Ocean Dancer is sailing on Anthem 3/7/16

[Ocean Dancer]

First, I want to thank everyone on the boards who helped me with all my questions. Anthem is totally new to us and all your help has been much appreciated.

 

We have approx. 30 plus cruises under our belt on all different lines, but are one day away from Emerald with Rccl, so we are pretty much in the middle of the pack........no diamond lounge:confused:

 

Many of you have asked me to "tell you all about it" when we return. I am looking forward to doing just that. I will be disconnected until we return home. Many on this sailing will most likely provide you with a live update which I won't see. I will take notes about "our" cruise, and post a review on my experiences when we get back.

 

We have positive additude, love the rocking of the ship and have the drink package!!!;)

 

I am very excited and happy to be able to sail at this time. I just lost my mother of 93 years in mid January, and have been her care giver along with Hospice for the past year which has been very hard on our entire family. DH and I really need to de stress and start another chapter in our lives. We are looking to go forward with the rest of our lives starting with this cruise.

 

Again thank you all for your support. We are 99% packed, luggage waiting to go in the car and we will be leaving tomorrow morning (Monday 3/7/16)

 

"Tell you all about it when we get home":D

[gerif]

Have an amazing trip.

[akcruz]

Have a wonderful trip. Will be looking forward to your, along with many others I am sure, thoughts on your sailing.

 

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[Turtles06]

I am very sorry about your mother.

 

I hope you have a wonderful, fun, and relaxing trip. Anthem is stunningly beautiful and an amazing ship. Enjoy!

[Nhsaltshaker]

Hope you have a wonderful and relaxing cruise. Looking forward to your views when you get home.

[fishbonz]

Good Trip let us know what you think of the ship.

[undercat]

My condolences on the loss of your mother.

 

Have a great trip!

[Ocean Dancer]

As promised, here are my thoughts and experiences onboard the Anthem of the Seas sailing 3/7/16 to Western Caribbean. I have been off line and have not read anyone else's experiences.

 

Embarkation........I sailed with my DH and his solo brother who had his own cabin. For DH and I this was our 35 ? something cruise on all different lines. We are Emerald, in our mid 60’s and lead an active life.

 

We drove up to Bayonne arriving about 10:00 am several hours before our scheduled arrival time. DH dropped me off with all our luggage by the main doors, then went to park the car. The porter quickly tagged our check in luggage and off it went. I waited with our carryon's for about 10 minutes until the guys showed up. We entered the building and were approached by a check in gal who took our picture, ( I was worried about that) then sent us to security. Security asked me if I was carrying wine which I answered yes. He told me to have a wonderful cruise and find a seat. About 45 minutes later we boarded the ship.

 

The windjammer was overly crowded and took forever to find a table. After circling the massive room several times, we just parked at a pole as we saw a table almost finished and grabbed that. By the way, the Windjammer was always over crowded and this was repeated each day. And yes, you must wash your hands upon entrance.

 

The cabins were ready by 1:00 pm so we dropped off our carryon's, met our wonderful room steward Walton who took excellent care of us. We had a guar/bal #6208 , the one where I taped a hummingbird to our door. It was obstructed by a life boat. I was quite impressed as you could look over the boat and see, but not from sitting down. This cabin was actually cheaper than an O/V and very glad we took it. We used the balcony mainly at night watching the moon and enjoying our wine. It was also nice to feel the breeze and know what to wear that morning. The balcony's were very private. The bed was very comfortable, and I actually had to check too see if it was a true queen, or twins put together. We never felt that LINE in the middle. And yes, all our empty luggage fit nicely under the bed. Our cabin was also a connecting cabin which I was worried about as we’ve had them before. We never heard our neighbors..........all was well!

 

That night we ate in American Icon. I had in my mind that it would be an upscale diner, but was very surprised.

 

That evening upon returning to our cabin there was no Cruise Critic invitation. DH and I went down to Guest Services about 12:30 am to a very short line to inquire about it. We were told that no invitations were sent out, we all had to ask, and the meeting was in the Music Hall at 10:30 am.

 

First Sea Day

 

After another crowded Windjammer breakfast, we arrived at the Music Hall for our CC party at 10:35. The room was almost empty. Very weird! I approached a few couples just sitting and asked them if they were here for the the CC party. I got looks of confusion, this was an International crowd. We checked the balcony, and the same.....no CC party. We went back to Guest Services but the line was like Disney World.

 

I/we really wanted to have the pleasure of meeting you, but our invite was lost in the mail, and the air head at the front desk made me feel as if it was my fault ..............YES I signed up!! I was told that the CC party WAS at 10:30 in the Music Hall by a different air head.

 

We saw We Will Rock You that afternoon which was fantastic.

 

Dinner was in Grande. The dress code was a joke. It is already dummied down! What a shame! 25% was polo's and sneakers! We ate there four times and each time the percentage of casualness increased.

 

Airheads worked here too. Service was the worst out of all the free restaurants. We had to send back our Moscato wine FOUR times on ALL the times we ate there, as it was NOT Moscato. I was not given a menu on two occasions, we had to wait and wait for bread and water, but finally did have two lobster tails. Always order two if you want lobster........trust me.

