Never again. This was essentially a trashy adult sleep away camp on water. Save your money and book a ship out of miami that’s newer and has more amenities or more ports of call.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
smooth as can be!
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
1 out of 5
if you want to lose weight, go on this cruise. the food is absolutely terrible. everything from the bread itself to the dining room meals was flavorless, overcooked, stale and just awful.
Onboard Activities
1 out of 5
this is the smallest and oldest ship in the fleet. I called it this discount cruise. there is absolutely nothing for kids other than 3 water slides that your kids will get bored at after an hour.
Entertainment
1 out of 5
lack luster. there was a great comedian (Billy) who made this 2 star worthy. There was no outdoor entertainment during the mid day. Being at sea for 3 days you’d think they’d have something scheduled on the hour every hour. The DJ did like 45 min stints and played no music from today’s era.
Children's Programs
1 out of 5
if I could rate this a negative 5 stars I would. There is just nothing for kids under 12. The water slides are sad and essentially empty. I have 3 kids under 8 and they were bored to tears (literally) after day 1 hour 2 on the ship. The kids club is jail. We sent them for a whopping 45 minutes and something in my gut told me to check on them. When I went, it looked like they had been through WAR. There was a child with disabilities in there punching and kicking everyone in his wake and he gave my son a punch in the eye so bad he required an ice pack. When I asked why no one called me to report the injury, they told me it was because the child had disabilities. SO WHAT. Since when did we allow a disability to be an excuse for abuse????
Service and Staff
1 out of 5
no eye contact whatsoever from anyone on the ship. In previous cruises (with Carnival) the service and food had been fantastic. This is very much a discount cruise.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
ship was clean and remained so throughout the week. 5 stars for cleanliness
Cabin / Stateroom
2 out of 5
for 5 people (with littles) we made this room work. But we will never cruise again unless we have a larger room. and after this experience, we are likely to never cruise again.
Ship tip
SKIP THIS SHIP. pick a newer ship out of a bigger port that has updated amenities and positive reviews of the food. (and perhaps from someone who’s from a major foodie town like Boston where we can actually rate food quality because we have superb food options. personally that’s key for me in future vacation reviews.
what a sad city. It’s got a lot of potential being that it’s ocean front. And from the multiple uber drivers we met throughout the beginning and end of our trips, it seems as if the city is growing and expanding and coming to life. But as it stands today, it’s a dump.
We did resort for a day at Baha Mar and that was 10/10. I wish we booked out week here instead. they had everything a kid could dream of and more. A water park with lazy river and multiple play spots, beach access, multiple restaurants on site and the food was OUTSTANDING. And we ordered from an onsite food truck! I can’t imagine how delicious the on site sit down places are. We will be back here again
absolutely stunning. This was a hit for our family as avid beach goers. The water was unreal and i’ve never seen anything like it. There is nothing to do in terms of amenities. This is a true beach day. So bring beach gear and toys and it’s the perfect relaxation day.
the express checkout was not express. Long lines and definitely a fire hazard the way it’s set up. Wasn’t horrificccccccccccc because we are early birds and got in line early. But they don’t even offer water up and down the lines while waiting. So either get up at 6am for breakfast or pack snacks and waters and prepare to wait in line.
Heck I love the Elation. But I live the smaller ships , but I also don’t bring children with me. Choose a larger ship that has more to offer Don’t give up on cruising just yet.
Obviously you realized after you got on the ship the mistake you made in picking an old small ship. I am surprised how many people make that mistake. There are those that absolutely love the older smaller ships, but most people don't. Especially those with kids. If you go on a new larger ship, I think you will be happy. I would suggest the newer ships on Royal Caribbean. They have a lot of stuff for kids to do.
Hopefully your next planned vacation is better. To me, it would be very uncomfortable to cruise with 5 in a cabin. Three is the max that I have experienced. When 4 of us went last year, we selected two cabins with an adjourning door between. Was wonderful. Thanks for sharing.
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