splendor of the seas- mixed reviews???

[Epaul3]

I am booked on the Splendor of the Seas in January and have been reading some reviews about the ship. There seems to be quite a wide swing of opinion regarding her condition, service, etc. Some think it was wonderful... some thing it was terrible. Has it varied that much from cruise to cruise or is it just a difference in what cruisers attitude/expections are? Hope I have not made a mistake booking this ship. Thanks for your help!

[noslen3333]

I guess you could say that I am one of the "positive" cruisers. We did a back to back from Dec. 4th through the 14th and had a wonderful time. The food was great in both the dining room and the Windjammer. The staff were very friendly and handled themselves in a professional manner. We had very rough seas both times and many people were sick. Maybe that's why there are negative comments.

 

I think the ship was in fine shape. I didn't see anything that needed to be fixed. I met so many nice and friendly people from all over the US and Canada. I think that's why I love cruising....so many friendly folk. I also found the size of the ship to be easy to navigate...all floors go front to back and with a small passenger count, you really do get to know folks.

 

Relax...I think you will have a great time. I guess anyone can find fault with the Splendour if they try hard enough but why waste your time!!!!

 

Hope you do any a wonderful cruise..

[Sheik]

What the Galaxy is for Celebrity, is the Splendour for Royal Caribbean. I mean that in the most positive way. It's a lovely ship. Check a lot of pictures at http://www.cruiseclues.com I think you'll love the intimity, service and shiplayout. Based on the wonderful memories, we found the Splendour and Legend the best Vision ships.

[bulldogmommy]

My last two cruises have been on the Splendour, both with and without children. The staff is wonderful, the food was well prepared and the ship is in great condition. Just remember, you are going on a Vision class not a Voyager class boat. The boat is intimate and a wonderful, relaxing trip.

 

I find some people just look for things to complain about....

 

Enjoy your vacation!:)

[Mikew0805]

I am booked on the Splendor of the Seas in January and have been reading some reviews about the ship. There seems to be quite a wide swing of opinion regarding her condition, service, etc. Some think it was wonderful... some thing it was terrible. Has it varied that much from cruise to cruise or is it just a difference in what cruisers attitude/expections are? Hope I have not made a mistake booking this ship. Thanks for your help!

 

I just returned from the Splendour, and yes there were issues that I wish would have been better. However, even from my review I think you can tell I still had a wonderful time, and I am sure that you will too. I think the biggest issue was the Windjammer food. If you stay away from that, I think you have a great time. ( unless of course it was a bad week, and the food is better now ) LOL

 

-Mike

[Epaul3]

I appreciate the feedback about the ship. This is our 6th cruise.... 2 on Adventure, 1 on Serenade, 1 on Enchantment and 1 on Rhapsody. I find each ship has it's good and bad points... but enjoy exploring the differences between them all. This is a surprise Christmas gift for my husband so just the few days away will be great.

[terri23]

we've been on Splendour twice now (including this past weekend) and truthfully she is starting to show her age. this was more noticeable to us now having spent two weeks on Jewel this past summer. but everything is clean and in good condition overall. the recent refurb helped for sure. and, the food on Splendour this past weekend was better than on our holiday cruise last year - WJ for breakfast & lunch (fruit, breakfast items cooked to order, toast, smoked salmon, salads) and the DR for dinner. great service and friendly staff (although the captain is not quite as personable as some, that's ok w/ me as his main job is on the bridge!); the bartenders were friendly and the pool band was good! for me, the jury is still out on the new bedding; it seems better than the old stuff but I was still stiff and sore when I got up yesterday - maybe I just didn't want to leave!! ;) don't even think twice about canceling - you'll enjoy Splendour and will want to go again!!

[Ali-in-Texas]

If you love to cruise, I think you'll like it. We were on her Dec 4-9 and we had a wonderful cruise.

 

The weather wasn't great on the sea days, but that didn't bother us. There were many sick people due to the huge waves. I took my medicine all week and didn't have a problem.

 

The only things that could have been better was breakfast in the windjammer. I don't particularly like it. The fruit was good.

 

Our air in the cabin didn't stick to a certain temp. We like to stay on the warm side but our cabin would change between 62 degrees and 71. Maintenance did check our air a couple of times but it would always get very cold again. We didn't stay in our cabin much so it wasn't a major issue to us.

