12 Night Anthem (partially live) Review

[Merion_Mom]

Yes I was. There are 2 catamarans. If yours is captained by Sam, she’s fantastic. You snorkel for a half hour. No experience necessary. They will teach you everything you need to know. Then you head down the coast to the beach. You have to swim in from the boat to shore. They have noodles if your not a strong swimmer. They give you about 45 minuets at the beach. Then on the way back, they serve sandwiches. It’s more of a snack. Also, they will keep you hydrated with a soda or adult beverage. And you can drink as much as you like. Hint for you. If you’re on Sam’s boat, I sat in the front of the catamaran and absolutely loved it up there. I come from an ocean community town and love being out on boats. It was choppy coming back so you will get splashed if you sit up front and that’s the case. If that’s not your thing, the other option is under cover below deck.

I would just like to verify that they provided the snorkeling equipment.

[SunReader]

I booked through RC during the Thanksgiving sales.

 

Thank you. Enjoy the rest of your cruise. It is very cold in New England again so enjoy the warmer weather.

[SC_Floaters]

DINING

 

The first thing I noticed is the assistant waiter was bringing rolls to the table and dropping them off. In the past, there was an assistant waiter who brought a tray of rolls over and you picked out what you wanted. Gone are the little pumpkin rolls (they were small, square things) that my father absolutely loved. We asked about what happened to those and were told, they stopped them on this ship. They didn’t know why but the Head Waiter speculated that it was a cost savings measure. More on the Head Waiter in a minute. The other thing is the assistant waiter was taking our drink order. In the past, there were separate bar staff who took your drink order. The last thing is it seems the staff is waiting on more tables than the past. All of this I noticed on day 1. The cumulative effect is that IMO, the staff is overwhelmed. It didn’t take me that long to reach that conclusion. Some people are good at certain things. I have this weird ability to analyze a situation quickly and figure out what’s going on. Thus, I can tell you Service is slow in dining. Again, this is not a deal breaker for me. I’m on vacation. It might be for someone with small children who can’t sit still for long periods of time or if your figity. The other thing I thought was strange is the Head Waiter on every cruise I’ve been on has come over to say “hi” or just find out if everything is going alright. This didn’t happen here. In fact, I had to ask our waiter to send him over. He did immediately come over after asking him to do so. I did Bring up with him some of these points, and he all but admitted to me that the reasons for these things are cutbacks from corporate. I work for a large cooperation so I understand cutbacks and downsizing but RC used to stand for certain things in the cruise Industry and I feel like the one thing you shouldn’t cut back on is Service. Especially in a hospitality industry. By the way, the Head Waiter has come over every night since I said something. And he’s made his way over in the Windjammer also.

 

 

You can blame any Staff Shortages/Differences on the Bean Counters...

[Bubbis3]

I would just like to verify that they provided the snorkeling equipment.

 

Yes they provide the snorkeling equipment

[PeterH48]

Here's the website for the Bayonne Bridge construction updates (bridge between Staten Island and Bayonne, not the NJ Turnpike I78 Bridge from Newark to Bayonne) - https://www.panynj.gov/alerts-advisories/advisories-bayonne-bridge.cfm

 

In recent months the closures have been primarily overnight.

 

Thanks Carol. I have already seen that website you shared. I was looking for a real time report on what Bob experienced.

[storknurse13]

Love hearing about this cruise! My son and DIL are on it for their honeymoon!

KJ

[138east]

Thanks Carol. I have already seen that website you shared. I was looking for a real time report on what Bob experienced.

Bob did not use the Bayonne Bridge to get to Cape Liberty. He used the Newark Bay-Hudson County Extension Bridge, which had issues at the end of December that have not yet reoccurred.

[bob brown]

Thanks for taking the time during your cruise to give a live review, and especially answering question's for those of us sailing on the Anthem soon...:)

 

Could you find out from Dennis, the CD, what date Clo will relieve him? There is a thread on this board asking for that info....thanks!:)

[Merion_Mom]

Yes they provide the snorkeling equipment

Thank you, Bob. :)

 

(I find that the vast majority of these tour operators DO supply snorkeling equipment, but was surprised to see that the ones in St. Lucia state flat out on their websites that "snorkeling equipment is available to rent".

[Luv2Crus40]

Thanks for all your tips. We're doing Anthem first time on 3/9 - balcony. We've never been on a ship with this many passengers. We have discovered that we like the smaller ships because we do like have some pitching and rolling when the seas are rough. Makes us aware that we are on a ship not on land. Not so bad that everyone else feels poorly though.

