We found this cruise to be an excellent bargain. We were able to get a Jr. Suite in the back of the ship for UNDER 2k per person. CABINS: Rhapsody is NOT R.C.'s newest boat, and it shows. However, those criticizing the ship failed to mention the efforts made to keep it clean as a whistle. THAT showed more than its age, in my opinion. We were actually very impressed and pleased with our cabin. Yes, it was old and needs a re-vamping, but it was clean, spacious, and the beds were SO comfy. The only reason there's not five stars from me was due to the strange "warm water" we had that never wanted to get cold. Jose, our steward was warm and personable. Our balcony was HUGE! I could have cartwheeled across it!!! All six members of our party loved the balconies and we spent plenty of time out on them, too. DINING: We bought three visits to specialty restaurants. I was disappointed in the lack of explanation prior to boarding that we were given, regarding the main dining room, however. We had trouble getting into it on the last three days of the cruise. Whether or not reservations were required prior to boarding was confusing. CHOPS and GIOVANNI'S TABLE were the two specialty restaurants we dined at. I was disappointed in CHOPS. The second night we went, the crab cake was granular in texture and NOT up to the same quality as the first night of the cruise, which had been our first visit. The meat/preparation was "okay", but definitely lacked the superior service/quality of Celebrity, which we've cruised on before. EDELWEISS, the main dining room, was quite good and the shrimp cocktail shrimp were HUGE! Really enjoyed that appetizer. R.C. also makes mean apple pie! EMBARKATION: All went smoothly. We had zero complaints regarding the staff and associates with whom we made contact. That being said, I do NOT recommend cruises out of Venice. Venice is more expensive, due to its problematic location and transportation is truly an issue if you don't plan ahead. If you plan on leaving from this port, do your homework! Getting from the airport to hotels takes planning. I'm glad to have seen the city, but much prefer ports with easier access. SERVICE: I gave three stars regarding service. There were several times when I encountered crew members who seemed unfriendly or terse. Sometimes that came across in tone of voice or body language. Not good in this industry. Often service was slow in the dining rooms, including the specialty restaurants. Expect seated dinners to last a full two hours, or more. Dining service was usually attentive, however. One of the head waiters even shelled my tiger shrimp for me "a table". Nice touch! EXCURSIONS: We typically have our excursions booked prior to boarding. It really helps save time. Most of them were on buses with cramped seating and A.C. that was NOT adequate. 45-50 people would be packed into this space. In Crete, our excursion's location was 2.5 hrs. away. We should have had a MUCH more comfortable bus. The guide was excellent, however, and made the discomfort worth it. Athens was terribly crowded the day we were there. I've been before, and I love that city, but the crowds pretty much ruined the day for us. We did the City Walls tour in Dubrovnik, and I HIGHLY recommend it. However, be ready for some serious walking and exercise. You will get a workout! VALUE OVERALL: This was our first cruise on R.C. We would definitely use them again, though we still feel that Celebrity has higher quality food, better service, and fewer screaming children. :) Read Less

The cruise was a treat for myself, my wife and Son (21). It started off great with a gentle cruise out of Venice capturing the views of let’s face it, stunning architecture. With purchased the all inclusive drinks package. Again what we expected no hidden nightmares. Ship Dated and in a poor state of repair : toilets not up to scratch along with the public areas below spec Sun beds dirty with no comfy option. Again we are Diamond members - should be a free option for regular members. Trips : Appalling: overly expensive with little to no quality. Absolute rip off I honestly cannot point out one positive thing other than the guide they were terrible for such a fabulous itinerary. We have complained to RCI via feedback however yet again no response. The food was average to good, entertainment was plain shocking! If you like Butlins but at sea then RCI are beginning to become exactly that. We thought Carnival were bad however this is now our worst Cruise. Avoid ! Read Less

We chose this cruise based on the itinerary - we had never been to Venice, Split, Athens or Katakolon before. As our last cruise was on the newest & biggest Symphony OTS we were expecting Rhapsody to be rather small and worn out. However we were very positively surprised when we got in! Although some of the designs (e.g. colour schemes on the carpets) were a bit dated, there was no wear & tear visible anywhere! Also even though there are less venues than on Oasis-class, there is more to do onboard than can be done on a one week cruise. I'd say this ship is a great entry point to first time cruisers! Embarkation was very smooth, and right after a quick lunch we got our cabins promptly at 2 PM - evern our luggage was already waiting for us then! The highlight of the ship was the food & beverage! Especially high quality of the food in Main Dining and Windjammer was way above expectations. We did 3 speciality restaurants (Izumi, Giovanni's and Chop's) which all met (but didn't exceed) our expectations. There were never big lines for bars and e.g. in the pool area the waiters were always available. Actually all the service onboard worked pretty much flawlessly with the exception of long waits for service in half-empty Chop's... The musicians and bands onboard were great, hence I was quite surprise the production shows didn't seem to use a live band. Actually the production shows were the part that would most need improvement: there performers were very skilled, but the "plots" and songs selected for shows were a bit confusing and didn't seem to get the audience going. As the ship docks very close to city center in Split we decided to walk around the city on our own - beautiful and very welcoming city! For Athens we took the RCCL Akropolis & Plaka tour, the early wake-up call was worth it because we managed to get to Parthenon just ahead of the big crowds. Also this tour left just the right amount of free time to explore a bit on our own. In Katakolon we took the Ancient Olympos & winery tour. The Olympos part was great, but as we know a lot about winemaking the winery part was a bit of a let down. But if you've never been to a winery then you'll propably enjoy it. Overall I would definately do Rhapsody again if I found an itinerary with now ports-of-call! Read Less

I was traveling with family members who had never cruised before. We wanted to experience Europe and this itinerary seemed like a good start. A cabin was available that had two bathrooms and would comfortably fit all 4 of us, two adults and two teenage girls. The cabin number was 8000. This cabin is unique to just a few ships for Royal Caribbean. There wasn't much information on this. It's called an Ocean View no Balcony and is now considered a full suite, with access to the concierge lounge, breakfast in Chops and some other suite perks. The cabin is located next to the bridge and below the Windjammer buffet. I was worried about noise being an issue, but that was never the case. The room was spacious and comfortable, but the décor was definitely dated. The concierge lounge offered a continental breakfast, afternoon snacks, and evening happy hour. The lounge was a nice quiet area to gather before heading to dinner. The concierge Alan was wonderful. He arranged tours for the bridge, galley and theater. He quickly seemed to learn all the guests names and was ready to help solve any issues we might have. I can not say enough good things about him. He is the best concierge I've ever encountered on a cruise. The cruise started in Venice so we arrived a couple of days early and got a lovely apartment through Airbnb in Cannareggio. We used the water bus and the people mover to get to the terminal. The people mover station was absolutely chaos on embarkation day as several ships were departing that day. The first stop was Split. It's a lovely seaside town and it was a fairly easy walk from the ship. Lots of GOT merchandise for sale as part of the series was filmed here. We were told that although Croatia doesn't use the Euro it would be accepted in Split, we found this to not be the case and had to change some currency. Our second stop was Athens. I had arranged a private tour through PK tours and was extremely happy with the driver and the private guide for the Acropolis, they were both wonderful and I would highly recommend this company. The last stop was Katakolon. After visiting Athens and planning on going to Rome for 3 days after the cruise, we decided not to venture to Olympia, which is 30 minutes from the port. We chose to just walk around the small town. This stop seemed like a wasted port day on such a short 6-night itinerary. Other passengers we spoke with seemed to feel the same way. We purchased the 3 speciality dinner plan and tried all three restaurants. Izumi was a big hit with our family. Chops was so-so. Nothing special about it. We were all very disappointed in Giovannis. The food was so bland and the cioppino was served luke warm and the restaurant itself was just not kept very clean. Two of us participated in the Chef's Table. Next time I would save my money and pass on this. It's a wine paired dinner, but they used very low end wines to pair with the courses. I was pleasantly surprised however by the quality of the food and the service in the main dining room on the two nights that we ate there. We purchased the internet package for 4 devices and had horrible issues even trying to connect. There was a spot near the door in our cabin that we could sometimes get service, otherwise we roamed around the ship looking for a spot with a decent signal. It made communicating with loved ones back home very difficult. We tried getting this issue resolved a couple of times, but finally gave up. This was absolutely a waste of money to purchase this service. We only went to one of the evening shows, which was a magician. He was pretty good. We engaged with several friendly staff members in the Schooner Bar and the activity staff were quite friendly as well. After the cruise ended we had booked the train to Rome, I was concerned about walking to the train station with baggage, so we got a taxi from the pier and went to Mestre station instead and boarded our train there. Overall, the new cruisers were content with their trip. I would give this cruise a rating of 3.5. Read Less

