Rhapsody of the Seas

AUGUST

Perfect for adults who like a slower pace. Quieter ship, with very few children. Great ports! Great value for money.

FEBRUARY

This was my 30th cruise, most with Royal, and my first on a Vision Class ship (last ship was the megaship Wonder of the Seas). The Rhapsody perfectly represents what used to be innovative wow factors back in the 90s, especially the multi-deck Centrum with glass elevators - an area where so many of the ship's features and venues are located, or close to, including Guest Services, Shore Excursions, the Casino, Shops, Schooner Bar, Chops Grille, Cafe Lattetudes, R Bar, Photos, evening musicians. It made it easy to find so many places and things to do without having to go too far. One of my favorite things was the quality of the main theater shows and the number of shows. There were 6 different shows on my 7-night cruise, 1 for every night except the first night (the ship departed San Juan at 8 pm the first night). It was great looking forward to a high-quality show after dinner every night. There was a great variety, with something for everyone, but all were consistently excellent. For this cruise I booked a very reasonably-priced 2 bedroom/2 bath Grand Suite (for half the price of just a standard Grand Suite on Royal's newer and larger ships), located close to the elevators. While the suite holds up to 8 people, there were just 2 of us, so each had their own bedroom and bathroom and a large shared living room. Although a bit dated looking, it was probably my favorite of all the suites I've stayed in (including an Owner's Suite and Royal Suite), because of the spacious unique layout, the midship location, the 2 bathrooms that gave us independence, and again, the extremely reasonable low price. One of the perks of staying in a Grand Suite or above is access to the exclusive Concierge Lounge (also known as the Suites Lounge), located centrally on Deck 11 next to the Viking Crown Lounge. While we also had access to the Deck 6 aft Crown Lounge (for those at Diamond level and above), we always went to the Concierge Lounge because it was much closer and easier to get to from our midship suite and had a great view. And, every evening, complimentary appetizers and drinks were served (in the Crown Lounge you must pay for drinks or use your digital Crown and Anchor free drink vouchers). But, for us, the best thing about the Concierge Lounge was Suite Concierge Dmitriy Krasylnykov from Ukraine. By far, he was the best Concierge we've encountered, and I cannot say enough good things about Dmitriy. He made a point of constantly interacting with the guests and getting to know everyone on a personal level so you always felt welcomed. He also pre-cruise made Giovanni's dinner reservations for us (better steaks than in Chops Grille!), found and turned in my lost $140 casino voucher, and made arrangements for wheelchair disembarkation. He knew and greeted us by name whenever we saw him anywhere on the ship. For other positives, Rhapsody has what I think is one of the best-designed and larger Schooner Bars. I also really liked the aft's large and sideways Shall We Dance lounge, where many secondary shows and activities took place. We chose Rhapsody because of its itinerary, and leaving from San Juan allows it to go deeper into the Caribbean with less-visited ports. It was our first visit to St. Croix and St. Lucia, and we enjoyed all the ports. So many staff made it special too by always going above and beyond, always with a smile, and remembering us by name, and what we liked. Would I go on the megaships again? Yes (I'm booked on Quantum and Symphony later this year). Would I go on a Vision or Radiance class ship again? Yes. The variety of the layouts of each class of ships helps keep cruising interesting instead of immediately knowing where everything is. And, while Rhapsody doesn't have all the bells and whistles of the megaships' pool decks, those things don't interest us anyway. On Rhapsody, we always found plenty to do and plenty of room and we thoroughly enjoyed revisiting a smaller class ship after many years.

AUGUST

We had an amazing trip to Aruba, Curaçao and Bonaire! The weather was extremely HOT weather but glorious breezes and 90% FULL Sun ! Beautiful islands-amazing clear blue waters to swim in (one beach though the coral we had to walk on to get into the ocean was a bit difficult to walk on -would definitely encourage water/swim shoes) … just an amazing week ! Yes the ship is old ,but had absolutely no issue with it ! Amazing waiters and state room attendants!!!

JULY

We still like the Royal Caribbean line best, but would prefer to sail on a little larger and more updated ship.

