Quantum of the Seas Review

4.0 / 5.0
570 reviews

Some good and some bad

Review for the Eastern Caribbean Cruise on Quantum of the Seas
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efait
2-5 Cruises • Age 70s

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Sail Date: Feb 2015
Cabin: Deluxe Ocean View Stateroom with Balcony

My wife and I traveled on Royal Caribbean's Quantum of the Seas from February 2 to 13, 2015. This was our first cruise on Royal Caribbean. We have previously sailed on Carnival, Princess, Norwegian, and Celebrity. The Quantum of the Seas is a new ship with many new innovations. Since the cruise left from Bayonne, NJ, we were able to avoid the hassle of a plane flight. There were things that we liked about the ship and other things that we did not like. I will begin with some general statements and then give a daily log of activities and experiences.

Let me begin with the positives. The boarding and unboarding procedures were handled well by Royal Caribbean. We liked our balcony stateroom as it had plenty of room and there was more storage space than we had ever seen on a cruise ship stateroom. The bathroom light had a special feature that went automatically to a night light when it was turned off. This feature was very much appreciated by those of us who get up during the night to use the bathroom. The circular shower was nice and somehow provided almost instant hot water. Our cabin steward, Herman, was excellent. We found the Dynamic Dining in the complimentary restaurants to be a pleasant experience. The food was excellent and the wait staff very good. Fortunately for us, we had all our dinner reservations made prior to cruising at a time each night that was agreeable to us. Those passengers who waited to make dining reservations would likely have a different take on the Dynamic Dining. The wait staff used small Ipads to enter your order and it was automatically sent to the kitchen making the process very efficient. On nights when we had show reservations we simple told the wait staff and they speeded up our dining to get us out on time. Also, Royal Caribbean had a least one restaurant open for a sit down breakfast and lunch which we took advantage of a few times. Royal Caribbean issued both a traditional seapass card but also had a rubber wristband that looked like a watch which could be used just like a seapass. This was a nice feature for the ship; however, the wristband could not be used when going ashore. Each of the five stops had a dock which meant we never had to ride on a tender. That was really nice. When returning to the ship after having gone ashore, Royal Caribbean staff provided ice towels and ice water on the dock for those who wanted it. This was nice especially when returning from the beach. The shows provided in the evening were all very good. My wife and I went to the ship's gym all days that we were at sea. It was a big gym with lots of equipment. It was a good idea that the ship had both an outdoor and indoor pool as there were a few days too cold for outdoor swimming. Of all our cruises, this cruise had the least amount of intrusive photographers wanting to take your picture. Also, there was absolutely no pressure to get you to buy alcoholic drinks.

There were some negatives as well. We would have liked the opportunity to have a show every night. This was not possible as the same show was offered for two nights leaving us without anything to do on several nights. Also, we did not like the fact that you had to have a reservation for each of the shows. Fortunately, we booked our shows immediately after boarding the ship. Also, we were required to get to the show at least 15 minutes before the start or our seat would be given to those waiting in line that did not have a reservation. Whoever designed the Royal Theater in the Quantum did a poor job. The lower row of seats did not rise making it difficult to see wherever you sat. The second tier and balcony seats were better but there were poles that obstructed your few. Also, they made one long row instead of putting another aisle in making it difficult to get to some seats. The air conditioning system was poorly designed. Blowers were on the back of each seat but the air didn't hit you in your seat making it very warm for each show. Speaking of warm, the ship's gym was way to warm for exercising. They need to have that area much cooler than the other parts of the ship. We felt the ship needed many more shipboard activities for the passengers, especially on the days at sea. The outdoor pool had a big screen for movies but only showed movies occasionally. The televisions in the staterooms had a very poor selection of channels as most of the channels were programs put on by the ship. The ship had a large number of passengers making for a lot of congestion in the public areas and getting an elevator. The Windjammer, which is the ships buffet area, had a decent selection of items but the quality was just okay. The staff was a little too efficient as on two occasions stuff was removed when I went back to the buffet. On one occasion they threw my medication away. The complimentary dining rooms did not offer enough soup choices. On the days we were docked they did not open any of the eating areas for lunch except the buffet. The specialty restaurants were okay but a little pricey. (I will address this issue later). We were promised a ship board credit for booking three specialty restaurants but the amount that we received was less than promised. When we complained at guest services we were told there was nothing they could do because of their computer system. Room service was not good. My wife, like many passengers, likes room service for breakfast. The room service breakfast menu was weak. Coffee, juice, cereal, and pastry were about it. Other items had a charge. There was an issue with some food items running out before the cruise was over. Also there was some inconsistency in the preparing of some dishes over the course of the cruise. This has never happened to us before on a cruise. Finally, there was too much preferential treatment of certain passengers. One dining room, the Coastal Kitchen, was only available to suite customers and some of the passengers got priority use of the elevators. Finally, I wish the ship would have put their clocks one hour ahead when we were visiting the islands to correspond to their time. Being one hour behind caused the passengers a lot of confusion.

Cabin Review

Deluxe Ocean View Stateroom with Balcony

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