Just back: RHAPSODY OF THE SEAS Review (9/10/06-9/17/06)

[monakayk]

Just back: RHAPSODY OF THE SEAS Review (9/10/06-9/17/06)

My DH and 2 DFs just got back last weekend from our 7 day cruise on the Rhapsody of the Seas. Below is a review of our cruise.

We flew into Houston on the 7th to have 3 days before our cruise left to tour Houston and Galveston. Our first major stop was to tour NASA. Had a great and very FULL day there. It is a 'do not miss' for everyone. Many volunteers that work there are retired employees of NASA. In fact one gentleman who was in the 'shuttle' area used to work in the control

room. He was VERY informative and was a lot of fun to talk to. After our tour of NASA we drove over to KEMAH BOARDWALK. We enjoyed a great seafood dinner at the 'Flying Dutchman' Restaurant and had the best seafood I have ever had in my entire life. And believe me that is saying something, because I have lived most of my life in TX and in

SC and fresh seafood was something I regularly had! In fact we liked the food so much we went back there the next night.

On the 9th, we drove down to Galveston. For those of you who want to rent a car from Houston and drop it off in Galveston...use Enterprise Car Rental. They did not charge us a drop off fee. We knew they would charge one from Houston to Galveston and not for the second rental for one day going back from Galveston to Houston to catch our plane. But as it turned out...we were not charged a drop off fee at all. So do check them

out..they had great rates and service too! While in Galveston we toured two historical homes...Bishop Palace and the Moody Mansion. Both are beautiful and well worth seeing! We had dinner at Casey's Restaurant on Sat. night. I have to admit that after having seafood at the Flying Dutchman in Houston, Casey's could not stand up to it. We

were a bit disappointed in Casey's.

We arrived at the cruise terminal around 12:30 PM. We were one of the first of about 40 people there. So really we did not have to rush to get there. In fact we did not board the ship till well after 1 or pretty close to 1:30 PM (if memory serves me correct). However, something that I did not see mentioned on these boards...they served

water/lemonade/cookies/pound cake at the terminal, which was nice while we waited. Chairs were plentiful if you did not wait till the last minute to arrive. Getting on the ship was easy since we did the online check-in. We were so excited to board her...taking photos as we boarded.

We went to the Meet and Mingle and were very happy and please to have meet (in person) some of the great folks who have posted on these boards. It was fun to see them at various times on the ship and also arrange to have two members to join us at our table for dinner. If you have not registered yet for your cruise M&M...do so..you will not regret it and will meet some of the nicest people ever...We Did!

Our cabins were on Deck 7. Some mention has been stated in previous post about vibrations on the Rhapsody. I will give you my/DH & our 2 DFs opinions on this subject. The Rhapsody DOES have terrible vibration in many areas of the ship. Our cabin (7115) had it horribly throughout the entire voyage. It did lessen at times, but we felt it the entire time in our cabin. Our DFs cabin (7103) felt it also, however, not as much as we

did in our cabin. Also, in the dinning room we sat on the top level near the end of the balcony at table 115 and it was felt again each and every night. The worst nights we felt the vibrations in the dinning room was on the 1st night and also the 2nd to last night. In fact, we made jokes about it as we noticed, while we were holding our menus, that they shook so badly in our hands that it looked like all of us had the 'shakes'. So the

vibrations in parts of the ship is quite bad and need some attention by RCCL.

As for service on the ship, we had excellent service everywhere except for our steward. We had a different steward than our DFs and they always had ice on time in their cabin and their steward was somewhere near by whenever they needed him. Ours...well all I can say, is....on the last night I had to run him down just to get ice at 6:45 PM and he actually gave me a lame excuse about not getting to my cabin yet and would be there

in a while. I just looked at him astonished he would put me off, while I was standing there at my cabin! Needless to say, I asked him to wait a minute..grabbed my empty ice bucket--handed it to him and asked for ice then and there. I would not have minded waiting, but we was meeting our DFs in the Game Room (right down the hall) to watch the sunset on the balcony and did not want to miss it because of slow service. I know

many of you will bash me for not being more patient, but this WAS the last night on ship and we had put up with no ice in our bucket till well after 9 PM each and every night!

