I have been on many Royal Caribbean ships that are bigger, newer and perhaps better but the Serenade of the Seas is still a beautiful ship. The Centrum is the hub with the Bolero Bar, guest relations and a small internet café. What makes is spot so special is the gorgeous winding glass staircase and glass elevators that open to the Centrum. Each deck above the Centrum opens up to the center of the ship with glass railings over looking it and cozy areas to sit and relax while watching the action going on.
Not unlike the Promenade of the Voyager and Freedom class ships, the Centrum is where the 70’s party is held, as well as the art auctions and culinary demonstrations. It’s also a great place to relax, have a cocktail and listen or dance to the music played by some of the great bands featured on board.
Since the cruise sailed from San Juan, there were a large number of Spanish speaking guests from Puerto Rico, Mexico and the Caribbean, which is typical, but I was surprised at the large number of European guests on board. It was a mixed group of passengers, including a small number of honeymooners and families along with seniors and everything in between. The ship was full but rarely felt terribly overcrowded, except when you were looking for a lounge chair in the shade around the pool.
My Favorite Places:
The Solarium- this indoor, adult only pool retreat is completely enclosed by glass. With the peaceful sounds of birds chirping and the comfy lounges, it was a great place to relax by the pool but avoid the hot sun and humidity of the Caribbean.
The Schooner Bar- what a great nautical motif bar on deck 6! It is just outside Chops Grill and Portofinos and is a great place to relax and listen to the piano player.
Food- always a big thing on a cruise ship and the food did not disappoint. The dining room food was very good to excellent with a nice assortment of choices. Never once did I feel the need to order from the “always available” entrees. I especially enjoyed the chilled soups, the ‘savory bites’ rolls which are baked fresh daily. Even the desserts, which often had been only so-so were very good. The favorite main dishes at our table were duck, lamb and seafood. Chops Grill was outstanding. The filet mignon was fabulous and make sure to save room for dessert. The Chocolate Mud Pie was huge and to die for. Don’t miss the crepes served up fresh every afternoon at the Solarium café!
Entertainment:
I was on a travel agent seminar at sea, which meant that on both of the days at seas, I participated in training seminars. I really didn’t get a chance to sit and relax by the pool or take advantage of the sea day activities but those that did seemed to enjoy the spa, the fitness center, pool games and more. We did get to take a galley tour, led by executive chef, Andy from Britain. It seemed like the size of a small city with pans and bowls that were large enough to feed a small city. It was amazing!
One of the biggest disappointments on the ship was that the almost all of the shows scheduled for the late seating guests, started at 7pm. We only saw 2 since I prefer not rushing after a port day.
The cruise director, Dennis, was one of the best that I have seen. In addition to being funny, he is also a talented singer. Don’t miss the Love and Marriage game, the 70’s dance party and Quest that he hosted!
The casino was always ready to take your donations although it was a bit too smoky for me, even on the non smoking nights. My husband was still able to make his donations even with the smoke.
The itinerary was Curacao (a beautiful island), Aruba (where we toured a good number of hotels), Dominica (the last visit to this island for the season) and St Thomas (where we spent the day at the Bolongo Bay Beach Resort so that I could check it out for a client’s destination wedding). There were 2 full days at seas, which are always my favorite time on a cruise ship.
Cabins: adequate in size with the infamous Royal Caribbean showers- the joke is that you can soap up the walls, spin around and rinse off! We were assigned an inside cabin for this Seminar at Sea. I would have preferred a balcony but they weren’t available. Almost every night, we came back to a towel animal creation. Obviously missing were the chocolates on the pillows and bathroom amenities like lotions and conditioners.
Service: top notch from our wait staff and cabin steward. The ship was clean and showed no obvious signs of aging.
Would I sail on the Serenade of the Seas again- Absolutely! Would I recommend the ship to clients- without a doubt! In fact, 4 clients boarded the ship as we got off.
Royal Caribbean provides a consistently good product among all of its fleet and the Serenade of the Seas was no exception.
My only complaint- the cruise was too short.
