Serenade of the Seas Review
Rating by category
Additional details
I will begin this review by saying that we were open-minded about our expectations for this cruise & chose it because of the itinerary. We have sailed with another cruise line in the past and anticipated a similar experience. We did not go out of our way to find fault & if you have never cruised before you would not necessarily notice the things we did.
We purchased an RCI package that included flights, transfers, pre & post cruise accommodation with prepaid gratuities & a bonus drinks package. We had no problems with transfers although we received an information letter addressed to someone else in the envelope addressed to us. The hotels were excellent.
We were surprised by the lack of welcome when we boarded. There was no effort to direct us to the public areas of the ship when we embarked on Deck 2, an area that is small & quite dark. In general we found the Serenade of the Seas in need of TLC- it is looking tired. It is kept clean by the hard working staff. We were disappointed to smell smoke inside, especially in the area around the casino & central atrium. At certain points outside we regularly smelt sewage.
Cabin Review
Interior Stateroom
Our cabin was an inside on deck 3 and of reasonable size although I’m not sure how anyone larger than average in size would manage in the shower. We noticed that the bathroom in particular is in need of an upgrade, the shower leaked and wear & tear was visible in the fittings. There were several occasions when we noticed the water from the tap was yellow in colour. This usually was short lived but it did make us wonder how safe it was to drink. The bed was comfortable and storage was adequate. We did have some issues with banging & thumping noise from the cabin above as well as being able to hear muffled conversation from the cabins to either side.
Port Reviews
Copenhagen
Copenhagen was our embarkation port. We would recommend several days pre cruise to explore this city. The included transfers made it easy to embark as the port was some distance from the centre
Rostock (Warnemunde)
Our original itinerary had us docking at Warnemunde. We were notified of the change to Rostock industrial port but no shuttle options were available to visit Warnemunde. The paid shuttle only went to Rostock. If you wish to explore independantly there is the option of a local bus & train but you need to do the research before you leave. the seaside town is charming even in the wet.
Klaipeda
Klaipeda is a great place to visit with locals who go out of their way to make you feel welcome. They provide maps on the dock. It is an easy walk into town and the maps have an informative walking trail to help you explore.
Riga
The only way to visit this port was to do a ships tour or pay to use the shuttle as there was no public transport at the industrial port 45 minutes away. Find the information centre. They have good maps available to help you explore this lovely town. The cobblestones in the old town are hard on the legs. If you enjoy Art Deco Architecture make sure you visit Elizabeth St.
Tallinn
A beautiful town with a large portion of its old defensive wall intact. An easy do it yourself visit. The old town is 10-15 minutes walk from the dock. We enjoyed the garden design competition along with wandering the old town and the views from the Toompea area
St. Petersburg
We used SPB tours for our visit to St Petersburg. This local company was very good, provided the necessary visas and had a maximum of 16 participants in a group. The tour guide had an amazing amount of knowledge to share. There is so much to see here and the deluxe tour gave us a great overview of all the palaces, churches and important places in St Petersburg.
Helsinki
Our visit coincided with Midsummers vacation so many places were closed although the main market was operating. The ship docked some distance out of the city but we walked along the waterfront to the centre in about 45 minutes. The views were lovely.Public transport is available and the hop on hop off bus includes a stop near the dock. We then took the local ferry out to Suomenlinna Fortress Island where we enjoyed several hours exploring. The city itself was not overly interesting to us