cr2000

Do you happen to know, or might you be able to ask someone staying in a Cabana Mini-Suite on Deck 9, whether there is a curtian separator between the bed and sofa? The renderings for the cabana mini-suites don't appear to show one, which seems odd given it's a mini-suite. Thanks!

Adventure Ocean is a disaster on Icon. During the day it's empty (kids are in the pools, jacuzzis and slides), at night they are overwhelmed with kids so much so, that many families felt it wasn't worth it and took their kids to many of the night time venues - which of course didn't sit well with many of the non-kid couples that were out for an adult evening only to be surrounded by kids in the late night hours.

I wouldn't post either. I'm saying if you want to get a sense of crowd levels, look at youtube videos that people post of Icon over the coming months. Dueling Piano's, MO5AIC, Earl Turner, Comedian's, Cruise Director Mike, all commented on the volume of kids cruising on Icon. We travel as a family, so kids don't bother me - it's a family cruise. It's the couples traveling on this forum that seem upset by it.

I don't think anyone responsible here is going to be posting random pictures of other peoples kids, but just go look for videos on youtube over the coming months and you'll get a sense of the amount of kids. Let's put it this way, even the entertainers on board - comedy staff, shows, dueling pianos, cruise director, all commented in some form or another how many kids appear to be onboard the ship. It was even noticeable to them in evening entertainment venues.

Consider that 10, 11, or 12 year olds (that are responsible) doesn't need to have a parent following them around all day. They meet up with friends and build some maturity and independency in a relatively safe environment during the day. What seems to be coming through with this thread is a lot of sour grapes from couples without kids who booked Icon. Let me be clear YOU WILL BE SURROUNDED BY KIDS - lots of them, if you don't like that cancel your cruise. For example, all the jacuzzi's were PACKED with kids. They thought nothing of piling into a Jacuzzi (and using it as a pool) that already had a few adults relaxing in it. Yes you can go hang out in the Hideway, but you best like very loud thumping music all day long. It's more like South Beach, than a Hideaway. Or go sit in the Casino. Lol.

It's a family cruise line, singles or couples without kids ARE NOT the target demographic. Royal does not care about your experience as the majority of income derived from sailings is from family passengers. You just have to accept it and move on, don't complain about it.

Get over it. Icon of the Seas is designed for families (which means LOTS AND LOTS of Kids). You don't like it? Cancel your cruise and go Virgin or Celebrity. There is nothing to "fix" here, childless travelers are not the target customer and have no standing to complain.

How does the show seating work for sky, star, pinnacle members members? Do they even make a reservation or just show up and displace non-status members from their seats?

Those seats looks terrible and uncomfortable - almost like punishment chairs for Star Class - lol, Although not surprising, the furnishing in general from the suite deck, to the suites, coastal kitchen, and down to the theater here all look like RC made serious attempts at reducing costs compared to Wonder of the Seas. Hopefully the Genie can wave a wand and reserve an actual theater seat in the center section.

They are responding to an aging customer base more of whom are now with kids in tow. Icon will effectively be a Disney cruise on school breaks and summer vacations. The choice of shows, venues, and the waterpark reflect that reality. The Celebrity brand is the place for couples. Just the reality of the industry.

Anyone here experience that smell last night after dinner that people are complaining about on FB? There's a video floating around that someone took.

The ship was designed with families in mind, just look at the waterpark they put on the ship. No surprise the headline show would be something for kids.

Kinda like the one entry and exit point into the skating rink through playmakers. Videos coming out of today's sailing already look VERY crowded and the ship is no where near capacity.

I think you nailed it. The Haven experience is exceptional, particularly how it's isolated from the rest of the ship. Near as I can tell based on videos here, the suite areas and blocks of suite rooms, both forward and aft, are wide open to the general public. Wonder has more of a Haven like experience, but still not NCL level.

Matt has great coverage! Looks fantastic in the video, BUT you've only got a couple thousand VIPs on board. I wonder if it will look as enjoyable with 7000+ members of the general public on board. Lol.

