Voyager of the Seas Review
4.5 / 5.0
Enjoyed the itinerary, but far from the ports. Very needed make over in 9/19
Review for Asia Cruise on Voyager of the Seas
ginacoco
10+ Cruises • Age 50s
Rating by category
Cabin
Value for Money
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Dining
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Entertainment
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Additional details
Sail Date: Jun 2019
Cabin: Grand Suite - 2 Bedrooms
Traveled with children
First let's talk about the ship: It's old and tired and doing a make over in September of 2019. Boy did RCCL wait longer than it should!. It's not only dated (a peachy pink in many areas. Why RCCL uses trendy colors instead of neutrals that will not get so tired so fast is beyond me), but certain areas (like the ladies bathroom by Giovanni's) are falling apart. The layout of the ship is done well and the activities are plentiful. Note: US residents do not need to arrange their own Visas. The ship does the Vietnam one for $6 each and the Thailand one is also arranged and provided (not really a Visa, but some kind of travel card). I believe it is the same for the UK, but do check.
We stayed in a suite and bought the unlimited dining package, so we never ate at the regular restaurant (except day 1 at the windjammer, which was just OK). Frankly, on other RCCL ships we have been disappointed with the regular restaurants so we avoided that and just did the specialty restaurants instead. For breakfast, Giovanni's is where suite guests eat and for days at sea lunches, specialty restaurants are included in the dining package. My biggest complaint is that the menu stays stagnant in the specialty restaurants. It would be great, especially on cruises over 7 days, if they would have an A and B menu (switching 1/2 way through). I think they would have more action in them that way too.
Giovanni's: Great service and good food, family style. The bad: They had no fresh (or even seemingly dry) basil, as it "turned black" days before the sailing ended. As an Italian, I can say this is really bad. They should have at least had dried basil. The tomato sauce would have been far better with traditional basil added and how the chef allowed the sailing without it is beyond me. I had the cannoli once and it was so bad, I did not try again, as the shell was soggy. The lasagna was loaded with a heap of ground beef, so much it overpowered the dish. The caprese salad was bland (lack of basil and low quality tomatoes were to blame). The good: The lamb chops, ceasar and chicken were favorites.
Cabin Review
Grand Suite - 2 Bedrooms
Cabin GT
Bear in mind that this ship is going through a make over in 9/19:
The good: Storage is amazing! They did a wonderful job and were quite creative. The veranda was huge and well placed. The layout is great. The suite benefits were fabulous, but you really need to be sure you are getting them. You get preference to get off of the ship, but several times we got the wrong debark directions and not all cruise members knew of these benefits and where to send us. Concierge was very beneficial! Read every benefit and use it! Reserved seating at the pool and shows was a big plus!
The bad: Stupidly dated. Pick neutral colors so they don't look so tired after a few years.. The bathroom was terrible. Very, very small and very poor layout. A shower curtain? Really? water mess all of the time. An old school bathtub? Nobody will use it. Soap/shampoo dish in an awkward place (please get female designers for input at least, dish should be opposite side of shower head). Awkward that master bedroom did not have locks, very awkward. One door is a slider with windows too (and a curtain) and this was odd. The master has a round smaller window, also an error. Put full sliders on both sides for good access to the veranda) and make the door a normal one (only one door necessary).
The 2nd bathroom was very handy and the closet for the 2nd bedroom was wonderful. 2nd bedroom sleeps four (entire cabin can sleep 8 if you use the pull out in the coach) and is nice because no windows keeps it really dark for the kids.
Port Reviews
Singapore
Truly a highlight. We went in 2 days early and regretted we did not have more time. Having 3-5 days would be perfect. The Malay, Little India, China town, the Civic district (go at both night and day, light show each night) and Gardens by the Bay (also night light show that is free) were all highlights. We hired a private guide (tours by locals) for a 1/2 day tour and that was perfect. We added a drive/air conditioned van, which allowed us to see everything in the 1/2 day and not be as hot. Unbelievable restaurants.
Bangkok (Laem Chabang)
Spectacular! This is 2-3 hours from port, so we got a hotel room (Asanti Riverside, which was amazing). Arrival time was 11 am (but you will not get off of the ship until between 11:30-noon, as it was very slow getting cleared and always is), this was a real bummer and I have no idea why RCCL is so short sighted on this. It should also be on a Saturday and at 6am (or Friday if you have 2 days like we did) so you can see the best floating market (the one available during the week is either in Pattaya (not real, more of a tourist trap) or way out of the way and 3 star at best). We hired a guide who provided a driver (tours by locals) for both days and it was worth every penny. So much to see and it is very hot so an air conditioned van really helped. We also saw way more than we could otherwise with a local. We saw the Grand Palace, Golden Buddah, Emerald Buddah, Reclining Buddah, Canal Ride and some other temples/shrines.
Nha Trang
beach city port, quick to get to. The town itself is touristy and there is a decent beach so you could stay local and just use a taxi to get where you want to go. We hired Nhatrangadventures for a jeep countryside with city highlights tour (5-6 hours). They picked us up outside of the port (a quick 5 minute walk). We got to see the countryside and how they really lived, making rice patties and traditional hats and also saw the city highlights. It was a great time and unique view of the Vietnamese and the lunch provide was amazing..
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
Amazing day! 1.5 hours from port: We hired Saigon Adventures and did a food tour with city highlights. They picked us up in a van and scooters met us in Saigon. A local driver was assigned each in our group and off we went. It was our best day and a blast. The food was amazing. The sites were good, the main tour guide was wonderful and our drivers made it stress free and fun (I would not want to drive one of those myself in the city, as it is really crazy). They dealt with all of our food issues and we genuinely enjoyed every food stop (Soup, coffee, baguette sandwiches, and BBQ pork).
Hong Kong
Close to port. We hired a private guide for a 1/2 day tour (toursbylocals). We saw Victoria's Peak, the markets and different areas of Hong Kong. It's a big city and was nice, but not anything amazing. We stayed one night at the Marriott by the airport, which is a wonderful property. They have an 10 minute shuttle to the small city nearby (and and 8 minute shuttle every 30 minutes to the airport). We took it to the cable car and went to the giant buddah. This was a real highlight for us. The cable car ride provided amazing views,the giant buddah was beautiful and there is the very unique city that was part of it with amazing shopping and things to do. Very much recommend!!!
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