Quantum 12/1 - 12/12 Review

thank you so much........we leave Saturday with our four kids and I was getting so worried with the negativity.......I know we will have a great time. Question: is the ship decorated Christmas? It is a first time away over the holiday. thanks again and glad you had a great cruise............Jenny

There is a beautiful, tall Christmas tree on deck 4 decorated with white lights and red balls. Poinsettias have been placed in many areas. That is the extent of it. My guess is that they are keeping it simple because the ship is so beautiful that over decorating would be a distraction.

thank you so much........we leave Saturday with our four kids and I was getting so worried with the negativity.......I know we will have a great time. Question: is the ship decorated Christmas? It is a first time away over the holiday. thanks again and glad you had a great cruise............Jenny

Nice big tree outside the pub

We were also on the December 1 cruise. I thought the ship was beautiful, and the 270 lounge is a great venue, so I didn't miss the Viking Crown. Overall, we enjoyed the cruise, liked almost everything, but had a few issues that could use improvement. Here are a summary of our comments:

Check-in & Boarding - We arrived about 11:00 AM and things were pretty chaotic at the curbside luggage drop-off. After dropping the bags and parking, we went into the terminal, through security, and had to wait for someone with an IPad to "validate" our set sail passes. They informed us that there was no credit card associated with the reservation, despite my entering all the information on-line previously (RCCL IT dept strikes again!). We had to go to another person, and another line, to have them swipe the credit card. Then, after our set sail passes were validated, we had to wait on another line to have them scanned so we could go up the escalator and board. Of course we got on a line where they were having difficulty with the scanners. From start to finish, it took us about an hour to check in and board.

After boarding, my wife went to a bar for a drink and discovered that there was no credit set up on her sea pass (and this after handling the credit card info again in the terminal), so it was off to guest services to get that straightened out. - Another line. So far, a rather inauspicious start! However, it was all much better from that point on.

Entertainment - absolutely fabulous! They really knocked it out of the park on this cruise.

Staff - A lot of the dining and bar staff appear to be rather unhappy. The service was ok, but not what we have come to expect from RCCL. From what I observed, they probably need more training to deal with what they have to do on this ship. Many of them are not quite ready for prime time.

Food & Dynamic Dining - As long time cruisers, we went in with an open mind. Now I can say we are not fans of dynamic dining. Making reservations is not a problem, but the limited and repetitive selection became an issue. We ate at American Icon, Chic & Silk for dinner and on each menu there were only one or two entrees that appealed to us. Based upon the reveal RCCL did months before, we expected to be able to get lobster at American Icon, but that was only available at Grande, and we didn't bring any formal clothing this time around since we didn't think we would need any. We inquired about the alternate menus that were mentioned in the reveal but were told they don't exist, at least not yet. The food we ate was very good, but it became boring on a cruise of this length.

Music - the Beatlemaniacs in the Music Hall were awesome! However, a major problem exists in the Schooner Bar (one of my favorite places to relax with a drink after dinner). It is located right above the Music Hall and the music and vibrations of the bass come right through the floor, making it very difficult to enjoy the piano music in the Schooner Bar.

North Star - beautiful views, if and when it is operating, but IMHO, much ado about nothing!

Activities - we did not find much to do during the daytime and were actually a little bored. There were none of the traditional pool games, no sail away party on deck, no line dancing on deck. Considering that there is a covered pool, the weather can't be blamed for this.

Diamond & Concierge lounges - these lounges were packed every night, and finding a seat was next to impossible. On the first night, I walked into the concierge lounge, took a few steps, turned around and left.

Interesting tidbits - don't know if it's true, but heard from several people that a group of very unhappy cruisers left the ship in San Juan, and a group of Pinnacle Club cruisers were so unhappy they left the ship in Barbados to fly home.

Great Review. Looking forward to sailing on the Quantum on 1/3/15.

We were also on the December 1 cruise and are currently on the December 12 cruise (B2B).

 

We were so impressed with the Quantum and would have given it a 12 on the 1-10 scale.

 

Dynamic Diniing is a huge success.

 

On the current cruise there was a glitch with Dynamic Dining on night 2 for Grande and Silk resulting in long lines. We ate in Chic and had no lines. They are still adjusting.

 

The sign-up process for North Star has been altered for this cruise and tickets are being diistributed on a first come basis in the Via on the night before riding the North Star.

 

We embarked the ship in 10 minutes however our friends who boarded for the current cruise encountered long lines.

 

The BEST thing about this cruise is that the whining, complainers in the Concierge Lounge have departed and it is now a wonderful, positive experience to be in there. There is a major attitude change throughout the ship because there are 2/3 fewer D, D+, and Pinnacle guests on the current cruise. Last week we observed some guests berating crew and some even reduced the crew to tears.

 

This ship is amazing and the crew is wonderful.

beachnative - we met briefly in the Windjammer on the last day when you over heard me telling the folks sitting next to me how Lady Q exceeded all of my expectations. I am so happy that you bought over the crew member so I could share my thoughts with him as well.

I plan on sending my review to corporate as I am so saddened that Lady Q is receiving such poor reviews.

I hope you are enjoying the second leg of your trip.

Sorry to hog your posts but I just had to reply with a different view of our experience on the Q on the same cruise. We are experienced cruisers, both in our very early 60's with more than 78 cruisers across several different lines.

Our check in time was 10:45 to 11:15, we arrived around 10:15. The people with the ipads were great and I was quite excited how easy it was. Then it all went downhill. It took us over an hour to get on board and we finally boarded at 11:40. So much for the appointment.

We were on deck 13, hump cabin, the cabin was beautiful BUT extremely narrow. We had the couch at the balcony door and I was very disappointed. I like to lay in bed, watch the sunrise and stare out at the water. Because of the closet jutting out from the side of the bed my view of the water was totally blocked unless I slept at the foot of the bed. My outside balcony glass panel was so filthy we could not look out it and there was a hugh slash of paint across the left panel.

The meet and mingle get together, was in MY opinion a disaster. The music hall was too small to handle the large amount of people. We waited on line more than 20 minutes to even get in and then were forced to go upstairs. If you did not have a front seat you could not see anything on the lower level. Not a single officer showed at the meet and mingle, guess they showed all of us.

