Jackson on Coco Cay – May 11, 2011

Day 4 – Key West

Key West really is my favorite spot.  I love it…everything about it.  It’s laid back attitude, it’s foreign country within the USA vibe, and everything else about the Conch Republic.  It is the place at the top of my list for retiring to, or moving to when I move the lottery and retire early!    So I was very excited to be returning to Key West aboard Majesty of the Seas.  It’s the last stop of the cruise, but the first port of entry into the USA when coming from the Bahamas on this trip, so there is a Customs procedure to contend with.  Fortunately for this visit, only non-USA passport holders had to visit personally with Customs.  When I did this cruise 7 years ago, everyone had to present themselves for clearance.  I understand that the procedure varies, and sometimes Customs wants to see everyone, but not today, and we were off the ship in short order once Customs “blessed” everyone to exit.

Mrs MJ on Travel and I have a routine for when we are in Key West on a cruise.  First, we head straight to the Cuban Coffee Queen for a Cafe Con Leche.  The Cuban Coffee Queen is just far enough away to not attract a throng of our fellow cruisers (at least not first thing) which makes it kind of nice.  After a great caffeine boost, then it’s time to head just around the corner to the Half Shell Raw Bar.  Based on the name, you might be able to guess what we ordered.  Not just one, but ultimately 2 dozen oysters and an order of conch fritters.  By the way, it’s my concerted opinion that the conch fritters at the Half Shell are better than those served at Key West favorite, Sloppy Joe’s.  But don’t let that stop you from trying them at both spots! 

The Cuban Coffee Queen

The Half Shell Raw Bar

After appropriate fortification, we made our way over to Duval Street for a little shopping.  We also ran into our mothers, who yes, were still cruising with us!    After spending a little money at the Margaritaville Store and Coach, we made our way back down Duval for our obligatory “Duval Crawl.”  I won’t bore you with all the details of our debauchery (which I made sure to tweet about), but suffice it to say we made the best of our short day on Key West.  And of course, we made it to the perennial Key West favorites, Sloppy Joe’s and Hog’s Breath.

After that, it was time to head back to the ship for our 6pm sail away.  I found myself wishing we could spend 2 days here and just skip Nassau, but what can I say?  I had a great time!  Here are a few shots departing Key West.

Key West sail away – May 12, 2011

Sunset Key – May 12, 2011

Soon, Key West was just a memory, and Majesty was cruising towards her homeport of Miami.  Sadly, our cruise was coming to an end.

Day 5 – Disembarkation in Miami

I woke up early on Friday morning, around 5:30am.  I peered out the window to see the lights of Miami on the horizon and Majesty lining up with the channel to enter the Port of Miami.  We held on to our bags overnight as we intended to take advantage of the Crown & Anchor priority departure and carry our things off.  It’s a lot more fun to sleep just a tiny bit later and not have to deal with dragging your things off, but we had booked the early Delta nonstop from MIA back to DCA which departs at 10:35am.  That’s a little earlier than I would recommend for inexperienced cruisers, and I’d never book it if we weren’t carrying off our own luggage.

By 6:30 am or so, we were docking at Royal Caribbean’s Miami terminal and taking advantage of the continental breakfast provided for top tier Crown & Anchor members.  The route of exit from Majesty is on deck 4 through the dining room.  RCL thoughtfully sets up the top tier departure lounge at the exit of the dining room adjacent to the gangway to ensure we get off the ship first followed by other express departure participants who carry their own bags off the ship.  At approximately 7am, we were advised that we could leave the ship.  Being among the first 10 customers off the ship, Customs was easy, and at 7:15am, we were in a cab headed towards the airport.  By 7:35am, we had checked in with Delta, cleared security, and were headed towards Delta’s very beautiful Sky Club at MIA!  Unbelievably fast!

Summary

Another great show by Royal Caribbean.  Majesty of the Seas is the second oldest ship in the fleet, but she’s obviously well maintained and loved by her crew.  Service was terrific throughout our trip.  Dining room service and food were uniformly excellent.  In future reviews I’ll try to do a better job with taking pictures of food and noting the menus, but having done this cruise so many times, it just didn’t interest me this trip.  We had an excellent cruise.  The opportunity for a few days away from work were appreciated and I’d do this same cruise again in a hot minute.  If you love cruising, you’ll love Majesty of the Seas.  I know I do.

