Jewel of the Seas Review
Best service I have ever had on a cruise!
Rating by category
Additional details
Before this cruise I had only ever cruised on Princess. We chose this cruise because we were looking for a ship that had more activities for our son(8) and my husband(my daughter(13) and I just bake in the sun all day:) I was initially very worried about my choice, especially after the hurricane but all my fears were totally unfounded. The Jewel is the smallest ship I have ever been on but it still had plenty to do for the one day that we were at sea. The main pool is small but it still had plenty of room. Our family loved the mini golf every night and the movies poolside. My son and my husband had a great time on the rock wall. There was usually a band playing poolside and plenty of fun games like pool volleyball staff vs. guests and the belly flop contest. My daughter loved the "Dancing With The Stripes". The itinerary was great, although I was disappointed about missing Dominica because of hurricane damage. Our room was spotless and was a great size-the room seemed to be the same size as a mini suite on the Princess, except for the bathroom but we had no need for a bathtub anyway. The food was typical cruise fare, some was good and some was blah but I never had anything that was horrible. I think people need to remember they are feeding thousands of people and not expect the Four Seasons! What really sealed the deal to switch to Royal from now on was the service. I have never been treated so well on vacation in my life. Everyone that we had contact with went above and beyond. Aleksandr, Igor, Gangaram, Joao, Ngurah and Titiana-all amazing wonderful people who truly go out of their way to make sure you are happy and having the perfect vacation you work so hard for! THANK YOU!!
Cabin Review
Superior Ocean View Stateroom with Balcony
Great size. However, the sofa bed folds out to a futon size. It worked out ok for us because our kids are 13 and 8, but I would not try to put two adults on that sofa bed. I think when the kids are older I would probably get a suite or two rooms.
Port Reviews
San Juan
We stayed at the Intercontinental San Juan for the day and night before our cruise. SO BEAUTIFUL. Worth every penny!
St. Croix
We took one of the vans to Rainbow Beach. The taxis are right outside the dock and they have a board out front with all the places they go and how much its costs round trip-very easy. Rainbow Beach was very pretty, very clean with a restaurant and bar and plenty of chairs/umbrellas/motor sports to rent. My husband took the kids out on a jetski for $60 for a half hour. Everyone was very nice and not pushy at all.
Martinique
It rained almost all day. We got there late because we stopped to help a sailboat in distress and some of the vendors at the pier were irritated because they had set up for us in the morning and we didn't come until noon. We had wanted to go to the beach but instead we toured the fort and had the best ice cream of my life. It cleared up a little in the afternoon and we let the kids play on the little beach in front of the fort. I was nervous about this island because my french isn't very good but I tried. Everyone that suffered through it smiled and told me they spoke English. The vendors on the pier had some beautiful handmade goods and everywhere we went took US dollars. I wish we could have checked out the beach.....