Back from the Odyssey and had a wonderful time but...

[Calvin]

I sailed a 15 day crossing from Rome to Ft Lauderdale.  There were 8 of us and we had a wonderful time but I did notice some things that detracted from the experience.  For comparison's sake, we've sailed on 38 cruises (Carnival, Celebrity, NCL, Princess, and Royal Caribbean)

 

I greatly enjoyed the newness of the ship and its amenities, particularly iFly, Bumper Cars, and NorthStar.

 

My slight disappointments came from:

• MDR trimmed down menu and no longer having unlimited lobster tails (cost of extra ~$17)
• One of my travelmates noticed that, after eating in the MDR, the only food options were pizza and weird sandwiches. That was because the other unique venues all closed at the same time.
• Crowded rooms for trivia and events (unless they were in the 270° Lounge).  You basically had to arrive ~ 1/2 hour early to sit.
• Theater wasn't overpacked but getting a prime seat meant getting there !/2 to 3/4 hour early also.

 

I wondered why this was so, given a healthy space-to-passenger ratio, then I thought perhaps it was because they used so much space for relatively empty watch stores (and the like), so the numbers could have been a bit misleading.

[mets123]

A single lobster tail has been around since January/February when they introduced the new menu. They aren't that good anyway. And WJ is usually open until 9, and you can purchase food from the pub or room service.

[Calvin]

Everything you've said could be true for some but, I hadn't sailed in more than 1 year.  Re lobster tails: "aren't that good" is a matter of opinion, but surely pax ate more than 1, whether because they were good, or because they could. 

We ate dinner during the 2nd seating, so the WJ being open until 9 was not late enough for us.  The pub food and room service were not free.

 

In comparison, NCL has a 24 hour restaurant, and some cruise lines have their buffet available until 11-11:30 at night.

[Biker19]

5 hours ago, Calvin said:

I wondered why this was so, given a healthy space-to-passenger ratio, then I thought perhaps it was because they used so much space for relatively empty watch stores (and the like), so the numbers could have been a bit misleading.

TAs have a somewhat different demographic than the typical 7 day sailing and perhaps different show/trivia attendance pattern.

[MrsHFQ]

We sailed on the Odyssey in September and loved a lot about our cruise but (further to your observations).......

 

Lobster tails were not on the menu at all except as a paid for option.

Weird sandwiches - one of the sandwiches I had from the Two70 cafe had several different ingredients from what was on the label (including pineapple instead of pesto....) 

It was almost impossible to find a seat in Two70 for The Book 20 minutes before it started despite having made reservations.

[lovesthebeach2]

3 hours ago, Calvin said:

Everything you've said could be true for some but, I hadn't sailed in more than 1 year.  Re lobster tails: "aren't that good" is a matter of opinion, but surely pax ate more than 1, whether because they were good, or because they could. 

We ate dinner during the 2nd seating, so the WJ being open until 9 was not late enough for us.  The pub food and room service were not free.

 

In comparison, NCL has a 24 hour restaurant, and some cruise lines have their buffet available until 11-11:30 at night.

We were also on that transatlantic as you.  We were on the ship from the cruise before also and I can say that it was totally different.  The TA was crazy crowded and with so many card and game players every table everywhere was full ALL DAY. I agree with people getting to lectures and games so early it was annoying so we just stopped doing those things. 
 

The “Vibe” of the ship on the TA wasn’t nearly as good as the holy land cruise before. A lot of older people that sat around all the common areas all day. I’m older too so don’t flame me.

 

The lobster is nothing  special, and as others said it’s been this way since the new menus, which aren’t the same either. On the positive side, I no longer ever gain weight on cruises because I mostly just eat appetizers for dinner. 

[Dan83]

We were on the Odyssey TA as well. As a family with young kids we didn’t fit into the main demographic of this particular sailing. For the first week, I felt like we were on a half empty ship. But it was port days for the first 4 days in a row. And we were doing lots of the kids and family activities. I felt way more crowded in Cinque Terre than I did on the ship. Even the windjammer at peak times you could easily find a table. I’ve been able to navigate the crowds on a ship fairly well on previous Royal sailings. But half of the ship was diamond or above. Everyone was using the same tricks and they just didn’t work. You couldn’t swing a dead cat without hitting a pinnacle name tag. I gave up on solarium bistro the first day. I’m not lining up 15 minutes prior to opening for that breakfast. Lines to get in the theater started at least a full hour before showtime. We can easily deal with all that. I adjusted my strategies accordingly, and we continued to have a good time. I’m the type that absolutely hates being in crowds. Really I shouldn’t even like cruising because of this but I still do. Towards the end of the cruise I really started feeling the pinch. And the day of the Bermuda stop was the day I was ready to be off that ship. The one thing that really gets me is not being able to find a place to sit at the windjammer. Up until that day, we could walk in at peak hours grab a plate and have a seat. Now we have to spilt up to go table hunting. And take turns getting up to get a plate for us and the kids. Many other venues seemed more crowded those last few days as well. Surprisingly there were many more families with kids. There were just enough that my kids easily made friends but adventure ocean never came anywhere near capacity. On a typical 7 night Caribbean, getting the kids into the evening session means lining up 20 minutes prior to opening.
 

