Fun ship and enjoyable ports!

Item: Serenade of the Seas
Rating: 4.2
Author: thereoworld

Serenade of the Seas Cruise Review to Canada, New England, New York

thereoworld

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 2-3 cruises

Review: 1

Helpful Votes: 43

Overall rating:

4.2 out of 5

7 Night Canada & New England (Boston Roundtrip)

Sail date: September 17, 2017

Ship: Serenade of the Seas

Cabin type: Balcony

Cabin number: 9250

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 7 years ago

Review summary

Overall we enjoyed the New England cruise, despite getting unlucky with weather (former hurricane Jose decided to pay a visit to our east for most of the trip). The ship was wonderfully appointed and staff were great. Only wish was that more dining options were available for vegetarians and those with gluten allergies. But all in all it was a fun escape!

Embarkation

2 out of 5

There were computer troubles at Falcon Terminal on embarkation day, which led to delays. We waited about 2.5 hours to get on board.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

4 out of 5

Food was amazing in Windjammer buffet! The one night we tried the dining room, the selection was pretty limited (mostly red meat, no good vegetarian options and limited gluten free). I'm sure the rest of the nights it was good, but we were not impressed with the dinner menu. We did enjoy eating at Giovanni's and Izumi as well. Also bottomless brunch and galley tour was amazing!

Onboard Activities

4 out of 5

Pools were not open for most of the trip, nor rock climbing walls, due to the foggy conditions and choppy waters. Fitness center was great and clean, lots of machines.

Entertainment

4 out of 5

Stage shows were OK, not stellar but not bad.

Service and Staff

5 out of 5

All of the staff were very friendly and accommodating, best part of the trip!

Ship Quality

4 out of 5

Nice ship with a very nice design and style.

Cabin / Stateroom

4 out of 5

Size was great and the balcony room was definitely worth it for us, since we spent a lot of mornings and mid-afternoons in the room. The bathroom is a typically small bathroom for a ship.

Ship tip

If you want quality pool or hot tub time, try to get back early from the ports. We were generally back on board by 2pm and the pools were empty then (also port days tended to have the best weather, so it worked out). For the New England/Canada trip, we highly recommend touring the cities on your own. Each is very walkable and easy to get around - there's even a free shuttle in Bar Harbor that can take you on a round trip tour of Acadia. The towns are generally small and can be seen in 3-4 hours, more if you want to stop in a museum or two. Save the money for shopping or on board beverages!

Thumbs up

Ports of call

Portland, Maine

5 out of 5

Bar Harbor, Maine

5 out of 5

Saint John, New Brunswick

4 out of 5

Halifax, Nova Scotia

4 out of 5

Disembarkation

3 out of 5

2 Comments

Gwbigdog 1 year ago

Thanks for sharing

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shariberry 7 years ago

I have Celiac and as soon as my husband and I get on board we go directly to head waiter and let them know of my needs. They will make anything you want gluten free. I am also lactose intolerant and unable to have high fructose syrup. They are awesome at accommodating me. I agree that more options should be available however, I made my needs known and even when I ate in the wind jammer the head waiter knew I wanted something chocolate so he always had it ready.

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