Anthem of the Seas Review with Pics 9-night New England Cruise Oct 2019

[Networker]

Loved your review.   We were on the same cruise on sep 26.   Second time on anthem.   Loved the cruise.  Had never gone north and loved it.  Friendliest people ever on a cruise. Would do it again but have to check some other things off our list.  We are loyal RCL but have Alaska booked in June on Princess.   Hope we adjust well to a different cruise line. 

[CupKayke]

Bar Harbor, continued…

 

Royal Caribbean did something for Bar Harbor I wish they would have done for every port… they gave us a little easy-to-read map.   It almost looks like a character drawn map.  When we cruised overseas with them 10 years ago, they did this for every port.  On this cruise, Bar Harbor was the only port where we got this little map and some extra information.  It was great.

 

So, we got off our tender and knew (from the map) to walk to the left to the path that wound around in front of the Bar Harbor Inn and then on down past many beautiful mansions.  We were never “hidden” or felt insecure as there are small paths/streets along the way where you can leave the path earlier if you want to return to the small town quicker.  We walked and looked and took pictures and loved every second of wandering down this path.  We finally took a side street and walked back to the little town.  

 

This tiny town is packed with fun features…

 

 

We shopped.  It was basically the end of the season so everything was on sale.  I got a fantastic Bar Harbor hoodie for $29, a beautiful Maine mug for $9, several kitchy items here and there.  There is also a Walgreens in this little downtown area and we ran in there for just a second too. 

Here is a view from outside the Walgreens…

 

One of the shops we stopped at had genuine items and silly items and she only took cash.  She was a locally owned business and had a sign stating this prior to purchasing.  I asked her for the best place to get a cup of clam chowder and she recommended Tesla’s on the main strip.  You never know about the places on the “main strip” – ya know?  Well, her recommendation was top notch.  We walked-in and immediately the place smelled like fish (but in a good way).  We were given a table upstairs and I ordered a locally produced blueberry soda (it was fabulous) and my husband had a blueberry lemondrop martini (he says it was fantastic).  We also ordered crab-stuffed mushrooms and a cup of clam chowder.  Soooooo yummy!!!  This place was sooooo good.  Lots of people sitting around us were eating lobsters. 

 

 

Hubby also had Oysters Rockefeller today…

 

 

We walked around a bit after our wonderful meal.. which was worth every penny and we had fabulous service. 

 

The view from the top of the little hill down to the docks..

 

 

The town is idyllic.

Edited November 7, 2019 by CupKayke

[MzShae]

Really enjoying this review! Thanks!

[CupKayke]

Bar Harbor, continued…

 

Unfortunately, I had pre-booked (online/pre-trip) a Swedish massage for my husband for 2pm today.  We had to leave Bar Harbor early so he wouldn’t miss his massage.  ☹  We were in line at the dock to catch a tender boat back to the ship before 1pm.  We figured we might have a 20 minute wait.  Nope.  From the time we finally started getting concerned about the wait and started watching our watches, we waited at least one hour and four minutes for a tender boat to show-up and load us all. You can easily get 75 people on one of these tender boats so I’m not sure where the tender was or what happened, but no explanation was ever given from RC.  The tender to the ship was quick btw, not even 10 minutes and loading and unloading is immediate. 

 

Here is a small view of the tent you wait under and the people there…

 

 

We got off the tender boat and ran up to the 15^th floor where the spa was (I think this is the correct floor ?) and we get there…. Lo and behold… they had rebooked him to 2:30pm while we were off the ship.  You know what they did?  They left us a voicemail message on our phone -while we were off the ship - saying he was rebooked because they do not offer that particular massage at 2pm.  We booked the massage online pre-cruise so why exactly did this happen and why weren’t we informed the day before the massage??  The ladies in the spa were not friendly.  They told him to return in 20 minutes.  He did return and got his massage but he said the lady that read his paperwork and talked to him didn’t understand right from left and she worked on the opposite side of his neck/shoulder area that he had requested.  I have no idea if he said anything during the massage or not.  

