Adventure of the Seas Review
Our Amazing 7 Day Adventure on the Adventure of the Seas
Rating by category
Additional details
This cruise was our second time sailing on the AOS. We arrived a day early in San Juan. It's much more relaxing to arrive a day early and less stress at the airport and getting to the port. To avoid the long taxi line at the airport, a porter will take your luggage to the front of the line for $10. Money well spent!! For the third time, we stayed at the Hampton Inn & Suites in the Isla Verde area. Great hotel! It's close to both the airport and the port. Embarking was seamless. This trip we had the "day at sea" at the beginning instead of the end of the cruise. We prefer to have the "day at sea" on the last day to sleep in, pack and enjoy all the activities on the ship.
The Windjammer was our go-to place for breakfast and it was really good this cruise. We tried the dining room for breakfast and the scrambled eggs were cold as was the toast. One guy at our table waited & waited for his omelet - not sure if he ever got it. It shouldn't take 15+ minutes for an omelet. He was still waiting for his omelet when we finished our breakfast and left the dining room. Our suggestion is a nickel-plated grill for both the dining room and the Windjammer to roll omelets. This would reduce the long waiting line for omelets in the Windjammer. We tried room service the next day and that was worse than the dining room - cold eggs & bacon and warm milk. The coffee & pastries were good on the room service. All the food at the Windjammer was hot & good. We had the late seating for dinner each night and our waiter Chandan and assistant waiter Kimber were AMAZING!!! 6 stars plus! Zero stars for the maitre'd . . . he or she never visited our table! The dining room food was amazing. Nice variety every night. One night I didn't care for the pasta dish and was able to get a steak, done to perfection, in no time at all.
One of the best features of AOS is the promenade . . . it's the main street of the ship . . . bars, restaurants, shops . . . the gathering spot of the ship. All Royal Caribbean ships should have a promenade!! If the sports bar could have more variety in what they are showing on the TVs, that would be a huge plus!!! There should be something for everyone . . . soccer, baseball, hockey, basketball . . . NOT just soccer!!! The bartenders in the sportsbar were great - friendly, chatty and fun. Also, if the TVs in the staterooms could somehow be language of choice (i.e., English, Spanish, etc.) instead of a mixture. It's frustrating when we would have the TV on when we were getting ready for dinner and only a few stations were in English!
Cabin Review
Deluxe Oceanview Stateroom with Balcony
The cabin was pretty much what we expected, having sailed on Royal Caribbean before and on the AOS!!! We had our stateroom attendant remove the glass coffee table (which in our mind, service no purpose, expect be in the way). Without the table, there was more room to move around and use the sofa completely.
Port Reviews
St. Maarten
Go to BeDazzeled for all your jewelry wants & desires. There is no pressure to buy anything. St. Maarten beach is amazing . . . eat along the boardwalk.
Antigua
Runaway Beach - ask for Bobcat, the taxi driver. Amazing beach, quiet with a nice bar and restaurant. No frills beach but beautiful!!! Close to the ship.
St. Lucia
Rodney Bay beach - huge, beautiful beach with a lot of activities - jet skis, etc. Nice restaurant, bar, shopping. Don't let the taxi drivers tell you when you have to return to the ship. You decide.
Barbados
Carlisle Bay Beach - close to the ship - HUGE beach with soft white sand. Nice bar & restaurant with some activities. You can walk back to the ship along the beach and cut through Barbados right back to the ship.
San Juan
The Hampton Inn & Suites is the place to stay - close to the airport and to the port. One block walk to an amazing beach with some activities. We ended and started our day with a long walk on the beach.
St. Croix
Sand Castle Hotel - nice restaurant and great snorkeling. They were NOT prepared for a ship in port the day we were there. Only one guy was setting up chairs & umbrellas. The front desk person said "there were a lot of early risers today." That should matter - the chairs and umbrellas should be set up and ready to go!