Splendour Of The Seas

[NancyIL]

You didn't do a Transatlantic with 1500 Brazilians on board. You might have written an entirely different review if you had.

 

Brazilians cruising from Brazil...Puerto Ricans cruising from Puerto Rico. They have some nerve!! :eek:

 

Splendour was my first RCI cruise in April 2005, and it was a wonderful ship. The food was very good, our dining room waiters were excellent, and Graham Seymour (who I know is no longer on that ship) was a fabulous Cruise Director. My next RCI cruise was on Jewel of the Seas a few months later, and I thought Splendour's atrium was prettier.

[cruisenfever]

Brazilians cruising from Brazil...Puerto Ricans cruising from Puerto Rico. They have some nerve!! :eek:

 

Splendour was my first RCI cruise in April 2005, and it was a wonderful ship. The food was very good, our dining room waiters were excellent, and Graham Seymour (who I know is no longer on that ship) was a fabulous Cruise Director. My next RCI cruise was on Jewel of the Seas a few months later, and I thought Splendour's atrium was prettier.

We have sailed with the Puerto Ricans out of San Juan and I can honestly tell you that they were much better behaved than the Brazilians.

 

Lots of changes can happen in three years..............

[EmJakeBubbie]

...

Lots of changes can happen in three years..............

amen!

I'm very much in the state of "may cancel" ... I believe reviews - for the most part, a seasoned cruiser can read between the lines to dissect which point is valid, or just a IMO kind-o-thing. Bad food reviews seems to be consistent - I challenge this problem is a result of change in crew? New Crew is too frequently not up to par (we've seen them "fired" mid-cruise and put off at next port). Splendour being old doesn't bother us - we luv'd the Sovereign (yet we had a horrible experience on a 3-nt b4 she got stretched/overhauled) -

We are sailing that Med Cruise, 10 nt, embarking in Venice and debarkation in Lisbon. Ports include Dubrovnik, Santorini, Tunis, Malaga, Casablanca. We took the air-sea pkg thru RCI thinking we'd be met and handed off at each step, thereby avoiding running through strange venues to find a ride (we are mobility-challenged). We also took the trip insurance for xtra peace of mind. Booked a D1, a few steps from the CL, we are hopeful this is a good selection and that our cabin attendant will not disappoint us. Reviews don't complain about bedding, so am encouraged by that! Planning to book tours thru the ship to avoid any missed ports, delayed arrivals, etc. messing up any independent plans. Ship tours usually do a good job, but it is fun to be an independent adventurer. Tips: NOT pre-paying (because of these bad reviews). WILL tip ONLY IF warranted! not shy about admitting that. Have never not tipped but as we've added up, we've also shorted a tip where warranted.

Read the review by JenC-7 - thanks for the info.

 

You guys are GREAT and I must appreciate the honesty. It's a big investment in time and money, and with the dollar being so devalued, very well may be the last time we go across the pond.

 

Hoping some will come here to post some good comments b4 November:confused:

[margbem]

:( Well, I'm getting really worried about our September cruise from Venice on Splendour. We've only cruised once before, with HAL to Alaska and that was faultless! We've bought this cruise as a present for my in-laws (we are going with them) but I am getting to the point of cancelling beacause of bad reviews. This is costing us a lot of money and if the food is rubbish and getting on and off the ship at ports a farce I'd rather spend my money on something else. Any comments from anyone who's just been on Splendour in the Med? :confused: Any good reviews out there????

[ValerieJo]

We last cruised Splendour in April 2006 and thought is was very nice. We didn't have any problems and the food was good. I would not hesitate to book another cruise on Splendour.

[JenC-7]

Goldiemom,

Both things were very easy. In fact, on the shopping maps that the cruise line gives you for Mykonos & Split, both of them show the where you need to go (to catch ferries to Delos/bus station in Split). The bus station in Split is about a 5 min walk from where the tender boats drop you off. Both run frequently (I believe the Delos boats begin at 8:30 or 9:00 and the last boat returns around 3:00, and in Split almost any bus going north will stop in Trogir). We did not hire a guide for Delos. We still enjoyed it but it requires a lot of imagination to picture what the ruins once looked like. They give you a good map and there is a small museum, so a guide isn't absolutely necessary... but I'm sure it would be better. We just were trying to do things "on the cheap" and wanted to spend the money elsewhere. Whether or not it's worth it to go there would probably depend on how interested you are in the ancient Greeks. I am very interested so I really liked it. If that's not your thing, the ruins are pretty "ruined", so you might not be that thrilled. It is a beautiful, windswept island with lots of wildflowers (at least when we were there) and views of the other islands, so it is a nice place to wander aside from the ruins.

