Despite The Storm

After reading all of the negative reviews about the Anthem of the Seas I didn't know quite what to expect.  I have to say that the Anthem is an awesome ship.

The ship is immacuately clean!   The staff and all that work for the cruise line were exceptionally friendly, everyone we ran into had a smile on their face.  Starting with the our cabin which was on the Deck 12 midship, there wasn't anything to complain about.  Our cabin attendant Nelson, kept our cabin spotless in the morning with cleaning the whole cabin, then again in the evening with freshening up the cabin. There were two large closets one on each side of the bed, both containing at least 20 or more hangers.  The closets were spacious and one of the closets even had 2 large drawers on the bottom.  There was more storage space throughout the cabin, that even I couldn't fill, and I bring A LOT of clothes. A dresser with 4 large drawers and over the bed storage too.  The bathroom had shelves on one side of the sink and a solid shelf beneath the sink. I brought a collapsable container to put our toiletries in and kept it on the bottom shelf.

Though we didn't get to use the balcony because of the storm, it was large enough with 2 chairs and ottomans  and a small table.  No complaints with any of these things.

The food was delicious, we ate in the American Icon one night, the staff was pleasant and attentive, the service was also quick, our waitress made sure everything was to our liking and told us if we wanted more of anything, main course included she'd bring it to us, and if didn't like what we ordered, no problem, we could order something else. The dining room was very pretty and elegant.  We had several meals in the Windjammer Buffet breakfast, lunch, dinner when we chose to.  The food in the Windjammer was better than I expected, since i read such terrible reviews about how horrible the food was.  

It was most delicious and there was a great selection. Breakfast had everything that you would expect to have available for you for breakfast.  We usually got made to order omelets.  Delicious!  Lunch had EVERYTHING from some kind of fresh carved meat to wraps, made to order paninnis, chicken dishes and fish dishes, cooked to order asian food dishes, tacos, etc. etc.  All good!  Dinner was also absolutely great with a wide selection of carved meats and delicious hot dishes. I had the best Prime Rib there!   They always had soup, pizza, and pasta that you can order the way you want it.  My husband always got the pizza, many reviews said it was horrible, NOT!  It was a thin crust pizza with lots of cheese and toppings.  The hot foods were HOT and the cold foods were COLD! The staff in the buffet cleared the tables quickly!   They brought you your your beverages, soda, coffee and tea etc.   Of course the first day on the cruise when everyone was boarding, the Windjammer was packed and it was a bit harder to get a table.  That only makes sense though.

So the food was awesome!   I did get to try out the North Star which raises you up in the air 300 feet.  I did it while we were still in the Bayonne Port.  I got to see NYC up close.   So this was the first day.   The second day we had a terrible storm with waves that supposedly rose to 30-35 feet and winds that reached 150 miles an hour. The waves did come up to our 12th Deck balcony.  The morning was a little rocky, we had reservations  for the show, "We Will Rock You" at 2:30 pm.  We got to see some of the show, then the weather took a turn for the worse. The ship began to rock quite a bit, and the performers were beginning to loose their footing, they did tell us before the show began that the performers safety was utmost.  They cancelled the show immediately.  No one complained, it was for the safety of the performers and our own safety as well.  My husband returned to our cabin around 3 pm.  I went to get a cup of coffee.  That proved to be very difficult, the storm had increased in strength in less than a half hour.  People were having a difficult time walking. first clue,  RETURN to your cabins, no one should have to tell you to do that, it's common sense.  I went back to our cabin, and Captain Claus made the announcement that EVERYONE NEEDED to return to their cabins and stay there till further notice.  It must have been 3:15, 3:30  by this time.  The captain made an announcement at least every hour from this time, until the cruise director joined the captain in the bridge or whatever you call it.  This was a good thing, though many people complained because now the cruise director, Abe was making all of the announcements and not the captain.  To me that was the right thing to do, the captain DID NOT need to take his attention away from what was most important, keeping us safe and concentrating on the safety of both the passengers and the ship.  Abe took over the duties of making the announcements and keeping us informed at least once an hour.  He did a great job of maintaining a calmness. The captain did make an announcement that the passengers could help themselves to beverages and snacks in the mini bar, he also told us that we could access the pay preview movies at no charge. During the night, our attendant came around to the cabins that didn't have a "do not disturb" sign  on their door, with water and fruit. The announcements went on for the rest of the day and until the next morning.  Between 7 am and 8 am the seas began to quiet and we were permitted to leave our cabins.  Most of the areas that we passed through suffered damage with chairs overturned, the water was no longer in the pools, there was broken glass on the 14th deck and numerous other things that were damaged or broken.  We made our way to the Windjammer for breakfast, had to wait about 1/2 an hour, the Windjammer had a lot of damage to the kitchen and dining area.  They worked diligently to get everything clean and made the areas safe for us.  An announcement was made apologizing for any inconveinance, but they did a wonderful job and there was still plenty of good food considering what the staff also went through.

The captain spoke to us through the PA system numerous times during the day, offering us free internet and at one time free open bar for 1 hour.  He did everything in his power to make the passengers safe.  Several times during the morning he said that he was in contact with the Royal Caribbean's home in Miami and also with the Coast Guard.  We only got as far as the Carolinas when the Captain made the announcement that we would be returning to Bayonne.

He said that another storm was coming up from the south and that he would not subject us or the ship to any danger.  He apologized and said that the full cost of the cruise, everything that was spent, including parking in Bayonne, would be refunded to us in 6 to 8 weeks and that we could book another cruise with R.C.

at 50% off.  I know this is long, but because of this storm, there was a lot to cover.  Now for the couple of negatives.  Because the ship had at least 4,550

passengers, some things were difficult, like Guest Services.  At any given time

when you went to Guest Services, there were at least between 20 to 25 people in line. There were about 5 or 6 reps. and few others walking around with I pads and trying to answer questions.  They definitely need more reps for a ship of this capacity.  It was impossible to use the bumper cars, they only operated a few hours at the time and the line was huge.  The area referred to Two70 was a total let down, it was not,  as described, It was said "Vistarama transforms Two70's floor to ceiling sea view into any scene, real or imagined."  It was supposed to

have 18 projectors projecting great things, and different types of entertainment.  We saw a trapeze artist there once, all the other times, nothing.  The ship is extremely hot in most places, with the exception of walking to the buffet.  Unless you find the all "glass" elevator, you will need to walk outside to get to the buffet.  Not a great design, you'd always need to have a coat or jacket with you, unless you located the "glass" elevators, or the weather is warm, which it wasn't.

All in all,  considering these few negatives, the Anthem of the Seas was a great ship with lots of shows and things to do. I absolutely cannot believe all the negatives that I read about before we boarded, which by the way took 5 minutes to check in, and if you arrive at the time you are supposed to arrive, you'll be on the ship in 10-15 mins.  We don't live in a perfect world, so why would you even expect to have the perfect cruise. You definitely should make reservations for the restaurants and for the shows.  Then things will go more smoothly.  Don't wait till you get on board to do these things. So despite the storm, all was well!