All things Rhapsody of the Seas

Hi All,

New to this forum section, with the Rhapsody of the Seas coming up to the North East, I heard about a 5-Day cruise to Canada/New England. Really want to surprise my parents for Christmas, since they took me on my first cruise. So to those who have sailed this ship, what are some tips, hints and fun facts about her.

P.S, we have sailed only on Carnival and Princess, so what is the Royal Caribbean experience like?

Cheers!

Hi All,

 

New to this forum section, with the Rhapsody of the Seas coming up to the North East, I heard about a 5-Day cruise to Canada/New England. Really want to surprise my parents for Christmas, since they took me on my first cruise. So to those who have sailed this ship, what are some tips, hints and fun facts about her.

 

P.S, we have sailed only on Carnival and Princess, so what is the Royal Caribbean experience like?

 

Cheers!

Smaller than what we prefer in the Royal family of ships. The friendliness and helpful attitude of the crew makes up for the smaller size of this ship. Not a lot of variety of entertainment opportunities because of ship size but for 5 days would be a nice introduction to Royal for you.

The thing I like about the Vision and Radiance class ships is that they're so outward-looking. Windows everywhere, and most places that you stop and are for a while, you can look around and find a horizon. That's definitely not the case with Voyager and Freedom ships, which feel like really nice shopping malls, and even Oasis that feels like a really nice convention center.

Recently I sailed on the Rhapsody, in fact it had been 10 years since I'd been on a Royal ship that was that small and I must say I was pleasantly surprised. The ship is in very go condition, Royal keep there ships in tip top shape and although it does not have all the bells and whistles the newer ships have the crew are amazing, also older people love the smaller ships because everything is nice and close. Lots of nice places to relax, a lovely indoor pool area with 2 nice Jacuzzi's.

Lovely ship you will enjoy it!

Thank you for the replies! Very helpful. :)

We've done Rhapsody twice in the last few years, last Sep. we sailed on her for 10 Night Greek Isles. Love the ship. So, some tips.... if possible book an aft balcony or Junior Suite. The aft balconies are HUGE (or as Bernie would say.. "YUGE"). We had 8596 in Alaska, and 8102 for Greek Isles. 8596 had a large enough balcony that we were able to get all 8 of us out there with room for many more. But any balcony on the stern will be huge. One caution, some complain of vibration. We felt it, but no big deal. In fact we have booked another aft JS on Vision in 2017. Worth it for the views.

Another tip... see the Arial show in the Centrum.

For me, Entertainment is good but not as good as larger ships. Food was good. Service was exceptional. I believe it's better on the smaller ships as they are more "intimate" than the larger ships.

Is there a pizza/sandwich place on board?

Is there a pizza/sandwich place on board?

Yes, Park Cafe in the Solarium.

Good to know, thanks!

Rhapsody was my first cruise. She was brand new then and I loved it. Considerably smaller than today's ships but she was one of the bigger ships back then.

Can anyone tell us about the last time Rhapsody went into "DryDock" or had a "Rebuild"????

I thought she had been through a rebuild a couple of years ago, but not sure. Now we are hearing rumors that she will be going in for a few weeks in Oct. of 2017.

Does anyone know for sure????

Yes, Park Cafe in the Solarium.

My comment on Rhapsody pizza and Park Cafe - when you are super hungry and it is late night and nothing else is open... I have been on other Royal ships and the Pizza we had on Rhapsody in South America was - the worst. They kept a mini salad bar open where they put the salad together for you. They ran out of sandwiches late night and didn't replenish.

We have cruised on Rhapsody twice and wouldn't hesitate to cruise on her again. We love the Radiance and Vision size ships and have no desire to cruise on the "bigger" class ships. You can see the sea/ocean from anywhere on the ship. If you can get an aft cabin for your parents, that would be the way to go!

Can anyone tell us about the last time Rhapsody went into "DryDock" or had a "Rebuild"????

 

I thought she had been through a rebuild a couple of years ago, but not sure. Now we are hearing rumors that she will be going in for a few weeks in Oct. of 2017.

 

Does anyone know for sure????

"In April 2012, the ship received a US$54 million dry dock refit which added addition staterooms, an outdoor movie screen near the pool, new dining venues, digital signage, Wi-Fi internet access, concierge and diamond lounges, and a nursery."

Here's some more information about the 2012 dry dock.

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/conten...advantage_main

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FO1wuy3m3AQ

Rhapsody is currently scheduled for another dry dock, tentatively December 2016.

Hi All,

 

New to this forum section, with the Rhapsody of the Seas coming up to the North East, I heard about a 5-Day cruise to Canada/New England. Really want to surprise my parents for Christmas, since they took me on my first cruise. So to those who have sailed this ship, what are some tips, hints and fun facts about her.

 

P.S, we have sailed only on Carnival and Princess, so what is the Royal Caribbean experience like?

 

Cheers!

We board her in two weeks so I'll be sure to report back!

P.S. - I was on the same 03/15/2015 sailing of the Regal Princess as you! Small world. She is an AMAZING ship!

We board her in two weeks so I'll be sure to report back!

P.S. - I was on the same 03/15/2015 sailing of the Regal Princess as you! Small world. She is an AMAZING ship!

Can't wait to see the report! I agree, she is an amazing ship.

We just booked her for next May out of Cape Liberty. We love the Grandeur so should love this one.

Still in the airport on the way back from getting off of the adventure this morning. Booked a trip on the Rhapsody for next year. The wife and I are doing the 13 day repositioning from Tampa to Cape Liberty via the Caribbean. Not even home from last cruise and already excited for the next. The itinerary for this one looks fantastic.

I'll be on the Rhapsody in September, so it's nice to see some information about it. Since it will be a port intensive sailing, I'm glad it will be a smaller ship.