Back from Sovereign 3/4 - 3/7

[martdm]

Just returned from our 3 day cruise on Sovereign & subsequent trip to Florida. I'll write a review shortly but am happy to field any questions anyone has.

 

In short, we had a wonderful time! The ship, food, service, and entertainment where all good & the only disappointment was missing Coco Cay due to high winds making tendering dangerous.

[Alikona]

I am glad to hear you had a great time on Sovereign. We are sailing 12/22 and was getting nervous as some of the initial reviews right after the refurbishment were quite negative. It sounds like this ship is unable to make it to Coco Cay quite a bit due to high winds. What did they do on the ship that day instead? I have lots of questions, but I will wait for your review. I heard they did a nice job on the refurbishment.

 

Allison:)

[martdm]

I read the negative reviews and didn't find any of the problems to still be in existence. Not having seen the ship prior to the refurbishment, I can't compare but I can tell you the whole ship looked great!

 

We had one of the new balconies and it was hard to tell that it was retrofitted. The interior of the cabin all appeared new and the only evidence of recent work was some inaccurate cutting of the carpet edges in the closet area. The common areas were all very nice and kept extremely clean throughout the cruise so we had no complaints.

 

The day at sea instead of Coco Cay consisted mainly of them rearranging the schedule to move some evening events like bingo up to the afternoon, opening the casino tables early, and adding a few games by the pool (probably similar to what is scheduled on the four day cruise which does have a scheduled day at sea).

 

I might take a while for the review so feel free to ask any questions now if you like!

[la_croisiere_s'amuse]

We had one of the new balconies and it was hard to tell that it was retrofitted.

 

Glad to hear you enjoyed your experience!! We're taking the kids on the Sovereign in August, for their first cruise. :)

 

You mention you had a balcony -- were you in a GS by chance?

[Alikona]

Martdm,

 

Thanks for the information about the rooms. My DH and I with our 2 daughters (ages 5 and 8) will have a Grand Suite. We will be traveling with my MIL, her husband, and my DH's brother and his wife and two daughters (ages 14 and 16). They have the Junior Suites. Apparently, only 1 GS was left and not very many Junior Suites. I was so surprised to hear that the ship was virtually full already for the 12/22 sailing! The suites sound fine. I am excited that they added the balconies! Previous posts talked about the rooms being so small, but if I understand correctly, the Junior Suites and Grand Suites are just as big as the suites on the Voyager.

 

How was the dining room service and food? Has anyone used the Adventure Ocean club or the in-room babysitting? If so, I would love to have your feedback. I am hoping to have a couple of "grown-up" evenings.

 

Thanks!

 

Allison:)

[martdm]

You mention you had a balcony -- were you in a GS by chance?

 

Yeah, I wish! Hehehe...nope, we were in a standard Junior Suite but it was really nice. Much like the size of a typical hotel room and more than enough elbow room & balcony space for the two of us.

[martdm]

How was the dining room service and food? Has anyone used the Adventure Ocean club or the in-room babysitting?

 

We don't have kids so I can't comment on Adventure Ocean other than what I observed which was the kids coming out of there looking very happy :)

 

We received impeccable service from the head waiter, waiter, and assistant waiter in the dining room. They were very personable, incredibly professional, and extremely gracious. We generously tipped them all because they made our experience so nice!

 

We both though the food was very good. It was our first time on RCCL and we thought the food was exceptionally better than what we have had on Carnival. There were many choices each night on the menu and always at least 5 alternative entrees for those who didn't care for what was on the themed menu. Everything we had was interesting and tasty - hard to tell it was mass produced as it was more like restaurant quality. I won't bore you with our selections unless you want me to.

 

The Windjammer is typical buffet quality but the choices are varied and plentiful - we tried it once for breakfast and twice for lunch and it was good but nothing to write home about. Likewise with the midnight buffet.

 

I highly recommend filling out your room service card and having a light breakfast in your suites. We really enjoyed having a pastry, fruit, & coffee while relaxing on the balcony watching the ocean. You can always supplement with a light breakfast in the dining room/Windjammer a bit later in the AM. Nothing like it!

[danajjj]

You mentioned the midnight buffet. What did it consist of and how was it? Glad to hear you had a good time.

[martdm]

You mentioned the midnight buffet. What did it consist of and how was it? Glad to hear you had a good time.

 

The Caribbean buffet we had was the second evening & was held poolside. They offered a variety of taco/burrito fixings, roasted pig, chicken, fried plantains, yucca, rice & beans, and various fruits & salads. There was also a dessert table with a variety of sweets to choose from. Overall, I'd say the buffet was good - nothing extravagant or anything that was a culinary delight but it was all a pretty good midnight snack after spending the evening at Atlantis.

[MGoodyear]

Martdm,

 

Has anyone used the Adventure Ocean club or the in-room babysitting? If so, I would love to have your feedback. I am hoping to have a couple of "grown-up" evenings.

 

Thanks!

 

Allison:)

 

We have taken our son on Sovereign and he loved Adventure Ocean, and they stay open late and baby-sit for about $5 an hour (from like 10pm to 1am)

[Alikona]

MGoodyear,

 

Thanks for your feedback on Adventure Ocean. I have heard alot of positive comments and I think my girls will love it!

 

Allison:)

[MLB]

We just got off the Sovereign Friday and my kids LOVED the kids program. We did too. The kids can have dinner twice with them, but sign up early as space is limited. My kids (ages almost 5 and almost 8) were disappointed when I forgot to sign them up for dinner one of the nights. They also loved hanging out with the kids program on Cococay. They played lots of sand games and had a hose for when the kids needed to be cooled off.

[Philly Steve]

Glad to hear Sovereign's fan base continues to grow.