Anthem review

[haawwks27]

this board has been so helpful to me i thought id try and return the favor by writing a review. it will not be half as long as some ive seen and i didnt take many pictures, but i hope it helps I will have spelling mistakes. lets leave the grammar police at home please :)

 

lets start of by reminding this is only MY OPINION. While i do have some negative points, nothing was such that I would not go on this boat again if the opportunity presented itself.

 

Check in was SUPER FAST. I was in a suite so that had a huge part of it but none the less, no hiccups. We boarded close to 1 and were told room would be ready at 1:30. We tried out luck and woo hoo could get in right away to put our stuff down. Had a large party so we went to the windjammer to get food and it was packed. Ive seen people say try other places and I too would suggest it. Very crowded. The drill..... people tried to duck out so we had to wait a LONG time for it to start since it is mandatory. This was an issue with us with two young kids asking them to sit in a hot room and wait... all during what should have been nap time.

If you have kids, try and plan for this, get an early nap if you can.

the first two days were "rough" seas but i was totally fine. actually the whole party was. capt said it wasnt bad, but rougher than normal. the weather kept people from the outside pools so inside was more crowded.

In the room we had a cup for the drink package... the package we had cancelled a month prior. To not be charged I had to go to the concierge which was actually more of a process than expected but it got handled.

The room, 9234 as mentioned was a 2 bedroom suite. What we expected since ive seen a video online. Down side, on that video they mention the outside door to the wraparound balcony sticks. Well in the 4 years from that video nothing has been done which mean on windy days the door doesnt latch properly and makes a clink/bang which is not conducive to sleep. One night we proped it open (the outside part not to our room) and that helped, but made ut louder from the wind. 6 in one, half dozen in the other. These suites are nice but stick out form the main portion of the ship meaning your not getting the break from the wind making the rooom generally noisey

MTD was unorganized the whole time but mainly the first two days. Were told we had no reservation. We told it was a later time. The staff didnt know table numbers. Didnt get the same table/waiter even with the same time seating.

Again, nothing major, but something i expected to be second nature was not.

PERSONNEL- Maybe i was wrong for assuming. I have never been in a "class" before but being in one of the higher suites I ASSUMED I would actually meet the person cleaning my room and my concierge. I only saw my concierge when I had to fix the drink package issue or when we were using priority disembarkation at ports. The woman doing our room we saw and I tried to speak with her and she was friendly, but it seemed like a task.

There were quite a few staff with an attitude. From a simple dirty look when saying excuse me to get by, or a sigh when using an elevator that was just washed. Or even asking a simple question. Also at the activities, bingo, flo rider, trivia etc they were less then pleased to be there. I get having 12hr shifts and things are redundant, but multiple times i heard comments about them wanting a day off, or to get fired, or waiting for the XXX to end. Just not the overall smiles I expected but again, nothing major. One thing turned me off was calling the concierge to ask a question and being asked "did you read the letter I left at your room" .Yes i read it but i still have a question. Multiples times the letter was referenced and I felt like a bother asking a question

CLEANLINESS- I saw every part of this ship being cleaned at times and that was reassuring. The hand rails were washed multiple times a day. They encourage/force (in a good way) washing hands before entering the dining room. Sanitizer everywhere. Never saw garbage on the floor or an overflowing can.

I am not in need of major cleaning, we are the people who clean before someone cleans. Garbage was always emptied, tp and tissues always available. However on day 4? 5? we found a sock. a large dress sock. a sock that was not ours. So this sock was either brought to our room or wherever its home was, was not cleaned for the first 3-4 days. Kinda skeeved us out.

BAR- never had an issue and the drinks were good. robo tender worked each time we were by it and was neat to watch. Water pkg was bought last 2 days of trip and worth it. the bottles of Evian are the large bottles and were same price as the smaller they sell everywhere else.

FOOD- no complaints but im not very picky. multiple places to eat at however the non main places like coastal, or two70 have limited hours and each time i wanted to use them i was right at closing. Just plan ahead and you will be fine. The concierge lounge should be taken advantage of. Snacks and cocktails nighlty. Wish this sank in to me before the second to last day. if you can use the lounge, USE IT. Also great views.

