10 lessons learned after trying Icon of the Seas for the first time
In:Welcome our guest writer, Phil Schoen! He took some time to write this post entry to share some tips and tricks he and his family learned while sailing on Icon of the Seas.
We just finished up an amazing week on Icon of the Seas, sailing from February 17th to the 24th of 2024. We were a family of 5, staying in a Family Infinite Ocean View Balcony room, and there were definitely some things we learned along the way.
Since lists are always fun, I thought I would share some of them. Obviously, this is all just based on our experience and everyone cruises differently. I should also mention that the ship was not at full capacity yet; there were about 6,000 total guests, with 1,200 of them being children.
Also, we were seeing them making some tweaks to schedules and what is included in various packages and pricing for things. Basically, your experience may differ from what ours was.
For instance, the Unlimited Dining Package now includes $10 daily credit to Izumi in the Park. Also, the drink package now covers floats at Desserted, though still not milkshakes).
We also saw them adjust some of the theme nights. They removed White Night for a Red, White, and Blue Night.
You will need to prioritize what you want to do
This goes without saying, but this is a massive ship with a ton to do and a ton of new stuff not seen on other Royal Caribbean ships. Because of that at the end of the week, my wife and I were commenting about the things we didn't get to.
For example, we never ate at El Loco Fresh or visited the Sports Court, whereas on our last cruise, those were two locations we spent a lot of time at.
A week goes really fast, and if there is something you are really looking forward to checking out, make it a priority and add it to your "calendar" in the app.
For our family, one priority was the Category 6 water slides, so we went there right after boarding the ship, having packed bathing suits in our carry-on bag. We were able to do a number of them right away with shorter lines than we saw later in the cruise, especially on sea days.
Additionally seeing the new shows and exploring some of the new venues was a priority, such as Dueling Pianos.
Consider skipping a port to stay on the ship
On a related note, you may want to take advantage of a less crowded ship when in port to accomplish more of your priority list.
We found that on sea days, the pool decks and other venues were very crowded, and there were long-ish lines for water slides. We decided to not get off the ship when it docked at Perfect Day at Coco Cay, and it turned out to be a great call!
We got to check out multiple pools and hot tubs, ride the water slides a bunch, and attend a trivia session with only 3 total groups. There weren't any lines at bars, and there were minimal folks in the Hideaway Area pool. It was just really nice to explore this ship with low crowds and made for a really relaxing day.
Read more: 5 best reasons to stay onboard the ship while in Perfect Day at CocoCay
You don't need to pack as many multi-port adapters
One thing the rooms on Icon have is outlets, especially USB ports. You'll find them all over the room, including between the desk, the shelf near the TV, the bathroom, and by the beds.
Our room also had multiple USB-A outlets near the bunk bed area. If I counted correctly, we had 4 U.S. outlets, 1 European outlet, 10 USB-A outlets, and 2 USB-C outlets. We did utilize one multi USB-A plug on the desk just to keep things more organized with phones and battery packs, etc., but we absolutely could have made it through without anything.
Read more: The clever reason to bring a European power adapter on your cruise ship
This is very different than other ships where we felt like we had multiple multi-port adapters in use at all times. There are also outlets out around the ship, with the Overlook area having an exceptional amount and a great place to go if you need to get on a laptop.
In the Overlook area, especially in the pods, we saw people utilizing the outlets to keep phones and laptops charged and running.
You will want to pack magnetic hooks to hang things from in the room
One negative thing we found about the rooms (and heard from others as well) is the lack of storage compared to other ships like the Oasis Class. For our family of 5, we struggled to fit everything on the hanging racks and ran out of shelf space. We fit everything, but was tight.
Additionally, there's no clothesline in the bathroom for hanging up bathing suits or other wet items, only a couple of knobs to hang a few things from. We are glad we brought several magnetic hooks to use on the metal walls, as it allowed us to hang things like hats and nearly-but-not-quite-dry bathing suits.
Bonus tip: Bring at least 1 more swimsuit than you think you might need, but also try to not overpack other items as storage is at a premium.
Read more: 30 cruise cabin hacks that cruisers love
Bring earplugs if you are a light sleeper
Overall, we liked the space in the Family Infinite Ocean View Balcony room, especially having the bunk bed area which helped separate the kids' area from the main part of the room.
We also liked how the infinite veranda space made the room bigger, and the chairs on it were comfortable. Opening the window was fun - if a bit of a gimmick - and the black-out shade really worked. It definitely doesn't replace a traditional balcony, and I would refer to the room more as an "Oceanview Plus" vs a real balcony room.
That being said, I thought I would mention another slight negative thing we found, which is that the walls appear to be quite thin, as we could definitely hear our neighbors on both sides. One group was rather loud with quite a bit of screaming from both kids and adults.
If you are someone who needs things really quiet to sleep or just wants quiet when relaxing in the room, consider bringing earplugs, headphones, or something that can block sound out.
If you are debating it, get the drink package
I know the drink package, especially for this ship, is expensive, but if you are someone who is contemplating getting it, go for it. There are so many unique bars and drinks on this ship that we got so much use out of our package and really enjoyed trying different things that we might not be as open to ordering (for fear of not liking it) if we were paying per drink.
Also, consider doing a bar crawl, as it motivates you to check out the different bars and drinks. You can spread it out throughout the cruise; you don't need to do it all in one day.
The Basecamp Bar, for instance, has a lot of tropical drinks, themed to Category 6 water park. I found that many of them were pretty strong! The Rye and Bean specializes in coffee and tea-based drinks, whereas Swim and Tonic, a swim-up bar specializes in gin-based drinks. The 1400 Lobby Bar has drinks themed to elements traditional to Royal Caribbean, with names like the FlowRider and the Rising Tides.
