Symphony 4/23 - 4/30/22 Western Cruise: Some Shipboard Observations and Experiences

[MACE]

My Daughter and I decided to treat her Aunt/my Sis-in-Law, to her very First Cruise

 

They shared Balcony Cabin 8170

 

I got a free upgrade from an Interior with Virtual Balcony to Balcony Cabin 12160

 

Our Check-in time was 2:30pm

 

We got to the Port of Miami at 11:45 and was advised there was no longer a scheduled Check-in time, or special areas for C&A Diamond+ and below to Check-in

 

We were onboard at 12:15 in the WJ for Lunch

 

Here follows those Shipboard Observations and Experiences

 

-Captain Announced we were 5000 passengers strong

-Lifeboat/Safety Drill a breeze, watch the App video, check in to your Muster Station and done

-Crew Staff ship shortages due transfer of crew to other ships (ex Wonder) and/or training of new Staff

-Solarium Bistro was never open

-Parts of the WJ not open/staffed on various days

-No Bar Waiters on Deck 16

-AWESOME Bar Staff the whole cruise at the Trellis Bar! Knew your name and your Drink

-Great staff @ the Park Cafe

-As always, long lines 1st night in the MDR for Reserved My Time Dinning (got better as the Cruise went on)

--We had My Time Dinning and had the best waiters all Cruise long at table 694 - Waiter Ved and his assistant Ridhatus

-There was a Cruise Gigolo in the Diamond Lounge every night named Tom, who would just walk in and sit down at your table

-The Diamond Lounge Concierge was Awesome for any help you needed, especially with any type of reservation help

-Calling Guest Relations for OBC and Account issues was fairly quick to be resolved

-The Voom/Stream Service and Royal App were awesome

-You can request the good 'ole fashioned Daily Paper Compass

-Towel Service was never opened at their advertised start time

-One Flight Show Canceled due to Technical Issues

-Last HIRO show canceled Friday 4/29 due to Weather (book the 1st show, if that is canceled, the next one gets put on your calendar)

-Hairspray not Performed but expected back very soon

-My Daughter and sis-in-law had a great Cabin Attendant, mine not so great

-Booked a Alaska Cruise at Next Cruise for the 3 of us, they messed up our reservation dates and Cabin Assignments (Alex)

-CD Kevin kept giving out false information that for every POC and disembarking at Port of Miami, masks were required

-Disembarkation day was Easy. We had #65 9AM off. You can leave your luggage in your cabin, go eat, and go back and wait there, till the TV showed your number being called

 

Great Cruise, we converted a newbie to be Loyal to Royal!

 

Edited May 2, 2022 by MACE

[Biker19]

3 minutes ago, MACE said:

 

We got to the Port of Miami at 11:45 and was advised there was no longer a scheduled Check-in time, or special areas for C&A Diamond+ and below to Check-in

While the second part was right, the first part is very variable. 

[Havin'fun]

I was on the same cruise.  Overall, it was a great week. The only issue I had was the lack of variety of food in the Windjammer, I ate there twice, luckily there is an abundance of other food venues.   I understand it was due to them being somewhat short staffed.  

[hollon]

47 minutes ago, MACE said:

My Daughter and I decided to treat her Aunt/my Sis-in-Law, to her very First Cruise

 

They shared Balcony Cabin 8170

 

I got a free upgrade from an Interior with Virtual Balcony to Balcony Cabin 12160

 

Our Check-in time was 2:30pm

 

We got to the Port of Miami at 11:45 and was advised there was no longer a scheduled Check-in time, or special areas for C&A Diamond+ and below to Check-in

 

We were onboard at 12:15 in the WJ for Lunch

 

Here follows those Shipboard Observations and Experiences

 

-Captain Announced we were 5000 passengers strong

-Lifeboat/Safety Drill a breeze, watch the App video, check in to your Muster Station and done

-Crew Staff ship shortages due transfer of crew to other ships (ex Wonder) and/or training of new Staff

-Solarium Bistro was never open

-Parts of the WJ not open/staffed on various days

-No Bar Waiters on Deck 16

-AWESOME Bar Staff the whole cruise at the Trellis Bar! Knew your name and your Drink

-Great staff @ the Park Cafe

-As always, long lines 1st night in the MDR for Reserved My Time Dinning (got better as the Cruise went on)

--We had My Time Dinning and had the best waiters all Cruise long at table 694 - Waiter Ved and his assistant Ridhatus

-There was a Cruise Gigolo in the Diamond Lounge every night named Tom, who would just walk in and sit down at your table

-The Diamond Lounge Concierge was Awesome for any help you needed, especially with any type of reservation help

-Calling Guest Relations for OBC and Account issues was fairly quick to be resolved

-The Voom/Stream Service and Royal App were awesome

-You can request the good 'ole fashioned Daily Paper Compass

-Towel Service was never opened at their advertised start time

-One Flight Show Canceled due to Technical Issues

-Last HIRO show canceled Friday 4/29 due to Weather (book the 1st show, if that is canceled, the next one gets put on your calendar)

-Hairspray not Performed but expected back very soon

-My Daughter and sis-in-law had a great Cabin Attendant, mine not so great

-Booked a Alaska Cruise at Next Cruise for the 3 of us, they messed up our reservation dates and Cabin Assignments (Alex)

-CD Kevin kept giving out false information that for every POC and disembarking at Port of Miami, masks were required

-Disembarkation day was Easy. We had #65 9AM off. You can leave your luggage in your cabin, go eat, and go back and wait there, till the TV showed your number being called

 

Great Cruise, we converted a newbie to be Loyal to Royal!

