This was the 11th cruise that we have taken with Royal Caribbean and my favorite so far. I was afraid that 9 days on a smaller ship might get a little boring but I am now an avid fan of small ships. Naturally, everything was up to the Royal Caribbean standard and met all of our expectations. I love RC's loyalty program! They definitely show their appreciation for your continuted patronage.
There is not much that I would change. I would love to see a better light at the dressing table and wish they had t-shirts for sale in toddler sizes. I would have bought several if they had been available. I don't particularly like the high pressure sales pitch for the specialty restaurants that you get while eating in the Windjammer for the first half of the cruise. Make it available and if I want it, I'll buy it. I don't need high pressure pitches every time I sit down for a meal.
Their gluten free bread is amazing! (You have to ask for it.) Best I've had. Wish they had more gluten free dessert options but they always have ice cream so I did'nt ever go without.
The ports were all fun and interesting. Plenty to do and see to keep you busy all day and make you want to come back for more.
Loved this particular cruise so much that we will definitely do it again. Still plenty that we didn't see al all of the ports. Cruising in the Chesapeake Bay was a different experience. Real familiar with that area so it was fun to experience it from the middle of the bay.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
5 out of 5
Had dinner in the main dining room every night.... always good. Also had breakfast there one day. Otherwise, had breakfast and lunch in the Windjammer
Onboard Activities
5 out of 5
We've been on quite a few cruises so we have our favorite onboard activities down to a science. Plenty to do. Don't wear yourself out trying to do it all.
Entertainment
5 out of 5
Nice variety of entertainment
Children's Programs
5 out of 5
No kids with us.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
Our cabin steward was great.... went above and beyond when my husband said that his back hurt from the bed. Added 4 mattress pads to increase our comfort!
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
We were on this ship in 2000 and it has been completely updated since then. Nice, clean... no complaints.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
Better light needed at the dressing table. Hard to see to put make up on.
Rooms have been updated since the last time we cruised on this ship. Flat screen TV's have been mounted to the wall giving you extra space from where the used to sit on the dressing table. More storage spaces have been added to the bathroom and a drawer section added to the closet. Had plenty of room for both of us to store our things. In fact, didn't even use all of the storage that was available.
Ship tip
It's probably not the best ship to travel on if you are single. Plenty to do but less people, Seemed that it was mostly couples and families. This cruise has 3 days at sea. We love the days at sea but if you prefer the ports, you probably won't like this.
Had been to Boston before so didn't plan a lot to do. Just went to the USS Constitution. The ship docks on the far side of the city so if you like to walk like we do, be aware that everything is quite a hike.
Love this place. Beautiful, friendly, plenty to see. Very walkable but we did do the old fire engine city tour. It was $20 each. They only take 12 - 13 people at a time so there is plenty of opportunity to ask questions. Local coffee shop/gift shop directed us to a gluten free bakery where we got chocolate eclairs. Very good!
Great stop. Small town that is easy to walk around. We did the Schooner sail here. That was fun but it was cold that day so we froze a little out on the water. Still glad we did it. Check out Bar Harbor Pop Corn. Interesting flavors and free samples of all of them. Would have liked to walk across the sand bar to Bar Island at low tide but the timing was wrong.
This port was a lot bigger than I thought it would be but it is a nice area. The info desk gave us a walking map and we walked to the reversing rapids. It's a must see. There are tours that go there but we like to walk. The walkway followed the shore line. They told us it was a 45 minute walk but it took us about 25-30. The market in town was not that great. We did our shopping at the market at the cruise port. Prices were better. We wanted to buy syrup but they only had one in the size we wanted. Bought it for $18 and then bought another in Halifax - same size - for less than $12. Also bought maple cookies there for $7 and bought same cookies in Halifax for $5.
Halifax was another good walking city. It's a pretty big and busy place. They have a nice walkway/boardwalk on the shore. There is also a good walking tour through the English gardens and over to the Citadel (self guided). It's not very far but hilly. Plenty of opportunity to walk that ship food off:) Shopping was best at the ship terminal. Got our syrup at the market just before the terminal. It was about $3-$4 cheaper for the same thing.
we live on The Eastern Shore of Virginia and drive over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and Tunnel all the time.But it was amazing last August when we cruised to stay up and watch when the ship crossed between the bridges and over the tunnel! Amazing!We are doing same cruise this August and got to do it again!
Thanks so much for your review of all these ports. We've been on GOS twice and liked it Hubby and I are doing this same cruise out of NJ in September on the Anthem and haven't planned excursions, we're just going to wing it and explore on our own. Glad to hear there are interesting things at each port. Definitely made me want to go even more. Lol. Only 3 months from tomorrow!
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