LIVE from Anthem of the Seas Transatlantic October 2022

[laurieal]

Hello, everyone! You are all invited to join in on the fun as I single-handedly bring the Anthem across the Atlantic (well…almost single-handedly). 

 

I am fully paralyzed from the waist down, so I use a wheelchair full time to get around. This review will address the accessibility aspect of my trip and hopefully my experience will be helpful to someone with mobility issues looking to book a trip on the Anthem. 
 

 

If ramps, pool lifts and automatic door opening buttons are not your thing, well, I can’t relate because those things are all brilliant. But if that’s not the first thing you look for in cruise reviews, I can also promise the following: pictures of the ship, some food, some drinks, some entertainment, and at one point I will most likely lose my SeaPass card so…something to look forward to. 

 

I’m hoping this review will have an interactive element to it. If you want to pitch in with things you think I should experience, please feel free to do so! And if you’re also on this sailing and want to jump in with some observations of your own, that’s totally fine with me. 

 

You can also send me on quests! I have eight sea days and an internet package, so if there’s anything you’d like to see or any question you’d like answered, I’d be happy to try and oblige. But please keep in mind that this isn’t The Quest and as much as you’d like to see me holding a bunch of bras from different passengers, I am not doing that (sober). 

 

This is my first time on this class of ship and the first time since 2016 that I experience a brand new class, so I look forward to getting lost all the time. I was originally supposed to sail with my mother and step-father, but he tested positive for covid so I am now on a solo mission to drink all the drinks and eat all the snacks. It’s what my parents would want (probably). 

 

The ship is leaving from Southampton and heading to Cape Liberty with the following stops along the way:

Ponta Delgada, Azores - October 21st

Halifax, Canada - October 25th

Boston, USA - October 27th

 

I left my home and my cat on October 13th and I spent four days in London before the cruise. With all the covid drama happening, I wasn’t in a very reviewing mode, so London will not officially be part of my review. However, if you have any questions about my stay in London don’t hesitate to ask. 
 

Can you believe I left her behind? Because I sure can’t. Before my review officially kicks off, feel free to spam me with pictures of your fur babies. 
 

Or if you want, let me know what’s the best boarding day deal you got on a cruise. Spoiler for my Day 1 post, I feel like a got a pretty good deal on something and I’d like to know about your experiences. 
 

For now, I’m off to bed, but I will be back tomorrow to tell you about my first day on the Anthem. 

[FionaMG]

Yay! Another @laurieal review! 😊

We just got off Anthem 12 days ago, so I'm delighted to be able to revisit her. 

Have a fabulous time!

[little britain]

Love that fur baby! Gingers are the best! 
Looking forward to this review… !  Great start. 

[Bunny12av]

You are bringing her to us. Thank you!  We are on the October 29th cruise.  She is a beautiful ship and  our favorite.  Always wanted to do a transatlantic, so will be following.  Enjoy your trip!

[njkruzer]

We're onboard with you.  Sail away was smooth.  Before sailaway as D+, along with D and Pinnacles,  we were invited to a low key sailaway party in the Solarium. Lots of nibbles and drinks and officers to talk to.  Dinner 2nd seating. We are in Chic at a table for 6. 1 couple from Brisbane and 1 from NJ.  I'll try to add my insights.  This will be our 4th Anthem, 5th TA.

Edited October 17, 2022 by njkruzer

[FionaMG]

Just now, njkruzer said:

We're onboard with you.  Sail away was smooth.  Before sailaway as D+, along with D and Pinnacles,  we were invited to a low key saikaway party in the Solarium. Lots of nibbles and drinks and officers to talk to.  Dinner 2nd seating. We are in Chic at a table for 6. 1 couple from Brisbane and 1 from NJ.  I'll try to add my insights.  This will be our 4th Anthem, 5th TA.

 

Have a great time @njkruzer! 🙂

[njkruzer]

7 minutes ago, FionaMG said:

 

Have a great time @njkruzer! 🙂

Thank you.  Enjoyed your review. 

[dani negreanu]

36 minutes ago, little britain said:

Love that fur baby! Gingers are the best! 
Looking forward to this review… !  Great start. 