MAY

Food and service at the main dining room and specialty restaurants were very good. We mostly kept away from the buffet due to crowds and commotion. Food at the buffet was generally what you’d expect at that type of venue and a bit sub-par. Activities were quite fun and the entertainment team did a great job engaging the audience and getting people out of their shells. Orlando, the activities director, was a riot and had the crowd howling at his antics and quips. We laughed a lot at these events and enjoyed ourselves immensely.

APRIL

We had a wonderful time. The staff and excursions were wonderful. We loved every minute of our time on the Rhapsody of the Seas. The weather was unbelievable and we really enjoyed the little piece of heaven! Our room attendant was awesome- Ready Freddy! And our dining staff greeted us with smiles and happy comments always eager to cater to us. Roman and Arismendy

JULY

I loved all the ports except Athens. I took one tour to Athens through the ship and was very disappointed. Our tour guide was awful. The dinning experience for dinner was excellent. The food for both breakfast and lunch was disappointing.

FEBRUARY

Really was better than I expected in most ways. Ship size was good for us. Not one of the larger ships so never felt crowded

JANUARY

Christmas was fun. Santa included. Room service was slow and food was cold and tasteless. Bought the soda package and it didn’t include water. Destinations were nice. Lady at coffee shop was not friendly. Was not able to go to Key West- port closed due to bad weather. Most bartenders were nice. Casino was good. Comedy show was good. Art auctions were fun. My time dinning called and checked on me- wonderful customer service. Overall pretty good!

DECEMBER

enjoyed the ports, weather was great, hygiene not so good a lot of guests did not seem to agree that it was as much down to them as anyone else to keeps as many germs at bay as possible by using hand sanitising provided by the cruise line. Crew were great in the bars, dining and staterooms, officers not very visible and had there own favourite guests or were only being nice to the moaners not sure which! Entertainment - have seen better on other ships i the fleet.

NOVEMBER

Complimentary bottled water for each excursion would be a plus.

OCTOBER

<div>I would like to thank all the staffs of Rhapsody of the Sea. Everybody is friendly! Food is great! And service is excellent!</div>

APRIL

<div>Loved the ship, We had rooms on 8th deck below the spa and there was a staircase outside our door to spa - free sauna and steam room. Centrum area very nice. Nothing was too crowded. MDR food was better than Oasis/Allure. Specialty Dining was good but it was better on Anthem, Oasis and Allure in the past. Wait staff and Room Attendants very good. The Wifi service was terrible - spent more time trying to get on then actually on. Very frustrating. We had a JS and although the size of the room was great the temperature was awful - it was way too warm and thermostat was set to coldest setting - we brought it to the attention of GS an although they sent maintenance twice nothing changed. We had two cabins next to each other and both had same issue. They offered us a small credit to be used on a future cruise - nice but if you asked me I would have paid RC the credit amount to get a room that was comfortable to sleep in. Have been on many cruises and wifi and A/C are an issue with the ship - If we were at a hotel would have changed after the second night!</div>

FEBRUARY

Was a specialty music cruise, very accommodating to our group. Had occasion to visit medical on board - top notch treatment and people.

JANUARY

<div>This was our first Western Caribbean Cruise. We have cruised Southern and Eastern several times. We were quite disappointed with the Western itinerary and probably will not return</div>

OCTOBER

overall - ok.

JUNE

As usual Royal made this a wonderful vacation. Staff was great, food excellent, ship very clean and comfortable. I would never go on this ship again though. We have been on ships in this class but this was a little different. However we will definely be on Royal again next year.

MARCH

Very good cruise line and ship. The people on the ship were very good. The food was good with a lot of choices and a lot to do with shows and different entertainment every night. The ports we stopped at were good.

MARCH

I’m not sure why RC revamped their menu but it wasn’t very exciting or tasty. Our dining time (5:30 main)!was very crowded and waitstaff had too many tables. We barely finished up by 8:00pm. Spent a lot of time waiting between courses. The waitstaff was efficient just had too many large tables.

FEBRUARY

Royal Caribbean staff was very concerned about the spreading of germs. There was hand sanitizer everywhere and staff cleaning handrails constantly. Our wait staff and stateroom attendant were great. Would recommend this ship anytime. Ports we're good. We only had one port where too many cruise ships were at and the tendering to shore took a long time.

JANUARY

We really like Royal Caribbean have sailed on their ships numerous times about ten but this ship was the worse we have been on. I should say at least our cabin had more things wrong with it than any other cabin we have sailed in.

