New Cruiser - Anthem of the Seas

[TrojanTeam]

Good Afternoon,

 

We are cruising on the RCCL Anthem of the Seas (leaving from NJ) in a few months. We have reserved a Sky Loft suite (Star Class). The more I read Anthem of the Seas reviews I am thinking we may have made a mistake. This could be a bit of buyer's remorse mixed with what seems to be a wide range of positive and negative reviews. I have also tried to use the RCCL website and it is a bit clunky which doesn't add to my confidence level.

 

As first time cruisers (as a family) I would like to hear from the collective on whether starting off on a mega-ship is a good idea? Is the Royal Genie all that RCCL claims it to be? What are the top three things a first time cruiser should know?

 

Thank you.

[rhuntington3]

Caveat, we've not cruised on Anthem yet.

 

Take the negative review and opinions with a grain of salt. The cruise is what you make of it and how you deal with things.

[DonnaK]

WE've cruised on Anthem twice and on her sister ship Quantum once. We loved it!

 

Please don't listen to the negative reviews. Most cruisers are looking for a certain traditional style of cruising, and Anthem is different. It's not what they are used to, so they don't like it.

 

Go and enjoy yourself.

[gowensricks]

We are going on Anthem next June, and I do not allow the negative reviews to dissuade me at all. All reviews are very subjective and as the previous poster wrote "a cruise is all in what you make it!" Go and have fun...

[Ocean Dancer]

The three things you should do are

 

1. Make reservations

2. Make reservations

3. Make reservations

 

Anthem is awesome and you should have a wonderful cruise! :):)

[King of Cruising]

Just do it. As others have said, it is what you make of it. Be positive and go with a good additude. We sail her on Nov. 10 if that is your cruise come join our roll call.:cool:

[beezer248]

Think positively! You will be on an amazing ship in one of the best suites. You have access to a butler and concierge who will help you with any reservations that you have not already made online. You have access to the concierge lounge and reserved seating in most shows. It can be daunting to plan a big trip- first cruise, Disneyworld etc.. but part of the fun for us is the planning. There will always be positive and negative reviews. Just take into account their contact and situation ( horrible trip bc of a hurricane? Not a normal situation!). You will have a great trip!

[kjmjrm]

RCCL and megaships are fine, Anthem is not. You would have a much better time on Oasis class or Freedom class.

[reallyitsmema]

Go into the cruise with an open mind. You chose this cruise because there must have been something that you liked about the ship. Give it a try and come back and tell us what you think.

 

I just got off Anthem on Thursday, the one with Hermine;):p, and we had a good cruise but it was not our favorite ship. We actually like the concept of dynamic dining and enjoyed all the restaurants we went to, with the exception being Silk. Even Silk was ok, we just had a terrible waitstaff team who were overwhelmed with a large group of 30 and should never have been given our table of 3. Jamie's, which has been getting very poor reviews, was excellent in our opinion. We liked it so much, we went back there for lunch on our last day. Ask for Rim for your server if you go, she was amazing.

 

Our cabin was nice, though the beds are rock hard and the pillows are flat and useless. You have a beautiful suite booked, so you should have upgraded bedding and access to the pillow menu.

 

The shows were good, just make reservations or have the concierge do it for you. We loved 270 and Cafe 270, just wish the cafe was open longer hours and didn't close between 10am and noon.

 

We would book this ship again and give it another shot as we missed a lot because of closures due to the weather but given a choice between this or Oasis, I am an Oasis fan all the way.

 

Just remember, more people will post a complaint than post a compliment.

[kjmjrm]

Why would anyone say they pay no mind to negative reviews, but take positive reviews as gospel?? I think the whole point of reviews is to read good and bad and make your own informed decision. Bad reviews on the Anthem far out number good ones, despite naive cruisers and cheerleader reviews, and despite efforts to shout dissenters down. I think as a first timer it's worth putting that into your value equation.

For the money you are paying for a suite, you can afford to fly to Ft. Lauderdale or Miami and get on any of several superior ships for a wonderful first cruise experience. Enjoy.

[reallyitsmema]

RCCL and megaships are fine, Anthem is not. You would have a much better time on Oasis class or Freedom class.

 

How can you tell them they will have a better time on Oasis or Freedom class ships? Do you know anything about this poster?

 

I have read many reviews about how wonderful Radiance class ships are and are the only thing many will sail. Well, I have sailed that class three times and I would much rather sail Anthem instead of any of those and Anthem wasn't one of our favorites.

 

All we know is this is a family of first time cruisers. I would give completely different comments to a family with little kids or a family with teens but none of us can tell anyone what they are going to like better.

[kjmjrm]

20 cruises. The configuration of their family doesn't even matter in this case. The alternatives I mentioned are better. We cruise with kids and without, and neither the adults or kids we took on Anthem will EVER go back. Just our experience.