Been on 2 previous cruises around the Med with Royal Caribbean,Brilliance of the Seas and Independence of the Seas in the last 3 years.Compared to the other the Rhapsody is a tired ship that was built in 1997 and it shows. The facilities are also lacking as there is no British type pub, every few outdoor activities even if its only crazy golf. The food was ok although the Chops Grill at additional cost was disappointing. Previously we have had paella and bbqs at poolside, not on this ship.Even the snacks like pies and crisps are no longer available. The entertainment in the theatre was poor with no proper shows,we spent every night in the karaoke bar which pretty much sums it up. The cruise director was excellent hosting the belly flop and mr and mrs competition. The best places we visited was Kotor and Katakolan but Santorini is a hell hole with the logistics of getting from Fira to the tenders with either 2 hour queues with no shade for the cable car or dodging the mules whilst descending 580 slippy steps. We set sail from Venice and I would recommend an overnight stay as we did to truly enjoy this beautiful city. The transfer by speed boat rather than water bus is also a great experience. This cruise will be the last one we will be going on as the cost of the cruise goes up every year and not at inflation rate and the same things mentioned earlier are disappearing. The Brilliance back in 2016 was great with entertainment including Darren Day and all the food parties,pub,snacks and outdoor activities which were sadly lacking on the Rhapsody. We also sailed to Ville France Sur Mur for Nice or Monoco on that cruise and have since been back for a week as it is beautiful and cheap compared to the cruise.The Independence sailed from Southampton which is effectively 4 additional days at sea which we weren't keen on but a modern big ship, Read Less

We chose this cruise to visit Dubrovnik as we had been denied the chance on a previous cruise due to very bad weather. We encountered a delay at Heathrow due to the baggage handling system breaking down but the flight to Venice was ok. We had a private transfer arranged to the ship but they were not there to greet us instead after some running around we were amalgamated with two other groups and taken to the ship. Check in was slow considering we had completed all the forms on line before leaving having to repeat the documents seem very inefficient. Our balcony cabin was ready and plenty big enough for the three of us, the decor was tired but clean. Muster was different in that we went out on deck under the lifeboats without life jackets and assembled in groups, the staff having checked everybody was there did the demonstrations. We chose my time dining and this work out well for us, the food and service in the main dinning room was good and we stuck to this for the whole cruise. One of my cruise pleasures is to be waited on at breakfast and have polite conversation, unfortunately this was denied by the buffet style in the main dining room which was poor compared to the windjammer self service offering. No in cabin kettles so coffee either from noisy pool side , busy cafe or a speciality in a paper cup with nowhere to sit. The shows in the evening were reasonable and varied. The weather was excellent and the ports we visited interesting but the over casualness of cruise and lack of basic dress sense detracted. Read Less

When we decided we wanted to cruise the Med, the itinerary and price point were very important to us. We have cruised several times before on DCL and Celebrity, however, we wanted to save the money for excursions and extra time in Italy. We chose the 7 night Croatia and Greece cruise to celebrate high school graduations and birthdays. We cruised as a party of 15. Prior to embarkation, we spent 4 days exploring Florence and 1 night in Venice. Loved both of the cities. We arrived at the port around 11:30 am via water taxi and check in was easy. Soon after, we were on deck 4 with our embarkation drinks. We were able to secure our specialty dining reservations for the cruise (we purchased the 3-night dinner package but ended up going the 4th night since the dining room food was not very good) which was handled quickly for our large party. By 1:00, staterooms were ready. We met our cabin attendant, Marilyn, who was exceptional. We always like to give a tip to our attendants on day 1 to show our appreciation to their hard work- they are truly like ninjas- coming into the room, cleaning, and leaving before we get back from a meal. We asked for ice daily and she freshened it twice a day. Dining: The main dining room food was not very good. Sometimes it came out cold, the quality was just OK, and drinks took a very long time to come. We only ate at the main dining room twice for dinner and twice for breakfast. Entertainment and Activities: We loved trivia in Schooners Lounge! So much fun and the bartenders and servers there were fantastic. On sea days, we would have liked to have more activities for the kids and adults. We did participate in wine tasting, which was just OK. On this ship, the rock wall and a tiny arcade was the only thing our 13 yr. old kids enjoyed. The shows were nothing spectacular- reminded me of Las Vegas lounge entertainment. The only show we enjoyed was a "magician- comedian". The ports were great! We really loved seeing this part of the world and took advantage of our excursions. Overall, we had a great time. There were some disappointments along the way, (main dining room, older ship, lack of activities on a sea day) but nothing that would keep us from cruising RCCL again. Read Less