 

Disembarking was a breeze for us, but we did the "self-disembark". We were off the boat at 6:45AM. We decided to go that route since we wanted to take the 10:20 train to Verona. We actually went to our hotel in Cannaregio, dropped off our bags, went back to the train station and wound up catching the 8:20 to Verona! We may have been lucky, though. I have heard stories from others where it sometimes takes much longer to disembark, even if you take your own bags off.

[nycgirl0618]

I am cruising in Sept too and I am very worried. I spent last night looking for other cruises that sail out of Venice during my time period. I already have air booked and it's non-refundable. If the dollar wasn't so low I would cancel the cruise and stay in Venice for the week. I don't care about the ship being old either but bad food is unacceptable. I feel for all the people that posted that have had horrible experiences. I guess I will go in with very low expectations and a box of granola bars to snack on. :D

[cruisenfever]

For all those that are worried about their upcoming cruises on Splendour..........don't be.

 

We did a b2b with the first cruise being 15 days and the second was 14. The first cruise from Valparaiso to Santos was awesome.............food was wonderful.........entertainment was good and the ports were fantastic.

 

The second part of our b2b had it share of problems from food being not as good as the previous cruise (probably because they brought on a couple of different chefs to add the Portuguese touch) and the entertainment was not the same. The ship developing problems the night before debarkation making us late arriving into Lisbon didn't help matters either.

 

The ports of call on the second cruise were great and we had no problem with tours or getting on/off the ship. The ship is very nice, but showing some wear and tear..............I like to say it's adding character.

 

Staff and crew were good, but not outstanding but the people that we came in contact with daily which included our cabin steward, our waiter, assistant waiter and head waiter who were all exceptional.

 

You all have to remember that each and every cruise is different.......no cruise is perfect.............so you make the best of whatever situation you are faced with.

[beachnative]

JenC-7:

Thank you for all that you have posted here as well as your review.

 

We are sailing on the Splendour next month.

 

You mentioned that you took the metro into Athens. I've been considering doing that but the only information that I have found stated that one must walk quite a distance from the ship to board the metro. I enjoy self tours more than ship tours and am trying to convince my wife to take the metro (as we generally do in other European cities). Any information you can share will be appreciated.

 

We are both healthy and don't mind walking.

[jbond]

Brazilians cruising from Brazil... They have some nerve!!

Besides nerve, most of them had incredibly bad manners. You can be as smarta**ed as you like, but if you weren't there, it's pretty difficult for you to give an opinion.

If you read the earlier posts, you would have seen that we have sailed Splendour four times. The second leg of our B2B was the worst cruise we have ever taken, anywhere, any ship. Poor food, poor CD, abysmal Guest Relations and a debarkation from Hell. Not the usual and expected RCI standard.

You all have to remember that each and every cruise is different.......no cruise is perfect.............

And the second leg of the B2B was far from perfect. The big change in the food quality, RCI's ineptness to organize anything out of the normal and the overall behaviour of many of the cruise passengers made it a less than perfect experience.

[Mines]

Interesting comments on this board. We did the reverse B2B last December and found the oposite experience. The food was OK and service slow on the transatlantic, but the food improved considerably on the second cruise in South America. The service was still a bit hit and miss, but what the hell, we are there to enjoy ourselves, so I am not going to get upset and put other people off on these boards becase of that.

 

I find it sad that posters have to make comments like ..."THE FOOD WAS TERRIBLE"... Whether you like the food or not is completely a personal opinion. Lets face it - RCL do NOT serve bad food. You may have chosen something that you did not like or exceptionally you may have been served something badly cooked - this happens occasionally even in the best of restaurants. But please, don't make a sweeping comment effectively suggesting people stay away from this ship bacause of a bad experience you had.

