I will not go on Royal Caribbean cruise lines again unless the destinations are fabulous! I am certain that I will recount my story to friends and let people on the poor food and on-board shows.
Embarkation
3 out of 5
It was ok and just about the same as many other cruises I have been on.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
1 out of 5
I have to say that the menu selections for my “Anytime Dining” were the worst of all of my previous cruises. Many nights there was literally NOTHING on the menu that I would eat and therefore I was forced to go to the Windjammer Buffets, which I never like. That includes desserts that were terrible choices. On the other Royal Caribbean cruises I have taken, shrimp cocktail was a mainstay every night. It was NEVER offered on any nights during the entire 12-day cruise. I spoke with a number of other US guests who have been on many cruises and who felt the same and said they would negatively comment as well.
Onboard Activities
2 out of 5
The only thing I liked about the onboard activities was the trivia sessions and a couple of other games.
Entertainment
1 out of 5
The entertainment was well below par of the other cruise lines. There were only about 3 shows (in 12 nights) worth watching. The shipboard singers were not good at all. Especially, the featured singer "Kenton". He couldn't hit many notes and yet he was featured for a number of individual songs. I were hoping for some comedians but there were no such shows. They actually had a MIME for one show - Really?
Service and Staff
1 out of 5
Customer Service crew was not good. I cold see that they hated their jobs and were not even minimally courteous.
Ship Quality
1 out of 5
This is an older ship and as such the design is not well suited for all types of travelers. The ship main areas were ok but not great to look at.
Cabin / Stateroom
1 out of 5
The cabin was small for a balcony room. The show was so small that when I dropped the soap it was very difficult to pick it back up and staying in the shower. Very cramped - I would say that older folks would have a difficult time maneuvering in that very tiny shower.
Ship tip
I would NOT recommend that you cruise on this ship unless the ports of call are somewhere you really wanted to go on a vacation.
Ship excursion was a waste of money. This tour was a boat ride around Venice without any stops and only brief narration. It was a nice boat ride but not at all worth the price, as we didn’t really experience a “tour guide” experience.
Doge’s Palace, St. Mark’s Cathedral and Glass Showroom - This was a terrible tour and really a waste of money. The guide spent a minimal amount of time with us and then it was mainly on our own. What did we pay for? Finally, the Glass Showroom was just a marketing ploy to get us to buy Murano Glass products. I am sure that you get some kind of cut on what we buy there. I didn’t pay to be pushed into buying products during a tour that I already paid for????
The country is beautiful but again the tour portion was minimal. We had a long drive to get there and then only had about a 45 minute guided tour. Again, what did we pay for – it seems like a bus ride?
This was the worst of all the tours! First, I stopped at Guest Services to inquire about the caution on this tour for “Motion Sickness”. Your staff told me that it was just because the trip involved going high up a mountain grade and that most people don’t get sick. Well, let me tell you that you should provide a MUCH stronger warning. The bus trip was very long to the first stop and the “switchbacks” were often harrowing with the bus actually extending over the curve with significant drops. The path up the mountain was harrowing but it was even worse going downhill as many parts of the road were being repaired and were basically stone and gravel with more harrowing turns without paved roads to provide traction. Also, we had two brief stops. The first was a 20-minute stop which allowed us to take a necessary bathroom break but no time to even look around. The second stop was only 45 minutes and by the time we got into the town, we only had about 25 minutes and that was to include lunch which we never got because our order never came out! WE paid for a long, harrowing bus ride and nothing else. This was a 100% total waste of time!
We ran into a tropical storm one night and we swayed a bit but the captain changed course around it so it was fine.I have been on the smaller ones 3 times and that was the only time I felt any movement.
We are booked to go on Brilliance in December. It is a smaller vessel than I've been on before and I am worried about motion sickness. How much do you feel the motion on Brilliance?
No,really easy to find your way around.We also did alot of trivia,we learned the dance Thriller and performed it in the main rotundra the last night,just enjoy!
rcl is our favorite cruise line. have been on over 26 cruises and used 5 different lines. sorry you had a bad experience, but that can happen on any cruise line. we will never use Carnival again and have done 6 with them. it depends on what you are looking for. Have fun on your next cruise.
seems like you had a lot to moan about and didnt do enough research on your tours and destinations.
cant just turn up and expect them to run it to suite you
I am going on my 3rd cruise with Carnial in less than 3 weeks. My fam. has been on 4. I highly recommend Carnival. Food and Entertainment are never boring. We have been on the Valor, Dream, and in a few weeks, the Splendor. They NEVER dissapoint!!
*Cruiseline.com is not a booking agent or travel agency,
and does not charge any service fees to users of our site. Our partners
(travel agencies and cruise lines) provide prices, which we list for our
users' convenience. Cruiseline.com does not guarantee any specific rates or
prices. While prices are updated daily, please check with the booking site
for the exact amount. Cruiseline.com is not responsible for content on
external web sites.
Contact us
Submitting...
Need help from a personal vacation planner?
Loading...
Find the perfect cruise with weekly tips and cruise deals for as little as $30/night!
Sign up for weekly cruise deals
Join other subscribers and get the best
cruise deals of the week in your inbox every Thursday.
