Even with all the little hick-ups it was still a good value for an almost all-inclusive vacation. Ship was clean and did not have huge lines as expected. The app helped to keep every activity on schedule and not over crowded. Service is a bit slow at times and service is not what is used to be, but that is everywhere it seems.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Fast and smooth, walked right in and on. Id check and photo taken, done!
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
Main dining food was great
Samba Grill was amazing meats. The area it is located in is the solarium, which is humid and too warm for a comfortable dinner. Johnny Rockets was nothing special food wise and should be free. It felt like windjammer buffet food with 50's music and theme.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
We did the hot tubs (many to choose from), mini golf (fun), and went to do the zipline but it was so short that it wasn't worth the time to go through the safety course, waiver and get geared up. Major let down was that there is not even 1 slide on this ship anywhere!
Entertainment
4 out of 5
Ice Show was great and the Ocean Aria was amazing! Headliner was ok but not as entertaining (needed more stunts/tricks). Jazz band was off and we didn't stay for more than 2 songs. Guitar player was fun and entertaining.
Children's Programs
no kids with us
Service and Staff
4 out of 5
At every meal silverware had dried food particles, yuck. We did get seated at wrong table once, order was given to wrong table once, cold coffee just about every time, wrong order delivered to our table once & side order never received once. With that said, there were many meals that went on without any issues besides the dirty silverware. Most servers were from India and it was difficult to understand them at times, but they were kind and worked hard to serve.
Our room steward was very thorough after the first meeting. When we boarded and went to our room there was long hair on the chair and couch, so it had to be recleaned/sanitized. Always had a clean bathroom, fresh towels & a made-up bed.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
Enjoyed the different neighborhoods around the ship and also how easy it was to stay away from the smokey casino. Royal has always had a focus on cleanliness and that has not changed.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
Cabin was as expected since we have cruised many times. The bathroom shower was different than in past and an excellent upgrade from the past shower curtains. Loved the curved glass doors and size! As mentioned before the room needed to be recleaned on arrival because of some long hair leftover, but after that all was perfect.
Ship tip
Book your shows/entertainment in the app as soon as you board!
We were supposed to do a snorkel and beach break but the wind and waves caused it to be cancelled. We all felt they should have made an announcement on the ship so we could plan and make changes. Instead they told us in line for busses and asked us to pick another excursion. They refunded us and recharged for the different excursion. But we chose to just go to the beach break and it turns out it is the only one and all the excursions ended up here after there activity. Again we were refunded for original snorkel & beach but then charged more for just the beach, not right!
Jimny adventure, Jade Cavern, Snorkel & Beach Break. This was great, truly enjoyed seeing the cenote and loved the stingrays, sharks and snorkel. The only part that was not perfect was we needed more than 1 hour to enjoy lunch and the beach before heading back to ship.
The schedule was a bit confusing if you wanted to carry your luggage and leave. We were supposed to go to Amber theatre and wait but there is no place for luggage due to all the stairs so we just walked out the exit and got off. Done.
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