Cloud 17 video. I can see how this made sense as the Adult Only section when they were originally designing the space. https://www.facebook.com/CruiseDirectorMitch/videos/690102243321586/

Wonder of the Seas has a dedicated area that is built for handling hors d'oeuvres, continental breakfast, speciality coffee etc. you can see it in a number of YouTube videos. It seems on Icon (much like the lounge area), it's an afterthought, setup on a couple folding tables in front of what looks to be a service bar. It's really like they were over budget and cut a number of corners in CK and the Sun Decks, or just didn't plan well? IDK. Icon Wonder of the Seas

Just my opinion, the colors and textures in Coastal Kitchen look like something you'd find in a Marriott lobby. Just downright ugly. Go look at Hooked or 1400 Lobby Bar, those are beautiful. Also there is no suite lounge area, just some chairs and tables in a waiting area when you enter - no dedicated lounge. I really think suite customers aren't going to respond favorably, heck I saw a video where the continental breakfast in CK appeared to be setup on folding tables! - no dedicated area as on Wonder.

Suite deck space is a very good size, however, you figure 179 suites at 3 people (avg) per suite is 537 guests using that space. My quick count from that video shows perhaps seating for 120 people (heck the bar has a mere 6 seats!) and the "pool", as I expected, is large jacuzzi at best, maybe good for 10 people? I don't think suite guests are going to like having to get up early to save a chair, might as well head down to the lower decks and fight for chairs with the rest of us. Lol. I also think it looks cheap (like it was furnished from the Target or Ikea catalog). I suspect suite prices will correct down as negative customer reviews roll in.

You won't be the only one, Cloud 17 will be a hangout/basecamp for suite guests with families/kids on decks16/17 due to the proximity of slides. The hideway looks great from an adult perspective, but you have to be an adult that wants to party all day long (drinking and loud music). There is no longer an adult only solitude type venue on Icon, but that doesn't seem to be how the ship is marketed anyway...

Great view, but I'd be concerned about sleeping. Hideaway music will be banging until the wee hours of the morning right above you. I saw a video earlier today with commentary about just how loud the hideaway was the past couple days, one large adult day/night club, was definitely a younger party crowd hanging out there. Maybe that's was more related to the start-up cruises and employees traveling?

I'm sure the view on those decks will be great, though I'll never see it. But I did notice people complaining on FB about the lack of ocean views from CK and no dedicated lounge. Not much of a premium experience for suite guests, but 1st world problem I suppose to those that can afford it.

Well I agree 100% with you there, they overhyped the ship and now that needs to be reconciled with reality. I'm sure it's better in many way than Wonder, but early pics/vids suggest a lot of poor decisions/tradeoffs were also made. We'll just have to wait for real reviews, right now it's all employees on the ship.

Good point on greenery, that may help the suite space look a bit less sterile. Not sure how they fix the pool, all pictures I've seen suggests it's not much larger than a jacuzzi. The pictures coming out on Coastal Kitchen aren't good, comments on FB seem to affirm it, the entire space is closed in with zero ocean views, "lounge area" looks like something from a Hampton Inn hotel lobby.

Couple other observations between Wonder and Icon, the total pool square footage appears to be greater on Wonder than on Icon. Perhaps the assumption is Icon's waterpark will entertain a larger % of kids, thus keeping them out of the pools? Eitherway, it seems like a shortcoming given Icon is pitched as a bigger/better ship. Also, suite access appears to be wide open to anyone on the ship, that is, the elevators will not be able to restrict access to decks 16/17. Another huge fail in the suite design on Icon. Last the smoking area located right above the kids area (Thrill Island) seems just poorly placed. I've also seen concerns about noise pollution with the open design of the promenade, Large portions of Decks 7/8 may not get much sleep if they turn in early. It'll be interesting when we start getting some real reviews from paying passengers that have travelled on both ships. Right now, I'm thinking Wonder of the Seas is the better of the two ships, which is disappointing given the premium we've all paid to get on Icon...