My daughter wanted a cruise for her birthday but since her birthday is in December around Christmas, we decided to do a summer cruise instead. We liked the itinerary for the Anthem of Seas, the convenience of leaving from New Jersey (since we live in Philadelphia), and the fact that this was a new ship with so much to do on board. We invited our friends whose daughter is my daughter's BFF, and we reserved three cabins for three families in August of 2015. With a whole year ahead of us, I read a lot of negative reviews, and then of course, all the mishaps with this ship (storm, norovirus, and the tragic drowning of the little boy that happened about three weeks before we left). Needless to say, I was a little nervous, not for myself, but for my friends who had never cruised before. I am happy to report that our fears were unfounded. This ship is absolutely beautiful. The art work is amazing (although it was sad to see that some disgraceful people had carved their initials into the posters in the elevators), the open spaces beautifully decorated and spacious, and for the most part, the staff was attentive, courteous and friendly. Was everything perfect? Of course not, but I also think that when some people are on vacation, they leave their manners behind and expect that staff is there to treat them like royalty and at times act like spoiled brats. Fortunately, I didn't witness any of that, although another passenger told me while we were waiting to disembark that there had been a fight in the Windjammer the night before when one passenger called another a nasty, horrible name that I will not repeat. Interestingly, we did hear calls for an emergency medical situation while we were in Chic that night, so it may have been related.

Embarkation was a breeze. We got there around 10:30 am and there were employees with iPads waiting to greet you and sign you in. I don't think we took more than 5 minutes to check in. We waited about a half hour before they let us get on board and headed straight for Cafe 270 for a lovely lunch. A bit of a line, but I'm sure it was easier than the Windjammer, which I never actually stepped foot in. Not that I don't like buffets, but I prefer the sit down restaurants or cafe-style where portions are more controlled. I took the girls to the SeaPlex where they were able to get on the bumper cars twice. It was a good thing we did because the lines later in the cruise were ridiculous!

I found the restaurants on board to be, for the most part, very good. Our favorites were Grande, Chic and the Solarium Bistro both for service and food. We did not do any of the paid restaurants. I wanted to do Jaime's for lunch, but there were no openings. We found the service and food in American Icon and Silk to be OK. They do change the menus, so maybe, just like any other restaurant, we may have liked it the next time, but we actually cancelled our reservation at AI and rebooked the Solarium Bistro. I think the SB is an little known gem. The food and the service were fabulous. You order an entree, but appetizers and dessert are buffet-style. It was all Greek and Mediterranean fare and it was amazing! I ended up going to breakfast there a few times and it was equally wonderful. Read more