marciar233 Posted October 8, 2017 #26 Share Posted October 8, 2017 We are booked on the anthem on nov. 4 and nov. 11 (btob). We have been on the anthem before and really liked the ship. We are also going for the ship as we have been to the Bahamas many times.:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hansolosmom Posted October 8, 2017 #27 Share Posted October 8, 2017 Thanks for the review, agree with everything except the Esplanade. I hated that area when they had the sales tables out because you couldn't move. When it was open it was great. solarium is great but can get crowded. My 2 cents on Breakaway. I've been on her twice, she gets super crowded and as others have said the flow is extremely poor. Since we wanted to do the 7 days in Bermuda, our choices were Breakaway or Celebrity Summit. Because of all the NCL promos we went with them. My dh doesn't want to do that ship again. We might try Gem because it's smaller. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dacsmom Posted October 8, 2017 #28 Share Posted October 8, 2017 Thanks for your review. I cannot wait to sail on the Anthem next fall. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JAMESCC Posted October 8, 2017 Author #29 Share Posted October 8, 2017 Thanks for the review, agree with everything except the Esplanade. I hated that area when they had the sales tables out because you couldn't move. When it was open it was great. solarium is great but can get crowded. My 2 cents on Breakaway. I've been on her twice, she gets super crowded and as others have said the flow is extremely poor. Since we wanted to do the 7 days in Bermuda, our choices were Breakaway or Celebrity Summit. Because of all the NCL promos we went with them. My dh doesn't want to do that ship again. We might try Gem because it's smaller. Yeah those sales are a pain in the Esplanade. It seems they had less if those than on Explorer and that really messed up the Promenade as well. Same here with Breakaway. We did it because we wanted that extra time in Bermuda and those crazy promos. Don't get me wrong, we had a compete blast but ship left us not loving it. We may try Escape though, see if passenger flow is better but we REALLY hated that Manhattan terminal! I mean hated! That weighs on the decision. Sent from my Pixel using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob brown Posted October 9, 2017 #30 Share Posted October 9, 2017 The secret to having a good disembarkation in Manhattan, is to travel light enough to carry all your own bags off...you get off early, and avoid the backup when they start disembarking those who have to claim their bags in the terminal. I will admit that Bayonne flows much easier, and so does Brooklyn, for that matter... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JAMESCC Posted October 9, 2017 Author #31 Share Posted October 9, 2017 The secret to having a good disembarkation in Manhattan, is to travel light enough to carry all your own bags off...you get off early, and avoid the backup when they start disembarking those who have to claim their bags in the terminal. I will admit that Bayonne flows much easier, and so does Brooklyn, for that matter... Yeah that would be nice if you can do that. I had an issue with personnel their too. They yelled at each other, and yelled at passengers. Now I know cruise passengers can be jerks but I got a very bad vibe from the people working at that terminal. I also had lengthy talk with NCL about how bad that terminal is and that they should try and move up Brooklyn. Share it somehow with Cunard or whoever owns it. Find a place they can build up like Royal did with Cape liberty. That would be my advice. Sent from my Pixel using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobbyD Posted October 9, 2017 #32 Share Posted October 9, 2017 Thanks for the review. Good to hear such positives about Anthem. We will be on that ship next August. Can't wait! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caribbeanboy Posted October 9, 2017 #33 Share Posted October 9, 2017 Just the other day I wrote that Quantum Class is my favorite RCI class of ship. Used to be the Freedom Class. And tons of people who don't like the Quantum Class. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UnMe4ever2gether Posted October 9, 2017 #34 Share Posted October 9, 2017 Thank you for your review. I will be on the November 11th cruise, and was concerned about the food after looking at recent reviews. As we have been to all of the ports on our itinerary many times over, this cruise is about the ship. I am generally not easy to impress, but it sounds like I may be "wow"ed by Anthem! We will be on the November 11th cruise with you. This will be our 3rd time on the Anthem. Can't wait. Aileen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reallyitsmema Posted October 9, 2017 #35 Share Posted October 9, 2017 We will be on the November 11th cruise with you. This will be our 3rd time on the Anthem. Can't wait. Aileen We are on that sailing too and is also our third time on Anthem.:D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JAMESCC Posted