Anthem of the Seas: A not-so-live Review: Feb 6, 2016

[starryuk]

Thankyou for your wonderfully detailed report. I love your writing style and am on tenterhooks waiting to see what happened next!

[sg1phileshipper]

Thank you so much for sharing your experience. Very detailed and straight to the point.

Cindy

 

 

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[NOSaints1]

So you must've been sad when they traded Phaneuf I just live in Hamilton.

 

 

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[happy cruiser1234]

Loving your well written review and awesome pictures!:)

[Clarea]

 

Shortly after 3:00pm, as I was finishing my drink, the captain made an announcement asking everyone to go back to their cabins immediately and stay there! ...

Wow, scary events. Even tougher being solo.

[LuckiStac13*Majesty*]

So intense, what you went through!!! Thanks for sharing.

[NOSaints1]

Other than the unfortunate events how was the Anthem? Can't decide between flying an hour to NJ for the Anthem or flying to FL and taking anyone of the Oasis class

 

 

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[Clarea]

Other than the unfortunate events how was the Anthem? Can't decide between flying an hour to NJ for the Anthem or flying to FL and taking anyone of the Oasis class

I vote for Florida. :) Why not be warm as soon as you get off the plane.

[pbnjrockette]

Other than the unfortunate events how was the Anthem? Can't decide between flying an hour to NJ for the Anthem or flying to FL and taking anyone of the Oasis class

 

 

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I live in NJ... fly to Florida!!!

[TravelerThom]

...Can't decide between flying an hour to NJ for the Anthem or flying to FL and taking anyone of the Oasis class...

IF you are flying anyway, IMO absolutely fly to FL. No cold days getting to and from warmer weather, and a much wider range of less expensive cruises. I can think of only two reasons to take Anthem: 1) experience Q-class and 2) not having to fly IF you are already in NY area. Since you are flying anyway, unless experiencing Q class is really important to you, seems like a no-brainer. Even then, flying to do it during the winter makes no sense whatsoever.

[cpufrost]

Great review and write-up!

Waiting for more!

 

This is like popping a sheet of bubble wrap, when all the bubbles have popped you're looking for more! :D

[LuCruise]

Wow...this is really something. Thank you for creating the report as it gives us an idea first hand. Must have been so scary for you being in your cabin alone. It's great to hear that Royal did what they could to make you comfortable with announcements, free movies and bringing you snacks when they could. What an experience you all went through and thank gd everyone is ok.

[Peeker28]

Going on anthem in June, how did you get from the airport to the hotel?

[Peeker28]

Did you eat at Johnny rockets, if yes how was it?

[NOSaints1]

We would be flying from YYZ to EWR and leaving April 2017 as the weather in Canada is not as cold as travelling in Jan/Feb don't have to worry about snow delays.

 

 

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[Newbcruiser1]

Going on anthem in June, how did you get from the airport to the hotel? Did you eat at Johnny rockets, if yes how was it?

The Country Inn has a free shuttle that runs every 30 minutes from the "P4" stop on the airtrain (on airport property). See my post on page 1 of this thread - post #3 for details.

 

I did eat at Johnny Rockets - it's a cruise tradition for me. More info to come!

[Newbcruiser1]

Other than the unfortunate events how was the Anthem? Can't decide between flying an hour to NJ for the Anthem or flying to FL and taking anyone of the Oasis class

 

 

I have to admit as someone who lives in Toronto, I have to disagree with some of the other posters' feelings about flying to FL being better. Of my 10 cruises, 3 of them were round-trip from Cape Liberty (2 in the winter and 1 in the summer) and 1 was a repositioning from San Juan ending in Cape Liberty (in April). The remainder were Caribbean, with one being Alaska.

 

The reasons I chose to cruise out of NJ in those instances were the following:

 

1. Airline costs are often significantly cheaper to EWR - instead of paying $500 to fly to FLL or MIA, most of my tickets have been in the $250 range.

 

2. I have actually taken a chance and flown in on the day of cruise to EWR (in the summer, on the first flight of the day, which I booked through the cruise line). Because the flight is so short and they run so frequently, I sometimes feel "okay" about doing that.

 

3. I love sea days, and leaving from NJ, you get more of them!

 

4. The itineraries out of NJ tend to be more varied (including Bermuda!) and longer - my other RT cruises from there have been 9-10 nights.

 

5. In this case, I was just itching to try a Quantum-Class ship, having already been on most of the other classes (Radiance-class, Adventure-Class, Freedom-class, and Oasis-Class). I was also quite excited about the indoor glassed in areas that could be used during the cold weather - the indoor pool, solarium, Two70, seaplex, etc. I admit I'm not the sun-worshipping type, and my body doesn't tolerate high heat very well, so I was happy to pick a cruise where the weather wouldn't be as hot.

