Rhapsody of the Seas Review

First cruise with friends to nice ports, excellent dining, and great service

Review for the Western Caribbean Cruise on Rhapsody of the Seas
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jlove1974
First Time Cruiser • Age 40s

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Additional details

Sail Date: Apr 2018
Cabin: Interior Stateroom

This ship left from the Port of Tampa which I knew very well, since I lived in St. Petersburg in the late nineties. Ybor City is still one of the best bar and restaurant districts in the world!

The Port of Tampa is smaller than some but easy to get in and out of quickly. Parking was close to the ship, and the terminal crew got us on and off the ship very smoothly.

We were part of a group of friends that chose this cruise based on the Yucatan ports of call. I knew going in that the Rhapsody was a smaller ship and we wouldn't have issues getting lost. After the first day we knew the ship like the back of our hands. Elevators can be easily bypassed by multiple staircases.

Cabin Review

Interior Stateroom

Cabin N

Our room was clean even though we could tell it was an older ship. We had an excellent stateroom attendant named Kelsie who helped us with a great many requests. He prepared our room each day and night with skill, and left us little trinkets made from linens which was a cool personal touch. Only complaint I have really was that our room 3077 was evidently underneath a bar or restaurant because we could hear noise from chairs sliding on the floor at times, but never later than midnight (most are closed at that time) which was fine. However, my wife and I were usually busy making our own noises and didn't notice! It really was a minor annoyance. But it was there the whole trip.

The bathroom and shower was always clean with fresh linens provided always. The bed was a double pushed together to form a king, and it was firm so we made good use of it. Mirrored vanity area really was a help to my wife who loves to get dressed up

Port Reviews

Tampa

Tampa is a very beautiful clean and modern coastal Florida city. I lived in the area 20 years prior to this visit, and everything has improved including the interstates and road system. We stayed at the Crown Plaza Westshore hotel which I booked thru my job, and it was a extremely nice hotel. We went to Ybor City on Saturday, and it has continued to be the best bar district I have ever visited. Excellent clubs, bars, and all that is associated with that. We tried to go to 'The Castle' but there was a special event going on "Steampunk" night, and so we visited some other cool clubs.

Key West

Key West has become a bona fide tourist trap since my last visit in the mid 90s. It has become infested with Senor Frogs, Margaritaville, and a Ripley's Museum which we avoided like the plague. We visited the Southern most point of the US, went to the Green Parrot bar and listened to some blues on the jukebox and drank some brews, ate next door at Charlie Mac's, then walked up Duval street. Got some key lime pie at Kermit's and got back on the ship. Next time we will probably book a private beach on Key West.

Costa Maya

Costa Maya would be our 'genuine Mexico independent tourist' experience. The cruise port of Costa Maya is new, commercially developed and maze-like. We walked straight thru (well, as straight as you can) and exited the Puerto as fast as we could. Just outside the gates, taxis were waiting to take us to our destination, Mahahual Beach. This beach is everything you think of when visiting Mexico's coast - street vendors, tiki huts on the beach, and shops/bars/pharmacies aplenty. We made our base of operations at the Krazy Lobster which is one of the larger restaurants with a 'private' beach. Our servers came fast, the vendors hawking their various wares came a bit faster and "Cuanto and No Mas!" were my keywords of the day. Buckets of 5 beers were $5, the food was excellent and very affordable, and my wife and her friends got to shop in a fairly safe environment. At the end of the day, with various souveniers, our total cash outlay was around $80.

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