We still have next year’s Odyssey TA booked so it wasn’t all that bad. However, I won’t book a 7 day holiday sailing on Odyssey.  I feel like Oasis class handles crowds for that demographic much better. 

[Galveston Cruiser]

We were also on the TA with 3 friends.  We never had an issue finding a table in WJ or the Solarium bistro.   However, we did have the age old problem of finding seating in the solarium to enjoy the jacuzzi's.  Towels on every chair, 3 people in water!

 

The MDR was a pain due to the added tables,  Even the staff could not get through.

 

Overall, it was a wonderful cruise.  We have completed 18 TA's and have 5 more booked.  

Nothing is perfect in life.  We make the best of everything being glad we have the opportunity to travel.

[sjb317]

We, too, were on the Odyssey TA 😂. The only places  we found really crowded were Giovanni’s Wine bar (very difficult to find a seat between 6 and 8pm every night) and the Solarium.  I couldn’t sleep one night so went for a walk and discovered the Solarium was packed with people’s stuff.🙄

 

And the Diamond Lounge was packed every night so we would just run in and grab a snack!

 

Sherri🙂

[mugtech]

13 hours ago, Calvin said:

Everything you've said could be true for some but, I hadn't sailed in more than 1 year.  Re lobster tails: "aren't that good" is a matter of opinion, but surely pax ate more than 1, whether because they were good, or because they could. 

We ate dinner during the 2nd seating, so the WJ being open until 9 was not late enough for us.  The pub food and room service were not free.

 

In comparison, NCL has a 24 hour restaurant, and some cruise lines have their buffet available until 11-11:30 at night.

So you could not eat enough at second sitting MDR to hold you until morning.  Perhaps you could take things back to your cabin earlier from WJ to get you through the night.

[Calvin]

2 hours ago, mugtech said:

So you could not eat enough at second sitting MDR to hold you until morning.  Perhaps you could take things back to your cabin earlier from WJ to get you through the night.

While I could have gotten food from the WJ to save for later, why should I HAVE to bring cold food to eat later?

 

Royal Caribbean could also only have 1 venue open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, but they don't, and I'll bet you, and others would not want to cruise that line.  Variety is the spice of life.

 

[mugtech]

1 hour ago, Calvin said:

While I could have gotten food from the WJ to save for later, why should I HAVE to bring cold food to eat later?

 

 

 

The only thing you HAVE to do is die.

[Calvin]

5 hours ago, mugtech said:

The only thing you HAVE to do is die.

And pay taxes.

 

But you have not made a valuable comment at all.

 

It was your suggestion to take food from the Windjammer, not mine.  

[Calvin]

16 hours ago, sjb317 said:

We, too, were on the Odyssey TA 😂. The only places  we found really crowded were Giovanni’s Wine bar (very difficult to find a seat between 6 and 8pm every night) and the Solarium.  I couldn’t sleep one night so went for a walk and discovered the Solarium was packed with people’s stuff.🙄

 

And the Diamond Lounge was packed every night so we would just run in and grab a snack!

 

Sherri🙂

It's funny. For my group, the wine bar wasn't crowded, probably because we went during lunch.

 

But I had already forgotten the crowds in the solarium, as well as the Diamond lounge.  Like I said, it was a very nice ship and a very nice experience, but the common areas were very crowded.

 

No one wants to go on a cruise and have to get to venues a half an hour early, just to get a seat.

[mugtech]

46 minutes ago, Calvin said:

And pay taxes.

You do not HAVE to pay taxes, there are plenty of people in prison proving that.

[Calvin]

On 11/23/2023 at 5:41 AM, Biker19 said:

TAs have a somewhat different demographic than the typical 7 day sailing and perhaps different show/trivia attendance pattern.

Good point! Perhaps the passengers were more sedentary? I'm also certain there were not a lot of kids who could take 15 days off from school between October and November, LOL. 

[Calvin]

On 11/23/2023 at 6:15 AM, lovesthebeach2 said:

We were also on that transatlantic as you.  We were on the ship from the cruise before also and I can say that it was totally different.  The TA was crazy crowded and with so many card and game players every table everywhere was full ALL DAY. I agree with people getting to lectures and games so early it was annoying so we just stopped doing those things. 
 

