My second cruise on Mariner of the Seas was just as amazing as the first. We experienced consistently friendly and attentive service, delicious food and drinks, a spacious and comfortable stateroom, seemingly endless entertainment options, a beautiful ship, and interesting ports of call...a perfect cruise!
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Embarkation was fast and seamless. Since we did online check-in before the cruise and had our Sea Passes ready, we were on the ship less than 10 minutes after walking into the terminal. The system they have in place is very efficient.
Please note, that if you have any liquid in unsealed containers, such as a travel mug or thermos, they will make you dump it out before going through security. I was able to carry two unopened 1 liter bottles of water through security with no issues.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
5 out of 5
The food on Mariner was plentiful, fresh, and delicious! We got most of our meals from the Windjammer, Cafe Promenade, and ordering room service.
When ordering room service, the charge is $7.95 plus tax per order. You can order any item in any quantity and the price stays $7.95. Continental breakfast is free. Alcoholic drinks are a separate charge, even if you have a drink package.
Room service was perfect for those times when we didn't want the Windjammer crowds or were tired after a long day of fun and wanted to stay in the room.
The portion sizes are reasonable, but if you are very hungry or have a big appetite, you may want to order double. Ask the dining representative about the quantity per serving so you don't under-order or over-order.
The deluxe drink package was worth it for us, as we drank LOTS of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages throughout the cruise.
Windjammer Café
5 out of 5
The Windjammer has a great variety of foods for every taste. Everyday there was station for pasta, salad, cold cuts, grilled foods, indian food, and dessert. The main entrees changed daily and included a variety of international and american dishes. There are drink stations that have a variety of hot & cold drinks. There is a freestyle machine inside for those who have a Royal Caribbean freestyle cup.Seating at the Windjammer is plentiful, but it can get a bit crowded depending on the time of day and whether the ship is in port. The two of us were always able to get a window seat to ourselves with the exception of embarkation day lunch time, and Cococay day breakfast around 930am.I love that everyone must use the handwashing station before entering. The guitar player and singer in the handwashing station are very talented! I enjoyed hearing their cute handwashing songs.
Café Promenade
5 out of 5
Cafe Promenade is open 24 hours and serves ready-made pizza, sandwiches, cold cuts, fruit and desserts. Perfect for a quick bite. The pizza is crisp and delicious!
Schooner Bar
5 out of 5
We visited this bar on several occasions. It was directly off of the elevators on deck 4, very convenient to our stateroom. We also did Harry Potter Trivia and Michael Jackson trivia here. It has a very classy, maritime theme with a piano, cozy leather seats, and excellent bartenders.
Sky Bar
5 out of 5
Fast, friendly service and delicious drinks! You get a nice view of the pool deck and big screen tv from this bar. Easy access to lounge areas and the pool area from this bar.
Onboard Activities
5 out of 5
There were so many different activities to choose from! The cruise compass was always packed with things to do from early morning until well past midnight. We chose a few trivia games, music-related activities, pool area activities, and some audience participation activities, like the lip-sync challenge the belly-flop competition. All were very entertaining and well organized.
We didn't use any of the pools or whirlpools, as they were too crowded for our liking most of the time.
Entertainment
5 out of 5
The DJ's always played great music for whichever theme they were doing and the musicians were amazing, talented, and played beautifully together. The singer we encountered the most was an Indonesian woman who sang passionate renditions of many different genres of music. We enjoyed all of her performances.
The cruise director is incredibly charming and so funny! He made our Motown Trivia experience even more enjoyable than it already was.
All performances we attended were very entertaining and fun!
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
Everyone on the ship was friendly, attentive, and helpful! Our stateroom attendant, Shanjun, memorized our names and preferences within the first day of our arrival. Our room was spotless and he honored our requests almost instantly everytime.
When we walked past most staff, we were given a greeting or a friendly smile. The only staff member who wasn't friendly was one of the floating mat attendants on Cococay. She was the exception to otherwise perfect service throughout our entire cruise.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
Mariner was pristine and well maintained all throughout. All bathrooms were clean and well stocked. Hallways, common areas, and venues were consistently cleaned and maintained. I even saw staff members cleaning finger smudges off of the elevator buttons regularly.
The layout of the ship was very intuitive for me and there was ample signage to inform passengers of where things were located and how to get there. There were plenty of reliable elevators and multiple ways to access different areas of the ship.
The only confusion I initially had was knowing which elevators to use to get to the gangway. If you take a certain set of elevators to the first floor, you are unable to exit the ship from that area. You have to go to the 3rd or 4th floor, walk to the other side of the ship, then take those elevators down to the 1st floor to exit at the ports. After the initial confusion, it was simple to remember which elevators to take.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
Our junior suite was perfect for our needs. It was on deck 10 and was the first room off of the elevator bank closest to Cafe Promenade, Playmakers, and the Star Lounge.
It was a very spacious room with lots of walking space. It had a roomy walk-in closet with lots of shelves and hangers. There were plenty of drawers, cabinets, and shelving throughout the room. There are only two outlets in the entire room, located next to the TV. Bring an approved power strip if you need more outlets. There is a safe, a mini-fridge, and a hair dryer in the room as well.
The bed was incredibly comfortable! The mattress was slightly firm with a cushiony pillowtop. The pillows were large and the perfect texture for our preference...not too soft & not too firm. When we arrived, there were two twin beds. Our stateroom attendant quickly honored our request to have them pushed together into one king-sized bed.
The balcony was large with two lounge chairs, a small table, ample leg room and space for about 4 people to fit comfortably. The glass overlooking the water could have been cleaner, but it didn't take away from our enjoyment of the magnificent views from the balcony.
