Adventure of the Seas Review- Canada/NE June 1

Hi all…always enjoy reading trip reviews so thought I would give a summary of our 7 night Canada/NE on the adventure of the seas. On this trip was me and DH and our two daughters aged 2 and 4. We have been on many cruises as a family and while this one was a little different as we went north (and it was cold) we still had a great time.

Embarkation: Couldn’t have been easier. We received an email prior saying boarding would be delayed as there was a coast guard inspection that day. We dropped our bags at 10:45am- no wait- and were on board by 11:14am. That included parking the car, security, getting our pictures retaken and the elevator up to the ship.

Debarkation: Also a breeze. Got to the lounge as our number was called- grabbed our luggage and a porter and through customs in under 10 minutes. Home before the work day started.

Stateroom: We had two connecting promenade view cabins on deck 8. We looked down on Izumi. Overall location was great except you could hear all the music on promenade. It wasn’t loud, but it was present. It didn’t keep the kids awake- but for our next cruise we will not book again. Staterooms were not very clean. We found other peoples hair, unopened condoms, and food/bottles left over from the last cruise. Had to ask for ice to be delivered every day (they didn’t give it on the second day because we only asked on day 1).

Entertainment: The hypnotist was great- best we have seen on a ship. Production shows were just ok. Nothing to move plans around for. We never saw the adult comedians. Loved the ice show.

Activities: Trivia and name that tune were always packed. The ship in general felt crowded- perhaps because no one was out on the pool decks. Even though we did not spend time in the Solarium because of the kids, the retractable roof was never closed through the entire cruise. It seemed odd since the temperature was in the 60’s at best with a great deal of wind in there.

The secrets of the stage talk was very cool for anyone interested in theatre as well as the personal lives of the performers on board. You were able to ask general questions about where they were from, how they got to their current jobs, training, as well as more day to day; how do you keep in touch with friends, what do you do in port, etc. It was hosted by the vivacious and approachable cruise director, Chris Brown.

The guitar player in the duck and dog was good and was able to handle the usual requests There was a decent crowd in there regularly. The Boleros area was the least utilized during the normal hours. There would be a band around the dining areas that did not draw a crowd. The space on the Adventure is significantly different than on say, the Anthem. On the Anthem, you walk into the bar and it is heavily decorated thematically. On the adventure, it just feels as an extension of the casino which was also constantly crowded.

For those that like smoking, this place is for you. There was a good amount of people talking at the bar, having a good time. For those of you that do not like smoking, you may want to stay on the deck above. The smell is very strong in the entire space with it bleeding into the surrounding hall and up the stairs to promenade.

We did a few of the ship activities: mini golf, ice skating, family disco, family karaoke. Didn’t try the rock wall, flow rider or the big slide. My DH did the purple kids slide and my littlest loved the yellow slide- but after we left Bayonne it was too cold for anything but hot tubs. Even with it being cold for the pools the hot tubs were never full.

We skipped the loyalty party but did go to the meet n mingle- hosted by the activities manager and by far the shortest we have ever been too.

Food and Drink: Breakfast we grabbed from the WJ or Promenade. Not too crowded in WJ. They had the usual stuff- new to use was chocolate dipped fruit. Also had fresh fried eggs already plated by the back omelet stations.

Lunch we ate in port most days- tried the MDR one day and had a horrible experience did WJ twice. In the MDR for lunch lines were long for the salad bar. We were seated and both given different menus- took about 15 minutes till someone came over to ask our order and clarify which was the correct menu. They did go get the kids chicken fingers-although they do not offer a kids menu for lunch.

Dinner we did the BOGO specialty did our first night at chops and second at giovannis. Food was okay- had I known we would have such a great MDR experience I probably wouldn’t have booked it. Our MDR waitress was the BEST! She noticed that my girls ate the strawberries out of the fruit cup the first night- every night thereafter they had a bowl of just strawberries waiting for them at the table. She took the time to play and interact with the girls and make sure they had the best desserts. (get the kids brownie!) Lobster night we were told we were only allowed one lobster because the chef wanted to make sure there were enough for late seating. We each got one but ended up not eating them because they were so overcooked they were inedible. Perhaps we were spoiled by the Maine and Canada lobsters all week.

Coffee- I missed having the two coffee shops that anthem has but the line was never too long. Ships coffee was too strong for me so I was glad I had the package.

Overall it was a great week- we were sad to leave and looking forward to our next cruise.

Lobster night we were told we were only allowed one lobster because the chef wanted to make sure there were enough for late seating. We each got one but ended up not eating them because they were so overcooked they were inedible.

We were told the same thing on our AD Southern Caribbean cruise in May. They were also small and overcooked. I guess that's how it is on AD now.

Thank you for the review! This is good info for us - leaving in a few weeks on the same itinerary. :)