Hi all!
We just got home from our 7 day Western Caribbean sailing on the Conquest! We had fantastic weather and a pretty smooth sailing overall. Won't go into tons of detail as this was our 2nd time on this ship, so if anyone has any particular questions please feel free to ask!
Just some observations:
1) Still really like this class of ship, but we did notice that the Conquest was showing her age a little bit since the last time we sailed. The hull definitely needed a good paint job and there were spots here and there with some wear and tear. She wasn't dirty by any means, just needed a little love.
2) Food was great overall. No breakfast at Guy's though! Really didn't have a bad meal at breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
3) For the first time EVER, our room steward was pretty MIA. We saw him maybe twice? He was very pleasant and friendly when we did see him, but it was a definite difference from all our previous sailings.
4) We had Anytime Dining which really works well for us. The flexibility is great, but one negative it you don't get the same dining team every night. However, we lucked out and got an amazing server on the first night and found out we could request him for future nights. It worked out wonderfully and they saved us a table in his section for every dinner. So got the best of both worlds!
5) We confirmed the beverage package is worth the cost for us!
6) The theater shows were entertaining and fun and the performers were very good. However, the Heart of Soul show needs to be retired. #sorrynotsorry. The 80s show and Flick were the definite favorites.
Ports of Call:
1) Grand Cayman - we did the Sensational Stingray Swim through CCL. We were only in port until 3PM so this was a good, quick excursion to get us out to Stingray City. The water is beyond stunning and I would have been happy to just float there for hours!
2) Mahogany Bay (Roatan, Honduras) - We booked Daniel Johnson Monkey & Sloth Hangout + Snorkeling directly through them. OMG YOU GUYS THIS WAS SO COOL! We were picked up at the port and taken to the animal sanctuary and given a guided tour. We got into the cage with monkeys, HELD A SLOTH, held parrots, and just learned about all the animals. We then jumped on their snorkeling boat, which was just the four of us and two guides, and went out to a reef about 5 minutes away. And I can honestly say it was the best snorkeling we have ever done. Just stunning. So I can't recommend this place enough and if you ever port in Roatan, DO THIS EXCURSION!
3) Belize - We booked the Lamanai Mayan Ruins through CCL. It was an all day tour and it was HOT, but really glad we did this. We wanted to do something a little different and this was it. It was moderately strenuous and a long day, but to see these ancient ruins in person is just breathtaking. We also got a traditional Belizean lunch and it was delicious.
4) Cozumel - Mr. Sanchos! We had a great time here even though it was our only rather cloudy day. It's definitely worth the price and the food was super yummy! The beach was very pretty (a little rocky though!) and the pools were awesome. The only thing that was kind of a bummer was that our server wasn't great...at all. We rarely saw him in fact. We heard so many great things about the service and ours was very lackluster. We're really easy to please and very laid back so it doesn't take much to keep us happy, but unfortunately we were disappointed in our guy. We would absolutely go again though and hopefully get a better server next time!
Overall, we had a great vacation and really lucked out with our excursions! DH & I did agree that we were ready to try a newer and larger ship for our next cruise though. We are absolutely planning Alaska 2021 and thinking if we schedule that for September then we could maybe sneak in a Caribbean sailing next January. But for now, it's time to plan our WDW for this fall!