DECEMBER

Enjoyed the tours that I took in all the Western Caribbean ports. This is my first cruise so I can't compare it to any other cruises or ships, but I really enjoyed this cruise.

OCTOBER

It was nice to see old folks like us, and many young people and even Well behaved children. Agreat mix. FOOD WAS TERRIFIC WITH MUCH CHOICE.

APRIL

I am a early riser, so I enjoyed all the activity outside my cabin window. I found it very interesting: Pilot boat, scrapping of metal & ropes being pulled outside my cabin window as we got close to port. Entrance & exit point off the ship. I can image someone else in that cabin might not be happy. I drink 100 plus ounces of water daily, I need to incorporate a bottle water package on my cruise.

FEBRUARY

The cruise was enjoyed by all. However the cost of this cruise for this ship was overpriced since many of the amenities that young people enjoy were not on the Rhapsody. The rocking and shaking detracted from the enjoyment for some of the members of this family of seventeen. We realize this was beyond anyone's control but something we had not experienced on previous cruises. The loss of the suitcase on the pier could have been corrected had the port staff announced it immediately. We had to hunt it down ourselves.

JANUARY

<div>Our travel agent did a great job in advising us and making all the arrangements for a worry-free, relaxing vacation. Arriving in Tampa on the day before the cruise was an especially good idea for winter travel. See pros &amp; cons for comments about the ship.</div>

JANUARY

Great value especially when traveling with family. Something for everyone to do.

JANUARY

Not all staff were trained properly for their positions. Nice people without training does not make a valuable impression of Royal Caribbean as an employer.

DECEMBER

Great group. Bobby and Camille did a great job of keeping the group entertained and organized.

DECEMBER

Staff went out of their way to be friendly and helpful. I would commend EMME dining room Assistant Manager? She was everywhere helping everyone.

JULY

Main dining room needs to work on food quality. Twice my daughter didn't receive what she ordered. Pasta was so dry we had to keep asking for more sauce .

MAY

Everyone is 150% taking Care of You bring sure You are confortable This is My 2nd cruise with Royal and it has been the same experience. I have recommended to relatives and friends to try this experience. Thanks to all employees at Royal.

NOVEMBER

Really enjoyed cruising on this ship. I would have like a few more amenities that are found on the larger ships. The staff was excellent and helpful. Great food.

JULY

Overall great experience, Alaska tours were fantastic. Juneau tour was the Mendanhall Glacier/Salmon Bake Skagway tour was White Pass Railroad /Liarsville Mining camp Royal Carribean has really improved the ease of boarding and disembarking the ship. Very fast and efficient.

JUNE

All in general was great!

JUNE

Cruise departing Seattle, WA and docking at ports in Juneau, Skagway and Victoria, BC.

JUNE

I suppose the prevailing thinking now a days is the bigger the ships the better, but we actually liked the smaller ship atmosphere. At least we ran into some of the same people; giving us an opportunity to make friendships, some that we may go on to keep. The smaller ships are able to get closer to the glaciers and other land masses. If we had an opportunity to take this Alaskan cruise again, we would certainly take it, even thought the next time it would probably have to be on a much larger ship. I would certainly recommend this cruise, and I would recommend Royal Caribbean.

JUNE

<div>Overall the ship was fine...cabins a bit dated. Showers in the regular rooms were ridiculously small. Would have liked to see more musicals in the theatre instead of the main centrum (not enough seating).</div>

JUNE

The most amazing cruise

JUNE

Overall the ship is in good shape, although getting a little frayed around the edges. However, we had problems with the plumbing backing up into our shower pan. They cleaned and disinfected the area, but that is still not something you want to happen.

JUNE

Everything was great, from the accomodations to the meals and entertainment. First Class.

JUNE

Alaskans beautiful and cruising is wonderful. Greatly enjoyed viewing the Daws Glacier while sitting comfortably on our balcony having breakfast and drinking coffee.

MAY

<div>The cruise was great. Everything went perfectly. Our travel agent did a fantastic job in setting up everything for us. It seems the cruise before us on this ship had some people that got sick. We were notified 2 days before boarding that they were taking extra steps cleaning up the ship. Boarding was delayed only a few hours &amp; went without any problems. We never worried about getting ill during the cruise.</div>