Got on board quickly. Photos came out great! Get the photo package on the first day! Great photo staff!! Stage productions were fun! Hated that shops and Windjammer seemed to have limited hours. Hated that ice cream is only 12noon-9 pm. Hated that deck 10 (walking track, rock wall, jump zone) were closed most of the cruise. Cafe Latitude is with Ben n Jerry’s is great! Ship always seems to plus sell everything.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
3 out of 5
Delicious or Mediocre- no in between!!!
Windjammer: Raw fruit always had a layer of wax. Windjammer food was often too salty! Loved how much variety Windjammer had but the food was not consistently tasty. The burgers were safe. I wanted to like the Cajun food as that’s my heritage but why was it so salty? I was glad there was curry and other Indian food as I love that cuisine but why was it so salty? I wanted to like it. Other items were tasty, like the TexMex. The food needs to be good overall. Taste the food before putting it out please.
Dining room: Fish of the day- delicious! Beef rib- delicious! Lasagna- sauce tasted like it came out of a can of Chef Boyardee! Why?!?! Mushroom soup- bravissimo!!! Lobster bisque- did that come out of a can???? Herb crusted salmon gave me loose stools one hour after eating it. Sad. I love salmon.
Park Cafe: no complaints, good pizza and parfaits.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
Little guy loved the jump zone. I didn’t get to try the rock climbing. The fitness center is ok. Some exercise bikes and elliptical were strange to operate- felt like walking in mud- just not smooth. Loved the walking track but it was only open on Galveston embark day and Cozumel day. That was disappointing as the rock wall and jump zone also couldn’t be accessed for most of the cruise.
Entertainment
3 out of 5
Great cruise director!!! Comedy show, Love and marriage show and Don’t stop the Rock were my favorites. Loved the dancers!!! Great job guys!!!
Children's Programs
4 out of 5
Little guy loved Adventure ocean. He played board games and made new friends. Asked to go every day.
Service and Staff
3 out of 5
Our waiters (Iketut and Puji - table 109) were wonderful! They were thoughtful, always smiling and anticipated our needs in advance! Great service each meal so I added extra tips for them on my sail account!!! Our room steward left a glove in our room. He would take out wet towels but sometimes forgot to replace them with fresh ones (for the floor at the shower). We didn’t see much of him at all til the last half of the trip. Ship staff throughout with the exception of waitstaff, art and Coffee shop often appeared exhausted and overworked. Staff tone throughout the ship was sad. Are these staff not given proper time to rest, Royal?!?!?!?! Last day of the cruise staff all over the ship were DESPERATELY BEGGING cruisers to write good reviews! It was strange! Who put them up to this?! The staff was sad and overworked all trip only to smile and beg for good reviews on the LAST day! What was that?!?!?!
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
Cleaning- I only saw restrooms being cleaned and painting or power washing being done outside the ship. Who’s cleaning this ship?! When I happened to touch a rail here or there- they were sticky!! Not a fan of the “cleanliness” of this ship! Just lots of signs saying to wash your hands and hand sanitizer stations close to restaurants and Adventure Ocean. The design of the ship had lots of art and sculptures which was nice and interesting. There were clearly a lot of idols throughout the ship especially next to paintings portraying India so I guess the other Idols throughout the ship were from the same culture??? I love art. I do not care for idols from any culture. Many of the idols were bare chested women so that was also a tun off. But the other art throughout the ship was interesting. The ship definitely shows it’s age- rust and paint chipping in many outside areas. The windows are cloudy/ not clean so visibility was compromised but many windows were open so it was nice to see clearly and feel the breeze. Ship needs to be dry docked and re-hauled. Windjammer often felted crowded. Ship needs more food venues. Park Cafe was pleasant. Less crowded and decent pizza. Ice cream cones were good. Loved Caffe Latitudes but got a charge from them even though I only ordered what the coffee card allows?! The art gallery and library are out in the open which was odd to me but I went to look at the changing art pieces each day. The shops were nice but had limited hours.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
The room was a cozy size. Liked the desk area. Felt cramped with the bed as a king with the couch. Felt roomier once the beds were separated as twins. Liked all the mirrors. Wish there was a shower door as the curtain didn’t stop the floor from being flooded each shower.
Ship tip
Timed dining often overlaps fun activities so anytime dining might be a better option. MDR or Park Cafe are better options for germaphobes (I didn’t like that everyone touches the tongs in the Windjammer).
Beautiful beaches! Little one didn’t want to leave. Recommend the train museum, interesting for all ages & you can climb into various train cars (must be a bit agile as there are steps to climb and the walkways are narrow). Quick ship boarding and customs process (with passports).
Breathtaking beaches! Enjoyed glass bottom boat tour to see the coral reef. The Downtown and beach excursion was a hit! Rum cakes are delicious and moist. Negotiated a great price on gemstone jewelry. Lots to see and do. Recommend the chocolate margaritas!
It was VERY windy at night! I mean, hold your dress down and wig on windy! We had one pleasant night where we danced the night away on deck 9. I think it was the same night we left Cozumel.
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