 

Just so you know, if you are one of those people who don’t want to tender… you had beautiful views of Bar Harbor from the boat today…

 

I am going to say one thing in RC’s favor about the tender boats.  The captains and staff working the tender boats were efficient, nice, and helpful to everyone getting on and off.  Safety was their priority.  The boats were also big and they felt safe.  Another cruiseline had decided to go ahead and anchor in the choppy waters next to the dock and they were using their little orange lifeboats to go ashore!­ We watched the lifeboats rocking up and down and s-l-o-w-l-y making their way to and fro the dock.  There is no way you would have gotten me in one of those in that choppy water.  I was sure one of them would simply sink any second.  So, maybe RC usually uses their lifeboats in calm waters and they had to hurry-up and hire these other larger boats for the day?  I do not know.

Tonight we watched Spiderman: Far From Home in the Royal Theatre at 9pm.  They were selling popcorn (and maybe other stuff?) outside the theatre before the show.  We liked the movie and the popcorn. 

 

 

 

Edited November 7, 2019 by CupKayke

[CupKayke]

Tuesday, Oct 29 – Saint John, New Brunswick Canada

 

 

Today was an odd day for us.  I feel like all I’m doing is complaining but we liked our cruise a lot… just a few odd things happened in a row.  So…  we were determined to do an excursion in Saint John today.  Why?  I have no idea why.  Probably because we should have done one the day before. 

 

 

We were standing in line to leave the boat at 11am.  And, just like almost every cruise I’ve ever been on, some individuals who were not US nationals decided to not complete their paperwork so they couldn’t release the boat.  They paged them overhead and had employees walking around asking “Are you Lee Won or Ja Wu?” as we all stood in line on deck 5 waiting to leave the ship.  The line started by the Bionic Bar entrance/exit area and wrapped all the way through Two70 apparently.   We were there at 11am and we were located just before the wine bar (Vinos?).   Eventually, they found the two cruisers who had not completed their paperwork by 6pm two days prior when it was due and the ship was released and we could debark.   Here is my complaint:  why don’t you go hunt these people down the night before??  Why hold-up the entire ship?  Also, RC only paged for them overhead 3X in the 30 minutes we were standing there and it was the third announcement when they finally said their room number.  Say their names and their room names continually until you find these people or else go find them the night before and get your act together.  WHY do ships wait until the last minute anyway??

 

 

As we were waiting in line we watched the sweetest lady painting children’s faces.  Later, we would see her painting faces for children and adults on Halloween.   She was great!

 

 

So, long story short, if you want off early in Canada the first day….  Don’t count on it.  We were off the ship at 11:37am.  We took the escalator down and walked straight to the Aquilla Trolley and Tour stand.  We were second in line.  We booked a 12:15pm Trolley Tour which lasted 1 hour 15 minutes and was $53.99 each.  We thought we would be paying them directly, but they said “No.  Your shipboard account will be charged.  This is a ship excursion.”   Okay. They gave us a handwritten order/receipt paper.

 

 

We walked around in the tent next door and shopped a bit.  Here is view of our ship and the tent.

They were selling fudge in this tent and the best smelling nuts ever.  We bought some nuts (they were great) and my husband wanted to buy some fudge.  It was terrible.

Hubby found a new hat.  A hat of some type is always his trip souvenir. 

 

At 12:15pm, we walked over to the trolley tour area and out comes this lady who says something like…  “Everyone with tickets that look like this (she holds-up colored Royal Caribbean tickets) follow this lady out the door to the bus and everyone with tickets that look like this (she holds up our handwritten tickets) stay here.”  So, everyone leaves but 9 of us and she proceeds to tell us that Royal Caribbean messed-up.  She said they were still selling tours this morning onboard and they had oversold the trolley so it was sold out and we could not go on this excursion.  So, we asked if there were any other tours available today.  Everything for this morning had already been booked between 11:30am and 12:15pm by the hundreds of people who got off the ship after us.  We did see a long line at their booking desk so that makes sense.  The only tour still available was a $98.99 3-hour photography tour leaving at 2:15pm and it takes you to see the reversing river, out to a waterfall about 25 minutes out of town, to a covered bridge, to a lobstering wharf, to the beach, and back to the port.  They offered us a 20% discount if we wanted to sign-up for it.  Give me a sucker label because that is what we did.  Our new meeting time was now 2:15pm. 

 

 

We now had almost two hours so we decided to walk to City market.  We walked down the street about 3-4 blocks and then up a steep hill.  We later learned from our photography tour that this is the steepest street in all of Canada.   I was surprised to hear that considering the streets in Quebec.