Check your inboxes for email from Kayak.com.  American is offering a 10 percent discount on fares purchased through referral from Kayak.  That’s only the latest in an effort by AA to reach out to customers and encourage direct booking on AA.com.  American recently announced a temporary cease fire with Sabre, and one can only imagine that they are in negotiations with Expedia and Orbitz to get themselves back in the search results of the 2 biggest online travel agencies.

Planning on a cruise anytime soon?  Like to collect Mileage Plus miles?  May as well take a look at the new United Cruises.  You can earn up to 10,000 miles for booking a cruise, and up to 10,000 more bonus miles for booking a balcony or suite cabin through March 31, 2010.  Better yet, you can earn double miles if you book your cruise with your United Mileage Plus Visa card (registration required, MPF041 is the promotion code).

I’ve never booked a cruise through one of the various airline portals, so I can’t offer any insight on the experience.  Mrs MJonTravel and I have a great Virtuoso travel agent that we like, and we book our cruises with her, even the simple ones that we could easily handle ourselves.  If you have booked through United Cruises or any other airline mileage site that offers miles for booking cruises, comment and share your experience.  Thanks!

In the latest salvo between American Airlines and online travel agencies/global distribution systems, Sabre Holdings announced today that it will immediately de-preference American Airlines fares and drop the carrier all together in August when its contract expires.  I remain passionately indifferent as to which side is the right one in this.  I don’t think anyone should be surprised that American desires to lower its distribution costs, nor do I think any airline should be surprised that the online agencies and global distribution systems are a little antsy about changing the status quo.  In any event, the implications of this little tiff could be widespread depending on how it turns out.

I don’t know the first thing about American’s “Direct Connect” option that is at the center of this controversy.  That said, I’ve never been a big online agency proponent in the first place.  Personally, I think meta search engines like Farecompare.com, Kayak, or Bing are the way to go.  And if you’re brand loyal in the least little bit, just book direct with the airline and be done with it.  Otherwise, use a real honest to goodness “bricks and mortar” travel agent and pay them for their services.

Happy New Year to AA from Expedia, you’re dropped.  Trying to book AA flights on Expedia this morning, don’t bother.  You won’t find them.  No option to find them on a second screen, they’re just gone.  Expedia removed the flights as of January 1, after failing to reach an agreement with American according to this article.  If you’re looking for AA flights, use a fare search service like Kayak.com, or go to AA.com directly.

Blasting off for a little R&R on Sunday morning.  Actually, it’s more than a vacation.  Some of you may know that on February 6th, I turn 40, and I intend to celebrate a bit.  Starting with 5 days at Disney/Epcot and the Walt Disney World Swan Hotel.  Yes, even at 39, I’m a little old for Disney, but I’ve never been and I can’t think of a better time to go, can you?!  Two cheers for Starwood Preferred Guest’s 5th night free program!

After our Disney visit, we will travel down to Port Canaveral and board Royal Caribbean’s Monarch of the Seas where we are hosting my 40th birthday party with 24 friends and family attending.  Putting together a group cruise has been interesting and fun.  It’s been great working with our fabulous travel agent, Michelle, at McCabe World Travel in McLean, Virginia.  Can’t wait to go, even if it is a short weekend cruise.

As is always the case, work has been extra busy this week in preparation for my departure, so I apologize for the dearth of posts.  Even though I’m on vacation, I intend to post about the Disney experience, the hotel, and the entire trip.  I hope the Admirals Club is serving Mimosas early Sunday morning, because I intend to start the party early!

You may have read in the press that United Airlines will soon begin forcing a small group of travel agents to process credit card purchases of United tickets through their own merchant agreement.  In other words, when you buy a United ticket from one of these agents, the charge will appear on your credit card statement as a charge from the travel agency and not United.  The agency will then have to basically write United a check for the ticket.

The result of this is that United receives all of the cash for the ticket, and the travel agent (and mark my word, ultimately you) will eat the cost of the credit card charge, usually anywhere from 2 to 3 percent (but can be more or less) of the purchase price.  Most normal businesses view these credit card merchant fees as a cost of doing business.  But in an effort to wring the last possible dollar of savings from its operations, United is shifting these costs onto its customers.  Apparently, a limited number of agencies are being impacted by this for now.  I would guess that those agencies are ones that don’t sell a lot of United tickets.

No matter what, this is a bad deal for travelers.  If this sticks, expect it to be matched by United’s competitors soon and possibly expanded to impact many more travel agencies.  If this proves successful in United’s eyes, how long do you really think it’s going to be before they (and their competitors that will surely copycat them) are charging you an extra buck or two when you purchase travel with a credit card directly from them?  Keep your eye on this one.  It bears watching in more ways than one.

