We loved this Cruise. This cruise was unique in that we had a Superbowl, Valentines Day, and a birthday all in the same cruise. All of us were over age 60 but with many different interests. My Sister-in-law and brother-in-law being a married couple were doing many things as a couple where I am a widower being more to myself. So the cruise was fulfilling to both our interests. We ate together sometimes and other times not. Different shows and different activities. The one shore excursion on St Thomas we did together. To sum up the Service, Dining and Entertainment were excellent. Activities like relaxing near the pool were excellent. Dealing with the crowds is to be expected. If you don't like crowds, don't cruise.
Embarkation
2 out of 5
Probably the worst part of the cruise. Once on board about 12:30 PM tried to go to room. Will not be ready until 3 PM due to slow disembarkation of last weeks guests. Spent afternoon by the pool area and eat at Buffet. Very crowded but thats what everyone had to do. The muster drill was in the Atrium at 3:00 PM and lasted over an hour, when it could have taken 5 minutes to cover the material. Its the same info you got from watching the video. Made it to the cabin about 4:30 PM to find that the luggage still had not made it to the cabin. Oh well sit back on the balcony and enjoy the departure. Went to dinner around 6:30 PM and was unpacking suitcase about 10:30 PM the first night. Saw the Comedian the first night.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
5 out of 5
We ate in the Buffet twice, first day lunch and last day Breakfast. Very crowded but food was fine. Dining rooms and specialty Resturants were great. We ate at the Japenese steakhouse one night and Cagneys the last night. Be sure to make reservations for shows and specialty dining the first day when onboard otherwise you may not be able to get what and when you want. Also if booking early be sure to overbook. I made dining reservations for 2 as the software would only do multiples of 2. It was a nightmare trying to get them to change it to 3 which was the number of people in our cabin. I showed up with 3 and that was that. Also pay attention to the open and closing hours of the various dining rooms as I had one confrontation with a manager over this, We were 9 min late to a dining room and they were not going to seat us. I didn't realize that they closed at certain times.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
Went to the pool area almost everyday. Never actually found H2O or the Grotto, but enjoyed it anyway. Not happy with Casino, as I entered both the Slot tournament and BJ tournament. They did not have be listed for either one even though I had paid for and signed up for both about a month before the Cruise. I lost money every time I went to Casino, so everything very tight. Not sure anyone else was making any money gambling.
Entertainment
5 out of 5
Loved Choir of Men, Sid Norton Band. Saw both twice. Also the violinist in the Superclub was excellent as well as the mind reader.
The Supper Club
5 out of 5
This was not reviewed by many before the cruise but turned out to be an excellent choice. We watched the violinist one night and the female divas another night. Both were great entertainment. The meal was Italian and a good choice.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
Service was outstanding. I never met our cabin stewerd but the room was always taken care of. I guess its not any of my business, but I would only hope that the increase of gratuity rates would all end up in the pockets of the workers providing the service. I've heard from others that that may not be true.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
The ship is beautiful and clean through out. Obviously, the issue with elevators is a problem with so many people on board. We learned very quickly the art to ride the elevator down to go up and vice versa.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
Everything about the cabin was great except I had to sleep on the couch as my Brother and Sister In Law had the bed. Perhaps in the future I may consider a separate single cabin with a bed. The couch is OK for a younger person.
Ship tip
Be sure to study the deck plans, where everything is located so on the first day you can get your bearings. You will save a lot of time and effort knowing where everything is rather than taking the time to look it up. Also start planning each day the night before when the daily newsletter
We purchased the Gondola excursion which provided excellent photo opportunities. In addition we wanted to take a taxi over to the Mountain Top place to take some pics, get a Banana Daiquery, and do some shopping. Somewhere I had read that a Taxi to this place was about $12 each way. When I approached the taxi drivers about this I came to find out there was no taxis doing a return to the ship and I would have to pay a Taxi $4 per minute to wait before returning to the ship. So they hood-winked me into taking the Island narrated tour at $38 per person or about $125 for the 3 of us. We walked back from the Gondola ride to the ship, but it was rather grueling walk for someone with walking difficulties.
Confusion on where to eat breakfast. Tried the Atrium to find out it was Starbucks only which was going to cost extra, then had to fight our way up to 16 to do the Buffet which most of the 4000 people ended up doing also. We were not going to go to the airport in Orlando but rent a car from Avis so our timing wasn't as important as others. We kept our luggage to avoid that confusion. I knew I should have utilized a wheeelchair service as I had to stop and rest several times during the actual disembarkation.
Thanks for the great detail reviews, I have printed off all the decks of the ship prior so I know where to find what, and what time to avoid crowds. I know when the ship is at sea, the pool area is crazy busy, so best to avoid that. I’m hoping for a relaxing fun cruise …..and not to get sick. Knock on wood
Sorry about your confusion with the taxis in St. Thomas. They have preset fares that are shown on the signs as you exited the ship. It is $11 to Mountain Top ($8 for multiple people). You can pay more for a rountrip tour but don't have to. It sounds like you were told the truth but assumed taxis would wait for free while you shopped and drank. They won't do that anywhere in the world. When you are ready, you just take one of the many waiting taxis down the mountain. You could have done that tour for $48, as shown on all the signs.
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