Zenith to Bermuda, 5/6 Review

[lawyer180]

About Us: My husband and I are both professionals in our early 30's, active, and consider ourselves "down to earth." We've previously cruised Carnival (yuk), RCCL and Norweign(sp?). We chose this cruise for the destination and because we wanted to try Celebrity.

Embarkation: We drove four hours to the port. The directions provided by Celebrity were fine and we had no trouble getting to the terminal, there is plenty of signage telling you where to go. We arrived at about 12:30. As you pull up to the terminal building, you drive up to the canopy area to drop off your luggage. It's best to already have those luggage tags on your luggage before you get there. Then you pull away, follow the signs and essentially drive in a big circle back to the terminal building and pull into the parking lot. It costs $15 per day for a total of $105 for the 7 day cruise. They give you a little tag to put in your window and they direct you where to park. Next you get in a little shuttle bus. We got on the bus because at this point,we didn't know where it would take us... I'm not kidding, this little bus drove us maybe 50 feet to the entrance to the terminal building (which is exactly where you just dropped off your luggage). Once inside, embarkation took maybe 10 minutes. We showed our passports and express check-in paper. It was very efficient. We were directed outside to board another bus that drove you to the ship.

Arrival on Zenith: Once inside, we recieved the complimentary glass of champagne and were escorted to our cabin. We thought this was a nice touch. Our cabin was an inside, #4064 (i.e. the cheapest available). We were pleased to have an actual Queen bed, not the two twins pushed together and the accompanying debate..."who has to sleep on the crack." We were pleased with our cabin. It seemed large compared to others we've been in. The linens were the old ones, but were still fine. There was plenty of storage and a safe in the closet for valuables. The bathroom was fine, some of the tiles were mildewy, but really, it was no big deal. Most importantly, it was clean. I've previously read some reviews about being on the lower decks and hearing loud engine noise...this was not a problem for us at all. On the days the ship was docking, we heard a about 1 minute of noise then it stopped, and it was no problem at all. There is a 19" TV in the room, but compared to some other lines, the programming was really weak. (Keep in mind, we didn't expect numerous channels) However, this was no big deal because who goes on a cruise to watch TV anyway. We weren't sure what to expect of the Zenith after reading so may negative reviews. But overall, we liked the ship and its layout. Our baggage arrived within an hour or two. Once on-board, we proceeded to the buffet for lunch. More on the buffet food later, but again the service was great, the staff was there to carry my tray to an open table.

Days at Sea: There were activites planned for the sea days, although we felt there wasn't much of a diversity, especially for younger folks like us (non-bingo, non-shoppers). By the way, I would say the average age of the passengers was at least 60. We did do some neat things like wine tasting (I would definitely recommend this, it was fun) and martini tasting. We played trivia several times and played checkers, took some books out of the library. If you like reading on a cruise, go to the library and sit in the awesome chairs they have along the wall... they are heaven! There was some fun activities at poolside, the typical funny competitions you usually see. However, on the return day at sea, we felt there was a lack of things to do... the weather was not conducive to outside activities, there wasn't really a whole lot to occupy the passengers who didn't feel like drinking, ect. This is when we tried watching TV and found the choices to be somewhat dismal. But then again, a boring day at sea is MUCH better than a normal day at work!!

Bermuda: We docked in Hamilton first. We ate a nice breakfast in the dining room and leisurely made our way to the pier. We didn't have any problems. We purchased the bus/ferry 3 day pass from the ship (which is the same price as if you go the ferry office in Hamilton, so it's easier to buy it on the ship. 5th floor at the 'bank'.) Hamilton was very nice, some hustle and bustle. We took the bus to Horseshoe bay and walked around. The beaches are very nice! If you are a private person, just walk along until you come to a little cove and you will have your own private beach. The water temperature was right about 70, which was a little chilly, but bearable (we're from PA). We always came back to the ship for lunch and then went back out. We ate lunch in the dining room (open seating for breakfast and lunch). Then it started raining (common theme for this cruise) so we rode bus to the Kings Warf area just to take a look. We then rode the ferry back to Hamilton. The second day at Hamilton, we took the bus to the Crystal/Fantasy Caves, which were nice. Then we took a different bus route back. The bus rides were neat because you could check out the houses and sights. We stopped at the botanical gardens on the way back, which were nice. There is no charge for this, you can just walk through at your leisure. St. George was very nice. It is much more layed back. We walked through the streets, the homes were very interesting. At the top of the hill on the way to Ft. St. Catherine, there is an old "unfinished church." It is worth looking at. While in St. George, we did a lot of walking, we went to Tobacco Bay and the beach at St. Catherine. Both were small but nice. In our opinion, the nicest beaches were the ones near Horseshoe bay. Those areas were cleaner. However, all were nice. On the walk back to the ship, we walked by Alexandria Battery Beach to pick up sea glass. Overall, we loved Bermuda and can't wait to go back. EVERYONE is very nice! Even the men working on road construction were very nice as we walked by. Another example is when we were at the beach, there was a local older couple laying near us. (Who we noticed, but didn't talk to or anything) When we got up to leave and were walking down the road, they pulled up in their car and said "hey kids, do you want a ride back to your cruise ship?" We said we'd go ahead and walk and they told us which way to walk so we'd see some neat things.

