After a good night’s sleep I went for a wander around the Royal Esplanade on the first morning of the cruise.
The Royal Esplanade runs amidships on decks four and five with the middle of the walkway opening up into an atrium between decks four and five for about a 1/3 of the length of the ship.
There is also an atrium from deck four up to deck sixteen where the two midship lift wells are. There is even a glass deck looking down to the bottom of the atrium between decks thirteen and deck twelve. I watched a few people react as if they were stepping on hot coals once they realise that they are walking on a “glass” deck..
You can tell that there are less people onboard than a regular cruise as there hardly any “crowds”. The only time I saw a crowd or a long line was when people were queuing for a meal. BTW, groups of bigger than 5 are banned due to Covid safe distancing rules. Only exception is for families that are staying together.
Each time you enter a new section of the ship, even when passing from one end of the Royal Esplanade to the other you are asked to swipe your sea pass (think hotel room key). At some of these check points your temperature is taken. All done very politely and efficiently as long as the person in front of you has not forgotten where they put their sea pass.
As we were in protected waters the seas were calm, it was also a nice morning. It rained later in the day, welcome to the tropics.
Next up food…..
