Today in Barcelona, we embarked on the Royal Caribbean “Wonder of the Seas”,  the largest cruise ship in the world.  This is a 14-night repositioning cruise as she transitions from a summer in the Mediterranean to the winter season in the Caribbean.

We will visit 5 ports along the way:  Palma, Valencia, Cartagena, Malaga, and finally Nassau before arriving in Port Canaveral on 13 November.

This will be our second RCI cruise.  Our first was a 3-day Mexican Cruise on the Viking Serenade back in 2000 – so this is really our first RCI cruise of any consequence.  Our favorite cruise line is Holland America, where we have over 500 days at sea.  We have Platinum status on Princess and one-time cruises on a variety of other lines including Cunard, Celebrity, Crystal, Seabourn, Viking (Ocean and River) and NCL.  We always enjoy the different cruise lines and we usually pick the ones that have a desirable itinerary or some interesting ship feature or activity.

We selected this sailing to experience RCI and the Wonder of Seas on an itinerary where we would have time to explore the ship on numerous sea days and experience everything this amazing ship has to offer.  

I will be writing these as an experienced cruiser, but with a fresh set of eyes toward RCI and huge cruise ships.  Coral Princess and the QM2 have been our largest cruise ships previously.

We booked cabin 6596 (Extended Verandah) for this cruise in April of 2022.  I didn’t have much experience with RCI or big cruise ships to know if this was a “good” cabin but I gathered that since it was one of few still available it probably wasn’t most people’s first choice, but it was centrally located and has a verandah.  We did consider getting a verandah that opened to the interior as we thought it might make for more interesting people-watching as opposed to an empty sea.  I would be interested in hearing others’ observations about these interior view cabins.

Let’s get started!

We left our home base in San Diego early (6:30 AM!) on Wednesday 26 October and after a 6-hour layover in Atlanta, we arrived in Barcelona around 10 AM Thursday Morning.  We used a service called Barcelona Private Chauffeur to get us from the airport to Hotel 1898 where we would be staying until we boarded the ship on Sunday.

Our room wasn’t ready until 3 PM so we relaxed at the rooftop pool, enjoying a snack and a short nap on lounges by the pool until check-in time.

After unpacking we relaxed in our room for the rest of the evening.

Friday we joined others from our cruise on the Barcelona Secret Food Tour.  More details on that tour will be available on my blog in a few days.

The highlight of Friday was passing the COVID test.  We used the Emed online test and we passed with flying colors.  Finally, we could relax as we were a little nervous about the test after reading of many people testing positive even without symptoms.

After our test, we walked to “All You Knit is Love“, a local yarn shop that had been closed earlier in the afternoon.

On the way back to our hotel we stopped by “La Fabrica” in the Gothic Quarter (Calle Call 19) for some delicious Argentine Empanadas that we took back to our hotel.

On Saturday we spent the day with Spain Day Tours on their Barcelona & Montserrat tour.  Details on that tour will also be available on the blog soon.  Spain Day Tours is highly recommended.

CHECKING IN TO THE LARGEST CRUISE SHIP IN THE WORLD

When the check-in window opened 2 months ago, we selected 1 PM as our check-in time, although earlier times were available.  Later we decided to purchase “The Key” which provides some perks, including early check-in and a special lunch.  Pre-Cruise pricing for The Key varies based on demand and we were able to purchase this perk for a little more than the cost of the premium internet package.  A week ago, RCI sent us an email reminding us of our Key benefits which included an opportunity to check in at 11 AM and we changed our plans and decided to check in around 11:30.

Our boarding pass indicated that we should check in at Terminal B at Barcelona.  We read earlier reports that some people were able to check in using Terminal C and avoid long lines.  I kept this in mind as our car approached the cruise terminals.  Terminal B didn’t seem to be very crowded so we continued as planned to Terminal B.  There were several porters standing by as we arrived and they quickly took our bags and whisked them off toward the ship.

The line to get into the terminal was about 30 people and moved quickly.  Once inside the terminal we showed an agent we had all the required documentation, but they weren’t closely examined.  Security screening was next with 6 lines of metal detectors and it only took a couple of minutes.

