Just got back from 7 Night Baltic on Serenade

[Moltar]

If anyone has any questions please ask. JUst some thoughts I'd like to share.

 

 

Ports: Stockholm, Sweden : Helsinki, Finland : St Petersburg, Russia : Talin, Estonia : Riga, Latvia

 

Room: Junior Suite 1086 - I booked a D1 Balcony on Deck 9 but got a automatic upgrade 2 weeks or so prior to the cruise.

The room was spacious with plenty of room for my 19 month to run around. Big balcony, full size tub and different shower amenities.

 

Do not get a room anywhere on the 10 floor near the Windjammer indoor areas. The grinding noise throughout the day was annoying to say the least. You should have heard disembarkation morning. The worst.

 

Room attendant was good at his core job but had no real personality or knew the little things to make one feel special. But he was always nice, smiling and did his job great. Just wished he had some personality if you will.

 

 

Food: We did My Time Dining at 7:30 in the MDR every night. Worked like a charm and we got seated 5 out of the 7 nights with one of the best waitress's ever. Katrina from Trinidad & Tobago.

 

I was so grateful for her. After the first dinner, She would always see us before we saw her coming to sit in her area by the host and she was already in the back getting our 19 month a fruit salad and mac n cheese, or chicken tenders etc... On top of just great enthusiasm and really making us feel like we were at the Ritz. I already miss her.

 

The food was stellar in the MDR. Absolutely stellar. I ordered Escargot every night on top of additional starters and usually 2 mains. The desserts were great as well.

 

Lunch we always did in the WJ or on land. This is my beef with this ship. The options for lunch are so limited. It's pretty much either room service, WJ, or Rita's. That's it. WJ pretty much rolled with very similar dishes all week so that was annoying as well. Port days the MDR is closed for lunch and we only had 1 day at sea. So, very limited.

 

 

Shows: Saw none.

 

 

Casino: I love the casino on any RCCL ship :) my game is craps and I always meet a few friends for the week while playing. I started with 100 dollars on day one and never lost it, walked away with 600 at the end of the week. This one dealer who was female, was really on top of the game, she always had my back for bets if I forgot and just knew the game great. I took care of her. Met some guys from Brooklyn and Texas and we were tight all week, drinking a few beers every night together and winning money together on the table.

 

 

Movies: Didn't see any but they had good ones playing in the cinema and outdoor screen. Divergent part 2, Avengers, a few others I can't think of.

 

 

Ship: Overall we were happy with it. Only real thing that bothered me was our room location with the noise.

 

 

Are we still loyal to Royal? Yes. We booked while onboard a 13 Night Portugal, Morocco & Canary Island cruise on the Navigator in October 2016.

 

 

P.S. I have the Daily Compass from all 7 days if anyone needs info.

 

 

Any questions?

Edited July 28, 2015 by Moltar

[maggieq]

We are taking this cruise very soon

Any info on taxis to cruiseport. Ports of call or disembarkation

 

Thanks!

[tray]

Thanks so much for your great review! We are doing the same itinerary next July, & I am very excited to start planning! We have never been to Europe, so I am feeling a bit overwhelmed (but in a good way, if that makes sense) 😜. Would love any advice/tips you can give that you think would be helpful!!! Glad y'all had a great trip!!

[nidaco]

Hello,

So glad you enjoyed your trip. We're booked for the July 10,2016 cruise on the Serenade. We plan to arrive a few days early to enjoy Stockholm. Would you recommend any place to stay there?

 

This will be my children's first trip to Europe? Although this is port intensive itinerary, were there many children onboard? My children will be 16 and 11 at time of sailing.

 

We plan on late dining( 8:00 PM). Hopefully, we'll be able to stay onshore longer that way.

 

What would you do again or not do again? Did you book your excursions on the ship or independently?

 

Any advice or tips would be greatly appreciated.

[balanceok]

Thanks for posting. We would be interested in your port activities and any recommendations there.

 

Thanks.

[cruisenfever]

Lunch we always did in the WJ or on land. This is my beef with this ship. The options for lunch are so limited. It's pretty much either room service, WJ, or Rita's. That's it. WJ pretty much rolled with very similar dishes all week so that was annoying as well. Port days the MDR is closed for lunch and we only had 1 day at sea. So, very limited.

Didn't you also have the Park Cafe for lunch?

Edited July 28, 2015 by cruisenfever

[Moltar]

Didn't you also have the Park Cafe for lunch?

 

 

Which had everything the Windjammer had to offer for the most part. The roast beef was different from the WJ.

Edited July 28, 2015 by Moltar

[Moltar]

Thanks for posting. We would be interested in your port activities and any recommendations there.

 

Thanks.

 

 

Will do. I'm uploading the pics to photobucket and I would like to re-do my review with mroe detail and pics included.

[Moltar]

Hello,

So glad you enjoyed your trip. We're booked for the July 10,2016 cruise on the Serenade. We plan to arrive a few days early to enjoy Stockholm. Would you recommend any place to stay there?