 

 

There were lots of people sitting and waiting and not walking up the hill or taking a break.  It is a bit of a huff and puff I suppose?  I’m not in good shape and I did fine.

 

 

 

 

The City Market is sorta interesting.  We weren’t really interested in shopping in Canada this trip because we are flying to Canada in a couple of weeks to enjoy the Quebec Christmas Markets.  We walked through the City Market and it was packed. 

 

 

The City Market sells everything from glass hummingbirds (a very popular item) to food to pumpkin spice coffee to t-shirts and art. 

 

Edited November 7, 2019 by CupKayke

[CupKayke]

We walked outside the City Market and there is a park dedicated to World War I veterans.  The trees were lovely here.

 

We walked down the hill.  That was fantastic.  There were three ships in port today and the crowds to take the city bus or just to get to the City Market area were huge..

 

 

 

Directly across from the gate to get back into the port area is a small lobster restaurant called Steamers.  Just thinking about it now makes me want seafood.  We saw some of the plates and the fish and chips looked amazing.  Lots of people lined-up to eat lobsters here, too.  We asked to sit at the bar (no wait) and we both had one drink so this was my one alcoholic drink the entire trip… a strawberry daquiri. 

 

Steamers was packed with charm.  They advertise bacon-wrapped scallops and the next day, that’s all my husband could talk about wanting to eat. 

 

 

 

   

We showed-up for our new tour - the photography tour - at 2:15pm.  The lady in charge of the bus tour wanted to take my handwritten receipt and I wouldn’t let her have it.  She finally talked to another lady and they still said no, I couldn’t have it.  I requested to get at least half of it so I could show RC the 20% off we got – you know – “just in case.”  Do I tell you now that it took me making a trip to Guest Services, basically being called a liar, making a trip to the Shore Excursions desk and again being dealt with as someone making stuff up in order to get the discount?  I supposed everyone who cruises RC could care less about $40? I don't know but I care about $4 and that's one reason we have a good life.  Regardless, guest services asked me who the lady was that gave me the discount.  I told them she had red hair.  They were on the phone with Shore Excursions and told them and they instantly replied to me “We don’t have a rep that has red hair” to which I again explained Aquilla has a rep that has red hair. Guest Services sent me upstairs to Shore Excursions.   You know how she finally handled it in the Shore Excursions area?  "If you want a discount, we’ll give you a discount.”  After she gave me the discount which she thought I was just wanting because I’m a cheapskate… I politely explained to her that Aquilla Tours blamed the entire mix-up on them and what they said.  I think she may have finally believed me at that point.  It was like “Hey, I’m trying to tell you what happened here so it doesn’t happen to another customer and you don’t believe me.” You know what’s crazy?  Reading this review you would think I’m loud or rude or BiPolar or hard to deal with and I swear on a million dollars I am not any of those.  I have a loud laugh.  I am laid-back, mainly patient, and one of the most upbeat people I know.  I was floored at how some of these situations were handled by RC.  

Edited November 7, 2019 by CupKayke

[CupKayke]

Saint John, New Brunswick continued...

 

The 3-hour Photography Tour started on time at 2:30pm.  (Line-up was 2:15pm).  We visited five places and we had 20 minutes or less at each place. 

 

We drove to the reversing river first and hit it at the perfect time of day to see the change.  I didn’t think too much of this phenomenon.  I would say it’s one of those things better to hear or read about then to see.   Saint John had a windstorm recently so most of their foliage had disappeared.  Our guide told us we were about two weeks late to see their autumn colors.

 

Next we drove about 25 minutes out to a park where they have a waterfall.  It was warm and sunny and I almost fell asleep on the bus out to the waterfall.  There were three separate viewing platforms.

The park is beautiful.

 

 

See these berries?  Birds eat these and it makes them drunk.

 

 

Next we drove to the covered bridge.  This was an “extra” stop because it was the last tour of the year and they said they had not been here all year.  We were able to walk inside the bridge.  It might not look like it but it was a sturdy bridge.

 

 

Next we drove to a lobster boat wharf.  It was simply some boats in the water, nothing major happening.  I loved hearing our guide’s stories about the lobster licenses and the limitations and etc.  My favorite part of this tour was the information that was given to us on our drive to the lobster wharf – all about lobstering in Canada.

