July 10, Costa Maya

We are tied to the pier long before I open the curtains. The skies are clear and sunny, and the seas calm.

Royal's Empress of The Seas, the smallest ship in the fleet, is also berthed in Costa Maya. A village of 2000 now over whelmed with 6 or 7 thousand visitors.

A brief visit ashore to say we have been there. No purchases, not even a drink. On the way back to the ship a Carnival ship arrives to add several thousand more tourists.

The dining rooms are even more empty tonight. There are many tables available on all three decks. The few speciality restaurants I pass also do not appear to be very busy.

Another perfect day comes to an end as we head to  Roatan , Honduras. Again cruising on calm seas under clear skies.

July 9, a sea day

The seas remain calm and the temperature in the mid to  upper 80's.

The Top Tier Party is combined with the Captain's reception which is open to all guests, it is poorly attended with only about 300 in attnedance.The top cruiser has 1400 points, a little more than double my count. There are 62 pinnacles, 106 Diiamond plus and 231 Diamonds on the ship.

The crowd in the Diamond club remains very manageable and the service prompt. The Windjammer buffet is a different story. There are often waiting lines to enter, and seating hard to find.

Reserved seating for upper tier guests solves any seating problem in the Aqua theater.

The pool decks remained packed all day as to be expected.

There are  many empty seats in the dining rooms each night. I can only suspect that many of the families just go to the buffet.

The skies are sunny and the seas calm as we head for our next port of Costa Maya Mexico.