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Jessica Tovar
Age: 21
Occupation: Literacy Tutor
Number of Cruises: 1
Cruise Line: Royal Caribbean
Ship: Monarch of the Seas
Sailing Date: February 21st, 2005
Itinerary: Baja Mexico
Well, what can I say...this first time cruiser had a most excellent time sailing
the lovely Monarch of the Seas. Overall my first experience was one that I will
treasure for a life time and I highly recommend considering the Monarch of the
Seas for affordability. I went on this cruise as a part of a 14-person group,
and our rate was roughly $350 a person - this was NOT a group rate. I figured
that eating steak 4 nights in a row (didn't get too wild on my dinner selection)
plus 4 buffet lunches, and 5 buffet breakfasts - not to mention 24 hour room
service made up for the cost.
I was very pleased by the size of the room, and the fact that my group and I
were situated along the same row of staterooms - all with a window view - on the
main deck, 4. Though our dinner arrangements were very close, I wish that we
could have sat together at one large table. One major disappointment occurred
during the Disembarkment back home...10 of the 14 guests were given orange tags
and my roommate and I, along with my sister and husband were given pink
tags...this was more than a simple problem, it was a huge inconvenience, because
while the orange tags were allowed to disembark at around 7:45am, the pink tags
were not allowed to exit until 10:15am!!! Since were were all traveling in a
caravan, our group was split up by a distance of about 2 hours on the road. The
funny thing is, is that we still did not disembark at 10:15, because while at
the guest relations desk inquiring about some lost sunglasses of mine, my
roomate asked if it would be possible if we would be allowed to disembark sooner
given our situation...we were responded by a very non-chalant "you can disembark
at any time" meaning that if we would have only KNOWN this sooner, we may have
not had to deal with all of our frustrations. In addition it happened to be that
on that particular day the customs staff decided to put trainees at the office,
which of course delayed the process even more. All that to say, the disembarking
process is not very clear, nor very organized. There were plenty of "off color"
tag people, when they called a particular color, so I think that there should
definitely be some more enforcement in that area.
Aside from the disembarking situation, our time on the ship was lovely, the
waiters and room service crew was nice and friendly and seemed to sincerely care
about our well-being. Each night after dinner we were greeted by lovely
"towel-pals" on our beds, one gal in our group even had a hanging monkey from
her ceiling! As I mentioned earlier, the rooms were pretty decent, the only
thing that bugged me...and this may sound strange, but when I would take a
shower the curtain would constantly stick to my arm or my leg...weird, I know -
I was not used to taking a shower in such a small space, but I managed. The room
was a lot larger than I expected and was kept clean twice a day, which I
appreciated. During the day the room service staff would prepare your bed for
day use, and by evening it was prepared for night use, which was very
thoughtful.
I am not a drinker, but I know that there were some very good deals on alcohol
and I do know that guests 18 years of age may enjoy beer and wine with parental
approval. The food was excellent at dinner, and moderate at lunch and breakfast,
I am not a big breakfast eater, but I really enjoyed potatoes and breads of all
sorts. Lunch was good too, it consisted of pastas, salads and different meats
like chicken, steaks and cold cuts. I enjoyed all of the variety of foods that
were available. Dessert was excellent, however, I expected much better at the
"Midnight Buffet" which was on our 3rd night, which featured cream puffs, cheese
cakes, mousses, chocolate covered strawberries and fruits. Some of the desserts
tasted sort of freezer burned, but they all looked wonderful and were arranged
on the main deck, in such a way that you were able to enjoy just about
everything.
Our ports of call were in San Diego, Catalina Island and Ensenada. We had some
rough weather and a lot of the excursions booked in Catalina Island were
cancelled, but luckily if you had prepaid you were reimbursed for those that
were cancelled. Booking the excursions on the ship were much more pricey than
booking them on land - but they may be worth the extra price if you do not know
anything about the area you are visiting. It was very frustrating trying to get
somewhere, without knowing where to go! I do have to say though, that there are
channels on the TV that provide cruisers with shopping guidelines and give
advice on where to go.
I loved the various activities that the cruise line provided - SALSA dancing was
one of my favorites! There was also crafting, bingo, art shows, comedy acts and
live shows. Overall my experience was definitely worth the expense and I would
definitely cuise again with Monarch of the Seas or any other Royal Caribbean
ship. Hope this review was helpful...bon voyage!
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