Just back from Anthem today

I HATE long reviews so I will keep this short as I can. Anthem is just incredible, its everything it was supposed to be and more. I just love the way RCI designs and lays out their ships. This ship or class has 3 of the coolest rooms on the ocean period, in my opinion. The indoor pools, the Solarium and 270 are just about the coolest rooms at sea bar none. You can throw in the Esplanade too because I liked it just as much as the Promenade and quite possibly better. The ship is clean as can be from top to bottom. The service was even better that I remembered from Explorer, and much better than the NCL cruise we took last year. The Captain who is from Croatia and I can't pronounce his name is very funny, but you can tell is no nonsense when it comes to safety.

Food I thought was excellent, From Windjammer to specialty was excellent. Specialty we ate at Wonderland, Jamie's and Chops. All were incredible. Wonderland was a fun experience, the food I questioned because of "looks" but when you taste it, its delicious. A very fun experience.

Jamie's was great but I can't give a full review because we didn't finish anything. It was Portland port and we had and early excursion and didn't eat Breakfast or Lunch so when we got back on at 2:30 or 3:00 we had slices of pizza and that ruined us for Jamie's. The bites we did have of everything was excellent though.

Now Chops was incredible and that is coming from someone who hates steak. I did not get steak, I got Salmon but it was incredible.

The Elevator situation was great I thought, worked much better than Breakaway last year. There weren't any huge waits.

Voom was simply incredible also. It was supper fast. Stream movies, no problem, no buffering, just played. I was highly, highly impressed with Voom.

Oh Bayonne port is awesome also, on the ship in 20 minutes. The weird new rule that you can't go to your stateroom till 1 PM I don't like but what are you gonna do. Getting off was a bit chaotic, but its 4200 people getting off a ship in 2 hours, hard to avoid. It's MUCH better than NCL Manhattan though, MUCH. The seas were calm, had a great time, and will do Anthem again. I'll post more as I think of things as I know already I forgot some stuff.

We love the Anthem too! Agree completely with everything you said. We are on the January 7th sailing and will probably book another on her for 2019! It may not be the ship for everyone but it is amazing!

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Glad you had a great time. Curious what the pros and cons were compared to the Breakaway. The Anthem was our favorite cruise. We wanted to cuise on Anthem again but were concenred about repeat shows - game shows, production shows, etc. and were open to trying the Breakaway. But hopeful of some entertainment changes and updates with the fact that we loved 270, the Esplenade and the Solariam - we booked a repeat cruise on the Anthem over a first cruise on the Breakway.

Glad to hear that you had a good time. We also think the Anthem is great. For the same reasons as heathermiller86nj, we considered experiencing the Breakaway for our winter 2018 cruise. Then we thought about 270 and the Solarium (there were a few other reasons too). We booked our third cruise on the Anthem.

Glad you had a great time. Curious what the pros and cons were compared to the Breakaway. The Anthem was our favorite cruise. We wanted to cuise on Anthem again but were concenred about repeat shows - game shows, production shows, etc. and were open to trying the Breakaway. But hopeful of some entertainment changes and updates with the fact that we loved 270, the Esplenade and the Solariam - we booked a repeat cruise on the Anthem over a first cruise on the Breakway.

Um I don't want to dump on NCL or Breakaway because there are great things about both but Anthem is better in every single way except one. The food on NCL was slightly better but not enough to go that direction again. The Manhattan port quite frankly, SUCKS. Please excuse my language but I hated that terminal! Hate with a capital H. Too small for that many passengers, period.

I did not like the layout of Breakaway. Confusing, not cohesive and lots of bottlenecks and traffic.

I LOVE the people that work on these ships. They sacrifice so much for their families its hard to understand as an American but the service was not great to not good. I suspect that has to do with something NCL is doing, possibly salary wise and NOT with work ethic. They are all great people.

Thank you for the review! I can't wait to go on this ship. We were all disappointed with Royal the last time we sailed on the Oasis, but I think that ship is just too big for our tastes. Hoping for Royal to redeem themselves on this next cruise. I keep hearing great things about Anthem too.

