Tag Archives: Royal Carribean

Posted in travel

Ship Chef: “Hey, It’s Hard to Cook for 5,000 People!”

By Comments:11 Comments

by Bob Sparrow

Given the interest there was in readers wondering about my sanity, booking a cruise with 2,500 kids on board, I thought I would report back to let you know just how everything went and if my sanity is still intact.

Let’s first discuss the positives. No, let’s do the negatives so we can end on a positive note.

  • The obvious is there were lots of kids, but there were also so many kids’ areas – kids’ pool, kids’ clubs, kids’ games, etc. So, yes, lots of kids, but I never felt they were under foot/in the way.
  • The food could have been better, much better.  There was plenty of it and a good variety, but, based on other cruises, this was below expectations.  When we mentioned something about food quality at one of our dinners, the chef came out and explained to us that it was difficult to cook for 5,000 people.  Duh!!!  Isn’t that what you signed up to do? Isn’t that your job?
  • The only other disadvantage that I experienced, was when I went back to the ‘adults only’ section of the ship and looked for a place to sit down, by the pool, anywhere on the deck, with a view, any seat! – all were taken. Apparently, a lot of parents were looking for some ‘quiet time’ away from their chaotic kids.

What I liked about the cruise was . . .

  • The ship, Royal Caribbean’s Ovations of the Sea, was much better than I expected for a large ship with 5,000 passengers.  Great layout, lots of restaurants with a variety of cuisines, lots of bars, lots of shops, excellent show venues, did I mention lots of bars?
  • Lots of things to do, especially for kids, basketball, pickleball, bumper cars, roller skating, rock climbing, surfing, various rides, arts & crafts, arcade, ping pong, etc., etc., etc.
  • Fun casino that both giveth and taketh away
  • We had a nice room that allowed all 13 of us to gather a few times
  • The staff, the Filipinos, were especially nice
  • Heard the gym was very well equipped.
  • We didn’t get off the ship in Ensenada
  • The thing I liked most was that we had our whole immediate family on board with everyone enjoying all the activities and the adults enjoying the kids enjoying all the activities . . . and the drink package!

 Some family photos . . . 

Grandkids: Dylan, Mac, Addison, Emma & Brooklyn
Original Sparrows: Linda, me, Steph, Jeff & Dana
The Shomers: Dylan, Emma, Steph & Jason
The Borrellis: Dana, Joe, Addison, Mac
Brooklyn, Jeff & Pam Sparrow
Most popular adult ride: Pina Colada
OK, maybe this one’s better
I promised beautiful Emma
I’d put a photo of her in the blog.

Posted in travel

2500 Kids on Board! Really?!

By Comments:10 Comments

by Bob Sparrow

Ovation of the Seas – Kids pool with North Star in upper right corner

While we’re on the subject of cruising after reading Suzanne’s blog last week about ‘Senior Cruising’, I thought I would mention that Linda and I will be leaving this Tuesday on what could be called ‘Junior Cruising’. Our three kids, Stephanie, Dana and Jeff, their spouses, Jason, Joe and Pam AND our five grandchildren, Dylan, Emma, Addison, Mac and Brooklyn, will all be boarding the Royal Caribbean ship, Ovations of the Sea for a four-day cruise from L.A. to Ensenada, Mexico and back to L.A.

There will be nearly 5,000 passengers on board, half of them kids, so this is not a cruise for relaxation, in fact there are so many things to do on this ship, that we may not get to them all in the four days we will be on board. Below is a list of activities available to the kids/grandkids, OK, and maybe us too.

Ripcord skydiving
  • At the SeaPlex, at varying times, one can ride bumper cars, play basketball, volleyball, soccer, go roller skating or attend a circus school with a trapeze.
  • Go on North Star, which extends 300 feet above the ship for a 360-degree view of the surroundings.
  • Ripcord is a skydiving simulator the gives the sensation of free falling.
  • FlowRider is a surf simulator that lets you ride a surfboard or a boogie board on real waves.
  • Rock Climbing on a simulated rock wall on the side of the ship, safety lines included.
FlowRider

In their spare time, kids can participate in the Adventure Ocean youth program where age-specific activities for Aquanauts (3-5), Explorers (6-8) and Voyagers (9-11), and a Teen Lounge for those ‘older’ kids. There is also an Adventure Science Lab and a fun-filled Water Park, with mini-slides, water cannons, fountains and pools.

In between activities I’m sure the kids will find ‘all-you-can-eat-pizza’ and ‘all-you-can-eat-ice cream shops.

Bumper cars

But the ship also recognizes that adults may need a break and a treat or two, so there is an adult-only section where one can go to get relief from the constant chaos, a casino, where I’ll look for Linda if I can’t find her, a Bionic Bar where your drink is made to order by a mechanical bartender, no tipping just oil him once in a while.  There are Broadway-style shows nightly as well as venues with music and dancing – not sure how much dancing I’ll do, but it’s nice to know it’s there in the event I get the urge! There is also a place called Two70, it provides a 270-degree view from the back of the boat.  This multi-level lounge transforms from a daytime observation space with panoramic views into a nighttime theater featuring a unique blend of digital art, robotics, and live performances. There are also plenty of restaurants and bars that will help us to maximize our drink package! Oh yeah, there’s also a gym, but don’t expect any photos that might catch us perspiring.

Robotic bar

We’re not sure we want to expose our grandkids to Ensenada at their age, so we’ll probably not get off the boat when we’re in port, but we’ll see, maybe they want to discover what a real Mexican taco tastes like.

That’s all for the cruise preview, if anything happens that’s blog-worthy, I’ll give you an update next time.  Until then, wish me luck in keeping my sanity around 2,000 sugar-high kids!

Yes, I’ll have another Margarita, thank you!