 

We have first seating MDR. Because we're older, we like the more formal dinner seatings. We usually don't mind the time, fortunately, since some of our meals have lasted long on other ships due to cutbacks in staff, but leave before dessert if we have a show to go to or something.

 

I read on one post that you could feel some pitching and rolling on the Anthem. Did you notice that at all on the high seas you sailed on?

 

One of first things we do onboard is check with the M'aitre D re our seating location and change it if we're not happy. If you go early, they can usually accommodate you. Hope that's true on this ship, too.

 

We're on starboard side - aft. Is the smoking deck on port or starboard on Anthem?

 

Thanks for your assistance.

[Merion_Mom]

Thanks for all your tips. We're doing Anthem first time on 3/9 - balcony. We've never been on a ship with this many passengers. We have discovered that we like the smaller ships because we do like have some pitching and rolling when the seas are rough. Makes us aware that we are on a ship not on land. Not so bad that everyone else feels poorly though.

 

We have first seating MDR. Because we're older, we like the more formal dinner seatings. We usually don't mind the time, fortunately, since some of our meals have lasted long on other ships due to cutbacks in staff, but leave before dessert if we have a show to go to or something.

 

I read on one post that you could feel some pitching and rolling on the Anthem. Did you notice that at all on the high seas you sailed on?

 

One of first things we do onboard is check with the M'aitre D re our seating location and change it if we're not happy. If you go early, they can usually accommodate you. Hope that's true on this ship, too.

 

We're on starboard side - aft. Is the smoking deck on port or starboard on Anthem?

 

Thanks for your assistance.

 

There is a semi-enclosed smoking area on Deck 5 starboard aft that we "affectionately" call the "bus stop". (You'll understand the term when you see it.)

[Luv2Crus40]

Thanks. Aft at the back or aft halfway back?

 

We're on deck seven so hopefully the smoke won't reach us. I only ask because we once we were one deck right up from the smoking area and that was unpleasant.

 

Boy voyage.

[Merion_Mom]

Thanks. Aft at the back or aft halfway back?

 

We're on deck seven so hopefully the smoke won't reach us. I only ask because we once we were one deck right up from the smoking area and that was unpleasant.

 

Bon voyage.

It really should not impact you. The "bus stop" has a roof and sides. It does a good job of containing the smoke. Which cabin? I can tell you how close you are to it.

 

Now, I can not make any claims about your fellow passengers...............I was shocked at how many people were smoking on their balconies on the Anthem on my past cruises. :o

[Bubbis3]

It really should not impact you. The "bus stop" has a roof and sides. It does a good job of containing the smoke. Which cabin? I can tell you how close you are to it.

 

Now, I can not make any claims about your fellow passengers...............I was shocked at how many people were smoking on their balconies on the Anthem on my past cruises. :o

 

What I found funny was the day of embarking there were several people smoking in the casino and outside on deck 5. They had to make an announcement over the intercom “could all guests refrain from smoking, in all areas. We are trying to refuel the ship.” :o

[Bubbis3]

I have been absent from writing more about this cruise. I will have a lot more to say once home. I wanted to give everyone a quick update as to what’s happening on board. Right now, we are heading back to Bayonne at full power, all engines running. We were expected back on Friday morning but the captain thinks we’ll be in Bayonne by 4:00pm tomorrow. We currently have a medical emergency which requires a passenger to get off as soon as possible. This puts my count on medical emergencies requiring a return to port at 5, for this cruise. More on that when I get home. We are only pulling up to the pier long enough to drop that passenger off, then we are heading back out to sea, at least 3 miles out, so RC can continue on with ship operations. We will return to port at our normal time Friday morning.

[gaylemh]

I have been absent from writing more about this cruise. I will have a lot more to say once home. I wanted to give everyone a quick update as to what’s happening on board. Right now, we are heading back to Bayonne at full power, all engines running. We were expected back on Friday morning but the captain thinks we’ll be in Bayonne by 4:00pm tomorrow. We currently have a medical emergency which requires a passenger to get off as soon as possible. This puts my count on medical emergencies requiring a return to port at 5, for this cruise. More on that when I get home. We are only pulling up to the pier long enough to drop that passenger off, then we are heading back out to sea, at least 3 miles out, so RC can continue on with ship operations. We will return to port at our normal time Friday morning.

 

Hope the passenger will be OK.

