Navigator of the Seas Review

Fun, but......

Review for the Western Caribbean Cruise on Navigator of the Seas
User Avatar
norwane
First Time Cruiser • Age 50s

Rating by category

Value for Money
Embarkation
Dining
Public Rooms
Entertainment
Fitness & Recreation
Service
Cabin

Additional details

Sail Date: Feb 2010

My fiance and I booked a 5 day cruise with the RCL Navigator of the Seas, sailing over Presidents Day weekend in February. Unfortunately, the day we were to fly out of Minneapolis, there was a snow storm in Atlanta which apparently shut down the entire country. We frantically searched for another flight (with no help from Air Tran), and were able to fly out the next morning. We happily arrived in Miami the day of the cruise. We were able to check in with ease and very little waiting. We ate at the Windjammer (nothing great, but it was okay) and explored the ship. We found our cabin on the 2nd deck. It was fine but nothing fancy. I had requested the refillable soda, which was in the cabin when we arrived. My fiance has some health conditions, so we (I) filled out a health conditions form and faxed it to the ship a few weeks before we had sailed. He is diabetic and has a CPAP machine, so we need distilled water, a sharps container, and extension cord. We got the sharps container and extension cord, after requesting them from the housekeeper. However, she told us that we had to call Guest Relations and request the distilled water and then she would deliver it. I had to call guest relations 3 times before we received it. The first night, I was told by Guest Relations that there was only one housekeeper working and she was too busy to deliver it. Why would there only be one housekeeper working on the first night?! We had dinner in the main dining room every night, and thought the food was good. We liked our waiter and housekeeper, and didn't have any issues with them at all. The first day was at sea, which was fine. Just did a lot of exploring of the ship. The second day we were in Labadee, Haiti. Unfortunately, it POURED rain and was cold. We had planned on doing the flight line, but were unable to, due to the weather. This was right after the earthquake in Haiti, so we had wanted to purchase items from the locals. Unfortunately, the locals were very aggressive towards us in trying to get us to purchase their wares. They were grabbing at me, and basically pulling me into their little places of business. I was really uncomfortable. My fiancee (who has been on cruises before) said that the Bahamas folks who sold stuff had nothing on these guys. I was disappointed considering that this was RCL's own, private island, and we were treated so rudely. Basically, after an hour or so, we were soaked, and crabby. RCL did a BBQ on the island, but we didn't stay for it. The main dining room was closed for lunch, so we had to go to the buffet. To be honest, I wasn't terribly impressed with the buffet. It was anything that you could find and eat at Old Country Buffet. The next day, we went to Ocho Rios, Jamaica. That day was probably the nicest, weather wise of the whole trip. We went tubing down the White River, which was fun. After that, we hung out on the beach for a few hours, which was nice as well.

The last day was a day at sea, which was kind of boring. We couldn't really lay by the pool, because it was so cold the whole time. The shows were entertaining, not Broadway caliber, but good. Also, on the last day, we had requested assistance from Guest Relations to get to Fort Lauderdale (this was due to having to fly in at the last minute). Guest Relations informed us we were on our own, and they wouldn't help us. Basically, my feeling on the service was that it was not that great. I mentioned earlier that I liked the staff who dealt directly with us. However, outside of those folks, I never really felt like anyone went above and beyond for us. For example, I purchased something in one of the general stores. He charged me a dollar more than the price that was marked. I pointed it out, and requested that he change it. He glared at me and complained about the people that work for him. I also felt like when I requested a refill on my soda, I just got rolling of eyes from the staff. Perhaps I expected too much, but I just didn't feel like it was the 'Gold Anchor' service I had thought it would be.

Cabin Review

The hair dryer that was in the cabin didn't work very well. It was small, but fine. The bathrooms (especially shower) are very small.

previous reviewnext review

Find a Navigator of the Seas Cruise from $208

Any Month

Get special cruise deals, expert advice, insider tips and more.By proceeding, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

© 1995—2024, The Independent Traveler, Inc.