Dynamic dining was horrible. We ate around 6:30 every evening and I had prebooked all of my reservations. We did not do the Grande and did not do any pay restaurants. We had to wait every night on the same line that people who had no reservations went on. One night we went to Coastal Kitchen and were told they did not have a reservation for us, even though I had printed out my confirmation and it showed on the TV. We were told they could not seat us and that we should check back after 9 pm or go to Windjammer (which is another story for another post). I did not pay all this money to eat at a high school cafeteria.

The esplanade was a joke, perhaps about 50 seats for people to sit. I missed the promenade. When the ship people were busy hacking all of there watches and other assorted merchandise there was no room to move. No parades in the esplanade and defintitely too small for a ship that size.

You state you danced in the music hall every night. You were subjected to the music of the ships choice. There was no option for you to choose a venue with different music. So if you did not like what was going on in the music hall you had no other choices.

I spent a lot of time outdoors. It seemed they were always working on the North Star. Both the indoor and outdoor pool are unusable to people with mobility issues, bad knees bad arms. The ladders into both pools are so steep they are virtually unclimbable. RCCL how about some steps leading into the pools.

THE ICING ON THE CAKE. My husband, who is a cardiac patient, woke at 4 am with shortness of breath. I immediately called the emergency number and was told I had to wait for a nurse to call me back. After a 10 minute wait, the nurse called back and asked me if he was able to speak ????. She suggested I bring him down to the clinic where she would examine him, do an EKG and review it with the doctor who came in at 8 am. I should bring my husband, who was experiencing heavy shortness of breath down from 13 to 2 so she could examine him. Are you kidding me. No follow up call from anyone on the ship to check up on him. Nice to know that RCCL really 'cares' about the passengers.

I did not even touch on the food, or my opinion of dynamic dining. It is obvious that the crew is not happy. I can't say I blame them because I was not happy.

Believe it or not, this is just a brief summary, I have so much more to say. Glad some people were able to enjoy.

Bring on the flaming

I am so sorry to hear that we had such differing experiences. I hope your husband is feeling better, that nurse should be reported.

They did have several Dreamworks parades each day on the Esplanade. The music hall played a wide variety of music something for everyone.

I hope that you will post some more details describing your experience.

We were also on the December 1 cruise. I thought the ship was beautiful, and the 270 lounge is a great venue, so I didn't miss the Viking Crown. Overall, we enjoyed the cruise, liked almost everything, but had a few issues that could use improvement. Here are a summary of our comments:

 

Check-in & Boarding - We arrived about 11:00 AM and things were pretty chaotic at the curbside luggage drop-off. After dropping the bags and parking, we went into the terminal, through security, and had to wait for someone with an IPad to "validate" our set sail passes. They informed us that there was no credit card associated with the reservation, despite my entering all the information on-line previously (RCCL IT dept strikes again!). We had to go to another person, and another line, to have them swipe the credit card. Then, after our set sail passes were validated, we had to wait on another line to have them scanned so we could go up the escalator and board. Of course we got on a line where they were having difficulty with the scanners. From start to finish, it took us about an hour to check in and board.

 

After boarding, my wife went to a bar for a drink and discovered that there was no credit set up on her sea pass (and this after handling the credit card info again in the terminal), so it was off to guest services to get that straightened out. - Another line. So far, a rather inauspicious start! However, it was all much better from that point on.

 

Entertainment - absolutely fabulous! They really knocked it out of the park on this cruise.

 

Staff - A lot of the dining and bar staff appear to be rather unhappy. The service was ok, but not what we have come to expect from RCCL. From what I observed, they probably need more training to deal with what they have to do on this ship. Many of them are not quite ready for prime time.

 

Food & Dynamic Dining - As long time cruisers, we went in with an open mind. Now I can say we are not fans of dynamic dining. Making reservations is not a problem, but the limited and repetitive selection became an issue. We ate at American Icon, Chic & Silk for dinner and on each menu there were only one or two entrees that appealed to us. Based upon the reveal RCCL did months before, we expected to be able to get lobster at American Icon, but that was only available at Grande, and we didn't bring any formal clothing this time around since we didn't think we would need any. We inquired about the alternate menus that were mentioned in the reveal but were told they don't exist, at least not yet. The food we ate was very good, but it became boring on a cruise of this length.

 

Music - the Beatlemaniacs in the Music Hall were awesome! However, a major problem exists in the Schooner Bar (one of my favorite places to relax with a drink after dinner). It is located right above the Music Hall and the music and vibrations of the bass come right through the floor, making it very difficult to enjoy the piano music in the Schooner Bar.

 

North Star - beautiful views, if and when it is operating, but IMHO, much ado about nothing!

 

Activities - we did not find much to do during the daytime and were actually a little bored. There were none of the traditional pool games, no sail away party on deck, no line dancing on deck. Considering that there is a covered pool, the weather can't be blamed for this.

 

Diamond & Concierge lounges - these lounges were packed every night, and finding a seat was next to impossible. On the first night, I walked into the concierge lounge, took a few steps, turned around and left.

 

Interesting tidbits - don't know if it's true, but heard from several people that a group of very unhappy cruisers left the ship in San Juan, and a group of Pinnacle Club cruisers were so unhappy they left the ship in Barbados to fly home.

 

I had numerous IT issues prior to boarding and I had to call RCCL several times for assistance. It was pretty shocking that a ship outfitted with so much high end technology had so many computer glitches with the on line check in process (something that is not new to RCCL).

Once on board I loaded the Royal IQ App and almost had a heart attack when it said that I had no dinner reservations. After waiting on line for an hour one of the hostesses was able to confirm that I did indeed have reservations. When I returned to my room later that day there was a full print out on my bed. Thankfully that was my only major issue.

Not that I will be sailing on this ship anytime soon but I am so happy to read this side of a Quantum review. Thank you so much :) Between here and a RCI FB social networking site, I had become quiet tired of all the negatives and "NEVER AGAIN" type of reviews.

They will get the kinks worked out and I imagine the 47% Quantum approval rating here as far reviews go, will go up tremendously.

