Navigator of the Seas Review

Tried and True

Review for the Western Mediterranean Cruise on Navigator of the Seas
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Riknpat
6-10 Cruises • Age 70s

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Sail Date: Nov 2013

Took a short cruise from Rome to Barcelona stopping at Naples. Malta, Sardinia, Mallorca, and ending in Barcelona. The stop in Malta had to be aborted due to foul weather and was replaced by a stop at Messina in Sicily.

Navigator was large, clean and in pretty good shape given that is was heading across the ocean after the Barcelona stop for its refit. The ship was full but handles its capacity very well. There never seemed to be bottlenecks or crowding even in the Windjammer. It was my first time on this size of ship having cruised several times in Radiance and Vision class ships and I think that overall I prefer them. The theater is stunning though and the ice skating rink kind of neat. The main interior promenade will appeal to folks who like hanging out at the mall but it didn't appeal to me.

The crew was well organized and friendly from my steward to the bar staff to the front desk. My dining room waiter seemed to lack confidence and got flustered easily but the assistant waiter and the section captain picked up the slack. Food was generally well presented and tasty though not gourmet - good quality banquet fare and now standardized across the fleet which probably pleases the cost accountants but bores the regular RCL cruisers like me. Likewise The Windjammer was fine with good curries though soups were salty and thinly flavored. Proper Bangers at breakfast were a surprise. An extra cost meal at Portofino was very tasty and well worth the $20 surcharge though the service was rather robotic and automatic. To that note Royal Caribbean needs to end the hokey practice of wasting our time and patience by making their waiters "describe my menu" whether the diners want it or not. We have repeatedly said "Its not necessary" but they forge on relentlessly obviously obeying some strict rule. Just ask "Would you like me to describe the menu?" and let us decide.

Cabin Review

Clean and well equipped but a little tight for space. Fine for one, OK for two. No more.

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