 

 

It was almost dark by the time we made it to the beach.  We were told if you find a rock with a ring of quartz going all the way around it, you should make a wish.  Our guide told us a nice personal story about a wish that was made in her family which eventually came true. 

 

We returned to the port a little after 5:30pm, actually, probably closer to 6pm.  There were a couple of professional or wanna-be-professional photographers on this trip.  Lots of people just used iPhones.  Some people had simple cameras like myself.  It was informative and the guide was nice.  She had some good stories. 

 

We watched a terrific Game 6 of the World Series in our stateroom tonight.  We didn't do much else that I can recall.

 

We were in Saint John until 11pm (at least) and the all aboard time was 10:30pm.  It is interesting to note that the Cruise Compass said this for today:  "Due to local Canadian regulations a limited number of bars will be open while in port today.  Once we set sail all bars will begin normal hours of operation."  My husband said he saw the Sky Bar and the Bionic Bar were closed.  He can't remember what else was closed.  

 

A Princess boat left before us and she played the sweetest tune on her horn for us as she was leaving.

Today was an okay day.  I finally hit over 10,000 steps on my watch today. 

Edited November 7, 2019 by CupKayke

[Iamcruzin]

On 11/5/2019 at 1:27 PM, Biker19 said:

 

Calling on all CC nerds, does anyone know why RCI's nav system makes a point of displaying Brookhaven on Long Island?

 

Biker, who used to live in the very unknown town.

I wondered the same thing when I was on Anthem in June. It's a poor point of reference even for someone who lives on Long Island. South Hampton, Montauk Point are reference points that anyone would know.

[Ren1216]

Really enjoying your review!  Interesting to read about all the things that happened along the way.  Glad you still had a good time 🙂

[mets123]

16 hours ago, sellwingri said:

I’m sailing on Anthem in 10 days and so hope that we sail around the Statue of Liberty.  I know the captains switch every week so we may not have the same one as you had but we sail at 3:30 so we should have plenty of time.

FYI, the captains rotation is usually every ten weeks, not every week or so.

[lisa6191]

FWIW, I don't think you sound crazy or unreasonable and I would have had a fit also. And I am also very easygoing and laid back. Bottom line is they screwed up your day, and honestly you probably should have gotten more than 20% off in the first place. I'm glad you had fun anyway! Pics and review are great!

[mizLORInj]

We love Anthem and we did this itinerary in 2017.   Loved it.  My goal was to have fresh lobster in every port--and I did accomplish this!  😁

 

Very odd about Windjammer at embarkation; we have not had that experience on multiple cruises on Anthem.   

[CupKayke]

Wednesday, Oct 30 – Sea Day

Today was a sea day as we were cruising from Saint John, New Brunswick to our next port tomorrow which will be Halifax, Novia Scott.  It was in the mid to high 50s and sunny today.   We slept-in.  I had a Cupcake Decorating Class in the La Patisserie on the 4^th floor at 11:30am today.  I had signed-up for this precruise for $30.  It was fun.  I arrived around 11am and there were already some people there.  They have you wash your hands and put on your chef hat and grab a seat.  The instructor spoke.  She was happy and energetic.  Her manager spoke (he was full of energy too and nice). Everyone assisting with the cupcake class had great attitudes.  The vibe was fun-fun-fun!  

The manager talking to us...

You start with some basic utensils and for this specific creation, they filled two bags of icing – the “mustard” and the “mayonnaise” for each person plus each person received two vanilla cupcakes and one chocolate cupcake.

There were two tables – possibly 10 to 12 at a table?  My tablemates were funny and we really enjoyed ourselves chatting and encouraging one another.  There were some kids building cupcake creations with their parents (moms and dads) and they enjoyed it too. 

Half way through is when they reveal you are making a cheeseburger and fries!

My final creation… a cheeseburger on a sesame bun!

I enjoyed this class and would have done it a second time with a different creation if that option had been available.  Highly recommend this bit of fun for all ages and genders!  🙂

[CupKayke]

Sea Day, continued...

 

After the cupcake decorating class, I began my quest to view every floor on the ship from forward to aft.  I walked floors 2, 3, 4, & 5 completely today.  Floor 2 was simply by mistake because it was available on the elevator so that is where I started.  It’s where the medical center is located. 