 

Same here - on both counts. Thank you 🌷

 

And your cat is very handsome.

[Another_Critic]

Beautiful kitty.  I had an orange tabby for 18 years; although he died 20+ years ago, I still miss him.

 

My current fur baby:

 

Vacationing at my Mom's condo:

 

Enjoy Anthem, I took her over in May.  Pictures of her docked at Ponta Delgada, Azores.

 

 

[Biker19]

1 hour ago, njkruzer said:

I'll try to add my insights. 

@ace2542 may as well. 

[texmex.ferr]

Have a great trip @laurieal, sorry to hear your Mum and step dad are not joining you, and hope he is feeling better soon.

 

We're back on Wonder at the end of October for the return crossing back to Florida.   

 

Looking forward to your review of Anthem.

 

[Sunshine3601]

I look forward to cruising with you, virtually.  I love your style of writing.  You did a fabulous review earlier this year.  Glad you are back😃

Sorry to hear your Step Father has covid.  Hope it's a mild case and he feels better soon.

Never easy leaving the fur babies.   

[Lady Hudson]

Thank you for doing this review!  Hope you have a fabulous time.  We always try to book the accessible cabins on deck 3 because of the location — casino and dining rooms.  And Anthem has the added advantage of the easy open automatic doors for those who need them.   We will be sailing Anthem on 11/6 and 11/13 so really looking forward to your review.  Have fun. 😀  Katherine 

[lenquixote66]

I too book the Accessible cabin on deck 3,looking forward to reading your review.

[laurieal]

Day 1 stateroom mail

 

 

 

It's my first time seeing an exclusive diamond offer for a sailing, but this is only my second diamond sailing. Is this common? 

[laurieal]

Day 1 Compass

 

 

 

 

[little britain]

11 minutes ago, laurieal said:

Day 1 stateroom mail

 

 

 

It's my first time seeing an exclusive diamond offer for a sailing, but this is only my second diamond sailing. Is this common? 

The $6 casino 🎰 free play is actually $8 if you use it on day 1 or 2! Good luck!

 

Is the drinks allowance now $15 given they have raised prices? I noticed the flyer was wrong in September re the drinks allowance ( said $13 when it was $14) 

 

I’ve seen coffee vouchers on TAs before. Avoids overcrowding in the DL! And you get better coffee than the machine stuff. 

Edited October 18, 2022 by little britain

[bigeck]

12 hours ago, njkruzer said:

We're onboard with you.  Sail away was smooth.  Before sailaway as D+, along with D and Pinnacles,  we were invited to a low key sailaway party in the Solarium. Lots of nibbles and drinks and officers to talk to.  Dinner 2nd seating. We are in Chic at a table for 6. 1 couple from Brisbane and 1 from NJ.  I'll try to add my insights.  This will be our 4th Anthem, 5th TA.

Also the covid cancelled Ta. Roll call was good though

[njkruzer]

Captain just announced that there's a storm in the Atlantic that he's trying to avoid. Doing 21 knots and staying in touch with Miami.  Yes, I can feel the movement,  though it doesn't bother us.  Slept in but still made it to breakfast in the dining room, American Icon, at about 9:45.  Open till 10 it said.  Dh printed out his Sunday Times puzzle and working on it.  Computers and printer are in the Library,  which has books again, deck 6 above 270.  You have to enter through 270 and take the stairs on port side. Starboard side stairs should also connect.  Daily Sudoko is also up there.

[laurieal]

Is that what he said? Thank you for translating that for me. I’m in the Solarium and couldn’t hear most of it. Although I did hear “Bay of Biscay” and figured he was probably talking about rougher seas. 
 

Did you enjoy breakfast in the dining room?

[laurieal]

2 hours ago, little britain said:

The $6 casino 🎰 free play is actually $8 if you use it on day 1 or 2! Good luck!

 

Is the drinks allowance now $15 given they have raised prices? I noticed the flyer was wrong in September re the drinks allowance ( said $13 when it was $14) 

 

I’ve seen coffee vouchers on TAs before. Avoids overcrowding in the DL! And you get better coffee than the machine stuff. 

Good to know about the Casino! I’ll make sure I visit today. 
 

