Good, Not Great

Embarkation was horrendous for us! We arrived on time for our 1-1:30pm check in. We failed to do this but it is good to have cash to tip the porters at the port who will be handling your bags. Embarkation was awful for us because we had to wait in a line that wrapped around terminal D. Once we got inside they check in was chaotic, and there weren't enough attendants tell us where to go. We then stood in another line to get upstairs to the waiting area where we had to wait for them to call our zone number. Once they FINALLY called our number we had to wait yet again on the gangway! It took us 2+ hours in total to board! We got there at 1:15 and boarded at around 4pm. We went directly to our muster stations then had to wait for the tons of people behind us to boarded after us to get to their muster stations before we could board. We were exhausted, hungry and sweaty. We have never had an embarkation like this and we hope not to have that experience again. My husband heard gossip that there may have been a broken satellite that they were fixing and couldn't let anyone onto the ship. We never got confirmation of this though.

The food and drink was the main contributing factor for my review. One of the biggest things for me when I cruise is the food. Onboard the Vista I had to wait ENTIRELY TOO LONG FOR FOOD. We stood in line sometimes 30 mins to eat! My husband and I ordered lots of room service and ate in the specialty restaurants to avoid having to stand in those awful lines. And when I did suck it up and stood in the line the food just didn't pay off for me, I was a bit disappointed with the food at the buffets and I usually never complain about the food. Never. Even in this instance the food was not bad, it really wasn't, it just wasn't impressive at all which for me was not worth the wait. For some reason we couldn't figure out, during lunch and dinner there would be just one side of the buffet opened. Other times there would be whole portions of the buffet that were closed down. Lunch and dinner service is only 2 hours...so imagine funneling the better part of 4000 people into one side of the buffet. Especially since the ship is set up to host 2 Lido buffets! This is kinda confusing at first too because both sides are identical so figuring out which side is open when was annoying in and of itself. But they were never open at the same time. I came to dread going up there to eat. There was never a time when there wasn't a line for food, even at 3am the pizza place being the only place other than the one side of the Lido Buffet to open at that time... there was you guessed it....a line. Another peeve of mine was that the Lido was not listed in the app as being open at that time to eat either. So we found that out while we were on our way to the pizza place. We purchased the Bubbles plan. It was a waste of time. You can only get soda at the bars, at the restaurant and I think one other place. You can only get 1 glass at a time, which is highly annoying, and you have to wait 5 mins between glasses. You can NOT order soda from room service, and those juices available through the Bubbles plan are FREE through room service. It was too difficult getting the damn soda so we hardly got to use it. Lastly all those juices available during breakfast? Well they pull those and replace them with lemonade and unsweetened tea during the day. Again, highly annoying. But that opinion extends ONLY for the buffet! My husband and I had two PHENOMENAL meals one high end and one lower end which I think says something. The first amazing meal we had was at Chef's Table. Chefs Table is an upscale culinary adventure. Everything was beautiful from the ambiance to the tableware. You are waited on hand and foot and the Chef takes his time to explain to you the craft and care that went into every course. This almost two-hour culinary adventure It is really something special, so if you were considering attending Chefs Table I encourage you to do it, it will be a meal you won't soon forget. Chefs Table is $95 per person. The second awesome meal we had was at Bonsai Sushi. YES! Bonsai Sushi. The noodle bowl there made our eyes roll back in our heads. So good! The wait staff was courteous and attentive and we enjoyed the ambiance there as well. The prices are great! Much cheaper than rolls you would get elsewhere. Bonsai is a new must-do for me.

Theres lots to do! There will be no shortage of activities for you to try! Our favorites are karaoke (just watching), bingo, comedy shows, deck parties, dive in theater, the love and marriage show...among so many others. Theres plenty to do on the Vista.

My favorite entertainer was Caribbean Sounds with Julian! Julian is a wonderful performer and he played the steel pan with finesse. I had a great time listening to him and I will definitely seek him out again if he's onboard. Miss Blease is an awesome DJ and I enjoyed her spinning and The Flying Scottsman is a lot of fun as a Cruise Director.

The Serenity deck was not well kept. There was a cigar burn in one of the seats and the cushions needed to be cleaned. It was difficult for the staff to bus the Lido deck tables as fast as they needed to because of the sheer number of people. I really believe the staff did their best but it was hard to keep it up. Lots of plates standing around and dirty tables. Again we've cruised on ships there were much better kept.