 

There were salsa dance lessons going-on…

 

 

Funky art outside of the casino…

 

 

Stairwell art…

 

 

Today was the $10 sale… it was mass chaos at first but calmed down later.  This area did stay steady all day and the items did change throughout the day but mainly it was purses, bags, scarfs, watches, jewelry, etc.  It was buy 4 get 1 free.  The last night they had their Royal Caribbean warm jackets normally listed at $70 for $9.  I bought my mom one.  She loves it.

 

 

Trivia...

 

 

There are little hidden areas on deck 5 between the lifeboats that have loungers, peace and quiet.  It was a nice day to be hidden there today.  Today, the port side was windy and no sun (at least at the time I was taking pictures) but the aft side was not sunny and more wind.  This boat has a lot of loungers and places to get away or simply sit and read, nap, be alone, gather with friends or family, etc. 

 

Edited November 8, 2019 by CupKayke

[CupKayke]

The seas were calm.

 

I had a slice of pizza at Sorrento’s.  Sorrento’s pizza could really use an upgrade.  Carnival’s pizza is much better and has way more options.  Royal should at least have out a margherita pizza at all times and I never saw that option. 

Do you see the line of people below?  This is the 2pm line for people to make the big show today in the Royal Theatre -– We Will Rock You.   We had reservations and I didn’t even bother because with a line like that, how would they ever know who did or did not have reservations?  This line started at the Royal Theatre and wound all the way back to Brass & Bock pub.

This area is the very front of Two70… all the way across there are these big, comfy chairs where you can sit and watch the water all day. 

Today we saw dolphins playing around the side of the boat and in the waters behind the boat before we played Bingo.  A man I met from North Carolina was using a professional camera and a tripod taking pictures all over the ship.  When I saw him, he would show me his beauties from the day.  He was able to catch a photo of a whale with the dolphins. 

 

We played Bingo in Two70 at around 2:30pm, I think?  Apparently, there was Bingo another day but I didn’t see it in the Cruise Compass.  It was sorta like pulling teeth but we finally got bar service in Two70.  I had a strawberry daquiri with mango mixed smoothie (basically a strawberry daquiri & mango mixed with no rum).   

I’m not the only person that talked about the Cruise Compass needing reworked.  It is a jumbled mess and they list activities like this:   “We Will Rock You – theatrical show” or  “1000 draw game – Casino” instead of like it should be…  “Casino – xxx enterCasinogame name hereX“ and  “Gameshow – Xxenter name of gameshow here” and “Musical – Xxenter name of musical here” because really, we don’t necessarily care what the name of the musical or the gameshow or the casino game is today, we just know what we are interested in seeing – some of us like Bingo, others like the casino, others want to see a gameshow, etc.   When we showed-up for the movie to Spiderman the other night, they had just ended a gameshow!  We couldn’t believe we had missed a gameshow.

We didn’t win at Bingo.  Lowest entry fee is $29.  I think it goes up in $10 increments to $69.  We did the $39 entry and won $5 on our Click-it.

We took naps this afternoon. 

We had dinner in the dining room around 7:30pm tonight.  Tonight was lobster night so there was a short wait to be seated (a first on this cruise if you eat past 7pm).  We were anytime dining but they walked us to our “normal” seat and there was someone else eating there so we were placed elsewhere.  No biggie to me but they all seemed perplexed by the situation. I thought the idea of My Time Dining was to eat whenever you want and meet new people every night but I suppose it’s just the former.

The menu…

He had the prime rib and two lobster tails.  I had the New York strip. 

I realize this cruise is probably not like the typical Royal cruise because they were always slammed by 5:30pm for dinner so when we arrive at 7:30pm, the rush was *normally* over but the dining room always seemed like they had just been beaten to a pulp so they were barely able to get through our "late" service.  For this crowd and this type of cruise.. if you show-up at 8pm, you are walking straight to a table with no wait.  However… you will wait FOREVER for your food.  It always seemed like they must have had to hurry-up and make new food for the late shift because the first shift ordered so much.  Many times we heard waiters exclaim of how busy it had just been.   Food service was extra slow tonight because of it being lobster night.   I did hear Angelo (the dining room manager) say there was a wait for lobsters.  We left at 8:55pm promptly and took our desserts with us and we had to push to make that happen.  I thought the World Series started at 9pm so I wanted out of that dining room before 9pm.  We watched the Nationals win the World Series tonight.  I am not a Nationals fan but I definitely did not want the Astros winning so the outcome was as I had hoped.  The game and ceremonies were long so I did not go to sleep until after 1:30am. 

