Small ship experience at modest prices...I would give Empress an A+ for guest services , housekeeping, dining ( limited venues) , spaces to chill/ relax, best Schooner Bar space, superior shore excursions and activities staff , spacious Shops area
Our room was a junior suite with a balcony. It was clean with excellent lighting especially for reading in bed
HOWEVER if one wants quiet rooms/ junior suites on Deck 9 are a BAD choice. One deals with extensive pool noise from bands or movies shown on pool deck10 or pounding of little feet from Adventure Ocean with very bad sound attenuation We did not do our homework to see what was above us.
Very nice layout spacious closet Vanity desk with seat shelving as well as drawers Large comfy sofa ( converts to day bed) would give room a “5” but location under pool deck and significant noise from chair scraping, bands pounding, booming from movies shown on pool deck, as well as noises traveling from Adventure Ocean ( organized activiity area for kids)well into the night (after midnight) were factors that bring my rating down
Royal Caribbean has basically pulled out all the stops in their refurbishing of Coco Cay. One would never know there has been a major hurricane that hit the Caribbean. The island is clean, is accessible and very well-maintained. The staff are extremely accommodating. The selections of craft markets is quite enjoyable and staffed by very friendly, helpful people.
My personal favorite at Coco Cay is the oasis lagoon complete with a swim up bar, padded footing and mosaic seating around the edges.
More venues are being added on Coco Cay with South Beach (Closed right now) being improved and developed without ongoing construction interfering with our experience in the least
We explored on our own own and would’ve been much happier if we had been there with more daylight hours. Our time in Port was basically 3 PM to 11:30 PM. We did take in the citadel which was walking distance. We also happened upon an excellent family owned restaurant within a short walk of the crew ship. And we were sure happy with the Walgreens being right across the street from the cruise ship!