Let me get this out of the way first.  If you book this beautiful ship, you will NOT be disappointed!  Mrs. MJ on Travel and I tend to favor Royal Caribbean’s smaller Radiance Class ships, and we still do.  However, Liberty of the Seas is simply a fabulous ship, and I cannot wait to cruise on her again!

This review will be structured by booking method, how we got to the ship, where we stayed and then on with details of my experience on the ship.  I will not spend a lot of time on penning many details about each port of call, but will certainly share my experiences.  I would appreciate your comments on the value of that structure, and I will revise it accordingly in future cruise reviews.

Booking the Cruise

Our Liberty cruise was booked aboard another Royal Caribbean ship, Grandeur of the Seas.  RCL offers some token benefits by booking on board.  You receive up to $200 dollars of on board credit (money to spend when on board the ship), and they will immediately transfer the booking to your travel agent of choice if you have one.

This was our second cruise utilizing the services of a travel agent, and we intend to continue doing so in the future.  Yes, I am capable of booking a basic Caribbean cruise on my own, but I am really warming up to the idea of building a travel agent relationship.  I feel having a good agent on your side is especially useful for more complicated trips, one of which we already have on the agenda for next summer.  In any event, our agent of choice is Michelle Bemis with McCabe World Travel in McLean, Virginia.  McCabe is a Virtuoso agency, and I’ve been quite pleased with the services provided.

Getting to the Ship

American Airlines was our airline of choice as they offer several nonstop flights from our home airport, Washington Reagan National (DCA), to Miami International (MIA), and as regular readers already know, I am AAdvantage Platinum and feel that American’s AAdvantage is the best mileage program in the business right now.  Our outbound flight was a bit late leaving due to some bad weather in Miami, but we were able to comfortably pass the time in the American Airlines Admirals Club courtesy of my American Express Platinum Card.  The DCA Admirals Club staff is always fabulous.

Pre-Cruise Hotel

I cannot over-emphasize the importance of arriving in the port city the day before your cruise.  Do NOT fly in the same day of your cruise.  You are only tempting fate and putting your vacation at risk (and inflicting unnecessary stress on yourself) if you depend on an airline to actually operate its published schedule.  Too many things can go wrong, and they eventually will.  To that end, I arranged a one night stay at the Conrad Miami.  The hotel is in downtown Miami, not far from the pier, and is edgy enough to make for a fun way to start your vacation.  I will post a complete review of the Conrad separately, but suffice it to say the hotel did the trick, and is only a $10 to $12 dollar cab ride to the pier.

Embarkation

In keeping with tradition, we arrived at the ship at noon to begin our vacation aboard the May 23, 2009, sailing of Liberty of the Seas.  We handed our pre-tagged bags off to the porter, and proceeded into the terminal.  I caught this shot of the ship before we went inside (no pictures in the terminal).

Liberty of the Seas

I had pre-printed our Set-Sail pass at home which took care of many of the check in formalities in advance.  There was approximately a 5-minute wait for an initial document check, and then it was up the stairs to security.  Once through security we proceeded to the Crown & Anchor Diamond Check-in Desk where we were immediately assisted.  Our passports were scanned and we completed a small amount of paperwork.  Within a few minutes we received our Sea Pass cards (room key and on board charge card) and were on our way for the welcome aboard photo.  Total time from bag drop to walking on board this beautiful ship: less than 20 minutes!

On Board Liberty of the Seas

We entered the ship on deck 4, and immediately took care of our wine package for the week.  If you like wine with dinner, I highly recommend that you consider purchasing the package rather than buying by the bottle.  You’ll need to separate yourself from the reality that even at the package discounted price, you could still purchase the same wines for less at your corner store.  You’re on vacation!

After taking care of the important stuff, we were off to explore the Royal Promenade, home to the Hoof & Claw Pub and Vintages Wine Bar, as well as several other shops and eateries.

The Royal Promenade

My first reaction was “wow, this really is a big ship!”  We have sailed on the slightly smaller Voyager of the Seas before, but there was something obviously different about Liberty’s Promenade, and it was more than just being bigger.  It was better.  Every crew member that we passed made it a point to smile and welcome us aboard.  Within minutes, I knew this was going to be a very good cruise.  My first stop was at the local barber shop, “A Clean Shave.”  Yes, there is a barber shop on board offering not only hair cuts but honest to goodness hot shaves, and other spa services for men.  I immediately booked an appointment!  Royal Caribbean has turned things up a notch with Liberty and her other Freedom Class siblings.  I can only imagine what’s in store for us aboard Oasis and Allure of the Seas!