FOOD: We ate most of our meals in the dining room. We requested and received a table for two. Both the service and the food itself were wonderful. We had absolutely NO complaints! As I had previously read, Celebrity has great soups, and the Lobster was the best I've ever eaten...not overcooked or rubbery. For breakfast a couple mornings, we had room service, which was good. The cheese tray was a nice snack. We were a little disappointed at the buffet. It really seemed poorly designed which resulted in a lot of folks walking around in chaos. The breakfast waffles were really good. We never made it to the omlet station, there was always a line of 20 or so people. The food that was on the buffet was so-so. Nothing horrible, but not that great either. I also did try some sushi one night and enjoyed it. However, I only had the "newby" sushi... california rolls, salmon, crab meat ones and the vegetarian one... but it was a neat experience. We enjoyed visiting the Martini Bar and tried numerous flavors. The servers were wonderful.

Disembarkation: Since we did not have any flight to catch, our luggage tags were the second to last... at 10:30. We stayed in our room and had room service breakfast and then just watched tv. At the appointed time, we went to a lounge and waited for our color to be called, and waited and waited. Then we heard that a gentleman had falled on the steps getting off, which explains the delay.

Overall Impressions: The destination was wonderful. The ship was fine, the service was great and we don't have anything to make any major complaints about. One observation is that there was a lot of retirement age folks (not meant to offend anyone, just an observation). One result of this was that many of the "active" shore excursions were cancelled due to lack of participation, and the trolley tours, ect. were sold out. My point is, if you like that sort of excursion, book it early. Also, on the sea days, there was not much going on, expecially for folks like us who like more active things. If you have any questions, just ask.

[BrooklynGirl2]

Thanks for your review. I enjoyed reading it. I too love those comfy chairs in the library. We always stay on the Florida deck and have never had any problems. One observation...I think the pax age goes down once school is out as Bermuda becomes more of a family holiday. On our cruises the average age was more like 40-50 with quite a few 20's and 30's. Of course, then you also have more little kids on board, but they are generally well-behaved and well-entertained by the counselors.

 

Did you go to the shows?

 

Who was your cabin steward? And your waiters in the dining room?

 

Thanks again.:)

[Becky_Mac]

Thanks for the great review. I am heading to Bermuda on the Zenith June 10th and can't wait. My husband and I are also in our early 30s but I think the average age will be a bit lower with school getting out (we are teachers ourselves). Thanks for the hint about the bus tickets. I was planning on buying them off the boat but that will save me time.

[lawyer180]

Our stateroom attendant was Alexio. Interestingly enough, our trip was his last one for 6 months, he was going home to India. He did a very nice job with our stateroom. Our waiter was Cedric and ass't waiter was Ifrain, both provided great service. We enjoyed the shows. The singer/dancers were entertaining. There was one comedian (from Boston) who did two shows, which we thought were funny. There was another gentleman who did his own singing show on two nights. Many really liked his perfomance, however we didn't really care for it too much. This guy could sing in all levels of voice and he would sing a song in barritone, tenor (?) then soprano, tape each one, then play them all back at the same time. My husband pretty much lost interest when he started singing like a woman and gyrating his hip in his leather pants, which I thought was funny, but, well, a little weird. One other thing I forgot to mention in my review: the gym. I only saw the inside of it when I was looking for my husband, but he said that it was ok (maybe not as nice as some, but not as bad as some either) He was a little irritated that a crew member was there during one of his workouts and basically left the weights and equipment all over the place and didn't clean up after himself and was only interested in flirting with all the ladies who were there. He was even more irritated with it when he found out that apparently the crew has their own (nice) gym to use.

[Jansen]

Was your table for two near the Captain's Table/center of the dining room? If so, do you recall your table number? We like a two top, but prefer to be near the center of the dining room on ships near the Captain's table (which we can usually get, with a $20 tip to the restaurant manager upon embarkation).

[sunandsand23]

Thanks for that great detailed review, my boyfriend and I (we are in our mid 20's) are booked on the Zenith in June. I figured we would be the youngest on the ship but we are really just looking for a nice relaxing vacation. I am sure there will be plenty of older people but if I wanted a party cruise I would have taken a different cruise line. But just like you said relaxing is key on vacation, plus I have heard great things about the food! I can't wait!!!

[cruisingdelt]

Thanks for the review. I was on the Sapphire Princess to Mexico in April and am in the throngs of cruise withdrawal. We will be doing Europe in 2008 so we need to save $$$. WIth this in mind we were looking for something inexpensive in 2007. With two chilren we are limited to summer and vacation periods from school. Zenith to Bermuda came to mind. We did this in 2001 and looks like a repeat in 2007. We loved it then and am sure we will love it now. Embarking from NY is great for us New Yorkers!!!

[Longboysfan]

Thanks for the review.

I've been to Bermuda many times.

Love it.

 

My friend is going next Saturday.

I sent her the review as an informational.

 

Also click on the link way up on the bar above for reviews and post it.

[tonyjonj]

Enjoyed reading your review. We will be sailing on the Zenith on June 10, with 3 other couples. Thanks for the tip on the 3 day bus tickets.Hope to visit Horseshoe Bay, everyone recommends it. Did you visit the Dockyard?

[bilgeboyPa]

Great review. Thanks. We will be sailing May 27th and we can't wait. I have been on Century and Mercury. I seem to like the smaller older ships. Less crowded and better dining. I just hope the water warms up :D .

 

Jeff

[smackalip]

great review. at what time wdid disembarkation begin. we have an 1120 flight out of newark and want to know if it will be a problem.