We would definitely go on this ship again. It had a great Captain Torn from Norway who was wonderful. He was funny and played guitar in the band one night. On theme night -to dress -caribbean attire he wore his captain bars on a hawaiian shirt. The ship is smaller to be prepared and not expect one of the those crazy 3-4,000 size passenger ships. It was more intimate and we loved it.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Very quick and on to the ship smoothly. Got in our room by 2.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
We ate in the main dining room, Giovanni's and the Chef's Table. The Windjammer Buffet was good. Well stocked breakfast lunch and dinner. Could have had more choices. but they did have theme nights.... the breakfast powered eggs were horrible. make sure you go to the omelet station if you want fresh eggs. NOt a lot of fresh vegetables or salads. The buffet was very repetitive. We really liked the private Chef's Table. Private dining room, wines with each course. Great other couples. Had a lot of fun. Giovanni's was ok. we've been to much better Italian restaurants at home. The main dining room was good. Food was good and lots of choices. The only thing we hated was the way they seated you. It turns out they kept trying to put you in the same seats as the first night when the same waiter. Like it was about them, not you and where you wanted to sit... Wee we got sat by a busing station and part of our table had no window. we threw a fit the next time they tried to take us to that spot. They way they treated us when we moved to another area was really weird. like we had done something wrong by asking to move.... The My Time Dining was a joke and totally confused the maitre'd .
Champagne Bar
5 out of 5
Actually it was called VINTAGES. The wine bar in the Centrum area. We went there every night about 6. It was great. Met new friends and the service was fantastic. If Raj the bartender is on your cruise, say Hi!
Onboard Activities
3 out of 5
Ok. I took a pool side Zumba class that was excellent. Very good instructor. The Fitness center was very nice. good equipment, clean and tidy. the mini golf was terrible, not fun or designed all. blah.
Pool
4 out of 5
The pool area was good. 2 bars. didn't have to wait long for a drink. GET the Beverage package. It was well worth it!! The Hot tubs were good size. Since our last cruise they have non-stop lifeguards very dedicated and professional. The Solarium was disappointing. It was smaller than other ships and it was always full of older folks. The cover seemed to be always closed so you couldn't get any sun. So we didn't use it. BIG SECRET! Go to the front of the ship out side of the Fitness center. No one ever goes out front and we always got a lounge chair and it was quiet. Also: there are stairs at the front down to another deck that no one knows about. It is for Suite or Gold Crown & Anchor Society and up. It was very private. The fitness center was very nice, good equipment and not crowded. There is a good running track on this level.
Entertainment
3 out of 5
Ok. Not great. The DJ at the pool was good. The stage show was high school musical theatre quality. they worked hard but.. pretty cheesy.
Centrum
2 out of 5
We're from Vegas and in the entertainment business. The entertainment on the ship was very poor or none at all. we remember on Navigator of the Seas there was a band at night up in the Viking Crown lounge. There was nothing on this trip. There was a woman playing the piano at happy hour . zzzzz snoozer!! She played like she was at a retirement home...
Children's Programs
no kids
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
Our room Attendant was fantastic. we had 9038 . Get the Superior Room with bigger room bigger balcony and a full couch. not a chair. Upgrade!! so much better. the waiters were all very good and worked hard. All were polite and very attentive.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
Serenade of the Seas is a smaller ship. But it was clean and well maintained. The ship isn't like one of the really big ships. It was more intimate. If you are looking to rest, relax then this is the ship for you. If you are looking for tons to do and want lots of action. This may not be the ship for you.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
Make sure to upgrade and get a Superior Balcony room. It is larger than deluxe, has a bigger balcony and a full size couch. not a chair. well worth it!!
Ship tip
Get a room around deck 9 and at front of ship. It is much quieter and private. Definitely buy the beverage Drink Package. well worth it!!! Our room was a bit warm for us. But we didn't call engineering and should have... our fault...
this where we embarked. started our cruise. went from hotel to getting onto ship. we stayed 2 nights prior at the Hilton Oceanfront Beach Resort. Very nice!
They were not ready for us. It was off our schedule and then they put it back on last minute. we think there was pressure to get tourists ashore for the local economy. Dock people were friendly. lots of taxi's. but lots of things were closed. Tram way up to Blue Beards Castle was still closed. The town had so many jewelry stores that were very pushy to try and get you in to buy. non stop. we got bored and went back to the ship. If you are going to get off at St. Thomas take an excursion and go over to St. Johns.
The Best time EVER!!! St. Lucia reminded us of Maui. Very tropical. We booked horse back riding through Trip Advisor. It was fantastic!! Atlantic Riding Stables. A+++++ We were picked up in newer air conditioned van. Driven to the other side of the island (on roads like Road to Hana on Maui) and we road for 2 hours down to the beaches and incredible views!! Our driver then drove us back the other way so we saw the whole island. She stopped at a cute little road side Bar and we had drinks over looking the ocean.
So disappointed! It was Barbados Independence Day and everything was closed. And then it POURED. We tried to wait it out. Had one drink put my feet in the beautiful water. And then went back to the ship. It is supposed to be a beautiful country so we were disappointed we couldn't see it. The Mount Gay Rum Distillery was closed.
We did something different. And didn't sign up for any RCC excursions. When we got ashore we found a taxi driver who would drive us to Nelsons Dockyard and English Harbor. We got a cheerful very sweet Rastafarian named Stress. LOL as in no Stress who drove us to the other side of the island (so we saw pretty much everything). Definitely go to English Harbor and see Admiral Nelson's dockyard, buildings, artifacts. The views are amazing. well worth the journey. we stopped on the way back where our driver took us to a beautiful beach where he patiently waited for us to have drinks, something to eat and swim. It was fantastic!!! So glad Royal Caribbean changed our ports of call from where we were supposed to go. We were lucky to go to St. Lucia, Martinique and Antigua. Shame that Barbados rained that day....
we did the self disembarkation process. we had to because American Airlines moved up our flight out of MIami. So we had to drag all our bags down to Deck 5 at 6:30 am to get off the ship first. and faster. We were glad we did. There was quite a line of people who came down. but getting your bags off the ship yourself was worth not having to wait for up to 2 hours to get our bags. Taxi's were plenty and got to Miami airport in about 45 at morning rush hour .
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