After exploring the Royal Promenade we were off to book spa appointments and make dining reservations at Chops Grille, Royal Caribbean’s wonderful on board steak house.  Cruising Advisory # 1: get on board the ship as early as you can and take care of your spa and specialty restaurant reservations as soon as possible.  They do book up, and it’s best to book as soon as possible to ensure you get your preferred appointment times.  (Boardingarea.com Blogger Dan Webb reminds me that you can book specialty restaurant reservations online as well.  That’s a great option that I originally failed to mention in the review.  I tried this, but could not get our preferred dining time.  I did get the time we wanted on board.)

Lunch was being served in the Windjammer buffet, so we joined the masses and dove in.  Food was standard buffet fare and of reasonable quality for what it is.  I tried the chef-carved roast beef which was pretty good.  The salad items are always a good bet as well, and did not disappoint.  Some members of our traveling party felt the Windjammer was over-crowded.  Personally, I found it to be the same as every other Royal Caribbean Windjammer buffet….busy but not quite intolerable.  In any event, we only visited one other time during the entire 7-day cruise.  A testament to the many dining options available on board.  Cruising Advisory # 2: skip the buffet and enjoy a sit-down lunch in the ship’s main dining room when it is open for lunch.

After lunch, it was off to the stateroom to drop our carry-on bags.  We booked a Promenade view inside stateroom for this cruise, our first 7-day without a balcony.  The Promenade view rooms are interior staterooms which have a window that looks down on the Royal Promenade.  We thought it would be interesting to try this type of room for a change, and to see if we could tolerate an interior stateroom for more than a 3-night weekender cruise.  The room was compact but very well organized.  We had plenty of room to store our bags, either under the bed or in the closet which was sizable considering our interior accommodations.  Storage was adequate, but we could have used perhaps one or two more drawers somewhere in the room.  Note to Royal Caribbean: I thought the area underneath the promenade window “couch”  which was actually built into the cabin would be an ideal space for additional storage.  The bathroom was standard issue cruise ship, small but functional.

Promenade View Stateroom

Once we dropped off our bags, it was time to hit the pool and enjoy our first cocktail and a little sunshine.  It was warm and a little cloudy, but still pleasant enough outside.  Bar service was quick and the bartenders were almost uniformly excellent.  At 3PM, I met some cruisecritic.com friends for a pre-sailaway cocktail at the Sky Bar.  And then the sky turned black and the heavens opened so we took cover while the rain blew through.  The sailaway party was moved inside due to the rain, but by the time we untied from the pier and departed, the rain had gone away and it was pretty decent outside.  Liberty seemed to sail out a knot or two slower than most ships I’ve cruised on from Miami so there was a lot of time to enjoy the spectacular views of Miami and South Beach as we headed out to sea.  Our cruise was off to a phenomenal start!  Cruising Advisory # 3: Do NOT miss sail away, especially from a city like Miami.

Main Dining Room

We chose second seating dinner for this cruise as we always do.  Second seating is at 8:30PM.  While we do not normally eat that late, it just seems that having to go to dinner at 6PM everyday will result in a rush to get back on the ship from ports of call with no time to do anything but get ready for dinner.  It should be noted that Royal Caribbean now offers “My Time Dining” on all of its ships allowing you to enjoy dinner in the main dining room on your schedule and not their’s.  I think its a terrific option for many, but second seating works just fine for us.

There were six people in our traveling party, and we were seated at our own table.  Our waiter and assistant waiter greeted us as we were seated.  Both were wonderfully pleasant people and served us cheerfully, but  somewhat slowly.  Something about the service just did not click.  Nearby diners were eating dessert while we waited for our main courses to arrive.  I noted some improvement as the week went on, but to be honest, the main dining room service seemed a little off.  Not awful, just off, and I cannot point to any one thing that seemed to be causing the problem.  Maybe we were just spoiled by Peter and Valentin on our Grandeur of the Seas cruise last fall!