We chose this cruise more for the itinerary than for the ship itself and based solely on the itinerary we had a great time. If this was a review just of the cruise ship I'd say it was below average for what we've had in the past. I'm putting this recap out there mostly to help others with ideas for the ports of call and less for the ship itself. We left out of Venice on Saturday, June 8th, but were delayed leaving by several hours because of protesters in the water protesting all the cruise ships and tourists. (The previous Monday a cruise ship from a different cruise line hit a ferry and the dock in Venice causing multiple injuries so the local populace was upset about all the tourism) Because of our late departure the captain told us we would not be able to make our stop in Kotor, Montenegro. That was a real disappointment as we had read how beautiful that was. So, instead of that first stop Sunday became a day at sea. On Monday we made our first stop on the island of Corfu. it was a beautiful and green island. We chose to walk from the pier into the old part of town. I took us about 30 minutes walking to make it all the way into town where there we visited the old fortress and climbed all the way to the top of the lighthouse. The climb up was a bit steep, especially on the smooth stones so be careful going up and down. Entrance fee was around 6 Euros each. Right in that general area there is a shopping district where you can buy touristy items. After seeing the fortress we picked up a taxi and we had a beach in mind we were going to visit and the taxi driver, Giannis, talked us into a better beach that was about a 30 minute drive from the cruise ship. The beach we went to was Glyfada beach and it was spectacular. It was a long beach with beautiful sand and the best part was it was not crowded at all. We rented two beach loungers with an umbrella for 20 Euros and that also included a large bottle of water and free towel rentals. There were several bars and eating establishments to choose from if you were hungry and they would bring you drinks to your lounger. There were also restrooms and showers. The water was warm and you could walk out 50 yards and still only be in water up to your waist. Just a beautiful beach and experience. Giannis arranged to pick us up at a certain time and he was there right when he said he'd be. It took about 30 minutes to get back to the ship so if you go there plan your time accordingly. As for Giannis, if you are looking for a taxi driver in Corfu, he is your guy. He speaks perfect English, was entertaining, and got us to and from where were going just like he said he would. If you want to try and pre-arrange something you can email him at johnleivas83@yahoo.gr or call him at +30 693 484 3704. Tuesday we stopped in Athens and as you can imagine took a tour of the sites there. We booked a private tour through a company called Private Greece Tours and our tour was amazing. The initial booking with Nikos was very easy and he was very responsive to all of my questions. Our tour was arranged for a 6 hour tour and Nikos let us know ahead of time what sites were included or what we should visit as well as what tickets we should pre-buy so we could get into the Acropolis and other sites without issue. Once we got to the cruise port we were picked up right as we exited the terminal by Geórgios and Dorina. Geórgios drove the van and Dorina accompanied us to all of the sites. They were the best guides ever! Both spoke perfect English and were easy to understand. Geórgios would point out a lot of things as we were driving and then Dorina would get out with us at each site and explain what we were looking at and the history of each place. This is our 3rd time to Europe and we've done a lot of tours and without question Dorina was the best tour guide we've ever had. She knew everything about each site and presented the information in a fun and compelling way instead of just telling us dull information. Geórgios was also so good to us as we were driving and navigated us through the congested streets of Athens with ease. For the tour itself, even though we had a rough idea from Nikos what we would be seeing on our tour the first thing they asked us was what we wanted to do or if we had anything in particular in mind so they could shape the tour for what we wanted. That is great service! We really didn't have anything particular in mind so they shaped the tour for us and it ended up being amazing. We visited the Temple of Zeus, Ancient Olympia Stadium, the National Garden, the changing of the guard, the Acropolis and other sites around Athens. At the end of the tour we hit a little shopping area and then back to the cruise ship. Our 6 hour tour ended up being 7 hours and Geórgios had us back to the cruise ship with an hour to spare. There were 7 of us on the tour, 5 adults and 2 kids ages 14 and 10. It cost us 350 Euros for the van rental portion and 250 Euros to have Dorina come with us. Best 600 Euros we spent the whole trip and they were so good we tipped them both on top of that when we were done. If you're headed to Athens and want a great tour book through Private Greece Tours and ask for Dorina and Geórgios. Wednesday we stopped on the island of Mykonos. We took a tender into the city and they dropped us off right in a beautiful area with lots of shopping and near to the famous windmills. We walked around and enjoyed the windmills and the shops for a while and then decided to head to the beach. We found a taxi to take us to Ornos beach (20 Euros one way) which we had read was a nice beach to go to. This was a big disappointment after our beautiful beach in Corfu. The beach was jam packed with people and was very rocky as opposed to the sandy beach we were on. They had people there trying to sell you all types of trinkets and quite frankly wouldn't leave you alone until you had told them no about 20 times. The beach loungers here cost us 25 Euros. We ended up not staying very long and then instead of a taxi took the public bus back to the ship. For 5 of us that went in cost us 9 Euros for a one way bus fare and the bus took about 25 minutes to get back. (After it picks you up it actually takes you the opposite direction picking up more people before you head back to the port area) If I had to do it all over again I would have skipped the beach in Mykonos and just enjoyed the town and the shopping. We did find that the shopping in Mykonos was more expensive for the same item as in the other ports we stopped in. Perhaps there is a way better beach on the other side of the island but we don't know. On Thursday we stopped at Argostoli. Argostoli is known for having Loggerhead turtles in their waters so we got off the ship and walked along the harbor hoping to spot some turtles. We probably strolled for 30-45 minutes through the main street in the town and ended up spotting a turtle near the walking bridge that crosses to the other side of the island. On the other side of the bridge there was a little stand (I think they called themselves "Turtle Land" or something like that) where they rented little boats you could take out on the water to see if you could spot turtles. We rented a 4 person electric boat and took it out on the water. We cruised right down the middle of the water and probably ended up spotting 10 or 12 turtles. You could get pretty close and we got some great pictures. Once they spotted you they would jet away and you had no chance of catching them. It cost us 30 Euros to rent the boat for 45 minutes. After our turtle adventure we walked 30 minutes back towards the ship and there was a little shopping area we browsed around. After talking to a local about a nice beach to see she recommended Makris Gialos beach. We took a taxi over there (about 20 minutes from the cruise ship and 20 Euros) and came upon a beautiful beach. The Costa Costa beach club is on this beach and we rented 2 lounge chairs from them for 15 Euros. They have a full bar and restaurant option. The beach itself was a long sandy beach. The water was warm and blue and once again you could walk way out and still only be up to your waist. The downside to this one as compared to the beach on Corfu was that this beach was packed with people. You didn't feel too crowded in the water but on the beach in the loungers you were packed in. All in all it was a nice beach. Friday was a day at sea and Saturday we returned to Venice. The ship reached the outskirts of Venice around 5 am and took about an hour to make it through to the cruise terminal. We had a flight to catch so we asked for the earliest disembarkation time and that ended up being 7:30 am. We walked off the ship at 7:30, grabbed our bags, customs agent just waved us through (They were randomly stopping some people) and were ready to be picked up by taxi at 7:45. As for the cruise ship itself I'd say it was nice but a bit dated. The biggest negative for us is we traveled with our kids and aside from the swimming pool there really wasn't anything for them to do. The kids clubs were tiny, the arcade was tiny, there was no basketball or anything like that. They probably played ping pong the most and a little shuffleboard. They advertised a family bingo session one time so we went to that and they literally played to rounds of bingo and that was it. My 10 year old son went to their kids club once and they charged us 3.50 for that. Not sure why that was for but didn't bother arguing it. So, if you have kids, just know that there isn't a lot of options there. We had an outside cabin with a balcony which was nice for 3 of us and then an inside cabin for the other 2. Having that balcony let us see the beautiful ports as we pulled in and just gave a beautiful view when you wanted to relax. Our bed was a nice size and it seemed like there was plenty of room for all of our stuff. I like the cruise ships where you can actually fit your luggage under your bed but you couldn't here so we had to wedge them into the closet. Bathroom was typical cruise ship small but bigger in the balcony cabin than the inside cabin. The room stewards did a good job but our lady made the couch into a bed for our son to sleep on and then just left it like that the whole time. From past experience they would usually change the bed back to a couch during the day and then back to a bed at night but that didn't happen. It would have been nice but no such luck so we basically had to sit on the bed when we were in cabin. The rooms had a nice Samsung tv but the channel selection isn't great. They would run movies at random times instead of all day so basically the in room entertainment was non-existent. Dining was okay, nothing spectacular. The buffet on deck 9 was always stocked with familiar favorites and with new dishes each day. There was pretty much something for everyone. If you take this ship don't miss the coconut cookies. They were really good. The main dining option is all we chose since we had the kids. The servers were fine and I'd say the food was okay but it took way too long for dinner. Every night you were 2 hours at dinner. You'd eat your appetizer and have to wait 30 minutes for the main course, etc. They should have been a lot more efficient than that. Side note, the offer you pay options to upgrade your dinner to steak and lobster or other selections. On our cruise every day they'd offer a bigger discounted price on those options. It went from 25% off to 30% off to 45% off. So, if you want to get it one night maybe wait until later and get a bigger discount. They had a Ben & Jerry's ice cream station but you had to pay for that. The problem with that was it was the same flavors the whole time and they weren't flavors we liked. Had they changed it up instead of offering the same exact flavors all week long we might have gotten something. The entertainment after dinner in the big theater was hit and miss. They had Ukrainian ballroom dance champions and they were really good but overall the shows they put on were average. Average singing, average dancing. Had a few jugglers and comedians and they were funny but again, nothing too spectacular. The cruise director, Michele, was funny and did his best to liven the crowd. In our situation with our family though, it just didn't seem like there was that much for us if we didn't want to go to the casino or lounge outside by the pool. My daughters tried to go to a towel animal class and there were only about 10 people there and they turned them away and said they ran out of towels. One more thing about the weather. We had absolutely perfect weather the whole time. My wife tends to get seasick and wears seasick bands on cruises but on this cruise you could hardly tell you were moving. The seas were so calm and beautiful and there was little to no rocking of the ship. To recap, I would go on this cruise again, if only for the itinerary. I wouldn't choose this ship if I was basing it on ship activities alone. Read Less

