Cruising out of Tampa is much more convenient for us than the hassle of going to Miami or Lauderdale. Unfortunately Tampa can only handle smaller ships because it's port is unable to accommodate the larger vessels. Smaller ships simply do not have the ability to provide all the amenities that many cruisers prefer.Tampa is doing itself a great disservice by not improving their capacity to handle big ships.

Rhapsody is a fine cruise ship but we found it to be very noisy and lacked intimate spaces where one could just rest and relax without the constant music blaring somewhere in the background. The main foyer always has some form of entertainment at night and because the ship is so small, any room located in the general vicinity of the foyer reverberates with unwanted noise. We had a room all the way aft, 7658 with a wonderfully large balcony but unfortunately it was directly above a dance floor that seemed not to care that they were supposed to tone down their music after 12 midnight. When we chose that particular room we understood that there was a dance club directly underneath of us but did not anticipate loud music well after their appointed closing time. We had four out of seven nights completely ruined by loud, obnoxious, karaoke music that did not end until after 2 AM. This is not at all acceptable and even after notifying security on several occasions not a thing was done to stop it. This balcony room was one of the best we have ever had in our days of cruising but the late night wall shaking music spoiled it for everyone unfortunate enough to have a room aft on deck 7.

The food in the ships main dining room was ok but not much more than average and the buffet was well below par as compared to other ships we have been on. Even though the food left a lot to be desired in both locations the service was impeccable and some of the best at sea. The dining room servers were absolutely outstanding and I cannot praise them highly enough. Same for the buffet staff. Always smiling, never complaining. My wife and I were extremely impressed. Read more