ACTIVITIES- a lot to offer. trivia, game shows, scavenger hunts, bingo, mystery etc. pay attention to the day planner. There were alo things lites on the TV that were not on the planner. Only downside is locations changed often for one reason or another so just get there a tad early to make sure things are set and you are fine.

WAITSTAFF - liked my MTD staff when i got the same guy 3/6 times. he was by far better than the other 3 but they were not bad at all. Only one tried to guilt us to rating him a 10 to feed his family but i expect that. They were all fantastic with my kids.

Pools- were crowded but not more than i expected. dont forget the indoor pool. Please honor the only potty trained children in the kids pool. I get it, i have a 2 year old who would not go in the pool. He was not pleased. it was hard but thats the rules. My 4 year old could not use the kid pool for 2 days because someone pooped in the kid pool. Accidents happen, but the act of one child/parent affected hundreds of people. Be considerate.

NASSAU- its a walk. a long one. with elderly, and kids was not the best choice. Found out there is a free shuttle form the boat to the main street. if walking is an issue, wait for that. Took it on the way back and more than worth it. We went to Atlantis and booked directly trhough them, saving us a bunch of money. The aqua prk for kids was fantastic. Also a VERY long walk up and down stairs so just pre plan. Food wasnt expensive there but all cashless so bring a CC. Cab ride is $4 a person and fast.

CoCo CAY- was crowded but enjoyable. I love snorkeling. I brought my own mask. you can go out further than you expect. the depth changes so go past where you think and you will be fine, im 5'2. Saw a bunch of fish. Wont get into my story but they are active, and hungry. There is a camera guy there taking pics, use him. The food was bbq and as expected there. Family activities were listed but must have been on the other side of the island from us so we could not partake or even see. If you want to see them it was to the right when you got off the tenders.

CHARACTERS if you have kids that want to see them adhere to the schedule time. they are out for maybe 15-20 minutes and no longer. we also paid for the character breakfast. same guys. up to you if you want to pay or not. for us, it wasnt a lot of money and the food was good and they got to see them longer. glad we went AND we saw them a second time if we wanted.

Disney i went against all the advice and we went to disney. we had our reasons. I hired a car service (rent a car is cheapest if you dont have small kids) and loved them. we got there in about a hour and had time to do what WE wanted there but that did not include a ride. we saw the parade, met goofy and donald, played in a splash area, saw a comedy show. Just enough time for us. Was is rushed, a little, but we chose to leave at 6 so not to worry about getting back in time. The service was "expenisve" but we have a large party, but it was 100% worth it and I would do it all over again. It worked for us.

LEAVING it took us about 10 minutes to get off the boat, included security. again i am sure this was because of our suite status but wow...

VOOM- better than not having service but not the greatest. i didnt go on a cruise to need my phone so this internet speed etc was perfectly fine for us.

IQ App $7.95 for on the boat. was helpful but you must have the ap OPEN to get a text. you will not get a notificatoin on the icon saying you have unread messages. just actively check. I did not use it for much else

 

In summary. Suite status for sure has its perks and it spoiled me. The food was as expected so no complaints. The staff could have offered more service with smiles and perhaps the rooms could have been done more thourough, but the boat was always clean. My last cruise was on the Oasis and I may be spoiled by that ship when comparing, but the Anthem was a good family ship with many activities.

 

My review may seem negative but id still give the trip a 7.5/10 with the biggest issues being the staff attitude, room noise which could have been attended to in 4 years (broken door) and variety of food.

I reccomend the ship and this itineray.

 

if you have any questoins please ask. if you got thorugh the whole review good for you. guess it is longer than i anticipated

[Lollipop's Mom]

this board has been so helpful to me i thought id try and return the favor by writing a review. it will not be half as long as some ive seen and i didnt take many pictures, but i hope it helps I will have spelling mistakes. lets leave the grammar police at home please :)

 

 

 

lets start of by reminding this is only MY OPINION. While i do have some negative points, nothing was such that I would not go on this boat again if the opportunity presented itself.

 

 

 

Check in was SUPER FAST. I was in a suite so that had a huge part of it but none the less, no hiccups. We boarded close to 1 and were told room would be ready at 1:30. We tried out luck and woo hoo could get in right away to put our stuff down. Had a large party so we went to the windjammer to get food and it was packed. Ive seen people say try other places and I too would suggest it. Very crowded. The drill..... people tried to duck out so we had to wait a LONG time for it to start since it is mandatory. This was an issue with us with two young kids asking them to sit in a hot room and wait... all during what should have been nap time.