[feistytigger]

JenC-7:

You mentioned that you took the metro into Athens. I've been considering doing that but the only information that I have found stated that one must walk quite a distance from the ship to board the metro. I enjoy self tours more than ship tours and am trying to convince my wife to take the metro (as we generally do in other European cities). Any information you can share will be appreciated.

 

my understanding is that it's not a bad idea to get a taxi to the metro station if you want to get to athens asap. i think that's what we'll do.

[jbond]

I find it sad that posters have to make comments like ..."THE FOOD WAS TERRIBLE"... Whether you like the food or not is completely a personal opinion.

Being a very paranoid person, I guess that these comments are aimed at me.

I didn't say the food was TERRIBLE, just poor. You're correct, it's a personal opinion, but that's what the OP was asking for, personal opinions about Splendour.

Lets face it - RCL do NOT serve bad food. You may have chosen something that you did not like.....

You were not on this cruise. I'm not new to cruising and this was the first time that I had difficulty on a couple of occasions finding something to choose at dinner. The Windjammer food was very limited, there was a lot of black beans and rice available every single day.

.......suggesting people stay away from this ship because of a bad experience you had

Nowhere have I stated that, in fact several posts ago, I suggested that our second leg was a unique experience and that the OP would have a different experience in the Med. I would not recommend this cruise (Santos-Lisbon) to a friend based on my experience with it.

We did the reverse B2B last December and found the oposite experience. The food was OK and service slow on the transatlantic, but the food improved considerably on the second cruise in South America.

Interesting comment, not sure that it was an opposite experience. Food was very good on the first leg in South America, but was poor on the transatlantic portion, mainly because of the choices, or lack of choices. It's very easy to make comparisons on a B2B, the memories are still very fresh and haven't faded with time.

[nycgirl0618]

I would like to thank you for your review and the time spent answering questi. I found it very fair and informative. The whole purpose of these boards is for cruisers to post their experiences and opinions. If I want proproganda I can go onto the cruise line website. I think Mines heart is in the right place and the poster does not want cruisers to be put off by one opinon but when several people are all in agreement it seems to reason certain conclusions can be reached about the quality of Splendour at the moment.

[JenC-7]

Fiestytigger & beachnative:

 

We took the metro instead of a taxi for two reasons:

1- We heard that some of the taxi drivers in Athens really try to rip you off if they pick you up at the cruise terminal and we didn't want to deal with the haggling hassle... and 2- We heard traffic jams can be horrible in Athens. With only 8 hours in port we did not want to risk the possibility of getting stuck in traffic for hours.

 

The metro was an easy 20 min walk. I would ask a local to point you in the right direction once you think you are getting close, the map we had was not detailed enough to show exactly where the station is.

[beachnative]

I am not one to haggle with taxi drivers and a 20 minute walk to the metro station is not a problem for us.

 

I found an on-line map that shows the location of the metro station. It appears to be central to both sides of the port. I do not knowing exactly where the ship docks in the harbor but once we are docked I should be able to get my bearings. I don't mind asking for directions and will certainly take that suggestion to heart.

 

Thank you for the help.

[greeneng]

We have had four cruises on the Splendour, two of them being the fore-mentioned B-B from Valparaiso to Lisbon. The first two were in the Med; once a Barcelona R-T and then a Venice R-T. Three out of the four were very good. The food on the first two was better than I had been led to think it would be from the reviews. The accomodations were outstanding all four times. We were in 8508 for the first cruise, and 8500 for the last, and Wayan was our cabin attendant both times. He is excellent. We had good restaurant service on all four voyages. About my only complaint, in general, is that the ship is too small for long cruises. Although there is no place for them, both a sports court and an alternative restaurant would help a lot. The sports court to provide something active to do on sea days, and an alternative restaurant when you just don't want to see the same menu again, or just don't like the menu choices. These things were not an issue in the Med. On the 29 day B-B, they were.

 

The second leg of the long cruise, from Santos to Lisbon, had a lot of aberrations, with things you will just not find on normal voyages.

