Best For People Who Want:
A light-filled, upbeat environment with a higher passenger/space ratio; numerous lounges and watering holes; alternative dining; many balcony cabins; fitness/sports/spa activities. This is among RCI's more sophisticated ships. |
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Should Be Avoided By People Who Prefer:
A luxurious cruise experience with top-notch cuisine; quiet and sedate or sumptuous surroundings; large inside/outside standard cabins; a highly polished level of service; single, open seating. |
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Onboard Experience
 The 2,501-passenger Jewel of the Seas is one of RCI's Radiance-class (Radiance, Brilliance, Serenade of the Seas) ships. This is a light-filled vessel and her interior design is as tasteful and as beautiful as any at sea. The heart of Jewel is the enormous atrium ("Centrum"), rising eleven decks. Glass elevators face the sea or the Centrum, and each passenger deck above has railings and small balconies that permit occupants to keep tabs on the action below.
The lavish expanses of glass in all public areas make the Jewel a great ship even in cold-weather climes, or inclement weather.
One weak point in design is the lack of an aft stairway and elevator bank. It's a very long walk from cabins located toward the stern, and the design forces all passengers aft of the Centrum to use the mid-ship elevators and stairway, resulting in congestion and a long wait for elevators most times of day.
The Jewel has all the amenities we expect of modern cruise ships -- full day spa and gym facilities, a multitude of choices for lounge entertainment (like the modern, chic Champagne Bar; Schooner's Piano Bar; The Colony Club and Safari Club, with self leveling pool tables; the Vortex disco; the Pit Stop sports bar) as well as nightly entertainment in the Centrum each evening. The main showroom, the Coral Theater, has colorful, comfortable furnishings. In this theater, headliner shows and musical revues are held; it has excellent unobstructed views from just about any seat.
For passengers in suites, or those with Diamond-level membership status (10 cruises or more) in RCI's Crown & Anchor repeat cruisers club, a Concierge Lounge is available with complimentary drinks and full concierge service for everything from priority tender tickets to dinner reservations.
(The company now lets those with equivalent status in Celebrity Cruise Line's Captains Club to enjoy the same status on the Jewel, and all Royal Caribbean ships.)
The area on Lido Deck surrounding the center pool is cramped for a ship of this size, so those who must have a lounger next to the pool may complain. However, there are more loungers in other areas on the upper decks. The nearby Solarium also has a pool and loungers available, though in this area the roof is generally kept closed.
On sea days, it was disconcerting to see shopping tables set up poolside hawking the usual caps, t-shirts and gold by the inch -- a bit tacky to put it "in your face" rather than leaving it in the indoor shopping areas.
Equally annoying was an abundance of public address announcements promoting the various bingo games, art auctions and other events. This doesn't fit in with the sophistication of the ship's design.
The multi-station buffet, The Windjammer, is effectively designed, with few lines, even on a full sailing (though the lack of self-serve drink stations proves to be inconvenient at times). Instead, wait staff circulates to offer coffee refills in the mornings, and iced tea or lemonade throughout the afternoon.
Near the entrance to Windjammer Café, and at the aft exits, are several areas equipped with comfortable cushioned lanai-style furniture -- popular spots for guests to enjoy their breakfast and lunch, or relax with a drink or cup of coffee.
On the stern outside the Windjammer is an area for al fresco dining. It has a roof above, and is slightly too enclosed to my tastes. There are a few tables and chairs mid-ship, by the central pool, for al fresco dining as well, but these are on the sides in a separate area, with the feeling they were placed there as an afterthought.
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Things To Do
Entertainment:
 The main entertainment venue is the two-level Coral Theater, seating 915 people. Lounges have pianists and combos, while country/western and jazz are also featured. The lobby bar each night had a combo or trio entertaining guests before and after dinner. You'll find two movies per day in the ship's cinema (unfortunately, not first-run). In-cabin movies are also scheduled throughout the day on complimentary TV, and a selection of pay-per-view movies is available in your cabin.
The activities scheduled by the Cruise Director and staff will keep you as busy as you want to be. There was a plethora of events scheduled all day, each day, and well into the evening. We noted enrichment lectures, digital photography courses, trivia and deck games scheduled almost every day. And each evening, aside from the lounges and main theater, there always seemed to be a planned event happening somewhere. The ever-popular Karaoke was offered most evenings in the Colony Club. One evening the game of Quest fills the Safari Club, and the next it might be Liar's Club.
Due to the volume of evening events many nights, the shows in the Theater were scheduled prior to the late seating dinner time, and the shows began at 9 p.m. for those at main seating.
Fitness:
The Solarium's outdoor pool area nestled behind the spa boasts a retractable glass ceiling, large pool and whirlpools. I could spend the entire voyage camped out in this serene area. Steiner's operates the ship's spa, and there is an enormous fitness area with treadmills, bikes, weights and aerobics classes. Other sports facilities include RCI's signature rock-climbing wall, jogging/walking track, golf course and basketball/volleyball court. Aerobics and yoga classes are scheduled throughout the day.
