Good but could have been better.

Empress of the Seas (RETIRED) 223 Cruise Review to Bermuda

Cruises: 4-6 cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 28

Overall rating:

3 out of 5
Verified Review
Empress of the Seas (RETIRED) 223

7 Night Bermuda (Philadelphia Roundtrip)

Sail date: October 07, 2006

Ship: Empress of the Seas (RETIRED) 223

Cabin type: Inside

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 14 years ago

Review summary

This was our 4th cruise, but our first with Royal Caribbean. Overall the cruise was good. I probably would not have booked this cruise if I had know this was the smallest ship in RC's fleet. The ride from Philly to Bemuda was extremely rough. The ship bounced around alot. Once we arrived at port, things were very good the rest of the trip. The food was better than some other cruises we were on, but not as good as some - I would rate it in the middle of the pack. Service was very good. The cabin steward was great as was our waiter and assistant waiter. There always seemed to be clutter in the hallways. Vacuum cleaners sitting around all day, food trays from room service sat outside doors for whole days. It was difficult to get into a hot tub because kids were occupying them, even though the sign said no one under 16 was allowed. Same way with the pool - full of kids. We tried to relax by the pool and read a book several days, but the live music at the pool was very loud and we had to move indoors. The ship was very clean and staff were always cleaning windoes and polishing brass. The windjammer buffet was easy to access and the food was very good.

Ports of call

Hamilton, Bermuda

3 out of 5
Busy city. We used the bus/ferry pass to get around. Busses make a lot of stops and take a while to get from point A to point B. Ferry's are much faster. The bus and ferry schedules are hard to read and we would end up missing the one we wanted, then waiting for another hour for the next one. If I had it to do over, I would rent a scooter and do my own thing. The cathedral is a "must see" - beautiful. The beaches are great.
Don't Miss: Cathedral, Gibbs Hill Light house, beaches.

St. George's, Bermuda

3 out of 5
Waste of time to dock here. We arrived around 4 PM and everything closed at 5 PM. We went walking after dinner around 7:30 PM but it was dark and we felt uncomfortable walking the narrow streets with no street lights.

Hamilton, Bermuda

3 out of 5
Busy city. We used the bus/ferry pass to get around. Busses make a lot of stops and take a while to get from point A to point B. Ferry's are much faster. The bus and ferry schedules are hard to read and we would end up missing the one we wanted, then waiting for another hour for the next one. If I had it to do over, I would rent a scooter and do my own thing. The cathedral is a "must see" - beautiful. The beaches are great.
Don't Miss: Cathedral, Gibbs Hill Light house, beaches.

St. George's, Bermuda

3 out of 5
Waste of time to dock here. We arrived around 4 PM and everything closed at 5 PM. We went walking after dinner around 7:30 PM but it was dark and we felt uncomfortable walking the narrow streets with no street lights.

Pros: Service & staff and the food

Cons: Size of ship & rough ride.

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