 

First, they apparently sold a lot of cabins at a very low price to a travel agency in Brazil, which sold them at a low enough price that it resulted in a lot of fairly poorly behaved Brazilian passengers. They just did not know what is expected from people in public.

 

Second, the food took a complete turn for the worse. Some of that was caused by half the menu choices on every night being un-recognizable dishes, and half by the apparent quality of the provisions they took on board in Brazil. I watched from my balcony as the staff checked every pallet coming on board in Salvador de Bahia, but they did not reject any of them. This is where a Chops or Portofino would provide an option when a menu is just not attractive any given night.

 

Third, it was difficult to enjoy the entertainment when it was in Portugese. The ship based entertainers were excellent, but the shows were, of course, a repeat.

 

Fourth, when the ship was late arriving in Lisbon the disembarkation became a nightmare. People just ignored the order for leaving the ship, perhaps thinking that pushing, shoving and shouting would help them get off in time to make their flights. The embarkation, for those just getting on, was equally as bad. As said before, there won't be those problems in Venice. (But, we also never found the supposed bus from Piazza Roma to the terminal, and I walked all around it. If it is not raining, you should be able to get a cab easily.)

 

So, my advice, don't cancel anything out of Venice. But I have decided that future long voyages for us will be on Radiance class, or larger.

 

Jim and Joan

[dramaqueen4lyfe]

I must agree with JBond and Cruisenfever in every respect. Splendour in and of its self is very nice. I think I would enjoy another cruise on her on a different itinerary. There was no exageration in the description of the conditions on the Santos to Lisbon cruise. The choices in the dining room and the Windjammer were abysmal whereas on the previous cruise they were just fine.

I will stand by in my fire retardent suit and await the flames but the behaviour of the Brazilians on board was inexcusable, rude, and disgusting especially where good sanitation is expected hence the reason we ended up avoiding the Windjammer like the plague.

As Patti has said, this was only one cruise and shouldn't deter people from never sailing on Splendour again. By the same token, those of you who choose to question our description and appear to be offended by it did not experience what we did "YOU HAD TO BE THERE"

[vacationdreamer2]

I was all set to book on the Splendour Aug. 23rd sailing out of Venice but after reading these reviews I'm having second thoughts... I'm hoping since she just got to the Mediterranean things will improve as she gets used to her summer schedule. Was wondering if there are any others who have cruised on her in the Mediterranean this season who could offer their opinions.

 

TIA

(nervous booker) :confused:

[MICK48DC]

Tell you when we get back at the end of May, we are are very experienced high end travellers but have never cruised before , should be interesting ,

[jbond]

I was all set to book on the Splendour Aug. 23rd sailing out of Venice but after reading these reviews I'm having second thoughts..

Our first Splendour cruise was in the Med, a 12 night, Barcelona rt to Barcelona. While I do prefer Radiance class ships, I wouldn't hesitate to sail Splendour in the Med again.

The Santos-Lisbon cruise was an abberation. It was totally different from any other cruise. I'm putting my photo album together right now and we did enjoy the ports of call, but the time on the ship was only highlighted by the tremendous company that we got to share.

This quote is so true..

First, they apparently sold a lot of cabins at a very low price to a travel agency in Brazil, which sold them at a low enough price that it resulted in a lot of fairly poorly behaved Brazilian passengers. They just did not know what is expected from people in public.

 

Second, the food took a complete turn for the worse. Some of that was caused by half the menu choices on every night being un-recognizable dishes, and half by the apparent quality of the provisions they took on board in Brazil.

..and this one sums it up...

"YOU HAD TO BE THERE"

[EmJakeBubbie]

Dear Cruisers:D - I asked for, and received, your honest posts. Please remove flame retardant suits - I believe every word y'all typed and read the IMO's, which I aceept as just that: IMO. Because of our own past experiences in SJU, I can believe cruising with any mass number of locals from ports, not commonly recognized as weekly ports of embarkation, can be cause for concern. People tend to get excited when something is relatively unknown. Certain nationalities have earned their reputation, and never fail to live up to them; also, it only takes a few to make the whole ship go rotten. One of the loudest and pushiest group of 'seniors' was a Miami embarkation...go figure!

