RCI Adventure of the seas

[vbar]

Going on Adventure of the seas in the October school holidays.

Never done RCI before, what's it like in general ??

Done p&o and Cunard before.

Does RCI require us to dress up ?

[sky0000547]

In the main dining room, there will be 3 suggested dress codes. These are casual, smart casual and formal. The first night would be casual. These are suggested dress codes so you can dress up if you would like or not. You generally won't be prevented from entering the MDR if you didn't dress according to the dress codes unless you walk in with flip flops and swim gear.

 

I found generally cruising out of UK or even Europe, cruisers tend to be more dressier.

[Novice of the seas]

Hi,

Just been on adventure for the western med cruise.

Sorry to be the bearer of bad tidings but was pretty underwhelmed by the whole thing.

The ship was supposed to have been refitted in April....don't know what went wrong but the decor in the staterooms and dining room is very tired and old hat.

 

RCI will take every opportunity possible to relieve you of your money e.g.

Wifi $30 an hour or $60 a day

Bottled water as you get off in port was $4.75 for a litre

They offered a port transfer in Lisbon for $15 dollars a head as it was an hour away....we found the station 200 yards from the ship and got in in 7 minutes for less that 10 euros for a family of 4.

Also if you ask for advice on where to go at a port stop from the tour desk...you won't get any at all! Unless you sell your kids to take one of their astronomically priced tours

 

Might be better in half term but don't expect to get a sunbed any time after 1000 their policy of removing towels if no one has been on the lounger for 30 mins doesn't get followed several familes were obviously expecting their aunts or uncle and family to parachute onto the ship judging by how many sun beds they'd reserved (which apparently you can't do, but can do if you get my drift)

 

The kids curfew for 17 and under is 0100

This means we had 8 year olds running round at 1130 at night by them selves while mummy and daddy feckless were busy getting hammered in the bar or blowing the child benefit in the casino.

 

Some entertainment is good....the ones they hire in we had a queen tribute band, a juggler and a hypnotist who were all worth a watch. The entertainments people on the ship unfortunately can't really think much past butlins circa 1950s and the entertainment manager (sorry to get personal) was a James Corden lookalike who it seems had forgotten to pack any level of adulthood or maturity

He made Ronald macdonald look like professor Stephen hawking

 

Formal nights, thought would be nice to have, good to get dressed up for a special evening once in a while....well folk do their bit by bringing out the dinner suit however the format of the evening meal is exactly the same, you just wear a dinner suit! No drinks reception, canapés, not even any background music didn't see any of the ships officers attending (except an opportunity for you to get a photo with the captain in exchange for a significant amount of money)

 

The windjammer restaurant (buffet) is like a works canteen except generally when you visit a works canteen your colleague tend to show courtesy and manners to their fellow human beings.

 

There were some nice people on there to to chat to but there was a considerable number of the cheap sportswear, bling jewelry and badly spelt tattoo brigade on board ( see above for hogging sunbeds) probably nothing wrong with them if I'm honest. but then again if I wanted to holiday like that I'd go to benidorm and save myself £4000

 

On the plus side, the food in the restaurant is very good, our waiter was very attentive and entertaining, nothing was to much trouble for him.

Maybe my expectations were a but misplaced, but I found it a bit like a a floating butlins. And would find it difficult to recommend RCI to anyone.

 

Hope your cruise is better than mine

 

Best

[vbar]

Perhaps mine are the same then !!

O dear, looks like a benefits street on water !!!!

I don't drink nor the Mrs and I will certainly be spending in the casino !!

I own a chain of clubs and bars hence why I can afford Cunard but RCI was the only thing floating at the right time. Me thinks I may well just donate the tickets if it's as bad as you say.

Thanks.

 

 

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[davidcraig2003]

It must be such hard work being in the upper echelon of society.

 

Glad I'm not, as I can promise you that I, like most others, would have a fantastic time onboard.

[vbar]

I'm guessing David you are one of the Liverpool wearing shorts or track suit clan who are loud and people avoid on these cruises ?? Have you tried North Wales ?

