Serenade of the Seas Review
Rating by category
Additional details
Re-Positioning Cruise, 14 days, Quebec City to Fort Lauderdale
We have cruised annually since 2008 on RC ‘08 through ‘12, 2 Celebrity in ‘13 and ‘14, our last Royal cruise being on the SOTS in 2012. This cruise due to the itinerary, time of year and cost is probably one of the best we have ever taken. The ship went into dry dock after 2012 and the exterior public areas are nicely done and always clean and shiny and taken care of. This cruise was loaded with veteran cruisers, approximately 35% being C&AS Diamond, Diamond Plus or Pinnacle. Most were our age (mid 60’s) or above and mostly from the US, very few children on board. We did notice changes on Royal in those 3 years - few of them for the better of the customer.
DINING: We had 530pm in MDR and ate there every night but one, windjammer for that one. Our dining service was one of the best ever with John and Reggie, but dining service has always been good with Royal and Celebrity. They were efficient, moved quickly to take our orders, and the food was always delivered hot with a genuine friendly smile, they were wonderful to deal with. Usually we were finished by 645 pm and were not rushing. Some of the meals were outstanding, most were good, a few times I found nothing on the menu that was appealing in the appetizer, entrée or dessert section. Several times the meals were very average, this was a change from 3 years ago when all meals were good to outstanding. We did breakfast and lunch in windjammer except for one lunch in Giovanni’s, at $15 each a bargain but that meal was slightly above average, not exceptional. Windjammer was dependable, good variety and usually good to very good on their offerings. 3 formal nights; it seemed this was done so the photo shop could get pictures they could sell as they were taking pictures throughout the dining room and on the staircases.
Cabin Review
Interior Stateroom
Interior - mid-ship, 9th floor, quiet, central location for walking and good for sleeping. Overall was in good shape but the sofa was tired looking, the glazing on the mirror in the bathroom needed a rework and wear on the bottom of the shower was evident, chipping paint. The flat screen TV had 29 channels, a wide variety but 8 of the 29 were devoted to RC and most involved promoting something for sale. 3 were cartoons, 1 news channel, 6 foreign language, 7 various TV shows (lots of reruns), 2 sports, 1 music, 1 TV Guide.
Port Reviews
Quebec City
We were to arrive at 9pm the night before, due to flight delays got in at 115am, picked up by fellow cruisers at the airport, checked in to Best Western at 2am, up at 8am, breakfast nearby, car rental turn in, free ride to port via Hertz, 30 minutes in line, onboard at 1245pm. Docked at pier 30, not very close to old town, used a cab next day to come and go, $10 one way (CDN) for 4 people. Old town was great, was cloudy windy and in the 40s but a pleasure. Loved Quebec City.
Charlottetown (Prince Edward Island)
Docked 7am to 5pm. Walked to nearby Budget RAC, drove to Anne of Green Gables house and other island sightseeing drive, though cool and windy some of the most beautiful colors ever seen on the drive. $41.55 + gas for 4 people, a great way to see this beautiful place and get outside the city. Turned in the car and walked back to the ship. The people were so friendly and helpful.
Sydney (Nova Scotia)
Docked 730am to 4pm. Walked off ship, Budget shuttle waiting, got Chevy SUV off to the Bell Museum in Baddeck, very interesting, again fantastic colors enroute driving. Then to the Vogue cleaners (coin laundry with attendant) on Prince St in Sydney for a couple loads of laundry, took 1 1/2 hrs to do - now in good shape for the rest of the cruise. Vehicle turn in, shuttled back to ship by Budget. $36.89 + gas for 4 - this was a great way to sight see and get our laundry in shape. Again friendly people.
Halifax
Walked off ship to Maritime museum 30 minute walk from ship, then to Public Gardens and some in town shopping. A good stop for "big city" shopping needs. Friendly people and a pleasant experience, again windy cool, so nice if you're from Phoenix.
Boston
Docked 645 am to 9 pm. Royal was selling round trip bus transport for $20 each round trip. We took a cab to the JFK Library nearby and spent several hours going thought it. Cab back to ship as it was attempting to rain in the PM. Cloudy windy cool here, then rain began. This was our 6th port day in a row so this one excursion was enough as we had both been to Boston several times earlier. $12 each for the library, $34.60 for cabs for the 4 of us.