Navigator of the Seas Review
Good Ports of Call But Quite Dated vs other RCCL ships in fleet
Rating by category
Additional details
The itinerary, was a little unique, the ability to do an 8 day cruise, as opposed to a 'normally offered' 7 day cruise. I was interested in sailing with the Navigator, as I had sailed on this ship within the past 8 years. It 'supposedly' had been dry-docked for modernization and refresh, but it still showed plenty of signs of age(ageing), lack of continuous maintenance, and required many updates to keep up with some other RCCL ships in their fleet. I'm hoping (and was told) that this ship will be going for dry dock in the next couple of seasons, as really does need the extra amenities, and modernization, as the other ships; that represent the RCCL name and product. The R Bar still shows the same reflection of The Champagne Bar, and the Diamond/Diamond Plus and Concierge Lounge still do not have enough room for its loyal, repeat and Concierge level cruising passengers
Cabin Review
Deluxe Oceanview Stateroom with Balcony
What can I possibly say, there's a dated feel to the stateroom, the noise barrier from other staterooms or hallway, is non-existent, and majority of the stateroom have the same look as they did 5 years ago, with exception of the dressing on the bedding which had been changed to an updated look. Bring an extra pillow, as every pillow we had and even requested replacements were flat from wear and tear, and made for a very uncomfortable rest/sleep, and it showed once you got up and had such back pains
Port Reviews
Labadee
Disembarking, unless you chose to do an excursion took over an hour for our family to disembarking, and returning to the ship was even worse. There was a 90-minute que for security and boarding on the ship
Fort Lauderdale (Port Everglades)
Lack of organization from the entry to the port, thru long lines out of the building to get through security, and then long lines for checkin, even for the 'very frequent' cruisers with RCCL. The cameras for stateroom card verification were not working, and later onboard we were made to wait in line at Customer Service to have our photos taken with more traditional cameras
San Juan
One of my favorite ports, especially when you dock at Old San Juan Pier. It's a great way to take advantage of the 'do it yourself' mentality, and not rely on a 'costly' excursion, enjoy that port, it's a wonderful place to visit
St. Kitts (Port Zante)
Beautiful and romantic, would recommend staying onboard for an extra 90 minutes, and then catch a local taxi or van to a beach of your choice, and just enjoy the quiet and tranquility
St. Maarten
No excursion, traffic can be a nightmare, and we enjoy some of the great local beaches on the French side, taking a cab/van is the best, & really only option, for a flat fee, they will come back to pick you up, if you give them a time. Don't forget to allow yourself an extra hour, just in case of a traffic jam, or an accident. The roads are mostly, if not all, single lane roads, no highways, and you travel thru many of the small villages. We had couples on our taxi-van that were going to miss their ship due to mismanaged time allotment to return to the ship. The cruise ship did not wait for anyone