Only my second cruise, and the first was a Disney cruise about 5 yrs ago. Traveled alone with my two boys and thought a cruise would be easy and safe for all of us. Had a great time because the Bahamas are gorgeous and the weather was great, but some aspects of this cruise didn't live up to my expectations, and I think next time I will consider a different cruise line.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
1 out of 5
Although the quantity of food was stunning, the quality was not. Restaurant food was very average--twice we were served room-temperature steak. On the buffet every day, hotdogs, hamburgers, and grilled chicken. Poolside BBQ every day? Hotdogs, hamburgers, and grilled chicken. The BBQ on the private island? Hotdogs, hamburgers, and you guessed it--chicken. Didn't try any of the restaurants with a surcharge, but overall the food was just not impressive.
Entertainment
3 out of 5
As a woman traveling alone with two kids, I didn't really get to hit the casino or the bars much but other passengers seemed to enjoy both. The shows/comedian were entertaining and we all enjoyed them.
Children's Programs
3 out of 5
Traveled with a 9 and 13 yr old, and didn't really try the children's programs. I felt quite safe letting them roam the ship, and they loved the all-you-want ice cream. I appreciated that we were clearly informed in advance when the comedian's show was family-friendly and when it was adult-only.
Service and Staff
3 out of 5
Staff was all polite and efficient, although I wouldn't describe them as friendly. English was a second language for most of them although it wasn't a problem 90% of the time.
Ship Quality
3 out of 5
This ship was kept amazingly clean. After the first day we could find our way around easily enough. Pools were too small for a Bahamian cruise--too crowded to enjoy until late at night. Getting off and on the ship at each port couldn't have been easier.
Cabin / Stateroom
3 out of 5
My interior stateroom was actually nicer than I expected, although I didn't get much cabin service. I'm not an experienced cruiser, and by the time I realized I was missing out, my cruise was almost over. No itinerary of the day's activities, towel animals, clean beach towels, or customs form ever appeared in my room. There's no clock either, although the wake-up call system worked like a charm, and even has a snooze button. No bedding in our room for our third person--had to call for it and then make the bed myself on our first night.
Not really crazy about the whole straw-market thing and people hawking their wares on the streets, so we did the Stingray Adventure. Truly amazing--huge de-stung rays that you can hold and feed. Not something that you see everyday. My only complaint was that the whole excursion was a little too short.
I expected this to be really crowded but it wasn't, although you have to pay for every extra, like snorkels, water slide, etc, and the food was the typical hotdogs and hamburgers. Gorgeous beach with plenty of beach chairs and swarms of fish to see when snorkeling.
We did a Sea Safari Snorkel excursion here--what a blast. I've done a lot of snorkeling in a lot of places and this was the most crystal-clear water I've ever seen. The boat had a water slide--too much fun! Excellent for novices--not a lot of big or exotic fish, but literally thousands of them in 4 to 6 feet of water.
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