Overview of our Odyssey of the Seas Cruise
Just as the Mariner of the Seas will always have a special place in my heart (as it was where we went on our honeymoon), the Odyssey of the Seas will as well. The Odyssey of the Seas was the first ship that we went on after the Pandemic. Cruising had restarted in July of 2021 and our first cruise back was in October of 2021. The ship, which was meant to have its maiden voyage in the fall of 2020, didn’t get its first passengers until July of 2021. For our first cruise on Odyssey of the seas, Chris and I enjoyed a ship that was practically brand new and was only sailing at 40% capacity. It wasn’t a perfect cruise but our feelings about it are similar to that of having been in the desert without water and then finally getting that drink you so desperately needed/wanted, delicious. So, we were excited to be able to come back on the Odyssey with our kids and mother-in-law this time.
The Odyssey of the Seas is one of the most beautiful ships we have even been on. The art that is found in the stairwells, the chandelier in the main dining room, the flower filled screens that lead into the MDR, the glittered entrance to the casino are all unique and beautiful. Everything seems to be designed with a slight but noticeable 1-upness to other Royal Caribbean ships we have been on. The layout of the ships is pretty different from the other more recent classes of ships. For example, instead of a Promenade, there is an Esplanade that goes through the center of the ship. Instead of awesome slides and mini golf, there is The North Star (a ball that goes straight up and over to the side of the ship) and the iFly sky diving simulator. Instead of an ice skating rink or aqua theater, there is the Sea Plex, where bumper cars and laser tag is available, and Two70, where they have the tech enhanced show called The Book. These differences keep things interesting and also provide an excellent substitution for the fancy, more expensive cruises that are currently being offered, such as the Wonder or the Icon.
View from the North Star
While we found that the entertainment was just as good as we remembered it (the 9-piece orchestra was probably one of the best we have seen), we discovered that the excellence in service on board has decreased since our first cruise. We are still mulling over why exactly this seems to be the case. Perhaps the current crew is lacking some of the polished training that the crew on the inaugural season received (we learned that much of the crew was new to the ship and the itinerary). Perhaps the crew is unable to fully deliver at the highest quality to an at capacity ship (some have reported that the ship was understaffed). Perhaps, it was just our experience and others would argue that their service was exactly what they expected and hoped for. Regardless, we were left wondering what we could do to ensure an excellent cruise for us in spite of the service we were experiencing and not because of it. I would like to add that we had expressed some of these disappointments in the service to our head waiter and they worked really hard to make things right during the rest of our time in the main dining room.
From the Veterans Event
In regards to the entertainment, the shows that are offered on the ship are unique and we found them pretty incredible. The main show in the royal theater was The Effectors and was about the four super heroes thwarting the plans of the evil Crash. The show involved lots of good music, cool lighting effects and even choreographed drones. Instead of an aquatheater or an ice arena, the quantum class has Two70, which allows for the an immersive, technological experience. On the Odyssey, they have the show The Book, which is weird but really cool as it gives one’s senses quite a bit to process and enjoy. In the Royal Theatre, there was, as well, a variety of headliners so that everyone could find one or two nights where the offerings would appeal to them. Aside from the shows, there were also many different activities going on throughout the ship. There were lots of different types of trivia, puzzle challenges, musical performances and even crafts. We always found something fun to do and we appreciated that the activities varied from the previous cruises that we had been on.
One thing that I discovered about this cruise was that I would be very careful about booking this itinerary again. At 8-nights, not only was it the longest cruise we had ever been on, which really wasn’t the issue, but it had four at sea days, which got to be too much for us. Especially since we were cruising with our kids, we found that four at sea days made for an exhausting cruise. Perhaps this was our fault for trying to do too much, but we felt like we were constantly rushing from activity to activity. When we did try to relax in the solarium (the adults only pool deck), there was not a single empty, unclaimed deck chair, which at 9 in the morning seemed kinda bonkers to us. So, in the future, I would opt for the 6-night itinerary over the longer one.
Curacao
All in all, we had a wonderful, whirlwind of a vacation and now we find that we actually need to decompress from all of the fun. We loved all being together on one of the more beautiful ships in the fleet, but now we are looking forward to being home in our more quiet and calm home.