 

If you have kids, try and plan for this, get an early nap if you can.

 

the first two days were "rough" seas but i was totally fine. actually the whole party was. capt said it wasnt bad, but rougher than normal. the weather kept people from the outside pools so inside was more crowded.

 

In the room we had a cup for the drink package... the package we had cancelled a month prior. To not be charged I had to go to the concierge which was actually more of a process than expected but it got handled.

 

The room, 9234 as mentioned was a 2 bedroom suite. What we expected since ive seen a video online. Down side, on that video they mention the outside door to the wraparound balcony sticks. Well in the 4 years from that video nothing has been done which mean on windy days the door doesnt latch properly and makes a clink/bang which is not conducive to sleep. One night we proped it open (the outside part not to our room) and that helped, but made ut louder from the wind. 6 in one, half dozen in the other. These suites are nice but stick out form the main portion of the ship meaning your not getting the break from the wind making the rooom generally noisey

 

MTD was unorganized the whole time but mainly the first two days. Were told we had no reservation. We told it was a later time. The staff didnt know table numbers. Didnt get the same table/waiter even with the same time seating.

 

Again, nothing major, but something i expected to be second nature was not.

 

PERSONNEL- Maybe i was wrong for assuming. I have never been in a "class" before but being in one of the higher suites I ASSUMED I would actually meet the person cleaning my room and my concierge. I only saw my concierge when I had to fix the drink package issue or when we were using priority disembarkation at ports. The woman doing our room we saw and I tried to speak with her and she was friendly, but it seemed like a task.

 

There were quite a few staff with an attitude. From a simple dirty look when saying excuse me to get by, or a sigh when using an elevator that was just washed. Or even asking a simple question. Also at the activities, bingo, flo rider, trivia etc they were less then pleased to be there. I get having 12hr shifts and things are redundant, but multiple times i heard comments about them wanting a day off, or to get fired, or waiting for the XXX to end. Just not the overall smiles I expected but again, nothing major. One thing turned me off was calling the concierge to ask a question and being asked "did you read the letter I left at your room" .Yes i read it but i still have a question. Multiples times the letter was referenced and I felt like a bother asking a question

 

CLEANLINESS- I saw every part of this ship being cleaned at times and that was reassuring. The hand rails were washed multiple times a day. They encourage/force (in a good way) washing hands before entering the dining room. Sanitizer everywhere. Never saw garbage on the floor or an overflowing can.

 

I am not in need of major cleaning, we are the people who clean before someone cleans. Garbage was always emptied, tp and tissues always available. However on day 4? 5? we found a sock. a large dress sock. a sock that was not ours. So this sock was either brought to our room or wherever its home was, was not cleaned for the first 3-4 days. Kinda skeeved us out.

 

BAR- never had an issue and the drinks were good. robo tender worked each time we were by it and was neat to watch. Water pkg was bought last 2 days of trip and worth it. the bottles of Evian are the large bottles and were same price as the smaller they sell everywhere else.

 

FOOD- no complaints but im not very picky. multiple places to eat at however the non main places like coastal, or two70 have limited hours and each time i wanted to use them i was right at closing. Just plan ahead and you will be fine. The concierge lounge should be taken advantage of. Snacks and cocktails nighlty. Wish this sank in to me before the second to last day. if you can use the lounge, USE IT. Also great views.

 

ACTIVITIES- a lot to offer. trivia, game shows, scavenger hunts, bingo, mystery etc. pay attention to the day planner. There were alo things lites on the TV that were not on the planner. Only downside is locations changed often for one reason or another so just get there a tad early to make sure things are set and you are fine.

 

WAITSTAFF - liked my MTD staff when i got the same guy 3/6 times. he was by far better than the other 3 but they were not bad at all. Only one tried to guilt us to rating him a 10 to feed his family but i expect that. They were all fantastic with my kids.

