sweetcruiser106

I have been in 1104 and 1604 on both Serenade and Radiance and they are among my favorite cabins to book. They are located center aft with deep balconies. There are 2 loungers, a table and 2 chairs. Fantastic view of the wake. Hope this helps.

Anne

Hi,

I have not sailed on the Freedom class, but I have sailed on Serenade several times. I can very highly recommend Serenade. The only thing that I will suggest is to look at the itineraries on both ships and pick the one that appeals to you the most. Have a wonderful trip.

Anne

Hey! Capt. Johnny Faevelen tweeted that he started his break yesterday.

Anne:)

Enjoy this cruise. I hope this leg is just as amazing.

Anne:)

Hi Havana Daydreamin,

I haven't had the chance to post this week due to work, but I have enjoyed popping in from time to time and reliving my cruise through you. Your pictures are amazing. I hope that you have as amazing a trip next week as you did this one and I hope that all affected cabins are fixed and everyone booked will be sailing tomorrow. A couple of questions, did you get a chance to visit St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Key West? I know that you are interested in churches and that one is beautiful. The day that we went, there was a wonderful organ concert. Also, were you able to attend John Blair's tribute to Neil Diamond? We went and if you had blindfolded me I would have thought that it was Neil himself.

Thank you so much for your wonderful post.

Anne:)

FYI, if anyone wants to watch Serenade sailaway, go to http://www.nola.com/rivercam/#incart_m-rpt-1

Serenade is in the upper right hand corner right now.

Anne:)

I also found it curious that cellphones will work well out in the gulf. I suppose the oil rigs are wired for cell service. One thing I never expected during our NOLA sailing.

 

 

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I didn't know that. When we sailed on Serenade a few weeks ago, I switched my phone to airplane mode just after Boothville.

I will be posting the first two days compasses at a later time.

 

Ran into a snag on one of them and running out of time before I need to be out with my camera for the special treat of sailing the Mississippi for several daylight hours!

 

Sun is bright...sky is blue...should provide nice photo ops!:D

What a great treat! It takes about 6-7 hours to get to the mouth of the river and into the Gulf, so you should have most of the trip down in daylight. Once you are in the Gulf, you should have a very nice of view the oil rigs lit up at night. This is a spectacular sight.

I imagine that the onboard stores and casinos will be open by 8 pm. Have fun!

Yay! Happy to hear it! I am looking forward to your future postings. Have a great time.

Anne:)

Good morning,

I am so sorry about the difficulties that Serenade is having. Hopefully, the crew will have her fixed very soon and you will be on your way. I admire your honesty about what is happening on board and your positive attitude. Your pictures continue to be amazing. Hope you sail soon. Have a great day!

Anne:)

Glad to hear it. Sorry for all of the difficulties that the ship is having. Hope that is all of the problems that she having are resolved. Have a great time. I will be following you this week. Enjoy. I know that you will have a great time. She is a great ship.

Anne:)

Your day in New Orleans looked amazing. The pictures are fantastic. It is almost like I'm getting to cruise all over again:D.

Anne:)

Not meaning to hi-jack but want to know what they serve at the Mystery Dinner theater. We did this on Explorer, but they used Portofinos and now Serenade has Giovannis.

 

I am enjoying this review and look forward to our Serenade cruise next year.

The Murder Mystery theater was on New Year's Eve. I don't know if the menu is different on other sailings. Essentially, there were 3 courses. First, we were served bread which was delicious. Then, we were given a choice of soup or salad. We selected a salad which was very good. One of our table partners chose the soup (cream of pumpkin) which he said was very good. For the entree, we were given a choice of shrimp or steak. We chose the shrimp which was broiled and served with seasonal vegetables. It was delicious. The steak looked amazing and everyone who ordered it said how good it tasted. For dessert, there was a choice of tiramisu and something else. The cost was $55.00 per person and wine was included. Service at times was a little slow, but that was probably because there was a snafu with the bookings and I think that more people than usual attended. We had originally booked Giovanni's just for New Year's Eve. They called us on Sunday night and told us that our reservation was cancelled because of the Murder Mystery theater which they said was full. We talked to the maitre'd who worked us in. As I said, the whole show was a little corny, but entertaining. The food was delicious and there was lots and lots of wine. It was, by far, the best meal that we had on the ship the entire week. Hope this helps.