Some drinks that I wish I could have right now include the Coffee Boulevardier from Rye and Bean (the espresso martinis here are also excellent) and the Tradewinds from Basecamp Bar.
Similarly, if contemplating the Empire Supper Club, book it!
Speaking of things that are not cheap, we got to experience the Empire Supper Club, and it did not disappoint. It was one of the best meal experiences I have had in my life.
The food was wonderful and creative. They also had some really interesting cocktails, with some pairings I would never have thought of but worked. The excellent music absolutely complemented the meal without taking away from being able to have conversations.
I probably also had the best service I have ever had on any cruise ship. It's most likely not something you are going to do every cruise, but for a special occasion or if just something you think will appeal to you, go for it! A meal like this on land, when factoring in the cocktails and entertainment, would likely cost 2-3x what they are charging.
Overall, it felt very Great Gatsby-like, and we went all out getting dressed up and trying to match the glitz and glamour of the venue and the event. There are lots of Art Deco touches throughout, including on the rim of the plates, and don't forget to look up!
A formal invitation with a wax seal is left in your stateroom the evening before, and when you first arrive your server greets you by name. I suppose they use your boarding photo so they know what you look like.
You are required to arrive at a set time, and they lock the doors behind you to keep the "speakeasy" vibe. Once seated, you are asked what type of water you want, and they start serving the champagne, which keeps flowing during the first few courses, including a few appetizers not even listed on the menu!
Once you get into the menu, you are given very detailed information about each dish, as well as the cocktail served with it and why it was selected. My favorite course was the raviolo, which was a singular large ravioli served with a decadent sauce and topped with shaved botargo and edible flowers.
The most interesting cocktail pairing was the Blood and Sand, which was served with the langoustine. I just wouldn't normally pair a scotch-based drink with seafood, but it worked!
My wife does not eat pork or beef, and they were able to modify a couple of appetizers, so she could fully experience them. For example, they prepared a mushroom-based sauce to go with the raviolo, rather than the standard one which had guanciale in it.
Read more: Icon of the Seas restaurant and dining guide
Pearl Café is a game-changer
Two of the best changes they made for this ship were the opening up of the promenade and the addition of the Pearl Café. I cannot overstate how much of an upgrade this is over Cafe Promenade.
The setting is lovely with the large windows, view of the Pearl, and the artwork above your head. The food is really, really good; the steak and egg breakfast sandwich become an everyday item for me, and it is open 24 hours a day.
One food item they had there that my son enjoyed and got quite often was the tomato and mozzarella salad. We also enjoyed the various croissants they had there, and I also really liked the BBQ chicken biscuit they had in the afternoons.
I will say the line for the coffee where you can get lattes and the like made with Starbucks coffee can get rather long; the crew there is working hard, just lots of people want their coffee!
The line for coffee was definitely the longest in the morning. By the afternoon, it would be much shorter, but always at least a few people there.
There are two separate lines, one for the specialty coffees and one for the food, so if you just wanted food you had a much shorter wait, though if you wanted both coffee and food you had to wait in two lines.
Seating for the shows, including non-reserved seating for the aqua show
Royal Caribbean entertainment is generally amazing and what is found on this ship is no exception. You probably don't need me to advise you to go see the Wizard of Oz, the Ice Shows, or the Aquashows, but for each, here are a few tips for where to sit.
For the Wizard of Oz, it's best to sit in the lower section, as close to the middle as you can, but if the only thing available is on the side that is fine, too. Just being closer to the stage is great and several effects will, literally, go over your head, and it really adds to the experience.
For the ice shows in Absolute Zero, outside of a few seats that may have a pole impacting your view, there really aren't "bad" seats, but I would advise getting as close as you can and even going for the front row, especially for the secondary show, which is aimed at families.
We had the kids in our group sit in the front row, and at times, the performers would come by and give them high fives; they loved that!
Perhaps my best tip overall is about AquaAction. The reservations for the shows in the aqua theater (there was only one ready on our sailing) are just for the wooden benches and chairs within that area, NOT for the chairs behind the benches. We wanted to see the show twice and just showed up early. We found that we could just sit in the chairs at the back.
They're way more comfortable than the wooden benches. Plus, they have tables for your beverage or a crêpe from the Aquadome Market. While slightly further away, the view is just as good, and I would take these over the area the reservations are for.
Dueling Pianos is an absolute must-do. Get there early!
One of the most fun experiences I have had anywhere, let alone on a cruise ship, was at Dueling Pianos on Icon of the Seas. The level of talent and engagement with the crowd is off the charts!
Singing along with hundreds of strangers/new friends and laughing with the antics of the performance, you just can't not smile during the show. The "bit" they do for Piano Man was one of the funniest things we have experienced in quite a while.
That said, it is really popular. You will want to get there at least 30 minutes prior to showtime if you want a seat and you will, unfortunately, see people "saving" seats with drinks for an hour or so like they are deck chairs.
Also, the earlier shows seem to attract more kids, and they try to go with the crowd (I mean, they did take a request for Baby Shark), so I would suggest going to a later show for the full experience where it gets a bit more "PG-13."
Speaking of shaving chairs, we did see some loungers with towels up on the pool decks. We did find on our second sea day that a lot of chairs were in use. Combined with the ones being saved, it was hard to find loungers that were clearly free on that day.
This was partially impacted by our first sea day being a bit cloudy and rainy, so everyone was eager to get out. Outside of that second day, there were generally loungers available, even if maybe not in the specific spot you would want one.
There you have it, my top 10 list of tips and thoughts from our week-long cruise on Icon of the Seas. I could probably add 10 more, but this post is already more than long enough!
