5 Night Perfect Day at CocoCay

These are the days that I am thankful for older, well-traveled children. We are flying Southwest and there is no pre-assigned seating. You walk onto the plane in your boarding order and pick whatever seat is available. Thomas was 5 the first time he sat in a row with strangers and he's done so a few times since then. Lisa knows that if she is in a different row, she should read the emergency card and count seatbacks to the nearest emergency exit. She also carries a small card that explains she is deaf. It can be shown to her seat mates and the flight attendants. It invites them to communicate with her the best they can. This is also the first time that both kids are flying on their own Global Entry/TSA Pre-Check credentials. They are officially official!

The geek in me always tracks our aircraft. Starts in Albuquerque and goes on to Denver. Both of those legs look great weather-wise. Grand Rapids is under a winter storm advisory but we know how to handle snow in Michigan. Get those de-icing machines ready. We board the flight in Chicago, which is currently under 3 weather advisories. 45 mph winds at takeoff. Why didn't we just leave out of Grand Rapids, an hour away vs. Chicago which can take 3 hours with traffic? One word: price. $94/person round-trip out of Chicago. $450/person out of Grand Rapids. The savings per person nearly covered the cost of the entire cruise.

The girl who loves all things Christmas is in her happy place.

Gorgeous approach into Fort Lauderdale.

The most challenging part of our journey so far? Breakfast at the hotel. A brown bag with a cold egg and cheese muffin and a stale granola bar. So glad I always pack our own emergency stash of breakfast bars and trail mix. No one will starve before lunch.

Not a super fabulous view or hotel but definitely met our needs. The beds were great and the price was good. That's what really matters in my world. I would stay again.

All checked in and enjoying lunch..

Virtual reality trampoline and standing 15 decks above the ocean on a glass floor.

Thomas and I won gold medals in bumper cars for hitting other cars hard enough to make them spin 360 degrees

Dinner and ketchup art by Lisa.

By Michael

Once on board we passed the ship's kids' club, Adventure Ocean, and Thomas got an ice cream cone to celebrate. We had an early lunch on the pool deck, shrimp cocktail and strawberries, then spent the afternoon at the SkyPad, the bungee trampoline high above the pool deck, where both Thomas and Lisa took harnessed turns bouncing while Kathy and I watched and took pictures. Later Thomas and I played a round of pool, still masked, and the four of us tried the bumper cars on the sports deck.

Dinner that night was at our assigned table, 218, with our waiter Roher and assistant waiter Shailesh. The kids drew a ketchup butterfly on one plate, signed Liso, and another face signed Joes, before creme brulee for dessert. Back in the stateroom the beds were turned down for the night, and later Lisa found the glow wall in the teen lounge and left her own drawing there, signed Lisa.

It's a Perfect Day at CocoCay!

The kids and Michael did Daredevil Tower, the tallest waterside in North America. Thomas loved it. Michael is one and done. The kids are wearing out the slides. Michael and I are parked in lounge chairs by the wave pool. How does CocoCay compare to Disney's Castaway Cay? It doesn't. It's a whole different level. Honestly, the other cruise lines need to step up their private island game.

Empty chairs everywhere. We are sailing at 40% capacity and it is PERFECT. No masks required on the island as we are outdoors and socially distanced.

Back on the ship enjoying the hot tubs, nachos from El Loco Fresh (OMG the toppings bar is incredible) and great views of the island. Then cleaning these turkeys up for formal night. It has been a Perfect Day indeed.

So many safety protocols on the ship and the island. From my current seat, I can see 4 Purell sanitizer stations. They are everywhere. People have been VERY respectful of the masking and distancing regulations.

Formal Night dinner. The fish, pumpkin soup and carrot cake were good. The escargot were salty, swimming in butter and topped with some funky cheese-like substance accompanied by a slice of garlic toast. Interesting pairing. So far, I would give the main dining room food a 2.5 stars out of 5. The service is a solid 5 stars. Our dining team is fabulous. You can fix lackluster food. Lackluster service is much more challenging. So far, the clear dining establishment winner is El Loco Fresh. Nachos, burritos, tacos and a fresh topping bar. 'Nuff said.

