I gave a detailed review for my first week of this back-to-back cruise so I will stick to unique things for this leg. Overall was better than first week. Maybe because my expectations were lower and I knew what was good or not good. A good overall cruise but many things that RC could easily improve with little effort. I don't know if they just rest on their "Loyal" base but other lines are stepping it up and Royal needs to catch up.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Back-to-Back was easy enough
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
3 out of 5
Exact same menu as week before. This time I knew some dishes that were not good so I didn't order them and some that were favorites. Food temps varied but that is typical on a cruise. They did have a specialty Hot Dog stand near the buffet. They were quality dogs -the Jalapeno Chedder was great- but they didn't have many toppings. Just onions and sauerkraut. A little more effort could have made it great. Again, an RC near miss. Perhaps they need to do like Carnival and ask experts like Guy Fieri or Norman Love to design foods for them.
Onboard Activities
3 out of 5
The gyro pool table is cool. One of the Trivia staff was really funny. I just love sitting in the jacuzzi. There are two outside and one in the solarium. The inside was always a little too hot and the outside a little too cold. Pools were always cold and no one swam except one day when it was warm. So they can heat them if they want but just didn't want to. Pack swimwear in carry-on because on the embarkation day the Jacuzzis are free but other days can be crowded.
Entertainment
5 out of 5
Same shows, same jokes, but still good. It was the Argentine Tango performers last show, so it seemed they performed with extra passion.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
This was the ship's last week in Alaska before heading to Hawaii, so staff was extra upbeat. Buffet staff always hit and miss. We liked our room steward and waiter much better the second week. The first were not bad but the second were exceptional. Very sincere and attentive. Instead of asking for a good rating, our waiter said to be honest on review if something was bad because, "that is how we learn". I always wonder how two reviews of same cruise can be so different. Ship and Entertainment shouldn't be, but experience with staff could be very different.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
Always great. The gym was bigger than many larger ships. You didn't need to reserve any theater shows but the tiny movie theater is packed on sea days. They only show movies twice a day for some reason. Would it cost them more to show them all day long? TV programing was terrible, unimaginably bad in this age.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
My wife's sister joined us onboard so I tried to Royal Upgrade from inside to the large ocean view cabins that sleeps 6 but was not successful. I think I bid high enough but there are only a few of those rooms onboard so probably were not available. I got an email a couple days before embarkation that they were still working on upgrades. I asked the front desk that morning, but they said we may not hear until 4:30. We didn't hear that we didn't get it until 9:30 that night. Obviously we had already packed that morning and they moved our bags from our balcony room to inside. Consider packing with a Back-to-Back if you did not reserve a room number. Even if we did not upgrade with the first leg, they said we would have had to switch to a different inside cabin on the second leg. Packing is not fun during a cruise, or at least it didn't look like my wife was having fun. It was tight with 3 adults but plenty of storage. I usually showered in the gym.
Ship tip
There are free saunas. You need to pass through the Spa on deck 11 to get to them. Also there is a really nice "Relaxation Room" at the front of the ship on that floor, again go through the Spa.
We arrived later in the day this time. Better weather on the second week but the ship did not get as close or stay as long. The ice flow was moving in fast with the tide during our later trip.
Perfect blue skies this week. My wife and sister took the train. The tip is to buy tickets at the train depot not the ship (or the ticket booth on the dock that is really run by the ship) the price is only a little cheaper but the train, at least the 12:30 (I think) was pretty empty in contrast to the Ship scheduled trains which are packed in like sardines. My wife and her sister each got their own window. Try to sit on the left side of the train. That has 80% of the views going up. If you sit on the right side, you see them coming back downhill but you are going too fast to appreciate.
I'm sure it is fine but this port stop starts after 7pm. Few bothered to go ashore. The only thing this stop accomplished was an increase in Port Charges. Just dumb! Got good photos of town in the twilight from the ship though.
What a neat port! It is owned by the local Native Alaskans. My sister-in-law was there 4 years ago and said it was a dump. It has changed immensely with lots of expansion in the works. We all loved it. The cannery museums were great. The Native dance show was educational. The free tram and the $59 tram were both worth it. They had seen bears recently so they made you hike with a guide but that was no charge. Excursions were expensive, zip line $190, whale watching $200 as I recall. A much different port that the typical City.
Out a little later than expected at 9:20 with group 27 luggage tags. I had asked the front desk about taking the ship shuttle for $25 but the guy told me it is cheaper and probably more comfortable taking a cab for $28 US ($38 Canadian). The long cab line went quick and they fit all three of us and luggage in a tiny cab. I gave him $40 US and we both made money.
Appreciate your detailed review. I agree, a B2B shows you how different a cruise on the same ship but a the next week can be. Glad you enjoyed your second week!
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