Rhapsody Vacation- 3rd time on this Grand Dame!
Rhapsody of the Seas Cruise Review to Caribbean - Western
Contributor Level:
Purser
Cruises: 7+ cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 35
7 Night Western Caribbean (Tampa Roundtrip)
Sail date: February 15, 2020
Ship: Rhapsody of the Seas
Cabin type: Oceanview
Cabin number: 4072
Traveled as: Large Group
Reviewed: 4 years ago
Review summary
So to re-cap my experience on this ship, I would say that if you want a laid-back cruise experience with few to no kids and a very serious group of fellow cruisers (don't expect friendly and outgoing smiley happy 70+-year-old seniors/people), this is the ship for you. Great service and fewer people equals a better cruising experience to me, which Rhapsody once again delivered for my third sailing on her. Go with a group of people so you have fun. The seniors all looked grumpy and annoyed with any laughter or fun that we had, especially in Chop's Grill. Whatever though!! We had our own fun!Embarkation
Super fast! Got right on- no waiting at 11:30 am
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
We went with a group of 12 people. The Windjammer was great for breakfast. I eat oatmeal every morning and it was delicious. They had make-to-order omelets and gave you a pager when it was ready instead of standing there forever, which was a big time saver. Seating was a challenge for all of us (always busy) but the earlier the better to find open tables. Lunches we did onshore or at the solarium pool-side (pizza or salads and fresh fruits). Dinner was VERY SLOW. Every night it took us 3+ hours which was ridiculous. I've cruised 18 times with RC and this was the worst time-wise I've experienced. Food quality was good- always warm and the staff was very attentive....but sllllowww. Drinks at the solarium bar were delish. We did Chops grill and Izumi's and both were worth the specialty dining we paid for them. Chops Grill has amazing desserts and has a key lime meringue pie thats unique and delicious. A must-have!
Onboard Activities
Solarium pool rocks for those of you cruisers that like to be away from the noise and kiddos splashing and crying. This solarium is one of the best features in my opinion about the ship. The 70's dance party was hilarious and very entertaining. Takes place in the centrum on the 5th day. The comedy shows were great too. Rondell Sheridan is a must see- especially his first nights' skit.
Entertainment
They were all good. This ship is geared more toward a "senior" crowd though. If you don't appreciate older music and black-and-white/ kodachrome movies with those floating hairs on them then this ship might not be for you. We are all in our 40s and 50's and although they were good, I would've preferred something a bit newer to relate better to. The DJ was non-existent in the disco (and so were the people) which we hated- it was all pre-recorded hip-hop and hard to dance to. I think we were the only party ers on the ship!! LOL!
Children's Programs
none of us have kids
Service and Staff
It seemed as if this ship was short-handed with staff as I mentioned before with our 3-hour dinners. But, our stateroom attendant Ronnie was fantastic! The room was spotless. The general tone around the ship with the staff was quite melancholy and not really caring. This has changed a great deal with Royal Caribbean since my first cruise in 2000. Wondering if the auto gratuities are a big part of that equation? The bartenders certainly were much friendlier back then because they were working for a tip. Now, it's just automatically added on for your "convenience" which is kind of a joke.
Ship Quality
So back in 2000 (when this ship was only 3 years old-built in 1997), this ship was so cool to me. It was my very first cruise ever with any cruise line. I also took her to Alaska in 2005. Now 23 years later, she looks old and out-of-date even though there has been a lot of renovation done (carpets, the bar in centrum relocated, specialty dining outlets added, etc). The ship, in general, is kept as clean as it can be but even though the decks and outer ship areas are cleaned, they look tired and old and in need of replacement. I think this will be the last time I want to sail on her as I enjoy the larger ships at 149,000 tons much better. Lastly, the septic system is getting old too. The last night of our cruise we had a very foul smell emanating out of the shower drain that smelled like sewer gas. It smelled up our oceanview cabin really well (REALLY wished I had a balcony!!). I did call guest services and they did what they could do to spray bio-gel and some other noxious chemicals down the drain to help the smell. They did give me a certificate to come back with our next cruise with a discount. That was a nice gesture (didn't help the smell we got to breathe in all night) and it makes me want to keep staying loyal to royal.
Cabin / Stateroom
The size was decent- bed was hard to get around on the sides though. Closet and storage areas need to be WAY bigger. We travel pretty light but there was not enough room for all of our items to be placed in drawers or the wardrobe comfortably. Had to use the chair for clothing. Window was huge and nice to look at- rust and water damage can be seen at the bottom of the window on the inside so it must've leaked before. The beds were very uncomfortable and are in need of a softer mattress or topper ASAP! Sheets were very soft and so was the blanket on top. The thermostat was weird- either too cold or too hot. Had to keep adjusting it to get it just right.
The best part of our room location is it was just outside the centrum and the bar- easy to get a soda, water or ice whenever we needed it and easy to get back to the room after listening to some nighttime music by their ship's band!
Ship tip
Pack as frugally as you can on this ship as space is limited in the rooms.
Thumbs up
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Ports of call
We embarked here. Always easy to get into this city and the berths that hold the ships. No long lines.
We LOVED key west. Definitely a place to go and party with your friends or family as there is a PLETHORA of bars that are all very unique from one another. Don't miss Sloppy Joe's or the Flying Monkey bars. Try the frozen drinks- you can't go wrong as all these bars have a lot of different frozen machines making a particular mixture (rum runners, banana, hurricanes etc.) We did not do an excursion- just walked 6 miles stopping wherever we wanted in the shops, bars and even went to Ernest Hemingway's house to see the extra-digit cats. It was HOT so dress as lightly as you can if you are walking around. The bars are all open-air so no A/C.
Always love stopping here. I don't like that after all these years that this Island hasn't built a pier and you still have to tender in. This wastes so much time tendering. The time the ship is in port is always too short so it makes it worse to tender. Beautiful and always well-maintained. My fave island to visit.
We always self-tour as it is easy to get around with taxis on your own to go out to Hell or just sight-see. Everything is located right where you get tendered into that you really want to see, so there's no point of doing excursions here unless you are eager to do the stingray tour or something like that. Watch out for tentacled jellyfish in the water!
This has really grown up since 2000 when I first went. They have lots of shopping just off the dock with everything you could possibly want. However, the locals really hound you outside their shops on the sidewalks which gets annoying quickly. Go to Carlos and Charlie's or Senor Frogs for bottled beers but avoid the frozen drinks if you want to avoid diarrhea later...it is Mexico!!
We did not do an excursion here. I don't feel comfortable going outside of the gates/walls of the shopping area for safety reasons (had a few bad experiences years ago). It is a tourist trap really- all a bunch of shops that are in a rounded area. It's tight and feels claustrophobic to me. Locals here that own the shops REALLY bug you with coming into their store or area. Compound that with the always HOT temperatures and it spells "get me out of here" for me! The pier area walking up to the gates is pretty- water is beautiful but that's about it. I enjoy getting a bottled beer at the bar that's just to the left of the dolphin experience and watching the waves and occasional iguana passing by.
Disembarkation
Holy fast disembark! Went right down the gangway and found my number to gather my luggage and we were thru customs and out the door!
Traveler Photos
