Anthem. 8/4 to 8/9 Review.

As promised, I just returned from 5 night cruise on Anthem to Bermuda and here are my thoughts.

First Don’t read these reviews to make any decision on quality of food, beds, service. Etc. They are opinions and we each have our own. To be honest I read plenty of posts about poor food quality that you would think you were eating hospital food. I was satisfied with the food and it’s quality. With that being said I gained lots of helpful information that answered many of my questions and helped with my planning

Embarkation.

It was raining like a bastard the day we board. The port is organized easy and parking was convenient. It was hectic as I think the rain caused some traffics issues but overall very easy.

Inside the port was just as easy and convenient. We completed all our information and uploaded our pictures prior to arriving. A customer service rep with a tablet checked us in with ease and we were on board by 11:30. That is when they started to board. We were probably in the first 200 on board.

Technology. The Royal IQ app is really helpful. Be sure to download it prior to arriving. It has all the information you needs during the cruise including the daily compass and your account info.

You can schedule activities as well. If you didn’t pre book shows or activities as soon as you walk on there are tablets set up kiosk style to walk up and start booking. I highly recommend doing this. We were able to book a group of 10 for the Northstar as well as I-Fly for 2 in our group. Quick warning that if you have the app up on your phone and then try to book something with the tablet at the kiosk you will have difficulty. Make sure you are signed out of the phone or vice Versa.

Ship. We really liked the ship. We liked the decor. Very cool art. Ship was amazingly clean and easy to navigate. Not crowded except the usual times when everybody is leaving a show.

The crew is always cleaning.

Pools were busy but expected. I utilize the Solarium each time and had no difficulty getting chairs but be advised I get up early. Go to gym and then to pool by 730 am the latest. My pick of location at this time I. The morning.

Food. We did the BOGO and purchased prior to the trip. This is such a great deal. Cost and gratuities were included. Our receipt at the end of our meals showed Zero.

We added additional tip which is optional but the quality of the meal and service warranted it.

We are at Jaimie’s Italian and Chips. Both were what we wanted. We went to Chops as soon as we boarded and changed our times with ease and no issue.

Jamie’s Italian was awesome. Food quality and selection was great. I am picky with food and especially Italian food and we thought it was great. They even made a special pasta with pesto dish for my daughter not on the menu. Michaela was our waitress and was great.

Chops was as good as always. Food quality and quantity was great. Michael our waiter was great. Consistent quality and service whenever we go to Chops and we go on every ship.

Main dining room. Overall we felt it was good. The first night was ok but the next two were much better. Lobster tail was great and much bigger than expected.

Can the dining room food improve a little, sure But when you are feeding 5000 people you will have some drop off. With that being said dinner was good.

On a side note we were a group of 10.

4 cabins with reservations all connected.

I sent an email using the email address I located on these posts to arrange for a table off to the side or near a window.

That was a total bust. Not only did they not accommodate my email they had us at 2 different tables. We spoke with staff and they handled it like they were doing us a favor and put us at a table right as you walk in. The last place you want to be. Since we ate at specialty dining the first 2 nights and this was night 3 we made the best of it and enjoyed dinner. The good news it was a round table which is much nicer with a large group for conversation.

Entertainment. The shows are really good. We will Rock You was the best show I have seen on a cruise. If you like music especially 80 and 90’s music you will love it.

The other shows Spectra and The Gift are different but overall good. Visually and musically engaging. Worth seeing.

North Star is very cool. Not scary for those concerned. Views amazing from up top.

IFly is fun. Hard to master but staff helpful.

We went to Horseshoe bay by van $7 per person. Really convenient.

Was at beach early. Arrived by 10.

$45 for 2 lounge chairs and umbrella. Cash or credit. Worth it. Hot sun. We had pick of location at that time but beach crowds quick. If you don’t mind walking some walk down to end. Less crowded.

We did Devils island snorkel excursion with Royal.

Nice day. Staff very nice. Nice ride along island to remote area to snorkel. Not much for seeing fish. I would not recommend this if you want fish and snorkel is priority. If you was a nice day out on boat get to see island and swim in private area it’s a good day. Personal preference applies here.

We decided to disembark with our bags. I recommend this. We were off boat in car and out of parking garage within 45 minutes. $100 for the 5 night cruise.

I imagine as time flies by and more people are leaving and next cruise arrives getting out of garage will take some time.

Hope this helps.

Harmony next June.

Thank you for your review. I have a couple of questions. What time did you start to self disembark? Also, you mentioned something about not being signed into the app when trying to use the tablet. Can you please give more detail? I have the app, but I assume I can't log in until I'm either on board or waiting to embark.