 

6. Ports - I have been to the majority of the "typical" Eastern and Western Caribbean ports and was looking for something new. While the 7-night PC and Bahamas itinerary wasn't the most appealing to me, it had some aspects that I was excited about. I have been to Orlando several times on land trips, and to the Bahamas on land trips, I was excited to have the opportunity to visit Disney World for the day while in Port Canaveral, and planned on staying onboard in Nassau and enjoying the less-crowded ship.

 

So... Having said all of that. If I were in your shoes, I would look at the following:

 

1. Overall cost in flying, hotel stay pre-cruise if applicable, and cruise cost of the Anthem versus one of the FL-based ships (Allure? Oasis?).

 

2. Have you been on an Oasis-class ship before? I loved it. I can't say which ship I loved better between Anthem and Allure as they are quite different, and neither really has the "traditional" Royal Caribbean feel where the shows, dining, etc are the same all the time (which is a refreshing change for me). So you really can't go wrong with either ship in my opinion, particularly if you're new to both classes.

 

3. Itinerary - Is there a specific port that you're itching to go to? I assume the Anthem cruise is to Bermuda in April? I've been to Bermuda on 2 cruises and LOVE it. Just be aware its not THAT warm yet in April, and the water will be cool. If the itinerary you're looking at is a longer one to both Bermuda and the Caribbean, GO FOR IT! Did that itinerary on the Explorer and LOVED it. And if it's the same itinerary that I just did... err... was supposed to do, look at how you would use the time in port and whether the ports are even important to you.

 

I don't think you can go wrong with either option! Just pick your priorities (cost versus itinerary versus ship) and go from there! But I wouldn't hesitate to cruise out of NY/NJ again and again! Much closer for us than going to FL, and more transportation options.

 

[Newbcruiser1]

Booked for Oct but with last weeks events reality set it on what cruising to Bermuda during Hurricane season could be so really not sure I want to go. May change it to June.

 

I think June is a wiser choice, not only due to hurricane season, but the weather in Bermuda will likely be warmer in June. I have visited Bermuda in June and it was perfect beach and touring weather. I was also there in April on the repositioning cruise and while it was a little bit cooler (needed a light sweater most of the time), I still enjoyed touring. Although it wasn't beach weather. I imagine October would be similar to April.

[20pluscruises]

Newb,

 

Thank you!

 

I can't imagine being alone in the cabin during the storm. :eek:

[Newbcruiser1]

Day 3: A Brand New Day! Port Canaveral-turned-Sea Day

 

I woke up bright and early after 5 hours of broken sleep and took my sweet time showering and getting ready for the day. The first captain's announcement for the day was that we continued on our way to Port Canaveral as planned - there was nothing about our estimated arrival time or anything like that. I noticed on the TV channel showing the esplanade that many passengers were out and about. There was no cruise compass yet for the day, and I was unsure of what was operating as usual and what wasn't, but based on the cameras around the ship, it looked like it was "business as usual". I also noted that the ship was only moving at about 10kts - half-speed, and it occurred to me that we likely would not be arriving in Port Canaveral today. I thought it may just get postponed a day, and that Nassau may be cancelled to make up for the last day. It turned out I was very wrong!

 

My iMessage had previously been working on my phone on embarkation day through what appeared to be a hole in the ship's wifi; however, this stopped working when I turned my phone off for the first night. I knew my family at home was following some of the "live" threads on CC, although I wasn't sure what had actually been posted on them. Nonetheless, I attempted to send a text-message to my family to let them know there had been a storm but that I was okay; however, I could not get it to go through on the Cellular at Sea network. I was deeply contemplating signing up for internet, at a cost of $15USD for one device per day, but this would have to be purchased for the remainder of the cruise. I decided to leave it be for the time being.

 

On my way to the stairs, I noticed that the emergency floor lighting was on in the hallway. I have never seen this on during any other cruises. It actually remained on for most of the next few days. I wondered if the crew were anticipating a potential loss of power.

 

 

I eventually made my way down to Two70 around 10:30 for breakfast - they were up and running normally there. They have a nice bagel bar, so I had a bagel with lox and cream cheese with all the fixings (capers, red onions, etc).

 

 

It was still choppy outside but was significantly calmer than the day before!

 

 

Shortly after I sat down, I realized that I suddenly had internet access. This was also when I learned that the ship had made the news... as a result, I had plenty of e-mails and messages from family asking if I was okay.