I was just wondering, with all the reports of flu in the past 2 weeks on the news, are there many on board with flu symptoms?

[Formula280SS]

PASSENGER UPDATE - We are off the coast from Virginia Beach, just passed though some snow storms. Seas were rougher during the crossing of the from IMO. Passenger, by word of mouth, on full life support and could not be air lifted off. We were previously lagging behind the storm from in great water; not so great at all now.

 

SICKNESS UPDATE - Although not a Doctor, it appears there is a greater than 20%+ lung infection that might even be more widespread. Deep heavy wet coughs. Many passengers quite considerate; many not. That's the real cause of the spreading. Avoiding Windjammer like the plague, using packages of sale and pepper, constant soap and the purell sanaitizer in and out of venues, and avoiding heavy congregate areas and wiping everywhere we sit or eat hoping to get off this ship without 'whatever it is they all have. Actually moving lounge chairs several times when a sick couple or group shows up (or up wind). It appears the concept of "covering" has generally been lost..

 

Hope the lady is OK. Don't know why we didn't quick stop at Port Canaveral. However, we obviously don't have all of the information needed to make such determination.

 

This is OUR LAST WINTER CRUISE out of NY/NJ for sure.

[Jasukkie]

I guess I always thought there was a helipad but I see from googling one would have to be winched up to a hovering helicopter, thus not workable for those on life support. Wow that's a long way to go to get to port, I guess due to the size of Anthem?

Thanks for the heads up on the chest colds. I'm boarding tomorrow, finally feeling great after a nasty holiday cold. I really wish Americans would adopt the Japanese custom of wearing surgical masks when sick in public. RC should offer them in the Windjammer.

[Formula280SS]

I guess I always thought there was a helipad but I see from googling one would have to be winched up to a hovering helicopter, thus not workable for those on life support. Wow that's a long way to go to get to port, I guess due to the size of Anthem?

Thanks for the heads up on the chest colds. I'm boarding tomorrow, finally feeling great after a nasty holiday cold. I really wish Americans would adopt the Japanese custom of wearing surgical masks when sick in public. RC should offer them in the Windjammer.

 

I believe you are correct from what we've heard (again, word of mouth); the life support equipment was the issue.

 

Oddly, we have recently slowed down very, very noticeably. Hopefully that is not a bad sign for the passenger.

 

RE: procedures ~ We have no idea why they (cruise lines) do not have the sanitary wipes pull down (as at supermarkets for the carts) at any station with tongs for self serve. We'd also use them to clean our table and chair. Free labor. :o But I'm not buying the wipes for them.

 

Hoping for the best.

 

Hope the next cruise is 'incident free and 'more healthy with much better beginning and ending weather.

 

We set up in the Solarium at 5:30AM and were no where near the first to do so.

[Retiredprofessor]

Hope that very ill passenger makes it.

 

Were there any people in those seats at 5:30 or were they just covered with towels, books, flip flops etc?

[robtulipe]

We're onboard also and the Capt. Henrik has just done the noon report. We've slowed down to just under 20 knots due to strong headwind and very rough seas thus expect to reach Cape Liberty at around 7pm. Anthem will now be staying in port overnight due to this later arrival with normal disembarkation tomorrow morning.

Edited January 18, 2018 by robtulipe

[robtulipe]

Hope that very ill passenger makes it.

 

Were there any people in those seats at 5:30 or were they just covered with towels, books, flip flops etc?

 

 

They were just leaving personal items and ship towels the other day at 6:30am, our first sea day back, and taking off in spite of the signs that indicate any personal items on lounge left for more than 30 minutes would be removed by the deck attendants. I spoke to one and she indicated that this would be done but I didn't go back to see if this was actually being down.

 

[ticketsunlimited]

There has definitely been some bad (Fish storms) on the East coast for a couple Anthem cruises the past couple months. Hit or miss this time of year. Going to be 50+ and sunny this weekend in that area. Fingers crossed for out 2/9 departure. Definitely will be wearing the patch this time around.

[Formula280SS]

Hope that very ill passenger makes it.

 

Were there any people in those seats at 5:30 or were they just covered with towels, books, flip flops etc?

 

Yes.

 

They were not 'marked by the staff until alternate seating was full. They did remove many of such routinely thereafter; but only upon the request of someone wanting the seats and noting the time demarcations on the card left by the staff.

[E&D2004]

we are on Anthem as well but only count 3 diversions. San Juan, St. Martin and current. what were the other 2?

 

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