We inquired about the alternate menus that were mentioned in the reveal but were told they don't exist, at least not yet. The food we ate was very good, but it became boring on a cruise of this length

If by alternate menus, you mean the Simple Tastes menu, it was definitely available (as was the kids menu) on the 12/1 sailing but not everyone knew. We asked to see it and half the time people didn't know what we were talking about. One head waiter tried to tell me the dishes were the same as the regular menu, but comparing them they were clearly not the same ones, as the preparations and dish contents listed on the menu were entirely different. She then proceeded to bring me the dish from the regular menu instead of the Simple Tastes one I ordered, since she insisted they were the same. Between that and the way some of the staff handled (or didn't handle, rather) food allergies, it really seemed like more training needed to be done for some of the staff. (Just to be clear - it wasn't everyone. We had some wonderful people who were on top of it but there were so many that weren't.)

I agree on the size of the selection / length of cruise point, especially since our group tried everyone else's food and ordered different things. After 1 or 2 dinners, there wasn't much left that we hadn't tried, and we had no interest in paying for restaurants just to get more menu variety. Once we were on our 3rd dinner at any given place, it did start to feel a little routine for me. Others in our group didn't feel as strongly about that, so I think it's just personal preference. I personally like to eat something different every day on vacation, so having tried it, now I know how I feel about this dining system when choosing a cruise next time.

As I read all the comments offered - it is obvious that people have different perspectives and views about Dynamic Dining. Everyone seems to agree that the ship itself is beautiful - or at least most people. I am not against dynamic dining - however, if my reservations that were made over 8 months ago were lost to a computer glitch - I would be upset if told I could not be accommodated. Also, I just talked to a friend who was on last sailing and confirmed that there are NO assistant waiters, and that service is extremely slow because of that. I just think we need to realize everyone has a right to their opinion, and we should be respectful of them - whether they loved Quantum or hated Quantum. I have not yet sailed - so I am reading all of this and hoping that more positive comments will be forthcoming. Smooth and happy sailing to all!

If by alternate menus, you mean the Simple Tastes menu, it was definitely available (as was the kids menu) on the 12/1 sailing but not everyone knew. We asked to see it and half the time people didn't know what we were talking about. One head waiter tried to tell me the dishes were the same as the regular menu, but comparing them they were clearly not the same ones, as the preparations and dish contents listed on the menu were entirely different. She then proceeded to bring me the dish from the regular menu instead of the Simple Tastes one I ordered, since she insisted they were the same. Between that and the way some of the staff handled (or didn't handle, rather) food allergies, it really seemed like more training needed to be done for some of the staff. (Just to be clear - it wasn't everyone. We had some wonderful people who were on top of it but there were so many that weren't.)

 

I agree on the size of the selection / length of cruise point, especially since our group tried everyone else's food and ordered different things. After 1 or 2 dinners, there wasn't much left that we hadn't tried, and we had no interest in paying for restaurants just to get more menu variety. Once we were on our 3rd dinner at any given place, it did start to feel a little routine for me. Others in our group didn't feel as strongly about that, so I think it's just personal preference. I personally like to eat something different every day on vacation, so having tried it, now I know how I feel about this dining system when choosing a cruise next time.

I guess that is why our waiter(s) / head waiter(s) said they didn't have alternate menus. They had no idea what we were talking about! So much for proper training!

I also prefer the changing menus offered each day in the traditional MDR. On the last night on board, out of boredom, I made a meal out of salad and crab cake appetizers. Unfortunately they brought me a caesar salad made with iceberg lettuce :eek: - they were out of romaine.

Now that we have tried dynamic dining, given a choice between a cruise with dynamic dining vs traditional, we will definitely opt for the traditional (even if it means sailing on a different line), unless they make significant upgrades to the dynamic dining offerings.

With the dynamic dining, is there still a "formal" night or is it, you make your own formal night if you want to eat at Grande?

Wish I was still there with you! We enjoyed an amazing cruise aboard Quantum.

We were also on the December 1 cruise and are currently on the December 12 cruise (B2B).

 

We were so impressed with the Quantum and would have given it a 12 on the 1-10 scale.

 

Dynamic Diniing is a huge success.

 

On the current cruise there was a glitch with Dynamic Dining on night 2 for Grande and Silk resulting in long lines. We ate in Chic and had no lines. They are still adjusting.

 

The sign-up process for North Star has been altered for this cruise and tickets are being diistributed on a first come basis in the Via on the night before riding the North Star.

 

We embarked the ship in 10 minutes however our friends who boarded for the current cruise encountered long lines.

 

The BEST thing about this cruise is that the whining, complainers in the Concierge Lounge have departed and it is now a wonderful, positive experience to be in there. There is a major attitude change throughout the ship because there are 2/3 fewer D, D+, and Pinnacle guests on the current cruise. Last week we observed some guests berating crew and some even reduced the crew to tears.

 

This ship is amazing and the crew is wonderful.

With the dynamic dining, is there still a "formal" night or is it, you make your own formal night if you want to eat at Grande?

No shipwide formal night with DD. Like you say, make your own formal night and you can eat at Grande.

:)A good balanced review Andrea

Loved your review, thank you for taking the time to write it!

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As I read all the comments offered - it is obvious that people have different perspectives and views about Dynamic Dining. Everyone seems to agree that the ship itself is beautiful - or at least most people. I am not against dynamic dining - however, if my reservations that were made over 8 months ago were lost to a computer glitch - I would be upset if told I could not be accommodated. Also, I just talked to a friend who was on last sailing and confirmed that there are NO assistant waiters, and that service is extremely slow because of that. I just think we need to realize everyone has a right to their opinion, and we should be respectful of them - whether they loved Quantum or hated Quantum. I have not yet sailed - so I am reading all of this and hoping that more positive comments will be forthcoming. Smooth and happy sailing to all!

They actually did have assistant waiters on the 12/1 sailing. The assistant waiter now works behind the scenes. The waiter places the food order via a tablet and the assistant waiters (dressed in all black) bring it out to the waiter. The assistant waiter also brings the dirty dishes back to the kitchen. The waiter is now responsible for taking drink orders, serving the bread, taking/placing the order, serving, fill water glasses and changing the linens between guests. The waiter simply has to much work. Introducing the tablet and adding responsibilities (especially in a full dining room) has caused a long drawn out dining experience. This is all in addition to a bunch of unhappy waiters who in my opinion are on strike or at best in the middle of a slow down. I doubt their attitudes are going to get any recognition from RCCL.

