My 1st Cruise
Adventure of the Seas Cruise Review to Caribbean - Southern
Contributor Level:
Second Mate
Cruises: 1 cruise (first)
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 64
7 Night Southern Caribbean (San Juan Roundtrip)
Sail date: October 14, 2017
Ship: Adventure of the Seas
Cabin type: Oceanview
Cabin number: 2284
Traveled as: Couple
Reviewed: 7 years ago
Review summary
It was my first cruise. I was absolutely impressed by the professionalism, quality of service, quality of food, options available on the ship for entertainment & shopping, relaxation, pools, AMAZING STAFF including excellent staff at the customer service counter, wait staff in the dining rooms, & photographers as well as everyone else! I also enjoyed all of the ports. I cannot wait to book my 2nd cruise with Royal Caribbean!!!!!Embarkation
Royal Caribbean had staff all over directing us to where we needed to go and what we needed to do. They had people at the airport to assist us with our transfer to the dock. We were very thankful for this since it was our first trip to San Juan. It was my 1st cruise and also my 1st experience out of the country so I was a little nervous since it was all new to me. They were able to guide us all in the right direction among the large amount of people boarding the ship.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
The best part about our dining experiences was having Sanford & Ni as servers in the main dining room and also seeing them from time to time in the buffet area as well. They were very attentive, able to provide suggestions and were very quick and efficient. We truly enjoyed our time daily with them. The food in the dining room was some of the best food that I've ever had. I was amazed! The buffets were also very good, clean and well stocked & staffed. The daily specialty drinks at the bars were also very good!
Onboard Activities
We relaxed in the pools as well as on the deck by the pool. Josh went down the big slide on the top of the boat, and we enjoyed the hot tub as well. On the days at sea some of the pool areas were crowded but not too terribly. The hot tubs were closed part of the time which we were disappointed about. There were many options to choose from. We didn't get a chance to check out the fitness center or other areas.
Entertainment
We didn't get to attend all of the entertainment options on the ship but all of the shows & games we attended were excellent. We attended the Ice Show, Comedy Show, Magician, Final show with song & dance, Quest game (and our team won), Salsa Dancing Lessons, & Celebrity Heads game as well as a few other games. All of the staff and performers were excellent and very entertaining.
Service and Staff
All of the staff on board were excellent. We had amazing servers in the main dining room, Sanders & Ni. They did such a great job and we enjoyed their company so much that we requested to be seated in their section each night. You can tell that they really enjoy what they do. They gave us suggestions based on our preferences and were able to predict what we will need. They never left us waiting either. All of the photographers were fantastic including the photographer in the private studio. We purchased a photo package and tried to make it to all of the different photo stations whenever they were offered. We are very pleased with the final photos! The housekeepers were excellent as well and responded to our requests in the room quickly and professionally.
Ship Quality
We loved the layout of the ship. There were so many different areas and places to go. The design was modern and beautiful. The staff kept the ship well maintained and very clean! We were impressed!
Cabin / Stateroom
The room was clean, orderly, and had a nice window view. The bed & pillows were much more firm than ours at home yet we both slept very well every night. The room was pretty small, but we weren't in the room very much and it provided what we needed. The shower had great water pressure & temperature settings, but was very small which made it somewhat difficult to shave my legs. The closet came with hangers and a shelf for shoes or smaller items, it was perfect for both of our belongings. There was also a hair dryer that was attached inside a drawer in the vanity, and a mini fridge!
Ship tip
Each evening, pay attention to the list of activities offered the next day and make a plan for which ones you would like to attend. We didn't pay as much attention to it as we could have and ended up missing a few fun activities that we would have enjoyed.
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Ports of call
We did not get a chance to enjoy this port since our flights were close to the time the ship departed and arrived. From the air the beaches looked gorgeous. People were very friendly on the island. Due to the recent hurricanes some of the excursions were cancelled and many areas of the island are in the process of being repaired. We plan to make a return trip to visit the island once they recover from the recent storms.
We did not participate in an excursion at this port. We took a taxi ride to Cockle Shell Beach. This beach had a restaurant/bar and small shop. They rented chairs & umbrellas as needed. The water had a few rocks at the entrance but was great once we made it past that point. After the beach we browsed the many shops at the port. The island has many monkeys both in the wild and as pets riding on people's shoulders.
We did the Fryes Beach extravaganza which included transportation to Fryes Beach, beach time including a beach chair, and BBQ lunch at a beach restaurant! This was an excellent excursion! The beach was beautiful and relaxing. We even enjoyed the beach when the rain cloud came over! Lunch was very good as well as the rum punch! We browsed the shops on our way back to the ship.
This Dutch island had many cruise ships, pretty beaches, lots of shopping, & friendly people. We had a long day in the sun sailing on a catamaran excursion through the Caribbean to snorkel at 2 locations: an old shipwreck & also a coral reef! The beautiful fish would swim right up to you! The excursion included a BBQ lunch at a beach restaurant and time on Palm Beach. Afterwards we walked through the shops before dinner! Definitely a possible honeymoon spot for us next year!
We decided to not do an excursion at this port. We walked around the town, crossed the bridge and found lots of shopping!!!!! We also took a taxi to Cas Abao beach on the other side of the island. It was a little ways away (and a fairly expensive taxi drive) but it was well worth it. This beach was absolutely gorgeous, not crowded, had a restaurant/bar, and beach shop. We borrowed snorkel gear on the beach. The water was very clear & teal blue! Moon fish swim up to you in the water!! Absolutely gorgeous!
Disembarkation
Leaving the ship was very organized. We all had a specific group and location to wait for our turn to leave the ship. Once we were off of the ship, all of our luggage was neatly organized into each group. Box trucks were available and waiting our arrival to assist us to the airport. We were very thankful for the friendly staff and local people who assisted us back to the airport.
Traveler Photos