 

Pools- were crowded but not more than i expected. dont forget the indoor pool. Please honor the only potty trained children in the kids pool. I get it, i have a 2 year old who would not go in the pool. He was not pleased. it was hard but thats the rules. My 4 year old could not use the kid pool for 2 days because someone pooped in the kid pool. Accidents happen, but the act of one child/parent affected hundreds of people. Be considerate.

 

NASSAU- its a walk. a long one. with elderly, and kids was not the best choice. Found out there is a free shuttle form the boat to the main street. if walking is an issue, wait for that. Took it on the way back and more than worth it. We went to Atlantis and booked directly trhough them, saving us a bunch of money. The aqua prk for kids was fantastic. Also a VERY long walk up and down stairs so just pre plan. Food wasnt expensive there but all cashless so bring a CC. Cab ride is $4 a person and fast.

 

CoCo CAY- was crowded but enjoyable. I love snorkeling. I brought my own mask. you can go out further than you expect. the depth changes so go past where you think and you will be fine, im 5'2. Saw a bunch of fish. Wont get into my story but they are active, and hungry. There is a camera guy there taking pics, use him. The food was bbq and as expected there. Family activities were listed but must have been on the other side of the island from us so we could not partake or even see. If you want to see them it was to the right when you got off the tenders.

 

CHARACTERS if you have kids that want to see them adhere to the schedule time. they are out for maybe 15-20 minutes and no longer. we also paid for the character breakfast. same guys. up to you if you want to pay or not. for us, it wasnt a lot of money and the food was good and they got to see them longer. glad we went AND we saw them a second time if we wanted.

 

Disney i went against all the advice and we went to disney. we had our reasons. I hired a car service (rent a car is cheapest if you dont have small kids) and loved them. we got there in about a hour and had time to do what WE wanted there but that did not include a ride. we saw the parade, met goofy and donald, played in a splash area, saw a comedy show. Just enough time for us. Was is rushed, a little, but we chose to leave at 6 so not to worry about getting back in time. The service was "expenisve" but we have a large party, but it was 100% worth it and I would do it all over again. It worked for us.

 

LEAVING it took us about 10 minutes to get off the boat, included security. again i am sure this was because of our suite status but wow...

 

VOOM- better than not having service but not the greatest. i didnt go on a cruise to need my phone so this internet speed etc was perfectly fine for us.

 

IQ App $7.95 for on the boat. was helpful but you must have the ap OPEN to get a text. you will not get a notificatoin on the icon saying you have unread messages. just actively check. I did not use it for much else

 

 

 

In summary. Suite status for sure has its perks and it spoiled me. The food was as expected so no complaints. The staff could have offered more service with smiles and perhaps the rooms could have been done more thourough, but the boat was always clean. My last cruise was on the Oasis and I may be spoiled by that ship when comparing, but the Anthem was a good family ship with many activities.

 

 

 

My review may seem negative but id still give the trip a 7.5/10 with the biggest issues being the staff attitude, room noise which could have been attended to in 4 years (broken door) and variety of food.

 

I reccomend the ship and this itineray.

 

 

 

if you have any questoins please ask. if you got thorugh the whole review good for you. guess it is longer than i anticipated

 

 

 

Would love to know which company and cost for your Disney transfers!! We are going on the dec 14 cruise and plan to go spend the day at Disney springs!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[haawwks27]

Would love to know which company and cost for your Disney transfers!! We are going on the dec 14 cruise and plan to go spend the day at Disney springs!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

Like I mentioned it was a lot for us so im not sure the cost will help you. We were a party of 7 and required 2 carseasts. I could not rent a car since the carseats were not guaranteed. in FL it is not mandatory for commercial vehicles to have them and I personally was not okay with my kids on a lap or strapped by a seat belt on the through way or interstate or whatever it was

 

really it was my only option.

 

the company was port Canaveral transportation. the vehicle was on time. had the seats. clean. the driver was friendly. no complaints.

[easyboy]

Thank you for the objective review!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[blue is the best]

I am taking this trip next year 10/27/18. If you have the daily cruise compasses I would love to see them especially to get an idea of the times for shows. We are late seating in the MDR. Glad you had a great trip.

 

Steve,

Medford NY

[steveru621]

I am taking this trip next year 10/27/18. If you have the daily cruise compasses I would love to see them especially to get an idea of the times for shows. We are late seating in the MDR. Glad you had a great trip.