I’ll try to find out about the amount for the drinks. For now, all the drinks I ordered were $14 and they were all covered by my vouchers. 

[njkruzer]

18 minutes ago, laurieal said:

Is that what he said? Thank you for translating that for me. I’m in the Solarium and couldn’t hear most of it. Although I did hear “Bay of Biscay” and figured he was probably talking about rougher seas. 
 

Did you enjoy breakfast in the dining room?

Yes, pleasant. Always nice to be served. Ordered an omelet, as did dh. He also had oatmeal,  or as the waiter said, porridge! 

[njkruzer]

10 minutes ago, laurieal said:

Good to know about the Casino! I’ll make sure I visit today. 
 

I’ll try to find out about the amount for the drinks. For now, all the drinks I ordered were $14 and they were all covered by my vouchers. 

As D+ apparently we also get a free daily non-alcoholic Specialty coffee.  That's for dh.

[laurieal]

Day 1

 

Hello from the Solarium!

 

As I mentioned previously, I had been staying in London for four days before the cruise. On the morning of the cruise, I had the hotel call me a cab to get to Waterloo Station where I would be taking a train to Southampton. According to my cab driver, all the London black cabs have a ramp and can accommodate a wheelchair. Unlike the taxis at home, those don’t have restraints to secure the wheelchairs, but I had plenty of things to hang on to and overall I felt pretty safe. I arrived at Waterloo with plenty of time to spare, so I grabbed a bacon roll for breakfast. I must say I approve of any country who sticks some bacon between two pieces of bread and calls it a meal. A+ would recommend.

 

 

 

The train ride was smooth and uneventful, just like I like them. It looked like most of the passengers were also cruisers, but the train wasn’t too full and there was enough room for both people and suitcases.

 

 

 

At Southampton Central Station, there were plenty of cabs waiting. While none of them was an adapted vehicle that could accommodate a wheelchair, I took a large vehicle into which I transferred easily. There was plenty of room for my wheelchair in the back without the driver having to disassemble it. It was a very short ride to the cruise terminal where I got my very first look at the Anthem. 

 

 

She’s quite the beauty, isn’t she?

 

My check-in time was between 13:00 and 13:30. I’d be interested in hearing from people who had the earliest boarding times, but by the time I arrived things felt relaxed and organized. I experienced no wait at security and check-in and it wasn’t long before I was heading up the gangway. Here’s my first look as I boarded. 

 

 

I had some very serious business to attend to, and I got to work as soon as I boarded. First stop was a Specialty Dining kiosk to make dining reservations for my three nights package I had previously booked. Since I was now travelling solo and I’m not too keen on doing the MDR solo, I decided to also make a reservation at Izumi, even if the menu shows no ramen. Seriously, Anthem? No ramen? Come on! Sushi is great, but I want to slurp some noodles!

 

I suppose the number of bookings for the Chef’s Table was quite low, or maybe I’m just incredible charming. Either way, the man making my reservations offered me a 50% discount. I’ve never done that experience and I don’t think I would have booked it at the full price of $99.99, but I was happy to try it at the discounted price. The man helping me with my reservations is the sommelier for the Chef’s Table experience and he sold it very well. Also, there’s a salted caramel martini on the menu, so what is a girl supposed to do? I made the very solemn promise to have a very light lunch on my Chef’s Table day and I left the kiosk feeling pretty pleased. 

 

Then, I headed over to the Voom desk. Before the cruise, I had booked a two devices Surf package for my mother and I. Since she is no longer on the cruise, I had them switch my package to a one device Surf and Stream. The person manning the desk got it done quickly and he helped me get started by logging me in on my phone. Again, it was a quick, efficient and pleasant experience. 

 

Once I was done, I felt like I deserved my first cocktail of the cruise and I went up to Deck 15 to grab a Pineapple Guava Sangria at the North Star Bar.

 

 

 

 

Drinks packages offers on Day 1:

 

 

 

The North Star was already running, so I inquired about the free sessions. Everyone gets one free session in the first 10 days of the cruise, but then after Day 10 it resets and you can get another free session. I decided to wait until Ponta Delgada for my first free session and then maybe try to get another one for Day 11 in Boston. I would also like to try one session on a sea day where the North Star goes to the sides of the ship (I think those sessions have a fee; I’ll keep an eye out for them in the app). 
 

