Hi! Me again.
Keith and I will be sailing on the Mariner for our 1st anniversary over Christmas and were wondering if anyone knew if Barry is the CD for this trip? I remember speaking with him back in April about a Xmas trip, but do not recall if he said he'd still be on Mariner or would be moving to Voyager.

Also, I've read on the boards about the "sail away" party. Is this an individual thing or something organized onboard for when we leave Ft. Laud? Last time, we just stayed on our balcony for our 4:00 departure as it was our virgin cruise. This time, we leave at 6:00. Our flights have us arriving in Ft. Laud around 1ish, so we hope to be at the pool grill by 2:30 then off for a little nap :angel2: I'll still have my winter holidays from school when we get home, so time won't be a negative factor this time.

Cheers! <img border="0" alt="[vhappy]" title="" src="graemlins/icon_vhappy.gif" />
Ash

Ash,

We were on the Mariner in the Spring and we will be coming off a little cruise as you are going aboard. As for the "sail away" party, yes, it is an organized party with drinks and music....quite festive.
About Signatures reservations, this is from my Mariner review...[They will not let you make reservations in Signtures for more than one night, but we asked to be put on a wait list for another night and they did call to confirm to reservation.]
Have a wonderful cruise.

Betty

You can eat at Signatures more than once if you waitlist or what I have done is make a reservation for four. Ask another couple to join you - then have them reciprocate and they invite you. Then the reservations are under TWO names. It works. I like breakfast by room service and La Veranda is a nice change for dinner. Prefer Compass Rose for dinner. La Veranda is partial buffet for the appetizers and dessert.

Remember that these restaurants require jackets for men. Many men have packed their jackets on the last day and to eat at Sig or Latitudes is an inconvenience.

Hey, great idea! I've been emailing with another couple who will be on our cruise...I may suggest that to them. We were planning on hooking up onboard anyway.

There really isn't a better way to celebrate special occassions than on an RSSC cruise. You'll have a great time. Here's my few cents; I'm probably being a bit redundant vis-a-vis previous posts, but I'm too tired at this hour to double-check...

1. Barry Hopkins: He really is the quintessential cruise director; definitely my favorite. Last year, Barry was on the Voyager in December so it's difficult to tell where he'll be be this December.

2. Sail away: It seems like the sail away parties are now including complimentary adult beverages. I think this was the case on MINT (or maybe it was just a particular kind of mixed drink). It's definitely worth while to go just to see who the key social staff are on board and to mingle with other guests. Best place to be is on deck 12 (1 deck above the pool deck).

3. Signatures: I've managed to eat at Signatures twice during 7-night cruises. Both times were on Voyager and before they started the new "policy" of requiring all suite numbers of all party members at the time of making a reservation. It really depends on how crowded the ship is. It seems that if the ship is at half capacity or lower you can definitely get into Signatures at least 2 times without really needing to go on a wait list. Honestly, with Chef Tobias now running the show in Compass Rose, I think Compass Rose far exceeds Signatures in quality and presentation; I felt pained at missing meals in Compass Rose - Chef Tobias is THAT GOOD. Some may disagree with me, but the French themed menu in Compass Rose has been better than the Signatures menu every time I've been on the Mariner or Voyager. Oh, and the service is MUCH better in Compass Rose.

In case you didn't know, you can place special orders for whatever you want (within reason) at Compass Rose with 24 hours' advance notice. On MINT, we had dover sole twice and New Zealand rack of lamb once when we missed those menus items. However, because no pre-made/preserved ingredients are used on RSSC, items like "tater tots" which invariably come pre-made by Ore Ida can't be prepared. Also interesting items, like Spam can't either (yes, I did once request spam to see what would happen).

The complimentary wine list has been significantly improved. On MINT, Tom and I are very impressed with the quality of the selections and did not need to order from the reserve list.

4. La Veranda: I really like La Veranda a lot, especially for lunch. The dinner time antipasto bar is quite good as well. Ordinarily, I'd recommend having dinner at least once at La Veranda, but again Chef Tobias makes not eating at Compass Rose extremely difficult.

5. In-room dining: I've never done this because I hate eating alone, but my sister, Clara, and her husband, Brad, ate 10 of 14 dinners on their Mariner cruise en suite. They were really impressed. You can order all the items that are being served in Compass Rose as well as any of the wines from the complimentary wine list (they just bring up the bottles for you). Reserve wine can also be ordered and brought up. The meal is served course by course, as in Compass Rose. They can set up your table on the balcony, which is what Clara & Brad liked doing.

Thank you all for the terrific information and the inside track as to how to enjoy Signatures more than once!
These boards are invaluable to any traveler, seasoned or not. Thank you Ngaire for creating a special place just for us!
Cheers! <img border="0" alt="[vhappy]" title="" src="graemlins/icon_vhappy.gif" />
Ash

Have to agree that Compass Rose was VERY impressive this time around for us - more so than it was on the Navigator. Couldn't imagine how the food there could have been better.

Masaki