Specialty Restaurants

Over the course of the week we dined in both specialty restaurants on board, Chops Grille and Portofino.  Chops Grille was first up, and did not disappoint.  Our server was top-notch, and the food was incredible.  Mrs. MJ on Travel got the jumbo shrimp cocktail while I enjoyed the mushroom soup which should not be missed!  Sides are served “family style” at Chops so the table shared one of several different items including sauteed mushrooms and grilled asparagus.  I dined on the 10 ounce filet mignon cooked medium rare.  My steak was as near perfect as a steak can be, cooked just as I wanted and the flavor was excellent.  We closed out the meal with a fabulous dessert.  I chose the cheese cake which was beyond description.  Others had the Mississippi Mud Pie which speaking from experience is even better than the cheese cake if you love chocolate.  Reservations are recommended and a $25 dollar per person seating fee (which includes gratuity even though I’ve always tipped more) will be charged.

A few nights later, we enjoyed Portofino, Royal Caribbean’s Italian eatery.  Let me say upfront that this was without a doubt, the finest meal I had on the ship.  While all of us dined on different things, the final verdict was always the same, WOW!  The first of many courses began with a salad accompanied by various Italian breads.  After my experience in Chops I decided to try Portofino’s soup of the day which happened to be mushroom as well.  It was excellent but did not measure up to that offered in Chops.  Obviously, not a meal emergency.  I dined on Portofino’s indescribably delicious filet mignon.  Yes, I know…. two steaks in the same week. Sue me, I was on vacation.  Accompanied by mashed potatoes and mixed vegetables, I can only say that I have not had a finer meal in any land-based restaurant anywhere.  Our servers were the finest, and even though they were very busy with a large party, they did not miss a beat in taking care of us.  Portofino’s $20 dollar seating fee is the best value on the ship!  Cruising Advisory # 4: Do not  miss either of these wonderful dining experiences if they are offered on your ship.

Other Venues

The ship has a number of dining opportunities outside of the main dining room and specialty restaurants.  Sorentos offers deli sandwiches and pizza along with other Italian oriented deli food (no charge), while Cafe Promenade offers specialty coffees for a surcharge and pastries for free.  There’s also a Ben & Jerry’s that serves….you guessed it, Ben & Jerry’s.  Up on deck 12, you’ll find the seagoing version of your local Johnny Rockets.  For a $4.95 seating fee, you can eat all the burgers, fries and onion rings you can stand.  Of course, there is the Windjammer Buffet that you’ll find on all Royal Caribbean ships.

Diamond and Diamond Plus members of Royal Caribbean’s loyalty program, the Crown & Anchor Society, enjoy access to the Diamond Lounge located on deck 14 in the Viking Crown.  We visited every night because we loved socializing with our fellow frequent cruisers.  Light hors d’oeuvres and complimentary cocktails were served by the wonderful Diamond Concierge, Mario and his assistants.  Continental Breakfast is also served during the morning hours.  This is not to be missed if you are a Diamond or Diamond Plus cruiser.  We’ve learned a lot about cruising and traveling in general from our fellow cruisers in settings like this and over numerous dinners aboard ship.

Ports of Call

There were three sea days and three ports of call on this itinerary.  The cruise began with two sea days, and they could not have been more needed.  Frankly, we both needed a vacation and just the thought of being on the world’s largest floating hotel with no need to be anywhere was relaxing!  I doubt you care to read about every intricate detail of my time at sea but suffice it to say that Liberty offers plenty of activities to keep you occupied.  My day began with a visit to Liberty’s exceptional fitness facility on deck 11.  A ship so large has plenty of space for a full gym and boxing ring to boot!  The remainder of my two sea days were spent relaxing by the pool, and enjoying the time we had dining, dancing and having a good time.  Take a look at this photo of a street party held on the Royal Promenade.

Promenade Street Party

St. Maarten was our first port of call.  This was at least our third visit to the island, and we went there with a plan.  Shopping in the morning and snorkeling in the afternoon.  Our shopping trip had one purpose, procurement of a wedding band to replace the one I lost in February.  Joe’s Jewelry served us well in November 2007 when we purchased Mrs. MJ on Travel’s wedding band, so we wanted to make that our first stop.  It was our last as we found the ring we wanted within minutes, and at a very fair price.  After such a successful shopping trip we had some time to spare before our excursion, which we spent at the Get Wet Beach Bar.  The Get Wet is a favorite of ours, is very close to the ship, and we make it a point to stop there during every visit to St. Maarten.

Blogger Marshall Jackson at the Get Wet Beach Bar

The afternoon involved a snorkeling excursion booked through Royal Caribbean.  The Tiki Hut Snorkel Park was a short boat ride from the pier.  I don’t snorkel but Mrs. MJ on Travel does.  We usually do these things on a catamaran and she snorkels while I enjoy rum punch and take pictures.  The Tiki Hut Snorkel Park is actually a floating barge nestled in a cove not far from (but out of sight of) the ship.  Mrs. MJ on Travel reports that the snorkeling was fabulous.  One word of warning: if you plan to just sit around and enjoy the bar and the scenery, you have to swim to the bathroom (which is a marine head on a catamaran tied up not far away) or as the guide said, “do as the fish do.”