 

After my first cocktail, I had a look around Deck 15. The giraffe’s name is Gigi, right? She looks so big in person! Not to be dramatic, but I would give my life for Gigi. At least she has a floating donut thing going on, so in the unlikely event of an emergency I think she’s settled. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This elevator will allow you to navigate between both floors of the Seaplex. 
 

 

 

By then, it was nearing 15:00 and my breakfast at Waterloo station was a distant memory. I decided that dinner that day would be a Dining Around the Anthem type of event. Here is Act I: The Dog House. 

 

 

I had loved the hot dogs on the Wonder, but I feel like my dog on Anthem wasn’t quite the same and I was a bit disappointed. I probably won’t visit again.

 

Hot Dog gone, it was time to visit my stateroom. I had booked the accessible stateroom 10171 which has a virtual balcony. My only reason for booking this particular stateroom was its proximity to the elevators and it did not disappoint. It’s so close!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I think the virtual balcony is pretty fun and a good way to see if the sun is up when I wake up during the night. The room feels pretty spacious and it has plenty of storage space for me. 

 

The bathroom is fine. I’m not a fan of the shower bench, which seems like it has enough space for exactly one of my buttocks, so I’ll need to figure out where I’ll put the other one. I much preferred the large wooden bench on the Wonder, even if it was a bit harder on the aforementioned buttocks. 

 

 

 

 

Overall I think I am happy with my stateroom choice. If I remember correctly, there were no accessible porthole staterooms left when I booked and I just couldn’t justify the price of an actual balcony. 

 

I quickly unpacked and headed to the Casino to get some American monies for tips. The ATM was the only machine open, so I grabbed some pictures while the casino was empty. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then, I went to the Solarium. Waiting for me in my stateroom had been an invitation for a Diamond and higher sailaway event and I wanted to check it out. It was so hot and stifling and people-ey that I noped out of there almost as soon as I arrived. The weather was so beautiful that I decided to watch us sail away from Deck 15. 

 

A lot of people had had the same idea, because the North Star Bar was packed. I grabbed a Piña Colada and found a quieter spot on the side of the ship.

 

 

 

Once it got a bit too chilly (even for this Canadian), I returned to the Solarium where things had died down a bit. There were some nibbles in the Solarium Bistro for the event, so I decided to have Dinner Act II: Bites in the Solarium. I ordered one complimentary glass of sparkling wine, but was brought some sparkling wine AND a mimosa. I am not a fan of wasting perfectly good bubbles, so I soldiered on. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Feeling slightly light-headed and a bit giggly, I made my way over to Boleros for Name that Tune: Classic Rock edition. I did horrible, which I fully expected, but it was a lot of fun and the guy from the activities team did a terrific job hosting. Here is drinks voucher #3 which I used on a Painkiller. 

 

 

 

After trivia, I went to Two70 for the first showing of Spectra’s Cabaret, which I enjoyed a lot. I feel like one glass of sparkling wine, one mimosa and one Painkiller put me in the perfect mood to enjoy the show to the fullest. I really liked it a lot, but I do like singing and dancing for the sake of singing and dancing. If you like a good dose of plot with your shows, this one may not be for you. It could still be worth seeing just to see Two70 in action. It looks like a great venue and I look forwards to seeing more from it. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

After the show, it was time for Dinner Act III: Late Night Pizza. I feel like the pizza at Sorrento’s gets better the later it is, so it wasn’t quite late enough for it to reach its max potential, but it was still a good way to end the evening. Those who followed my Wonder review may remember I developed a bit of an obsession with the spicy cheese at Sorrento’s. I am sad to report that they didn’t have it on Day 1, but I will visit again and will be sure to update you on the spicy cheese situation. 

 

 

 

 

 

With my Dinner Around the Ship completed, I took myself to bed and fell asleep quickly to the light rocking of the ship. 

 

Edited October 18, 2022 by laurieal

[njkruzer]

We had an 11:30 boarding time and were onboard by 10:30.  We took a car service,  shared with another couple, from our hotel in London right to the ship. A little pricey but worth the convenience.