Serenade of the Seas Review

4.5 / 5.0
1,675 reviews

We Were Very Pleasantly Surprised

Review for the Baltic Sea Cruise on Serenade of the Seas
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darkkat
2-5 Cruises • Age 60s

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Additional details

Sail Date: Jul 2018
Cabin: Ocean View Balcony

We chose this cruise solely for the ports of call as we really wanted to visit St.Petersburg and we were also interested in the other places as well.

We had a couple of nights in Stockholm first and the hotel arranged a taxi to the port, our embarkation the was 12-12.30 and although we arrived a little bit early we were swiftly 'processed' and we were on the ship in a matter of 15 minutes - there was no queuing at all at this time.

We chose 'My Time Dining' and there was some chaos on the first night as it seemed everyone had turned up at once. We did complain (albeit in a typical pleasant English sort of way) and thereafter everything went very smoothly and the staff made sure we were happy all week. We ended up requesting (and getting) the same table and waiters all week as they were excellent, attentive and very pleasant. We were very happy with the service. 3 out of the 4 of us were very happy with the food and choices but I am very difficult when it comes to food. I thought that the food was never served at a really hot temperature but I accept that am really picky. However, I always managed to get an acceptable meal, sometimes having 2 starters or a cheese plate and a pudding. The waiter went out of his way to come up with something that I enjoyed. The menu was rather repetitive on the whole. On one evening I paid extra for the filet mignon from Chops Grille - it was absolutely delicious and definitely put the regular menu to shame. The buffet restaurant was fab for breakfast or a couple of lunches that we had. The veggie curries were very tasty. It was always warm enough to eat just outside the main dining area which was always a bit crowded (it was beautifully peaceful and pleasant outside.

Cabin Review

Ocean View Balcony

Cabin 2D

Our cabin (9578) was as spacious as we expected, actually plenty of room for two people anyway and I was really impressed with the size of the wardrobe which easily fitted all our clothes with plenty of 'proper' hangers (yay). We travelled with friends and they were next door (9580). The balconies were fine also. The cabin was clean and the bedlinen was comfortable, as was the bed which was a really good size. The room was kept clean and in good condition at all times. The bathroom, of course, was tiny but was acceptable and the shower was generally good. There was only soap and shower gel provided but as I was expecting this I had taken my own toiletries. I thought the cabin (and the ship on the whole) was in good condition for its age. By reading some reviews on here I was expecting it to be really run down and shabby. I didn't think it was at all (although I have only ever cruised once before so I don't have very much to compare it to). This cabin was in the centrum and you could definitely hear the entertainment, however, this didn't bother us as it seemed to stop promptly around midnight.

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