Our next port was San Juan, one of my favorite cities.  Just my opinion, but the ship spends far too little time there.  We arrived at 8AM and departed at 2PM.  Given the short time, we booked a walking excursion through the ship.  It included a walking tour of Old San Juan and ended near the major shopping area.

A Scene from Old San Juan

I enjoyed the tour very much, but it was a tad warm to be strolling around San Juan.  Once the tour was over, we made a quick shopping trip to the Ralph Lauren outlet store and closed out the day with a few beers at Senor Frogs.  The pier is a short walk from Senor Frogs, and thankfully so.  We arrived there to find an extremely long line waiting to clear security at the pier entrance.  It was moving at least, but the process still took about 25 minutes.  For what its worth, that was the longest wait I experienced the entire cruise.

On to Labadee, Haiti, Royal Caribbean’s private paradise in the Caribbean.  This was our first visit to Labadee since our January 2005 Voyager of the Seas cruise.  We loved Labadee the first time, and we still do.  Be advised that Labadee is a tender port until December.  Royal Caribbean is constructing a pier in advance of the arrival of Oasis of the Seas, which will make for a more efficient embarkation/disembarkation process when complete.  It was obvious that Royal Caribbean has invested more resources in the entire Labadee experience.  There appeared to be more beach areas, certainly a few more dining/drinking areas, and most obviously, a pretty awesome looking zip line.  No, we did not try zip lining this visit, but I did let Mrs. MJ on Travel talk me into parasailing.

Parasailing in Labadee

To say that I didn’t want to parasail is a mild understatement.  A few thousand piloting hours under my belt, and I still have no desire to jump out of a perfectly good airplane.  I was no more thrilled to be pulled around by a boat and strapped to a parachute that I had no opportunity to inspect either.  I am pleased to report that SeaTrek Parasailing was actually quite nice, and most of the complaining to Mrs. MJ on Travel that I did while flying 400 feet above the sea was in jest.  After lunch and few hours on the beach it was time to head back to the ship.  There was a bit of line waiting for the tender, but they run frequently enough to keep things moving.

Liberty of the Seas Tendered in Labadee

The next day was spent at sea.  I always love beginning and ending cruises with days at sea because they offer an opportunity to really relax and unwind, especially to begin your cruise vacation.  Heck, this ship was so full of things to do, I think I could’ve spent 7 days at sea!  The last day was spent relaxing by the pool, enjoying the enormous international buffet served on the Royal Promenade, and sadly, packing to go home as our fabulous vacation was coming to an end.

The Saddest Sight: Our Luggage Waiting to be Picked Up

Cruising Advisory #5: Get packed prior to dinner on the last night of your cruise.  That way you can enjoy dinner and a night out on the ship without worrying about the need to get back to your room and pack.

Disembarkation Day

We met our traveling party for breakfast in the main dining room around 8AM and enjoyed a leisurely breakfast as the ship began clearing.  After breakfast we went down to deck 4 and found a crowd waiting by the forward gangway which is where U.S. citizens were sent.  Some of us waited in line while others had a seat in the Schooner Bar and chatted for a few minutes.  It wasn’t long before the line started moving, and once the end of the line had reached our area, we jumped in.  We were off the ship in minutes, and had cleared Customs and were standing in the taxi line in no more than 15 minutes.  A very smooth process for us.

The Bottom Line

Frankly, I loved Liberty of the Seas!  I had some concerns about crowds and all manner of issues surrounding the large number of people the ship can accommodate, but found everything to be relatively well organized and issue free.  The crew was quite friendly, and bar service was reasonable.  Our only hiccup was service in the dining room that seemed a little off track, but our servers were quite pleasant and seemed well-intentioned.  None of our party complained to our head waiter, and I don’t know if it would have made any difference or not.  This certainly did not negatively impact the overwhelmingly positive experience I found on this fabulous cruise vacation, and I am pleased to share the details with you.  I wouldn’t hesitate to sail on Liberty again, and am looking forward to the opportunity to do so.  If you have any additional questions, don’t hesitate to post a comment or send an email through the “Contact Me” link to the right.

Photos courtesy of Mrs. MJ on Travel

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