Stephanie

It was 14 years ago - our It was 14 years ago - our very first cruise. Sailed out of NYC to St Johns, New Brunswick and Halifax, Nova Scotia. Now they stop in Maine, which would have been a nice addition to the itinerary.

We were in an obstructed view balcony on deck 6. I did a ton of research & found a room where the view was actually not obstructed at all - except that we did have a lovely view of the lifeboat. The room seemed longer and maybe a few inches wider. There are small open shelves in the bathroom which were much more practical and useful than the corner medicine cabinets. In the room, instead of a hard to access closet, there were cabinets on each side of the sofa. One with double hanging space, one with full-length hanging space, open shelves and 2 large drawers below. On the opposite side, there was a bank of drawers beside the sitting table / mirror. Small, open shelves on each nightstand for things like glasses, books, etc. Above the bed, 2 large shelves w/ fold up doors. And, beneath the bed was open, so you could easily slide your large suitcases underneath. Overall, very well thought out storage. Great use of a smallish space. Only negative about the room is that you have to have your seapass card inserted into the wall to operate the lights and the A/C, and the bed and pillows were not as comfortable as I remember on Explorer... Then again, maybe I was too exhausted / inebriated to tell a difference? Lol

Itinerary, ship, weather and onboard activities top my list of how I rank my vacation experience. We chose our last cruise based on the ship, but that's the first time we've done that. Alaska has by far been our favorite cruise only because Alaska's beauty is astounding. It's the only one I've ever wanted to do again. We've done the Northeast, the Southern Caribbean and now Bermuda. Our next cruise is the Mediterranean on Symphony. The itinerary has been my dream vacation for the last 5 years. The fact that it's on Symphony was just an added bonus. We are not fans of the Caribbean islands. They all look the same, and aside from Bermuda, have been depressing seeing all the poverty. We love RCL and will remain loyal, but our next sailings will be around Europe and Asia.

I stayed at the Sheraton Lincoln Harbor mainly b/c it's where I've stayed for work a number of times. Not a Hilton, but it's a very nice place. The ferry into NYC Times Square area is right outside the hotel. We took uber to the port - cost was $13. It was about 30 minutes from the hotel (when you count sitting in the drop off line at the port).

Just got back from this cruise last week. It was a little rockier compared to our Southern Caribbean sailing. If you've ever done Alaska, it's comparable as far as ocean waves. We sailed through a rain storm on Wednesday morning. That was some major rocking - I have video of major tidal waves in the swimming pool. Anthem is gorgeous! And massive!! Lots of really cool venues, like the Music Hall, Boleros, Two70, etc. I wasn't a fan of not having a main dining room, but other guests we talked to liked the smaller feel of the restaurants. The amount of storage in our stateroom was phenomenal - and I way over-pack! Honestly, I'm not sure I like how big the ship is, and I'm a little apprehensive now b/c we have already booked a cruise on Symphony next year... It may be our last cruise on the massive ships.

Delta already has this service in Seattle. When we returned from our Alaska cruise, my dad & his wife were flying Delta. They were able to check-in to their flights & check their bags right there at the port. It was a very nice service. The rest of us were on Southwest and had to lug our bags to the airport.

Pictures, shore excursions, shopping in the promenade shops or on shore, casinos, tips, sodas and alcoholic beverages - it all adds up. I've never purchased a beverage package. I don't drink soda or coffee, but I do have cocktails. On my last cruise, I did a cost comparison. I bought 2-3 beverages / day. At that rate per beverage, I spent about the same as I would have spent had I purchased the package. If you drink soda or drink more than 2-3 alcoholic beverages / day, then the drink package is well worth the money. As DocLC said, it's all dependent on what you choose to spend your money on.

I'm with you - I like that you don't HAVE to dress up on formal night. BUT, I think that's what the Windjammer is for. If you don't want to dress up, don't eat in the MDR. Frankly, we enjoy just sitting at the bar outside of the MDR people watching, esp on nights when the photographers are out. Loads of free entertainment!

Ah!!! So THIS is why RCCL doesn't cruise in & out of Honolulu just around the Hawaiian islands!!!! Mystery solved.

I wish they would cruise RT from Honolulu. I want to cruise Hawaii, but I don't want to be at sea for 4 days sailing out of Vancouver to get there!

Did you notice, there's a drop down menu where you can select to hide all signatures? Or just hide the signature of a particular user? At the top of the signature box, on the right hand side, there's a tiny grey arrow. Then you can hide it from your view.