The “Vibe” of the ship on the TA wasn’t nearly as good as the holy land cruise before. A lot of older people that sat around all the common areas all day. I’m older too so don’t flame me.

 

The lobster is nothing  special, and as others said it’s been this way since the new menus, which aren’t the same either. On the positive side, I no longer ever gain weight on cruises because I mostly just eat appetizers for dinner. 

I can empathize with that card/game playing issue too!  My group decided to play cards one day, and we ended up having to go to the music hall where we were pretty cramped.

 

I guess I should take the demographics into consideration, should we take a long cruise again. Up until then, the longest cruise we had ever taken was 10 days, and that was only twice.

 

I'm starting to wonder if that had an effect on the entertainment? I tend to go to all the shows because I like them so much, but their shows were a little bit underwhelming, and I thought Royal Caribbean's entertainment was their forte.

 

[lovesthebeach2]

6 minutes ago, Calvin said:

I can empathize with that card/game playing issue too!  My group decided to play cards one day, and we ended up having to go to the music hall where we were pretty cramped.

 

I guess I should take the demographics into consideration, should we take a long cruise again. Up until then, the longest cruise we had ever taken was 10 days, and that was only twice.

 

I'm starting to wonder if that had an effect on the entertainment? I tend to go to all the shows because I like them so much, but their shows were a little bit underwhelming, and I thought Royal Caribbean's entertainment was their forte.

 

The card / game players took over most tables everywhere on the ship, every single venue, including tables in the WJ.  I’m not saying what they were doing was wrong, but it was inconvenient for others, including us that wanted to eat lunch in Gio’s wine bar and there was nowhere for us to sit and the guy behind the bar said he couldn’t do anything about the people sitting there all day. We tried more than once.

 

I’ve been on TA cruises before, but this was by far the worst in that trying to find somewhere to sit was almost impossible, and it was rude of the players to be in 270 Playing games loudly at times while there were lectures going on, they took many of the seats away from people that wanted to hear the speaker and the presentation.

The last week, we mostly stayed on our balcony during the afternoons to enjoy the sea in peace and quiet. 

 

[hmorrow]

We were on the TA and the cruise prior. Yes, some venues were crowded. MY biggest dislike, however, is the piped music they play in the windjammer, and some other venues, as well.LOUD  RAP and the like, is not exactly geared towards the demographic on a TA. We asked/complained about it and were told, it comes from corporate. (probably picked out, by a 15 year old.lol)  

Didn't ruin our cruise, by anymeans, but wish they would do a cruise to cruise evaluation, before they pipe in that garbage.

[Starry Eyes]

2 hours ago, Calvin said:

I can empathize with that card/game playing issue too!  My group decided to play cards one day, and we ended up having to go to the music hall where we were pretty cramped.

 

I guess I should take the demographics into consideration, should we take a long cruise again. Up until then, the longest cruise we had ever taken was 10 days, and that was only twice.

 

I'm starting to wonder if that had an effect on the entertainment? I tend to go to all the shows because I like them so much, but their shows were a little bit underwhelming, and I thought Royal Caribbean's entertainment was their forte.

 

Ah, so none of your other 37 cruises were transatlantic or other ocean crossings.  We have done 96 cruises on a variety of cruise lines, including multiple transatlantics.  They draw a different crowd and have a different pace.  Passengers on a TA behave differently than passengers on a 7 or 10 day cruise.  Obviously the TA worked out for us but it does not suit everyone.  Try to think about the TA demographic and TA crowd behavior separately from your feeling about Royal Caribbean.  That will help you decide if long transoceanic cruises on any line suit you at this point in your life.  

 

There are other points that are specific to Royal Caribbean and your cruising style/preferences.  For example, free late night food seems important to you (that is not important to me at all, showing personal preferences really matter here).  If Royal’s offerings (typically pizza, sandwiches, cookies as I recall) do not appeal, another cruiseline might suit you better for most or all of your cruises.  That’s why there are multiple cruise lines.  Many of us have taken a cruise that was good yet did not quite fit.  We go back to the line(s) that feel right.

[nolimits]

We also where on this cruise, Wine bar was designated Meet and Mingle for different groups on board 6 till 8 

first  LGTBQ ? then Single only cruisers 

We would go 5:30 before 6:00 dinner  at Giovanni’s  Wasn’t to crowded then but looked crowded at the end of our dinner.

4 Married couples so we went to Pub after dinner.

We ‘re 60+ normally hang in Solarium but realizing the age group on board we strayed by main pool when nice out 

Never to crowded 

[Calvin]

8 hours ago, Starry Eyes said:

Ah, so none of your other 37 cruises were transatlantic or other ocean crossings.  We have done 96 cruises on a variety of cruise lines, including multiple transatlantics.  They draw a different crowd and have a different pace.  Passengers on a TA behave differently than passengers on a 7 or 10 day cruise.  Obviously the TA worked out for us but it does not suit everyone.  Try to think about the TA demographic and TA crowd behavior separately from your feeling about Royal Caribbean.  That will help you decide if long transoceanic cruises on any line suit you at this point in your life.  

