Voyager of the Seas Review
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Wow, how to summarize 14 days in just a few paragraphs? Note to self: thank the weather gods for their work--every day was beautiful! Three of us boarded VOS in BCN Nov 29th, bound for Galveston.
Back in the day, ship's staff and crew worked hard to accommodate special passenger requests on the spot. Now that the ship emails 'Miami' with every complaint and request, no one on board is responsible, and there is a lack of creative and on-the-spot problem solving.
Accommodations: We lodged in a Junior Suite on Deck 9 just forward of the 'bulge,' an excellent location near the rear stairs providing quick access to all food and pools. A shout-out of thanks to Dennis, cabin steward, for working with us in overcoming RCI's limitations. A note here on sleeping arrangements: I was lucky to get one of the suite's broken-down, 10-year-old, twins. One of us ended up on the new 'sofa-bed,' just installed in April while the ship was dry-docked. Clearly, no one in Miami has ever sat upon, and certainly never slept upon, this new contraption. By day, the 'sofa' is about as comfortable as a seat on the Barcelona Metro. By night, a bed of nails would be more comfortable, as this 'bed' is nothing more than a sheet of plywood with 1" of cheap foam stapled on. The 'bed' is actually the back of the sofa, which folds down and forward to make a flat surface upon which the cabin steward places sheets and comforters. You think I'm kidding, I know--I still cannot believe it myself. Well, somewhere on the ship, two crew bunks were without mattresses, because they ended up on the floor in our Suite. Also, a note to future designers: the room is too big, in proportion to the bath. A split bath, with separate WC would be lovely.
Cabin Review
9306 is a Junior Suite, perfectly located towards the rear of the middle section.
The balcony is great: a hard steel instead of a flimsy glass partition provides privacy and wind screening. Adequately furnished for three travelers: two chairs, end table, and chaise.
The beds are awful: clearly the same ones in service when the ship launched in 1999, they are now old and tired. Reading lights are excellent.
New is the 'sofa bed,' which is horrible as either sofa or bed, moreover, it is too long for the alcove into which it has been stuffed (it replaced a loveseat in April). Unfortunately there are no lights at this bed.
New hi-def flatscreen TVs were installed mid-cruise, unfortunately the signal is still lo-def and the remote provided with the TV was removed from the room so no adjustments to picture (zoom, aspect ratio) may be made.
The room is very spacious, with room for a 3-seat sofa, two club chairs, and two dining chairs (no table--odd). The walk-in closet is large enough to accommodate one of the dining chairs for dressing. Unfortunately little additional space was allocated to the bathroom, so although it has a tub/shower combo, it is still a one (small) person at a time affair.