My Day One Blog... Embarkation Day

We left our house at 9am, made a pit stop for coffee and a bagel and headed for Bayonne. Under normal traffic conditions our trip should take about 45 minutes, however it was Monday in the Big City following a long holiday weekend so it took us over an hour and a half. Once into Manhattan we flew threw into NJ in no time.

Our first stop was to drop off our luggage and then we headed over to the long term parking lot. After a short walk to the terminal and a brief rest stop we headed into the main terminal (there was a shuttle bus available from the parking lot but the walk was so short we grabbed our carryon bags and headed across to the terminal) Once inside the terminal we were greeted by a gentleman with an IPAD who checked us in asked a few health questions and scanned our luggage tags. Having to hold the IPAD and juggle around some papers was a bit cumbersome. They should either provide him with a neck strap for the IPAD or go back to the counters to free up his hands, as he seemed so uncomfortable. Amazingly we made it from luggage drop off to the Windjammer in 20 minutes. To no surprise there were lots folks standing around the terminal complaining about everything on earth. I'll never understand, we had nothing to complain about as how often do you check in your luggage, park the car, check in and start your vacation off with meal #1 in 20 minutes.

I personally never had an issue with the old terminal or the shuttle bus system, however I must compliment the design of the new terminal. I certainly saw some room for improvement (all minor) but how could one complain when the staff is still trying to figure out what works best and were extremely friendly while doing their jobs. Every staff member we encountered prior to boarding was smiling and ready to provide assistance. I can’t say the same for some of my fellow passengers who thought it was OK to yell and scream at the port staff. Shame on them!!!

I was wooed from the moment I boarded the ship. From the color scheme to the layout everything was just jaw dropping. The ship is loaded with lots of trendy inspiring art work. After we boarding we headed for the elevators (it took a few before we were able to get on) and headed to the 14th Floor to have our first meal in the Windjammer. Boarding now takes place on deck 5. The new elevators seemed a bit roomier. The interior ones all had amusing works of art while the exterior elevators were all glass with a view of the Centrum. There is a nice view of some floating butterflies on the wall next to the exterior elevators that extended from the 4th floor up to the 15th floor.

The layout of the windjammer was a big improvement. It is now broken up into sections and no longer feels like a grade school cafeteria line. They had a lot of the Day One favorites along with some great new selections. The homemade cookie station was my favorite. I strongly advise against sitting in the front area of the windjammer as you can gain weight just from the heavenly aroma of the fresh baked cookies. So far I have had the coconut ranger, chocolate chip and oatmeal raisin cookies.

As I was not very hungry I enjoyed a light lunch - a pita stuffed with grilled chicken and steak. As I was on my way back to my seat I passed by some great looking sweet potatoes that I couldn't pass up. They tasted as good as they looked. My husband opted for a salad topped with Talapia. For dessert I had the carrot cake bite and some bread pudding. I can tell it will be hard for me to behave on this cruise. The carrot cake was amazingly delicious. At about 12 the waiter walked over to our table to tell us that our rooms were ready.

We headed down to the 9th floor to check out our room. Turns out the waiter was wrong and the corridor doors were still closed. No big deal we sat on the steps until the doors were opened. It seems that the rooms were still not ready as all of the room doors were opened. It was nice to get a peek at the various room types. Our room was not ready either so we just hung out on the balcony enjoying an unusually warm December day. While we were waiting I took the opportunity to download the Royal IQ app. MISTAKE #1. Unfortunately the app is still not up and working properly and I had to learned the hard way. Apparently the app did not show any of our dinner reservations or luggage, however it did show all of my entertainment reservations. As my husband had not been thrilled with the fact that we had to make reservations for dining so far in advance I left him out on the balcony to relax and kept my fingers crossed that guest services would be able to assist me. I ran down the stairs as fast as I could and after a short wait the agent at guest services walked me over to the dining reservation line (just down the hall) to see if they could assist me. With only two families ahead of me I thought that this would be a quick one. Boy was I wrong – I had to wait over an hour and a half. I began to sweat in fear that this could ruin my whole vacation. The reason for the ridiculous wait was that some of the folks in the group ahead of me had broken up and waited on separate lines and then tried to access the same booking to make multiple reservations. What they didn't understand was that once a reservation was made it automatically blocked a 2 hour time slot and did not allow for more than one reservation for that time slot. After numerous unsuccessful attempts they walked away upset with no reservations. My suggestion is that you try to book your dining reservations prior to sailing. If you wait until you board you should send just one person from your group down to make the reservations and be prepared to wait. Thankfully after wasting an hour and a half of my time the hostess confirmed that all of my reservations were in the system and advised that the Royal IQ app was not fully functional. I sure wish that this all could had been resolved at guest services and saved me the wait in line, thankfully in the end I was able to confirm that my reservation did indeed exist and calm down.

By this point my husband was calling my cell phone as he feared that I had abandoned ship. Thankfully that was not the case and I headed back to my stateroom to meet him. While I was gone the stateroom attended delivered our seapass cards and wow bands. After a quick stop back at the room it was time for us to explore this beauty. We started up on the pool deck where once again I could not get over how warm it was outside. As a bonus the NYC skyline looked extra spectacular. We got a lot of great pics and continued exploring our home away from home for the next 12 days. We continued around deck 15 and watched the ifly instructors play around a bit. I can't wait to schedule my fly time. We continued along deck 15 and finally met Felicia up close. What a great idea. I think every ship should have a mascot. Next we were off to check out the north star. As our luck would have it they cut off the line just as we were next in line in order to prepare for the muster drill. In my opinion they could have squeezed in one more ride as the muster drill was not scheduled for another hour.

Next we went back to the windjammer for a snack. That is where I bumped into a coworker of mine. I knew she was on this sailing and was hoping to see her on board. Shortly afterwards we were off to our muster drill. A nice change is that they now hold the muster drill indoors our station was located in Michael's Pub. They have redesigned the way that the drill is handled. For starters they now scan your sea pass and those who don't show receive a letter informing them that they must attend on another day. Secondly they show an instructional video to review the emergency plan. They end the video with a brief skit on proper hand washing. Hopefully the hand washing message was heard loud and clear as I am often appalled at the behavior of some folks in public restrooms.

