Today we started Part 2 of our vacation and it also happens to be Becca’s birthday. After everyone got ready, we headed down to have some breakfast before leaving. Marie had arranged for transportation to the cruise terminal with Ace Luxury ($75 CAD / person including taxes). The ride to the Port Canaveral cruise terminal was just over an hour. The best part of the ride, was the excitement of the kids as the saw Royal Caribbean‘s Mariner of the Seas ($559.00 CAD including taxes plus prepaid gratuities of $96.42 CAD / person). They could not believe how big the ship was.
We dropped our bags with the porter and proceeded inside the cruise terminal. Most of the check in process is done online prior to your arrival at the terminal. All that needs to be done on embarkation day is a validation of the government identification. Even though we all did not have the same check in time, they ended up boarding passengers as they arrived. We all were shocked when nothing was said of the many cans of pop that we brought in our carry on bags.
The first place that we headed to was the Windjammer Marketplace which is the buffet. There seemed to be enough choices for everyone. We all were excited to have our first meal onboard.
After lunch, everyone headed off in separate directions. Some went to explore the ship, while others went to check out their cabins. Nana and I are in cabin 6277 which is an interior promenade. What that means is that we have an interior stateroom but we actually have a window that looks over the promenade. This is where the shopping and many bars are. Nana had a nap while I played around with setting up the internet ($130.90 CAD for the VOOM SURF + STREAM Internet Package).
Once Nana got up from her snooze, we headed to the Sail Away party which was being held by the pool deck. We left there and headed to the Solarium which is the Adults only area of the ship. It has it’s own pool, hot tub and really comfy loungers. I will definitely be hanging out here during the cruise.
The day got away from us quickly and before we knew it, it was time for dinner. We had signed up for the early seating for dinner which was at 5:30pm. Because there are in total twenty-three people in the group, we had three tables of eight in the Main Dining Room. Dinner was good but it did take a bit longer than normal. The meal ended the wait staff singing “Happy Birthday” to Becca. They even brought here a piece of cheesecake.
We ended the evening at Kris and Becca’s cabin with champagne. A great start to this part of the vacation.
what a great start to your vacation part b.