Since we ate at specialty dining the first 2 nights and this was night 3 we made the best of it and enjoyed dinner.

Not sure it would have made a diff, but going right after embarkation to see the MDR table allocation (and fix it) may have helped.

How does the Royal IQ app work? Do you have to be connected to the ship's WIFI to be able to access it ?

How does the Royal IQ app work? Do you have to be connected to the ship's WIFI to be able to access it ?

I believe there are some offline functions. You can download now and check it out.

Thank you for your review. I have a couple of questions. What time did you start to self disembark? Also, you mentioned something about not being signed into the app when trying to use the tablet. Can you please give more detail? I have the app, but I assume I can't log in until I'm either on board or waiting to embark.

We tried to get onto the App while in the terminal but was not able. As soon as you get on board you can access the app.

We went to the first walk off disembark which was 7:30 to 8:00 AM.

They didn’t start until 8:00 am. A little log jam as many people walking off at same time but in the end much easier than waiting for your assigned time.

The app works while on board.

My point about the app pertains to having signed into the app using my I phone. I then logged in to a tablet that was on the ship and tried to schedule Northstar and it would not let me since I was logged on with my phone.

You can’t be logged onto 2 Devices.

Hoped that helped.

How does the Royal IQ app work? Do you have to be connected to the ship's WIFI to be able to access it ?

In order to use the app for your cruise you need to be on the ship.

Not sure it would have made a diff, but going right after embarkation to see the MDR table allocation (and fix it) may have helped.

To be honest we didn’t give it much thought until the day before when we all looked at our table assignment and realized we didn’t even have the same table. I never thought that would happen.

In order to use the app for your cruise you need to be on the ship.

Some have reported being able to connect to the ship's WiFi in the terminal in Bayonne.

I believe there are some offline functions.

That's the big diff between Royal IQ and RCI apps - nothing works in the Royal IQ app until you connect to the ship's WiFi.

That's the big diff between Royal IQ and RCI apps - nothing works in the Royal IQ app until you connect to the ship's WiFi.

Not even a ship's deck plan?

Not even a ship's deck plan?

Nope, the app opens but is looking for the ship's WiFi before doing anything.

We were on this cruise as well. We connected to the RoyalIQ app once onboard and the app worked fine once connected to Royal Wifi. We did not have an internet package. I like that you can bookmark things you can show on your "schedule", view the Compass and your account on the app.

For those who worry about NorthStar reservations in advance, don't. We made no reservations and were able to walk on twice--once first day at sea and then one day in Bermuda.

I'm a fan of Spectra's Cabaret. I have Kraftwerk's "we are THE ROBOTS" playing right now!

Anthem is an awesome ship - this was our 5th time on it. I was surprised to learn that it is leaving NJ in 2020.

Great synopsis of your cruise. We have dinner booked at Jamies italian for our NOV Anthem cruise. Seems to be consistent in the positive review dept. glad you enjoyed your trip.

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Thanks for this review great to hear you enjoyed this ship! How was your mattress?

Thanks for this review great to hear you enjoyed this ship! How was your mattress?

Mattress was just fine. Not an issue at all.

What time did you get to the port in Bayonne? That's great that you boarded at 11:30.

Thanks for sharing your review!

Excellent review

I was under the impression no Lobster on cruises less than 7 days.

Thanks again

9 day cruises also great on Anthem, will be sorry to see her go in 2020.

Thanks for the review! Can you tell me what day the lobster was served in the main dining rooms? Trying to figure out what days to eat in the specialty restaurants.

Thanks for sharing! Any MDR menus to share?

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When you eat dinner at Jamie's can you choose as much as you like, or one starter, one main, one side etc.

Thanks for the review! Can you tell me what day the lobster was served in the main dining rooms? Trying to figure out what days to eat in the specialty restaurants.

I was on this cruise and lobster night was Tuesday, but this is a five day cruise.

I will put here that I second the recommendation for Jamie's. Having grown up in Philly, I know some pretty awesome Italian restaurants. Jamie's was even more awesome, well worth the extra $$$$. :cool:

As promised, I just returned from 5 night cruise on Anthem to Bermuda and here are my thoughts.

 

First Don’t read these reviews to make any decision on quality of food, beds, service. Etc. They are opinions and we each have our own. To be honest I read plenty of posts about poor food quality that you would think you were eating hospital food. I was satisfied with the food and it’s quality. With that being said I gained lots of helpful information that answered many of my questions and helped with my planning

 

Embarkation.