For Kids:
The ship has extensive separate facilities for kids and teens, including a large video arcade, and Fuel, the dedicated teen disco. Royal Caribbean's "Adventure Ocean" youth programs offer your children their own private facilities. Designed for four age groups, the youth program makes RCI an excellent choice for families. Children's programs are segregated into Aquanauts (age 3-5, must be toilet trained), Explorers (age 6-8), Voyagers (age 9-11), Navigators (age 12-14) and Teens (age 15-17). The program runs year-round in the Caribbean, Bermuda, Bahamas, Mexico, Hawaii and Alaska. Parents can leave their children at Adventure Ocean while they go ashore. For this purpose, the facilities open 30 minutes ahead of morning shore excursion departures. Otherwise, organized activities are offered from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., with group babysitting from 10 p.m. to 1 a.m. for a fee. Teen centers are open past 2 a.m.
A new program for infants and toddlers 6 months to 3 years, in partnership with toymaker Fisher-Price, will be rolled out fleet-wide by the end of March 2005. The program offers 45-minute playgroups for children accompanied by an adult, involving storytelling, creative arts, music and a variety of Fisher-Price learning toys and games. Aqua Babies are six months to 18 months old while Aqua Tots are 18 months to three years old.
Private babysitting is offered from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 a.m., provided sitters are available, for children from one year old. The rate is usually $8-$10 per hour depending on the number of children in the family. Cash payment is made directly to the sitter. Arrange through Guest Services at least 24 hours in advance. |
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| Dining |
Cuisine:
In early 2005 RCI introduced new menus fleet-wide. The number of selections has been reduced, but overall quality has quite vastly improved from our sailing on Serenade eight months earlier -- a very pleasant turn of events.
There's still the odd hit-and-miss item, but if you follow the suggestions of your servers, you're likely to find most meals quite enjoyable. A couple of items to avoid: Royal Steak seems to be the rebirth of what used to be called Ranch Steak. I'm not sure what cut of meat this is supposed to be, but it's not worth ordering. From the "always available" menu, I recommend passing on the Fettuccini in Madera Sauce. (It seems the chef on our sailing understood Madera Sauce to mean tomato paste straight from the can.)
With the exception of the Royal Steak, we found the beef dishes well prepared, tender, and cooked to the levels requested. Fish dishes were moist and interestingly prepared. Of note because it's unusual on a ship, the veal parmigian was tender, and tasty.
Several food service areas are gems. The alternate restaurants, Portofino's and Chops, come with a $20 per person surcharge. Both offer excellent value in food quality, ambience and service (and no further tipping is required beyond the surcharge). Portofino's has the prettier interior design, but in my view Chops provides the better meals, though you won't go wrong with either.
The more hidden gems are the Seaview Café and the Solarium Café, which are both included in your cruise fare. You'll have to check your Cruise Compass for their operating hours, but both offer excellent casual menus, and the Solarium Café features made-to-order crepes filled with chocolate and other fruit fillings. The Seaview Café is THE spot on the ship to have lunch. Everything is made fresh to order, and though the menu is limited, the food is wonderful - we had excellent Reuben sandwiches and onion rings, with the pleasant ambience of a European sidewalk café.
The Windjammer Buffet on Lido Deck has a wonderful set up, avoiding long waits and lines. The breakfast offerings are somewhat limited, and most buffet items suffer from "chafing dish syndrome," but there are two separate stations for made-to-order eggs and omelets. If you're going to have breakfast in the Windjammer, start there.
Lunches, on the other hand, offered varied and interesting selections each day, and most of the time the hot items were hot, and the cold items cold. The big exception was the hamburgers, which always appeared to have been sitting there wilting for too long a time. If a burger is on your mind, head to the SeaView Café.
There's also good news for pizza lovers. RCI used to serve the worst pizza at sea, but that's no longer the case. The Windjammer's pizza and pasta station now does an excellent job on both. Be sure to leave room for dessert. The dessert stations at lunch served up a cornucopia of taste treats each day.
Restaurants:
The two-level main dining room is stately and refined, with a waterfall, a grand staircase and 10 enormous draped pillars. I recommend avoiding the two-story-high center of the room since the noise level makes it impossible to hear any conversation; they should turn down the sound level of the piano as well. One of the best features is the Windjammer Café, where casual breakfast, lunch, afternoon snacks and dinner are served. This restaurant has food stations for individual courses (meat, sandwiches, vegetables), cutting down on lines. The best seating is just beyond the main restaurant area, where you can choose to dine alfresco or sit on cozy banquettes. The specialty restaurants, Chops and Portofino are both tiny, elegant and a very special dining experience. The Seaview Café perched above the Windjammer serves light meals in the afternoon, early evening and late night to 1 a.m., and the Solarium Café has a casual menu available until 2 a.m.
The Tides dining room suffers from crowding of tables, making it awkward for guests to get in and out of their chairs without jostling and bumping other guests, and wait staff have little room for maneuvering between tables.
