My Thoughts - Serenade of the Seas March 14-21, 2015

[nimbex1970]

Thank so much for sharing your opinions. Sorry to see some of the replies. To discount your entire "review" because of a CD is silly. Many here review on the food, I disagree, and then just don't look at that specific food review to coincide with my information gathering. I could care less who the CD is/was or will be, I tend to have my own fun regardless.

 

I've looked at the Serenade, several times, still have yet to sail her, she is on the list. Thanks again for the updates.

[Raxter54]

What we saw was an abbreviated/modified version of the Aquatronica show. Only the first apparatus was used, and there was only one aerialist. I believe Jack and His Magic Beans was supposed to be performed Monday night when the cable snapped at the beginning of the performance.

 

On the Feb 28 cruise, there was only one aerial show, Jack and his Magic Beans. It was well done and enjoyable.

 

 

Edited March 26, 2015 by Raxter54

[Bamagirl_gina]

I have to say that I had an eye brow go up in concern when I read that Carly was going to be the CD for our April 4th cruise. I've don't know her and have never been on a cruise with her....I was a bit concerned because I read that she would be on Serenade for a short time--coming out of "semi-retirement". So my obvious concern--semi-retired? Does that mean "burned out", "Bored", etc. ? Sounds like that may be the case. However, I have to say, the last time we were on Serenade the CDs were the Blairs--a crowd favorite. I thought they were ok, but wasn't overly impressed (as many are) or under impressed....so I guess it's all relative to what you expect/anticipate. Regardless, we don't plan our activities around the personality of the CD so I think we will be just fine (although I do have to agree that CDs can, to a degree, set the tone of the cruise activities.)

[tiessa]

2 Loungers

2 Chairs

1 Small table

 

The loungers take up almost the entire depth of the balcony and are placed to the far left side.

 

 

I was on the Serenade in January in an aft cabin and I could have written your thoughts! I agree with you 100%. Royal Caribbean has a lot of work to do on this ship.

 

Interesting that you had 2 loungers. We had 1 and were told we weren't allowed to have a 2nd.

 

We've cruised on the Brilliance and it was a great experience. Totally different from the Serenade. And we had 2 loungers!

[NightOne]

I was on the Serenade in January in an aft cabin and I could have written your thoughts! I agree with you 100%. Royal Caribbean has a lot of work to do on this ship.

 

Interesting that you had 2 loungers. We had 1 and were told we weren't allowed to have a 2nd.

 

We've cruised on the Brilliance and it was a great experience. Totally different from the Serenade. And we had 2 loungers!

 

Were you in one of the wraps as well? We had plenty of room for 2 and the other furniture.

[NightOne]

Just a quick comment on the numbers here as some have seen my thoughts as being more negative than positive.

 

I counted the passages that were +, -, and neutral and it is as follows: 20, 14, 14. So out of roughly 48 passages only 14 were negative vs. 34 as positive or neutral. So it break down as follows:

 

41.6% Positive

29.2% Neutral

29.2% Negative

 

So saying that neutral is not a bad thing:

 

70.8% Positive/Neutral

29.2% Negative

 

Bottom line is I feel like I am not "slamming" RCCL and have said less negative overall than some might think. :)

 

Yes, Engineer is in my job title. LOL

Edited March 26, 2015 by NightOne

[GonnaSailtoo]

I'm bored and restless and close to a port, so I was considering adding another week to my one week on the Freedom in April. Your post helped to remind me that RCI isn't so great anymore. I've been on the Freedom six times in six months, and after this cruise, I think I'll try something else. It's "ok" but not worth all that extra money for a back to back.

 

I appreciate your comments and think they are spot on!

[NightOne]

I appreciate your comments and think they are spot on!

 

Glad it helped in some way.

[RazorbackIslandGirl]

Thanks NightOne for taking your time to share your opinions. We sailed that week also. We found the crew & ship to be wonderful! Carly B may not have been the best but I have experienced much worse. I too was at M&M & thought it was nice. There was a small crowd but I thought she engaged everyone nicely. Maybe my expectations are different but I find the crew to be VERY nice on the Serenade! But my goal on vacation is to have fun & I usually manage to do just that. This was no exception. JMHO

[NightOne]

Thanks NightOne for taking your time to share your opinions. We sailed that week also. We found the crew & ship to be wonderful! Carly B may not have been the best but I have experienced much worse. I too was at M&M & thought it was nice. There was a small crowd but I thought she engaged everyone nicely. Maybe my expectations are different but I find the crew to be VERY nice on the Serenade! But my goal on vacation is to have fun & I usually manage to do just that. This was no exception. JMHO

 

I loved the crew, just not Carly B. Pretty sure all my posts above about the staff are in blue with the exception of Carly B and the Park Cafe people. :)

 

Two more things about this whole Carly B thingy:

 

1. I only have Gavin from Golden Princess to compare her to when it comes to my experience. In MY book, Gavin = 9 or 10 and Carly B = 2 or 3. Had I NOT watched her every day on the RCI channels then my opinion would probably be neutral as I never really seen her onboard except for the M&M and the 70s party.