October 9, 2017 Author #36 Share Posted October 9, 2017 We are on that sailing too and is also our third time on Anthem.:DWe plan to do Anthem many, many times. Next one we want to do is Florida/Bahamas. Sent from my Pixel using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reallyitsmema Posted October 9, 2017 #37 Share Posted October 9, 2017 We plan to do Anthem many, many times. Next one we want to do is Florida/Bahamas. Sent from my Pixel using Tapatalk It's funny, I have said all along that Anthem is not our favorite ship, Oasis class is our favorite, yet we keep coming back to Anthem and comparing every other ship to the features we like on Anthem.:o Anthem is only a 4 hour drive away for us and the prices for the sailings we have booked have been dirt cheap. If this trend stays around, I can see us booking Anthem again in the future. There is still so much on Anthem we haven't been able to do due to circumstances on our last sailings (bad weather and travelling with an 80 yr old on one sailing and DH recovering from surgery on the other). I really hope our November sailing will finally give us a chance to do more of the more physical activities that we had to skip in the past.:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MoniMommy Posted October 9, 2017 #38 Share Posted October 9, 2017 Anthem has a really good kids program and a really cool playroom that is again decorated really awesome and fun. Our son spent a good amount of time in that playroom. It's a great ship, we really loved it. Do you remember if adventure ocean was open on the first night for drop off. If so, what time? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JAMESCC Posted October 9, 2017 Author #39 Share Posted October 9, 2017 Do you remember if adventure ocean was open on the first night for drop off. If so, what time?That I'm not sure about, sorry. Our son played in there at lot during the trip but wasn't in any programs. I bet it was though, don't see why it wouldn't. Sent from my Pixel using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
njmomof2 Posted October 9, 2017 #40 Share Posted October 9, 2017 We're booked for our second trip on Anthem in December. Sailed the Christmas sailing in 2015, repeating it again this year. That said, she's not my favorite class. That is Freedom. But, since we're local here in NJ, and there is no airfare involved in the winter, especially when the cost of a holiday cruise out of Florida is more than Anthem (not including air), it's a no brainer to do it again. I really hate the itinerary. It's boring and repetitive. However, we don't go for the ports much, and just enjoy the ship. Kids love the flowrider and mom and I enjoy the indoor pool space for relaxing. I wonder what the prices are going to be for Escape when she comes up here. My kids won't sail her since there is no flowrider, but maybe mom and I can find some date to give it a try. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
movierunner Posted October 9, 2017 #41 Share Posted October 9, 2017 Great review, Thanks. We did our 1st. cruise on the Freedom in March & booked onto this ship for March 2018, can't wait. Just not too sure if the wife & I are going to try the Wonderland, not big fan of unknown foods. But with the special on now for 2 restaurants for price of one or less will do chops &&?? Oh when do you book your choice of restaurants when booking online months before your trip? Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JAMESCC Posted October 9, 2017 Author #42 Share Posted October 9, 2017 Great review, Thanks.We did our 1st. cruise on the Freedom in March & booked onto this ship for March 2018, can't wait. Just not too sure if the wife & I are going to try the Wonderland, not big fan of unknown foods. But with the special on now for 2 restaurants for price of one or less will do chops &&?? Oh when do you book your choice of restaurants when booking online months before your trip? Thanks Wonderland is a fun experience. I recommend it even if it's just once to try it. Sent from my Pixel using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happy traveler69 Posted October 10, 2017 #43 Share Posted October 10, 2017 We love the Anthem too! Agree completely with everything you said. We are on the January 7th sailing and will probably book another on her for 2019! It may not be the ship for everyone but it is amazing! Sent from my K88 using Forums mobile app Hi chrisby! We’re on this sailing with you, and we are waaay too excited! This will be our first time on this ship and can NOT wait!! Sent from my iPhone using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terrig007 Posted October 16, 2017 #44 Share Posted October 16, 2017 Thank you for your review. I will be on the November 11th cruise, and was concerned about the food after looking at recent reviews. As we have been to all of the ports on our itinerary many times over, this cruise is about the ship. I am generally not easy to impress, but it sounds like I may be "wow"ed by Anthem! I'll be on the cruise with you and I was a bit worried after seeing all the reviews about how terrible the food was as well. This is our third time on this same itinerary as well but instead of one day at sea we now have four. