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Saturday, May 18, 2019

[Day 9] Navigator of the Seas - Final Day At Sea

On our last day of the cruise, Mom was feeling a little better - well enough to leave the stateroom! We started the day with breakfast in the dining room.

I don't trust the (carton) eggs, but the smoked salmon isn't half bad...

At Sea

I took some photos the giant Christmas tree in the Promenade because I realized I wouldn't have many more opportunities...

At Sea



At Sea

Fun story... back on the Mariner in 2008, the back of my slingback heel caught on the open riser and I took a hard fall down the last seven steps or so on this very (well, different ship) staircase.  I will note that open risers are no longer legal for public use in the state of California for very good reason.  Also, this was before I learned that I could buy size 4 heels at Nordstrom, so I was choking up on a pair of Rachel's hand-me-down size 5 shoes.  Nevertheless, it was very embarrassing.

At Sea

Today, being our last opportunity, Rachel and I decided that it was finally time to take a shot at the Flow Rider.

I took these photos a few days earlier in port, but do not worry, video footage of our attempt at surfing is to follow.

Flow Rider

A Flow Rider is essentially a surf simulator that creates continuous sheet waves over a surface.  The photo below shows the Flow Rider turned off - when it is on, water flows from the front to the back so that you can "ride the wave."

Flow Rider

Royal Caribbean is installing Flow Riders on all of the Voyager-class ships and larger.  The larger Oasis-class ships have two Flow Riders, and one is dedicated to kneeboarding and the other stand-up surfing.  Since there is only one Flow Rider on the Navigator of the Seas, there are dedicated times for stand-up surfing and kneeboarding.  Note that you have to sign a waiver and get a wristband before you can ride the Flow Rider, and just because the Flow Rider is running doesn't mean that they have someone manning the Sports Deck Sign-Up Booth.  Rachel and I had to sit and wait about ten minutes until someone came to open and we could sign our waivers.  Also, the height requirement for stand-up surfing is 52" minimum, which is pretty tall - not for very young kids, though they might have better balance!

Flow Rider

There were a lot of really good people on the Flow Rider.  I always wonder where they practice.  I remember running into Flow Rider guy a few years ago, and he booked his vacations based on where they had Flow Riders.  Maybe if you start at the beginning of the cruise and book a private lesson, then you'll be good enough to surf by the end of the cruise.

I didn't last long...

Flow Rider

Rachel kept her balance for longer than I did...

Flow Rider - Rachel Stand-Up

We only got in one turn stand-up surfing before they switched the Flow Rider over to kneeboarding.  With kneeboarding, they split the Flow Rider down the middle with an inflatable divider and had a kneeboarder on each side.  Everyone else would hit the divider or sometimes take the divider with them over to the other side as they crashed into it.  Rachel somehow managed to get sucked underneath the divider and emerge on the other side.

Flow Rider - Victoria Kneeboard

This is probably the face she was making when she crossed the divider... there's a video of it somewhere.  We took maybe four attempts at kneeboarding before calling it quits for the day.

Flow Rider

My competitive nature makes me want to get better at the Flow Rider.  I'd be interested in taking a private lesson or small group class to learn how to stay up for a little longer.

Rachel and I spent the rest of the day by the pool.  Finally, a cruise ship gave into their large American crowd and decided to play College Football Playoffs all day on the pool deck (but with no audio - boo!).  We've been on cruises before when we had to beg for them to turn on football.

There were other Clemson fans onboard that we had run into earlier in the cruise, and they told us that they request the Clemson v. Notre Dame game be played on the big screen by the pool.  Sure enough, it was listed on the Cruise Compass as an activity for the day, along with the Alabama v. Oklahoma game.

So we got ready for the evening and put on our Clemson shirts to go to the pool deck.... still no audio.  I thought they would turn it on after the pool was pretty much empty and the Caribbean band had finished playing.  If you're a football fan, you understand the importance of audio during your team's game - you want to hear the crowd, hear the commentators, hear the ref's calls!  I think first I went to a security guard to ask him if they could turn on the audio, and he said he would make a call.  30 minutes went by, and still quiet.  Then I went to some activity people on the deck, and they said they didn't have the authority to turn on the audio.  At this point I'm pretty annoyed because they had no problem blasting the audio for Hotel Transylvania or whatever other silly movie they were playing by the pool that week, and we couldn't get any audio on our game which was featured on the Cruise Compass?!  So I went to the bartender and asked him... he said he would make a call.  I literally stood there and waited for him to make a phone call, then he came back to me and told me they were working on it - that the person who had the authority was not on duty.