Good morning from Nassau. This is our 8th visit to this port and the first time we've docked at 5:00 a.m. The crew members are getting the ship in tip-top shape so that we can welcome the Bahamian Prime Minister and other government officials onboard later today. How exciting! Michael will be heading ashore to see if he can find a shoe store. His tennis shoes were having such a great time on CocoCay yesterday that they decided to stay there

The food in the main dining room has been decent, not spectacular. This is one area where I think Disney is a hands-down, clear winner. I miss rotational dining and the pageantry that comes with the themed restaurants like Tiana's Place and Rapunzel's Royal Table. The menus don't change much in the Royal Caribbean dining room night over night and it is the same physical location each evening unless you upgrade to unlimited dining. The kids were not fans of the mac and cheese on Night 1. They live on mac and cheese on Mickey's ships. Lisa ordered pasta with butter last night and said it was much better. Thomas had Chicken Parmesan and he enjoyed it. My risotto was a little crunchy but the remaining dishes were OK. I could, however, happily eat at El Loco Fresh on the pool deck for every single meal. The fresh toppings bar is incredible. I'll be there for lunch today.

Lisa's ketchup and barbecue sauce art deserves its own post. She also created a flower, but I didn't get a picture. Roher is our server. Since all crew members wear masks, our assistant server let Lisa know that Roher has a mustache. She added that later. Tonight they will bring her more sauces to create plate art. Maybe some yellow mustard. I love the creativity and passion this child exudes in her daily pursuit to make the world smile.

Our port neighbor today.

It's a busy day in Nassau.

And now for a few things that Disney does better. The one area that would prevent me from becoming Royal Loyal is our experience with their ASL interpreter process. It is not good at all. The interpreter has been great. Royal Caribbean's process is abysmal. No scripts of the shows for the interpreter to follow. No reserved seating in the theaters. The interpreter sits in the audience with us with her back to the stage and wings it. On Disney Cruise Line, it is impeccable. I will be giving this feedback to Royal Caribbean. They definitely do not cater to deaf cruisers in this respect. The crew members have been amazing. It's 100% the process or lack thereof.

I caved and bought soda packages for the kids and I. $80/person. Without Coke Zero, I may have killed someone. Sodas are included on Disney. I tried the flavored waters and lemonade. They were not good at all. Michael is our lone holdout. He's still drinking the free stuff.

Messaging through the app will also cost you $1.99/person/day. It is included on Disney. We are going old school and just letting each other know where we will be and pre-arranging meeting times. The internet has also been very bad according to fellow cruisers, some of whom paid $800 to connect 4 devices to the ultra high speed option. I am using my Verizon travel pass for $10/day while in port.

My FlowRider crazies. They all did great.

By Michael

We stayed aboard through the day, and it turned into a full one. We went to RipCord by iFly, the ship's indoor skydiving simulator, taking turns in blue flight suits and helmets. Later we all rode the North Star, the glass capsule that lifts above the ship, and looked straight down at the harbor and the row of other cruise ships along the pier. Kathy photographed Lisa and me on the FlowRider too, Lisa staying up on the board through wave after wave while I mostly ended up in the spray. Along the way we came across one of the hidden rubber cruising ducks other passengers leave around the ship, this one wearing a green mohawk.

By Michael

This was formal night. I photographed Thomas in his tuxedo and bow tie in the hallway before dinner, and the ship's photographer caught the four of us together afterward in our formal clothes. Dinner brought its own dessert-plate art again, a smiling face signed SH this time, and a slice of carrot cake with a little marzipan carrot on top.

Thomas was still up afterward in the arcade, working the controls of one of the dance games, before we called it a night.

Royal Caribbean has the best signs.

We're back for the second half of our Perfect Day Double Dip. Today we will experience the complimentary activities. Lisa has been waiting for a beach day.

Appreciating the included ammenities on CocoCay today.

A Cuban, Philly cheesesteak and barbecue chicken. CocoCay beats Castaway Cay hands down. There is also a taco bar.

Largest fresh water pool in the Caribbean and it's complimentary. The water is FREEZING but the kids had a good time before they decided to go back to the ship on their own. They are big people now.

By Michael

That evening the ship's photographers set us up for a family portrait in our red shirts against a plain white backdrop. At dinner Lisa's plate came back hand painted with our name, and afterward we went to see The Effectors at the Royal Theater. The kids finished the night drawing on the glow wall again.

The food did get better toward the end of the cruise. New ship. New crew. A little rusty after the pandemic shutdown. I think they will keep improving. It doesn't begin to touch the quality and visual appeal of the food in the Disney main dining rooms, but the potential exists.

Fun facts about our ship. Will the Rennhacks be back? Oh most certainly! Michael tried to convince me to stay onboard for the next cruise: an 8-day Southern Caribbean. There are no self-service laundrettes onboard and after doing the math, it would cost over $500 to have our laundry sent to the ship's laundry room.

So, what are the areas where Royal Caribbean has a clear advantage over Disney?

1. Their private island is INCREDIBLE. We all agreed that we would do the waterpark again. The free beaches were good, but the waterpark blew our minds.