After muster drill it was back to the cabin to unpack. While I like the layout of the cabin it is noticeably narrower than the balcony rooms on the Explorer. The cabin design allows for lots of storage. I still have 2 empty draws. The cabin (D7) is a perfect size for 2 people. Considering I made this reservation when the ship was still in the concept phase I am very happen with my selection. I manage to walk out on to the balcony just as we approached the Verrazano Bridge – WHAT A SIGHT!

Now that the unpacking was complete we were off to explorer more of the ship. By this time the shops were open so we browsed a bit and enjoyed a liquor tasting. Next we were off to check out the diamond lounge. To no surprise it was packed to the max, the over flow moved out into the upper level of the music hall. I think it was a pretty smart idea to build the Diamond Club next to the Music Hall creating this over flow area.The bar there also provided cocktails and did not swipe my sea pass so I still had my 3 preloaded drinks available that could be redeemed between 5 and 8:30 at any bar except the Bionic Bar, Vintages or any restaurant. It certainly was a nice perk.

After enjoying some cocktails we decided to continue exploring Lady Q. First stop was Sorrentos I wasn’t a big fan of the pizza, however the layout the pizza place was very nice. Sorrento’s is adjacent to the Promenade Café, providing even more snacking options. After that we headed to the high end shops to window shop, no much to suited for my taste. Afterwards we stopped by the Bionic Bar to see what all the excitement was about. It was very entertaining and folks really seemed to be enjoying it. The concept is very neat, however I thought the drinks were a bit pricy. Next we headed over to Two70 where we enjoyed the calypso band Hot Spices from Grenda. The venue is laid out nicely. I can predict we will be spending a lot of time in there. After looking around for a bit I found the swing off in the corner. After a few pics it was off to dinner.

Tonight we had reservations in the American Icon Grill, while the menu had changed from the time of booking I really enjoyed my meal. I started with the Louisiana Chicken Wings followed by the Beef Short Rib and topped off my meal with the New Orleans’s style Bengiets. My husband started with the Shrimp Po Boy followed by the New Orleans Gumbo and topped off with the sugar free dessert. Everything was delicious! If tonight’s dinner was any indication I know I am really going to be taken by the food on Lady Q. We were seated next to 2 very nice couples from Delaware. They had highly recommended the beef short ribs, so I went with their suggestion. The menu at American Icon had many entrees that really peaked my interested. If tonight’s dinner was any indication of the food to come I know I am going to be one happy camper. It should be noted that we were seat within 2 minutes of our arrival and were done with our meal in an hour and a half. Our waiter on the other hand left a lot to be desired he had absolutely no personality. He brought out my dessert and my husband’s followed 10 minutes later. I miss the nightly small talk with our waiter including the nightly suggestions. Thankfully we enjoyed our meal.

After dinner we headed over to the music hall where the band Horizon was performing. I immediately spotted Archie from the Quantum FB group. After the show he was kind enough to take a pic with me.

After a long day we retired for the evening.

Love your analysis, thanks!

Day Two… Sea Day I

The relaxing sea days and the longer itinariaries are the reason why we love cruising out of NJ so much. It really allows us to catch up on some much needed sleep. This morning we woke up at 10:30 and when we peaked outside we were surprised to be greeted by the Norwegian Gem. The seas were flat and the sun was shining. After lounging for a bit we decided to continue exploring the ship. There is art work everywhere, most of it is very enjoyable. After walking around for a while we ended up in the sea plex. It was bumper car time. The wait was about 5 minutes and the ride was so much fun. The cars are powered by a battery and the ride so much smoother than the ones at the amusement park. I had so much fun. My husband and I never laughed so much. Afterward we headed outside as the weather is still on our side. It was so warm out that there were many folks enjoying the pool. We hung around watching folks on the flow rider and made our reservations for ifly (I can't wait for tomorrow at 2 I know it's going to be a blast) I was rather impressed with some of the surfing skills some of these guys have. Others provided many laughs with their Wipeouts. After walking around for a bit we bumped into the 2 couples from Delaware from dinner the night before and they invited us to join them for lunch in the windjammer. Today both the husband and I had nice salads. The salad selections are very nice. As far as the Windjammer goes the salad station was the biggest improvement. We sure do miss the Tutti Salad Bar in the MDR on sea days, but the salad I had this afternoon was just delish. I topped off my lunch with a fresh baked Chocolate Chip Cookie...Yum! After our new friends Deb, Jim, Peg and Denny left in search of a table to play cards we were joined by another couple (Kim and her Husband) from Delaware – Delaware loves RCCL! We have not experienced any trouble finding seats in the Windjammer.

As we had 2:30 reservations for Mamma Mia we headed down to the theatre early to stake out some seats. The theatre filled up quickly so I suggest getting there early. The show was good but not as good as the Broadway version. The sound didn't embrace me the way that the Broadway version had. All in all it was a wonderful production at sea! After the show we stopped by the diamond lounge for a snack and and adult beverage. All this activity left us wanting a nap before our big night of dining and entertainment.

Tonight we had an 8pm reservations at Silk. The setting was beautiful it reminded me of an upscale Manhattan restaurant. We arrived at 7:55 and we had a 10 minute wait to be seated. They gave us a pager that alerted us when our table was ready. Not sure what the wait was about as about only half of the tables were occupied. I didn't notice many tables for two as just the two of us were seated at a table for four. We started off with vitemese tacos and Asian short ribs. For an entree I had the Asian Duck and the husband had the hibachi steak. Both were delicious! Our waitress was from Serbia and had never had Asian style food before joining the Quantum in October and is now loving every minute of it. She formerly worked on the Explorer and was really enjoying her new home on the Quantum. Dinner tonight took just over an hour.

After dinner we headed over to the Music Hall for the Beatlemania show. In my opinion they were the best tribute band that I had ever seen. There were lots of folks dancing and both floors were packed. Everyone seemed to be enjoying the show as much as I was. After the show we turned in for the night.