Entertainment was great. We really enjoyed the shows in the theatre...they were all top-notch and done very well. Derek Lewis in the Schooner Bar was fabulous. Even if you do not do Karaokee....Derek is great entertainment himself. He is funny and very talented!!! Just make sure to not pass through the bar or you might unexpectedly get

'volunteered' to sing, as I was, but done all in fun!

The food in the main dinning room was very good. I was very surprised because of reading some post that the food was not good. However, except for the steak, I enjoyed each and every dish I had. Some of my favs were: Pate, Escargot, Lobster Tails, Tiger Shrimp, Lobster Bisque, Lamb Chops, and Crab Cakes to die for! Of course ALL the desserts were wonnnnnnderful! Food in the Windjammer Cafe....was buffet fare. Nothing

else needs to be said about that....great tasting food is not what you are after when you go to a buffet anywhere and that is not what you get at this one either on the ship. Room service was wonderful. I had breakfast each morning in my cabin. Also, a note: If you want juice of any type throughout the day, make sure to order enough during breakfast.

After that 'hour' of service, a charge of $2.00 per glass is charged with a 15 % gratuity. Make sure to order the 'cheese plate'. It is full of WEDGES of 5 different cheeses....wonderful with wine for a nice cocktail time in your cabin with your DH/DW!

Excursions we went on: Grand Cayman--we booked our own snorkel tour with 'Captain Marvin's' . We were VERY pleased with their tour. They were helpful, polite and informative about the stingrays/snorkeling for newbies. We had 3 different snorkeling spots for 3 hours. Our tour was well over 3 hours in all...which surprised us because we thought 3 hours would include the travel time in the boat to the snorkel site. NOT at all...we had 3 full hours of snorkeling and an additional 30-45 mins. in travel time. Which

was fine with us...more time to enjoy the ocean. If you have questions about this tour...just post them and I will be happy to answer them for you.

Cozumel---we booked the Tulum Mayan Ruins through the ship. We had tried to book through a private company but was worried we would not have time make the last ferry back to Cozumel with them. I still wished we had been able to book privately. The main problem with the ship's excursion was...we had to walk SEVERAL long blocks in the HOT

HEAT through town to get to the parking lot to get onto our tour bus. Many pax were very upset about this not being explained more fully on RCCL excursion website. I had known about it because of previous pax post about this tour, but I was still upset that the walk was further than explained. Our tour guide told us they had to park in the "far

parking lot" for some reason..which never was fully explained. Also the bus we were on, the A/C was not working properly therefore we were sweating bullets all day in and out of the bus. The tour of the ruins was great. They really are a 'must see', but be forewarned, this tour is NOT for folks that can not endure EXTREME HEAT. It is VERY HOT

at the ruins, no breeze except for near the cliff side looking over the ocean. There were older folks in our group who, just after 15 mins. in the heat, had to ask to go back to the bus (which was hot also but at least out of the sun) because of the extreme heat. All in all, I would do this tour again, but would've loved for a bus with proper A/C to give some

sort of reprieve to our hot day.

Much discussion on these boards have been about the attire on formal nights in the main dinning...I do have to add what I have observed. MOST people were dressed VERY nicely. Only a handful, that I noticed, had casual pants/jeans on those 2 nights. Most women were dressed 'to the nines'/long formal dresses or cocktail party attire, men in suits/tux. We enjoyed the formal nights. It gave us a night to really 'celebrate' in a way

we usually are unable to in our routine lives. Other nights in the dinning room: tropical attire/Hawaiian shirts/resort casual/docker pants/polo shirts were the norm. I really did not see many people in jeans during dinner.

