It’s worth it for Cuba alone!

Item: Empress of the Seas
Rating: 4
Author: SkipperCubby

Empress of the Seas Cruise Review to Cuba

SkipperCubby

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 4-6 cruises

Review: 1

Helpful Votes: 20

Overall rating:

4 out of 5

6 Night Yucatan & Havana Overnight (Miami Roundtrip)

Sail date: April 28, 2018

Ship: Empress of the Seas

Cabin type: Inside

Cabin number: 8183

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 6 years ago

Review summary

Great cruise to Cuba. It’s a good ship for a short trip. 6 nights was possibly a little long for a small ship.

Embarkation

4 out of 5

Got there around 11am, With no wait really. However, they have you fill out a separate piece of paper declaring that you’re not sick, which caused a buildup of people around the entrance digging for pens and searching for writing surfaces.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

4 out of 5

Windjammer was excellent, but the main dining room wasn’t anything special. The food there is basically the same in the windjammer. We were sat on deck 4 for dinner, and the vibration of the ship made me feel sick the two nights we ate there. They did have people coming around asking how they can improve the dining experience, which isn’t surprising since as the cruise went on the windjammer was packed with people for dinner. Also, skip the brunch on sea day - it wasn’t worth eating there just for one free mimosa.

Windjammer Café

5 out of 5

Food here was excellent. Every meal, including late night snacks, was fresh. People working there were really friendly and opened our brought-on wine and brought wine glasses.

Onboard Activities

3 out of 5

Pool deck gets pretty busy, but the pool was never full. The activities out on the pool deck were a lot of fun. Because it’s a small ship, there isn’t a lot to do a night but go to the shows, so we would sit out on the bow or aft of the ship on deck 6.

Entertainment

3 out of 5

We didn’t see any shows, but the live music was pretty good on the pool deck. We enjoyed watching movies out in the hot tub.

Service and Staff

5 out of 5

Literally everyone on board we encountered was so friendly and genuinely wanted to make your cruise the best possible.

Ship Quality

4 out of 5

It’s an old ship so there’s not a whole lot they can do about that. It’s been redone really well and the cabins and communal areas are better on this ship than the majesty of the seas. There was always soap in the dispensers, paper towels, fresh plates and silverware, and toilet paper.

Cabin / Stateroom

4 out of 5

It’s tiny, but we didn’t mind. Our three large suitcases fit under the bed, and there was more than enough storage space. Bed was really comfortable. I will say, however, our bed vibrated a lot with the ship and made me feel ill the first couple of nights. I ended up sleeping on a hammock on the sun deck :)

Ship tip

Eat all meals in the windjammer. Get your spot on the pool deck early - most people save deck chairs so you might as well too. Watch the sunrise from the aft of the ship on deck. Go into the windjammer from the pool on the left side - everyone goes in from the right but the left was always empty.

Thumbs up

Ports of call

Miami, Florida

3 out of 5

Miami is beautiful but the traffic is horrendous.

Thumbs Up 9

Costa Maya (Mahahual), Mexico

5 out of 5

The port was recently remodeled and looked really nice. The pool is amazing there and free to use. I booked an excursion to Maya Chan - was awesome!!

Thumbs Up 1

Cozumel, Mexico

3 out of 5

This port wasn’t the best - people were aggressively trying to get you to go into their stores, and the taxi drivers refused to take us to where we wanted to go because it would be a low fare - they kept trying to get us to go to Mr. Sanchos. Ended up at paradise beach, which was pretty nice.

Thumbs Up 4

HAVANA, CUBA

5 out of 5

This is what made the trip worth it. You don’t need an excursion to get off the boat. Get off and go explore - we had several mojitos, food, and walked all over the city. It’s a really safe city and it’s like no where I’ve ever been in the world.

Thumbs Up 11

Disembarkation

3 out of 5

Getting off the ship was easy because we had our bags with us. The people who left their bags outside were stuck for awhile because the room holding the luggage was inaccessible due to the door not working. Also the port of Miami’s computer system went down so no one could be processed for about a half an hour.

Traveler Photos

3 Comments

SkipperCubby 6 years ago

They include medical insurance for Cuba as part of the cruise. As for shore excursions, you’ll declare to RC that you’re taking a tour, whether by them or third party, but it isn’t something Cuba or the US border/ customs checks. In fact, RC encourages you to get off the ship to get your passport stamped, exchange money, and take photos on your own. There is a cigar/ coffee/ rum shop at the port terminal that is the same price as other govt run stores, however that establishment didn’t have a humidor/ controlled climate for their cigars like other cigar stores in Cuba.

Thumbs Up 0

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Donnapatience 6 years ago

Hi we are leaving soon to Cuba on Royal , did you have to purchase medical / Travel insurance ? Royal makes it look like we have to purchase a shore excursion to get off the ship , thanks for your info . Are there Cigar shops on the Port ? Thanks again .

Thumbs Up 0

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IkeDeb 6 years ago

Great!!+😉

Thumbs Up 0

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