Review – Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines – 7 Day Western Caribbean Cruise
Grand Cayman Islands, Cozumel and Progresso/Yucatan, Oct 26, 2024 – Nov 2, 2024
My wife and I began our cruise out of the Port of New Orleans, Louisiana Julia Street Terminal for Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines. It is a really nice area, about 2 blocks from several major hotels, many famous restaurants and Caesar’s casino. I can highly recommend Drago’s restaurant, inside the Hilton Riverside. Great seafood, steaks, boudain and gumbo (lookup Cajun food). It was approaching high pricing, but was a good value considering the area and what you got. Service was good, and they even accommodated our luggage, since our next stop was the cruise ship. We went on a cruise with another family, and in total there were 7 of us, so there was a lot of luggage for our 7 day cruise, and they happily accommodated our group. It is also only a few miles from the Caesar’s Superdome, where the Saints play football. Other nearby popular destination is the World War II Museum. That weekend, at the Superdome, there was a 3-day Taylor Swift concert as well as our cruise ship departure. New Orleans was a bit crazy when we were there. There is most definitely dynamic pricing in New Orleans when major events take over the town. Everything from hotel accommodations, ride shares, restaurants and everything else imaginable go up in price dramatically, not to mention traffic to get anywhere.
Of course the ship boarding process is where the adventure begins, and really where this story begins. We flew in to New Orleans (MSY – Louis Armstrong International Airport) the day before our cruise departed. I always recommend doing that so there are no departure delays, problems or missed connections. We originally had a scheduled boarding time of 11:30 am, with a 4 pm departure. We were notified by Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines (RCCL) that there had been a propulsion problem with our ship, Brilliance of the Seas, and that our new boarding time was 9 pm on the 26th. They said the new departure time was now going to be 10:30 pm. I was skeptical since it didn’t arrive into New Orleans until 5 pm, and they had to disembark the departing passengers, reprovision, prepare the ship for new guests, load all the new embarking passengers and mechanically service/repair their mechanical problem. Turns out that my skepticism was well-founded. Remarkably, everyone was boarded by around 10:45 pm. We were in our stateroom by 9:45 or so, and within 15 minutes of getting us on board, they made the announcement that all staterooms were cleaned and ready for access. While everyone was waiting, restaurants were open. I was impressed. That was quite the task. However, the repairs took longer than anticipated, so we didn’t actually depart until 12:45 am early Sunday morning. However, we were on board and getting settled into our rooms, felt so welcomed and at home…with a big buffet to get us started. As late as it was, there was even a comedy show that night after departure.
I was also impressed with RCCL because they gave us a pro-rated credit for our room and beverage package, due to late departure, that came out to about $225 to be used as an on-board credit (OBC).
On our cruise, Sunday and Monday were at-sea traveling days. The port days were rearranged due to the late departure. We still made all of our ports. Our days at sea were actually moderately rough due to weather. We expected that our port days at Grand Cayman and Cozumel would be canceled due to weather, but when we arrived, cloudy in the morning, and by afternoon, we saw plentiful sunshine every port day we had. Port days turned out to be awesome days. All of them. There is an advantage of booking port excursions through the cruise lines because when things change everything gets rescheduled for you. If you book excursions on your own, when schedules change, it’s up to you to contact the providers and make changes. I booked us through RCCL and it was done effortlessly for us. Note: our excursion tickets were waiting for us in our stateroom without any contact with guest services.
Port Day 1: Grand Cayman Islands.
We chose to do the turtle (tortuga) conservancy excursion. We had a spectacular bus driver (part of the excursion package) and he gave us a mini guided tour on the way to the turtle conservancy, providing us with a lot of history and island governance information.
However, before we got there, part of the tour was literally going to Hell, and got our passports stamped. There is a long story about how it got it’s name. Suffice it to say that the landscape you see in the pictures was thought to resemble what Hell might look like, and the name stuck. (So many jokes in there, but I’ll leave that to you). Next, we were off to the turtle conservancy.