Disembarkment was a breeze. Since we did not have an early flight back home and could take our time off the ship...that is exactly what we did. In fact (I am not exaggerating) we were the very LAST people out the terminal!

All in all...I would most certainly cruise with RCCL again. I loved the Rhapsody...she is a beautiful and lovely ship! I hope TPTB will address the vibration problem...to make her one of the best cruise ship (IMHO). I would most certainly recommend RCCL and this ship to anyone who are considering a cruise. In fact, I hope to talk the DH into cruising

again with RCCL hopefully within the next year or two!!!

If anyone has questions...please do not hesitate to ask! Sorry this was so long, but I just had so much I wanted to cover.

:) Happy Cruising! :)

[wolfcathorse]

Who was your captain so I can update the Current Captains thread.

[brn2crz]

Hi Mona...

Glad you had a great trip...We love the Rhapsody,and are so sad that she wil be leaving soon..

Being from the Clear Lake/Galveston area..Glad to hear you had a great stay.Isn't the Boardwalk fun...We love the FD also..great food and view!!

Also gotta agree with Caseys...No where near the choices,atmoshere or taste..Oh well at least you had 2 great meals:p

 

Really weird about the vibration..We have been on her 4 times...Never felt it other than some very odd sounds and shimmies during 30ft waves during IVAN...I wonder if she took a real beating during that storm,cause I have heard many reports of it since..We have stayed all over that ship..Including 7024...

 

Anyway..Great review...We love our Rhapsody...

Come on back in 08 and join us on the VOyager:)

[FlorenceItaly]

Thanks so much for taking the time to post. We leave in two weeks(Deck 7, lol). Isn't Derek, the BEST. He was one of the highlights of our cruise in 2004, and can't wait to see him again.

 

 

Marie

[p2lockhart]

Thanks for taking the time to post your review. It was very helpful. Only one more week from Sunday for us!

[Pradagal]

Nice review. I'm glad someone made it to Grand Caymens. The hurricane made sure our Aug.27th sailing on the Rhapsody would be a little different.

Went to Belize (wouldn't wish it on anyone) and Costa Maya (nice but a little boring) at least Cozumel still was on the menu. Had a great excursion,the hideaway jet boats.

Still the love the ship(Texans a crazy fun bunch):) but your right about the vibration we were 7152(corner aft). Much worse than the Vision, never felt a thing on her.

[morebeaches]

I read in Billboard Magazines that the rendition of you singing "I Got You Babe" at the Schooner Bar with Derek and that guy you were singing with is climbing the charts with a bullet :D

[starq1]

:) but your right about the vibration we were 7152(corner aft). Much worse than the Vision, never felt a thing on her.

 

 

We are in this cabin (7152) in Feb. How did you like it?

[J Mack]

Thank you for taking the time to post this review!

[monakayk]

Who was your captain so I can update the Current Captains thread.

 

I can't remember his name:rolleyes: ...but my friend (who went with us) might. I will get back with you on this one.

:) Happy Cruising!:)

[monakayk]

I read in Billboard Magazines that the rendition of you singing "I Got You Babe" at the Schooner Bar with Derek and that guy you were singing with is climbing the charts with a bullet :D

 

LOL! Oh really!.....well the crowd did yell to Derek "that guy I was singing with" and I should be recording stars! ROFLO!

:) Happy Cruising.....Morebeaches!:)

[heyheypaula]

:D Hey Mona...We were down the hall in room 7123. When we walked into our room, my dh and I looked at each other and both exclaimed, "This is the littlest room we have ever had on a cruise!" :eek: It ended up being just fine. I guess we were blessed, because we didn't have problems with the vibration issue. And our dining was on the lower level...We never had vibration during our dining. I loved the ship (my second time on her) and loved the service. We did have trouble getting ice, too! I wonder if we had the same steward. We also rarely got an opportunity to talk to him. On our other cruises we have talked a lot with our cabin stewards. Anyhoooooooo, loved the cruise! We thought the food was superb! Like you, I had read the reviews and was prepared...Instead, we were surpised and very pleased! I only wish we would have felt better:( and could have attended the meet and mingle.:cool: ..I was very disappointed to not be able to put a face with each of you on the roll call thread!