It was raining like a bastard the day we board. The port is organized easy and parking was convenient. It was hectic as I think the rain caused some traffics issues but overall very easy.

Inside the port was just as easy and convenient. We completed all our information and uploaded our pictures prior to arriving. A customer service rep with a tablet checked us in with ease and we were on board by 11:30. That is when they started to board. We were probably in the first 200 on board.

 

Technology. The Royal IQ app is really helpful. Be sure to download it prior to arriving. It has all the information you needs during the cruise including the daily compass and your account info.

You can schedule activities as well. If you didn’t pre book shows or activities as soon as you walk on there are tablets set up kiosk style to walk up and start booking. I highly recommend doing this. We were able to book a group of 10 for the Northstar as well as I-Fly for 2 in our group. Quick warning that if you have the app up on your phone and then try to book something with the tablet at the kiosk you will have difficulty. Make sure you are signed out of the phone or vice Versa.

 

Ship. We really liked the ship. We liked the decor. Very cool art. Ship was amazingly clean and easy to navigate. Not crowded except the usual times when everybody is leaving a show.

The crew is always cleaning.

Pools were busy but expected. I utilize the Solarium each time and had no difficulty getting chairs but be advised I get up early. Go to gym and then to pool by 730 am the latest. My pick of location at this time I. The morning.

 

Food. We did the BOGO and purchased prior to the trip. This is such a great deal. Cost and gratuities were included. Our receipt at the end of our meals showed Zero.

We added additional tip which is optional but the quality of the meal and service warranted it.

We are at Jaimie’s Italian and Chips. Both were what we wanted. We went to Chops as soon as we boarded and changed our times with ease and no issue.

 

Jamie’s Italian was awesome. Food quality and selection was great. I am picky with food and especially Italian food and we thought it was great. They even made a special pasta with pesto dish for my daughter not on the menu. Michaela was our waitress and was great.

 

Chops was as good as always. Food quality and quantity was great. Michael our waiter was great. Consistent quality and service whenever we go to Chops and we go on every ship.

 

Main dining room. Overall we felt it was good. The first night was ok but the next two were much better. Lobster tail was great and much bigger than expected.

Can the dining room food improve a little, sure But when you are feeding 5000 people you will have some drop off. With that being said dinner was good.

 

On a side note we were a group of 10.

4 cabins with reservations all connected.

I sent an email using the email address I located on these posts to arrange for a table off to the side or near a window.

That was a total bust. Not only did they not accommodate my email they had us at 2 different tables. We spoke with staff and they handled it like they were doing us a favor and put us at a table right as you walk in. The last place you want to be. Since we ate at specialty dining the first 2 nights and this was night 3 we made the best of it and enjoyed dinner. The good news it was a round table which is much nicer with a large group for conversation.

 

Entertainment. The shows are really good. We will Rock You was the best show I have seen on a cruise. If you like music especially 80 and 90’s music you will love it.

 

The other shows Spectra and The Gift are different but overall good. Visually and musically engaging. Worth seeing.

 

North Star is very cool. Not scary for those concerned. Views amazing from up top.

IFly is fun. Hard to master but staff helpful.

 

We went to Horseshoe bay by van $7 per person. Really convenient.

Was at beach early. Arrived by 10.

$45 for 2 lounge chairs and umbrella. Cash or credit. Worth it. Hot sun. We had pick of location at that time but beach crowds quick. If you don’t mind walking some walk down to end. Less crowded.

 

We did Devils island snorkel excursion with Royal.

Nice day. Staff very nice. Nice ride along island to remote area to snorkel. Not much for seeing fish. I would not recommend this if you want fish and snorkel is priority. If you was a nice day out on boat get to see island and swim in private area it’s a good day. Personal preference applies here.

 

We decided to disembark with our bags. I recommend this. We were off boat in car and out of parking garage within 45 minutes. $100 for the 5 night cruise.

I imagine as time flies by and more people are leaving and next cruise arrives getting out of garage will take some time.

 

 

 

Hope this helps.

Harmony next June.

My wife and I were on the same cruise, we love the Anthem and I agree with everything you said! I wish we would have self disembark, it was kind of a nightmare, I had a messed up knee on this cruise and didn't want to mess with all that luggage.

The Solarium was by far the nicest place on the ship I spent most days there, the bartenders from Jamaica were hilarious, we also spent a lot of time in 270, the Romanian lady bartender ( I won't butcher her name) was the best person on the ship!

Thanks for the review! Can you tell me what day the lobster was served in the main dining rooms? Trying to figure out what days to eat in the specialty restaurants.

Lobster was Tuesday night. 4th night.