We saw some amazing green sea turtles (photo courtesy of Ty Brickner), in all stages of their lives. Some were extremely large and up to 800 pounds. Some newborns and some “teenagers”. We got to “pet” young sea turtles. There was a beach at the facility, so we also enjoyed beach time and snorkeling in their private lagoon where you can swim with turtles. Bus transportation to/from the facility was included. Our bus driver was awesome and basically gave us a guided tour on the way there. Lunch was not included with this particular excursion.
The wildlife is all around you there. Iguanas, mongooses, chickens and much other wildlife run free all over the Cayman Islands (and Mexico). These chickens (roosters) impressed me with their beautiful, rich colors. It was interesting that when the wind lifted their feathers around their neck, they were white underneath.
What I especially loved was the small, personalized feel there, even though we just stepped off of a cruise ship with thousands of people there. People talk with you there like they have known you all of their life.
My regret? Our time at Grand Cayman was too short. I would go back there again. Be advised that Grand Cayman is under British rule and accordingly, they have left-side drive. That totally messed with my mind, especially in a bus on tiny streets.
Port Day 2: Cozumel.
Cozumel was, of course, the highlight of this trip. Many cruise line ships dock here. There were no less than 6 cruise ships in port the day we were there, including another RCCL Icon Of The Seas ship. Because the ships are spread out through multiple terminals, it never seemed overcrowded to us. So many opportunities for fun of all types here. We opted for a Mexican Cooking excursion, It turned out to be at Playa Mia Resort, and we had full access to the facilities the entire time we were there. Great beach and pools. Very clean facilities. Some shopping there as well. We were treated to an included buffet and open bar. This was where we had our first encounter with mongooses. We enjoyed the facilities and buffet until it was time for our cooking class with a world-class chef. It was done in an outdoor, covered cooking area. It was fun because we did none of the prep work (or cleanup) and all of the assembly and cooking of the meal at the supervision and direction of the chefs. For the appetizer we made shrimp sopes (tortillas, similar to a tart). The main course was either fish (tilapia) or chicken (which Chef jokingly referred to as iguana). We also prepared plantains with caramelized sugar, cinnamon and a chocolate sauce for desert and had our choice of several different drinks, including the local favorite rum punch.
Prior to the cooking class we had some time to shop, and we did a tequila tasting (another local favorite). So many things I never knew.
My regret in Cozumel? Again, not enough time there, because of the schedule, we didn’t have enough time to shop there or enjoy restaurants off of the ship. I would most definitely go back there again and do some more active adventures. Cozumel was our favorite. We will go back for sure!
Port Day 3: Progresso/Yucatan.
We awoke just before docking to a cloudy morning with light rain showers and windy conditions. We decided not to do an excursion this day, and instead decided to have a relaxing day and just go into town for shopping and to enjoy restaurants. First, let me say that there is a nicer and more developed area not far away called Merida, but we did not go there. We elected to stay close to the dock. In Progresso, where the ships dock, there is a super long jetty (probably more than two miles) into Progresso. There is a free shuttle bus into town. You can pick up your excursion shuttle busses there, just off the ship as well. We took the “Auto (bus) Progresso” and it drops you at a mall in a rather depressed area of town, where you have the option of getting other busses, such as one to Merida. (Regular excursion busses would take you there as well, right from the ships. This part of town is very poor and 3rd world looking. It won’t be for everyone. However, just a few short blocks away were beaches, restaurants and other shops that were more upscale. My wife and I enjoyed shopping as the locals do in this area. So much less expensive than in the USA. Be careful if you choose to eat in this area. Most food is “open air” compared to what we are used to in the USA, and lets just say that food handling guidelines are much more relaxed. Progresso was a great cultural experience, but I would recommend going to Merida if you want to do upscale shopping and dining. However, if you like the bartering and negotiating, Progresso will be fun for you. Progresso was not the top of our list for ports, but we did still have fun there. Ironically, we had the most free time there since we didn’t do an excursion. Progresso may be the spot where you should do an organized, guided excursion.