 

 

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[swinny123]

Just want to give a different AOS experience having just got off the ship on Sunday , we had the best holiday with no complaints, and I am not a member of the "cheap sportswear, bling jewellery and badly spelt tattoo brigade" as you call them.

 

The RCI staff are their greatest asset, they were friendly, helpful and attention to detail was outstanding, this was consistent throughout the ship.

 

We ate in the main dining room every night, the food was delicious and we looked forward every night to seeing Sylvia our waiter...she was a star and certainly delivered the WOW factor...we really miss her.

We only had breakfast and a couple of lunches in the Windjammer but again, the tables were cleared and the service was prompt with polite and friendly waiting staff, in fact our waitress in the MDR commented that she always spoke with the guests in the windjammer and said good morning, asking them how they were, but at times was ignored by the guests.

 

Our stateroom attendant Ireneo was also brilliant, our stateroom was always immaculate, he left us ice twice a day and always had a smile on his face, even when cleaning our children's messy stateroom!!!

 

We loved the champagne bar, and worked our way through most of the cocktails created by the fabulous mixologist Bruce. This was also a child free zone!!!

 

Yes there were a lot of children on board, our head waiter told us there were over 1200 under 17's..... But I think it's to be expected on an August cruise, it's also down to the parents to ensure their children are behaving appropriately. We spent some time in the casino, not gambling the child benefit, whilst our children were enjoying themselves elsewhere on the ship, I have confidence that my children would behave responsibly and appropriately. Our 2 teenagers had the best holiday ever and there were tears on departure!

 

We chose to do 4 RCI excursions, I may be in the minority here, but actually think that although expensive, they were worth the money, they were exceptionally well organised and the tour guides were great. There was also a written guide provided for each port with your cruise compass.

 

I can't comment on the price of bottled water as we had the premium drinks package, which I have to say we found extremely good value for money. Service at the bars was swift, we also had a glass of wine waiting for us at our table in the MDR every evening, provided by our wine waiter, who introduced himself as our booze doctor!!!

 

We also enjoyed most of the entertainment, there was something for everyone, and actually thought Jamie the Entertainments Manager was very funny, I think it's a case of you can't please everybody all of the time and you pick and choose what suits your taste.

 

We never seemed to have a problem getting 2 beds next to each other, although you did at times have to wander around to find them, maybe we were just lucky, we also saw the pool attendants on several occasions putting stickers on unoccupied beds with times on, then removing towels if no one returned.

 

The embarkation process was extremely well organised, we arrived at the port at 10am, parked our car, our luggage was taken from us and we were on board by 10.50am.

 

Disembarkation was also very smooth, we chose to take our luggage off ourselves, left our stateroom at 6.05 and were driving out of the car park by 6.30am.

 

We had the best holiday ever, and will definitely choose to cruise with RCI again ..... Already looking through the brochures:-)

I just felt it important to give a different viewpoint.

 

 

 

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[west2000]

Going on Adventure of the seas in the October school holidays.

Never done RCI before, what's it like in general ??

Done p&o and Cunard before.

Does RCI require us to dress up ?

 

RCI no different to P&O in fact would prefer RCI as saw the worst behaviour I have witnessed at sea from children on Ventura. Cunard is in a league of its own but then I suspect you have not paid Cunard prices for this cruise. Don't give the tickets away go with an open mind and your formal wear as in our experience you will need it. Also please remember that everybody is responsible for their own behaviour and that of their children. RCI staff will challenge poor behaviour and parents who are not adequately supervising which I have never seen done on P&O. The personal insults starting to appear on this thread are disappointing and not necessary.

[Miryam1234]

 

 

We also enjoyed most of the entertainment, there was something for everyone, and actually thought Jamie the Entertainments Manager was very funny, I think it's a case of you can't please everybody all of the time and you pick and choose what suits your taste.

 

 

Thanks for sharing your positive report after some negative ones. I realize every person has his/her own taste and I firmly believe that we will have fun wherever we head to, because we choose to have fun.

 

Anyways; could you please share what kind of shows were on board? I have not been able to spot any details, except that there is an ice show.

 

How about tickets, do we have to line up somewhere to get them or is it just walk in? We are sailing on Oct 26th. Thank you!