Day Three – Sea Day II

Another day at sea. The wind has kicked up a bit so the boat is noticeably rocking, but not as noticeable as previous ships. It's cloudy out but warm and humid. Once again we slept late and missed breakfast. For lunch we headed to the Café@Two70. What a great idea. They have all types of sandwiches (hot & cold), soups and salads. The mango string bean salad was amazing delish!!! They hand out pagers to those who order grilled sandwiches, that alert you when your order is ready. It a great idea as most people we saw were enjoying their soup or salad while waiting for their pager to go off. We had the famous roast beef sandwiches (Kummelweck) and I had a salad the husband had the onion soup. Lucky for us we arrived just in time as Robo Show was about to begin in the @Two70 Theatre. It was a fabulous show. It was all about the technology as a series of robots holding screens danced and display a video show. Two70 is such a wonderful venue. It such a well designed space with lots of cozy couches and tables. I guess that is why it is nicknamed the living room.

We made a visit to the photo area to see our photos from our I Fly session. It's all electronic no more looking through thousands of pictures to find your smile staring back at you. All you do is swipe your wow band or sea pass and your photos are displayed on the monitor. It didn't work for us as no pictures popped up. One thing I don’t care for with this system is that they watermark the pics so folks cannot take pictures and the watermark sort of distorts the pics. I was lucky enough to bump into James, one of the photographers and he was nice enough to bring up my pics on the unedited screen (no watermarks) so I can make my selections. Look for James from England he is fantastic!

Everyday we are noticing more and more improvements. The ice bucket in our room went from a plastic bucket and a towel to the nice metal one on a tray with glasses. We hardly ever see our room attendant but our room is spotless, he left us his number so when we need something we just give him a call. I am missing the Captain’s noon reports, for that matter we really haven’t heard too many overhead announcements. While this is no spoilers, it's just not what I am use to. Through out the ship there are many interactive tvs (touchscreen) that allow you to bring up the daily compass, a map of the ship, and dining room menus, etc... Great idea as I had to carry the compass around. Although this is a larger ship than we are use to it never feels crowds and they lines (if any) seem to move quickly.

As today was the big day (our appointment for ifly) we headed up to deck 15 to walk around a bit and get a look around before checking in for our first flight. The line for the bumper cars was wrapped around the seaplex (it looks as though they just opened for the day), so we skipped this session. We walked around deck making sure we hadn't missed anything. Turns out we did as today was our first visit to the solarium. People really seemed to be enjoying this area. The solarium has a series of cascading pools and lots of hot tubs. There were plenty of chairs and couches in that area. Between the solarium and the outdoor pool is another indoor pool. Although the weather wasn't so great there were lots of folks sitting pool side just relaxing. Due to the winds the North Star was closed today. I finally found the ice cream machine but it was being serviced.

As it was getting closer to our I fly appointment we headed over towards the sports area and relaxed in these cozy couches watching the ships wake. If I had to chose my WOW staff member it would definitely go to the flow rider staff. It bought tears to my eyes to see how they went out of their way to make sure that this young handicapped girl had the experience of her life on the flow rider. The smile on her face was priceless. Her Mom and Dad stood by with tears on their eyes snapping as many pics as they could. It was so touching.

I fly time!!! I was so excited. First you have to sign a waiver and then they weigh you and it's off to watch a training video (about 20 mins). Once the video was over the instructor Del reviewed the hand signals and answered questions. Next it was time to suit up. Jumpsuit, goggles, ear plugs and a helmet. After a few pics it was launch time. I have to admit that I got a little nervous watching the first flyer as he had no control and rolled onto his back, struggling most of the time. The instructor also really struggled to relax him with little success. We had a group of nine and the husband and I were the last to fly so we got to watch what worked for others and pick up on some of the thing that prevented others from having a good flight. I have to be honest, this is something totally out of my husband's comfort zone and I was really surprised to see him sitting next to me waiting to fly. He actually was the best of all the male flyers, He went the highest unassisted, the instructor spent very little time adjusting him as he was a natural. I really enjoyed my flying time. It certainly looks a lot easier than it actually is. It is all about keeping your chin up, lifting your arms up, keeping your fingers spread and bending your legs slightly. It was an experience I will never forget and would certainly love the opportunity to fly again. I inquired about booking another flight after we were done, however they asked me to check back after Puerto Rico. Up until now I thought Ice Skating on a ship in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean was the coolest thing ever. This experience has knocked it right out of the box. Wonder what RCCL will come up with next to top this experience.

To celebrate our successful flights we headed over to the hot dog truck. As I am not a big hot dog fan I was pleasantly surprised that it was so good! I had the Coney Island dog and Hubby had some sort of Brat. They had brats, sausage and dogs along with several different toppings. It is not to be missed, such a cool concept.

By the time we were done there was no line for the bumper car so we hopped on for another spin. Once again I had so much fun. After a bit of fun it was back to our cabin to relax for a few and get ready for our evening activities.

Tonight we started with a 7pm comedy show with Jim David. I swear I saw him before but in any event he provided lots of laughs. The reservation system for the shows seems to work pretty well. When you arrive they scan your sea pass/wow band at entry. The theatre was about 3/4 full. After the show we headed to our first formal dinner at Grande. There was a short wait to be seated. After being seated for about 10 minutes one of the head waiters walked over and asked if he could help us. When we said no he became annoyed and asked for our room number. We gave it to him he punched it into his tablet stood there for a few minutes look back and forth at my husband and I. After a few minutes he just walked off. I am really not sure what it was all about, but when I tried to get his attention to ask he just kept on walking. I am sad to report that it took 30 minutes for us to see a waiter and that was only after I requested that they send over the maitre d. They did not do a good job at apologizing for the wait but hustled to set up our table with bread, water and champagne. As restaurant was only about half full I am puzzled by all of the delays. We certainly did not feel like we were in a fine dining venue. This is certainly a kink that needs to be worked out. Thankfully our dinner was delicious and by the time dessert arrive I forgot all about the way our meal started off. I had the escargot, beef capaccio and double order of lobster tails. The husband had the shrimp cocktail, escargot, lobster tail and lamb shank. The lamb shank was the best we ever had. The food on this sailing has been amazing! For dessert I had the key lime tart and the hubby had the sugar free berry mouse. It was a nice end to a really delicious meal. Tonight's dinner took 2 and half hours. RCCL has some work to do with this venue as things seemed really off. I am still trying to figure out where the problem lays. As the Grande was not very busy the waiters should not have been so overwhelmed. We have yet to experience any technology glitches, so I would have to say that the staff’s lack of energy is creating a lot of the delays.

