Royal Caribbean
Rhapsody of the Seas
7 Day Western Caribbean

Rob Davie

Age: 40
Occupation: CFO
Number of Cruises: 1

Never having cruised before we decided to splash out a bit this year. My wife Tracey and the Kids Ryan(12)and Ross(9). As we live in Houston it was a simple 80 minute drive to the quayside, and arriving early at about noon the embarkation was very smooth. I had read many reviews in advance and was happy with the tips given.

The ship was very good in terms of facilities and condition, I was surprised by all the fittings etc. being in very good condition on a ship of this age, there has obviously been a refit and paint job performed somewhere along the line.

As for the ports, well Key West is not much to get excited about and we used the time to take an island tour and to watch the sunset over cocktails. Grand Cayman however was excellent and the water was stunning. We took the "Snuba" excursion which is basically scuba diving without the hassle of the wearing the air tank. The crystal clear water is excellent for seeing underwater and they had a wreck that we we able to survey with its many strange fish and corals. I would advise that if you take kids, that they are confident swimmers. My twelve year old thought this was a blast and made the cruise worthwhile on this alone. We also went to a local beach in the morning, The taxis tend to take all the cruisers to various beaches that looked custom made for this. They became very cramped but if you are only going for 4-6 hours it is worth it for the water!

Cozumel was a bit of a disappointment as the beach club the taxi took us to was also cramped and the sand/water was not as high quality as Grand Cayman. That being said it was a chance to see somewhere different.

Food: Breakfast and lunch could be had in various restaurants but I chose to take breakfast on my balcony (which was novel for the first two mornings but you got better choice in the restaurants). We had lunch in the windjammer every day and being a buffet we could all get exactly what we wanted which was great. The standard of food was generally very good without getting fancy. They were carving an excellent roast most days and it was difficult not to eat too much. Dinner in the main dining room was another experience. We requested a large table (10) hoping to meet other people. On the first night we met a lovely couple from Austin and their son who we met at various times throughout the week for cocktails etc. It does help to have some friends on board. The service was very good in the main restaurant with all the waiters trying hard for their gratuities (I will come back to this).

The formal nights (2) were a nice departure from the rest of the week and an opportunity to get dressed up and get photos taken etc. They were well attended, but you can also eat at the windjammer if you don't feel like dressing up.

We had very few low points and plenty of highlights, and given that we all shared one room (albeit a suite)it was remarkable there were few dramas (if you have kids I would recommend getting the largest room you can).

Activities for the kids were plentiful and my nine year old was involved in their kids program most days. My twelve year old had more trouble as he was put in the 12-14 year bracket which is an awkward age group. Perhaps more supervision of this group would have helped.

Entertainment on board for the adults was so so. The production shows were frankly poor quality, but they had a couple of very good comedians. The theatre is excellent though and we never had a problem getting a seat with a good view.

I had my first ever massage at the spa which felt great, but was tainted by doubling the bill for some "relaxation" shower gel I am ashamed to say I was lulled into buying (my wife will get a lot of mileage from this)

Back to gratuities. I am not impressed with the almost mandatory tipping for the cabin steward, head waiter, table waiter and assistant waiter. When 4 travel this adds up to over $300. I never saw the head waiter, and the cabin steward seemed more interested in other cabins. Our table waiter and assistant waiter were excellent and very helpful, but there was always an air of "dogs turning tricks" in order that you would tip them more come the last night. I also found out that they have to give a percentage of these tips back to Royal Caribbean.

All in all we had a wonderful time from the anticipation of a grand adventure to the smooth disembarkation when it was all over.

I can thoroughly recommend this cruise for families. It is a bit pricey, but if you compare to a Caribbean island quality resort it will work out around the same, and it is much more exciting.

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