 

2. I'm fine if you try to sell me something. However, if you do it in a non-genuine way then I have no time for you. I said Carly was a phony on the morning show and I stand by that. :)

 

3. Ultimately, my overall thoughts on the cruise are impacted by the CD by only a little bit. A great CD makes it more fun and a bad one makes it less fun overall.

 

Again, just my opinion.

 

Were you on the top or bottom level at the M&M?

[LMaxwell]

Did you really just ask a member if they are mentally unbalanced?[emoji22]

 

We all are; I thought that was a given? Didn't we have to check a box when signing up here?

 

I thought that was a pretty good review. It covered a lot of different aspects and I can appreciate the OP taking time and effort to give both highlights and lowlights of things.

 

OP, in regards to entertainment, was there not an aerial show in the Centrum? They usually have that a couple of times per week and practice and mini sessions scattered throughout. It's pretty unique and a crowd pleaser.

[Carolla5501]

Great review. We are doing this ship for the Baltics in June. My only question. Someone on another thread posted the bars close at. 8. I was planning to give my husband a drink package for his birthday but since we will be spending all day in port this won't be worth it if the bars close that early. What did you find? Thanks

[NightOne]

We all are; I thought that was a given? Didn't we have to check a box when signing up here?

 

I thought that was a pretty good review. It covered a lot of different aspects and I can appreciate the OP taking time and effort to give both highlights and lowlights of things.

 

OP, in regards to entertainment, was there not an aerial show in the Centrum? They usually have that a couple of times per week and practice and mini sessions scattered throughout. It's pretty unique and a crowd pleaser.

 

No aerial shows until further notice on the Serenade. :(

 

They are short riggers as I understand it. Heard this from an insider.

[NightOne]

Great review. We are doing this ship for the Baltics in June. My only question. Someone on another thread posted the bars close at. 8. I was planning to give my husband a drink package for his birthday but since we will be spending all day in port this won't be worth it if the bars close that early. What did you find? Thanks

 

I think only Sky Bar and maybe Solarium bar close that early. Pool Bar closes at 9pm. All the others were open much later.

Edited March 27, 2015 by NightOne

[cathykb]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts. How shocking that someone's taste in CD 's would be as subjective as their taste in food. Yikes!

[CruiserBobby]

Most of the things that you put in red in your posts leave me shaking my head. It's as if you have never been on a cruise before and have no idea what a cruise is like. I am not going to go into detail.

 

But when you write the paragraph that I quoted above....................

 

Well, any credibility that you MIGHT have had is gone.

 

Carly is fantastic. Carly is warm. Carly is friendly and sincere. She is absolutely one of the best CD's in the fleet.

 

SHE SHOWED UP AT YOUR MEET 'N' MINGLE! Do you know how many other Cruise Directors do that? Almost none. None at any *I* have ever attended.

 

:mad: :mad: :mad: :mad:

[iahawkfan21]

Although it very review-ish (is that a word?) I purposely tried to steer away from using the word review and and am merely sharing MY thoughts about MY experience.

 

 

 

Exactly!

 

 

 

Yes, unfortunately we have a group of people here that feel they must post every single thought that pops in their head or have to contribute to every single thread in this forum section. Rarely do I find those posts useful with the huge notable exception being Bob (clarea) who is a shining example of a what a high frequency poster should aspire to be here.

 

We also have another group of Royal cheerleaders/bullies here that think they can attack/discredit/demean/harass anyone who posts anything about RCCL that is not to their liking. Sorry, but that does not fly with me. :)

 

BTW, if anyone has any questions about anything on the Serenade 3-14-2015 sailing, feel free to ask.

 

They never mentioned it on the ship, and I didn't mention it above, but we had no aerial shows in the Centrum. Heard from an insider that they are short riggers and the aerial shows on Serenade will probably not happen for quite awhile longer. (months maybe)

 

 

While I'm definitely a RCCL loyalist, I appreciate your review and honesty. We've always cruised on the larger ships above Radience class, and we're considering one for next year. Everyone's opinions are obviously subjective, such is the point of a review.

 

Thanks for taking the time to break down the various sections of the ship, gives me a good starting point for our planning! Glad you had an overall good time. We are also self planners on excursions. Saves money and usually better quality/smaller groups we typically come away happy. We're cruising on Indy tomorrow so I may borrow some from your format a bit, thanks again!

[Paulette3028]

Cruise Director - Carly B

 

Phony as the day is long. On my first cruise, I would enjoy getting up and watching the morning show and watching the CD and Asst. CD crack you up. This morning show was nothing but repeated sales pitches for the spa, shops, photo gallery, shore excursions, and you name it. Carly was so fake and did these fake interviews where she acted surprised to know that you get OBC for booking a cruise with Next Cruise onboard. She never let the Asst. CD (Renalto) get in a word. Outside of the events, I never seen her anywhere onboard.(except Meet & Mingle for a couple of minutes) Overall, a completely different experience than my Princess cruise. Not a fan. :(

 

It is fine to have your opinion of Carly B. as your cruise director. You mention Renalto, as the Activity Manager, assistant to Carly -- but mention nothing more -- did you participate in any activities that Renalto was the host of; or did you see Renalto around the ship more?