At Sea

In the meantime, Dad needed audio and went to the stateroom to watch, but Rachel and I stayed on deck and Mom came to join us.  At this point, Clemson was pretty well dominating the game... we won 30 to 3 if you need the memory jog.  FINALLY, one hour and forty-five minutes into the game, we got some audio on the pool deck - hoorah!  Too bad we had to leave for dinner 20 minutes later.

At Sea

Now dinner!  I got the Special Appetizer (not on the regular printed menu), the Lobster Caprese.

At Sea

And for an entrée, the Braised Lamb Shank

At Sea

Then dessert.... idk, chocolate cake?

At Sea

After dinner, we went to the Vintages to watch the Alabama v. Oklahoma game (with barely-audible audio).  At the time, I was hoping for an Oklahoma miracle... but now I'm glad that didn't happen.  If you don't remember, Clemson dominated Alabama in the National Championship game, 44 to 16.

We had a pretty chill night... no late-night partying, thank goodness.  I was even up to watch the ship pull into the Port of Miami on disembarkation day.

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Navigator of the Seas - Final Thoughts

It had been a few years since we've sailed Royal Caribbean, and not too much has changed.  I think because so many of our first cruises were on Royal Caribbean, it's the cruise line that kind of just feels like home, and is sort of my "constant" to which I compare other cruises.  I do really enjoy the Voyager-class ships, more so than the Freedom-class (Independence of the Seas) which has about the same amount of public space, just more staterooms.

Itinerary - The "ABC" Caribbean itinerary is a nice change from the standard Eastern/Western Caribbean ports of call.  Rachel did a great job of choosing excursions in Aruba and Bonaire, too.  I also like how late ships are able to dock in Aruba - it's really cool to see a port after sunset.

Dining - Yikes, Royal Caribbean, the food quality is not great.  I'm not really sure if it ever was spectacular, but it was very noticeably below-average on this cruise.  The menu itself was also lacking in interest and creativity.  

I now know and need to remember that My Time Dining is not the same as Norwegian's "Freestyle" Dining.  You can't just walk into the dining room whenever you want - you have to make a reservation which is going to be closer in time to the regular main and late seatings.  Our My Time reservation for the week was 8 PM, but the late seating was 8:30... we probably could have held out the extra 30 minutes.  My Time Dining isn't very flexible, and really only gives you a slightly more convenient dining time in a less-than-ideal location, tucked away in the upstairs corner of the dining room.

Staterooms - These have surely been refurbished by now, but I didn't have very many complaints about the pre-drydock stateroom we stayed in.  The room is spacious - the better layout is definitely bed by the balcony so that you don't have to squeeze by the bed to get to the main sofa/vanity space in the room (verses sofa by the balcony - the rooms are staggered, so check the deck plan if you want to choose your stateroom based on layout).  And there's plenty of storage for two people for nine days.

Ultimate Beverage Package  - This was the big "Why haven't we done this before?" moment of the cruise.  We've taken advantage of Norwegian's Unlimited Beverage Package as part of their frequent "Choose Up to 5 Free" deals in the past.  But before that, we'd never considered paying for an open bar... ~$50/day/person seems like a lot of money.  However, we all felt like we got our money's worth.  What's nice about Royal Caribbean's package is that you can use it to get bottled water from the bar at any time.  So before we'd leave the ship for port, we'd grab a bottle of water for the day.  On top of that, Royal's package includes specialty coffees and of course soda.  Even if you don't consider yourself a "big drinker," if you plan on having a few glasses of wine in the evening, a Frapuccino in the morning, and a few bottles of water... UBP might still be a good deal for you.  Also, Royal Caribbean discounts the beverage packages on holiday sales, like Black Friday, so it's not always the same price, and you can save a few dollars per person per day if you purchase when it's on sale (anything under $50 is a great deal for this package).

Overall great cruise, and Mom is now a Diamond Crown & Anchor Member!  (And Dad, too, according to the member website).  I think Rachel and I still have one more cruise to take before we'll earn Diamond Status, so see you again, soon, Royal Caribbean!





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