Sovereign Review 10-13-06

[Kanebaby]

Just got back from the Sovereign this morning (we live in Orlando so we have been home for a while) so here is my review.

 

Embarkation was easy and fast.....we were on the ship by a little after 1:00 so we went to check out the room. I have to say i was extremely surprised by the size of the room...we had room #9068 a superior oveanview. It was alot bigger then i thought it would be. I have heard mixed reviews about the size and about how well 4 people would do in the room, but we had no problems at all. Someone posted earlier that she also had a superior oceanview and that she had to sit on the bed while her husband dressed because there was not enough room for both of them to stand up......i'm not trying to be mean but you guys must weigh about 900 lbs a piece because we had no problem at all (and i'm a pretty big girl)...plenty of room to move around in the cabin except at the entryway. THe bathroom was a good size...the shower was huge, well, huge compared to what we've had before. Our room steward was nice and efficient, tho he did charge us too much for something and i will explain that later.

 

The food was good in the diningroom, and was ok in the Windjammer. I really love the breakfast the Windjammer has...really yummy and lots to choose from. My hubby and daughter did Johnny Rockets one day, they said it was pretty good, and we all did pizza, which was good also. Last night, in the diningroom, i saw a few people in flip flops and jeans, and one person in shorts and a decal tshirt. It didn't bother me, but from reading previous posts i'm sure some from this board would have blown a gasket at the sight of it. We had a table for 4, which was nice, except we had this insanely obnoxious guy at the table next to us....he was loud, rude, threw things at other tables (obviously it was people he knew) and just a total a**hole all around....dinner would have been much better without this joker as a distraction.

 

We saw the Welcome Aboard show....and the Friendship Parade...played Name that Tune and took an art class...other then that didn't do too much partying....we are party poopers and were in bed fairly early each night (except for me, i played at the casino). My son spent alot of time at Adventure Ocean...he really loved it there.

 

Saturday we got a room at the Comfort Suites and spent the day at Atlantis....that place is huge...we knew when the desk clerk told us to get a map of the property, we were in for a full day of fun. We did all the slides and pools, checked out the Digs briefly (we were all tired by then), then went back to the ship. Well, my biggest fear came true.....we had to skip Cococay because of high winds. All 4 of us were so upset, but what could we do, it was no ones fault. So we spent a day at sea and relaxed.

 

All in all we all had a wonderful time. Only problem i had was one night we went to get coffee at Latitudes and i had a 25% coupon from my C&A coupon book. The coffee was $3.25 with cherry flavoring which was $.50, which is $3.75. She only deducted $.13 for the coupon. Now what i should have done was refused to sign the receipt. She argued with me and told me that i was wrong and that WAS 25%. What i eventually figured out was that is was 25% of the $.50 flavoring, not the whole cost of the coffee. I was kinda mad that she argued with me and told me i was wrong....i just figured i would take it up with Guest Relations. Also, our room steward charged us for 2 Cokes and 1 water, when all we drank was 1 Coke. I went to GR this morning and they said i would have to contact headquarters because they had already closed for settling any discrepancies. She was very nice and gave me copies of everything and said to fax them a letter and they would fix everything for me. I know its not a lot of money, but its the principle....i'm very thrifty and watch my money like a hawk (i've been an accountant for 10 year so that explains a little).

 

I really loved the Sovereign. I think me and hubby will be going back soon alone early next year. We had a really wonderful time.

[billh65]

Just got back from the Sovereign this morning (we live in Orlando so we have been home for a while) so here is my review.

 

I really loved the Sovereign. I think me and hubby will be going back soon alone early next year. We had a really wonderful time.

 

Our second cruise and first RCCL cruise was on Sovereign this past May, actually left on my birthday, and my 2 married daughters and son-in-laws joined my wife and I -- and they all surprised me at dinner with presents and a special dessert and the waiters sang. I was impressed with the ship for the age, and watched all the refurb videos shown in room (I think). It is really convenient for those of us in Florida for a quick 3 or 4 day jaunt at a good value.

[HB Cruiser]

Boy do we wish we lived close to the Sovereign. We would probably cruise once a month if we lived down there, LOL. Love that ship!!!

 

Tim & Crystal

[PH8]

Going on the Sovereign for the 10th time next week, but you mentioned somthing I dont know.the Friendship Parade?? Whats that?? Is that one of the things in the dining room??:confused:

[EggDropErin]

Thanks for the review! :)

[wolfcathorse]

Going on the Sovereign for the 10th time next week, but you mentioned somthing I dont know.the Friendship Parade?? Whats that?? Is that one of the things in the dining room??:confused:

 

We didn't have a Friendship Parade in May when we were on Sovereign but we did on Grandeur in February. Basically its where the captain leads a parade (on Grandeur it was in the Centrum) where you have someone carrying a flag of the country they're from. They get 1 person to represent the different nationalities aboard, then we did a sing along of 2 or 3 songs. They handed out song sheets for us to sing along. The captain made a little speech (and waits for the appropriate applause :rolleyes: ) and the CD makes a little speech (ditto above brackets). They line the steps down into the main floor of the centrum and round the railings of 1 of the decks. That was on Grandeur, I don't know where they do it on Sovereign but it must be something the whole fleet is going to.

