Just off Serenade - 12/11 to 12/18

[LidoBoy]

If you have questions, please post. I'll do my best to answer.

 

This was our first cruise ever in December and 6th cruise on a Radiance class ship. We were looking forward to seeing how they decorate for the holidays. It turns out I was expecting more decorations, but what was there was done very well. They had a 2 story christmas tree in the Centrum with tons of lights on it. Very cool. There was a holiday christmas themed scene set up to the right as you entered the Schooner lounge. There were hundreds of poinsettia (sp?) plants all around the ship. By an large, that was about it. There were maybe a couple of other small displays as well, but nothing on a grand scale.

 

The cruise was awesome. The service was top notch. After 14 cruises on RCL, the dining room food was as expected. I actually got the Chops steak for $14.95 one night. It was a 10 ounce filet cooked to perfection. If you want a good steak and don't want to spring for a night at Chops, this is a great alternative. I love steak so much that we also went to Chops one other night. We did not hit Portifinos.

 

The port stops were typical... On St. Thomas we did a daysail on the Jester. Can't say enough about Capt. Jim and the Jester. There was only one other couple on this excursion with us. IMO, its a great way to get away from the crowded ship excursions. St. Croix... we just shopped around the port. This was our first time here and did not have anything planned. There is not much here around the port. Your typical market bazaar. Antigua... we did Eli's Extreme Circumnav. IMO, it was only OK. It was a unique experience to take a fast boat all around the island, but I was looking for more, I guess. If you don't have experience in fast boats then this would be awesome. The speed was not much of a thrill since I own a boat that can reach the same speeds. Although running at top speed in the swells of the Atlantic was a new experience. The visit to snorkel outside of Nelson's Dockyard was not impressive. The water was rough and they drop you in 30+ feet of water. The fish viewed were your typical species and nothing special. All in all it was an Ok day. Be sure to use sunscreen. I blistered my nose on this trip. I looked like rudolph for a few days after. Dominica... we did a black sand beach day. IMO, you are not getting all of what Dominica has to offer by hitting the beach. The black sand beach at Mero Beach was Ok, but again IMO Dominica has much to offer in the interior of the island. Next time I will visit the rain forest. In the end it was an adventurous day. Our last stop was Grenada... this was a bust for us. It was raining for most of the day. We stayed on the ship and hung out in the Solarium till the afternoon. The rain finally cleared up and we went into town. I'm sure others can give a better perspective of Grenada than I can. There is much to do, but we just took it easy.

 

I would like to explain one thing about our stateroom. We booked cabin 7676. This is an aft cabin and is above the Safari Club on deck 6. I was surprised to hear the band as loud as I did each night. It was a Latin dance band and they played most nights till 12:30. We are normally in bed by 11. So I had to deal with the noise each night. One night I opened the balcony door to drown out the band sound with the soothing sounds of the wake. Very effective.

 

The cruise embarks from San Juan and Puerto Ricans were well represented. I will not say that all the entertainment was geared to the latin community, but much of it was. That was Ok with me since it seemed to enhance the party atmosphere. Those Puerto Ricans like to party.

 

Does anyone know what type of deals are offered in Puerto Rico to get on this cruise? I heard 3rd hand that it is as low as $140 for the week for an inside cabin. Could that be true. Can anyone confirm this?

 

If you have any questions... feel free to ask.

 

Tom

[subtchr]

We were also on this cruise, and had a BLAST!

 

I will post a full review with a ton of pics once I get the laundry done and my photos uploaded, but I just wanted to chime in to agree with your assessments overall.

 

Captain Michel said there were 2315 souls aboard, 750 of them from Puerto Rico, so yes, there was a large representation of locals. And I agree, it added to the vibrant atmosphere!

 

It was also our first time on Serenade and first time cruising from San Juan. We enjoyed a relaxing afternoon and evening pre-cruise near the beach, and a wonderful Old San Juan tour before our flight yesterday.

 

Our port activities:

 

St. Thomas - Water Island Bike Tour, so much fun!

 

St. Croix - took the shuttle to Sandcastle Resort and hung on the beach for several hours, SO relaxing

 

Antigua - Eli's Eco Tour, we loved it! Raining (hard) at the port, but sunshine at Great Bird Island. Saw so much, hiked up for the view, swam near the beach, climbed to the top of Hell's Gate, snorkeled (nothing too special, but fun for us), learned a lot from the young crew

 

Dominica - amazing day in the interior with Donaldson of Nature Isle Explorers - Middleham Falls (now THAT'S a hike!), Titou Gorge, Trafalgar Falls

 

Grenada - had originally planned to just get a taxi to Grand Anse Beach; at the last minute decided to take a ship's excursion snorkeling and beach time. Not bad, but a reminder why we usually avoid ship excursions...too many people. And the rainy weather didn't help. But the beach is very nice...

 

Wonderful service everywhere, great crew. Really liked Mercedes Lafuente as CD, so much energy!

 

LOVED the Seaview Cafe and the outdoor eating area of the Windjammer.

 

More to come, it was such a great escape! Getting home to 6 inches of snow and 14 degrees was NOT fun...