2. The onboard activities included in our cruise fare catered to my kids' maturing interests. FlowRider, iFly, Sky Pad, bumper cars, Social 180 (the teen club).

3. The room layout and storage spaces seem like they were designed just for my packing style. My packing cubes fit perfectly and we had so many drawers and shelves that went unused.. The bathroom is HUGE by cruise industry standards and I appreciated the curved, plexiglass shower door. No getting attacked by a vinyl curtain. Now, the virtual balcony was OK. I don't know that I would pay for it again. The video quality is grainy and at night the quality is abysmal. It was nice to have a view of outside. I would spring for a real balcony.

4. Entertainment. This one surprised me as Disney is THE entertainment company. We saw The Book and The Effectors. Michael also went to Show Girls. The 270 Theater blew my mind. $32 million was spent on that space alone and it shows. The productions were hands-down better than anything I have seen onboard a Disney cruise. The husband and kids respectfully disagree. If you like special effects, aerial stunts and incredible costumes, you will love the entertainment onboard Odyssey of the Seas.

Now for the areas that Disney does better.

1. Youth activity spaces for ages 3-12. We popped into Adventure Ocean and I was not at all impressed. The space was about as big as my living room with stark white walls. Activity options were limited to checking out a rubber ball and throwing it at an interactive screen and checking out a video game controller and playing alone. But the space itself was very unimpressive and uninspiring. Thomas was able to go to the teen club. Would I cruise Royal Caribbean with a child in the 3-11 age range? Nope. I would run straight to Disney.

2. Food. I've already beaten the main dining room horse to death. I was very annoyed that the only quick-service option on the pool deck was El Loco Fresh and it had limited hours. To get a slice of pizza you must put on real clothes and go to Sorrentos on Deck 4. And there is no place onboard other than the buffet (again real clothes required, no swimming attire and limited hours) to get a hot dog, hamburger or French fries. Those are sea day staples for us. The kids missed Pete's Boiler Bites, the Duck-In Diner and Pinnochio's Pizzaria.

3. Merchandise. Odyssey of the Seas is great if you are shopping for the same Michael Kors handbag that you can purchase at home. Same with the overpriced Invicta watches and Ray-Ban sunglasses. There is a small Royal Caribbean logo store located on the Royal Espalande. The merchandise was limited and underwhelming. We bought a magnet.

4. Facilitation of ASL interpreters in the theater shows. Our interpreter K.C. worked her tail off to overcome the lack of communication between shoreside operations and the ship. In the end it worked out. As a new ship, they had never welcomed a deaf passenger onboard so it was a learning experience for everyone from Guest Services to the Entertainment Manager. My pre-cruise communication with Disney's Special Services team is always second to none. Once onboard the ship, there is clear communication between the interpreters, the Assistant Cruise Director and myself. I just don't think Royal Caribbean is there yet.

With all of that said, who are we more likely to cruise with in the future? Royal Caribbean. Shocking I know. It comes down to a few things. Pricing is big for me. I want to see all of the places and Disney continues to raise their prices right out of my comfort zone. This maiden voyage on Odyssey of the Seas was $1,500 for the four of us. Our maiden voyage on the Disney Wish in June (5 nights with a nearly identical itinerary) is $12,000. Granted, there will be more pageantry on the Wish. 8 times as much? Probably not. I would also book a Royal Caribbean cruise that only visits CocoCay. I would not do the same with Disney's Castaway Cay. While it will always hold a special place in my heart, we have outgrown Castaway Cay. The kids spend a hot second on the island and go back to the ship. Do I regret my 14 Disney cruises? Not one single bit. It met our needs at that stage of life and we made incredible memories in 24 countries on 3 continents. Now it's time to branch out and create new memories in new places!

Note to self: you can go from sitting in your ship's stateroom at Port Everglades to sitting in the Fort Lauderdale airport in 35 minutes flat. Now we wait for an hour to check our luggage. Southwest won't check it in until 4 hours before departure. I tried switching to the 10:10 flight. It's $1,000 more than our 2:00 flight.

We all agree that our stateroom on Odyssey of the Seas was GREAT! So much storage space and that glass shower door is everything. There were also storage cubbies above the bed. Two large suitcases fit in the closet and the bed is raised so you can also place them underneath unzipped and unfolded. Ours were a bit too tall to slide under while zipped. Parents with young kids, there are no tubs in the bathrooms (at least at the non-suite level) so Disney also wins in this area. They have tubs in all rooms except those that are wheelchair accessible.

Feels 51 degrees colder at home. Brrrrr!

And now a two-hour drive home. What a great vacation. The perfect Royal Comeback.