[kittymom65]

Boy do we wish we lived close to the Sovereign. We would probably cruise once a month if we lived down there, LOL. Love that ship!!!

 

Ditto here!!!:)

[nlcentralchmps03]

Then we did a sing along of 2 or 3 songs. They handed out song sheets for us to sing along.

 

 

We had it on the Sovereign in September, and Chris Armas (our CD) sang Take Me Home Country Road, and America the Beautiful.

 

I didn't know it was called a friendship parade though :o

[PH8]

Live and learn...thanks all!!:)

[Merion_Mom]

We didn't have a Friendship Parade in May when we were on Sovereign but we did on Grandeur in February. Basically its where the captain leads a parade (on Grandeur it was in the Centrum) where you have someone carrying a flag of the country they're from. They get 1 person to represent the different nationalities aboard, then we did a sing along of 2 or 3 songs. They handed out song sheets for us to sing along. The captain made a little speech (and waits for the appropriate applause :rolleyes: ) and the CD makes a little speech (ditto above brackets). They line the steps down into the main floor of the centrum and round the railings of 1 of the decks. That was on Grandeur, I don't know where they do it on Sovereign but it must be something the whole fleet is going to.

When I was on the Sovereign, it was pretty much the same, except no captain and no CD. And no stairs, of course, because the dining rooms are one-level on the SOS.

[wolfcathorse]

When I was on the Sovereign, it was pretty much the same, except no captain and no CD. And no stairs, of course, because the dining rooms are one-level on the SOS.

 

I was just relating to how we experienced the Friendship Parade on Grandeur.

[PH8]

I was just relating to how we experienced the Friendship Parade on Grandeur.

 

Besides,you werent talking about it in the dining room,were you?? It was something totally different,if I understand correctly.......

[Merion_Mom]

I was just relating to how we experienced the Friendship Parade on Grandeur.

I was agreeing with you, not contradicting you! Just further describing the Sovereign experience! :)

[wolfcathorse]

I was agreeing with you, not contradicting you! Just further describing the Sovereign experience! :)

 

Ohhhhhhhhh, How I remember my Sovereign experience! :D :D :D Lying to DH, kidnapping, false pretenses....:eek:

[forpaws]

Kanebaby - From a fellow accountant--enjoyed your review!

 

Our first sailing was on Sovereign this past August...and I remember they handed out song sheets while we were waiting to have Lifestyle pics taken...and I didn't know until now that it was a parade either. I wondered why everyone was singing that John Denver song. :o

[PH8]

Sounds a little corny to me....:p

[forpaws]

Sounds a little corny to me....:p

 

It is...IMO...:cool:

[chad_n_jess]

Leaving on the SOS on Monday can't wait hope to see this show plus more.

[crystalgirl]

My wife and I just got off the Oct 13-16 SOS cruise as well. We went with 3 other couples and all had a great time. Missing CocoCay was a bummer. If anyone goes on the SOS soon, from 11:30 to 1 am in the Boleros lounge is the "Dueling Pianos" with Jeff and Rhiannon. It's like going to a piano bar, and they can play just about anything and interact with the crowd very well. I went all three nights. You may wanna check it out.

 

One thing the ladies in our group all agreed on was that the Spa treatments were not very good, and definitely not worth the money ($55 for a pedicure). The spa attendants were not very accomodating (one stated that "she did not have the time to do a "French Pedicure" (or whatever it's called) and to just pick another color for the girl's toes". I have heard repeatedly that on board spa treatments are not very good. We figured that this is because they are not worried about your repeat business, and thus don't have to go all out for customer satisfaction.

 

Overall, the food was pretty good. The dinner menu could stand to be a little better, but the food that we had was good. The service was also very good. We really had no complaints about meals. The Windjammer cafe breakfast buffet was not mindblowing but filled my belly just fine.

 

Mr. crystalgirl

[gatorphin]

Thanks! Looking forward to our cruise on the SOS Nov. 3rd! Taking my wife and kids, 4 & 7. Kids first cruise. If they like it maybe cruise again this summer. :)

[Violet Princess]

My wife and I just got off the Oct 13-16 SOS cruise as well. We went with 3 other couples and all had a great time. Missing CocoCay was a bummer. If anyone goes on the SOS soon, from 11:30 to 1 am in the Boleros lounge is the "Dueling Pianos" with Jeff and Rhiannon. It's like going to a piano bar, and they can play just about anything and interact with the crowd very well. I went all three nights. You may wanna check it out.

 

One thing the ladies in our group all agreed on was that the Spa treatments were not very good, and definitely not worth the money ($55 for a pedicure). The spa attendants were not very accomodating (one stated that "she did not have the time to do a "French Pedicure" (or whatever it's called) and to just pick another color for the girl's toes". I have heard repeatedly that on board spa treatments are not very good. We figured that this is because they are not worried about your repeat business, and thus don't have to go all out for customer satisfaction.

 

Overall, the food was pretty good. The dinner menu could stand to be a little better, but the food that we had was good. The service was also very good. We really had no complaints about meals. The Windjammer cafe breakfast buffet was not mindblowing but filled my belly just fine.

 

Mr. crystalgirl

 

 

 

 

Mr. Crystalgirl and KaneBaby:

What about the food in the dining room? Worth going or not?

[PH8]

Do you know who the loyalty ambassador is??