This was my husbands first cruise and my 3rd. He was a reluctant cruiser so we choose this Greece-Croatia Mediterranean cruise as it had many port stops and was only 7 nights. Turns out he loved it. We chose a balcony cabin which gave us many opportunities to view the beautiful ports as we came and left. Breakfast became a must on our balcony as we soon found we did not enjoy Windjammers selections for breakfast, lunch or dinner. In saying that we used Windjammers for snacking-taking fresh fruit, cereal,milk,yoghurt and cheese back to the room. We tried izumis-Japanese-nice, Chops-good steaks and Giovannis-italian all were quite tasty. The mainlining room for main meals were also good-no complaints here. The service staff on the whole ship ere really marvellous, diligent, attentive and do now how to make you feel special. From our young assitant waiter Dmitrii to Oscar-our room attendant and Rowena and Joah our drink waiters we could not fault their service. We did enjoy The Schooner Bar and particularly liked the Pianist/singer in the late evenings. Entertainment onboard was a bit hit and miss-one show we walked out of because the female lead was so out of key we couldn't watch-whether or not that was sound or ear piece issues we were unsure-but many people were taking about it the next day. However there were many other options around the ship to enjoy oneself, particularly at sea days. The ship itself could definitely do with a revamp, outdated furnishings etc...but it was clean and comfortable. The ports- *Dubrovnik-cool-we hired a scooter on our own from Modena scooter hire and it proved to be a very fun day. *Kotor-Montenegro-boring,but the day went was raining and had lots of could coverage-we went on the Grand Montenegro Day excursion-I do not recommend it *Santorini-big let down because of thousand of tourists. w did the Oia Village tour which encompassed a winery tasting-worse wine I have ever tasted.I do not recommend this tour. Oia itself is stunning but you d nt get to enjoy any of it because of the crowds. *Katakalon- Loved it *Venice-Loved it Verdict we like cruising, and will definitely do it again Read Less

We choose this cruise because of the itinerary out of Venice. The ports were wonderful. The staff on the Rhapsody was excellent. However of all the cruises I have taken with RC, this ship rated poorly. The ship had worn out fabric on the chairs in the common areas, stains on ceiling in the women’s rest rooms, worn out furniture in our cabin, rust spots out our cabin window. The solarium was the worst. It consisted of plastic leaning topiary plants that were old and flaking mix with a semi Egyptian theme. It was bare looking and had an identity crisis. This was unlike the other solariums on other ships. They told us the ship was due for updating 11/20, but it needed to be updated now! Other passengers felt the same way. The RC singer & dancers were good, but not great. They had formula dancing. They were mainly all white singers & dancers. In an attempt to sing & dance to a show featuring famous soul singers, they failed. It was a 2 hour wait for the cable car to get down from the top in Santorini. This was a nightmare for many, the alternative was a 583 walk down steep, steps shared with donkeys. Several people from another ship sustained injuries. All other cruises with RC I have had a great experience with the ships I have been on. RC needs to take their worn out ships out of service and update them. The best thing about this cruise were the ports, except Santorini which was too crowded & there were only 4 cruise ships in that day. Read Less

This was our first trans-Atlantic cruise so we were very excited and a little nervous. We enjoyed every minute of the trip! The staff was attentive and very friendly. The food was way above average. The fellow passengers were lovely people. And most important, the seas were calm throughout the journey! As vast majority of our fellow travelers were seasoned cruisers and I heard that about 80% had diamond status or above with RCCL. We have already signed up for another TA next May. The shows were just ok, but the bands were awesome! Kinetic band always entertained the audience and played great dance music. We had an interior cabin which was small as we expected, but we spent very little time there. The fitness center is also sort of small and limited. We selected my time dining for dinner and had wonderful service and great meals. It was a wonderful cruise across the deep blue sea! Read Less

We recently booked a back to back cruise on Rhapsody of the Seas. The first segment was transatlantic, Tampa FL to Barcelona. The second from Barcelona to Venice. In fact, these were really two separate cruises. Segment 1 - The Tampa-Barcelona leg of the cruise started out extremely well. Boarding in Tampa was a breeze and we were on board and having lunch in no time. The sea days were very pleasant. The food in the Windjammer cafeteria was varied and quite acceptable while the food in the main Dining Room was excellent. The menu included Prime Rib (more than once) and Rack of Lamb, Service was also excellent. RCCL had made a mistake, assigning us early dining time instead of late but that was easily corrected. Our cabin was quite small and, like the rest of the ship somewhat dated. It did not even have a mini-bar or refrigerator. Storage space was likewise quite limited but we made do. Our cabin steward was an old pro and handled every detail without having to be asked. In short, this first segment of the cruise went by too fast Segment 2 - This second part was so diffferent as to almost have been on another ship. Because RCCL had made a mistake with our dining time before I made a point of contacting them before the end of segment 1 to make sure that everything was as it should be for the second segment. I was assured that everything was taken care of. On the day of "checking in again" in Barcelona I discovered that the same error had been made in our dining arrangements. I immediately contacted Guest Services and was assured that the problem had been corrected. When we proceeded to the Dining Room that evening we found that the D.R. staff had no idea about the change. Finally the Head Waiter took us to an unoccupied table, where we sat and waited. And waited. And waited. Finally at 9:15 a waiter appeared, apologized for the delay, left us a glass of water and took our order. Then we waited. And waited. And waited. Finally at 10:00 we got up and left, explaining to the Maitre the problem with the service and requesting a new table. Finally the next night we started getting normal service. I can only assume that our first waiter felt 'put upon' by being assigned another (our) table and decided to let us know. In any event, this put a pall on the remainder of the cruise. Additionally,a few nights later the air conditioning in the ceiling decided to leak water on both our nightstands at 10:30 in the evening. Fortunately the crew was able to fix the problem in about an hour. During the entire second part of the cruise there seemed to be a marked tendency on the part of the crew to be less friendly and less helpful than during the transatlantic segment. I will not book on Rhapsody of the Seas again. Read Less