 

Steve,

Medford NY

 

The major shows and times, The Gift, We Will Rock You, and Spectrum (Two70), will show up in your cruise planner. You can make a reservation, or stand in the no reservations line. Other shows like Love and Marriage tended to be later, around 10-10:30.

[blue is the best]

The major shows and times, The Gift, We Will Rock You, and Spectrum (Two70), will show up in your cruise planner. You can make a reservation, or stand in the no reservations line. Other shows like Love and Marriage tended to be later, around 10-10:30.

 

 

Thank you for the response. I know that 3 to 5 months before my trip the cruise planner will post all the times and I can make my reservations. I was just looking for a sample of the of the activities each day. I know they can change for next year but if anyone has them and can post them that would be great.

 

Thanks,

Steve,

Medford NY

[SailingSal]

Thank you so very much for your review. We were with you on this cruise. It was my husband and I along with our daughter and 5 year old granddaughter. May I add a few things?

1- I was so very disappointed with Johnny Rockets on this cruise - it was more like a McDonalds!

2- Anthem is definitely understaffed. At the busiest times in the dining areas(Cafe Promenade; Sorrento's; Windjammer; Johnny Rockets) there were tables needed to be cleaned and bussed - but all of the staff were busy and stretched thin!

3- The 2 speciality restaurants (Chops and Wonderland) were excellent! Would recommend everyone to try them.We bought the BOGO package(great deal) and would do that again - it gets you out of the crazy 1st night of the dining room.

4- Our My Time Dining was actually one of the best experience we ever had! We did have Pre-reservation times, but changed them a bit each night. Though we did not have the same waiters each night - our service was wonderful.

5 - The Halloween Haunted House was a nice idea but the line was so long that we skipped it. Very disappointed.

6 - Bumper Cars were always crowded. Perhaps they need a Pre-reservation here as they do for the other events! No one wants to wait in line for 45 minutes.

7 - Musicians and We Will Rock You was GREAT!

8 - Leaving the ship was a breeze - Bayonne is a great place to leave from.

9 - Nassau had a very long walk to port - unfortunately we were off so early for our excursion that the shuttle was not running yet. That was not an issue for myself or daughter/granddaughter, but my husband walks with a cane and it was very difficult.

10 - We had a great cruise - but the ship is just too big for us.

[Gordo]

Thanks for sharing your experience. Would you sail on Anthem again?

[SailingSal]

Thanks for sharing your experience. Would you sail on Anthem again?

 

My husband and I as a couple would NOT sail on Anthem again. It is a "family" type ship. It was too large for us and we do not need all of the "extra" activities. We prefer the Radiance size ship. However, if we would do a family cruise with our 7 children and 8 grandkids - that is the ship we would choose. It is easy to get on and off and the entertainment is excellent. I can't imagine this ship during a holiday cruise, and I would not recommend it if you do not like large crowds of people.

[haawwks27]

Thanks for sharing your experience. Would you sail on Anthem again?

 

I would however i do think i was spoiled by my trip on Oasis.

 

Anthem sails out of the north which i love so thats the biggest draw for me. If i had other options I MAY say otherwise

[SonicShip]

When you called maintenance to fix the door, what did they say or do?

[haawwks27]

I did not call them. the door jams and doesnt latch properly but it does close. i knew, especially from the video 4 years prior that it was not a simple fix. I did speak with them upon leaving to make sure they were aware it was still an issue. they thanked me.

[dpostman]

My husband and I as a couple would NOT sail on Anthem again. It is a "family" type ship. It was too large for us and we do not need all of the "extra" activities. We prefer the Radiance size ship. However, if we would do a family cruise with our 7 children and 8 grandkids - that is the ship we would choose. It is easy to get on and off and the entertainment is excellent. I can't imagine this ship during a holiday cruise, and I would not recommend it if you do not like large crowds of people.

 

I totally agree with this. We cruised on Anthem as a group of 8 families with kids from 8 to 18. This ship was perfect for this type of cruise. If booking a cruise for a quiet getaway for my wife and I, and maybe one other couple, something smaller and quieter would be our preference. We did Liberty as a quiet getaway and loved it. I know it is not much smaller but it is still less crowded.

 

dp