Jewel of the Seas Review
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Additional details
Booking this cruise was easy. Also, booking the air through RCCL's choice Air program was easy. I, however, eventually handed my reservation over to a third party agent to take advantage of some extras like onboard credit as well as free specialty restaurant dining. About 3 months out, the first problem I experienced was that with each air schedule change, RCCL's Choice Air department did not forward those schedule changes to my travel agent who would then have forwarded those changes to me. There were 3 schedule changes in all. I was only aware of these changes because I would check my airline schedule on a daily basis - directly with the airline. Not a very positive start with their air department. (I might also mention that I overnighted in Philadelphia at the Microtel Philadelphia Airport the night before. But those details are in another review. But let me just add that this was an acceptable property for those needing a one night stay before a flight.)
The next problem I had was showing up late for my pre-arranged transfer shuttle to the ship. In this case, my airline sent my luggage on an earlier flight (by two hours) and removed it from the conveyor belt two hours earlier (sending it to the lost luggage department). By the time I tracked it down, my shuttle had departed. I spent over an hour talking with meet and greet staff by baggage while waiting for a ship's shuttle which never came. I ended up taking a taxi independently.
These were the two big issues for me this entire trip. So, needless to say, I did not get off to a very good start. I would like to add a side note here: assuming things had gone smoothly and I had gotten on the ship's shuttle, I was told I would have to say good bye to my luggage which would then have been delivered to the room later in the day. I explained that I wanted to take my own luggage onboard the ship so that I could unpack right away. I guess that would not have been allowed. It seems self-assist works when getting off the ship, but not when getting on the ship, should you choose to use the prearranged shuttle service. Take note.
Cabin Review
Superior Ocean View Stateroom with Balcony
I was in a D2 cat. aft facing balcony on deck 10 (room 1104). This row of cabins sit directly under the outdoor dining area of the Windjammer Café. (About 1/3 of the balcony space is exposed to those looking down from the Windjammer Café directly above). Also, something to note is that each morning between 4:00 and 5:00 am, the cleaning crew in the Windjammer Café were moving (scraping) those chairs above. That noise was easily heard. I could set my watch to the time this would occur. Once the Windjammer opened at 7:00 am, one could hear the chairs scraping the floor throughout the day. (I am thinking a better bet, If one were interested in the aft cabins, would be to choose a room on deck 8 or 9). Even from my deck, 10, I really had no view of those below me. But, deck 11 (Windjammer Café) did have a partial view of my balcony on deck 10. My room was very spacious. For the most part it was clean. There was some dust on the dresser drawer handles, which if not pointed out wouldn't be noticed by the room steward. Another observation I made was that the sheers between the sliding glass door and the curtain was looking a bit stained. Another observation which might not be noticed if not opening and closing the sliding glass door with some regularity.