After dinner we headed to the music hall to see the band Horizon. This band is another must see. I am really enjoy this venue, as we are only a party of two seats have been very easy to come by. Horizon was followed by the BeatlesManics who are very entertaining and by far one of the best beatles tribute bands I have ever seen. Tonight's set was different from the previous one and just as entertaining. There were lots of folks out dancing and having a blast.

We are having such a great time I am not sure that much can top this experience.

What a great review! Keep 'em coming, and thanks!

KC

Love re-living the 12/1 cruise through your review!

Great detailed review. What are the D club operating hours?

Please keep in mind that this is my opinion, while I respect others reviews I ask that you treat me with the same respect and keep an open mind.

 

Boarding - very easy I arrived at 10:40 dropped off luggage curb side, parked the car, checked in and was eating my first meal in the Windjammer at 11am. Easy Breezy! Personally I had no issued with the previous terminal and having to take the bus down the pier, but the new terminal was a big improvement not only visually but also in terms of ease. Boarding is now on Deck 5. I was mesmerized from the moment I boarded. So very impressive.

 

Ship - boy oh boy... was I WOWED at every turn. They did an incredible job with the artwork throughout the ship. I especially enjoyed the pictures of the Dreamwork's character inside the elevators. One night at about 2am I rode each one to get pictures of all 10 animals. The layout was very easy to navigate. The decor was well done, as I felt like I was transported to a land of luxury. My favorite spot was the hut in the Via opposite Vintages. I spent many afternoons there just relaxing an listening to the folks giggle at my husband and I just laying in there... HeHe.

18 decks, 16 elevators, 4 bow thrusters, and approximately 4100 guests... Simply Amazing!!! In general I found my fellow cruisers to be the most friendly of all my sailings. We met lots of friendly folks and always got a warm welcome on the elevators. While we did hear stories of displeasure with the ship/dynamic dining in general folks were really upbeat during this sailing.

 

Rooms - I stayed in room 9604 a D7 balcony midship. The Quantum has 1,571 balcony rooms, 148 outside rooms, and 375 virtual balcony rooms. There were numerous suites and connecting families rooms in our corridor that we got a peak of the first day. The color schemes are very relaxing. We met several folks who were staying in the virtual balcony room and they all had wonderful things to say about their accommodations. As for my room is was slightly narrower than the balcony staterooms on the Explorer however it made up for it with the wonderful layout with tons of storage space. The bathroom had a new layout and the shower seems a bit larger. My favorite feature was the shave bar. Each bathroom has a nightlight, which is nice feature at 3am. I always hated being blasted in the face with the bright blinking bathroom light. Being that the ship is so new the towels were soft nice and soft. While the bed was slightly firmer than I am use to I slept well throughout the cruise. The couch on the other hand was way to firm for my taste. The only feature I missed was the magnification mirror. No biggie. My stateroom attendant Aldo was awesome he did a great job and was very accomadating. He made the cutest towel animals. I was shocked to hear that he was assigned 16 cabins- seemed like a bit much. Funny thing Aldo was the only person I ever saw in the hallway. I often felt like I had the ship to myself. While there were many complaints about noise in the cabins at the Captains Corner I thought my cabin was extremely quiet. On other sailings I was accustomed to voices in the hall. Very quiet on this one.

 

Entertainment - the shows were fabulous my favorite being Starwater. I suggest getting there early as two70 fills up very quickly. We sat upstairs and I had a hard time getting comfortable in the seats. The couches downstairs were much more comfortable, just like sitting in my living room. During one of the early performance one of the acrobats was injured and as that show was canceled after the first 10 minutes. I was so happy that they were able to so I was to continue performing later in the sailing. Starwater is a wonderful blend of technology and live performers. It should not be missed. As this show cannot going on during rough seas I suggest you schedule one of the early performances in the event of a cancelation you will have additional shows to select from. The show on the next to last night had to be canceled due to rough seas so folks packed the theatre on day 11 to see the show. The cast of Mamma Mia was incredible but the sound was a little too low for my taste. The after party was filled with so much energy. I was a little nervous that I wouldn't be able to sit for a 2.5 hour performance, but the show was so good that the time flew by.

Sonic Odyssey was simply amazing!!! As this was only the second sailing for this show we were lucky enough to see William Close the creator of the instruments. This was the first ship I have ever been on with more than two lead singers. The Royal Caribbean singers and dancers were simply incredible!!! Our guest entertainers were great... Jim David the comedian had me laughing so hard I nearly fell out of my seat. Joel Mason an Elton John impersonator was fabulous. I danced and sang throughout the show. He also had a great sense of humor. Ed Alonzo was a hilarious comedian/magician!!! Coincidentally he was on tv starring on top chefs as I was packing on the last day. Earl Turner is one very talented entertainer. His performance had the entire audience on their feet dancing. After all who doesn't love Motown?

 

Activities - the activities staff was simply incredible! With a vast variety of activities the staff was always pleasant and smiling. I want to give a special shout out to Jackie the instructor from I Fly who spent over a half an hour talking to my husband and I on the pier in Martinique. As we have cruised with Jimmy Rhodes in the past I was a little taken back by his toned down demeanor. It was clear that RCCL is trying to transform the role of the Cruise Director. I was lucky enough to have had several conversation with Jimmy and it seems like his role has become more Administrative. As for The Quest Jimmy would loved to have hosted the show however the ship just did not have a venue that could accommodate the show. We did however enjoy lots if the other entertainment such as roller skating, bumper cars, I fly, circus school, North Star, live music with Horizon, Beatlemanics, and Hot Spices, trivia, dream works parades/performances, Love and Marriage Game Show etc... There was always something to do. We were so busy we had very little time to layout on deck- this was a first. We spent every night in the Music Hall dancing the night away. The variety of music was great. We went from one live band to the next to a DJ. Very entertaining.

