Serenade of the Seas Review
Rating by category
Additional details
Embarkation was the best I've ever experienced - we walked right on. Debarkation was the worst I've ever experienced - it was a nightmare. People waited hours past their assigned times, many in line. Line was from one end of the ship to the other and never seemed to move.
We were a group of approx 30 coming from Winter Haven - it was nearby and very reasonable. First complaint, we were not seated together. Don't know whose fault that was but it was corrected.
Food was actually pretty good most times. You could always find something to eat. The one thing I thought incredibly foolish - people were not allowed in their cabins until 2:00 which meant people hung around at the buffet. They had to ask people to vacate so others could be seated and eat. It used to be 1:00 - they need to return to that time. Lobster night, you're only allowed one - another is $16.99 which you could get any night for the same price.
Cabin Review
Ocean View Balcony
We had an obstructed balcony. We could see straight out but not down. Was cheaper and besides we spend very little time on a balcony. Biggest complaint was the mattress, it was like sleeping on plywood and I could feel where the mattresses meet in the middle. Nothing could be done to improve it. I never got a good night's sleep. I suggest you bring extra hangers tho there is plenty of storage. The bath is typical but you might want to bring shampoo - one liquid fits all. There is a bar of soap for the sink. Water pressure in the shower nearly blows you out of the shower. Towels only get changed once a day. The sofa/chair was stained and rather disgusting.
Port Reviews
Costa Maya
This port is a nightmare for the handicapped. The pier looked to be a mile long, tho I'm probably exaggerating. There are no benches to rest and tho we were told they had trams - we never saw one. There were 2 other ships, larger than ours, so it was busy, to say the least. We walked 1/2 way and turned back. I was so glad we hadn't booked a tour as we would have never made it.
Roatan
I normally suggest booking other than the cruise lines as it's cheaper but in this case, not so. Cruise line buses are nearby but if you booked otherwise, you'll get a surprise by how far you'll walk. I don't know what happened to our tour but we ended up in a car just the 2 of us with a pleasant driver but not much else. He only spoke when we asked a question. Our tour was supposed to be 5 hrs long but after 2, we had enough and asked to return to the ship. We booked thru VTG who doesn't seem to really research any of their tours. We knew others who weren't happy.