 

I do have a question about the menu: y'know how on part of the menu there is always a same daily offer - like chicken, steak, salmon, baked potato. Did the Splendour, in the Med, have these everyday options? I think I may have already said that we don't do vino in the dining rm (service has deteriorated, so we gave it up - I will put in a plug, here, for the vineyards in Maryland, for a Really Good Vino and Good Time;)) We typically skip the appetizer, soup, and for the salad, we get the wedge of lettuce, crumbled bleu cheese; if we need an xtra nosh preceeding the main course, we'll order the carrot and celery sticks. Skipping dessert (IMO always looks better than it tastes), I appreciate a cup of hearty java (hope RCI is still going with the Seattle's Best?). More concerned we don't get sick from any food venues! That Windjammer can be a breeding ground when you're sailing with crowds that don't practice good hygiene (or with kids left to roam amuck!) is a fact. Another practice we've adopted is a bowl of oatmeal and coffee/tea for morning room service (we skip the aggravation of the Windjammer/Dining Rm .... too much morning mishegoss for this old bubbie (LOL) I have never had a bad bowl of oatmeal and how it consistently is delivered HOT is amazing! the most fun is when whoever prepares it adds to the tray surprises (like nuts or raisins, brown sugar, butter, salt) It makes me think that whoever is preparing the oatmeal tray prepares it with stuff on which they must have been brought up ... rather much a personal touch, which is never wasted on me. (I do get names and make certain this gets recorded on the CommentCard). I probably tip too heavy for morning rm svc and often "see" the same delivery person who just gets nicer as the week wears on ... all about the tasty and fun factor, for both of us!:)

 

So, any comments about the aforementioned menu options?

[Mines]

I was all set to book on the Splendour Aug. 23rd sailing out of Venice but after reading these reviews I'm having second thoughts... I'm hoping since she just got to the Mediterranean things will improve as she gets used to her summer schedule. Was wondering if there are any others who have cruised on her in the Mediterranean this season who could offer their opinions.

 

TIA

(nervous booker) :confused:

 

 

I would ask all nervous bookers to read these posts thoroughly. I do not think even the most critical contributor here is trying to put you off. Splendour in the Med is one thing, a transatlantic is another. Don't be put off by comments on a completely different cruise with different customers, different crew and almost certainly, different food.

 

On our transatlantic (from Lisbon to Santos) the food was European, having been boarded in Lisbon. It did not cater specifically for the Brazilians. The experience the other way around was probably designed to try to please the Brazilians by puting black beans on the menu every day (I hate balack beans, by the way).

 

In summing up, I enjoyed our first transatlantic experience on Splendour very much. Indeed I have never been on a cruise that I did not enjoy. I agree, however, with the points made about the lack of speciality restaurants and activites - these could have been better.

 

In the future, I will probably take my next transatlantic on a Radiance or bigger type of vessel or on Celebrity. But for a week long port intensive trip in the Med, Splendour, Legend or Vision are just fine.

 

Having said all of this, my next trip will be with 80% Spanish on Navigator. This could be a lot of fun:rolleyes:

[henny penny]

I am not one to haggle with taxi drivers and a 20 minute walk to the metro station is not a problem for us.

 

I found an on-line map that shows the location of the metro station. It appears to be central to both sides of the port. I do not knowing exactly where the ship docks in the harbor but once we are docked I should be able to get my bearings. I don't mind asking for directions and will certainly take that suggestion to heart.

 

Thank you for the help.

Hiya Beachnative - was just lookin thro' and found you. How are you and Gail? Last time I heard you posted that she had to go to the hospital with appendix!!

We are travelling to the Med this summer on IOS. We are also planning our trip of a lifetime to New Zealand next March.

 

Good to see you posting again!!

 

Sue and Phil :)

[Linda74]

We did a Mediterranean cruise on her April 26 to May 3rd. She is a fine ship. Staff were very nice. She is well kept and we enjoyed our cruise. We did find it a little difficult to always find a table for two for breakfast in the morning but other than that no complaints. Food was good. Our waiter and assistant, Hugo and Jo, were excellent. I would definitely sail her again.....