I enjoyed the time spent with my loved ones.

Adventure of the Seas Cruise Review to Caribbean - Western

AlVig

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 4-6 cruises

Review: 1

Helpful Votes: 39

Overall rating:

3.4 out of 5

6 Night Western Caribbean (Ft. Lauderdale Roundtrip)

Sail date: February 09, 2020

Ship: Adventure of the Seas

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 4 years ago

Review summary

We have fallen into the habit of taking a cruise every February for a sun break. This was our fifth cruise. Our third on RC, and seemed typical of what we've experienced on RC ships. Last year, we took a Holland America cruise, after RC cancelled 11 days before sailing. We scrambled to find an itinerary that matched our flights and scheduled days off. I would have never booked on HA because it's considered an 'old people' cruise, but now I think I would choose HA over RC. The food was excellent, even in main dining and the buffet. The casino was non-smoking. And ... kids weren't running amok. Once you experience a cruise with very few kids, you realize how relaxing a cruise can be. On this RC cruise I found myself comparing the two trips, and RC was falling way short now that I've experienced the difference. I've noticed that people who say anything negative about their cruise get slammed on this platform. I'm just being honest. I made the best of my time.

Embarkation

4 out of 5

The use of tablets to check in passengers sped up the process. However, you're not provided a Sea Pass card at check-in. They are sent to your stateroom, which you can't access until 1:00. Any service that requires a Sea Pass card until that time relies on the app, so have that ready, and hope it works.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

3 out of 5

We did specialty dining for most dinners. Giovanni's, Chops and Isuzu were excellent. Johnny Rockets was horrible (nice service, bad food) and the buffet food was bland and, let's face it, germy. Many kids are too short for the sneeze guards to be effective. Passengers were handling the serving spoons and licking their fingers. Kids were reaching in with their hands. Ugh.

Onboard Activities

3 out of 5

Spa, gym, water slide. All good. The pools are crowded of course. The casino is one huge ashtray.

Entertainment

5 out of 5

Service and Staff

4 out of 5

There were a few standouts. Mostly they seemed as tired as the ship.

Ship Quality

4 out of 5

I liked the ship's layout. The staff did their best to keep it clean (despite many of the guests who, frankly, were slobs.) I wish there was a truly quiet place to hang out, but the ship was overrun by kids, especially as the week went on.

Cabin / Stateroom

3 out of 5

We were in a grand suite. It was worn and smelled musty.

Ship tip

Do specialty dining if you can, and schedule your dining times in advance of the cruise.

Thumbs up

Ports of call

Ft. Lauderdale (Port Everglades), Florida

1 out of 5

One star because the airport is so horrible I will try to avoid cruising out of this port in the future.

Thumbs Up 0

George Town, Grand Cayman Did not visit port

We didn't want to tender.

Thumbs Up 0

Costa Maya (Mahahual), Mexico Did not visit port

High winds prevented the ship from docking.

Thumbs Up 0

Cozumel, Mexico

5 out of 5

Always love Cozumel. Did a beach break.

Thumbs Up 0

Disembarkation

5 out of 5

As a suite guest, this was simple. In the future I think we'll self-assist. I was so ready to get off this ship.

5 Comments

Fiesta83 4 years ago

Better luck next cruise

Thumbs Up 0

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jilesgulf 4 years ago

We booked Holland America's Westerdam in 2013. The food was horrible! We've stuck with Royal Caribbean ever since except for Island Princess in order to go thru the the Panama Canal. Food was really bad with Princess too.

Thumbs Up 1

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dragz 4 years ago

Thanks for the info

Thumbs Up 0

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jenyfur 4 years ago

Hahahaha people act like you’re criticizing their children when you make a bad remark about their favorite cruise line. I just read between the lines

Thumbs Up 1

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CruzeFan 4 years ago

Glad you enjoyed it. We were on AoS in November and loved it. We thought the food at the buffet and dining rooms was excellent and didn’t try any specialty dining. We had no issues at Ft Lauderdale and left our cabin at 6:30 am, were through customs quickly and at the airport by 7:00 am. We were able to change or flight to 10:30 am we were to the gate so quickly.

Thumbs Up 1

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