Overall Lackluster performance. There was Good. There was Bad. There was Ugly. The crew was mostly untrained and severely understaffed. The captain was Meh... The Cruise Director... B-. Alaska was the star and that saved the cruise from being a complete waste. For the first time I felt "lied-to" based on all the different stories told about where our luggage tags were and who was responsible to get them to us. We also were told there were just a few cases of Covid onboard, where I am quite certain the number was north of 300! We heard from the medical staff they were overwhelmed. If you asked for a Covid test it took almost all day to get it and receive the results. (Happened to a friend onboard.) I wore my mask continuously if I was not in my cabin. But unlike other cruises where masks were optional and the Covid cases were rising, we were NOT instructed to start wearing masks indoors. We also had one death onboard, but that occurred the morning of disembarkation.
Embarkation
2 out of 5
I arrived early and was onboard in about an hour. However my stateroom did not have the sanitized sign on my door, nor was there a key card. I found a crew member who called his supervisor on the phone and said they were on the way. Fifteen minutes later I headed down to Guest Services. It took about an hour to get it sorted out and get into my room, which then had to be cleaned. Smudges and fingerprints on glass doors, glass rings on table tops, dirty phone, dusty other surfaces. Disappointing. Especially after announcing that all the rooms would be ready upon embarkation. It was also raining and after checking in at one location they sent us out into the rain to go to a different location for immigration. There was a path that was out of the rain but they sent us out the door and then sent me back another way because I couldn't take the escalator with my luggage.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
2 out of 5
First time I can say, yes you can go hungry on a ship. Food was cold or unappealing due to weird textures. Not properly seasoned. Over oily. Luckily I had two specialty dining reservations (Chops & Wonderland) that made up for it.
Onboard Activities
2 out of 5
Poorly organized. Thought it was funny that outdoor movies were planned topside at night when it was 20 degrees outside with windchill. Cheers with an Officer scheduled for a port day when everyone was off ship, lol!
The Northern Lights were out during our cruise. It would have been so nice if the Cruise Director or someone had mentioned there was a possibility of seeing them for the next two nights! Not a peep. So many people have this on their bucket list! It was an opportunity for Royal to make major points with their Guests! We felt let down about that....
Entertainment
2 out of 5
The musicians were fantastic as always. Did not enjoy the headliners. Nothing seemed was very appealing.
Service and Staff
1 out of 5
My room steward was simply awful other than being friendly. He did make the bed and replenish the towels. I did not receive invite to D+ activities or benefits like laundry. He did not get me my luggage tags for disembarkation and when I asked him about it, he told me I had to go to Guest Services for them. I spent almost 9 hours going back and forth to Guest Services. Finally after waiting another hour at 2 AM I received my tags at 3 AM and they had to call for someone to come get my bags. (I was not the only one). Having to get up at 5 AM to get ready to leave the ship I was exhausted. I had to go to Guest Services at 6 AM to get my final folio since it was wrong on the TV. I left the ship soon after that with no coffee or breakfast because I was simply DONE! Apparently that was the right choice after hearing of others prolonged wait to get off the ship.
Ship Quality
3 out of 5
It was painfully obvious the ship was short staffed and under-trained. Trash cans overflowed at the washy stations for Windjammer. People left their plates and trash on tables and around the ship. They needed a system where people could place dirty glasses and dishes and throw away trash.
Cabin / Stateroom
4 out of 5
I loved the location, comfort, and size of my cabin. After getting it re-cleaned at embarkation, I was overall happy with the cleanliness of my cabin. I was very happy that my view was not obstructed.
Ship tip
Don't cruise on the first cruise of the season when they have been out of service for so long....
Absolutely the best day ever! Loved the "Best of Juneau" tour! Saw Mendenhall Glacier, Whale Watching (didn't like the boat on this one.. you had to stay seated and the windows were so opaque and dirty you couldn't see anything), Salmon Bake was fantastic but rushed because we were the last group since our whale watching boat was an hour late... we had to eat and run so we didn't miss the ship. We were the last group on with only 5 minutes to spare! But it was delicious, so I would go there again!
It was great because I left early. Got on the first transfer bus to airport. But points off for it taking 9 hours of my time to get my own luggage tags. Ridiculous!
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