I had planned this cruise for seven months. A friend and I who had previously traveled with Carnival and Celebrity were looking forward to trying Royal Caribbean after hearing so many positive things about the beauty of the ship, quality of food and service, etc. For the second time, I surprised my retired parents by taking them with us (the year before I had surprised them with an Alaskan cruise which I’ll review later), and they were absolutely thrilled when they found out they would be doing it again. they would travel aboard Royal Caribbean’s Navigator of the Seas, which they said was their favorite ship of the 13 other cruises they had taken. With the ship fresh out of drydock for upgrades, he set out to some new destinations none of us had ever been before: the island of Roatán, Honduras, and Belize City. The expectations were high.
Then cruise time camera. While I’m not prepared to say that we had a BAD time on this cruise, I think it’s fair to say that our expectations were somewhat deflated, pretty much from the moment we arrived at the Port of Galveston. Let me take you through the highs and lows of life on the high seas aboard Navigator of the Seas.
the tall ones
Our Dining Experience: Definitely the best service we received on the ship was in the Sapphire Main Dining Room, which is hands down the most beautiful dining room I’ve ever seen on a cruise. Walking into the dining room is like walking into a royal opera house complete with a grand staircase and three levels of dining room with windows on each side. Both of our servers were extremely attentive, noting my stepmother’s preference to make her own iced tea with two glasses of ice, 2 tea bags, and some hot water, waiting for her every night after the first. I could blame her for being a “tea snob” but then I’d have to look in the mirror with my Starbucks in hand and get mad at Folgers. All of us enjoyed the variety of food options and thought the food was of a very high quality, with service that ran like clockwork. It was truly a pleasure to dine each night.
Here we are at dinner. I am the little blue ball.
The Cabin: Inside Cabin 7667 (Aft Port) was home sweet for our week at sea. My parents were right next door in 7669. For an interior cabin, there was plenty of room to store all of our stuff and have a completely clear space to move into. I would say the bed was a bit hard but it all depends on your preference as my friend and fellow traveler Jay (the guy in purple) said his was perfect. Ample closets and drawers allowed us plenty of room to unpack. Our butler service was also top notch, restocking and ordering twice a day.
The ship… Navigator is definitely a beautiful ship. Notable is the Royal Promenade, a series of shops, restaurants and bars that run from stern to bow, giving cruisers the feeling of strolling down a cobbled street while at sea. I recommend the Two Poets Pub for a nice atmosphere and people watching. The main atrium is beautiful, and the various lounges and bars are designed with a very elegant yet comfortable atmosphere. The pool deck is also impressive, with two main pools flanked by several hot tubs, some of which are shaded. For the most part, there are plenty of chairs both inside and outside in the shade, but if your cruise ship is full, you better get there early to snag one. We also thought the nightclub overlooking the pool deck with its floor-to-ceiling windows added a nice touch to the ship’s offerings. The ship’s casino is also pretty decent, but since smoking is allowed there, you might come away smelling like an ashtray.
Overlooking the Paseo Real
the great atrium
Beverage Package – Three of us on this cruise had the premium package for $55 a day, but since my dad only drinks beer, we got him the basic package. At first glance, this package may seem a bit pricey (Royal Caribbean’s drink packages are some of the most expensive at sea), but overall it was well worth our money. What I liked the most was that basically nothing on the drink menu was off limits short of the super premium stuff. You can even opt for Gray Goose vodka at no extra charge. The other side of the coin here is the bar service (see below).
Theatrical Entertainment: If you’re ever on the Navigator of the Seas, don’t miss the ice skating show. It’s fantastic and it was so much better than I thought it was going to be. We also enjoyed the Elton John impersonator, the bar style show, and the adult game show.
the short ones
Boarding/Disembarking: The words fiasco, nightmare, eternity, and disorganization come to mind for both. This was hands down the WORST boarding/disembarking process I have ever experienced, and my parents, who had been on 13 previous cruises, agreed. We should have expected this when Royal Caribbean emailed us pre-cruise telling us to arrive at certain times based on which deck our cabin was on. It just so happened that we had flown into Houston and our shuttle dropped us off right at the time we were supposed to be there, which was 12:30 pm. We didn’t set foot on the ship until almost 2 pm. two different lines, both extremely slow. This is definitely not the way you want to start your vacation, and very few smiles were found at security and check-in lines. Mind you, I expect to wait a bit to check in, but this was just ridiculous. I think the longest wait I’ve ever experienced before this was 30 minutes tops. I definitely expressed my dissatisfaction with the lady at the check-in.
The landing was practically as bad. Since we had a driver waiting for us, we opted for self checkout and were given a specific time and place to meet. We have done this on other cruises with minimal wait, with customs officers boarding the ship to collect forms. In the past, we basically walked off the ship. Not this time. When we got to the designated spot, we waited another good 45 minutes just to be allowed to disembark. Once off the ship, guess what? Another line, another 45 minutes to get through customs. My driver charged me an additional waiting fee, thanks to Royal Caribbean and the Port of Galveston.
Bottom line: I will never sail from Galveston, Texas again as they clearly don’t have the capacity to handle the volume of people that cruise ships have. Basically, Royal Caribbean left a negative first impression and a negative last impression.
Service – Aside from our servers at dinner, the service at the bars and lounges on this ship was average at best and certainly not what I’m used to on a cruise. While some bartenders did stand out, it usually took forever to get a drink and you often felt like you were a nuisance to the bartender or server. The worst service was probably at the pool bar. Some may say I’m too picky but when I spend my hard earned money on vacations I want decent service. Period. I really didn’t get it on this cruise. My parents also commented that “things just weren’t the same on this cruise” as they were on their previous experience on Navigator of the Seas.
Kids, kids, kids… OK, I’m probably going to roll my eyes at this, and maybe for some it wouldn’t be a negative, but there were way too many kids occupying the main pool area on this ship. . Like everywhere else, the parents are partly to blame here, allowing their little monsters to run amok and splash others in the main pool, but I blame Royal Caribbean for not enforcing the pool rules. On previous cruises kids weren’t even allowed to use hot tubs, but on this one they were. Of course, there is an adults-only pool and jacuzzi, but the problem is that there is no entertainment there (not that the entertainment at the main pool was anything to write home about).
We did not participate in any excursions on this cruise, so I cannot speak to their quality. We heard several comments that the tours were too expensive and not worth it. One excursion was even over an hour late and had to be delivered to the ship by boat as it was leaving Honduras.
The verdict: If I had to choose between Royal Caribbean and Carnival, I would probably choose Carnival based on my past experiences. I’m not totally closed off giving Royal Caribbean another chance, but they would have to completely surprise me for me to keep coming back.