 

Miryam

[Teeara]

Thanks for sharing your positive report after some negative ones. I realize every person has his/her own taste and I firmly believe that we will have fun wherever we head to, because we choose to have fun.

 

Anyways; could you please share what kind of shows were on board? I have not been able to spot any details, except that there is an ice show.

 

How about tickets, do we have to line up somewhere to get them or is it just walk in? We are sailing on Oct 26th. Thank you!

 

Miryam

 

Miryam, they usually have them available early in the cruise. It will be posted in your Compass with the date and time. You simply show up at the date and time and location where they will be, tell them how many tickets you want and they give them to you. It is not assigned seating, so you don't have to worry about that.

 

Shows in the main theater are the typical Broadway style, although they do have tribute shows sometimes or special musical artists. You do not have to get tickets to the main theater shows.

 

I've been sailing RCI for the last 11 years and love them. I find they offer the most to do onboard the ships (especially Voyager class and above). Adventure was a great ship. Took her in 2011 to the Southern Caribbean and loved it so much I now have my first back-to-back scheduled on her next year (237 days until sailing but who is counting ;):D). Have a lovely cruise!

[Ocean Boy]

Hi,

Just been on adventure for the western med cruise.

Sorry to be the bearer of bad tidings but was pretty underwhelmed by the whole thing.

The ship was supposed to have been refitted in April....don't know what went wrong but the decor in the staterooms and dining room is very tired and old hat.......

 

 

Wow, I've been on this ship several times. It is hard to believe that you are talking about the same ship. I guess we all approach things from different perspectives and have different expectations, needs, and wants.

[could travel all the time]

Thanks to all posting positive things about the Adventure ..

We are booked for December, but have been reading quite a few (actually too many) negative reviews. This thread is just want I needed to read. Thanks!:)

[InsideCruiser]

Might be better in half term but don't expect to get a sunbed any time after 1000 their policy of removing towels if no one has been on the lounger for 30 mins doesn't get followed several familes were obviously expecting their aunts or uncle and family to parachute onto the ship judging by how many sun beds they'd reserved (which apparently you can't do, but can do if you get my drift)

 

There were some nice people on there to to chat to but there was a considerable number of the cheap sportswear, bling jewelry and badly spelt tattoo brigade on board ( see above for hogging sunbeds) probably nothing wrong with them if I'm honest.

 

Hope none of those tatoos were honouring members of their families. ;)

[nellydean]

Hi,

Just been on adventure for the western med cruise.

Sorry to be the bearer of bad tidings but was pretty underwhelmed by the whole thing.

The ship was supposed to have been refitted in April....don't know what went wrong but the decor in the staterooms and dining room is very tired and old hat.

 

RCI will take every opportunity possible to relieve you of your money e.g.

Wifi $30 an hour or $60 a day

Bottled water as you get off in port was $4.75 for a litre

They offered a port transfer in Lisbon for $15 dollars a head as it was an hour away....we found the station 200 yards from the ship and got in in 7 minutes for less that 10 euros for a family of 4.

Also if you ask for advice on where to go at a port stop from the tour desk...you won't get any at all! Unless you sell your kids to take one of their astronomically priced tours

 

Might be better in half term but don't expect to get a sunbed any time after 1000 their policy of removing towels if no one has been on the lounger for 30 mins doesn't get followed several familes were obviously expecting their aunts or uncle and family to parachute onto the ship judging by how many sun beds they'd reserved (which apparently you can't do, but can do if you get my drift)

 

The kids curfew for 17 and under is 0100

This means we had 8 year olds running round at 1130 at night by them selves while mummy and daddy feckless were busy getting hammered in the bar or blowing the child benefit in the casino.

 

Some entertainment is good....the ones they hire in we had a queen tribute band, a juggler and a hypnotist who were all worth a watch. The entertainments people on the ship unfortunately can't really think much past butlins circa 1950s and the entertainment manager (sorry to get personal) was a James Corden lookalike who it seems had forgotten to pack any level of adulthood or maturity

He made Ronald macdonald look like professor Stephen hawking

 

Formal nights, thought would be nice to have, good to get dressed up for a special evening once in a while....well folk do their bit by bringing out the dinner suit however the format of the evening meal is exactly the same, you just wear a dinner suit! No drinks reception, canapés, not even any background music didn't see any of the ships officers attending (except an opportunity for you to get a photo with the captain in exchange for a significant amount of money)

 

The windjammer restaurant (buffet) is like a works canteen except generally when you visit a works canteen your colleague tend to show courtesy and manners to their fellow human beings.