 

This will be my children's first trip to Europe? Although this is port intensive itinerary, were there many children onboard? My children will be 16 and 11 at time of sailing.

 

We plan on late dining( 8:00 PM). Hopefully, we'll be able to stay onshore longer that way.

 

What would you do again or not do again? Did you book your excursions on the ship or independently?

 

Any advice or tips would be greatly appreciated.

 

 

Saw quite a few teens on board. I'm going to re-do my review in more detail with pics for you all. Uploading to Photobucket now. I thought I would bore you guy with port pictures if you will and excursions.

[Moltar]

Thanks so much for your great review! We are doing the same itinerary next July, & I am very excited to start planning! We have never been to Europe, so I am feeling a bit overwhelmed (but in a good way, if that makes sense) ��. Would love any advice/tips you can give that you think would be helpful!!! Glad y'all had a great trip!!

 

 

I'm hooked on Europe for cruising. I think you will love it. Stay tuned for my review version 2.0. I am uploading pics to photobucket now and I will go into detail if I can on the ports. If ya'll dont mind :)

Edited July 28, 2015 by Moltar

[mek]

Thanks for the review. I booked Serenade for a 10 night Caribbean cruise next March. It's been a long time since I've been on one of the smaller ships and it's nice to hear from folks who have recently sailed on them - especially Serenade.

 

One question - the outdoor movie screen appears to be lower and not as high as on some ships. Did you notice that or is it just the way it appears in photos?

[sunsetship]

I would love a copy of the Daily Compass for the above as I plan to do this cruise at the end of May and this would really help with my planning.

[bbfgator]

Thanks for posting and looking forward to your more detailed review :)

[Langley Cruisers]

I'm pretty sure I already know the answer, but what did you think about the cigarette smoke issue? Last we were on her, the smoke from the casino was terrible, drifting out into the Centrum and up several decks. My eyes were stinging by the end of the cruise, unfortunately. Is there any chance this has improved? :confused:

.

[jerryb48]

Just wondering if Rccl has put steak back on the daily menu in the dinning room without having to pay extra for it?

[Clarea]

Just wondering if Rccl has put steak back on the daily menu in the dinning room without having to pay extra for it?

There is a "free" steak on the menu every night in the Main Dining Room. However, I've not had real good luck with it.

[kalliekae]

Glad you enjoyed your cruise. We have also done this cruise and it is one of our all-time favorites. Will look forward to your more in-depth review and pictures. I hope you include your observations of the ports, too.

[maggieq]

Please see post #2. Thanks!

[WouterC]

Hi,

 

I'd love to see the compasses if you could post them somewhere or e-mail them.

 

Questions:

- did you have the option to do a late departure on the final day?

- did RC provide shuttle buses (just the transfers, not the excursions) in certain ports?

 

Thank you!

 

If anyone has any questions please ask. JUst some thoughts I'd like to share.

 

 

Ports: Stockholm, Sweden : Helsinki, Finland : St Petersburg, Russia : Talin, Estonia : Riga, Latvia

 

Room: Junior Suite 1086 - I booked a D1 Balcony on Deck 9 but got a automatic upgrade 2 weeks or so prior to the cruise.

The room was spacious with plenty of room for my 19 month to run around. Big balcony, full size tub and different shower amenities.

 

Do not get a room anywhere on the 10 floor near the Windjammer indoor areas. The grinding noise throughout the day was annoying to say the least. You should have heard disembarkation morning. The worst.

 

Room attendant was good at his core job but had no real personality or knew the little things to make one feel special. But he was always nice, smiling and did his job great. Just wished he had some personality if you will.

 

 

Food: We did My Time Dining at 7:30 in the MDR every night. Worked like a charm and we got seated 5 out of the 7 nights with one of the best waitress's ever. Katrina from Trinidad & Tobago.

 

I was so grateful for her. After the first dinner, She would always see us before we saw her coming to sit in her area by the host and she was already in the back getting our 19 month a fruit salad and mac n cheese, or chicken tenders etc... On top of just great enthusiasm and really making us feel like we were at the Ritz. I already miss her.

 

The food was stellar in the MDR. Absolutely stellar. I ordered Escargot every night on top of additional starters and usually 2 mains. The desserts were great as well.

 

Lunch we always did in the WJ or on land. This is my beef with this ship. The options for lunch are so limited. It's pretty much either room service, WJ, or Rita's. That's it. WJ pretty much rolled with very similar dishes all week so that was annoying as well. Port days the MDR is closed for lunch and we only had 1 day at sea. So, very limited.

 

 

Shows: Saw none.

 

 

Casino: I love the casino on any RCCL ship :) my game is craps and I always meet a few friends for the week while playing. I started with 100 dollars on day one and never lost it, walked away with 600 at the end of the week. This one dealer who was female, was really on top of the game, she always had my back for bets if I forgot and just knew the game great. I took care of her. Met some guys from Brooklyn and Texas and we were tight all week, drinking a few beers every night together and winning money together on the table.