[Pradagal]

I was a nice quiet cabin and we love the balcony on the corner aft cabins. The Vision of the seas corner aft seem a little larger for some reason. We really did have a lovely time.

[lawsoncd3]

Thank you for posting the reivew. We leave in one week. (10-1). I'm looking forward to the M&M! I will certaintly put on the cheese plate as a must do. I love cheese. I would have never thought about it. Sounds like a perfect snack before bed time (whenever that is!).

 

Looking forward to posting our review in a couple of weeks.

 

Dona :)

[veroned]

We sailed with Mona and had a wonderful time!

 

As far as vibration, we felt NONE in our cabin or in the dining room. Our locations were different. Our cabin was on deck 2, interior, midships. Our dining was downstairs on the starboard side.

 

(As a side note, we opted for an interior room on this, our second cruise. We LOVED it - quiet and as dark as we wished - bring a night lite. We slept in, gloriously, a couple of mornings, once till nearly 11)!

 

 

We DID feel some vibration while in the spa/fitness center (far aft). It was actually pleasant while you were in the sauna or steam room, though distracting in the "relaxation room."

 

Had a great time and would repeat much of what Mona describes. For two of our shore excursions we went out on our own in rental vehicles (scooters in Key West and an old VW convertible in Cozumel). Both were great excursions and we enjoyed the flexibility of exploring greater distances on our own. (The wild side of Cozumel and their bars with no electricity were most laid back and pleasant)!

[monakayk]

heyheypaula,

Sorry to have missed meeting you too at our M&M. It was not only a fun way to 'meet' everyone, but RCCL did a really nice job with the horderves they provided at the party for us. They even had caviar on some of them--Yummo (to me!)

I didn't want to mention our steward's name online in case he just was having a 'bad week' or something, but it would not surprise me if he was the same as yours. His name starts with a 'R' and ends in an 'O'. So that might give you a hit who he is. Anyhow, as you said...if he is the same as yours, we were not pleased at all with his service and rarely saw him. Whereas on our other cruise we took, we only had to step out of our cabin door and the steward we had then was there asking if we needed anything at all hours of the day or night. I guess we just expected the same treatment/service as we had received before and was disappointed with our steward we had on the Rhapsody this time. Also the fact that I had to literally run him down for ice...was just the last straw, so to speak.

Other than our steward....the rest of the staff were wonderful, prompt, polite and very helpful in every way.

veroned,

As for the viberation...we did feel it in our cabin quite a lot, and in the dinning room on the second level at our table. My DH and I did have lunch one day in the dinning room downstairs by the windows and didn't feel it as much in that area, which was really nice. It might have been the location of our table upstairs near the banister but in any case, it was very un-nerving at times to try to sit and have a relaxing dinner and feel like we were sitting on a vibrator during the entire meal.

I just hope that RCCL will look into this matter, because the Rhapsody is a lovely, beautiful ship. We enjoyed every minute of our cruise on her and would sail on her again! She is just the right size ship and we didn't get lost on her. As for the cabin we had, which was an interior, we felt that the cabin was very roomy for the price. Our previous cabin on our other cruise was not as large...so we felt like we had plenty of room and the storage/drawers/closet space was plentiful.

Thanks to all for your questions and if I can give you any further info, just ask away.

:) Happy Cruising!:)

[monakayk]

Thank you for posting the reivew. We leave in one week. (10-1). I'm looking forward to the M&M! I will certaintly put on the cheese plate as a must do. I love cheese. I would have never thought about it. Sounds like a perfect snack before bed time (whenever that is!).

 

Looking forward to posting our review in a couple of weeks.