The bathroom was much bigger than the previous balcony stateroom we had last year. There was a full-size tub and more space between the toilet, door, and other bathroom fixtures. It was stocked with basic toiletries (shampoo, conditioner, lotion, shower gel), plus a shower cap, cotton swabs, a cotton round, and a small nail file. We were also given two robes to use during our stay.
Our stateroom attendant, Shanjun, kept our room very clean and well stocked with toiletries, towels, and ice throughout our entire trip. We absolutely loved this room and will definitely book this type of suite or better on our next cruise.
Ship tip
Thoroughly research your cabin type, cabin location, and ports of call beforehand while keeping your preferences & dealbreakers in mind. This can make all the difference between a fantastic experience and an unpleasant one.
Cococay is truly paradise. It has a brighter, more colorful, easier to navigate feel to it than the last time we visited. The waterpark and ongoing construction did not interfere with our desire for quiet relaxation, as there is a place for everyone and their preferences.
A tram can take you from the ship all the way to Cococay's entrance or you can choose to walk.
Once inside Cococay, another tram can take you around the island, stopping at the Up Up and Away Balloon, South Beach, Oasis Lagoon, and Chill Island. You can easily walk to these locations as well. For a quick way to reach Chill Island, turn left upon entering Cococay and cross the bridge. You're there in less than 5 minutes!
Chill Island is where we spent most of our time. It was sunny, clean, and not at all crowded. Aside from the music playing around the island, it had a quiet, peaceful feel. There were ample beach chairs, umbrellas, and tables available throughout the entire day and we never had anyone directly next to us. It was great!
The water was calmer in some areas than others, especially due to high winds, but it was easy to find a space with gentle waters. The water was a bit cloudy in some areas, and I swam away from at least 4 moon jellyfish, but I still enjoyed every second in that perfect water!
The bartenders were friendly and fast and the drinks were amazing. Try a Coco Loco if you haven't already!
We spent our time lounging in Chill Island, then walked back to Mariner early to enjoy the empty ship. I had a beautiful day at Cococay
We enjoyed our time in Nassau. We spent most of our day at the Riu Palace on Paradise Island on a day pass. It is right next door to Atlantis.
We took a taxi for $5 per person. A gentleman was holding a sign advertising his taxi prices as we walked through the port entrance. We waited about 15 minutes before we left the port area. We thought we were waiting for a taxi to become available, but we were waiting for more people to fill his 14-seater. Turns out he was a tour guide, and wanted to collect our fare, since his first tour stop is Paradise Island.
It was raining when we arrived in Nassau, and a lot of the walkways were difficult to navigate because of poor drainage, which caused huge puddles.
Once we were in the taxi/tour van, the driver drove us across the bridge to Paradide island while sharing facts about Nassau with his tour group. It was very interesting and informative. He dropped his group off at Atlantis to take pictures and explore while he drove us to Riu. He was very kind and personable.
Once at Riu, we got our day pass wristbands and were free to enjoy the beach, pools, bar, and dining areas. The lobby was bright and spacious with very high ceilings and was beautifully decorated. There was an odd sewage odor in the lobby, and some of the bathroom stalls were filthy, but the unpleasantness ended there.
Towels were provided, drinks and food were unlimited, and the beach and pool areas were clean and enjoyable.
There were two pools...one had a swim up bar and was extremely lively with great music, outgoing entertainment staff, and a fun, energetic crowd. The other was a larger pool that was surrounded by lounge chairs, had lounge areas inside the pool, and had a more relaxing atmosphere than the pool bar.
The bar area was very busy and it sometimes took a while to get drinks. The drinks on the menu were very sweet and not very strong, but tasted nice. There is a great view of the beach from the bar.
We had access to a bbq lunch outdoors and their indoor dining area, but chose to eat the bbq lunch. The chicken and pork were charcoal grilled and so flavorful! The rice, cabbage dish, and gravies were amazing. Fantastic food!
The beach area was very beautiful. Crystal clear waters and clean white sands were abound. The only two downsides for me were the excessive amount of vendors and the rough ocean waves.
The vendors were constantly walking around trying to sell cigars, hair braiding, coconut drinks, and jet ski rides. A simple "no thank you" worked to keep them moving along, but there were so many different vendors to keep saying "no thank you" to.
The waves at Riu are particularly rough as compared to those at Breezes and Cococay. Even standing at the edge of the water had strong enough waves to knock people over. I'm not a strong swimmer and felt uneasy getting into the water. This is absolutely not a criticism against Riu, as they have no control over the ocean! I just know next time to research the temperament of the ocean in the particular area I am visiting.
Most of the workers at Riu were friendly and helpful. We enjoyed our time here and would visit again for the food, pools, and entertainment.
We easily and quickly got a taxi back to the port for about $12 and did a bit of souvenir shopping. We got some tasty conch fritters and wings from a Bahamian soul food place called Aunt Jane's. We tried to bring our food onboarf to enjoy in our stateroom, but were told food is not allowed to be brought back onto the ship! So we had to quickly eat our food standing outside of the gangway. We know for next time to finish our meals before heading back to the ship.
Disembarkation was quick, simple, and efficient. The night before disembarkation, we were given numbered luggage tags to place on our luggage. The number corresponds to a specific meeting area and disembarkation time.
That next morning, we knew exactly where to go and when. We met at the Royal Theater between 7:30-8am. After that we exited the ship on deck 4.
Once in the cruise terminal, passengers were separated by whether they were using a passport or birth certificate/photo id to enter. The passport line was longer, but both lines moved at a quick pace. Once we went through customs, we went to the area that matched the number of our luggage. We picked up our luggage, assisted by a porter, then headed to our car.
The disembarkation process from the time we left our room until we were loading luggage into our car took less than 15 minutes! It was seamless and perfect.
If you are taking your own luggage, the process may be even faster for you.
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