Understand what you're getting into when you book a holiday cruise. Even though Royal Caribbean isn't normally known as a kid-friendly cruise line, when schools are out of session you can expect a lot of kids to be onboard. More than the ship is prepared to handle with kid-friendly activities.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
The Port of LA was very easy to navigate. We arrived just before our scheduled boarding time expecting a short wait before being able to check in. However, we were able to walk right through without even the slightest delay. We never sat down and barely even set our carry-on baggage down. It was an extremely easy process.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
As always with Royal Caribbean, the MDR is hit and miss. The food was good (not great) and our servers were very good as well. We did have a bit of confusion after our first evening in that they re-assigned our reserved table to another group (they needed to make a larger table), but we were moved right next to a window.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
Being a holiday cruise (Thanksgiving) the ship was over-run with kids. They were absolutely everywhere including the "adult-only" solarium. There were two separate incidents with kids playing during one of the live shows and being disruptive. Another couple complained and staff finally asked the family to go elsewhere, which they did. Overall the shows were good, but being a smaller ship, there weren't some of the venues we're used to seeing.
Entertainment
4 out of 5
The shows were high quality, but lacked variety seen on other RC Ships.
Children's Programs
3 out of 5
Being a holiday cruise (Thanksgiving) the kids areas were over-full. Kids were running everywhere on the ship because the kids areas were first-come, first-served and filled up very quickly.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
The staff on this ship was very well trained, professional, and definitely were all going the extra step to make sure everyone's vacation was great. Since cruises have been at full capacity, we've taken a couple trips where the staff wasn't prepared for the number of guests. That wasn't the case here!
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
I have a mixed review for the ship's design and cleanliness. The recent revamp of the Navigator of the Seas has brought several of the newer amenities seen on other ships to this one. Everything was updated and fresh. However, the ship is obviously older and the decks and balconies show signs of wear ant tear (rust) and other issues. Overall it's very good, but there is room for improvement.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
Room was typical of a Royal Caribbean balcony room. Plenty of room for two people, but any more than that would be extremely tight.
Definitely worth going into the port area a couple days early. There is a lot to do in nearby Long Beach. We visited the Aquarium of the Pacific and did a whale/dolphin watching tour. We saw three whales, more than 10 dolphins and sea lions. Definitely worth the $30.
Catalina Island doesn't have much to offer other than sight-seeing and shopping. It is a tender port and the tender operation is ran by the island (not the ship) and they don't have enough tenders, don't have a good way to manage a crowd, and caused a LOT of discontent among the passengers. Passengers waited up to 5 hours to disembark from the ship and more than 3 hours to re-board waiting for the tenders. Definitely room for improvement.
Ensenada is a typical Mexican port town. There is nothing in the immediate port area to do or see, not even any shopping. It's a short walk/ride to town where there is a lot of retail stores, a few restaurants, and a tequila tasting venue or two. If you want to truly enjoy Ensenada, take a sight-seeing or tequila tasting tour out of town.
Appreciate your feedback. Your experience sailing on a holiday with children will help others decide if they want to chose this time to cruise. Glad you still managed to enjoy your cruise.
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