The Ship, RCCL Brilliance of the Seas
For me and my wife, the RCCL Brilliance of the Seas, 7 Day Western Caribbean cruise was a good fit for us. We enjoyed our balcony stateroom, and each port of call for different reasons. This particular cruise wasn’t as child-oriented as some other ships (or cruise lines), but there were children on board and they all appeared to be having fun. There were two pools and hot tubs. There was a water slide near the sport court, climbing wall and mini golf, but nothing like offered on the newer, larger ships (Icon class for Royal Caribbean). Many activities seemed to be geared toward adults, as did some of the activities offered in all the ports. For me, as a travel advisor, if you have kids, I would recommend different cruises, perhaps with different ports of call, or at least the family-friendly beach excursion options.
We especially loved the service we received at all outlets on the ship. From our cabin attendant, through our wait staff and every employee we came in contact with, they were all well-trained, genuinely friendly and extremely helpful. The excursions that we took were all outstanding and clearly well-vetted by Royal Caribbean.
The food was all great on our cruise, and very plentiful. We loved all the wait staff and they were very helpful, accommodating my wife’s special dietary needs. In the main dining room, they always showed her the menu for the next day, allowed her to make her selections and even prepared alternate selections for her needs. Top notch service in that area, and all we had to do was ask.
There were up-charge specialty dining restaurants on our ship including Chops Steakhouse, Giovanni’s Italian and Izumi Sushi. Quite honestly, we didn’t try them for a couple of reasons. First, we were always busy on this cruise. First, Windjammer was their buffet. We ate there regularly. When we were on the go, we got good food there and it was quick. When we wanted the sit-down waiter service, we opted for the main dining room where we regularly met and dined with our friends that were on the cruise with us. Very good food with an exceptional wait staff. The other upscale restaurants were more fine dining, but for us, we just simply didn’t see the need to try them. We were satisfied with all our other dining options that were included in the cruise price.
Summary
If you would like to know about other things to do on this cruise, or the other experiences we had, please either contact me or comment on this posting. I love to talk about cruising.
To review, my wife and I were well pleased with this cruise. For us, we had a great time and were thrilled with the service of everyone we came in contact with.
The food was plentiful, available and of good quality. Since we ate in Windjammer buffet for many of our meals, I would say that it was very good for a buffet, but less quality than a mid-to-upper-end fine dining restaurant. Their main dining room, with linen, china and silver was great quality, and the wait staff was superb. We couldn’t be more pleased. Since we didn’t sample their “extra charge” premium restaurants on this cruise, I can’t speak to their quality, but I would expect them to be better than the main dining room. I will say that the other couple we cruised with did try them on a couple of days and were well-pleased. We were not displeased at any time with any of our food options. We opted for the “non-alcoholic beverage package”, we had abundant food and beverage options throughout the entire cruise.
Let’s talk entertainment. We were never bored at any time on our cruise. There were many participation events, music, comedy, lectures, dances, exercises and so much more throughout the entire cruise. We cruised over Halloween, and out of New Orleans, so lets just say we were never in need of entertainment. Of course, just being at sea was wonderful for us.
Would we do Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines again? You bet…in a heartbeat. There are so many other cruises and ships in their fleet to try. Our ship, Brilliance of the Seas, was not one of their largest or newest ships, but it didn’t matter to us. Our ship demographic was probably on the more mature age level. For people with children, I would recommend one of their larger ICON class ships with the bigger water slides and more kid friendly entertainment.
Perhaps it was because this cruise departed from New Orleans, going to the Western Caribbean and spanned Halloween, it seemed more friendly to adults than children.
As stated, I was not disappointed with anything, and was quite thrilled with so much. Our friends, however, had an owner-level suite, and from their comments, were disappointed with their concierge-level service. I was disappointed for them.
If you would like to talk about pricing, charges, packages or anything else that I didn’t cover here, please contact me personally or comment on this post. I’ll be happy to share my honest opinions.
Nevertheless, I am a fan of Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines, and have no qualms about recommending them. As always, each cruise line has different strengths, weaknesses, and appeal to passengers with a range of tastes and expectations. That’s why you work with travel advisors in order to get you booked to a cruise line that suits your needs and tastes.
Happy to answer all questions. I would be honored to book your next vacation for you, your family or your group.
Allen Beck
AKOR Services Travel
(503) 427-8553
Allen@akorservices.com
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