 

There were some nice people on there to to chat to but there was a considerable number of the cheap sportswear, bling jewelry and badly spelt tattoo brigade on board ( see above for hogging sunbeds) probably nothing wrong with them if I'm honest. but then again if I wanted to holiday like that I'd go to benidorm and save myself £4000

 

On the plus side, the food in the restaurant is very good, our waiter was very attentive and entertaining, nothing was to much trouble for him.

Maybe my expectations were a but misplaced, but I found it a bit like a a floating butlins. And would find it difficult to recommend RCI to anyone.

 

Hope your cruise is better than mine

 

Best

 

What snob you sound. The points about the ship are fine, but your comments about other passengers are not. If you want to mix with the hoi paloi, cruise with Cunard, but expect to be looked down upon, as you sound a bit of a champagne socialist yourself, absolutely no class whatsoever.

[davekathy]

Thanks to all posting positive things about the Adventure ..

We are booked for December, but have been reading quite a few (actually too many) negative reviews. This thread is just want I needed to read. Thanks!:)

 

I consider all posts (positive and negative) as FYI and someone’s opinion only. We have never had a bad Cruise and keep our expectations for the Cruise realistic. I just consider the source of the posts and too each their own. CC is only a small population of the Cruising community. We did a B2B Cruise on the Adventure Of The Seas March 2012 and thought the ship and her staff were great. Again just in our opinion. We are doing another B2B Cruise on the AOS March/April 2015. BTW as far as the evening suggested dress guidelines, there are two, Casual and Formal. RCCL brochure list three, Casual, Smart Casual and Formal. The Cruise Compass only suggests Casual and Formal. When flying no need to pack what isn’t necessary. Enjoy your Cruise and stop by after you return and let us know what you thought of the AOS.

Edited August 22, 2014 by davekathy

[could travel all the time]

Yes, I'll absolutely let you all know how we enjoyed our cruise. Let's just say, I can attest that no cruise is perfect, but the over all impression keeps us cruising. I know reviews of our last cruise on the Celebrity Summit had me thinking we'd be going on a rusty cargo ship that should be torn down...she was just fine. (Listen, if I don't cook or clean for a week, I'm a happy camper.)

When planning our next vacation, I suggested an all-inclusive land vacation, but everyone said that they would prefer to go on a cruise. :D

[swinny123]

Thanks for sharing your positive report after some negative ones. I realize every person has his/her own taste and I firmly believe that we will have fun wherever we head to, because we choose to have fun.

 

Anyways; could you please share what kind of shows were on board? I have not been able to spot any details, except that there is an ice show.

 

How about tickets, do we have to line up somewhere to get them or is it just walk in? We are sailing on Oct 26th. Thank you!

 

Miryam

 

 

We only needed to get tickets for the ice show, and there was no queue, just nipped down to the promenade and got tickets for our chosen show.

There was a variety of shows in the main theatre and it varies from cruise to cruise but ours included a hypnotist, a juggler, a comedian, an impersonator, a Queen tribute band, violinists and a premier of the one woman show Tell me on a Sunday ( she had just finished performing on the West end in Wicked and was absolutely brilliant. All this plus the production shows from the on board singers and dancers. We never had trouble getting a seat in the theatre, and there were plenty of staff to serve drinks.

You will have a fabulous time, I wish I was going back on Adventure on the 26th October!!!! I Just keep telling myself...don't be sad it's over, be glad it happened :-))) I shall continue to browse the brochures for our next cruise!!

Don't hesitate to ask if you have anymore questions and hopefully I can help.

Tracy x

 

 

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[RustyHull]

Hi,

Just been on adventure for the western med cruise.

Sorry to be the bearer of bad tidings but was pretty underwhelmed by the whole thing.

