Jewel of the Seas Review

3.5 / 5.0
1,643 reviews

Trying to rid themselves of mainstream cruisers

Review for the Southern Caribbean Cruise on Jewel of the Seas
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gilly1
10+ Cruises • Age 60s

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Sail Date: Dec 2018
Traveled with children

We cruised out of San Juan December 1 2018. We are experienced cruisers and have cruised many different lines. The specialty restaurants are a huge disappointment. Our experience on the Jewel was by far the worse of any main line. We went to Chops three nights and they were out of a main appetizer each night. If you hate seafood and raw meat then you are out of luck. The service was pathetic with invasive waiters trying to impress you with how much “ extra “ they can do for you. My husband is a diabetic and a simple asking for a sugar free dessert was met with grumbles and an unacceptable request. A simple asking for horseradish was a disaster. We were told that was not available . The specialty restaurants also have insane up charges. $30.00 extra for a simple lobster that most can find at a local supermarket for more than half that price. The main stream restaurant says are nothing like they once were. The ships are trying to force everyone to pay for specialty restaurants and then up charge them. The quality of food in the buffet seems and main dining is not great. The service has dropped drastically since automatic tipping came into play. The wait staff are so pushy over tips. My teen daughter was mocked by a waiter in Chops for having motion sickness and asking to be able to look out a window at a back table. My kids at at the sushi bar and had to nickel and dime each item because of the insane up charges. The buffet was never open on time and the tables were seldom cleared. The staff was very pushy. Our room was never cleaned until late afternoon and we had to ask for soap to be put in the dispensers. Our room steward did the minimal amount of work. The trivia on board was horrible. The staff had horrible English skills and asked if they could read the questions in Spainish. People literally walked out because no one could understand the questions. They also repeated the same questions over and over so there was no challenge. One staff member gave so many hints that he gave away all the answers. Those that love Triva would do best to cruise with princess or one of the other lines that offer more challenges. The cruise director seemed to put so much focus on herself and less on her job. The female staff members were so over the top flirty with the young males and ignored the mid and older generations that make up the more frequent cruisers. The staff were seen arguing and two almost got into a fist fight. It was uncomfortable to watch. For those of us who are long time cruisers it is easy to see that Royal Caribbean is trying to force a choice between low quality buffets or over priced...low service specialty restaurant. They are about making the most money and catering to the elite. My advice is to skip the overpriced bad service and bad selection specialty restaurants. We did not eat at the Italian one but heard many many many comments of disappointment. Norwegian Cruise lines do a much better job at both customer service and specialty restaurants. We will not sail with RC again. This was the most disappointing ship we’ve been on and we’ve been on 25 plus. The entertainment was not great. Empty chairs everywhere. All in all a very low quality overall experience. Oh and the public restrooms were the dirtiest we’ve ever experienced.

Cabin Review

10th floor...bad bad bad service. Literally had to beg for soap

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