First time cruisers’ review of Anthem

[SpecialNeedsFam]

Just got home from a 5 night cruise to Bermuda on Anthem of the Seas. This was our very first cruise. I read this board for a few months before we sailed, which proved incredibly helpful. Here is my review:

 

We arrived at the port around 11:30 and found the check-in process very smooth. We had about an hour to eat lunch and explore the ship before our cabin was ready.

 

CABIN: We had a “superior ocean view” (1M) cabin- 8510- and it was fabulous- very roomy with tons of storage space and a magnificent oversized window.

 

FOOD: Most days we ate breakfast and lunch in the Windjammer and dinner in the main dining room. Main dining room food seemed to be better quality but service was painfully slow- never less than 90 minutes and often a full 2 hours for three courses. Although not everything we ate in the Windjammer was to our liking, there are so many choices that it was no big deal to go back and get something else if need be. The only time food options were limited on the ship was between 3:00-5:00pm and after 9:00pm and even then we could always find something to snack on.

 

ACTIVITIES: We absolutely loved I-Fly, Northstar, Flowrider and the indoor pool. The outdoor pool was great in the early mornings and in the early afternoon on port days- other times it got incredibly crowded and loud. Even though we don’t love noisy environments, the live poolside band was fantastic. Poolside ice cream machine was always in service and we never waited more than a minute or two. Bar service was also very speedy.

 

PORT OF CALL (Bermuda): Bermuda was beautiful. We enjoyed the short walk to Snorkel Bay Beach, where we rented loungers, umbrellas, snorkels and a giant inflatable tube. The beach is a little rocky but still great for swimming and watching the abundant fish all around us was awesome. Rental prices were very reasonable and service was fast. Food options are limited- snack bar doesn’t open until 11am- on the day we were there still still hadn’t opened by 11:10am so we snacked on popsicles instead and waited until we got back to the ship to eat lunch. The second day we took a mini-bus to Horsheshoe Bay Beach. The ride was a little scary due to the narrow, twisty roads but it was worth it because the beach was beautiful with an amazing cave to explore right in the beach. Chair and umbrella rentals were more pricey than at Snorkel Bay and the rental line was long and slow. The snack bar was open the entire time we were there (9-12) and had many options to choose from.

 

The sun wore us out so we didn’t explore the shopping area walking distance from the dock or other parts of the island- we hope to do so on our next visit.

 

SHOWS: We didn’t make it to any of the shows- most were cancelled on our last day at sea due to very high winds. Rocking from choppy waters was not pleasant but we were ok with one dose of Dramamine.

 

Overall, we had a terrific trip and would definitely sail Anthem and Royal Caribbean again.

[Clarea]

... but service was painfully slow- never less than 90 minutes and often a full 2 hours for three courses. ...

How large was your MDR table?

 

Thanks for the report by the way.

[reallyitsmema]

Thanks for the review. I love the 5 night to Bermuda on Anthem.

[SpecialNeedsFam]

How large was your MDR table?

 

Thanks for the report by the way.

 

There were just 3 of us.

[Clarea]

There were just 3 of us.

Wow, that's a long time in the MDR for a party of 3.

[SpecialNeedsFam]

Wow, that's a long time in the MDR for a party of 3.

 

Our waiter and assistant waiter seemed perpetually overwhelmed- seems like they had more tables that they could reasonably handle. Water glasses went unrefilled for 20 minute stretches, requested drinks never arrived, never offered more bread... Our waiter seemed not to be able to handle what felt like simple requests (I asked for a plate of just asparagus and spinach because they were offered as sides with proteins I don’t eat. She brought spinach and potatoes. I asked for strawberries and she brought mixed fruit, no strawberries...) Everyone was very nice and seemed to genuinely want to please us but the execution wasn’t fully there.

[meadowlander]

Glad you enjoyed your Anthem cruise out of Beautiful and Gorgeous Bayonne. It is always good to see positive reviews even when everything is not perfect instead of reading about complaints from whiners. Thanks for the review.

[johnjen]

What a nice review, OP!

 

We did this same cruise back in June this year. The same thing went on with MDR taking a while, but we looked at it like, how often do we actually take a while to ourselves eating? I found it actually beneficial (well, TRYING to make a good thing out of a bad one) but yeah, I'd do Anthem again - just not out of Cape Liberty, didn't enjoy sailing from that port for various interesting reasons:

 

- militant cabbie union reps telling me I can't use uber

 

- herded like cattle

 

- Coming in, took us practically an AGE to move 100 yards to the entry point

[sparks1093]

Thanks for your thoughts!

[carnival03]

Our waiter and assistant waiter seemed perpetually overwhelmed- seems like they had more tables that they could reasonably handle. Water glasses went unrefilled for 20 minute stretches, requested drinks never arrived, never offered more bread... Our waiter seemed not to be able to handle what felt like simple requests (I asked for a plate of just asparagus and spinach because they were offered as sides with proteins I don’t eat. She brought spinach and potatoes. I asked for strawberries and she brought mixed fruit, no strawberries...) Everyone was very nice and seemed to genuinely want to please us but the execution wasn’t fully there.

 

Were you MTD or traditional?