The ship was supposed to have been refitted in April....don't know what went wrong but the decor in the staterooms and dining room is very tired and old hat.

 

RCI will take every opportunity possible to relieve you of your money e.g.

Wifi $30 an hour or $60 a day

Bottled water as you get off in port was $4.75 for a litre

They offered a port transfer in Lisbon for $15 dollars a head as it was an hour away....we found the station 200 yards from the ship and got in in 7 minutes for less that 10 euros for a family of 4.

Also if you ask for advice on where to go at a port stop from the tour desk...you won't get any at all! Unless you sell your kids to take one of their astronomically priced tours

 

Might be better in half term but don't expect to get a sunbed any time after 1000 their policy of removing towels if no one has been on the lounger for 30 mins doesn't get followed several familes were obviously expecting their aunts or uncle and family to parachute onto the ship judging by how many sun beds they'd reserved (which apparently you can't do, but can do if you get my drift)

 

The kids curfew for 17 and under is 0100

This means we had 8 year olds running round at 1130 at night by them selves while mummy and daddy feckless were busy getting hammered in the bar or blowing the child benefit in the casino.

 

Some entertainment is good....the ones they hire in we had a queen tribute band, a juggler and a hypnotist who were all worth a watch. The entertainments people on the ship unfortunately can't really think much past butlins circa 1950s and the entertainment manager (sorry to get personal) was a James Corden lookalike who it seems had forgotten to pack any level of adulthood or maturity

He made Ronald macdonald look like professor Stephen hawking

 

Formal nights, thought would be nice to have, good to get dressed up for a special evening once in a while....well folk do their bit by bringing out the dinner suit however the format of the evening meal is exactly the same, you just wear a dinner suit! No drinks reception, canapés, not even any background music didn't see any of the ships officers attending (except an opportunity for you to get a photo with the captain in exchange for a significant amount of money)

 

The windjammer restaurant (buffet) is like a works canteen except generally when you visit a works canteen your colleague tend to show courtesy and manners to their fellow human beings.

 

There were some nice people on there to to chat to but there was a considerable number of the cheap sportswear, bling jewelry and badly spelt tattoo brigade on board ( see above for hogging sunbeds) probably nothing wrong with them if I'm honest. but then again if I wanted to holiday like that I'd go to benidorm and save myself £4000

 

On the plus side, the food in the restaurant is very good, our waiter was very attentive and entertaining, nothing was to much trouble for him.

Maybe my expectations were a but misplaced, but I found it a bit like a a floating butlins. And would find it difficult to recommend RCI to anyone.

 

Hope your cruise is better than mine

 

Best

I wonder if you know what percentage of the 3800 passengers had badly spelt tatoos, bling "jewellery" (spelt the English way!) and cheap sportswear? I imagine it would not be overwhelming. Perhaps David Beckham would have fitted in.

I have cruised on Adventure before, and will be cruising on it in September. You do meet all types no matter where you holiday on land or sea. I have never been to Butlins but chose not to. Perhaps next time, take time to research then hopefully you won't be disappointed.

[delirious9876]

I wonder if you know what percentage of the 3800 passengers had badly spelt tatoos, bling "jewellery" (spelt the English way!) and cheap sportswear? I imagine it would not be overwhelming. Perhaps David Beckham would have fitted in.

I have cruised on Adventure before, and will be cruising on it in September. You do meet all types no matter where you holiday on land or sea. I have never been to Butlins but chose not to. Perhaps next time, take time to research then hopefully you won't be disappointed.

Nicely posted :-)

[Topo Gigio]

Therefore there is CC, the place where you can ask all your questions before you step food onboard.

[Ocean Boy]

Therefore there is CC, the place where you can ask all your questions before you step food onboard.

 

They don't seem to find CC before their cruises to do some research but they don't seem to have any problem finding CC after their cruises to do their complaining.

[christi1805]

The usual sorehead suspects, RCCL cheerleaders and prima donnas here, bashing Novice of the seas only because she/he dared to write his subjective opinion. Cruise CRITIC is a forum where I want to read negative and positive personal assessments in order to give me a full picture. I will judge myself after my AoS cruise in November. Novice otS -thanx for your observations!