A Very Good Cruise

Mariner of the Seas Cruise Review

SeaNotes

Contributor Level: Second Mate

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Reviews: 9

Helpful Votes: 79

Overall rating:

4.6 out of 5

5 Night Cozumel & Perfect Day (Port Canaveral Roundtrip)

Sail date: November 26, 2022

Ship: Mariner of the Seas

Traveled as: Singles/Friends

Reviewed: 1 year ago

Review summary

Overall the cruise was well worth it. I was stunned at how many people were on this cruise which left the port the Saturday after Thanksgiving. I actually expected it to be rather empty and I was totally off base on that. Not only was it almost to full capacity but there were a lot more children on this cruise than I expected so if you're looking for something that's a bit more family-friendly this may be a great time for you to book a cruise for next year. On the flip side if you're looking for a cruise with fewer kids and more adults then you may want to reconsider this time of year. The weather was absolutely beautiful in Cozumel and it was actually much hotter than I expected. I will certainly continue to cruise with Royal but I will not cruise on Mariner again.

Embarkation

5 out of 5

Port Canaveral was absolutely packed on embarkation day but Royal did a great job of getting everybody on in a timely manner. I was part of the 11:00 a.m. group and by the time I got checked in they were calling people for boarding times of 12:30 so they were getting us on very quickly.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

5 out of 5

Main Dining Room

4 out of 5

The service in the dining room was exceptional but the reason for the four-star rating is due to the extremely long line to be seated each night even with a reservation.In addition, the breakfast service in the main dining room was a disappointment almost everyday with almost a 45 minute wait to be served breakfast. That's definitely an anomaly for Royal but in this case it was a consistently long wait to get food. The food itself was fine but the weight to get it was far too long.

Café Promenade

5 out of 5

Always the best cappuccinos and croissants each morning. The staff at Cafe promenade were always fast and friendly.

Johnny Rockets

5 out of 5

Yes this is a specialty experience with an upcharge but Johnny Rockets has phenomenal hamburgers and milkshakes. The service was wonderful and the food was spectacular.

Onboard Activities

4 out of 5

Entertainment

5 out of 5

Service and Staff

5 out of 5

Roland was a fantastic room steward and Armando was very accommodating in the main dining room. The service was spot on throughout the entire cruise.

Ship Quality

3 out of 5

Obviously this is an older ship but the one thing I really did not like was how rusted and poorly maintained the balcony was for cabin 6340. It certainly needs a great deal of work and I was surprised at the poor condition.

Cabin / Stateroom

4 out of 5

I was in Cabin 6340 which was a balcony cabin. It was spacious and it had a huge sofa that I could actually lay completely in from head to toe. The rust on the balcony and the overall appearance of the balcony was very disappointing. Of course the bathroom is small but I found the shower to be larger and more accommodating than most. A couple of things that were minuses include the thermostat because it was very difficult to keep a consistent cabin temperature (and no I did not have the balcony door open all day). Another minus was the incredibly hard mattress. I have a feeling these mattresses are newer because they're not lumpy and they're not overly soft so if you appreciate a firm mattress you will be very happy with this cabin but I found myself waking up with back aches every morning so much so that on the last night of the cruise I actually slept on the couch. It is a very nice size cabin and it is a great view of the ocean.

Ship tip

Don't have high expectations for the latest and greatest in terms of what Royal is offering on newer ships. It is an older and smaller ship and it's certainly noticeable.

Thumbs up

Disembarkation

5 out of 5

It took longer for disembarkation than for embarkation but that is simply because so many people are leaving the ship and carrying their own luggage. It seemed to flow well and there wasn't any gridlock or hold-ups.

5 Comments

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