 

Sea Days

 

Are my favorite! We relaxed in the Solarium, explored the ship, met our favorite bartender, Lawrence in the Schooner Bar, and played some trivia and took a North Star ride.........fantastic!! We found out later in the cruise that Lawrence was being transferred to the Harmony in Germany............many of the best were on the transfer list.

 

The first $10.00 watch sale was full of butters who thought they were privileged. It turned into a zoo. I did say something and was given the finger and told to go to H*LL. Many passengers of certain cultures were very rude and obnoxious.

 

We ate in Chic that night. Service was excellent and we only had to send our wine back once. They catered to us and talked to us like family. Chic should have been the formal one.

 

Labadee

 

is Labadee. We took the shuttle but the driver would NOT drop us off at Columbus Cove. Hint.......tell him your children are there or something. We did not think of that at the time. We were dropped off about half mile down.............very convenient to a bar, restrooms, lunch, shade, but the water floor was rocky. This is what I wanted to avoid. All in all, we were very happy to be on a beach and in the water in early March!

 

Jamaica

 

We did a Day at Dolphin Cove. This tour was very unorganized. We were pretty much set free to do what we wanted. It included a coffee tasting.........no one was there. It included a rum tasting.........no one was there. Our pictures were taken, but no one told us where to see/buy them. We pretty much grabbed a lounger in the shade and waited for the tour to end.

 

Grand Cayman

 

We took a Sunken ship and Snorkel tour by Nation Geo. It was amazing!! The boat and water were quite bouncy but if you want a great snorkel experience, this is it. We viewed a sub rescue boat that was sunk on purpose for a reef. I felt as if I was in a doctor’s office aquarium at both stops. A bit of gossip..........Carnival was going to build their own 3 million dollar pier, thus destroying much of the natural reefs, but backed out. Please don’t complain about this port being tendered. I personally want to save the reefs and also feel that tendering is part of the cruise experience.

 

Casa Maya

 

No tour planned, so we slept in a bit and started the long walk to the port. I made it to where the shuttles were and felt ill. DH and BIL went into port while I returned to my cabin. After several hours the guys returned and DH called Medical for me. I was coughing to the point of dry heaves, starting to loose my bowls and felt very sick.

 

Medical sent up a wheel chair, my temp was 103.........they hooked me up to IV’s.........drew blood and tested my urine. I was tested for Legionnaire's , but the “N” word............noro was never mentioned. They said I probably had the Flu and had to return to Medical twice a day for three days to get aspirated. I was never quarantined, but choose to stay in my cabin for three days. DH brought me jello and watermelon.

 

Honduras

 

We cancelled our zipline tour. The guys walked around and were told it was not safe to leave the area alone.

 

Cozumel

 

BIL went on a ruins tour , but we had to again cancel. BIL had an enjoyable time and we are awaiting to see his pictures.

 

Final Sea Days

 

I was starting to feel better, no fever, but they were still making me cough. I tried to be very discreet. I had my first real meal in three days and had my appetite back.

 

I may not know you, but many will know of me. I was the female captain in the purple/orange/white long dress in team #3 in Quest. I had a lot of fun, and thank you all who contributed their pants, teeth and bras!!! No, we did not win, but a very fun time for me.

 

We did the I FLY and had an amazing time!!

 

We saw The Gift and really enjoyed it. Many had said that they did not get it. I understand that.

 

We did the puzzle room and had a great group. We all shared our input and finished in 49 minutes. I hear that was a very good time. It was very hard.

 

Bumper cars was fun also, We felt as if we were down the beach and twelve again!!

 

270 was amazing, but not enough seating. The Music Hall also could be a larger venue. The bartender in the Music Hall balcony bar knew what Moscato wine was and always gave us a nice pour!!

 

Debarkation

 

was a breeze. I liked the silence and not tripping over people hanging in the hallways. This was very organized and hope it will be implemented on all the ships. By the time we finished breakfast, our number had been called, so we made our way off the ship and easily found our luggage. A porter was very easy to get and he took us all the way to our car. We tipped him well, he deserved it.

 

Final thoughts

 

Will I sail the Anthem again? YES, in a heartbeat!! She was one of the smoothest cruises we had ever been on and the weather was fantastic.

 

With the exception of a few airheads in Guest relations and The Grande, the crew was amazing. A shout out to the Medical Dept for taking very good care of me!! Even loved the Captain’s sense of humor. We rode the elevator with him and he asked us for $5.00 to get off! Abe the CD has the perfect job for his personality. And this Ocean Dancer could NOT wear most of my shoes because of swollen feet, but DH and I did have the opportunity to dance with some of the dancers.

 

I now have to settle my mother’s affairs. We needed this vacation after the past year of being a care giver. Thank you all who contributed to our enjoyment, even if it was a smile.

 

Ocean Dancer:)

[Clarea]

Condolences, and thanks again for sharing your experience.

[akcruz]

Wow, sorry you didn't feel well for part of your cruise, but glad you enjoyed the rest of the time. Thanks for coming back and sharing your thoughts.

 

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