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Will I be bored on Anthem?

JEANMR1

By JEANMR1,
in Royal Caribbean International

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JEANMR1

JEANMR1

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We are sailing in April so now I’m doing a lot of digging into the activities and I’m worried that there isn’t enough. That may sound stupid but..

it seems you only do ifly once. Same with north star. 

The big area switches between sports, trapeze, bumper cars, and roller skating so it is still just one thing. It looks like there are only 4 or 5 Xboxes for my kids. They are too young for the teen area but the upper ages of the kids club so they don’t think they will want to be there too much. 

There is no miniature golf and no ropes course. 

The carnival horizon we went on last year had tons of outdoor space and just various activities to keep you busy. This seems to be the one sporting place (including Xbox, ping pong, etc), flow rider, pool, and rock wall. 

Im not trying to complain (since I booked this) but can you help alleviate the idea that we are going to do everything in one day?  

Night time dinner and show is fine, it is mostly the days I’m concerned about. 

There were so many books and crannies on the Horizon to explore - I just can’t see them on the diagram of the Anthem. 

Thank you. 

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VaTech8912

VaTech8912

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I too enjoy Carnival's putt-putt golf, ropes course, every night outdoor movies and availability/variety of free food choices and miss them on Anthem.  However, a good thing about Anthem over Horizon is when there is bad or cold weather, you have plenty of indoor activities available for the kids and adults alike.  Also, having the indoor and outdoor family pool is a plus.  I do understand your concern however, and your points are very valid. Try to go with an open mind as a new experience and I think you will have a great time.

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JEANMR1

JEANMR1

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4 minutes ago, VaTech8912 said:

I too enjoy Carnival's putt-putt golf, ropes course, every night outdoor movies and availability/variety of free food choices and miss them on Anthem.  However, a good thing about Anthem over Horizon is when there is bad or cold weather, you have plenty of indoor activities available for the kids and adults alike.  Also, having the indoor and outdoor family pool is a plus.  I do understand your concern however, and your points are very valid. Try to go with an open mind as a new experience and I think you will have a great time.

Thank you for this. Going out of Jersey in April only to the Bahamas might be good to have more indoor stuff. Definitely something I hadn’t thought of. 

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Biker19

Biker19

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26 minutes ago, JEANMR1 said:

There were so many books and crannies on the Horizon to explore - I just can’t see them on the diagram of the Anthem. 

They are there, you'll just need to explore. OTOH, if you are trying to find ways to not enjoy your cruise, I'm  sure you'll find that too.

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jchiefs13

jchiefs13

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Personally, on Quantum I did iFly twice because it is SO much fun.  I could easily spend lots of time by the flowrider too - both participating and watching!  When I'm done on any of my Royal Caribbean trips I often find myself at the last day thinking "gee, we didn't go do THIS yet".  There will also be other activities on the cruise compasses and remember that there are separate compasses and additional activities for the younger groups.

 

As someone else said, it really depends on your desires.  For me, it's important to also schedule some time to sit and people watch, look out over the ocean, or just sit and talk or maybe pull out a game.  As with any vacation, it is what you make of it.  If you're there to make memories I think you'll be ok.

 

Judy

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VaTech8912

VaTech8912

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1 hour ago, JEANMR1 said:

Thank you for this. Going out of Jersey in April only to the Bahamas might be good to have more indoor stuff. Definitely something I hadn’t thought of. 

 

Most welcome.  I have cruised Quantum and Anthem for ease of driving to port and both times, in cooler weather.  So, that indoor space was heaven sent to enjoy bumper cars, dodgeball, ping pong (much better indoors), etc.  Also, they have free pool tables in the Music Hall upstairs I found on my second trip. Enjoy.

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SUSIEK

SUSIEK

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Our son was 12 when we sailed on Anthem last summer.  He absolutely loved it.   We have sailed many times on Carnival and Royal.  We loved them all and all the activities.  BUT...our son says his favorite ship is now Anthem.   I think it is because of the indoor recreation area.  He participated in all the sports.... basketball, soccer, dodgeball, etc. that his age group did in the Seaplex. He loved that it was indoors. Bumper cars and roller skating fun too.  He did play some video games... but that was not the highlight. You've got the Flowrider too!    He did miss the great waterslides from Carnival, but still had a great time.  

Have fun!!!

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HBE4

HBE4

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The Seaplex is a multi-functional indoor area that changes every few hours....if not hourly. I doubt many will get bored.  The line for the bumper cars did get long at one point.  I also enjoyed watching the future trapeze artist.

 

Hmmm, possible future "The Key" enhancement....reservations for bumper cars. 😉

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HBE4

HBE4

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1 hour ago, VaTech8912 said:

  Also, they have free pool tables in the Music Hall upstairs I found on my second trip. Enjoy.

 

That seems to be a well-kept secret.

Except for the group that always seemed to be using them no matter that time of day I walked by. 😖

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Bloodgem

Bloodgem

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1 hour ago, VaTech8912 said:

Also, they have free pool tables in the Music Hall upstairs I found on my second trip. Enjoy.

 

Love the pool tables on the Anthem but hate table football in the Seaplex, as I can never win at table football 

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MKESail

MKESail

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3 hours ago, JEANMR1 said:

it seems you only do ifly once. Same with north star. 

We were on Anthem 3 years ago with my then pre-teen daughter, and are going again in April. You CAN do iFly more than once, I've seen several people doing stand by, there were even some in our group. Same thing with North Star - you can only make one reservation, but they do have open times through out the cruise when it's just first come first served, you just get in line and wait. 

And Seaplex alone has just so much to offer. Yes, it is technically one area, but they change it over every so often, your kids will not be bored, for sure!

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Lv2sail_18

Lv2sail_18

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Can't answer if you or your kids will be bored or not but I agree with everyone here that there is plenty of activities to do on the Anthem. You can only pre-book the North Star and iFly once in order to give everyone a chance to book and provide some wiggle room to reschedule in case a session is cancelled due to weather, but as others have said, you can sometimes wait in the standby line and get in more than once. The Seaplex is always busy with activities, there is a video game arcade, and entertainment in the Two70. Long list of daily activities in the Cruise Compass and plenty to explore during sea days. Have fun!

 

Recommended video: "5 things I love about the Anthem of the Seas" by very unofficial travel guides - https://youtu.be/tjljnja-F4I 

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lovescats5

lovescats5

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We loved the Anthem.  Be sure you get in the Escape Room, I think that has to be booked when you board.  The bumper cars are on sea days, same with roller skating and trapeze  but you can get back in line if you choose.  For the iFly, you can go anytime they are open and see if there any cancellations and take that spot so you could do iFly every day if you wanted.  Same with the North Star, if there are cancellations you can take the spot.  We never got tired of being on the Anthem, as a matter of fact we will be on the Anthem in April and again in November.

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