Despite mistakes, favourite cruise

Item: Crystal Symphony
Rating: 4.3
Author: teamflames

Crystal Symphony Cruise Review

teamflames

Contributor Level: First Mate

16 Days Till Next Cruise

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Reviews: 27

Helpful Votes: 606

Overall rating:

4.3 out of 5

19 Night Rio Rendezvous (New Orleans To Rio De Janeiro)

Sail date: January 05, 2019

Ship: Crystal Symphony

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 5 years ago

Review summary

After initial problems with a dirty cabin and food poisoning overcome became our favourite cruise due to wonderful staff amazing food and cocktails. Comfortable ship with loads to do and amazing entertainment. Can’t wait to cruise on her again.

Embarkation

5 out of 5

Wonderful greeting and straight onto the ship and straight into the restaurant. Best ever by a mile.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

5 out of 5

Nobu restaurant was phenomenal as was the mdr. My wife’s birthday breakfast was incredible. Loved the churasscaria. Buffet could be improved. Got sick from the Chinese. Best room service at sea!

Onboard Activities

5 out of 5

Loads to do. Great lectures. Cinema with movies was fun. Art classes. Dancing. Trivia was boring. Table tennis, paddle tennis. Gym Classes. Missed some of the silly competitions held on other lines like Seabourn and Regent

Entertainment

5 out of 5

Best entertainment we have encountered on a small ship. Guest entertainers were excellent. Russ the CD was great. White night is fun. Mark Farris is a hoot!

Service and Staff

5 out of 5

Best service at sea. Officers were not friendly though.

Ship Quality

5 out of 5

Older ship but immaculate. Loads of space, dont be put off by the 800 odd passengers as there are so many places to hide. Library is excellent.

Cabin / Stateroom

3 out of 5

The only downfall of our cruise. Our initial cabin was filthy. Dust everywhere. Trash on ground, in drawers and cabins. Sparked asthma attack. We were moved late on the first day but complete lack of apology or care was disappointing. Cabins are not Crystals strong suit compared to their competitors but they were still comfortable and we don’t spend a lot of time in them