Would go back in a minute
Symphony of the Seas Cruise Review to Caribbean - Western
Contributor Level:
Cruise Director
Cruises: 7+ cruises
Reviews: 16
Helpful Votes: 537
7 Night Western Caribbean (Miami Roundtrip)
Sail date: January 12, 2019
Ship: Symphony of the Seas
Cabin type: Balcony
Traveled as: Couple
Reviewed: 5 years ago
Review summary
Symphony of the Seas was well worth the extra cost of the New Ship price. The shows were very good and the new dining venues lived up to our hopes. We were wishing we had another week because we left feeling we hand't really seen it all. At 65 years old I was still willing to ride the dry slide. It gets you going pretty fast and with two or three corkscrew turns on the way down, once was enough LOL. The conversion of the location of Sabor into Playmakers was a hit. NFL playoff game viewing was well attended. We were surprised they did not also use the big screens in the aqua theater for the game. The food at playmakers was good too. Try the nachos with pulled pork. It would easily feed four people. Hooked was well worth the price at lunch too. El Loco Fresh was a big hit for lunch also. The size of the lines attested to it popularity.Embarkation
Parking is right next to the terminal. Expensive but convenient. With printed sea pass and passport in hand we walked up to one of several walking agents. Waited for one couple ahead of us and quickly checked in and proceeded into a short line for security XRay. The onto the ship. Sea Pass cards were at the cabin door when the cabins opened at 1pm.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
With all the options for dining, we did not eat in the main dining room. New experiences included El Loco Fresh (no extra cost, open only to 6pm). Hooked which we again chose for a big lunch (last lunch reservation is 1:30pm). And Playmakers for casual dinner. Each of these met and exceeded our hopes for choice, value and taste. I had clam chowder and fish and chips at hooked. At Playmakers my wife and I shared nachos topped with pulled pork (it was great) followed by hamburgers. The serving of nachos would serve four people easily and was the highlight of that meal. Solarium Bistro was not a bright spot. You no longer order off a menu at all. Everything is buffet style which doesn't work well with things like Calamari. They ran out of carved beef during the time we were there. I got some but my wife missed out. They never came back with more while we were there.
Onboard Activities
Very typical activities available. I rated it average just due to the similarity of it all.
Entertainment
Five stars goes to the ice show and one of the production shows. Six stars for Hiro (aqua show) which was fantastic. "Flight" was just ok and the one board bands were just ok too. They played in Dazzles which is not a viewer friendly venue. They always started later in the evening too. Comparing it to what we experienced on Anthem in the music hall, this was a disappointment.
Service and Staff
Had nothing but good service throughout the ship. Guest services and the wifi staff were helpful with minor issues (minor because they resolved them quickly).
Ship Quality
Ran out of time (7 day trip) taking in all the places and things to experience. Other than Dazzles (somewhat nit picking here) we loved the ship. Cleanliness was never an issue.
Cabin / Stateroom
10262 is an oceanview balcony near the rear stairwell. It was very conveniently located. Noise was never an issue. Everything worked well. There was an AC outlet on one side of the bed and two USB charging outlets next to two AC outlets in front of the makeup mirror. The mirror itself was mounted too high for my (short) wife to be able to use while seated. This was the only flaw in the design. The shower however was noticeably bigger compared to older ships. Storage was better also with matching closets and plenty of shelves.
Ship tip
You better book two weeks because one isn't enough.
Thumbs up
0
Ports of call
Coxen Hole, Roatan, Bay Islands, Honduras
Our first time in Roatan. We like beaches for our activities and West Bay was a worthy visit. We look forward to going back. We booked a excursion through Shore Excursioneer which included transportation.
For $30 we got two chairs and a welcoming drink, each at Bananarama resort. It was a good location on the beach which turned out to be less crowded than other locations on the beach. I'd certainly go there again.
I did a snorkeling trip by boat offered at the beach. One of the better snorkeling trips I've been on. They tell you the trip cost $35 per person. One guy on the trip said he negotiated $30 for he and his wife included. I paid $30 just for me. It was worth it I thought. The vendors were constant but not harrasing much like Costa Maya.
We like this port having been there a few times already. Unfortunately it rained the whole day this time so we stayed on the ship.
It rained all day in Costa Maya but cleared up the next day in Cozumel. We usually go to Mr Sanchos but decided to try another venue. The El Cozumeleno was almost as good as Mr Sanchos. It certainly hand an advantage or two going for it. We bought through Shore Excursioneer web site. The cost was $55 each. It included one hour of free snorkeling equipment which I enjoyed. The snorkeling here is better than Mr Sanchos. There was also free minigolf that we did not use. The pools were big also. The access to the beach was dependent on where you sat. It is partially sea walled and partially walk in. The food was decent but not as good as Mr Sanchos and similarly we preferred Mr Sanchos mixed drinks. El Cozumeleno is less crowded though and just as spread out. I think you have less locations with shade and they don't use umbrellas here so don't expect shade if you get there late morning. All and all oour experience was good but we'll likely stick with Mr Sanchos.
This was our last port. The weather was ok but we had run out of motivation to get off the ship and go to the beach.
Disembarkation
Customs was pretty quick. Even tAlthough the government was shut down there were more than adequate customs agents at the port.
Traveler Photos
2 Comments
Shh813 5 years ago
Great review. Thanks. Hope we get to try the ship sometime. Sorry you didn't go to the MDR, as I would have liked to hear how the food was. We don't believe in spending more money on food if what comes with the cruise is good. We've been on 8 cruises so far and have loved the food in the MDR.