This was our first cruise on Royal Caribbean--having been on Holland America (3-star Mariners), NCL, Celebrity and Carnival. We liked the itinerary and the timing was right for us. We booked 21 nights which was sold as part of a package, but turned out to be basically two cruises, back to back: A TransAtlantic out of Tampa, and then a week in the Mediterranean ending up in Venice. Another recent review called it "A Tale of Two Cruises" and I agree with that impression. We were interested to see that RCI treated it like two separate cruises although we've been on other b2b's before on other cruise lines that didn't do that. Anyway, I am aware that The Rhapsody is different from the mega ships in the RCI fleet, but it is similar in size to the other ships we've sailed with, and we basically liked the ship a lot. The public areas are beautiful, especially the "Centrum" and the theater. We really liked the layout of the Windjammer buffet (although it was often very crowded). But, O.K., here are my personal "complaints": Our ocean-view cabin was very small, with barely enough room to wedge our suitcases under the bed. We're used to small showers, having been on river cruises and traveling in an RV--but the shower is really, really small. And I missed having a nice place to relax and look out over the ocean. The best views are in the Windjammer at the front of the ship, but it isn't a place to "hang out". There are good views aft from the "Shall We Dance" lounge, but that space was underused except for the hundreds of "Diamond" level passengers who pretty much took it over. And I was really upset that the "Royal Crown Lounge" (a small but lovely venue overlooking the pool area) was pretty much off limits unless you were "Diamond Plus". In fact, the daily newsletter advertised a special price on Martinies in the Royal Crown Lounge, but we were informed that we were not allowed to sit down and enjoy our drinks there! Many activities were scheduled in the Schooner Bar which is a narrow, noisy hallway, basically. I just think there could be a better use of the various areas overall. We thought the food was very good, almost without exception. We didn't eat in any of the specialty restaurants, but enjoyed the bounty of the Windjammer and the choices in the main dining room. My husband had a New York Strip Steak that was tough, one night. But everything I ordered was delicious. They did a good job of providing a lot of interesting things to do during the TransAtlantic sea days--almost to the point that we had to make some time for ourselves to just sit and read. My only complaint about the activities was that I would have enjoyed a lecture or two about the history of the areas we were going to visit. The "port talks" they did have were mostly about ship excursions and/or shopping. In fact, there was very little advice or help forthcoming for those who just wanted to get off at the ports and explore. We attended all the evening entertainment in the theater and thought it was all outstanding. Unfortunately many of the shows were repeated in the third week, but it was so port intensive that we didn't really care. Everyone comments about how friendly and accommodating the staff and crew are, and I agree. How all those hardworking people stay so cheerful and nice is amazing. And they are so good about getting to know you and making everyone feel special. But (I guess I always have a "but") we did have a little problem with someone's inefficiency. As I said, the two portions of the cruise were treated as two different cruises. And at the end of the TransAtlantic in Barcelona we were required to get off the ship and be issued new "Seapass" cards. When we booked the cruises we had to pre-register for each one separately and give all the usual info about passport numbers, credit card numbers, etc. Well, as we got ready to disembark in Venice we got a call in our room informing us that we needed to come to the desk to settle our account!?? I was politely but firmly informed that security would not allow us off the ship until we paid our bill in cash! What!? The bill for the first two weeks had been taken care of automatically--this was just for the third week. So, we had to stand in line with all the disgruntled passengers complaining about overcharges, etc., until our turn when the guy at customers service poked the computer for about 10 minutes and then remarked casually that this had happened to a couple of other people who did back to backs. Someone just forgot to re-register our credit card. While I'm talking about money, I do need to mention that RCI obviously tries valiantly to offset the original low cost of the cruise with "nickle and diming" everything else. The "specialty restaurants" charge outrageously high prices, I think. And wine, and cocktails--crazy prices! They did have that happy hour martini special ($9) in the Viking Crown Lounge (Where the only place you could drink it was at the bar) and a 2-fer price on Margaritas in the Schooner bar. We had most fantastic weather. It was balmy and smooth sailing all across the Atlantic. The only rough seas were one night in the Mediterranean and we slept right through it. We enjoyed all the ports. We booked ship tours in both Canary Island stops and the one in La Palma was especially good ("North Shore") with an overview of the island including a stop in a beautiful interior rain forest, and a visit to a rum distillery that included a tasting. One of the highlights of the trip was sailing through the Straits of Gilbralter at dawn. Several hundred passengers stood on the upper decks looking at the lights of Africa on one side and the famous Rock of Gilbralter on the other with the beautiful sunrise behind it. We did our own thing in Malaga.We made our way through the historic old town center past the cathedral to the Alcazaba. We purchased tickets and wandered through the gardens and and rooms of that ancient Moorish fortress. It reminded me a lot of a smaller Alhambra. Then we walked up (and up) the hill behind it to see the "castle" behind it. By then it was hot and sunny, and we wore ourselves out climbing that path. When we got to the top we discovered that there was a bus stop there, and the "Hop On Hop Off" could have taken us to the top! Oh well. Beautiful views! In Barcelona we got a taxi to Sagrada Familia where we had bought tour tickets on line to see the inside. Then we taxied back to Los Ramblas where we strolled down with all the crowds, and then detoured off into the Gothic quarter we had a light lunch at at sidewalk cafe. After Barcelona the whole ship had a different feel after the leisurely trip across the ocean. A lot of the "retirees" disembarked, and there were many more young people and family groups. And we had a different port every day. In Cannes we once again "did our own thing". We jumped on the little tourist train loading up right at the pier and got a good look at the seaside boulevard and all the beautiful yachts on the one side and fancy hotels on the other. We've been to Rome before, so we opted to take the only ship tour doing something different out of Civitavecchia: a visit to an olive farm in Tuscany. It was a pleasant bus ride through the countryside with a visit to the sleep mountaintop village of Tuscania before a light snack of bruschetta with various flavored olive oils as well as a glass of wine at the olive farm. Our last ship tour was to the ancient Roman city of Herculaneum which was buried in the same volcanic eruption as nearby Pompeii. Fascinating. In Catania, Sicily we looked out our cabin window to see Mt. Etna all covered with snow! We later learned how unusual it is to have snow on Mt. Etna in May. Gorgeous! Unfortunately we didn't get pictures because clouds rolled in and Mt. Etna disappeared. We took a smaller group tour arranged through our Cruise Critic roll call. It was a beautiful day making our way up to the little resort town of Taormina after a harrowing drive up switch-backs to the mountain medieval village of Castelmola. Amazing views! And we also did a Cruise Critic tour to Krka National Park in Croatia. On the way back to the ship our guide gave us a quick visit to Zadar and their "sea organ". This review is getting too long to gush on and on about the beauty of Krka--all the waterfalls and rivers and emerald pools. Truly a beautiful spot. And I also don't want to do a whole separate review of our time in Venice where we disembarked and spend two wonderful (although rainy) days. All in all it was another great cruise--small criticisms notwithstanding. Read Less

