Overall we had a great cruise as you will have a good time if you chose to. This was our 3rd cruise but not our favorite on RCL. Again I'm not a 100% sure it was all RCL's fault but more of a learning experience for a young couple. We had never cruised out of a Florida port and at least 75% of the boat was over the age of 62. It was just like the stereotype that you hear about. We have cruised out of New Orleans & Norfolk and we may try those again. Just a better crowd for a couple in thier mid 30's with no kids.
The ports were Awesome - St. Kitts, St. Marteen, & San Juan were worth every penny of the cruise. All other comments are listed below.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
3 out of 5
First off the dining experience at Portofino's & Chops was excellent. The food at Portofino's was worth the upcharge and after several average dinners at MDR we were ready for something excellent. Everything from food, service, & selection were excellent. Chops, a couple nights later, was just as strong.
For some reason we had to have My Time Dining and we would not recommend it. Although we met some great people due to having new people to eat with we felt the service was well below average. It felt like they just wanted to get you in and out so they could have another table. There were 3 nights that we were never even offered wine - not even a suggestion. The beef seemed to be the best choice most nights but if you were trying to be healthy the other options were subpar. Some of the basics like refilling of water & ice tea were hard to come by.
Entertainment
3 out of 5
Of course RCL is great at this. Although we didn't take advantage of many of the shows were heard very positive comments on the entertainer, comedian, & ice shows. The Latin Bar was a hit every night and had great music & dancing.
Note: Dan, Dan, the Party man (Cruise Director) - was so annoying. He was sarcastic to many of the guests at the C&A event.
Service and Staff
3 out of 5
This is where we were most disappointed. We have been on other cruises where you always had to say hello to the staff because they were always saying to you. This trip seemed like many people were just not has happy to be on this ship. The one exception was our Bartenders at the pool! Absolutely awesome guys. George & Andre were what you except on every cruise. They took the time to listen to what you liked to drink and took care of us all week. They had a huge following and on the last day there were tons of people slipping 20's to each of them.
Note: As a member of the C&A club you can give WOW cards for service. We gave out 6 to people as they just did such a great job.
Ship Quality
3 out of 5
The ship was large and well laid out. This class of ship seems to really focus on Deck 5 - The Royal Promenade. Kind of like an inside shopping mall with bars as well. The only issue is that if I want to be on a boat I like to be outside. The only outside was the pool deck. We have traveled on other Royal ships & NCL and they had bars outside. We will say DO NOT use Vintages if you are a wine person. I had done quite a bit of research before around the wine package and did not sign up for a reason. It became clear after one stop at Vintages. There list has below average selection with inflated prices. With RCL not allowing you to bring your own on anymore a WINE person would be very disappointed.
As this ship has spent half of the year in Europe you must be prepared that you can smoke in most bars. It seems like they chose to keep some places smoke free and others not. Odd and we heard several comments from people about how strong the smoke smell was.
Cabin / Stateroom
3 out of 5
Good size room for an inside one. Was well taken care off and our steward was always responsive. It seemed like there was much less staff this trip.
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