 

if you got off at 9:00 AM, did you go to the airport afterwards, if so, how long did it take you, were ubers easy to find?

[MACE]

14 minutes ago, hollon said:

if you got off at 9:00 AM, did you go to the airport afterwards, if so, how long did it take you, were ubers easy to find?

We did a Post Cruise stay at Rui Piazza Miami Beach Hotel. Took a Taxi - the lines were very long! We waited and snaked through the line for at least 30-40 minutes plus for a Taxi. First one we got said he didn't want to take the 3 of us because of our luggage, and we were redirected to a holding area to wait for a van. In hindsight, we should have called for a Uber XL, while waiting in the line to clear Customs

[MillyBean]

Most importantly, let's talk about this "cruise gigalo".   My husband's name is Tom so immediately I shrieked in laughter and proceeded to accuse him of being on that cruise harassing people.   But then, if anyone has seen 50 First Dates, there's a recurring character that has zero short term memory and retains only ten seconds of time... 

 

so in my head I have created a scene of my husband walking up to some unsuspecting cruisers's table, sitting and down and saying "Hi, I'm Tom..."   and then repeating that every ten seconds.

 

Sorry, Im weird.  

 

Seriously, I've heard of these gigalos.  Is that really a thing?  Someone to entertain the single ladies?

Edited May 3, 2022 by MillyBean

[yogimax]

9 minutes ago, MillyBean said:

Most importantly, let's talk about this "cruise gigalo".   

 

 

We were in DL each night and never saw this.

[sdrocks]

We cruised in April on the Symphony, were off about 9 am, UBER XL very available and quick

to pick us up.  

[MACE]

20 hours ago, MillyBean said:

 

Seriously, I've heard of these gigalos.  Is that really a thing?  Someone to entertain the single ladies?

I'd venture to say Tom was more that a "Gigalo"

 

The 1st night, he walked up to a single lady and sat down

 

The 2nd night he walked up to a single male and sat down

 

Then it progressed to him walking up to couples,  including Senior Citizens,  and just sitting down

 

Every night, he would just pick a table, sit down and say: " Hi, I'm Tom"

 

By the look on all those peoples faces, they were a bit uncomfortable with his behavior.

[MACE]

Another item I forgot to mention was that in both our Staterooms, the A/C was substandard in keeping our rooms cool, on our Deck 8 and Deck 12 Forward Balcony cabins

 

And to make matters worse, my Cabin Steward, would always take my plastic card I left in the Holder to keep the A/C and Power on, and leave it on the bed

 

My Daughter and sis-in-law's Steward never removed their card

[MillyBean]

31 minutes ago, MACE said:

I'd venture to say Tom was more that a "Gigalo"

 

The 1st night, he walked up to a single lady and sat down

 

The 2nd night he walked up to a single male and sat down

 

Then it progressed to him walking up to couples,  including Senior Citizens,  and just sitting down

 

Every night, he would just pick a table, sit down and say: " Hi, I'm Tom"

 

By the look on all those peoples faces, they were a bit uncomfortable with his behavior.

 

Ha!  I have been giggling over this since last night.  Who else has seen these cruise gigolos?  (my last post had some spelling errors, as pointed out by the hubs...)

 

 

[Bobbylah]

We were on the cruise the week prior (April 16-23). 2 adults and 3 teens. Everyone enjoyed themselves. My daughter (15) loves rock climbing and proceeded to crush the opposition on the rock wall every day. We typically don't enjoy the shows and don't attend, however having heard about Hiro we booked seats immediately on boarding and it met our raised expectations. Really a good experience.

 

When cruising with the kids, we don't usually get the drinks package, but this time decided to. Glad we did, as I think we both easily surpassed the break even point, with myself averaging 15 drinks a day. I availed myself of the double expressos in the Cafe Promenade a couple of times a day, with the remainder being either beer or mixed drinks. After a day it turned out that the habanero grapefruit daiquiri was the go-to for the remainder of the cruise. We also enjoyed the oyster shooters in Hooked.

MDR and WJ food was, I must say, pretty average. Nothing really stood out. Just filled a hole in the stomach before moving on for the day. Servers (and all staff in general) were amazing however.

 

Its been our first cruise since Covid and the last couple of  cruises prior to Covid were both on Carnival and I have to say from what I recall, the Carnival MDR food was better. Now this may be the couple of years of Covid having an impact, and we have not cruised Carnival after Covid so tough to make a comparison. Just an observation. YMMV.

All in all we were satisfied with the experience, but is has made us want to try Norwegian to see what else is out there.

[markbach]

1 hour ago, Bobbylah said:

We also enjoyed the oyster shooters in Hooked.

 

Are these covered by the deluxe beverage package?

[Bobbylah]

1 minute ago, markbach said:

 

Are these covered by the deluxe beverage package?

Yes, shooters (and espressos) were.

 

Edited May 12, 2022 by Bobbylah

[markbach]

1 minute ago, Bobbylah said:

Yes, shooters (and espressos) were.

 

Awesome! good to know, thanks!