Chose this one because I had never sailed to Caribbean before and this seemed perfect. Plenty of shore excursions, food practically whenever you want it, crew that never stops trying to please you. My fave is the towel animals our stateroom attendant, Manuel, surprised us with every evening. If I could change one thing about the staterooms, it would be the showers. They are just so small, you can barely turn around. Water pressure was excellent though, and there is ample storage space in the cabin for all your stuff. The shore excursions I chose were Cucumber Beach in Belize, and Sol y Mar relaxing day in Honduras. There were plenty of options in choosing shore excursion, though. We docked in Costa Maya, and the pier walk is quite long. In Belize, we used tenders to get to port, as the reefs prevent ships from getting too close. It's a 5-mile ride and takes about 25 minutes. In Honduras and Cozumel, we docked, and again, the pier was really long in Cozumel. There are plenty of street vendors in each port. Please beware that prices are not as low as one might expect at most places, so buyer beware. It is best to review the daily Compass provided by RC to see which businesses are certified by the cruise line industry. Read Less

We chose this cruise based on the ports of call and that it was out of Tampa (closer to us). We got on the boat around noon and our luggage wasn't delivered until around 4pm (after sailing), so definitely pack swimsuits, etc. on a carry on if you want to swim, etc. right away. Our room was ready at 1:30, so that was nice to be able to get in to change, but if not, there are restrooms scattered around you can use. The late dining (8:00pm) was a little late and often conflicted with shows, events happening, so I don't know that we'd do late dining again, but it was nice to not have to hurry back from excursions for the 5:30 dining either. They do have a "my time" dining that you can book and then each night make a reservation for whatever time you want, but it was fun to have a set table with others to get to know. The windjammer food wasn't that great, and the food was often cold. But, it's an option as well. We absolutely loved our excursions and could not have asked for better ones! We did the Maya Chan Beach Resort in Costa Maya (booked online not with RCC), the Jaguar Paw Ultimate Thrill Adventure (4wheeling, zipling and cave tubing) (booked directly with RCC) in Belize City, and the Premier 3-Stops Snorkel Adventure (RTF6A - booked with RCC) in Roatan. We could have done without Cozumel but it was busy with 3 other ships that day. If you're traveling without kids, the Solarium was very nice and quiet (16+ yrs old). Right behind the little cafe in the solarium, there are doors that go out onto a very nice, quiet balcony. We didn't discover those until the last at sea day, but if you don't have a balcony cabin, make sure you find these early on! Read Less

My 9 yo son and I took this 7 night cruise while he was out of school on spring break. I've been on half a dozen ships, but this was our first with RCL. We had a blast! We did excursions at every port, dined in the MDR each night, I purchased the deluxe drink packaged and VOOM combo, and we went to a couple of shows. The basic rundown: Itinerary/excursions: Key West, Cozumel, Belize, and Costa Maya. We love adventures and this itinerary was amazing! We did the Conch Train tour of KW. Loved it. Fun and informative, lasted about an hour, plenty of time to explore on our own once it was over. Went to Playa del Carmen from Cozumel and did the snorkel/cenote combo excursion. Skip the snorkeling and just go to a cenote. It is unlike anything we've ever done! We loved it! Snorkeled in Belize. The best snorkeling ever. Like swimming in an aquarium. Mayan ruins in Costa Maya. Very cool. I would absolutely do this exact same itinerary again, when it goes to Honduras, and only switch up a couple of excursions. They were that much fun! Ship: Smaller with a little age on her, but the size made it easy to meet and see the same people all week. My son made friends at the pool and we'd see the families every night in the Centrum and talk about our days. The ship and crew had a nice, intimate feel b/c of the size. I enjoyed that. The overall aesthetic of the ship could use a little updating, but that's low on my priority list. Crew: Fabulous, fun, and had a familiar vibe. My son loved the deck games like belly flop and crew vs. guest volleyball. And the dancing. Food: MDR was always delicious. Wine selection was very nice. I found a rose and chardonnay I kept going back to. Windjammer was only so-so. Park Cafe was awesome! Entertainment: The headliners were okay. I wasn't blown away, but nothing was terrible. The nightly music at the various lounges was more fun. Our favorite was going to the Centrum/R bar, listening to music and then participating in the activity/game before our 8pm seating. VOOM: My package included the surf and stream and I never had a single issue with going online or texting. I could post pictures, my son played games, and we even facetimed with family back home. Meet & Mingle: I thought RCL did a great job with the M&M. Nice prizes, got the guests involved, continental breakfast available, and the CD hosted and made it entertaining. Embarkation and Disembarkation: THE fastest I've ever gotten on and off a ship. Hats off to the terminal in Tampa and the RCL staff. They're efficient yet personable. I was very impressed. All in all, one of the best cruises we've been on! We will definitely cruise with Royal again. Read Less

Originally were on oasis. Had to switch to rhapsody. Ship is in excellent condition and the staff are amazing. Room steward was souvenir. He is a gem. Kept our room spotless always had ice and towels. Did a fantastic job. Our waiter was Marko. Another gem. Really took care of us. Plus for the first time in years our head waiter checked on us every single night. Food in mdr was very good with great selections. WJ is WJ. Enough said. Chops one night and it was perfect. Ship shows were not good. Three nights had comedians. Walk out on two of them. Ship has one main pool. Totally packed on sea days. Didn’t seem like band played much. Loved our four stops. Key west did tour then drinks at sloppy joes, captain tonys, margaritaville, the bull yes went upstairs want those five seconds of my life erased, plus many others. Kermit’s is a must Cozumel. Have done mr sanchos many times so tried Cozumel bar hop. What an incredible tour. Goes to the other side. So peaceful and beautiful. Cannot wait to do again. Truly a remarkable day. Belize went to starfish island. Great day but will not do again. Beautiful clean island but water is murky and not a sand beach. Costa maya our snorkel excursion was cancelled. The ocean was way too rough. Hung out at pier which is very nice. All in all a very nice ship. We just prefer larger ships with more activities. Embarkation and debarkation were super easy. Stayed the night before Hilton garden inn Ybor city. Had a blast. If you like cigars beer and a great time stay here. Read Less