No, it wasn't anything like that. They were RC bands that played cover music. I think there were 3 or 4 different bands, and it just seemed like they were always playing somewhere (not just in the Schooner Bar) - the pool deck, the centrium, etc. It was really fun. The Alaska cruise had a couple of bands, but they were generally in the bars except during the party on deck as we set sail the first day.

I'm not sure about what extra items to pack, but our last cruise to Alaska (7 days + an extra day in Seattle) required strategic packing b/c I was having to take pretty bulky items. And, since you can't bring an iron or steamer on board, I did a lot of research on packing strategies. I rolled my t-shirts, shorts and dresses and put them in ziplock bags to be able to compress them without getting wrinkles. I also rolled our jeans and sweatshirts. It worked like a charm! I also learned little tricks like stuffing socks inside your tennis shoes so you have no wasted space in your suitcase.

When we sailed to the Caribbean in 2013 on Jewel of the Seas, there were bands playing live music all over the ship. We had a blast listening to the music and watching people dance. On our Alaska cruise last September on Explorer, there wasn't nearly as much live music. The ship wasn't really laid out for dancing and bands. We wondered if it was just a different vibe, too - Caribbean vs. Alaska. We'll be sailing on Anthem next month to Bermuda. Does anyone know if there's a lot of live music on Anthem?

On our last cruise (Alaska), there was one guy that wore pajamas every day, all day. They were a different pair every day, but that was all he wore. I was never under an impression that there was any sort of dress code anywhere except the MDR. On our Caribbean cruises, people wore swimsuits and flip flops everywhere (generally with a cover-up).

Thanks, all! After reading the blog about the hidden gems on Anthem and your responses, I think I'm going to opt for the thermal spa pass instead.

Usually the "raunchy" comedy shows are later in the evening (after 9:00 pm) and have a disclaimer that it's inappropriate for young ears.

I set sail on this cruise at the end of this month. These threads have me even more excited than I already was!!

I was considering getting a massage onboard. I'm somewhat of a snob when it comes to massages b/c I absolutely love the massage therapists in my hometown. Anyone have any experience? Are they worth it?

It's cheaper to order drink packages ahead of time. As to onshore excursions ... my husband and I went on an Eastern Caribbean cruise a couple of years ago. We are not big beach people and just wanted to tour the island. On each island, there are a multitude of taxis / vans waiting to take you and your group on a tour. All of our tour guides were amazing and we saved a ton of money off what the RCL rates were. The cruise lines all say you're safer to book your excursions through them b/c then you're guaranteed transport back to the ship if you miss the sailing. My experience is that all of the tour operations in ports of call are well aware of each cruise line's sailings & schedule. They can tell you exactly what day Princess, Carnival, RCL, etc pull into port, what time & what time they leave. They all make their living off the tourists, and they will make sure you are back to the ship on time.

I've sailed w/ RCL 4 times with #5 coming up in April. Each time, I've either booked by calling RCL or booked online. I notice in the forums a lot of you use travel agents. What is the advantage / disadvantage of using an agent?

I read on another site that you need to make reservations for My Time dining before you get on the ship, so I did. I've already made reservations for each night. I see there are specialty shows on Anthem and you can make reservations for the shows. The dates and times are very limited. Are more seats / times available to book onboard? One show interferes with my dinner reservation, so I'm curious if I just need to move my dinner reservations and book the show.

Toodle68, we did Alaska in September. Hands down, the BEST vacation ever! We will definitely cruise there again.

We did Canada for our honeymoon 13 years ago. Sailed early October. It was my first RCL cruise (actually, first cruise ever) and when I became a RCL loyalist. We absolutely loved it! The weather was chilly - high 50s - 70s most days. Definitely needed more than the windbreaker I had taken. The swimming pools on board are generally empty but it's because it's too cold to swim. We're sailing on Anthem in April this year, out of Port Liberty. Going up a day early to go into NYC. Newark is not the best of airports. I was planning to uber vs. taxi. Uber tends to be cheaper. Unfortunately, public transportation in NJ is sort of a pain if you're not familiar.

On our Alaska cruise back in September, we were supposed to sail into the Tracy Arm Fjord. The captain took us to a different glacier instead (I don't recall the name). He said it was because Tracy Arm Fjord was too icy to get the ship safely in & out. He also said the glacier he took us to was much prettier, in his opinion. I've never seen the Tracy Arm Fjord, but I was not disappointed. The views were spectacular! I'd also much rather the captain reroute for safety. Frankly, I think it's nice you still got to go somewhere rather than simply missing St Maarten and St Thomas. (Frankly, I've been to St Maarten. Aside from pretty beaches, you didn't miss much.)