5 Night Key West & Havana Overnight (Tampa Roundtrip)
Sail date: October 16, 2017
Ship:
Empress of the Seas
Cabin type: Oceanview
Cabin number: 3108
Traveled as: Couple
Reviewed: 7 years ago
Review summary
We were very pleased with RCCL and Cuba. Had a great time. Well run ship and better than expected vs. larger ship which we pefer. Staff excellent and shows fine. Food and service in dnning room excellent. Buffet had good selection
Embarkation
5 out of 5
What a difference from Ft Lauderdale or Miami, probably because this was only ship embarking. Nice terminal. Got there around 11 am and went right to the chec-kin desk and were on board in about 20 minutes. No sitting needed. Could not go to cabin until 1:30 but they did have a roller bag check area watched by an officer, so we did that and went to buffet for lunch- all well run and very nice.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
5 out of 5
All food was above average and we have been on over 30 cruises on many different cruise lines. But we are easy to please. Did not hear anyone complain about the food or ilts service.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
All were good but lacked much going on in the evening besides the main show. If this had been other than a 5 day cruise we would have been disappointed and bored. But was fine for this cruise.
Entertainment
4 out of 5
The best shows were the ship's dance group who did two shows. They were good but not outstanding as we have seen on Celebrity and Princess. But were very well presented. The main show on last night was the best but would have been better if thery sang songs we knew. Theater was two levels and seats were very comfortable and roomy. Could arrive minutes before a show and getteing seat was no problem vs larger shops where you need to go at least 30 minutes to get a seat or any seat.
Children's Programs
Very few children and we did not bring any. We had realized this was not a cruise kids would enjoy due to itinerary. A few did bring toddlers who needed carriages on the tours over cobblestone streets, etc. One was on our tour and had negative affect- what were they thinking- wouldn't folks realize if part of a tour that included 2+ hours of walking and a stop at a rum and cigar activity, bringing kids is not a good idea?
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
Everyone were among the most gracious, helpful and pleasant of any ship we have cruised on. Truely a ship with heart!
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
For RCCL's oldest ship was excellently maintained from the staeroom to all public areas.
Cabin / Stateroom
4 out of 5
Cat H. We worried about size of cabin from reviews we had read. True it was small but it actually worked out fine. We even had extra luggage because of staying in Orlando at Disney for a week prior. Had a large picture window (vs a porthole that some oceanviews had) and storage seemed minimual at first look but we had no problems. Bathroom and shower were very small and Cruise Director even kidded about that at last show, but we had no problem even with that. Again a 5 day vs 15-18 day cruise helps not having issues with small cabins. Whole cabin was immaculate and better than on newer ships.
Ship tip
Don't worry about oceanview cabin size orf food. Non smoking casino was small.We are no big gamblers but more inclinced to go if non-smoking.
Main reason for thls cruise. Were not disappointed. We took the ships' walking tour of Old Havana. Husband liked and wife said it was OK. Lots of fast info from tour guide who was very nice but not time for many questions. Guide was verfy proud ofher country and never mentioned community ruleand very very poor living conditions. We both enjoyed the Rum tasting and cigar smoking and explanation from store manager, althought we did not light up. Seeing the old cars was very interesting. Locals were very nice and welcoming. Felt very safe. All guns were confiscated from residents by Castro, so only communist regime has guns so safe as far as local crime but one has to wonder if communist government could ever be overcome.
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