 

There are other points that are specific to Royal Caribbean and your cruising style/preferences.  For example, free late night food seems important to you (that is not important to me at all, showing personal preferences really matter here).  If Royal’s offerings (typically pizza, sandwiches, cookies as I recall) do not appeal, another cruiseline might suit you better for most or all of your cruises.  That’s why there are multiple cruise lines.  Many of us have taken a cruise that was good yet did not quite fit.  We go back to the line(s) that feel right.

"That's why there are multiple cruise lines"

 

I couldn't agree more.  I was simply giving my opinions.

 

Since you've sailed on 96 cruises you're likely to have a different perspective.  This should be shared with as many cruisers as possible, because not everyone is aware of the differences, and that's why many come to these boards.

 

You've even implied that there can be different types of cruises within  the same line.

 

BTW, though YOU don't care about late night food, I think very MANY people do care, that's why they used to have midnight buffets.

Edited November 25, 2023 by Calvin
added sentence

[wreckem2013]

38 minutes ago, Calvin said:

"That's why there are multiple cruise lines"

 

I couldn't agree more.  I was simply giving my opinions.

 

Since you've sailed on 96 cruises you're likely to have a different perspective.  This should be shared with as many cruisers as possible, because not everyone is aware of the differences, and that's why many come to these boards.

 

You've even implied that there can be different types of cruises within  the same line.

 

BTW, though YOU don't care about late night food, I think very MANY people do care, that's why they used to have midnight buffets.

Midnight buffets have been gone for what over a decade? Not just on Royal but pretty much all lines. Most lines late night dining is minimal. I don’t see a whole lot of people who are clamoring for gorging on a fourth or fifth meal late at night. Plus on Odyssey they have the nicest playmakers in the fleet that is usually open  till 11pm.

[Starry Eyes]

2 hours ago, Calvin said:

"That's why there are multiple cruise lines"

 

I couldn't agree more.  I was simply giving my opinions.

 

Since you've sailed on 96 cruises you're likely to have a different perspective.  This should be shared with as many cruisers as possible, because not everyone is aware of the differences, and that's why many come to these boards.

 

You've even implied that there can be different types of cruises within  the same line.

 

BTW, though YOU don't care about late night food, I think very MANY people do care, that's why they used to have midnight buffets.

Though DH and I tend to be early birds, I know late night food matters to other people.  If we all kept the same schedules and enjoyed the same things, the ships would feel more crowded.  I recall how unhappy fellow cruisers were as midnight buffets became less lavish than disappeared.   
 

Even on the same line, some cruises feel different than others.  For example, several years ago we did a back to back cruise, so same ship, same departure port, same month.  The first cruise was a five night sailing to Bermuda.  There were lots of young couples and families with young kids plus some seniors.  It was very active with long lines for pizza and a very busy buffet, even at dinner.  Boisterous crowd.  There were only a few b2b guests.  The second cruise was nine night Canada and New England.  There were lots of seniors, far fewer young people, very few kids, and far more high loyalty members.  More card games, no more long lines for pizza, the MDR was busier at mealtimes.   Sedate crowd.  We enjoyed both cruises, but the contrast was quite noticeable.

Edited November 25, 2023 by Starry Eyes

[Calvin]

2 hours ago, Starry Eyes said:

Though DH and I tend to be early birds, I know late night food matters to other people.  If we all kept the same schedules and enjoyed the same things, the ships would feel more crowded.  I recall how unhappy fellow cruisers were as midnight buffets became less lavish than disappeared.   
 

Even on the same line, some cruises feel different than others.  For example, several years ago we did a back to back cruise, so same ship, same departure port, same month.  The first cruise was a five night sailing to Bermuda.  There were lots of young couples and families with young kids plus some seniors.  It was very active with long lines for pizza and a very busy buffet, even at dinner.  Boisterous crowd.  There were only a few b2b guests.  The second cruise was nine night Canada and New England.  There were lots of seniors, far fewer young people, very few kids, and far more high loyalty members.  More card games, no more long lines for pizza, the MDR was busier at mealtimes.   Sedate crowd.  We enjoyed both cruises, but the contrast was quite noticeable.

Yes, it really was a different experience back in the day.  I remember when I used to make all cruiselines regret their "all you can eat" concept.  I also recall eating dinner at 8-10:30, then attending the midnight buffet at 11:30.  I really, really, made a pig of myself.  Now as I've gotten older, they surely make lots of $ off me, LOL.