Name: Lee Schwartzberg
Email: leeschw@campmor.com
Age: 34
Occupation: computer graphic designer
NumberOfCruises: 2
TravelAgent: No
Ship: RoyalCaribbean-Rhapsody
SailingDate: March 14, 1998
Itinerary: Southern Caribbean
FoodDiningRoom: 94
CruiseDirector: 90
CabinComfort: 95
FoodRoomService:
CruiseStaff: 95
CabinAmenities: 95
FoodLidoDeck: 80
DiningRoomService: 99
CabinQuietness: 95
FoodMidnightBuffets: 90
CabinSteward: 95
ShoreExcVariety: 95
FoodVariety: 95
DeckService: 75
ShoreExcValue: 85
GoodForHoneymoon:
CasinoStaff: 90
PrivateIsland:
GoodForFamilies: 95
LoungeService: 90
TenderService: 90
GoodForSeniors:
BeautySalonStaff: 90
EntertainmentLounges: 90
WheelchairAccess:
ExerciseFacilities: 90
EntertShowLounge: 90
OverallPortsofCall: 95
BeautySalon:
EntertainmentPoolside: 85
CruiseActivities: 80
Casino: 90
AirSeaProgram: 95
MedicalFacilities:
ShipCleanliness: 95
EmbarkDisembark: 80
DiscoNightclubs:
DeckSpace: 85
Stabilization: 90
ShopsOnBoard: 85
SpaceRatio: 85
OverallCruiseValue: 95
Submit: Submit Review
Date: 23 Mar 1998
Time: 18:14:42
Remote Name: 206.181.14.102
Remote User:

Comments

This was my second cruise, and my husband's first. My previous cruise was on the NCL Leeward, so many comparisons I
made, while on board, were to the Leeward.

RCl representatives were waiting for us, at the gate, at the San Juan airport, which was very nice. They directed us to a
more centrally located area, where we all gathered and then went to a group lounge until our bus arrived. We didn't go
near the baggage claim area, which was a little scary for us. Would have at least liked to make a visual i.d. of our bags.
But, the ship wasn't leaving for several hours, so there would be time later if our bags didn't show up.

Quick bus ride to the port, only to find that there were a zillion people in front of us, on line. Major drag to be waiting on
line, in front of this humongous ship, and not being able to get on! Line moved pretty smoothly - we got our SuperCharge
cards and then we boarded. Here's where I drew my first comparisons with NCL. When we boarded the Leeward, we were
escorted to our cabin, and were given a brief 'cabin tour', I guess you could say. It was nice to be shown to the cabin.
The Rhapsody is so much bigger than the Leeward, but I spent so much time studying my brochure, that I had the layout
pretty well memorized, so finding the cabin wasn't hard, it just would have been nicer to be escorted. The second
comparison I made was with the onboard charging system. On NCL, you set up an onboard account, but you didn't have
to keep track of a little card all the time. You just signed the receipt, and that was it. Seemed easier for passengers but
especially for the staff, who had to keep track of whose card went with whose drink. Extra work, if you ask me.

Anyway, the cabin was lovely. A little bigger than I had expected, but the closet was tiny - smaller than the closet on the
Leeward. Beds were pushed together for the duration, and were very comfortable. Suitcases fit under the beds, so they
were out of the way. Drawer space was plentiful, and bathroom medicine chest was big. Shower had an adjustable height
head with massage feature which was good. Towels were big and thick - a pretty pink color. TV had several channels,
including one with a view from the bridge - especially nice when we were docking, and one with a report from the bridge,
with speed, height of seas (mostly 8-13 feet), temp, wind speed, etc.

First stop after dumping our carry-ons in the room, was the spa. I wanted to schedule a massage for one of the days at
sea, and knew the appointments would go quick. There were already a lot of people on line, and I literally got the last
appointment available on 'at sea' days. My husband wasn't so lucky. The massage was first thing on Sunday morning - a
great way to start the cruise. Edmond, my masseuse, did a fabulous job, and actually went over the time allotted, which
was nice. Prices are expensive, compared to massages at home, but that was expected. They only have one
manicurist/pedicurist on board, who is booked straight for 12 hours a day. Seems to me that they should add one or two
more technicians, if the demand is that great. Would have liked to get my nails done during the week, but she was
booked solid except for times when I was dining or scheduled for other stuff.

Windjammer has an ongoing buffet for embarking passengers, with a good assortment of stuff, and yummy deserts. We
didn't eat much, because main seating for supper was not too far off.

Right outside the ship is a duty free shop and people were bringing loads of booze on board. I thought this wasn't ok, but
we checked, and they said that it was fine. So, we went and bought beer, wine and some liqueurs. As it turned out, there
wasn't a problem bringing booze on board at any of the ports. I had heard that they confiscated booze til the end of the
cruise, but it definitely didn't happen on our cruise.

We were travelling with my sister, bro-in-law and niece, who were coming in on different flights, from elsewhere in the US.
Finally caught up with them, did some ship exploring and then went to supper. First night is casual night, so there wasn't
much time needed to get ready.

We met our wait staff this evening, and immediately knew we were in good hands. Our waiter, Jose Salgado, and our
assistant waiter, Wanda Sibson, were absolutely fab. They really stood out, in this cruise experience, as two folks who
really made the trip special. Very high energy and enthusiasm. Super people. We were seated at a table for 10. There
were 5 of us, and then a family of five also. We all got along great, and really enjoyed all the meals we had in the dining
room (all suppers, I went to 3 or 4 breakfasts 0 lunches were in the dining room, but not usually at your assigned
tables). Dining room food was terrific. Breads and rolls were outstanding, and different at every meal. Appetizers were
good, but small, so we usually ordered two. Always a choice of 3 soups, one usually chilled. Salads were good - choice of
three dressings (always different). I think there were 6 entrees to choose from. Deserts were hit or miss, I thought. Alot
of them looked alot better than they tasted. The souffles (chocolate on one night, hazelnut on another) were yummy.
They had a souvenir take-home menu box ($5.00) which I bought. It includes all the menus currently in use on RCL,
including some that we didn't get to try - probably for the longer cruises or for the European itineraries.