 

Just curious about this..

[NightOne]

It is fine to have your opinion of Carly B. as your cruise director. You mention Renalto, as the Activity Manager, assistant to Carly -- but mention nothing more -- did you participate in any activities that Renalto was the host of; or did you see Renalto around the ship more?

 

 

 

Just curious about this..

 

 

I seen Renalto (or is it Renato?) teaching a dance class in the centrum one day. (at least I think it was him)

 

Frankly, he didn't get a chance to say much on the morning show because ... to use my wife's words: "she never lets him talk".

 

Otherwise, I thought he was fine. Accent a little hard to follow but came off as genuine.

[plank]

Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences and opinions. We will be on the SOS for 2 weeks in the fall and I am very excited. I enjoy reading the good, bad, and ugly reviews. I find that sometimes I agree and sometimes I am scratching my head. Whatever the case I am on vacation cruising along and loving it! No cooking, dishes to wash, laundry to do, etc....

Find your own joy and go for it!

[jerrib]

OP - would love to hear more about your experience on the Cozumel Bar Hop.

Thanks.

[sg1phileshipper]

Thank you for a very interesting and honest review. Very nice read :)

 

Cindy

[NightOne]

OP - would love to hear more about your experience on the Cozumel Bar Hop.

Thanks.

 

We were 9 minutes late getting to the excursion because of a couple issues (one being the taxi) and the owner of the Bar Hop (Tom) really pissed me off at the start so it started a little odd for me. However, after a short while I quit thinking about it and had a good time.

 

Overall, we had a good time. We were sunburned from our day in Grand Cayman without sunscreen (doh!) so we were seeking shade at every place we went to on the hop. Was more of a chill day for us. Mainly, we sat inside near the bar areas and talked with a couple from our roll call. Breaking it down by stop:

 

1st stop: Punta Moreno

 

This place had the best beach I think. Supposedly there was a swimming pool but I never saw it. Wife said she did and that it was "yucky". I wouldn't take our word for it though. Time seemed too short at this stop. The one bad part is that they had several vendors at the entrance areas and they were all calling for you to come see there stuff. It actually mad me feel sad to some degree. My least favorite of the stops although I think they had the best included drink of the 4 stops. :)

 

2nd stop: Coconuts

 

The hike up the stairs is not for the mobility challenged but once you get up there it was pretty cool. Again we sat in the shade by the bar. I guy was making grasshoppers out of those long leaves (don't know the name) and selling the for a $1. We bought one and I asked him if he was the guy that made the hats on the fly (seen on YouTube) and he said he was and that they cost $20. I said hells yeah, make one for the wife. It ended up being time to go and I couldn't find the guy so we had to make our way down the steps. Halfway down he was waiting with our hat. I liked Coconuts and there was a decent crowd already there when we arrived.

 

3rd stop: Playa Bonita

 

Playa Bonita means "beautiful beach" if what Greg & Sylvia (guides) told me is correct. However, due to erosion and such there really isn't a true beachfront at the bar part. :) I banged my head on one of the wood supports from the ceiling here so be careful. This bar probably had the best breeze and best pure view of any of the spots. We sat in the shade and relaxed. We also ordered food here (fish tacos for wife and quesadillas for me) and it was expensive for Mexico (like $12 for the Tacos). They also exchange at 12 Pesos per dollar and when I got home I found the rate at that time was closer to 15 to 1. LOL One major issue here though: someone hung a Green Back Packers banner right near the stairs that went down to the water. Someone needs to address this. :( Go Bears!!! :) Finally, we bought some stuff for a family here and the vendors were really low key. You basically had to tell them you wanted to buy something. Otherwise, they just left you alone. Plus, the items were better here and better prices. (negotiable of course)

 

4th stop: Rastas

 

Awesome place. A wife was asking about drinks served from coconuts and they said they were out of coconuts but would go knock one down from a nearby tree. (they did) We sat in the shade near the bar area. The staff was great here as well.

 

Overall, I would rank them as follows: Rastas, Coconuts, Play Bonita, Punta Moreno

 

So would I do it again? Sure. Although on our or next cruise I already have Nachi Cocom booked so not on back-to-back trips. Several people on our tour were repeat hoppers so many people do it multiple times.

 

Hope this helps a little.

[mkmom514]

We were on the same cruise as you. It was our 5th cruise and we only went on that one so we could cruise with friends, but we enjoyed it enough. Don't know if you know it or not, but November of this year Liberty of the Seas is moving to Galveston. We went on a sister ship and really loved it. Also like being able to drive to the port (from DFW area).

[NightOne]

We were on the same cruise as you. It was our 5th cruise and we only went on that one so we could cruise with friends, but we enjoyed it enough. Don't know if you know it or not, but November of this year Liberty of the Seas is moving to Galveston. We went on a sister ship and really loved it. Also like being able to drive to the port (from DFW area).

 

 

Yes. We are actually booked for the 11-29-2015 sailing of Liberty of the Seas out of Galveston. :)