This was our second time to Alaska on a cruise ship. The first time was on the Crown Princess in 2015. Both cruises were incredible....you won't be disappointed!
Embarkation
4 out of 5
It was good except for the major confusion over the arrivecan customs experience. Be sure to show you are arriving by marine on your return to Canada from Alaska. The Royal Caribbean staff were very helpful to help solve the issues though. Honestly, there really isn't any reason to fill out arrivecan....I had to fill it out at the airport and at the cruise terminal during my departure and during my arrival. dar
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
The main dining room was very tasty. I strongly recommend that you have the New York Strip Steak every night with the baked potato and of course my nightly Royal Chocolate Cake...it was the best. I tried the prime rib one night and and didn't care for the taste of it. As for the buffet, the lunch and breakfast buffets offered great Hamburgers and McDonald's style fries....that was my favorite....stay away from their pizza...it wasn't so tasty. Breakfast was good...though we only had it a couple of times. I recommend the French Toast scrambled eggs and bacon. As for specialty dining, we bought a two night dinner two Chops Grill and Giavonis Italian restaurant. Chops T-bone Steak was very good and the chocolate desert was hard to beat! The Italian restaurant didn't offer what I would call the complete Italian food experience, but the atmosphere was very good and my New York Strip Steak was very good with the spaghetti and meat sauce topped with cocktail shrimp. The chocolate cake with the side of ice cream was wonderful! I was surprised that lasagna wasn't offered though! ***Be prepared for the staff to try and sell you 2 for 1 deals on specialty dining. What they don't tell you is the deal is for double the price plus a 18% gratuity for both of us. $89.00 became $205.00 once it was doubled and gratuities were added....so buyer beware!
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
We watched 2 of the dancing and singing shows in the main theater. They were pretty good! We also watched a two movies (Spider-Man and Moonfall)in the main theater...the sound was pretty good. We also watched the new Ghostbusters movie in the Cinema. The sound was good and a cozy theater if you like small theaters. On a side note...the stadium seating was very nice!
Entertainment
4 out of 5
See above.....
Children's Programs
3 out of 5
No kids with us....but the ship only had a few children on board....it appeared they had a few things to keep them entertained though.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
Our Main Dining Room waiters were incredible...they pulled my chair out and placed my cloth napkin in my lap. I've never seen that on a cruise 🛳..........!
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
For a older and smaller ship....it was very nice and clean!
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
The Jr. suite was a handicap accessible room. We didn't ask for that type of a Jr. suite and I was initially disappointed when it was assigned to us, since we were hoping for the bathtub to be included. But, after looking at the room's style and the huge covered balcony...I was very impressed. I've never had so much space in a room! The room was very clean and we received some of the best service from our room attendant we've ever received. "Samad" did an incredible job!
Ship tip
Don't expect every room to look the same. The YouTube video we watched that showed a handicap accessible Jr. Suite on the Seranade of the Seas, was a completely different color and had completely different type of bathroom tiles.
We didn't do an excursion, but we did get a free whale watching show from the Windjammer during breakfast.....there were orca whales in the bay of the port along with seals. They started jumping in the distance, before finally swimming within a thousand feet of the ship. It was incredible to see. We were told that the Orcas like to be active when we depart the bay....but unfortunately, we never saw anymore whales the entire trip.
The port had a great transportation system (buses) that ran every 5 to 10 minutes. All day fare was $5.00 per person;however, it ended up being free for my wife and I. Apparently if you get a late start (2pm)...the required ticket distributors closed down just before our arrival.
I took the Sea Plane flight with Wings Airways....the views were very nice.
There was round trip transportation (buses) that ran every 5 minutes and they only cost $5.00 per person for a round trip to downtown Skagway. We didn't take any excursions; however, the shopping and views were plenty to keep us entertained.
We didn't leave the ship due to the lack of thing's to visit within walking distance. It had beautiful views though! It appeared that the town didn't get many cruise ships.
This was our second time to visit Tracy Arm. Unfortunately, we didn't get to see more than a few miles of the Fjord. The Captain made the decision to turn us around after he noticed the amount of ice that was present in the water in front if us. It was very disappointing not to be able to experience all of Tracy Arm again, but the Captain made the right call to cancel due to amount of ice present.
The process of departing the ship worked well (departed in groups). The customs process was simple;however, again...you will have to re-enter your information into to system again by answering Arrivecan questions all over again. ***Be advised...double check to see if the Covid testing is still needed for arrival back into the USA. Our airline or cruise line never told us a covid test would be needed to re-enter the United States. As we know....the process changes daily.
Glad you enjoyed. One of the best staterooms I ever stayed in was a handicapped one. Although not in a wheelchair, my Dad has arthritis in both knees, which is why we needed this cabin. Every chance we get now, we try to get either that cabin or a balcony!
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