Service:
Service throughout the ship was friendly and attentive. Our dining room service team of waiter, assistant waiter, and headwaiter provided excellent service the entire cruise. However, the experience was dampened on the last night when the waiter practically begged for excellent ratings on the comment cards. It's understood that comment cards weigh heavily in staff evaluations, but the standard practice of begging for ratings is annoying, and should be discouraged by the cruise line.
Attire:
There are two formal nights per cruise. Maybe it's this ship's particularly festive reputation that induced most men onboard our sailing to don tuxedoes for formal nights. But a dark suit is just as appropriate. In general, though, this ship offers so much to do onboard on any given evening that we noticed passengers didn't all dress alike.
RCI also has a suggested "smart casual" category for recommended dress. By this they mean men wear jackets, with ties optional, but the vast majority of people simply read this to mean casual, and dressed accordingly. |
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| Ambience |
Decor:
 The lavish use of glass gives this ship its distinctive personality. Royal Caribbean created an enormous glass panel rising from Decks 5 (the lobby) to 12, so wide expanses of sea and sky are always visible. The ship's elevator bank is glass, and your view is either of the ocean or the enormous Centrum. At night, passengers gather in the lobby bar for cocktails and a live combo, while the decks above are lined with people checking out the action below.
If modern décor isn't your personal cup of tea, take heart. The most beautiful rooms are found on Deck 6. Schooners Bar is thoroughly nautical, with dark paneling and blue carpet. Adjacent is the Safari Club, an enormous low-key nightspot resembling a private British club. Another area with distinctive décor is the Solarium, a glassed-in pool area with a Thai theme.
Public Areas:
Jewel has a dozen or so public rooms, but one feature I love is the variety of small, intimate spots with comfy leather sofas and chairs scattered throughout the vessel. The lobby bar, where an ensemble performs each night, is always packed. Two decks above is the low-key Champagne Bar, with views of the atrium and floor-to-ceiling windows. A small but well-stocked library is open 24 hours, and based on the honor system.
On Deck 6, you leave the ultra-modern décor and step into Schooners, my favorite piano bar at sea, with teak and marine blue fabrics accented by nautical antiques and reproductions. The next room is the Safari Club, clubby, dark and decorated in blue, burgundy and gold. There is a large dance floor and stage, where all kinds of performers entertain at night. Adjacent is the Bombay Billiards Club, with the first pool tables at sea. They have amazing technology: Each table balances on a ball-bearing the size of a grape. The table may move as the ship rocks, but the balls are always stationary.
Make a stop in the tiny Crown and Anchor Club on Deck 12, where you can stand on the glass platform with a view of the entire atrium beneath your feet. Sports fans will love the Pit Stop, watching their favorite teams on enormous flat-screen TVs while having a beer or playing a video game. Perched high atop the ship is the Viking Crown Lounge, with 360-degree views. It is divided into two areas: The Vortex disco and the Hollywood Odyssey, a low-key room with a small stage, which also houses the ship's cigar bar in the evening.
The shopping area has higher quality merchandise than you'll find on other RCI ships, including designer attire and bags and a wonderful jewelry store. Beyond the shopping area is another favorite of mine -- the Latte'tudes coffee shop and Internet café (with a per-minute charge), where you can sip a cappuccino or espresso at one of the small bistro tables overlooking the atrium. Additional Internet stations are found at Royal Caribbean Online in the atrium on deck 4. In-cabin Internet connections are available for those bringing their own laptops.
Also onboard is a cinema showing two features per day and Casino Royale, the ship's large gaming spot.
Cabins:
Of the 1,050 staterooms, 813 have an ocean view and a whopping 577 have private verandas; there are 14 wheelchair-accessible staterooms. Standard features in all cabins include interactive TV, telephone, computer jack, hair dryer, refrigerator/mini-bar, closet and plenty of storage space. We did find the divided closet space a bit skimpy. In standard and most balcony cabins, bathrooms have a shower and one large medicine cabinet.
The items in the mini-bar are not free. You'll be charged for whatever you use. You may ask your cabin steward to empty the mini-bar if you choose. If you're considering a balcony cabin, the best staterooms are Category D (decks 7-10) on the aft end of the ship. Here, you'll get the largest balconies on the ship, measuring 13 ft. long x 9.5 ft. wide. As desirable as these cabins are, those prone to motion sickness may want to look elsewhere. In rough seas, being on the stern does provide a ride with more motion.
Most cabins are more commodious than those on other ships in RCI's fleet. Inside cabins measure a teeny 165 sq. ft., but outside cabins range from 170 to 204 sq. ft., and the five categories of suites from 293 to 1,001 sq. ft.
Cabins are superbly designed, including such thoughtful touches as beds with rounded corners and lighted vanity tables with mirrored cabinets. Storage is excellent. Standard amenities include color TV with CNN and movies; a safe; individual temperature controls; and hair dryers. Tubs are found only in the highest category staterooms; most bathrooms have just showers (though unexpectedly large ones), with sliding doors rather than clinging shower curtains, and medicine cabinets. There was even a full-length mirror in our "superior" category cabin. |
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