My 10 favourite things about cruising with Royal Caribbean

From the minute you arrive at the port to the minute you return to the port. When you arrive at the port the porters take your luggage either from your car if you are driving, or from your taxi where you are dropped off. As you enter the port terminal the staff there greet you and are so welcoming. They make you feel special as soon as they meet you from the staff in the terminal building, to the ship staff that greet you as you arrive on board for the first time. As you explore the ship, try out the restaurants, or enter your cabin for the first time, the staff members who you encounter along your journey are the most friendliest people I have ever met, and they can’t do enough for you.

2. The food

When you think about how many guests must be catered for it is hard to believe that the quality could be good. But it absolutely is! Even in the buffet restaurant (the Windjammer) the food quality is amazing, and the choice is unbelievable. From healthy options, to fussy eaters, to guests with allergies and dietary requirements, the list is endless. On some ships you have Jamie Oliver’s, and again the staff, the service, and the food quality is top notch. You have a restaurant called Wonderland, which is a bit quirky, but worth the experience. There are Italian options, steak houses, diners etc. Some of the bigger ships can have 20 restaurants on board. Not all of them are complimentary, but those that you do have to pay for are subsidised. You could easily eat in a different restaurant for each meal of your trip!

3. The entertainment

The larger ships have Broadway style entertainment for the whole family. There are usually other options as well depending on the ship, such as an ice-skating show on the oasis class and independence class ships, or an aqua theatre show on the oasis class ships, or even an award-winning robotic show on the quantum class ships. There is something for everybody.

4. Activities

All the ships have rock climbing walls, swimming pools, a gym, etc. Most ships have water slides and multiple swimming pools and splash pads. And some ships have so much more. Oasis class ships have a carousel! Quantum class ships have the viewing pod that goes up and out over the ship and they also have Ripcord by I-fly where you can simulate a skydive. There is also the Flow rider (which, believe me, is very fun to watch!) On Anthem of the seas you can do trapeze, roller skating, bumper cars… you could honestly spend a whole week on the ship and not get off!

5. You can visit a different destination every day without having to change hotels!

Which means, not having to pack and unpack! You can see so much more of the world, but still be based out of one room. And if you don’t want to get off the ship and just view the destination from on board – you can!

6. Loyalty scheme

When you have completed your first cruise you can join the Crown & Anchor loyalty scheme which means you earn points for every night of your cruise. You can start receiving the benefits immediately, but these benefits get better the more cruises you go on, including discounts off the price of a cruise, priority boarding etc.

7. Kids clubs

The kid’s clubs on board the Royal Caribbean cruise ships are fantastic. The staff are well trained, and they do so much with the children. Sometimes they can take part in the parades along the promenade, they get to do science experiments, and they get to take part in activities which are aimed at their age groups.

8. Cruise Compass

Every night the ‘cruise compass’ is placed in your cabin ready for the following day. This is your daily calendar of onboard activities, and it lists everything that is happening on board each day. If the ship is in port that day, there will be tips for things to do in that port. It will give showtimes, restaurant opening times, pool and gym opening times. It is so useful. And I get excited about getting back to my cabin at the end of the night and seeing this on my bed! I know, how sad!

9. The Cruise Director

On board each ship there is a Cruise Director. This person oversees the entertainment side of the ship. Each cruise director is different. For example, on our first cruise the cruise director would have a daily show that he would film from his office, it would be very humorous, you could ask for shout outs for your friends and family, and it would be shown on repeat throughout the morning on a dedicated channel in your cabin. On our most recent cruise, our cruise director also filmed a show each evening, but it was filmed from a different location around the ship each evening, and if you stumbled across them whilst filming, you could appear on the show! Some of them also take part in certain activities, for example one of them took the Zumba class! Another hosted the belly flop competition. Either way, you always feel like you become attached to the cruise director whichever ship you are on because they are so friendly and personable, and they will always stop and talk to you.

10. Free ice cream!

My final favourite thing is that on the pool deck there is an ice cream station where you can go and get unlimited ice cream! Sometimes there will be someone there who will serve it for you, but sometimes you can help yourself. And you can either have vanilla or chocolate or strawberry, and sometimes you can have Vanilla AND chocolate or Vanilla AND strawberry! And you can go back as many times as you like!