 

Dona :)

 

Be forewarned about the cheese plate (or I would better describe it as a PLATTER), it comes with A LOT of cheese. Wedges of: Blue Cheese, Brie, Smoked Cheddar, Swiss, & Gouda. Also some fruit and a couple of carrot and celery 'sticks' with crackers. It really is a very nice treat and of course if you do not eat it all, cheese will stay fine at a cool room temp for a day or so.

:) Enjoy!:)

[sbgrace]

Thanks for the review! We will be sailing Rhapsody in May--yippee!

 

About Enterprise car rental--can you drop off the car at the port? If not, where's the rental place and do they have a shuttle to the port? TIA

 

Chris

[Nitra]

I have sailed her many times and have always noticed the vibration, never really let it bother me, just reminded me I was cruising!

 

There are many of us that love this ship, we sail her on a regular basis, and are very sad she is leaving after next August to go to Asia. I have no desire to visit Asia so guess I wont be on her again, unless they bring her back one day. Next May is going to be my last sailing on the Rhapsody.... :(

[lawsoncd3]

Be forewarned about the cheese plate (or I would better describe it as a PLATTER), it comes with A LOT of cheese. Wedges of: Blue Cheese, Brie, Smoked Cheddar, Swiss, & Gouda. Also some fruit and a couple of carrot and celery 'sticks' with crackers. It really is a very nice treat and of course if you do not eat it all, cheese will stay fine at a cool room temp for a day or so.

 

:) Enjoy!:)

 

Mona: Thanks for the head's up! I seriously can't wait for one more week. Again, thanks. I read your review of the appetizers that were served at M&M. What kind of drinks did they offer? I would assume that there would be a bar or drinks to purchase?

 

D :)

[Natanni]

Hi Mona

I am new to CC and have been reading these boards for about a month. We are sailing on Rhapsody in March 07 and I am curious about WINE :) Did you bring any wine on board or have any delivered? If delivered, what company? We have cruised 4 times, starting in 2002. This will be our 2nd cruise with RCCL (first on the Grandeur) and every year, I have always brought 2 bottles of my own *never found on any ship* wine. Obviously with the new rules, I am devastated. We are more a private couple that prefer our wine on our balcony after dinner :( We have a great cabin on our sailing, but I am just about ready to go back to another line over this silly issue...Many thanks, Ann

[Gingee]

Our room is 7556. Should we worry about the vibration?

[samtig]

Our room is 7556. Should we worry about the vibration?

 

 

We're in 7568 & I was wondering the same thing.....

[WindinmySails]

Mona, I would love to ask a couple questions! I'm a Coloradan as well. Wish we had some closer options.

Anyway, may I ask how much you paid for the rental car? I was quoted 82.00 Houston to Galvaston and 92.oo back to Houston. Does that sound about right?

 

Also, which evenings were the formal nights? I am trying to see if we would be back from our excursians in time for our early seating. I prefer late, but I am traveling with kids this time.

 

Also, how is seating done on the Key West night? I would rather miss dinner in the dining room that a sunset in Key West.

 

And lastly, which night is lobster night? My boys would love to try it!

 

Thanks so much for your time!

Char in Littleton

[heyheypaula]

I didn't want to mention our steward's name online in case he just was having a 'bad week' or something, but it would not surprise me if he was the same as yours. His name starts with a 'R' and ends in an 'O'. So that might give you a hit who he is. Anyhow, as you said...if he is the same as yours, we were not pleased at all with his service and rarely saw him. Whereas on our other cruise we took, we only had to step out of our cabin door and the steward we had then was there asking if we needed anything at all hours of the day or night. I guess we just expected the same treatment/service as we had received before and was disappointed with our steward we had on the Rhapsody this time. Also the fact that I had to literally run him down for ice...was just the last straw, so to speak.

 

Other than our steward....the rest of the staff were wonderful, prompt, polite and very helpful in every way.

Yep, we had the same one...At least I know it wasn't just something about my husband and me, since you experienced the same things we did!