Glad to hear that you had a good time. We also think the Anthem is great. For the same reasons as heathermiller86nj, we considered experiencing the Breakaway for our winter 2018 cruise. Then we thought about 270 and the Solarium (there were a few other reasons too). We booked our third cruise on the Anthem.

Thank you for the review! I can't wait to go on this ship. We were all disappointed with Royal the last time we sailed on the Oasis, but I think that ship is just too big for our tastes. Hoping for Royal to redeem themselves on this next cruise. I keep hearing great things about Anthem too.

270 is so cool a room I could pull up a blanket and sleep in the chairs or couches and be just fine. Its simply one of the coolest rooms at sea. Its really fun when they are doing a difficult tight docking. New Brunswick Canada was like that and it was fun to watch!

I was thoroughly impressed by Anthem, and RCI, but I always love RCI so take that with a grain of salt.:D

Thank you for your review. I will be on the November 11th cruise, and was concerned about the food after looking at recent reviews. As we have been to all of the ports on our itinerary many times over, this cruise is about the ship. I am generally not easy to impress, but it sounds like I may be "wow"ed by Anthem!

Thanks for your review. We sail on Anthem for the first time in Dec & are super excited!

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No problem guys. On the itinerary of this cruise, its just awesome. This is actually our second time doing this exact cruise just on Explorer the first time and I can tell you we will do it again. The only issue is the same most people have at other ports and that is not enough time in a particular port. The weather on this cruise at every port except Boston was incredible also. Boston it rained pretty hard, but the other ports were warm and sunny. The weather was downright hot in New Brunswick, I wore shorts at every port except Boston because of the rain. Next time we do this cruise I'd like to try it in June or August or something like that. Like to try a different, warmer time of the year.

There were only 60 kids on this cruise because of the time of year. Anthem has a really good kids program and a really cool playroom that is again decorated really awesome and fun. Our son spent a good amount of time in that playroom. Its a great ship, we really loved it.

Oh the Solarium is just unbelievable, hard to imagine who had the foresight to create that room. Now with a 4 year old we only got to stroll through it when the other was watching the kid. No kids allowed in there obviously. Its an incredible part of the ship if you can take advantage of it, very, very quiet.

We were on the 5 day just before you, really wish we could have done the 9 day. Will definitely book again. I feel like we just scratched the surface of all Anthem has to offer. I expected her to feel crowded and have long elevator waits but that really wasn't the case. The only downside for me was catching a cold onboard. I saw a number of people with heavy coughs and woke up sick the morning after we returned.

Love the Anthem also. Can't wait to go back. Looking forward to Aug 2018 already

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We were on the same cruise but, unfortunately, had to get off in Boston due to my husband having a medical problem. All is well now and he is fine. That's what important. One of the reasons we were taking this cruise was to see the leaves change color. How was the color change in Maine & Canada? Hoping to do this cruise again. Glad you had a great time.

A word to the wise....buy travel insurance. Lost our fare of $3,300 and it cost $1,000 to get home (hotel for me for the 2 day hospital stay and cost of airline tickets).

Glad you had a great time. Curious what the pros and cons were compared to the Breakaway. The Anthem was our favorite cruise. We wanted to cuise on Anthem again but were concenred about repeat shows - game shows, production shows, etc. and were open to trying the Breakaway. But hopeful of some entertainment changes and updates with the fact that we loved 270, the Esplenade and the Solariam - we booked a repeat cruise on the Anthem over a first cruise on the Breakway.

Having cruised both Breakaway and Anthem (twice) we prefer Anthem. BA is way too crowded and noisy everywhere! The pool, buffet and seating, waiting to dine in 'free' restaurants, bars- all jammed, and dislike the atrium area. We enjoyed the shade and quiet area on the Waterfront but by week's end our secret spaces were discovered. And I agree, certainly hate the NY terminal.