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terri389 Posted October 29, 2017 #45 Share Posted October 29, 2017 We are booked on the anthem on nov. 4 and nov. 11 (btob). We have been on the anthem before and really liked the ship. We are also going for the ship as we have been to the Bahamas many times.:) I will be on the nov 4 cruise as well. For my mom's 84th birthday. Cruised Anthem to Bermuda last summer, big ship, lot's of fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisby Posted October 29, 2017 #46 Share Posted October 29, 2017 Great review, Thanks.We did our 1st. cruise on the Freedom in March & booked onto this ship for March 2018, can't wait. Just not too sure if the wife & I are going to try the Wonderland, not big fan of unknown foods. But with the special on now for 2 restaurants for price of one or less will do chops &&?? Oh when do you book your choice of restaurants when booking online months before your trip? Thanks Definitely try Wondeland! My mom was not a person to my anything odd or different but we made her go and she loved it!!! Sent from my K88 using Forums mobile app Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marci22 Posted October 29, 2017 #47 Share Posted October 29, 2017 Great review, Thanks.We did our 1st. cruise on the Freedom in March & booked onto this ship for March 2018, can't wait. Just not too sure if the wife & I are going to try the Wonderland, not big fan of unknown foods. We thought Wonderland was kind of fun but we didn't love the food. Definitely some odd choices that we didn't care for. We really liked Chops and would definitely do it again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare jenngirl Posted October 31, 2017 #48 Share Posted October 31, 2017 I saw a few people comparing the Breakaway and the Anthem. I love both of them to be honest. Even though they are both large ships newer to their respective fleets, they do differ. Anthem is definitely more tech driven. The layout too doesn't make it feel like it was super crowded and we were always able to find seats near the pool relatively quickly. Although I love the Breakaway, the layout did make it feel like there were a lot of people on the ship and it was very hard to find seats even remotely near the pool. They are both totally two different experiences, so I would recommend trying both. Anthem was my first ship on Royal Caribbean and it left a very good impression for the line. You should look now that the Breakaway is leaving and the Escape is coming. That's a newer ship for NCL and may be more comparable to the Anthem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaisyL Posted November 14, 2017 #49 Share Posted November 14, 2017 I saw a few people comparing the Breakaway and the Anthem. I love both of them to be honest. Even though they are both large ships newer to their respective fleets, they do differ. Anthem is definitely more tech driven. The layout too doesn't make it feel like it was super crowded and we were always able to find seats near the pool relatively quickly. Although I love the Breakaway, the layout did make it feel like there were a lot of people on the ship and it was very hard to find seats even remotely near the pool. They are both totally two different experiences, so I would recommend trying both. Anthem was my first ship on Royal Caribbean and it left a very good impression for the line. You should look now that the Breakaway is leaving and the Escape is coming. That's a newer ship for NCL and may be more comparable to the Anthem. Unfortunately, the Escape is the sister to Breakaway but with more cabins...ugh..does that mean more crowded on an already very crowded ship. We much prefer the Anthem to Breakaway but having said that will try Escape next year for their 7 day Bermuda cruise-our favorite island. Wish RCI would add 7 day Bermuda to their Anthem cruises since 5 day cruises are not long enough to enjoy this beautiful island or the ship. Sent from my iPad using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JAMESCC Posted November 14, 2017 Author #50 Share Posted November 14, 2017 Unfortunately, the Escape is the sister to Breakaway but with more cabins...ugh..does that mean more crowded on an already very crowded ship. We much prefer the Anthem to Breakaway but having said that will try Escape next year for their 7 day Bermuda cruise-our favorite island. Wish RCI would add 7 day Bermuda to their Anthem cruises since 5 day cruises are not long enough to enjoy this beautiful island or the ship. Sent from my iPad using Forums I agree with this every post. Definitely the 5 day Anthem cruises are just not long enough, 5 days isn't long enough. I wasn't a fan of Breaking, beautiful ship but weird, weird layout, but the 7 day Bermuda cruise are much better than 5 days. We might try Escape but prefer Anthem and Royal in general. Sent from my Pixel using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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