Anne:)

Your pictures are amazing. Very cool balcony. I don't know what your plans are for today, but if you have a chance, the WW II museum is a very interesting place to visit, as is the Aquarium. Since you are in the Quarter, I recommend lunch at Central Grocery on Decatur. That place is the home of the muffaletta. That is a sandwich made of ham,salami,cheese and olive salad. A half sandwich with some chips and Barq's root beer will fill up two people easily. If that isn't your thing, there are many restaurants that serve amazing gumbos, perfect for a rainy day (I think rain is in the forecast there today). Also, if you collect Christmas ornaments, there is a little Christmas shop (sorry I don't remember the name) on Royal near the Court of Two Sisters Restaurant that is absolutely charming. Have a great day!

Anne:)

You will love Serenade. She is a wonderful ship. We were just on her over New Years and we called that cruise our perfect cruise. It was just a fantastic experience. We were in 1604, just down the hall from where you will be. I know that you will love your balcony. The view is amazing. If you can, do the murder mystery dinner. The story is a little corny, but the evening was fun and the food was delicious. That was our best meal of the week. I hope you have a great time.

Anne:)

Hi Trainman,

Thanks so much for taking us along on your cruise. I read with great interest your experience in Chops. We were on Serenade over New Years, and unfortunately, had a similar experience as you. This appears to be somewhat a fleet-wide decision on Royal Caribbean's part. Just sayin'. Again, thanks for taking us along. I enjoyed your voyage very much. It brought back great memories of my trip on Allure from a few years ago. Have a safe trip home!

Anne:)

I have stayed on both decks 8 and 10. My preference is deck 10. The balcony on deck 10 is a little deeper and a like the view from deck 10 better. You can't go wrong with either deck. Have a great cruise.

Anne :)

I looked and while your cabin is in the aft part of the ship, the balconies that I described are truly on the back of the ship. Your cabin is facing starboard, so it will have 2 chairs and a table. The obstruction that you mentioned is a ladder that is on the aft end of the balcony.

Anne

Well, the balconies are big enough for 2 lounge chairs, 2 regular chairs, and table. A non aft balcony has only 2 chairs and a table. I like to book for the size and the view. Arts are great. If you search your cabin number, you may find a picture. Hope this helps.

Anne

For the most part, ships to Alaska sailing from Seattle sail on the west (Pacific) side of Vancouver island. On our trip, we had very rough seas heading north and very smooth heading back to Seattle. Rhapsody is a great ship with a great crew. You will have a wonderful time.

Anne :-).

Hello fellow Mississippian! Welcome to Cruise Critic! We love Seattle. There aren't really any hotels downtown that offer a shuttle service from the airport. Seattle has a light rail service from the airport to downtown and Shuttle Express has decent service from the airport to downtown. As far as places to stay, when we sailed out of Seattle, we stayed at the Marriott waterfront (pricey, but very nice) which is across from Pier 66. If you are sailing from Smith Cove (Pier 91), you will need a shuttle from your hotel (there are no hotels near that port). Cost from the Marriott was around $10.00 per person ( it was $7.00 3 years ago, I'm. accounting for inflation ;)). There are lots of really nice hotels in the area. Just look for what works for you. Have a great trip.

Anne:)

Yes, there is a big screen on the pool deck. Enjoy your trip.

Anne:)

The secret balconies are among my favorite places on Allure. You have a view aft to the side and of the diving well. It is a great place to hang out. Very relaxing! If you choose to be there for sail-a-way, in order to be seen on the camera, make sure you are on the port side. Have a great cruise!!

Anne:)

I wouldn't chance it. The airport is approximately 15 miles away and there is always road construction on the interstate. Add that to having possible delays in docking, clearing customs, etc and it is just not practical. Doable yes, advisable no! Have a great trip.

Anne:)

I have sailed on at least one ship in every class except Freedom (it is on our list).

Favorite (ooh! this one is tough): probably Radiance class with all of the glass, the aft deck behind the Windjammer and the aft cabin balconies. I also really liked Allure. There is so much to do. Also, the artwork onboard was beautiful. But mostly, I loved the secret balconies, in particular when the diving show was rehearsing. Great place to relax.

Least favorite: Rhapsody: The staff was great and our trip was wonderful; however we were aft and there is a lot of vibration back there.

That said we would sail on any ship, anytime.

Anne:)