A nice way to get a taste of New Zealand

Item: Ovation of the Seas
Rating: 3.9
Author: spagirlaustin

Ovation of the Seas Cruise Review to South Pacific - Australia

spagirlaustin

Contributor Level: Second Mate

37 Days Till Next Cruise

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Reviews: 3

Helpful Votes: 57

Overall rating:

3.9 out of 5

12 Night New Zealand (Sydney Roundtrip)

Sail date: December 23, 2022

Ship: Ovation of the Seas

Cabin type: Suite

Cabin number: 8636

Traveled as: Singles/Friends

Reviewed: 1 year ago

Review summary

All in all, it wasn’t a bad cruise. I go to relax on board and see the sights. I like to have lots of options but I don’t do much expect relax whether in my cabin or in one of the lounges or poolside. Most of the excursions that I chose turned out to be boring - except for the Māori excursion. Oh and if you just wanted to get off the ship and walk around in town - most ports, RC would charge you $25 board the shuttle and that was the only way you could leave the ship unless you had booked an excursion because we were in working commercial shipping ports that were heavily guarded. At the time, I thought that the excursions would be a better use of my money - but if I did it again, most of the ports, I would have just paid the $25 and walk around in the area. The panorama tours were boring. Lots of rose and flower gardens and residential neighborhoods. Nothing unique (in my opinion).

Embarkation

4 out of 5

It was chaotic and especially because I had The Key and staff at the port did not seem to understand that process. I had checked in online and received a boarding window which was 1pm but then I received an email from RC indicating that because I had purchased The Key, I could begin boarding at 11am. Even though there was a big sign with the words THE KEY - they were unsure how to handle all of us because all we had to show was the email we received and that seem to trip them up.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

4 out of 5

The food was ok - Nothing really fancy, but decent and I ate at all venues - MDR, 3 of the 4 Specialty restaurants, Windjammer, Solarium Bistro and Coastal Kitchen.

Coastal Kitchen

4 out of 5

The breakfast space was nice, calm and quiet. The food was really just Windjammer food. And no one seems to understand that there is a difference between milk and 1/2n1/2 in coffee.

Chops Grille

3 out of 5

I know everyone raves about Chops Grille, but I wasn’t impressed. I had the lamb chops and they were very fatty. The sides were just so-so.

Windjammer Marketplace

4 out of 5

Decent food. Nothing to write home about but decent.

The Café @ Two70

5 out of 5

Now, I enjoyed getting a salad for lunch there most every day.

Solarium Bistro

3 out of 5

Again, what is it with not having 1/2 and 1/2 creamer? All they had was milk for coffee.

Jamie's Italian

4 out of 5

The food was okay nothing special and I really enjoyed the mango sorbet.

Izumi

5 out of 5

I think this was my favorite venue to eat. The food was good and your standard fare.

Onboard Activities

4 out of 5

I only participated in one and that was the Flash Mob and I really enjoyed the practices and the performance.

Shore Excursions

2 out of 5

They were for the most part boring. I didn’t choose well.

Vitality at Sea Spa and Fitness Center

4 out of 5

I had two spa treatments and they were both really good. My only complaint is that they only have OSFA robes - NOT EVERYONE IS A SIZE 10 - some of us need bigger robes. At least 2XL and 3XL.

Next Cruise

5 out of 5

Estaban was fun to work with and I actually enjoyed the interaction.

Service and Staff

4 out of 5

Overall, they did a good job. Nothing stood out as I really didn’t have any problems, but everyone was very nice to me - especially since I was a solo traveler.

Ship Quality

5 out of 5

It was a holiday cruise so there was probably more wear and tear on the ship with all of the kids. Nothing seemed out of place and or neglected.

Cabin / Stateroom

4 out of 5

So, here’s what I discovered and as think you need to know. It’s right at the entrance to the elevators and I thought that would mean a lot of noise but it really wasn’t noisy. BUT the drawback is that your suite has a doorbell and it is VERY LOUD and it a temptation for kids. Everyday at some point, someone would ring the bell and run away. It was annoying. And there’s nothing the staff can do because I asked. It is an unfortunate nuisance. The room itself is quite roomy and a nice balcony with the both chaise lounges and an area to sit with a table. Your bathroom has a bathtub for you to shower and you have two separate sinks. Plenty of room for one person and for two - I wouldn’t try and fit anymore than two people in the suite.

Ship tip

come in a couple of days early and explore Sydney as it is really not a port of call, just were you embark.

Thumbs up

Ports of call

Cruise Milford Sound

4 out of 5

Very Pretty

Thumbs Up 0

Cruise Doubtful Sound

4 out of 5

Very Pretty

Thumbs Up 1

Cruise Dusky Sound

4 out of 5

Very Pretty

Thumbs Up 0

Port Chalmers (Dunedin), New Zealand

3 out of 5

Don’t believe all the hype about the train station. I wasn’t impressed. I think I would have done better just staying on the ship and visiting the area around the port.

Thumbs Up 0

Lyttleton (Christchurch), New Zealand

3 out of 5

Wished I had just done the sightseeing on my own.

Thumbs Up 0

Napier, New Zealand

3 out of 5

I wish I had not booked an excursion and just gone into town and seen the sites on my own.

Thumbs Up 0

Tauranga, New Zealand

5 out of 5

Wonderful excursion to the Maori tribe.

Thumbs Up 1

Auckland, New Zealand

3 out of 5

It was okay another excursion and I probably would have done better if I had just gone on my own.

Thumbs Up 1

Bay Of Islands, New Zealand

1 out of 5

We ended up on stopping here because of the weather. It was the right thing to do because we would have had to be tendered in and choppy waves would have caused major problems. But it was still a bummer that we didn’t get to stop - but another day at sea - was great!

Thumbs Up 1