Midnight buffets were pretty to look at, but weren't that impressive tasting. I thought NCL had better food choices on the
midnight buffets. The Gala buffet was amazing to look at - in fact, they openend the dining room 45 minutes early for
picture taking only, and the line was enormous. Ice and fruit carvings, etc. Very pretty, but I didn't wait on line again to
eat.

Overall, ship was gorgeous, and spotless. Live music all over. We went to most of the shows. The resident dance troupe
are pretty weak, so we skipped the show that was all them. But we did enjoy the comedian (George Kanter), the jugglers
(Double Trouble), El Gaucho (hard to describe - comedian, musician, trickster). Also attended a few events in the 'Shall
We Dance' lounge - karaoke, country line dancing, etc. Also attended Bingo about 3 times. Didn't win the $9500 jackpot.
Oh well.

One thing that I have to comment on is the Solarium. A very beautiful area, but a collasal waste of space. The Solarium is
HUGE. Beautifully tiled, big pool, lots of chairs. Unfortunately, very underused. On 'at sea' days, outside deck space was
at a premium - not a deck chair to be found, out in the sun. But, the Solarium, with roof closed, was virtually empty. They
could have made this space about half the size, increased outside deck space, and made alot more people happy. Not
sure why they can't sail with the roof open, which would make alot more sense. Roof was opened on days in port, but
there's no shortage of deck space on these days.

This is getting way too long, so I'll quickly summarize the ports of call. Aruba was ugly, but the DePalm Island snorkeling
excursion was good. Not as well organized as the NCL snorkeling excursion I took, however. But, the fish were
spectacular, coral beautiful. Lots of fun. Some folks got fire coral stings - have to be careful here. On Curacao, my sister
and I did the beach break, at Seaquarium beach, which would have been fine, except that there was major construction
on both side of the beach, so it wasn't exactly serene. My husband and the rest did the mountain biking trip, which they
loved. In the afternoon, Sis and I shopped in Willemstad (much nicer than Oranjestad for shopping), while the rest went
on a museum/cave tour which I'm told was a total bore. St. Maarten, we had to reposition, because the Dawn Princess
was having a difficult time maneuvering, so we got a late start for our Golden Eagle Catamaran Sailing trip, which was
great. Winds were big, so we couldn't get to our intended destination for snorkeling. So, they brought us to another
beach, which they said was good for snorkeling, but I think we saw maybe 5 fish. Beach and water were beautiful,
however. This is the island that we want to re-visit. St. Thomas we took a cab to Sapphire beach for a relaxing day in the
sun. Again, the winds were up, so snorkeling was difficult. In the afternoon, we shopped.

Tipping recommendations have gone up, by the way. Waiter gets $3.50/day/person, ass't waiter gets $2.00/day/person
and steward gets $3.50/day/person. We upped these amounts because their service was really the best. I found it
amazing that they suggested we tip the head waiter an amount somewhere in between what we gave our waiter and
ass't waiter. They've got to be kidding. The man did nothing for us. Stopped by our table a few times, and pretended he
was interested in what we did that day. The waiter/assistant worked their butts off, and definitely deserved substantially
more than the head waiter. We just gave him a token amount, begrudgingly. Cabin Steward was tough to tip, because we
ended the week with a different person than when we started. We didn't feel it was right to tip him for the whole week.
So, finally, we left a tip for our first steward, with the purser and tipped our second steward for the remaining days.

Pursers desk were rude beyond belief. Hopefully you can avoid them, but we had some issues to take care of, and they
were not particularly helpful.

Room service was prompt. We ordered coffee and juice for every morning. We didn't order any food, but my sister did,
and she said it was pretty bad. All but one morning, the room service folks handed us the tray and ran, didn't even linger
for a tip, so I got into the habit of not being ready to tip. One morning, the person was obviously waiting, but I was
unprepared, so I had to shuffle through my stuff to find a small bill.

My niece seemed to enjoy the kids program. She is 11, but they let here participate in the teen stuff, which made her
feel pretty good. Lots of kids on board, but all seemed pretty in control, and definitely didn't detract from my good time.

RCL makes a pretty strong environmental statement. Not sure how far they really go with it, however. All staff wear 'save
the wave' buttons and there are reminders all over to not throw anything overboard. Recycling bins are everywhere, out
on deck, and use of disposables is minimal. However, in the cabin bathroom, there's a sign that says, (can't remember
the exact wording) if you want to conserve and reuse your towel, hang it on the rod. If you want fresh towels, dump the
used ones on the floor. My husband and I consistently rehung our towels, but twice a day, we got fresh ones. So, what's
the deal?? Also, they use little paper tubes of shampoo and conditioner - each tube is barely enough for one shower.
Why not install wall dispensers for shampoo, soap and bath gel? Then, there's nothing to throw away.

Disembarking went smoothly - but got to wait in the San Juan airport for hours - plane was delayed.

Overall, a great cruise. Would cruise with RCL again, without hesitation. My husband enjoyed himself, but definitely has
not caught the cruise bug. Next time, we may try a sailboat, or a smaller boat up in Alaska. But, if I ever get another
opportunity, I'll be on a cruise ship.

Happy sailing

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