Overall, this was an excellent vacation and the memories will last a lifetime. It was nice to have everything on the ship and see so many different places, while not having to pack and unpack. I enjoyed our excursions and loved our sea days. Perfect balance. The ship was beautiful and the cruiseline excellent.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Although this was my first cruise, the embarkation process was seamless. There was someone to help guide us through the process every strep of the way. They had information for us prior to boarding so we knew where to eat and what stores/shops were open. Excellent experience.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
I give this a rating of 4 stars because of the speciality restaurants. They were not worth the expense. Although we prepaid for our specialty restaurants, we did not utilize all of our reservations because we preferred seating in the dining room. The dining room was wonderful! If I was just rating this experience, I would have given it 5/5 stars! Our waiter and his assistant were excellent, knew what we liked and had special items on our table every evening. Absolutely a wonderful experience! We also enjoyed the buffet for breakfast and lunch, and definitely 5/5 there, as well. Central Park was one of my favorite spots to grab a roast beef sandwich... excellent and highly recommended!
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
The pools were nice, but extremely crowded! I was not happy with people reserving chairs with towels early, when no one was around. We went to the pool on our sea days, but couldn't find a lounge chair because they were saved. We were at the pool by 10 and by no means were there enough people in sight who saved the loungers! I also did not like our spa experience and would not book any services with them on our next cruise. To me, they were pushy salespeople looking to score big and sell you their next product or service. Very disappointing.
Entertainment
5 out of 5
We absolutely loved all of the entertainment activities we attended! We saw the diving show, which was incredible! So much talent! Then we went to an ice skating show, which was remarkable! We attended Blue Planet and were astounded to learn that some of the people participating in Oceana also were key members of the case for Blue Planet. We attended the adult comedy show late one evening and are sorry we didn't participate in more shows.
Children's Programs
No kids!
Service and Staff
4 out of 5
Our waiters in the dining room, room steward and the gal at Inch of Gold, as well as our waitress at Johnny Rockets and Sabor were outstanding! For sure 5/5 stars. The bartenders were okay, definitely giving more attention to the regulars. I wanted to enjoy sitting at the bar a little more, but when you're made to feel like a second-rate customer, there was no incentive to stay.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
I could not get over how clean the ship was, ALL THE TIME! I don't know how they did it. My only complaint would be on the third day of sailing, you could smell the toilets in our room and hallway. Pack room deodorizer as this quickly alleviated the problem for us.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
Although small, it was very comfortable. My daughter and I had plenty of room for the little bit of time we spent there. It was tidy and clean, and our room attendant did an excellent job taking care of things for us.
Ship tip
Purchase some magnetic clips to use for the walls. Utilize the balcony and room service on port days. We sat out on the balcony and enjoyed eating breakfast as we were docking. And learn the layout of the land on the first day! We boarded early and learned where things were and how to navigate the ship.
Avoid the natives around the back of the island. I was traveling with my daughter and would rate them borderline harassing and definitely intimidating. They even snatched $20 from my hand, and I was not going to argue over the price of the shirt because, at that point, I was not very comfortable. I could not wait to get out of there!
The beach loungers for 2 were an excellent idea! I also enjoyed the lunch provided by the staff. You will need something for your feet if you plan to go in the water! Very rocky and rough. And I regret not ziplining :(
We took an excursion to go horseback riding. We enjoyed the drive to and from the stables, but there were just too many people in each group of riding. The tour guides were definitely eager for a tip.
We did the Dolphinian dolphin swim with lunch and drinks provided. It was an excellent experience, one that I will remember for a lifetime. We booked this excursion for first thing in the morning so we could enjoy a beach in the afternoon, so we had the best of both worlds on this day. The dolphin swim memories will last a lifetime.
I would advise checking your bags and having the cruiseline ship them off to the airport. Best $25 I spent the entire cruise! Nothing to worry about on disembarkation. Flawless.
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