Adventure of the Seas Review
Hopefully some helpful hints for novice cruisers on Adventure of the Seas
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I want to preface this lengthy review by stating my comments and feedback are not meant to be compared to or criticized by cruisers who are much more experienced than I am. Your expectations and requirements may be very different from mine so please don't respond with negative comments. This was our first major cruise and I am simply posting a review to provide information that I hope will help other beginner cruisers. This information is what I was looking for when I spent months pouring over items on Cruise Critic and I simply hope to return the favor to those who's reviews helped me prepare for my cruise. :)
Some background - my husband, two kids (12.5 and 15.5) and I were traveling with an extended family group; 18 of us in all. Most of whom have never cruised before. We flew in from Arizona on a red eye, arriving the day of sailing. No choice for us in the matter, as this was the flight time selected by our group to help save costs. We had a connection from Miami which was a nightmare - avoid this airport if possible. Every flight we knew of (including both of ours - coming and going) were delayed or canceled. Also, leaving San Juan on a Saturday was crazy too. The airport there seemed very ill-prepared for so many people. But the good news was that even though we arrived late and didn't get to board the ship until 5:00 p.m., there was absolutely no line and we got right on board. Here are the items I hope will help you as you prepare:
1. Condition of the Ship: I was worried about what AOS would be like after reading so many negative reviews on this site. However, we were pleasantly surprised. Yes, the decor is very dated but so what? I never felt like it was dirty - just older. Everything we encountered was in working order and we had no issues with rusty balconies, dirty rooms or peeling paint. And I did like the fact that there are hand sanitizer stations everywhere. I felt there was a decent focus on keeping people healthy. And out of our group of 18 - including several kids - no one got sick at all so that has to mean something!