Caribbean Cruise Reviewed by Laurie

We had an inside cabin that seemed small and beautiful. There seemed to be plenty of storage space. Loved the TV. Plenty of lights. Comfortable beds, with plenty of space to slide luggage underneath. Bathroom is small. In closet safe. The absence of sunlight was not immediately noticeable. But this is why you should sell up. We boarded in NY, and the weather was chilly and overcast. We started sailing, but we did not know where we were going. I assumed we would stay close to NY, and I packed accordingly. I woke up that first morning and dressed warmly, only to go out on deck and be greeted with sun and warm breezes. We were sailing south and were around the Virginia beach area! I had no clue in my cabin that it was even sunny, never mind warm! When you are in an inside cabin, the only way to know the temp, or to feel the warm breezes is to get dressed, do your hair, grab the elevator and go out on deck. We never met our cabin steward.

The ship itself is big, however, I found it very easy to navigate. I usually need 3-4 days before I can know where I am on a ship. I did not have that problem this time. The decor is beautiful and pleasing. Spaces are clean and bright. I found the food in the Windjammer was just OK, although I did enjoy all of my meals in dining room without any complaints. I did not have any service issues from the staff. I did observe several people being rude to staff. At one of the bars another person was red faced with anger because the ship was out of pina colada mix. Or another was berating the staff for a 1 hour wait at Johnny Rockets. This happened on more than one occasion. The staff I observed were trying their best to explain that demand for everything was at unusually high levels because there was no cost to consume these items weather drink mixes, internet access, or milk shakes. Management onboard explained to the group that met for "common ground" that these shortages would not be an issue with a regular sailing because these items have a price and people have 7 days to try the various offerings. This makes sense to me, and I will not hesitate to send my clients.

The flow rider is a great innovation. Me and my sister both tried this twice. I was one of the ones suffering from "Wardrobe Malfunctions", as my bottoms really wanted to go where my body did not. First hand, I can tell you that once you let go of the boogie board to pull up you bottoms, you will be forcefully thrown into the rear wall. The rear wall is a heavily padded abrupt stopping point. I did not realize it until a day later, but I have a very large angry bruise on one of my hips from my second attempt on the flow rider. My sister also has a bruise on her knee. It was a lot of fun, and I would of tried it again and again if I had more time. Your clients will have a better time if they have a secure bathing suit. There is such a large audience watching this attraction they will feel better if they are prepared, and you will look better having prepared them!

The children's areas are expansive and have something for everyone. Even the very youngest babies can take advantage of aqua tots and aqua babies. These are scheduled play groups with parents and children under 3, designed by Fisher Price. The scheduled times are located in the Compass on a routine sailing. Staff said it is usually well attended, and that parents got to know each other during these meetings. The arcade is quite large, and always had people in it. Fuel looks like a great place for teens to hang out. The place was always thumping with music that I did not recognize which should mean that the teens will love it. I took home the information sheets on the other kids programs and showed them to my daughters who will sail for the first time in December. They want to do every activity listed, with each one sounding better than the last. The staff also mentioned that they do "field trips" with some of the kids. An example would be dinner at Johnny Rockets. Parents must give permission for and sign up for this type of activity in advance of the activity, but during the cruise. Another item worth noting is that parents are instructed to go to their muster stations in the event of an emergency. They are told not to go to get their kids at the program, that their kids will be escorted by staff to the muster stations. If parents go to the program areas, they will find them empty.

The H2O zone is simply wonderful. All parents will be happy with this space. The only difficulty I can see it that it is possible that those in diapers will still be excluded. The H2O zone is an area ankle deep with water. There are whimsical and colorful statues of people, animals, and random shapes that squirt water, dump buckets, and randomly spray. There are even water cannons that can be used by kids/adults to wet their targets. The area is large and fun to explore. It is appropriate for kids and adults. Around the outside are several whirlpools. I envision parents sitting in the pools while supervising their kids in the H2O zone. All of this water wonderland drains into vents at the sides of the attraction. There are also several smaller pools of different depths right there. What I could not know is if the water is "shared" or "re-circulated" into the other pools, or if it is just contained to the H2O area. There are signs at the entrance to the pools at the H2O zone that clearly say no children who are not potty trained. Because it is such a large area with several entrances it was hard to figure out if the no diaper rule will be enforced in the H20 zone as well. I was not able to ask any person that would know the answer onboard. If any other agents have insight into this, I would love to hear it. The space is so inviting and just begs to be explored. I don't know how parents could possible keep the smallest cruisers away.

Once Upon a Time was the best and most imaginative show I have seen at sea. Well done and not to be missed. The Ice show and ABBAcadabra were also very good. The dedicated Karaoke space was a big hit and well attended. During regular sailings they will have Idol Karaoke, complete with judges. Should be a great time. I had fun watching. The parade was neat, especially the moving bridge that was descending as entertainers were twirling and hanging from the thing. Entertainment was everywhere, it was impossible to see and do everything, although I certainly tried. I only slept a total of 7 hours the whole trip.

I asked at the front desk about the Wine Program, where you can purchase wine packages on the first day of sailing and consume bottles at will during the trip. I have several clients that wanted details about the wines and pricing in advance of the sailing. Initially I was told to look in cruisingpower. I explained that I did, and could not find details. The staff then attempted to locate it themselves on cruisingpower, and seeing it was not there, proceeded to make several phone calls to get the information. The ships brochures had not been delivered yet. The staff then arranged an email, and printed the brochure for me from the email. They truly bent over backwards and tried very hard to get me the information. I was thrilled. We were also able to meet Bonnie Newman, and spoke with the person who designed the new dining tool that was launched while we were onboard.

Finally, it was fabulous to finally sail upon a Royal Caribbean ship, and the "largest cruise ship on the earth", as my 4 year old told others.