has anyone done the rock wall or ice/inline skating on the RCCI ships? will we have to wait in line to do so?. are they free, do you need to get tickets to do them (as to see shows sometimes). what is the least busiest time to enjoy these things?

Hi. You don't pay for any of these services. I'm chicken, the ice rink was kind of small and I was rocking too much to attempt these activities. The least crowded times are when the ship is in port.However, the ice rink is only open at certain times- check your daily Compass. You must wear long pants in there, too. Ask the staff, they'll help you decide on times. If it's summer, there will be more kids doing all the activities. In January, it wasn't crowded at all.

Just returned from a cruise aboard the Navigator(which was full)and never had a line for the inline skating but must wear socks. There was a small line for the rock climbing wall also must wear socks but the wait was never more than 10 minutes. The Ice Skating was a hoot and never had to wait at all but as the previous poster noted long pants and socks must be worn. Also never had a line for the miniture golf and the full court basketball games were a nice touch. Only place you needed tickets for were the ice dancing shows which they do 4 performances on a weeks cruise and the tickets are free. BTW they do provide all the gear you need for these activities at no cost.

Why in the world would you have to wear long pants?

Injuries. Ice is very unforgiving(IOW hard) and scraping your knees on the ice (with shorts on) would be a quick recipe for having your vacation ruined. And besides the majority of people ice skating were under 15, enough said. Wherein the Inline skating area is padded and has a forgiving surface to skate on.

I am not sure what cbo86 means by "just returned" but I returned from the Navigator on June 7 and I guess that we must have been on different weeks or else cbo86 was not really observant regarding the rockwall.

I climbed the rockwall and had a blast. When I went it was the first sea day and they make you sign-up on the hour and you spend 20 minutes signing a waiver and then waiting around. Then since the line was so long (they said that 30 was the max but there were about 45 people), they said that we only got one shot that hour. That means if you slipped or fell, you were done and you had to sign up later on to try again. Fortunately I was able to climb all the way up and I even ended up on the ship?s video.

Yes, the days the ship is in port would mean that the wall would not be crowded, but if you go first thing in the morning (I think the wall and in-line skating opened at 9am) then you will also have a short wait.

As for the in-line skating, I walked right up, signed a waiver, and checked out some in-line skates. When I skated I was all alone for a while and eventually two other people arrived. I initially thought that the in-line skating area was too small, but after a few laps I changed my mind and I now believe that it is sufficient size for a cruise ship.

Regarding the ice skating, yeah the rink is only open to passengers at certain times and unless you are an advanced skater, you will have to share the rink with tons of kids falling down.

All in all, the 3 features are great and should be experienced since no other cruise line (of which I am aware) offers any of these 3 options.

As the others mentioned, all of the 3 options are free, and they provide you will all needed equipment (helmet, harness and special shoes for rock climbing; skates and blades).

Snorkleman, I was on the Navigator that returned on May 31(Eastern) and I can only relate my experience. I climbed the wall twice(only made it to the top once though,...barely and yes it was a blast and so tiring) both times on sea days and never waited more than 10 minutes even with signing the waiver. My 10 year old daughter had the same experience since I had to accompany her to sign the waiver each day she climbed. I guess we just hit it at the right time which was in the late afternoon. I initially had the same opinion as yourself on the inline skating area as being too small but found it more than adequate and never was crowded. I later learned that they limit the number of skaters if there is a line but there never was one and we were able to get right on. BTW the only people I found falling on the ice rink were the adults reliving their childhoods myself included, seemed like the kids never fell

What type of ice skates do they supply you? Figure? Hockey? Or do they have both?