Overall, this was an excellent cruise. It was my daughter's first cruise. It was my first civilian (Non-military) cruise as well.
Embarkation
3 out of 5
I had an 1230 check-in. I was disappointed because people with later check-in appointments were allowed to check-in early. This caused for an excessive weight to get onto the ship as everyone wanted to get onto the ship ontime.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
I was disappointed the steak dining room was an additional charge. It would have been nice to have the experience to eat in the steak house, the silver and the golden dining rooms, one each night. I was only allowed to eat in the golden dining area. We were not allowed to eat in the silver dining area, this caused my daughter to wonder what we were missing.
Piano Man Bar
5 out of 5
Laura, the entertainer did an excellent Job. Probably one of the best experiences my daughter and I had aboard the ship. We spent 3-4 hours each night and each night there were new songs sung along with some known ones. We were very impressed with Laura's talent. Eric and Lauren
Onboard Activities
5 out of 5
We enjoyed all five hot tubs, both pools, the waterslide, miniature golf, corn-hole, the sun deck, and time in the main Flowers lobby. We also watched Flick and the 80's Rock Music show. In particular, we watched both of the rock shows on Saturday Night. Both shows were excellent, but we enjoyed the rock show the most. We sat center stage front row for both showings. Both shows were flawless.
Czar's Palace Casino
1 out of 5
I spent zero time in this area of the ship. In fact this is the only negative rating onboard the ship. I do not smoke and wished the Casino was contained so it did not contaminate other areas of the entertainment. The cigarette smoke was excessive, heavy, and thick. Overall it was a disgusting to even walk through the area due to the second hand smoke present. Had it been a non-smoking environment, I would have spent significant time in the casino.
Entertainment
5 out of 5
My daughter and I watched the first show of Flick and both shows of the 80's Rock show. The 80's Rock show was significantly better than Flick and both showings of the Rock show were excellent! We met a couple of the actors and took photos with the cast.
Venetian Palace Main Lounge
1 out of 5
I was personally disappointed in the Cruise Director. The cruise director was openly gay and black. I am a white diehard Christian, and not gay. I felt that he spent almost all his time with black customers on the cruise and limited his time with white customers. It is unknown whether this was intentional, that's the atmosphere I experienced. The cruise director was "Cookie"...
Service and Staff
4 out of 5
All the staff were polite and helpful. My only complaint with staff was associated with our waiter in the golden dining area. Both nights, he was very pushy and did not accept no for an answer when I declined a bottle of wine with dinner.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
Very impressed with the cleanliness of the ship.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
We spent very little time in the cabin. We showered and slept in the cabin.
Ship tip
It would have been nice to check in at a specified time, and given a brief tour of the ship upon boarding.
The port itself was disappointing with all the locals harassing you. I was also forced to do an excursion or visit the port. There was not enough time to do both. I have visited 17 countries in my life, and this was the worst local population I have experienced. On a positive note, we took an excursion (Snorkel and Beach tour) We took a 30 minute ride to an island, swam with turtles, then snorkeled above a reef at another island, and then visited a third island and spent time on a beach. The excursion was excellent.
We were rushed out of the cabin, an hour before we were allowed to leave the ship. I would have rather relaxed in the cabin until it was time to leave.
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