Despite a few negative aspects, we have a really fun family vacation and would sail with RC again, but probably on a smaller ship so we can enjoy more with less people and walking.
Embarkation
4 out of 5
We cruised with other family members (9 total in 5 cabins); we all flew in together and boarded together. The embarkation went smoother than past cruises, however as Gold Crown & Anchor members it was my understanding we were supposed to have Priority check-in as one of our benefits. This did not happen, we were herded in with everyone else. If there was a Priority check-in for Crown & Anchor members, it was not made known to us where to go and we did not see any visible signage indicating where to go for any priority boarding in the mass crowd.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
Half of our party of 9 ended up with bad stomach issues by the end of day two and believe there may have been some type of food poisoning at play as we had no contact with anyone with the flu weeks prior to the cruise for fear of getting sick. On a side note the food in the cafe's was mediocre and usually just warm to luke warm in temperature, and the Windjammer was decent but again warm to luke warm. The main dining rooms were very noisy for eating and with the exception on night one, took forever to get all courses (never did we have the same waitstaff throughout the cruise.) Would be better just to open all dinning to the inclusive fare for ultimate service and "hot" food.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
We enjoyed ping pong, the rock wall, flowrider, watching the belly flop contest and the karaoke. With regards to the shopping and gem seminars, Kimberly, was very knowledgeable, had great advise, BUT she talked way to much and was repetitive. Towards the end people were leaving early because it was never "just one last thing", both seminars seemed to go on forever. Without all the repetition, she could have cut down the time 20 to 30 minutes per presentation. Please strive to get to the point without the filler words, people don't want to be cooped up this long listening to repetition while on their cruise.
Entertainment
4 out of 5
With the exception of Cats; which we found boring and repetitive, we enjoyed going to all of the shows.
Service and Staff
4 out of 5
Most staff were very polite and willing to help. The bar staff in the pool areas we found to be rude most times. Our room attendant Reynaldo R., was awesome. Always took good care of our room and had a smile and warm greeting when seeing us.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
Ship was beautiful and clean. Whoever designed the horrible flush button behind the back of the toilet seat was not thinking; very gross and unsanitary to have to handle a seat in the public bathrooms just to flush the toilet.
Cabin / Stateroom
4 out of 5
Carpet in room was very stain and dirty looking. All of the pillows are hard flat lumps, even the extra ones ordered for my back were flat. Otherwise the room is nice and clean.
Ship tip
There is a lot of walking from one end to another. If you have walking issues, bring/rent a scooter, walker, etc., or pick a smaller RC ship.
We cruised with other family members (9 total in 5 cabins); we all flew in together, boarded together and were supposed to disembark together. However, we all ended up having different dis-embarkment times, which was an issue because we had pre-arranged transportation to the airport for 9:30 am. The solution for the guest services was to all self disembark prior to 7:45 which meant we all sat out in the parking lot until 9 am when our driver was able to pick us up 30 minutes early.
The actual disembarkation and customs went much smoother than past cruises.
*Cruiseline.com is not a booking agent or travel agency,
and does not charge any service fees to users of our site. Our partners
(travel agencies and cruise lines) provide prices, which we list for our
users' convenience. Cruiseline.com does not guarantee any specific rates or
prices. While prices are updated daily, please check with the booking site
for the exact amount. Cruiseline.com is not responsible for content on
external web sites.
Contact us
Submitting...
Need help from a personal vacation planner?
Loading...
Find the perfect cruise with weekly tips and cruise deals for as little as $30/night!
Sign up for weekly cruise deals
Join other subscribers and get the best
cruise deals of the week in your inbox every Thursday.
