Rhapsody of the Seas Cruise Review

Western Caribbean on the RCI Rhapsody of the Seas

Hmm, the air is salty and the frozen drinks are circulating the pool area as I sit on the top deck writing the beginning of my cruise review for “The Rhapsody of the Seas”. The cruise began on January 25, 2004 from The Port of Galveston. The itinerary included Key West, Georgetown (Grand Cayman’s) and Cozumel with several a few days at sea sprinkled into the schedule. The following is my take on what I observed during the cruise:

DEPARTURE EMBARKATION FROM GALVESTON (Sunday): It was utterly amazing how fast the port staff processed me right onto the ship. I will say that I booked a Grand Suite (Cabin 8516) and had check-in privileges which included a separate line from the general boarding line. So, I walked right up to the counter and was on the ship and in my suite within 10-15 minutes. I traveled alone so I bypassed the boarding pictures that are taken. If you don’t care for the photos you can go around that queue. Once on the ship it was a direct beeline for the 8th deck. I was able to board around 2:30. Unfortunately, my bags did not get to my cabin until 5:30. But, since the first night on the ship is a casual night, I was already appropriately dressed. I took the time to checkout the features of the suite and to make my spa appointments for the entire week. Once I finished all that it was time to depart which was exactly 5:00PM as scheduled. I stayed on my veranda until I could barely see land. It was really awesome. About that time my cabin attendant (Leslie Ann) came by to introduce herself. We had a nice chat and I explained that she probably wouldn’t be hearing from me that often as I was pretty much a low maintenance traveler. However, she was always nearby and anytime you left the room it was immediately made up by the time you returned. I tested her one day and left a hand towel on the bathroom floor. When I returned 15 minutes later it was gone and a new one was hanging where it should've been. However, she did not come in if you left the “Do Not Disturb” sign in the door. After Leslie Ann left I unpacked. My shirts that had been recently starched at the cleaners were somewhat wrinkled so I hung them in the shower for about 10 minutes with the hot steam and they all came out looking perfect. I would have sent them out for pressing but wanted to try this little trick which seemed to work fine. By the time I unpacked it was time for dinner.

STATEROOM: As I mentioned I booked into one of the Grand Suites which are on the 8th deck. I read several reviews before departing that made the “Rhapsody of the Seas” seem like a Holiday Inn. Whoever posted that ad was seriously mistaken! My suite was absolutely beautiful and VERY clean. I’m hard to impress when it comes to aesthetics and I was impressed. The bathroom was awesome and really large. I’m not sure what they were doing to the bathroom but it always smelled extremely clean and fresh. The furniture was all comfortable as was the bed. The designers used common sense with space that would normally not be used. Meaning, there were many cubbyholes to store personal items in corner shelves and the closets. The veranda had plenty of seating and tables for dining if needed. Oh, and not that I was in my room much but when I wanted some quiet time they had “Retro TV” as one of the stations on the television. It was a really cool station with old television shows like, “Flipper”, “The Patty Duke Show”, “The Jefferson’s”, “Charlie’s Angels” and many shows you might see on “TVLAND”. It was really fun while getting ready for dinner or watching some TV before bed. As I said, the bathroom was really great. Beautiful inlaid tile flooring and plenty of towels, bath products and tons of storage space for personal items. For those like me who are tall (I’m 6’4”) be careful when you get in the shower…it’s a really low ceiling and I actually forgot one day and bashed my head.

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