 

Enhanced Activities - the North Star there was only one day that it didn't go up due to high winds. It was easy to get a spot to go up on port days. On sea days they distributed tickets each day at 9am. As I am not an early riser I was lucky enough to go up twice, once in Martinique and once in St Martin. It goes up and down so smoothly. The view was incredible.

I Fly - I use to thinking that ice skating was the most exciting activity at sea... I Fly knocked it out of the box. It was very easy to get reservations. I had two different flights. If you hang around there are always one or two people who don't show up so it's fairly to get a flight without a reservation. To fly you have to <230 if you are under 6ft and <250 if you are over 6ft. My instructors were Del and Callen. Callen was the Quantum's first employee of the month and after my flight with him it is easy to tell why. Go Callen!!!

 

Dynamic Dining - well I was a little nervous about this concept, as I had made reservations for all

11 night back in March. I wasn't sure what to expect. Well I was simply knocked off my feet! The venues were well appointed and the food was incredible. I tried many things for the first time and loved everything. We only ate at the complimentary restaurants, however I heard nothing but raved reviews about Wonderland... Maybe next time. We only had a 5 minute wait one night at Silk and were seated right away all of the other nights. Except for the last two nights when we dined with friends we had a table for two. Although we sat at a table for two we always had pleasant conversation with the guests next to us. We even were easily able to reschedule reservations for the last two nights (with no issue) to dine with friends. The only negative about the entire sailing was the service in the restaurants. It is clear that the dining room staff is miserable. A few shared that they were unhappy because they were transferred against their wishes and that the new style of dining cut off their additional tips. Well I have to say that had the service been on par I would have had no issue tipping extra each night. In addition, the staff was not very accepting of change (maybe a change management facilitator would have been helpful during the transition) as they introduced technology into the role of the waiter RCCL thought that this would allow the waiters to take on additional responsibilities. I really don't buy into that concept and feel that if they added additional waiters the service would be greatly improved. I understand and was willing to accept hiccups due in part to technology but I have an issue accepting that a company known for their service lost focus of the standards like refilling the water, cleaning off the table between courses, clearing the plates in a timely manner, and ensuring that the guests were happy. Poor customer service. We had an awful experience the first time we dined in the Grande and when I asked to see the manager, even he made no attempt to apologize. Thankfully the food made up for the service. We had standing 8pm reservations and found the restaurants to be empty, so it was really hard to pin point the reason behind the terrible service. We did meet a lot of folks who were totally opposed to DD and opted to eat in the Windjammer. In my opinion they really missed out. I am certainly not opposed to DD and if I able to find a more affordable sailing I'll be booking the Anthem.

 

Laid Back Dining Option - there was so many to choose from and each was better than the next. Our favorite was Cafe @Two70. The Kummelweck is simply delicious and not to be missed. After the first few days we just ordered meat and skipped the bread and opted for an extra mini dessert. In addition to the Kummelweck Cafe Two70 offered all sorts of hot and cold sandwiches, soups, salads (both prepared and made to order) and all sorts of bite sized yummy desserts. My favorite desserts were the chocolate peanut butter cupcake and the Oreo cheesecake bite, simply Devine!!! Another item not to missed is the Cajun Grilled Shrimp Salad. They lines were always very reasonable and if you ordered a hot sandwich they have you a pager so you didn't have to wait at the counter. They had some tables and stools as well as the couches in the tables in the main theatre. Cafe Two70 is a must.

Windjammer Marketplace - another great upgrade. The new layout felt more grown up a lot less like a school cafeteria. They had a greater selection of foods and an expanded salad bar with lots of healthy choices. In addition at the very back of the windjammer they had a made to order station that offered a variety of omelettes and fajitas. The food was always hot and fresh. In addition to some of the standard choices they had a Asian Station, Mediterranean Station, Grill Station, Panini/Sandwich Station, Make your Own Pizza, a wide variety of fresh baked breads (even the pumpkin baked cheese bread from the MDR) and a salad bar. In addition to the sweet treats stations they have a fresh baked cookie station- yum. Be warned The smell is heavenly. The sweet treats were perfect bite sized portions and included a cupcake of the day. The vanilla one was delish. My favorite was the carrot cake bites. We found out on the second to last night that the Windjammer had a 24 hour grill. Thankfully I hadn't found out sooner as we visited twice for late night french fries. It was a pretty nice spread for a late night snack.

SeaPlex Dog House - the first food truck at sea. Such a great concept. My favorite was the Coney Island Dogs. They had four different variety of dogs and toppings that changed daily. The sauerkraut was the best I ever had.

Sorennto's - I was a fan I thought the pizza on the explorer was much better.

Cafe Promenade - another great upgrade. They really expanded on the selection of snacks. The Zeppoles were incredibly. I cannot even imagine how they would have tasted hot. The shrimp salad sandwich was incredible! The coffee is a big improvement as well.

FreeStyle soda machines - there were two in the cafe promenade the one on the left didn't seem to work as it often dispensed flat soda. There was one in the seaplex but was out of most of the popular choices. I am not really sure why it was never refilled. There were also two in the windjammer.

 

Disembarkation - we arrived late so that seem to make things a bit chaotic as folks were trying to board and folks were still getting off the ship. We are diamond members, however we ended up with #49 I guess they no longer offer priority disembarkation to Crown & Anchor members. No big deal as we ate breakfast in the Windjammer and struck up a nice conversation with some fellow passengers while waiting. Once off the ship we found our luggage flew through customs and headed to the parking to get our car. The process was seamless.

 

Overall I had an amazing cruise and would have no hesitations to book on the Quantum Class again. I will be posting my daily blog on cruise critic over the next couple of days. I could go on and on forever as it was just that awesome, but I am going to stop here. Please feel free to ask questions. our car. The process was seamless.

 

Overall I had an amazing cruise and would have no hesitations to book on the Quantum Class again. I will be posting my daily blog over the next couple of days. I could go on and on forever, but I am going to stop here. Please feel free to ask questions.

Thanks for the great review. I Was getting nervous about our upcoming march cruise. Read so many neative reports