After security screening, the line was divided into people in suites and higher loyalty status along with people like us who purchased the Key.  There was room for a long line of people to feed about 25 check-in positions.  There wasn’t any waiting for us in the head of the line path, but there wasn’t much of a line for anyone else at this point either.  I would estimate it would have been no more than 10 minutes for even the non-perk line at this point.

We were directed to one of the many check-in “chutes” where we were greeted by a staff member who scanned our boarding passes.  Our photos and other information appeared on his tablet.  We showed him our vaccination cards and negative covid test which he quickly scanned and that was that.  He said we were done and should proceed thru the Duty-Free shopping area and up the escalators to the ship.

There was a wide variety of hard liquor and wine available for sale at the Duty-Free shop, along with soft drinks, snacks, and other sundry items.  At this point, since we were past security, we could have easily purchased alcohol and brought it aboard without any further screening by RCI.

After the Duty-Free, there were 4 stations for embarkation photos which can be easily bypassed if that is your preference.

Escalators took us up to a walkway next to the ship where we would cross over on a telescoping jetway-style gangway to board the ship on Deck 3.

WELCOME TO THE WONDER OF THE SEAS

We entered the ship on the Royal Promenade on Deck 5 between Sorrento’s Pizza and The Shop.  This wide open space was buzzing with energy and excitement as the embarking passengers moved to and fro.  Some had already settled in and were enjoying the music while the other new arrivals, like us, were gawking around, trying to capture all the sights and sounds.  It reminded me of going into a busy Las Vegas hotel, not a cruise ship.

We headed to the MDR on Deck 4 to drop off our carry-on bags and enjoy the special lunch for people who bought the Key.

The entrance to the MDR is also where you can go to arrange for all your specialty restaurant dining reservations.  We learned that even though there weren’t any reservations available when trying to book on the app, there are reservations available when you talk to someone face to face.

The lunch took an hour and 45 minutes.  We used the time to book all of our entertainment and dining reservations, so we stayed busy as we were waiting for our meal to be served.

It was now a little after 2 PM and we assumed that our room would be ready.  We didn’t hear any announcement although we may have missed it and were not sure where general announcements like this are played.  On some ships, they don’t broadcast certain announcements into the dining rooms or cabins.

Our room was ready to go and we spent the next few hours getting unpacked.  We met our cabin steward, Teofila, from Brazil.  The frequency of service wasn’t mentioned and we were not asked if we desired turn down service and we aren’t sure if that is offered or available on request.

A little after 5 PM the WOTS got underway and backed out of the narrow channel until she reached a turning basin where she used her thrusters to spin around and head out to sea.

Deck 15 and 16, around the numerous pools and water features, were alive and hopping with a nice crowd of enthusiastic guests as we departed Barcelona.  There were a few waiters wandering about but not as many as I would have expected.  The bars were busy.  We wandered up to the Solarium area and found it was closed for a special SailAway event limited to guests at a certain loyalty level and we would have to check it out later.

We have fixed seating dinner at 8 PM at Table 107 on Deck 3.  This is a round table for 6 and we were the only people here tonight.  Our waiters, Michael and Jalissa, said others were assigned but were probably enjoying one of the many other alternative restaurants tonight.

The service was fantastic and the food was outstanding.  The shrimp cocktail and escargot was available at no extra charge.  The menu had a nice selection of offerings and the dining room ambiance was typical of most cruise lines.  There was nothing remarkable here unlike many of the other features of this amazing ship.

After dinner, we walked through the huge Casino and checked out the Ice Skating rink.  We spent some time exploring the empty Royal Theatre and talked to the staff so we could better understand the various seating options.  We have the Key and learned we have access to a special seating area in some of the venues.

Still recovering from jet lag, we headed back to our cabin to get some rest as we prepare for our visit to Palma tomorrow.  We will have 8 consecutive sea days once we finish our 4 port visits.  We are looking forward to using this time to explore this amazing ship in detail.

My initial one-word review so far:  Amazing!