Both my wife and I are retired and experienced cruisers in our early sixties, having cruised on Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines 9 times, Norwegian Cruise Lines 3 times, and Carnival Cruise Lines 2 times. That being said we love to cruise and still consider Royal Caribbean our favorite. This cruise has two at sea days and visits 4 ports. Embarkation was very smooth. We parked in the cruise terminal parking lot directly adjacent to the cruise terminal. It is well protected and a short walk to the terminal, $15.00 a day (well worth it). There are other cheaper parking lots further away but you have to rely on their van service to drop off and pick you up, and are less secure. Once we parked it took us about 10 minutes to go through the paperwork process. We proceeded to the buffet at 11:30 AM and were very surprised that there was not a seat available. I would suggest you try the solarium pool on the same deck aft ( deck 9) for a light lunch. Our stateroom was number 8554, a Junior Suite, located on deck 8 mid-ship. This was an outstanding location, very centrally located and not alot of noise from the pool deck, (9). Plenty of storage space which we did not even use all of it. (imagine that) Ports: Cozumel-(3 ships here) since we had been here several times before, we shopped the stores where there were lots of silver jewelry stores. My wife bought a silver necklace here and due to the competition was able to get a great price. We finished the day at Senor Frogs, a watering hole, and had a great time. Belize - (2 ships here) we did the Jaguar Paw cave tubing arranged through the ship with lunch. Very relaxing and the chicken, rice and beans and coleslaw was excellent. The Wet Lizard bar in port had my favorite beer and conch fritters, but don't go here if you are in a hurry (poor service). Costa Maya - (4 ships here) we did the tour of the Chacchoben Mayan Ruins arranged through the ship. We boarded a very modern bus for a 45 minute ride to the ruins. Tour guide Alvaro Sosa was excellent and he made the tour very interesting. (don't pay extra for a personally guided tour, and smaller bus,... this tour was excellent) Roatan - (2 ships here) we did the West End Beach Break with lunch at the Mayan Princess Hotel. If you like to snorkel this is the place to go, with a major reef within swimming distance. It was very crowded with other ships passengers also doing this tour (100 or so people). The hotel is gorgeous. Entertainment - was excellent but of course it will not appeal to everyone. Singers, dancers, comedians. I thought that the Elvis impersonator was outstanding, singing and dancing...he sounded and looked just like Elvis. Food - was excellent with desserts, Lamb Chops, and Lobster tails being the highlight. We did MyTime dining and reserved online 6:30 PM for every night before we boarded the ship . Much to our surprise we had the same waiter and assistant every night, which was great. We also ate at Giovanni's, a pay for Italian dining restaurant....outstanding. The staff, including restaurants, staterooms, cruise director, etc. were all very friendly and excellent. Jenna, the assistant cruise director was a dancing machine, never stopped.. Our only disappointment with the ship was that it does not have the application on the television that you can use to see your on-board expense account. This was unusual since most of their ships have this. It is easy to get carried away with your bill. Debarkation - we did self assist and walked off the ship at 7:10 AM. Very smooth. In summary, we had a great time and as I said in the title, we would gladly do it again! Read Less

First, let me say we very much like Royal Caribbean and have sailed on 7 of their ships, many more than once. Everything about our April, 2019 Western Caribbean outing aboard Rhapsody was wonderful, ship's crew, specialty restaurants, main dinning food and service, casino, cabin and steward.....everything EXCEPT the extreme vibration in our cabin (JS 8596 - aft starboard corner). We love aft cabins and have had them many times. In fact, we sailed in this same cabin on this same ship a year earlier....with no such issue. It was beyond annoying and really affected trying to sleep. We had friends in a cabin aft area of deck 2 who also felt it but to a lesser extent. Ironically, I found a post here by "robcruises" aboard Rhapsody posted ten years ago complaining about this exact same issue. In fact, they relocated to another cabin. We ate in most of the ship's venues and took advantage of a 3 Night Specialty Package. We can't say enough about the food quality, presentation, service, and atmosphere in each of the specialty restaurants. Izumi, on this class ship, has a most unique location high in theViking Crown on deck 12 with fantastic views. Well worth a visit. We enjoyed meals in the Main Dining Room and had a most attentive and welcoming waitstaff (Camelia and Toto). We even opted for a Brunch Tour on the last sea day which included a tour of the galley areas followed by a special brunch prepared for tour participants....interesting and delicious. We'd give special plaudits to Willie Salaya, Diamond Lounge Concierge and the Diamond Lounge (Aft, Deck 6) where it was always welcoming, friendly, had superb service, and was stocked with excellent food and drink....not to mention the incredible aft view of the wake and waves. We spent time there each evening before dinner. Embarkation and Departure in Tampa is always a pleasure. This cruise was no exception. We were in our cabin within 20 minutes of arrival at the terminal and departure was equally speedy. We highly recommend using a Porter.....skip the long lines and be on your way home in minutes. We will continue to sail Royal Caribbean but not aft-cabins on Vision Class ships. Just not worth chancing it again. Read Less

We prefer the smaller ships and like sailing out of Tampa or Port Canaveral. The crew on the smaller ships are more like family and are always so pleasant and helpful. We had My Time dining and had a super wait staff. Plus we got such great service. The embarkation went very smooth and fast. The food in the dining room and in the Windjammer were both excellent. It was nice to see familiar faces because we had just been on the ship the first of March. Hopefully we will be back on board again soon. Love the noon time updates by the Captain and his little "did you know" items. The food in the Diamond lounge was by far superior to many of the other ships. It was great to see Sexy Maria and Isabel. We have had such great experiences with them and our Head Waiter Ionut was great this time. Read Less

This was the first cruise for our family (mom, dad, and kids ages 12, 15, and 17). It exceeded our expectations in every way and we are looking forward to cruising again with RC. Rhapsody is apparently an older and smaller ship that lacks most of the amenities of the newer and larger ships in the RC fleet. However, there was plenty to do on board with the shows, pool, and games/activities. The food in the main dining room and buffet was excellent. My wife has a severe wheat allergy and she had no problems finding gluten free food on board. Our waiter went out of his way to accommodate her and there were many good gluten free options at the buffet too. One concern at the buffet was cross-contamination, but this did not turn out to be an issue. Overall, the service was outstanding and the waiters, servers, and staff aboard the ship were friendly and met our every need. Our kids did not like the teen activities aboard the ship, but they did participate in most of the games, trivia, and shows and (of course) swimming and rock climbing. We did not drink alcohol or gamble so I can't comment on that aspect of the cruise. Shore excursions: Kohunlich and Dzibanche Mayan ruins is an excursion from Costa Maya. This is a combined excursion in which you see both sites, not just the Kohunlich site. Our family (including the kids) loved this excursion. The bus ride to the pyramids is about 2 hours, but in the process you get to see a lot of the region including many non-touristy Mexican villages. The guide also provides you with a lot on information about the region and Mayan history and culture. The best part about this trip was that there were so many ruins to explore and so few people at the sites. In most cases, our group of about 20 people were the only people at the sites. I think this is because we did not go on the shorter (Kohunlich only) excursion and the sites were far from the cruise port. We also liked the fact that you can climb the ruins and take awesome pictures. The two sites (which are about a 15 min drive part) are awesome. The tour gives you snacks, a sandwich, and plenty of bottled water which is also nice. Overall, this day long excursion is outstanding and is much better than staying in Costa Maya which seems to be a tourist trap. Barrier reef snorkeling is an excursion from Belize City. You take a tender boat from the ship to a private island about 30 mins away. The island is very small and beautiful. They provide you with snorkeling equipment, split you into groups about about 20-25 and then lead your around the reef. If you are inexperienced (like us), you can use a life vest to float. More experienced snorkelers were separated into a different group. Our group consisted of two guides who pointed out fish, coral, and other sea creatures (e.g., barracuda, sting ray) and sometimes picked them up so we could touch them (e.g., star fish). There are also several people in kayaks watching over us to make sure everyone is safe. Overall, it was a lot of fun. After snorkeling, you can swim, relax on the beach, or drink Belize bottled Cokes. The trip home on the tender as awesome too because everybody got some rum punch. Yes, I do mean everybody! Beach horseback ride and swim is an excursion out of Roatan. You take a small van on a 30 minute ride to the beach on the other side of the island. In the process, you get to see some pretty impoverished areas of Roatan. The private beach itself is absolutely beautiful. Be aware that you will need to bring some money with you to rent a locker ($10) and water shoes ($3) if needed. You may also want money for food and drinks. We spent 1 hour swimming and looking at crabs, fish, and other sea creatures after our horse ride. The horse ride itself is about 45 minutes long and a lot of fun - especially when the horses wade in the water. None of us are expert riders and we had no problem. The guide will walk with you and provide you with any help you need. They offer pictures for $100 (54 pictures total), which is a lot, but the pictures themselves were outstanding. My wife and I agree that this location (and pictures) were the prettiest of the entire trip. The amazing secret river is an excursion offered out of Cozumel. You take a ferry from Cozumel to the mainland (Playa del Carmen) and then a short bus ride to the secret river. The total trip to the Secret River is approximately 45-55 mins. The secret river itself is absolutely beautiful - perhaps the highlight of our trip. We were split into small groups of about 10 people with 1 guide. They provide helmets, wet suits, life vests, water shoes, towels, lockers - everything you need at no additional charge. The views inside the cave are incredible. You can walk on dry land or wade through 1-2 feet of water in most of the cave, but there are portions that you must swim too. You do not have to to be athletic to participate, but you cannot be scared of water or claustrophobic. I am not a good swimmer and I had no problem floating with the life vest. After the hike, they give some Mayan liquor to drink and an excellent Mexican meal at no additional charge. Then, they take you back to Playa del Carmen to shop for about 1 hour and take the ferry back to Cozumel and the ship. Overall, the experience was excellent and the company that ran the secret river tour was second to none. Read Less