Having said all that, we're trying Escape next year out of NY to Bermuda. We are Platinum with NCL and enjoy those benefits, want to go to Bermuda for a week again (our favorite island), received OBC, 5 free Specialty restaurants, and the Beverage package and at least we know what to expect as far as the crowds go. Going with an open mind but It may be our last on NCL BA class. Jewel class is our favorite and will only go with this class afterwards with NCL.

Having cruised both Breakaway and Anthem (twice) we prefer Anthem. BA is way too crowded and noisy everywhere! The pool, buffet and seating, waiting to dine in 'free' restaurants, bars- all jammed, and dislike the atrium area. We enjoyed the shade and quiet area on the Waterfront but by week's end our secret spaces were discovered. And I agree, certainly hate the NY terminal.

 

Having said all that, we're trying Escape next year out of NY to Bermuda. We are Platinum with NCL and enjoy those benefits, want to go to Bermuda for a week again (our favorite island), received OBC, 5 free Specialty restaurants, and the Beverage package and at least we know what to expect as far as the crowds go. Going with an open mind but It may be our last on NCL BA class. Jewel class is our favorite and will only go with this class afterwards with NCL.

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Oh the beds surprised me were hard, but I was told you can ask your room attendant for padding soften them up. We didn't but should have. The balcony in a regular balcony room was awesome. Plenty of room, 2 chairs, some leg rests to stretch out and a small table. The balcony's on Breakaway were TINY, barely enough room to sit.

Oh one question for other Anthem passengers in the past. Did the water in the shower go from hot to warm to cool and cycle through like that the entire shower? That I didn't like but should have asked our room attendant again. Also based on how the ship was designed with the indent in the middle, is it better to have an Aft or Forward room where its bulged out for lack of a better word? We were on deck 12, unobstructed view and loved it, but I am thinking the bulged out rooms might be cooler? Any thoughts on that?

Thanks for the review! I have heard some mixed reviews of this ship and was getting a smidge worried. Now I am excited for my April sailing!

Thanks for your review and commentary....I have sailed the Breakaway three times, and agree with most of your points. As a solo cruiser, the Breakaway is far more 'solo friendly', so I am cruising it again in January...

That said, I am doing my first Anthem cruise on 2 December for 12 nights...I did the Quantum once back in 2014, and as the Anthem is a twin of that fabulous ship, I look forward to enjoying all the great venues that it has to offer...:cool:

Thanks for your review and commentary....I have sailed the Breakaway three times, and agree with most of your points. As a solo cruiser, the Breakaway is far more 'solo friendly', so I am cruising it again in January...

 

That said, I am doing my first Anthem cruise on 2 December for 12 nights...I did the Quantum once back in 2014, and as the Anthem is a twin of that fabulous ship, I look forward to enjoying all the great venues that it has to offer...:cool:

Oh I wanted to mention this about Anthem Vs Breakaway. The hallways on Breakaway are so small it's really ridiculous. With the room attendant carts in the hall my son's stroller could even fit through. Anthem, no problem at all. I don't know why NCL did a couple things. The tight hallways, the tiny balconies, and the atrium with the smoke from the casino. I just can't understand those calls.

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Oh the beds surprised me were hard, but I was told you can ask your room attendant for padding soften them up. We didn't but should have. The balcony in a regular balcony room was awesome. Plenty of room, 2 chairs, some leg rests to stretch out and a small table. The balcony's on Breakaway were TINY, barely enough room to sit.

Oh one question for other Anthem passengers in the past. Did the water in the shower go from hot to warm to cool and cycle through like that the entire shower? That I didn't like but should have asked our room attendant again. Also based on how the ship was designed with the indent in the middle, is it better to have an Aft or Forward room where its bulged out for lack of a better word? We were on deck 12, unobstructed view and loved it, but I am thinking the bulged out rooms might be cooler? Any thoughts on that?