Around noon, Abe announced that there would be free internet for the rest of the cruise. This was greatly appreciated so I could stay in touch with my family at home and let them know I was okay (and boy were they happy to hear from me!).

 

On my way through the Esplanade, I stopped by the Shore Excursions area and asked a crew member, "we're not getting to Port Canaveral today, are we?". He replied with "the ship is sailing at half speed while they make conference calls and figure out what to do. If we do get there, it definitely won't be on time.". I was pretty bummed about not making it to Disney, but was still holding out hope that we would in-fact get there the following day.

 

At some point during the mid-day, it was announced that the ship would be turning around and sailing back north to NJ as there was another storm forming off the west coast of Florida that would move eastward and hit us again on our way to Cape Canaveral if we proceeded. The captain said he was sensitive to what the guests and crew had already encountered, did not want to put anyone through that again. He said that he would be back later with an approximate arrival time. He also mentioned that guests would be receiving a full refund for this sailing, and 50% off the cruise fare paid for this cruise on a future cruise.

 

In the early evening, Captain Claus made an announcement saying that our arrival time would be 6am on Wednesday. This is when I started scrambling trying to get my family at home to call my insurance company to see what action I should take and what would be covered in terms of flights home or stays in NJ/NY. Turns out the insurance I used for this trip would only cover a 1-way economy fare flight home - no hotels or anything. So I would be forced to fly out the same day.

 

I had actually considered, and spent most of the day researching, other options to use the rest of my vacation time. I thought about flying one-way from Newark to Orlando and spending a few days at Disney before flying directly home, I considered flying from Newark to the Bahamas for a few days, and I even looked at some all-inclusive resorts in the Caribbean. My family at home was searching for deals for me as well. Ultimately, everything was way too expensive ($800 one-way flights from EWR to MCO! :eek:) and I could not justify the cost.

[cruisegal11]

OP--I was totally riveted reading your account of "that night." Nice job! This event won't stop me from cruising because I love it so much. But, I will definitely take extra seasickness meds with me from now on. Can't wait to continue reading.. THANKS!!

[cincicruisers]

Great details of your cruise. Looking forward to the rest.

[Newbcruiser1]

There was no cruise compass available for the day yet, but they made frequent announcements about the happenings on the ship. They had character appearances, trivia every hour, line dancing classes, bumper cars, and more. There was also an announcement made about a free open-bar from 1-2pm so I got my butt upstairs!

 

The ceiling in part of the deck 14 elevator lobby near the Windjammer and Johnny Rockets had collapsed, and the crew was hard at work repairing it.

 

 

 

I first walked by the indoor pool bar which looked like a mob scene, so I headed to the bar at the outdoor pool and it was much more civilized. I ordered my usual - a Miami Vice. This time WITH alcohol as I needed it to help soften the blow of the cancelled cruise. There was plenty of help from supervisors behind the bar:

 

 

I sat outside while drinking, where the temperature was around 18 degrees Celsius and somewhat windy, and chatted with one of the performers from Spectra's Cabaret who told me that his contract was ending following that cruise, and he did not know when he would be leaving for home now.

 

I eventually ended up exploring the top decks where I realized that there was quite a bit of broken glass and broken deck furniture. The crew had already done a fantastic job cleaning up. There was no glass to be seen, and all of the broken furniture and pieces of satellite equipment were in a couple piles on deck.

 

I believe this is the Suite Sun Deck - notice the broken/missing glass panels all around the front:

 

 

 

The pools were all drained and would remain that way for the remainder of the cruise as the crew swept the debris out. Also notice the missing satellite dome on the left side:

 

 

What a difference a day makes...

 

[Newbcruiser1]

 

Note the trash piles on deck:

 

 

A walk around Deck 15 revealed that Gigi's neck had a hole in it - Poor Gigi!

 

 

She was still smiling though!

 

 

She was quite happy to see the sun shining after almost losing her head in the storm!

 

 

 

The window beside Gigi leading into the SeaPlex was also shattered, and there was a large metal piece of satellite equipment resting on the deck and wrapped in caution tape just in front of Gigi.

 

 

 

There were also some broken railing panels on the promenade deck which were roped off.

 

 

 

Elevators were also only sparsely working throughout the day - there were 2 out of 6 elevators running in the forward bank on day 3, although all were back up and running at the end of the cruise. I made an effort to take the stairs as often as possible so that those with mobility devices and strollers could get on the elevators - there was quite the backlog at times.

 

 

[csnarpy]

Wow, seriously the best review I've read. It was like a book, it kept me wanting more! Also, great photos!

 

Thanks for all of this!

Edited February 14, 2016 by csnarpy