Very pleased with Royal and we are looking forward to our next cruise with them - maybe try out Coco Cay.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Went very quickly and smoothly. The port staff were very helpful. After entering the terminal and passing through security, we were on board in about five minutes. Plus, we were able to board 1 1/2 hours earlier than our official boarding reservation.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
5 out of 5
We decided to try the 3-dinner package in order to experience the locations at a discount and were not disappointed by the food nor the service. Unfortunately, two of the three nights were spoiled by crying babies who were't taken out of the dining room; thus, ruining it for all. We did have two meals in the Sapphire Room and the food and service were wonderful. Wish we had more opportunities to eat there since the dinner menu looked great. We did not pay for the drink package and were glad that we didn't since it wasn't worth it for us; however, the drinks that we did purchase were very good. Oh, the Coffee Card was a good deal for us being coffee lovers.
Onboard Activities
5 out of 5
For the activities we did, there were plenty to choose from - more than we had time for. Loved the adult pool (salt water) and adult whirlpools in the Solarium. Lots of great upper deck seating for private lounging in the shade or sun that included glass wind blocks. Had fun on the rock climbing wall as well - rang the bell twice.
Entertainment
4 out of 5
The ice shows and all other evening entertainment were enjoyed very much. The juggler was outstanding. The dance show was OK. The two trivia events (Star Wars and Harry Potter) were more fun than we thought they would be. Piano Bar fun was really entertaining as well.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
Fantastic service and wish that the staff got paid better for all of the quality services rendered. We didn't realize that Royal only gave us a week to do the after cruise survey and so we missed out in commenting. The staff were very friendly and helpful.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
Very clean and user friendly. Those inclined to use elevators will find that their travel time will be greater due to the crowds; however, we almost exclusively used the stairs and got around just fine. You will hear "washy washy" a lot and it was surprising that adults had to be reminded to wash their hands before meals. The Royal app was very helpful to quickly find activities and places on the ship. Wish that Royal prohibited smoking inside the ship completely since the smoking from the Casino really permeated the main Royal Promenade, Art Gallery, and other nearby areas. Reduced the amount of time we chose to spend in those areas.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
Loved, loved, loved the spacious balcony. We had so much room that we didn't even use the formal seating area. We didn't even use all of the storage spaces in the cabinets, drawers, and huge walk-in closet. Loads more space than we thought we needed but it was very nice and clean.
Ship tip
We were surprised about the high amount of uncharge for eating a Johnny Rockets - per person, per visit. We found out that we didn't need to arrive so early to the shows at the Lyric - not as many in attendance as we thought.
We chose not to do any ship-based excursions but went to the Turtle Centre on our own (expensive taxis though) and had a great time. Taxi drivers were all friendly, helpful, and professional. Spent more time there enjoying it than we expected. Snorkeling with the turtles and fish was really fun. Found an excellent local lunch spot afterwards right on the sea - how beautiful plus the food and beer were great. Got some gifts at the Tortuga Rum Factory retail store and they delivered our bottles directly to the ship for us for free. What service and the people were very friendly. The only downside to this port was that we had to be tendered to/from which took precious time away from the little that we had to use.
This day we also didn't do a ship-based excursion but chose to reserve a stay at a private beach club which was excellent. But, getting out of the maze of stores immediately outside the pier was very difficult to figure out how to get to the taxis. A bonus of this port inspire of the shopping maze is that our ship had a pier which made getting to/from the ship much easier. Wish we got off of the ship earlier though in order to have more fun time at the beach.
We did do a ship-based snorkeling trip to the National Marine Park which was fun although we had to deal with the winter-time rougher seas. Perhaps we'll do this again more towards springtime. We were told by our shipmates that their snorkeling trip at Grand Caymans was cancelled due to rough seas - glad ours wasn't though. The trip hosts were great, fun, professional, and provided more than enough drinks for all (adult and non-alcoholic). :) Wish that we would've had more time in port than we did as we were hoping to get to the actual city center for other sightseeing and shopping instead of just doing what was immediately there at the port.
We chose to not be assisted by the ship's baggage handlers and moved our stuff ourselves. This greatly expedited us getting off of the ship well in advance of all other passengers. Once we actually left the ship, we passed through the port and customs in less than ten minutes. Very efficient operations. Allowed us to easily get transportation to the airport without crowded hassles.
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