[vickiw0318]

Hi, Elizabeth! We are cruising with you this January. We booked this four day getaway on our last year's Splendour cruise. I don't think you've made a mistake booking this cruise. We really liked the layout of this ship and enjoyed the staff members. We had the best waiter we've ever had and a wonderful room steward. The bartender in the champagne bar made me a terrific virgin strawberry daiquiri. We had a lousy waiter up by the pool who was gone forever getting my order of a virgin version of the drink of the day and then returned with one with alcohol in it. The weather was just so-so. Maybe the food wasn't gourmet quality, but any food that I don't cook and any meal that I don't have to clean up after always has a few pluses in my book. (You can always order another entree if what you get doesn't meet your expectations, or go to another station in the Windjammer and find something else.) It was good, well served and our tablemates were lots of fun. I think the slot machines ate my money. So, like any cruise, there were good things/bad things.

 

Don't go expecting everything to be perfect. Just relax and let the cruise come to you. I had a good time with some of the little things like watching the last tender come in from Cozumel with a group of people that must have been loaded on dollies - upright and still partying - to get them out of Carlos and Charlie's. They danced on the roof of the tender until they had to get off and nice conversations in the Champagne Bar and up in the Viking Crown Lounge while DH was napping. We enjoyed the view of the wake from the ninth floor balcony behind the spa so much that we booked an aft balcony for ourselves this time around.

 

It's going to be great - I promise.

[sailor moon]

We have sailed her 3 times and look forward to Spring Break on her again. Although it is an older ship, we like her size and the crew is great. The bedding is MUCH improved and the Windjammer is better than it was in 2005 with its new layout. It is a great ship for a short cruise.

[Epaul3]

Vicki, I so agree with you. Any vacation you don't have to cook and clean is great. We love to cruise...as much as we can get time off. Any ship eventually shows wear and tear with as many people as are on and off of it. We just want the air/heat to work, toilets to flush, etc. and no one get sick. We always enjoy meeting all the new people and just relaxing as much as possible.

 

I see you are from Richardson... my in-laws live there. We live in Greenville so aren't far from you! hope the weather is nice for our trip!

 

Elizabeth

[YellowTJ]

I have nothing to say as it's my 1st cruise but I'm excited, and I'm easy going so I'm sure silly stuff that bother some people won't bother me. We're leaveing on the 6th if that's you, see ya there.

[yellowbird23]

sailor moon was right on about the bedding...very comfortable...I soloed on SOS the end of September...nice ship....wonderful casino experience too...great layout in Windjammer...very nice short cruise ship, but then I like the smaller ships (except Empress)...

[Wilson]

We have enjoyed two wonderful cruises on this ship. Look forward to the next one.

Have a great cruise and make sure to post a review when you get back.

[texasnana]

Hi, Elizabeth! We are cruising with you this January. We booked this four day getaway on our last year's Splendour cruise. I don't think you've made a mistake booking this cruise. We really liked the layout of this ship and enjoyed the staff members. We had the best waiter we've ever had and a wonderful room steward. The bartender in the champagne bar made me a terrific virgin strawberry daiquiri. We had a lousy waiter up by the pool who was gone forever getting my order of a virgin version of the drink of the day and then returned with one with alcohol in it. The weather was just so-so. Maybe the food wasn't gourmet quality, but any food that I don't cook and any meal that I don't have to clean up after always has a few pluses in my book. (You can always order another entree if what you get doesn't meet your expectations, or go to another station in the Windjammer and find something else.) It was good, well served and our tablemates were lots of fun. I think the slot machines ate my money. So, like any cruise, there were good things/bad things.

 

Don't go expecting everything to be perfect. Just relax and let the cruise come to you. I had a good time with some of the little things like watching the last tender come in from Cozumel with a group of people that must have been loaded on dollies - upright and still partying - to get them out of Carlos and Charlie's. They danced on the roof of the tender until they had to get off and nice conversations in the Champagne Bar and up in the Viking Crown Lounge while DH was napping. We enjoyed the view of the wake from the ninth floor balcony behind the spa so much that we booked an aft balcony for ourselves this time around.

 

It's going to be great - I promise.

 

thanks for the review looks like we will be joinning you on this cruise too ..

 

any other tips????