Guest Post by Rachel Shingleton
All Aboard! My name is Rachel, and I’m excited to share my 4-day voyage on the Freedom of the Seas with you all. If you’ve followed along on a Victoria on Vacation report before, then you’ll likely recognize me as the pub-mix snacking, steak-loving younger sister of Victoria. Like many Shinglebell family vacations, this cruise was planned pretty last minute, which is why only 50% of the Shinglebells were available to join in the fun. Well..that’s not entirely true. Dad was available, but he opted to take advantage of the opportunity to go on a golfing trip with his buddies. Alas, I was able to twist Judy’s arm and convince her to come experience the “new normal” of cruising with me.
Speaking of the “new normal” – I know there are lots of questions about health protocols, both pre-board and onboard, and I have lots of information to share! So much so that I decided it would be most efficient to tackle all of the Covid questions in a separate post. That way, you’ll have a one-stop-shop for all of your Royal Comeback protocol information. If you have any questions in the meantime, feel free to drop them in the comments section below!
The decision to partake in the Royal Comeback…I have been eager to get back to cruising pretty much since March 2020. I used to feel a bit silly telling people that cruises are my favorite vacation, but as I’ve gotten older, I’ve decided to own it. I, Rachel, am a self-proclaimed cruise-a-holic. As soon as it was announced that cruises were coming back in July, I knew I wanted to book one. Then I started seeing the posts on Cruise Critic - “reduced capacity,” “endless availability of pool chairs,” “it’s like our own private yacht!” and I knew I had to get onboard ASAP. I started researching ships, itineraries, and Covid protocols and immediately narrowed my search down to 3 and 4-night sailings, because at the time, those shorter itineraries did not require vaccinated passengers to take a pre-boarding or mid-sailing Covid test. Obviously when it comes to cruising, the longer the better! So, 4-nights it was. This brought me to the Mariner of the Seas out of Port Canaveral and the Freedom of the Seas out of Miami. After finding nearly identical flight prices for both me and Judy out of our respective airports, it became a no-brainer. Two days at Coco Cay on the Freedom vs. one day at Coco Cay on the Mariner. Say it with me - TWO DAYS ALWAYS!!
The last time Judy and I visited Coco Cay was in 2012, which was before the island was renovated and dubbed Perfect Day Coco Cay. We were supposed to visit Perfect Day Coco Cay on our
Harmony of the Seas sailing in December of 2019, but unfortunately our stop at the island was cancelled due to weather. Needless to say, two stops at Perfect Day Coco Cay was not only appealing because of the possibility of double the perfection, but also because our odds of actually getting to dock at the island were twice as high. Will we make it to Perfect Day Coco Cay this time? Will we make it there TWICE? Stay tuned to find out…