 

 

Movies: Didn't see any but they had good ones playing in the cinema and outdoor screen. Divergent part 2, Avengers, a few others I can't think of.

 

 

Ship: Overall we were happy with it. Only real thing that bothered me was our room location with the noise.

 

 

Are we still loyal to Royal? Yes. We booked while onboard a 13 Night Portugal, Morocco & Canary Island cruise on the Navigator in October 2016.

 

 

P.S. I have the Daily Compass from all 7 days if anyone needs info.

 

 

Any questions?

[canadakath]

I'm pretty sure I already know the answer, but what did you think about the cigarette smoke issue? Last we were on her, the smoke from the casino was terrible, drifting out into the Centrum and up several decks. My eyes were stinging by the end of the cruise, unfortunately. Is there any chance this has improved? :confused:

.

 

Hopefully Moltar doesn't mind if I jump in here. We were on the same cruise (nice to meet you at the M&M by the way!)

 

My husband and I spent a fair bit of time at the pub and walked through the casino to get to it. There was very little smoke in the casino, but that is probably only because there were very few people! Maybe it got busier later at night. The one side that is non-smoking was totally fine, and the side with smoking (where the cashier's desk is) was better than what I experienced on the Ruby Princess last year.

 

What we did have an issue with was smoke smell on our balcony. We had a family a few doors down from us who got in trouble for smoking on the balcony but I don't think it stopped them. I find this more prevalent on the two European cruises we've done.

[canadakath]

Hi,

 

I'd love to see the compasses if you could post them somewhere or e-mail them.

 

Questions:

- did you have the option to do a late departure on the final day?

- did RC provide shuttle buses (just the transfers, not the excursions) in certain ports?

 

Thank you!

 

We ALL had late departure on the final day since we didn't dock until almost 9:00! High winds and bad fog made it a slow journey to Stockholm. Just a warning to anyone who thinks they can get away with an early flight out of Stockholm! We made our 11:15 since we walked off with our own luggage but it was a stressful start to a long day.

 

Shuttle buses at Helsinki and Riga for sure, maybe Tallinn? All had a cost (Riga being so expensive we decided to just do a shore excursion). I will check when I get home and add this info to my trip report which I hope to do this weekend.

[canadakath]

We are taking this cruise very soon

Any info on taxis to cruiseport. Ports of call or disembarkation

 

Thanks!

 

We took a Taxi Stockholm cab from our hotel (Radisson Blu at the Central Station) to Frihammen. Cost of about 220 SEK, paid by credit card. we had taken the Arlanda Express train from the airprt to Central Station the day before at the summer special price of 300 SEK for two people (and kids were free).

 

Taxi from Frihammen to Arlanda airport on disembarkation - here we weren't picky about what cab we used, got set price of 600 SEK + 20 for airport fee (we were stressed and rushed - see docking issues I mentioned above) and had no desire to haggle. Driver was great and we were at the airport in half an hour.

 

We used public transport in Helsinki, a private tour in SPB, walked in Tallinn, and did the ship's shore excursion in Riga after seeing the price of the shuttle. You could stay in Riga longer than the tour and take one of the shuttles back with your shore excursion sticker. This was a great option for us.

 

If I don't get to my trip report before you leave, feel free to send more questions.

[Langley Cruisers]

Hopefully Moltar doesn't mind if I jump in here....

 

Thank you for the reply. Our last venture on Serenade, and on Explorer and Jewel as well, the smoke was really thick and not properly filtered out of the casino. Since the smoking ban on balconies came to be, I feel the casinos are smokier than ever. *shrug* We have had smokers on nearby balconies on every cruise we've ever been on, ban or no ban. Oh well. :rolleyes:

[jerryb48]

Thanks for replying so soon.

JerryB

[funnel]

We took a Taxi Stockholm cab from our hotel (Radisson Blu at the Central Station) to Frihammen. Cost of about 220 SEK, paid by credit card. we had taken the Arlanda Express train from the airprt to Central Station the day before at the summer special price of 300 SEK for two people (and kids were free).

 

Taxi from Frihammen to Arlanda airport on disembarkation - here we weren't picky about what cab we used, got set price of 600 SEK + 20 for airport fee (we were stressed and rushed - see docking issues I mentioned above) and had no desire to haggle. Driver was great and we were at the airport in half an hour.

 

We used public transport in Helsinki, a private tour in SPB, walked in Tallinn, and did the ship's shore excursion in Riga after seeing the price of the shuttle. You could stay in Riga longer than the tour and take one of the shuttles back with your shore excursion sticker. This was a great option for us.

 

If I don't get to my trip report before you leave, feel free to send more questions.

 

Make sure to check the taxi price before you take a taxi in Stockholm.

The taxi market is unregulated and sadly there have been a lot of rip-offs the last years (extremely over-priced taxi trips).

It has not happened to me (yet) but I usually take my car to Stockholm, and the subway while I'm there.

 

The price above seems to be fair.

 

Click on this link and then "Taxi" to get some more information:

http://www.visitstockholm.com/en/Good-to-know/Getting-around/

 

/Erik