Today was a good cruising day.  

 

[perfect match]

Thanks for your review. I have enjoyed cruising along with you.

 

Just an FYI for you - your show reservations are programmed onto your seapass card.  They scan your card as you enter the theater. There are normally two lines to enter the theater. One for those with reservations and a separate line for those who do not have reservations. Depending on how long it was before showtime, you might have been able to skip the whole long line and walk right in.  If the doors had not opened, and that long line was for those who had reservations, it would have moved quickly once the doors did open. Just be sure you get in the line for people with reservations and you will get into the show.

[Coralc]

I'd probably wait in line. I would like to see "We Will Rock You" . Now I have that song stuck in my head.  Very much enjoying your trip report. Thanks for sharing your photos and observations. 

[suesnake2002]

Usually the room steward will leave a tip envelope with your luggage tags. You just write his name on it, and stuff it. And I usually leave it on the dresser. Trust me they find it. 

You can always get extra envelopes at guest services. They have them laying around. 

[sellwingri]

8 minutes ago, suesnake2002 said:

Usually the room steward will leave a tip envelope with your luggage tags. You just write his name on it, and stuff it. And I usually leave it on the dresser. Trust me they find it. 

You can always get extra envelopes at guest services. They have them laying around. 

If you want to personally tip your room steward or anyone else, give him/her cash.  Do not use the envelopes. If you do, they have to split the tips with everyone.  We were told this many cruises ago by a room steward we had gotten to know on a 16 day cruise.

Edited November 8, 2019 by sellwingri

[MrsKC08]

1 hour ago, sellwingri said:

If you want to personally tip your room steward or anyone else, give him/her cash.  Do not use the envelopes. If you do, they have to split the tips with everyone.  We were told this many cruises ago by a room steward we had gotten to know on a 16 day cruise.

It actually doesn't matter if you use the envelopes or not. They are required to split the money with those on their shift, whether in bars, the restaurants, the MDR or the cabin stewards. I've seen them personally do this and been thanked by people I didn't even know were part of the "team".

[Nolsie]

Wonderful review, not too many around for Anthem, so thank you as I am sailing on her in January.

[DaniDanielle]

Great review.  We are going on Anthem for the tenth time in December and you have made me see it through fresh eyes!!!

[tomservo]

14 hours ago, CupKayke said:

I had a slice of pizza at Sorrento’s.  Sorrento’s pizza could really use an upgrade.  Carnival’s pizza is much better and has way more options.  Royal should at least have out a margherita pizza at all times and I never saw that option. 

 

That's disappointing, I was looking forward to trying the pizza, they've been advertising that they've improved it on some ships.

 

Did you get a chance to eat at cafe promenade or 270? If so how were they?

[Tatka]

  I am enjoying your review!

 

  Thanksgiving week (8 days) will be our 4th time on Anthem (we did 1 Bermuda/Caribbeans and 2 Bahamas on her).

This also will be our first time in balcony room on her. Your cabin is the same type, floor and location we got assigned by RCI as GTI, so it is even more interesting.

 

  To be honest I did not enjoy Anthem a lot on our first try, but she so grew on me and now feels like home. I am happy you enjoyed our city of Boston. I love it so so much.

 

   And I agree about smoking and convenience. First 2 times on Anthem we were smokers. Quit since then.. kind of like going through that area near the pool, especially after a drink. 🙂 Somewhat nostalgic, but very happy we quit.

 

 I am surprised you had problems with WiFi.. Anthem is a go to ship for me to work when I am out of vacation days. I worked at least 1 day on each of our previous cruises on A. This time around I will have 3 work days. Internet was always great! 

 

  Again thank you for wonderful review!

 

Edited November 8, 2019 by Tatka

[CupKayke]

My review is not finished.  I still have 3 days of the cruise left to review and I'm going to write a list of pros and cons of Royal Caribbean.  

I will have my review finished sometime this weekend.

 

Edited November 9, 2019 by CupKayke