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A glorious week to treasure. |
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Reviewed By: mckeeve, stevenage on 20th Jun 2009
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| Cruise Line: Royal Caribbean Cruises |
Times cruised before: 0 |
| Cruise Ship: Serenade of the Seas |
Sailed:
May,
2009 |
| Destination: Alaska |
Age: 46-55 |
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Alaska was our destination from the magnificent city of Vancouver on 28th May. Ballantyne pier not Canada Place was the embarkation point and oh dear! A converted (just) warehouse was badly organised and over 2 hours after arrival, we still had not boarded the ship!
After our safety drill which was very professionally done we set sail @ 17:15 and what a send off. The spectacular views leaving sun drenched Vancouver was worth it alone, and the weather stayed with us all week. I wore shorts and T-shirts all week, even when standing on deck open mouthed at the Glaciers!
We had an outside cabin (4516), which was well appointed and a massive comfy bed. The bathroom was a closit but was adequate. Our steward was called Roberto and was magnificent, nothing was too much trouble day or night. Mobility on the ship was excellent with 11 glass elevators meant no queues. Disabled and wheelchair passengers were well catered for. The service was as you would expect but some staff went the extra mile.
Food aboard was sheer class. Every taste and appetite was available, our favourite was Chops Grille. My steak was the best ever. Drinks were pricey, but we had a soft drinks package that helped, but beer was $6.61 a go! Beware.
Alaska was everything we hoped for. Abundant wild life at sea with regular updates from the captain meant nobody missed a thing. Brilliant sunshine and only 100 metres from the glaciers were something we will never forget. Skagway and Juneau were quaint but interesting. We booked our own tours, RCI offer a wide but expensive range of shore activities.
There was also no shortage of things to do on board for everybody but our days were lazy. Evenings were very different. We loved getting dressed for dinner and we felt special and were made special by the staff. Theatre shows, NBA play-offs in the sports bar, trivia quizes in the fabulous Schooner bar. Even overpriced BINGO in the safari club lounge was offered!
The main bar area in the classy Atrium was the centre of all. Different styles of live music every night, the 70's themed night had the whole ship rocking!
The only thing that did not rock was the boat! We are not good sailors but we sometimes forgot we were at sea, the ship offered no sensation of movement at all. You never lost sight of land which probably helped but it was a special week, pleased to have been there, done that. I even bought the T-shirt!
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| Quality of Food |  |
| We mixed our venues. Chops and Portofino were superb. | | Entertainment |  |
| The resident bands were great. Average shows and a poor DJ in the Vortex nightclub. | | Shore Excursions | |
| Most organised activities were beyond our budget. We found our own, Skagway and Juneau offer old style bus tour of about an hour. | | Staff | |
| Our favourite was our cabin steward - Roberto. a smile greeted us always. I used him as a british butler, he ran errands for me and looked after our every need. His speciality was towel folding, animals and symbols of love were waiting for us when we retired for the evening. | | Children's Facilities | n/a |
| | Onboard Activities |  |
| Daily bulletins kept you up to speed with everything. | | Cabins |  |
| Well appointed but bathroom small. | | Overall Rating | |
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