 

Sue

[waterbugohio]

Sue, can't wait to see your photos. We did Serenade in November and I never got around to a review. Have been waiting on friends photos, but haven't gotten them yet.

[alny5810]

Hi, glad to hear you enjoyed your cruise. I just booked a cruise on her 10/2/11. I have always done the freedom class ships but am really looking forward to trying a different ship. How is she holding up?

[danp]

Great reviews.We will be doing a B2B leaveing on Jan 22 and ending on Feb 5.We have been on the Seranade 5 times already.We find it a relaxing ship.

As for the Purta Ricans,we were told that if the ship is not sold out they offer the cruise at a discounted price,but they must have four to a room.What we were told that they take the passengers that are booked on the lower decks and move then up then they sell those cabins.

[melbur]

Great reviews.We will be doing a B2B leaveing on Jan 22 and ending on Feb 5.We have been on the Seranade 5 times already.We find it a relaxing ship.

As for the Purta Ricans,we were told that if the ship is not sold out they offer the cruise at a discounted price,but they must have four to a room.What we were told that they take the passengers that are booked on the lower decks and move then up then they sell those cabins.

 

Dan - we'll be seeing you again on those dates B2B.

[danp]

Wish we were there now LOL

[LBumb]

thanks for posting

[will work to cruise]

Our Serenade B2B has been our best cruise to date. Loved the ship and the staff was incredible. We went in June and had many Puerto Ricans onboard, possibly 50%. They are a fun, vibrant people and we are looking forward to sailing from San Juan again.

[daveky]

Thanks for the posting. Have the Serenade booked May 2011. Have sailed southern many times but will be my first sailing on the Serenade. Interesting to see over the years of sailing how the Eastern and Western have become the most popular and now with the Adventure being moved out and the Serenade (smaller ship) sailing the Southern, the market for this route sure has dropped. Happy Holidays...

 

Dave

[cruzinjudi]

what time was your flights out of san Juan-- do you think 11:00 is to early to book out of San Juan?

[subtchr]

what time was your flights out of san Juan-- do you think 11:00 is to early to book out of San Juan?

 

Ours was not until almost 6 pm, but we did that on purpose because we wanted to tour Old San Juan that day before the flight.

 

I think 11:00 would be really pushing it. The first group off yesterday I think left the ship about 8:30 or 9 at the earliest. Yes, the airport is not far, and you would probably beat the crowd there for the most part, but you have to do an agriculture inspection on both checked and carry-on bags before you check in, then the lines for security can be long.

 

In other words, if anything at all delays your departure from the ship, you could be in trouble. Why end your cruise stressing about making your flight?

 

Good luck whatever you decide...

 

Sue

[Coralc]

what time was your flights out of san Juan-- do you think 11:00 is to early to book out of San Juan?

 

We're booked at 10:40 AM. Nothing before 11 AM is recommended by Royal Caribbean. It's doable, but you need to be organized and request priority disembarkation, and have a backup plan just in case. :)

[LidoBoy]

Thanks for the posting. Have the Serenade booked May 2011. Have sailed southern many times but will be my first sailing on the Serenade. Interesting to see over the years of sailing how the Eastern and Western have become the most popular and now with the Adventure being moved out and the Serenade (smaller ship) sailing the Southern, the market for this route sure has dropped. Happy Holidays...

 

Dave

 

By saying "market for this route" includes the fact that it embarks from San Juan could be the issue. I prefer to embark from south FL because the flight is shorter and you can get Eastern sailings that hit the same Southern islands, although those sailings are typically longer. It's too bad that this market is changing because I prefer to have more choices available to me.

[LidoBoy]

Hi, glad to hear you enjoyed your cruise. I just booked a cruise on her 10/2/11. I have always done the freedom class ships but am really looking forward to trying a different ship. How is she holding up?

 

The Serenade is holding up. I don't consider the Serenade an older ship and I am always impressed at how the older RCCL ships are holding up. I was on the Monarch two years ago and after dry dock this ship looks great. I would agree that there are signs of wear, but the features that make this class of ship beautiful are strong. IMO, the Radiance class fleet is the most elegant looking ships afloat. I'd be curious to know when Serenade is scheduled for dry dock to repair interior wear and tear. One thing I hope they fix is the marble wall tile in the Centrum where the adhesive material has staining through to the surface of the tile. That is a pretty major repair. I also noticed the wood rail on my balcony cabin needed repair, but typically you will see that type of repair done as a maintenance job during service. Who hasn't seen signs posted that say "Caution: Wet Varnish".

[LidoBoy]

what time was your flights out of san Juan-- do you think 11:00 is to early to book out of San Juan?

 

I think this is possible. The Ag inspection didn't take more than three minutes. You will want to be first off the ship. Take a fast taxi to the airport. If possible, you will want to walk off the ship with your luggage in tow. When I was looking at the disembark instructions, there were flights that left at 11:00am. But as others have said, if there is a delay outside of RCL's control, you better have a plan B. As a note, I was surprised at how many people were being pulled out of the custom's line for a random in-depth inspection.