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Symphony of the Seas Cruise Review to Caribbean - Eastern

Cruises: 7+ cruises
Reviews: 11
Helpful Votes: 394

Overall rating:

4.8 out of 5
Symphony of the Seas

7 Night Eastern Caribbean (Miami Roundtrip)

Sail date: February 02, 2019

Ship: Symphony of the Seas

Cabin type: Suite

Cabin number: 9226

Traveled as: Singles/Friends

Reviewed: 5 years ago

Review summary

It was a year in the waiting for this cruise. When booking, the cruise seems so far away, but once it was over, it happened in a blink of an eye. Clearly Royal Caribbean puts the best of the best on the newer ships. All of the crew and staff on board were very committed to ensuring every guest had an amazing time while on board the ship.

Embarkation

5 out of 5
Royal Caribbean has now gone to a brand new and all digital check in process. In fact, you upload your photo prior to arriving at the pier. When they scan your barcode, you are cleared for the waiting area. Your room keys are found on board the ship in the mail slot next to your cabin door.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

5 out of 5
Every meal our group had on board the ship, we were continually impressed by the crew doing everything they could to go above and beyond our expectations. One member of our group is a vegetarian, three evenings in the main dining room, they prepared a special all vegetarian meal for our entire table to enjoy family style.

Onboard Activities

4 out of 5
With over 5500 passengers on board the ship, there were definitely peak times at the pools, rock climbing walls, surf simulators, ice rink, and fitness area. All of the equipment and activities were maintained and in incredible condition.

Entertainment

5 out of 5
The stage and aqua shows on this ship are truly Broadway quality performances. The main stage featured both the musical hairspray and an incredible historical view of flight and aviation. The orient in spired aqua show, with Ariel’s and high diving or absolutely nothing short of spectacular. Let alone, something to see while at sea.

Children's Programs

We did not travel with children.

Service and Staff

5 out of 5
Stephanie, Max and Sorin were the most attentive and amazing bartenders (Solarium Bar, Deck 15 forward). Eddie, our cabin stew was amazing. He was in and out before we could blink. The cabin was kept spotless, if we needed anything, it was delivered within 5 minutes.

Ship Quality

5 out of 5
Since the ship is less than one-year-old, we expected to ship to be in good condition. Everywhere we looked, crewmembers were constantly polishing, vacuuming, sweeping and cleaning every corner of the public spaces.

Cabin / Stateroom

5 out of 5
The cabin was a generous size for a Junior suite. There was a good size walk-in closet, a nice size bathroom with the bathtub, and definitely more storage and cabinet space in the room then the two of us could fill. It was nice to see outlets and USB ports readily available for charging our smart technology and laptops.

Ship tip

Definitely pre-book all of your shows and showtimes before boarding the cruise. On the final night, the aqua theater show had a line of over 400 people who did not have reservations waiting to take any open seat 10 minutes before showtime.

Thumbs up

Ports of call

Miami, Florida

5 out of 5
Miami is a nice city, we didn’t do much here other than a hotel stay the night before the cruise as our group of 4 met up arriving from different cities.
Thumbs Up

Nassau, Bahamas

4 out of 5
Nassau is nice. Lots of shopping close by. We did not venture to the beaches in port.
Thumbs Up

Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas

5 out of 5
Lots of amazing shipping and beaches to choose from. The downtown shopping area was a short taxi ride away and well worth it to find discounts and items not available at the smaller shops at the port.
Thumbs Up

Basseterre, St. Kitts

5 out of 5
We spent the day with a driver and a tour of the island before spending an hour on the beach.
Thumbs Up

Disembarkation

4 out of 5
The process was smooth, in general. There was some confusion about when self-assist was going to be let off. But other than that, we all caught our flights and had a smooth departure process.
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2 Comments

cruisereckoning    4 years ago

Sounds great
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GrLd    5 years ago

I read & re-read your review. We leave 3/16 (my bday) & it’s MY first cruise. We reserved it Valentine’s Day last year (2018) & I know exactly how you feel about the year long wait. I have followed the ship through its final building process, pretty much have all of the deck plans memorized & made reservations for all of the shows on Black Friday we’re 19 days out. It seems so long ago yet how did we get to this point. I have never been so obsessed with a vacation, I’m sure it will be the best in my lifetime (unless we go again). My bfriend said the same about when it’s over & your flying home (to cold/snow weather). He doesn’t even want to think about that day, said it’s sad. So glad you enjoyed yourself, seems everyone should make the best of it, kick back & enjoy although some, few don’t; they complain). It will be what we make it & I know by the type of people we are, it’s going to be amazing. Thank you so much for your honesty, glad you had a great time!
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