[reallyitsmema]

20 cruises. The configuration of their family doesn't even matter in this case. The alternatives I mentioned are better. We cruise with kids and without, and neither the adults or kids we took on Anthem will EVER go back. Just our experience.

 

So, because you have been on 20 cruises you know what is better for a complete stranger? That is ridiculous.

 

The OP is looking for a little reassurance. They have booked a beautiful ship and a wonderful cabin. To answer the question about what are the top three things a new cruiser should know:

 

1. Don't over plan. Go in with an open mind and draw your own conclusions. If you get into a thread that is completely negative and making you nervous, close it and move on.

 

2. Don't overbook yourself. Make reservations, book excursions, but allow for down time to just sit and relax. Get a coffee and a cookie and people watch on the Royal Esplanade. Walk an upper deck and watch the sea.

 

3. Try something new. Be adventurous. There might be things on the menus you have never tried, give it a shot, you can always order something else.

[OfTheSeasCruiser]

Don't overthink the negative reviews too much. Anthem is a very different ship compared to the rest of Royal's fleet. She's faced some rejection from a lot of loyal repeat cruisers, but there's just as many who love her. Yes, I won't deny the fact that there are a good number of people who have had poor experiences, but I would never let those people stop me from cruising on a specific ship. Think of Anthem with an open mind, make your show and activity reservations pre-cruise, and enjoy!

 

On top of all that, you are in an amazing Star Class suite with some really awesome perks. It would be awfully hard to have a bad cruise with the awesome things that will be available to you. Take full advantage of those perks!

[King of Cruising]

Some people think they know everything. What's good for you might not be good for someone else... You are untitled to your opinions, but don't try to shove it down someone's throat. :cool:

[kjmjrm]

No, you do, right (mema)? Lol...

OP asked for opinions. Now OP has some.

 

B/T/W, IMHO, (mema) your list above is terrible, and comparing Radiance Class to Quantum class is not even apples to apples and completely irrelevant and distracting to the OP. Have a nice day, I have football to watch...

Edited September 10, 2016 by kjmjrm

[kjmjrm]

King take your own advice and let all opinions be heard.

[padlock]

Saying "I prefer the Oasis to the Anthem" is an opinion. Saying "you will have a better time on the Oasis" is arrogance (or perhaps ignorance). There are many people who have sailed both and prefer the Anthem. They are different experiences with neither one being objectively better than the other.

[Broken07]

We loved the Anthem. We did the holiday cruise last December. I took my parents, a couple and my 3 year old. We had a great time. We just went on the Oasis on July 2nd and we love them both for different reasons. I actual lean more towards Anthem, my 3 year old loved both but hey she plays with cardboard when she has state of the art toys. You can't go wrong. We visited the grand loft and owners loft on Anthem. I don't think you should worry too much. The lofts are beautiful and the perks of star class are worth it We've been on every class of Royal's ships and I've found joy in each of them.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[kjmjrm]

Saying "I prefer the Oasis to the Anthem" is an opinion. Saying "you will have a better time on the Oasis" is arrogance (or perhaps ignorance). There are many people who have sailed both and prefer the Anthem. They are different experiences with neither one being objectively better than the other.

No, both opinions, but thanks professor. And, what part of your post addresses the OPs initial questions? 😘

[Rhia5]

Our family of 5 recently sailed on Anthem and we all loved it. We are experienced cruisers and have cruised on most of the major cruise lines. On this cruise my husband and I had an inside with our 3 teens in a balcony. We have previously sailed in suites and even in the inside we thought this was was of our best cruises ever. The ship is beautiful, staff very friendly and accomadating, and food for the most part very good. Entertainment was amazing and varied. I would have had to of worked really hard to have a bad time on this ship.

[Jamie.Francis03]

This is also my first time crusing and it will be on the Anthem. I was nervous at first about the ship, as I have seen negative posts. Since it will be our first cruise ever there really isn't anything to compare it to - so that's a plus I guess. But I think of ALL of the people who are crusing and not posting anything. People don't always post when they have a great time. It's like complaints with anything. When things are the way they are supposed to be, you don't hear anything. Once there is a really bad expierence, then you hear something. So for a ship that takes 4,000+ passengers a cruise and only a few that complain, I'm not too worried about it!

[Croozin Soozin]

This is also my first time crusing and it will be on the Anthem. I was nervous at first about the ship, as I have seen negative posts. Since it will be our first cruise ever there really isn't anything to compare it to - so that's a plus I guess. But I think of ALL of the people who are crusing and not posting anything. People don't always post when they have a great time. It's like complaints with anything. When things are the way they are supposed to be, you don't hear anything. Once there is a really bad expierence, then you hear something. So for a ship that takes 4,000+ passengers a cruise and only a few that complain, I'm not too worried about it!

 

Such a refreshing attitude! I hope you have a fantastic cruise experience on the Anthem!