Sovereign Of The Seas Review

[cruzzers]

We sailed on SOS on Nov. 14, 2005 after rebooking from the Oct cruise that was delayed by Hurricane Wilma. We are really glad we held out for nicer weather and calmer seas. I have to say that RCCL was very nice about rebooking this cruise for us and we were very impressed with their customer service. This was our first cruise with Royal Caribbean and hopefully not our last.

We stayed one night pre-cruise at the Best Western Cocoa Beach and thought the hotel was very nice.

We were shuttled to Port Canaveral around noon the day of departure with 3 other couples from our hotel. The check-in was the most efficient we have ever experienced with any cruise line. It took about 10 minutes to go through the entire process and make our way to the buffet for lunch. Our room was ready by 1:00 PM and luggage was waiting by the main hallway close by. We took a few minutes to unpack and press our dinner clothes and headed back out to explore the ship. After muster drill, we met up with a few other couples that we had been talking with from the CC threads in the Viking Crown Lounge. This was a wonderful place to meet and have a drink with a beautiful view of the ocean. Since we had an early dinner seating, we only had one drink before we were off to change and head to dinner.

We were in an inside room on Deck 5, which was one of the smallest I have ever seen but we managed and found it to be adequate for our needs. We had a wonderful Cabin Steward who managed to keep us organized and entertained with cute towel animals every day. We decided to tune the TV in to the deck camera and found leaving it on all the time made it easier not to have a window. We even left it on at night so we could see when the sun came up and what kind of weather we had.

We had the early seating for dinner with a total of 8 of us at the table. We enjoyed our tablemates and had nice conversations every night. The food was very good, with a variety to make every one happy. The service was wonderful and we were in and out of the dining room each night without a glitch.

We ate most of our other meals in the buffet area and found it to be pretty good, with a nice variety of foods and deserts.

Cocoa Cay was our fist stop and it is a beautiful private island. We really didn’t do much but walk the beach and bask in the sun. It was a great place to people watch and enjoy the beautiful water and beach. There was a very nice BBQ buffet provided for lunch.

Nassau, Bahamas was very enjoyable. We departed the ship and went directly to find a taxi and headed over the bridge to Atlantis on Paradise Island. (The taxi was $4 PP) After walking through the beautiful casino and viewing part of the aquarium, we decided to purchase a pass for $29PP to get access to the grounds of Atlantis. We were so glad we got the pass because the grounds were beautiful and there were many more aquarium tanks to view. With the pass, you are given a bracelet that allows you to enter all areas of Atlantis and see all the sites on that property. This would be one of the most beautiful places we have ever visited and we would spend the whole day there next time. Since this was our first trip to Nassau, we wanted to see more so we viewed Atlantis in the morning, and returned back to the ship to eat lunch and put on swimsuits so we could visit Cable Beach in the afternoon. After lunch we were off in search of the city bus that would transport us to the Cable Beach area. We walked a few blocks downtown and after a few directions from locals, we found the 10A bus to the Cable Beach area. Bus fare is $1 PP. This was a good way to see other parts of Nassau and we got off the bus at the Radisson Hotel on Cable Beach. We spent a couple of hours there before returning by bus back to the downtown area.

Our next day was a nice relaxing day at sea and the water was very calm and the wind was barely blowing. It was a great day for relaxing around the pool and catching some sunrays.

Entertainment on this cruise was very good. We attended both production shows and as many other activities as we could fit into our schedules. The ship was in good shape for its age and the crew and staff went out of their way to make us happy. For the price, I would say this is an excellent cruise for all ages and would do it again. :o

[smokester]

Glad you had a great time. Will be taking this cruise in May. On Cococay, do they have an area where you can purchase nit-nacks? My son collects those wood carved sticks from the different countries & just wondering if I can pick him up one there. This will be a couples only cruise for us, so I have to be sure & bring the kids something back!!:D

[Mabers]

Sounds like you had a great time! I know what you mean tho' about the size of the inside cabins!Totally inadequate! We were on Deck 5 in March and are doing a family cruise over Xmas.....guess what? We are in the same exact cabin!!!!! I hate the lack of space, but for what it costs, what can you say? And price was of the essence for everybody else. We were on NCL to Alaska in August and had an inside cabin (192 sq. ft.).....it was fabulous! If this cruise had not already been booked, I think I would have had 2nd thoughts. Everything else was great tho' on the Sovereign, and I am looking forward to all the Xmas decorations and the wonderful music in The Atrium, as well as all being together.

M.

[1corona4u]

Glad you had a great time. Thanks for the review. I will be on the SOS in the next 2 months, and now I'm glad we got the GS, LOL. 2 kids in tow, so I think we will need the space. This cruise will make me Platinum too, so I like that...:)

 

Looking forward to my friends kids first cruise....they will love it, I'm sure.

[1corona4u]

Hmm...that's weird...post did not show up, now it is....sorry, doubled the post.

[cruzzers]

1corona4u....The kids seemed to be really having a great time on our cruise. They even did a little skit for us one night before the production show. It was really fun to watch and they put alot into it.

 

Smokester....There is a little straw market type area on Cocoa Cay. They seemed to have a good variety of just about anything you would want to buy. If not, I am sure you will find it at the larger straw market in downtown Nassau. We are not big shoppers so we really didn't pay much attention to all the goodies they were selling.

 

Mabers...How interesting that you have the same cabin on the SOS as us?!! They must put all the really nice people in that room! LOL! Just leave the TV on all the time tuned into the camera and it doubles as a port hole! We even left it on at night with the sound off.

 

I think everyone will enjoy their cruise on the SOS. We certainly did. We are used to the anytime dining on Princess so that was a bit of an adjustment and also used to the buffet being open 24 hours so that was another difference.