We were on the same cruise. We really enjoyed it. Our shower stayed hot the entire time - very nice. The only complaint we had was all the strange noises that could be heard all night long. It didn’t wake me from sleeping but sometimes made it difficult to fall asleep.

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We were on the same cruise. We really enjoyed it. Our shower stayed hot the entire time - very nice. The only complaint we had was all the strange noises that could be heard all night long. It didn’t wake me from sleeping but sometimes made it difficult to fall asleep.

 

 

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Thanks for your feedback!

I hope I didn't come off as a Breakaway basher because the ship is beautiful, just some kwirks that I'm sure they'll fix with future builds. At least I hope so. NCL does give you better deals that's for sure. The drink package and the other perks you get for free is pretty awesome. We had an AFT balcony and my god that was awesome. The balcony was enormous.

Oh I wanted to mention this about Anthem Vs Breakaway. The hallways on Breakaway are so small it's really ridiculous. With the room attendant carts in the hall my son's stroller could even fit through. Anthem, no problem at all. I don't know why NCL did a couple things. The tight hallways, the tiny balconies, and the atrium with the smoke from the casino. I just can't understand those calls.

 

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Its pretty simple really, they just want to pack in as many revenue producing cabins as possible....the Breakaway carries about the same number of passengers as the Anthem, with about 20,000 less gross register tons...hence some of the issues you mentioned. The Escape alleviates some of that, and the newest ship, the Bliss, is a vast improvement...

I HATE long reviews so I will keep this short as I can. Anthem is just incredible, its everything it was supposed to be and more. I just love the way RCI designs and lays out their ships. This ship or class has 3 of the coolest rooms on the ocean period, in my opinion. The indoor pools, the Solarium and 270 are just about the coolest rooms at sea bar none. You can throw in the Esplanade too because I liked it just as much as the Promenade and quite possibly better. The ship is clean as can be from top to bottom. The service was even better that I remembered from Explorer, and much better than the NCL cruise we took last year. The Captain who is from Croatia and I can't pronounce his name is very funny, but you can tell is no nonsense when it comes to safety.

Food I thought was excellent, From Windjammer to specialty was excellent. Specialty we ate at Wonderland, Jamie's and Chops. All were incredible. Wonderland was a fun experience, the food I questioned because of "looks" but when you taste it, its delicious. A very fun experience.

Jamie's was great but I can't give a full review because we didn't finish anything. It was Portland port and we had and early excursion and didn't eat Breakfast or Lunch so when we got back on at 2:30 or 3:00 we had slices of pizza and that ruined us for Jamie's. The bites we did have of everything was excellent though.

Now Chops was incredible and that is coming from someone who hates steak. I did not get steak, I got Salmon but it was incredible.

The Elevator situation was great I thought, worked much better than Breakaway last year. There weren't any huge waits.

Voom was simply incredible also. It was supper fast. Stream movies, no problem, no buffering, just played. I was highly, highly impressed with Voom.

Oh Bayonne port is awesome also, on the ship in 20 minutes. The weird new rule that you can't go to your stateroom till 1 PM I don't like but what are you gonna do. Getting off was a bit chaotic, but its 4200 people getting off a ship in 2 hours, hard to avoid. It's MUCH better than NCL Manhattan though, MUCH. The seas were calm, had a great time, and will do Anthem again. I'll post more as I think of things as I know already I forgot some stuff.

Hi,

We are on the Anthem in about 2 weeks. I know you said you can't go to your stateroom til 1. However, do you know when they let you start boarding the ship? We're trying to figure out when we should arrive at the port.

Thx,

Debbie

Hi,

 

We are on the Anthem in about 2 weeks. I know you said you can't go to your stateroom til 1. However, do you know when they let you start boarding the ship? We're trying to figure out when we should arrive at the port.

 

Thx,

Debbie

Anthem usually starts boarding sometime around 11 or before. We get to the port around 10:30 to avoid waiting in traffic too long. When you print your set sail passes, you need to pick an appointment time to check in at the port, but they do not enforce those times, so get to port when it is convenient for you.