Royal Caribbean Is Dying
Adventure of the Seas Cruise Review to Caribbean - Southern
7 Night Southern Caribbean (San Juan Roundtrip)
Sail date: January 07, 2017
Ship: Adventure of the Seas
Cabin type: Inside
Cabin number: 8457
Traveled as: Singles/Friends
Reviewed: 7 years ago
Review summary
I started cruising many years ago, and cruised on several different lines. At that time, many were pretty good, then it happened, they started a price war or something and everything started falling apart. The first two lines that went to hell were Carnival and Norwegian. After sampling several lines, I chose RCCL as my GOTO cruise line, where I was happy for several years, and highly recommended them to my friends, etc. RCCL was a nice balance of money and quality. But, the price war and quality drop has now ended that relationship. This last cruise, on the Adventure of the Seas, was soooo sad. This ship and the amenities had just gone to hell. The ship is deteriorating, the food is crap, the service is almost gone, the entertainment is almost gone. In days past, every night was a great night in the big theater. Now, there is just crap entertainment, or NO ENTERTAINMENT!!! The whole ship and the services are starting to remind me of stories of old slave ships of the past!! Just cheap passage for captive people, not an adventure that fulfilled dreams and created great memories. I was super disappointed, and I am already telling friends and other travel people to avoid RCCL in the future. RCCL is now a thing of the past. At age 65, I hope I have several good years of cruising ahead of me, but I will search out upscale cruise lines that deliver the quality of cruise that I enjoyed in the past. Hopefully there are still cruise lines that deliver on the dream of a beautiful cruise experience!!! For me, RCCL is a dead duck....
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
Onboard Activities
Entertainment
Service and Staff
Ship Quality
Cabin / Stateroom
Ship tip
Don't go on this ship. Do not go on RCCL. It is dying from the lack of love and attention. The price wars on cruising are killing this ship, and probably this company. It was so sad to see the home of my great memories become a trash. But, it is happening.
Ports of call
8 Comments
CrusinTim 7 years ago
Fair enough PhotogCruiser! I'm just trying to make the point that not all of RCI's ships are as bad as what you experienced. Like any cruise line, it's a hit or miss experience and tend to be inconsistent. We sailed on the Oasis of the Seas last May and had an absolute BLAST with great amenities, food and service. So much so, that we booked her again for this upcoming May. This is the first time in 13 cruises we have booked the same ship twice. I, much like you and an avid "yester-year" cruiser enjoyed the days when I first started cruising in 1990. Things have most definitely changed over the years and now find myself more geared towards the smaller, more elegant vessels (with the Oasis being an exception). Just stay open minded my friend and don't give up on RCI for this one experience. Just do a bit more research and maybe look at another RCI ship. You have been loyal to RCI for a reason. Best of luck on your next cruise :)
PhotogCruiser 7 years ago
In reply to CrusinTim, you do have a point, but, I put myself in the position of someone going on their first trip, and thinking of what they are dreaming of, and trying to make a choice that might be their one and only cruise. For cruise lines to be successful, they have to be consistent through out the whole line, not on a ship by ship basis. Think of McDonalds, they are not good, but they are consistent, so people know what they are getting, no matter which location they go to for a burger!! As for the amount of sailing I have done, I am guessing I have now been on close to 50 weeks of crusing. And, if my records are correct for RCCL, this last trip gave me a total of 88 days on RCCL ships. I am of course not an expert on this subject, but I do know I was very disappointed with how far the Adventure of the Sea has fallen from grace. I have been on it several times, and it was once a really neat experience, but not anymore! Those days seem to be a thing of the pass!!! It is now more like and ole ferry ship than a cruise ship. I expect that before long, the dining hall will be replaced with McDonalds, Taco Bell, Burger King, Subway, and other fast food joints. It will look like the food court at the mall...
CrusinTim 7 years ago
To totally mark a whole cruise line, as you would put it, as "crap" is unfair to the cruise line! With all the sailings you have been on with the various lines, haven't you realized that it is not necessarily the line as much as it is the ship? We sailed on the Jewel of the Seas and had a not so stellar time then 3 months later, sailed the Brilliance of the Seas and had an excellent time! Not sure how many times you sailed with RCI but to label a whole cruise line as "crap" because of one sailing you didn't like is unfair to the cruise line.