We sailed Rhapsody to the Western Caribbean in January and liked it so much we did it again in March. Had another happy experience. This was Spring Break but saw only some more families with college age kids who were well mannered. We moved up from a balcony cabin to a Jr. Suite to get additional space. It was nice to enjoy the added space. Bigger balcony much nicer. Jose kept our place very clean. We are Diamond Plus. When we shopped for restaurants when we arrived to learn that we were offered a buy one/get one free offer. So we signed up for Chops, Giovanni's and the Chef's table for half price. We liked Chops again and found Giovanni's not so attractive. The Chef's table was great. We met interesting people and enjoyed the food and wine. MDR was offering very good food and excellent service. We did not like a meal and the Head Waiter responded immediately. He sent a bottle of wine to our room. We enjoyed the wine on our balcony later on our sea day. Nice. Embarkation was easy due to our Plus status and the fact that we were in a Jr. Suite. Disembarking was just as easy. We collected our luggage and were on the bus in no time. Travel from Boston to Tampa is easy on Jet Blue. However, since Rhapsody leaves port at 4:30 PM we were required to take a very early flight (5:45 AM) to get there on time. With a long wait for our cabin to be ready we packed bathing suits and sandals in our carry on bags and changed in the rest rooms. We had lunch at the small pool instead of the lines at Windjammer. Much nicer. In Key West we took the Fury Catamaran. It was great. Found lots of small fish as we snorkeled on a reef. Also found a Bull shark and 3 barracudas. Belize saw us being taken directly off the ship and taken to our snorkeling. Then we went to a small island where we bought burgers and beers. Then back to the ship. Cozumel was a blow out. Our snorkeling was booked for 7:30 AM. We got a note the night before saying the time was moved to 11:30 AM. Hooray we thought. When we got to the peer side place we learned the trip was cancelled due to choppy waters. We went to Margaritaville for lunch and did some shopping. Costa Maya saw us sign up for a beach Break at La Bamba. Our wrist bracelet gave us access to free drinks and a ride back to the ship via taxi. Diamond Lounge was very nice. Free drinks and a view of the wake Rhapsody was leaving was very pleasant. We also headed over to the Schooner Bar for Trivia. We met a very nice family who got their two kids together for the cruise. They joined our Trivia Team. We won a plastic key chain. We all had a great time. Entertainment was just ok. No big theater stuff but lots of shows that we enjoyed. Read Less

First of all I would like to start by commending the staff. They were great and provided excellent service for us. Our destinations were great. We really enjoyed the white sand and clear water. The food in the main dining room was also great! This was our second cruise on Rhapsody and our third cruise on a vision class boat. Every year they are becoming less entertaining for our kids as the activities list for them seems to keep shrinking. We also kept getting a bad stench of a sewer like smell in our room throughout the week. I had the “ Voom” internet service that was super slow. To slow to send or receive emails and or text messages. This was our last trip on Rhapsody or any vision class boat from Royal Caribbean. We have been very loyal to Royal thus far as this made our fifth year in a row cruising with them. Again the staff aboard the boat was great and very helpful to us for the entire length of the cruise. Read Less

This was my first cruise. Very surprised how they handled the crowds. The food was killer! Anything you could imagine. The staff was fantastic. The tours were good. Enjoyed Costa Maya the best. Special thanks to our Steward, Gloria. Such a great personality and a joy to talk to. Our server at the Edelweiss restaurant, Imade was the best. He could not do enough for us! He really took good care of us for dinner. Our assistant server, Geronelli was really great and a pleasure to know. All of the tour guides did a great job with the tours and were entertaining. Exploring all of the different areas as well as the Island of Cozumel were very informative. The food in the different locations was also very good. I would like to offer a suggestion about the entertainment. Maybe you try using the DJ a little bit more. He seemed to play some great music. If he mixed up the music and played longer, I think more people would get on the dance floor. This idea is from going to different clubs where they kept the dance floor busy! My thanks to all of the crew members on the Rhapsody of the Seas. Read Less

First let me say the cruise was 5 stars BUT. I don't like to comment about fellow passengers. We all have our own quirks and habits. This time I have to point out a few of nasty things I saw. Don't sample the buffet with your fingers and worse don't keep licking your fingers while handling food and the utensils used to serve the food. Geez how do you spell norovirus? Use the hand cleaners offered. There were many people who ignored the staffs attempts to give them hand cleaner or would flat out refuse to use the hand cleaner. Not washing your hands is nasty. Last observation. Would you want a house guest to sit at your kitchen table and put their feet, especially their bare feet, on your kitchen table? No? then why would you put your feet on tables used by others? Wow. Having been on more than 60 cruises I can honestly say I've seen this behavior before, but never as much as this past cruise. One has to ask what is happening to common sense and manors. Ok enough negative. The cruise was great. We don't dwell on the negatives, we are on a vacation. We make our own good time, our goal is to have fun not complain. The embarkation was quick and smooth. Only one caution about debarkation. I see the same thing every time RC uses terminal 6. The terminal is too small to handle all the luggage at once. Passengers are assigned numbers for departure and asked to wait on the ship until their number is called. If you leave the ship before your number is called you'll just end up waiting for your luggage. The luggage area is so small they can only put out a few luggage numbers at a time. So unless you don't mind standing around, waiting for your luggage, it's best to wait on the ship and have an extra cup of coffee until your number is called. The ship is old but very well maintained. The crew is constantly cleaning and trying to keep up with the normal maintenance. The crew is friendly and always willing to help with any issue. The Rhapsody is scheduled for some refurbishing this fall, but it really doesn't need much. We dined at the Windjammer buffet. The food was plentiful and varied from good to excellent. Each day some items were always available, burgers, fries, salad, ECT the rest of the buffet changed daily. The Windjammer was clean and the staff was great. If you go on a cruise just to relax or you want to be entertained, the Rhapsody has it all. There are activities all day long, music/dancing, shows and game shows at night. You should find something for all ages. it doesn't have some of the entertainment found on the larger ships, like wave riders, zip lines but still enough to do. I can't say enough about the crew. Maybe because it's a smaller ship, but the crew/staff is about the friendliest we ever encountered. Read Less