Sep 3, 202115 min read

Onboard Royal Caribbean!

Went on a cruise trip again! This time round I opted for the 4-nights sailing and as a solo trip. I really missed solo travelling! It’s just a couple of months away to 2022, and I really do hope travelling would be possible next year! (If not, you’ll see me on another cruise again 😜)

I always had the idea of a cruise vacation brushed off - being stuck on a moving vessel for a few days, packed with people… It just didn’t sound too exciting for me; BUT, the previous trip changed my mind! Since cruises have to sail at 50% capacity now, it didn’t felt too crowded. One thing to note is that you do want to avoid the holiday periods as it will be packed with families and kids with the ongoing “50% off + kids sail for free” promo.

Why Royal Caribbean (RC) again? You might ask. Just a recap, for now there is only 2 cruises that is allowed to set sail again in SG, Dream Cruises and RC. Why not Dream Cruises? As mentioned in my previous trip, I like RC’s cruise design and layout more. They offer more complimentary dining options and is packed with activities! There is a lot of bad reviews about Dream Cruises anyway. It’s main focus is on the casino and everything else is just substandard, I wouldn’t want to take the risk to experience it myself! Founder of Mercury, Tjin Lee, wrote a detailed comparison on her experiences between the 2 cruises, go read it!

With the same mindset as many, “cruises are boring”, RC is packed with so much activities and entertainment, it is definitely far from “boring”! I don’t think you will be able to experience / participate in all the available activities as it is just way too many!

Refer to my previous trip for more details about the ship, Quantum of the Seas!

Taken from Royal Caribbean website.

Since I’m travelling solo, I had the option of getting the studio balcony stateroom (#7-248). It is slightly smaller than a regular balcony stateroom (short of the couch), but my balcony looks so much more spacious! Having a balcony is definitely a life-saver. Wearing of face mask is strictly enforced throughout the cruise, except for water and strenuous fitness activities. The balcony would allow you to just lay back and relax to the sound of waves without the discomfort of having to put on a mask!

Bring your own toiletries, only a 2-in-1 hair and body wash is provided.

The view from my room balcony.

For the dates that I’ve chosen (departing Aug 26th), it is at $851.03 (final price payable) for the studio room, discount was $833.

If you are curious about the price difference to the regular balcony stateroom, it is as follows (final price payable as well):

- $652.03/pax, based on 2pax for the room

- $911.53, based on 1pax for the room

Multiple Swab Tests Required

When I went in Feb, I did 2 swab tests - PCR test before boarding and ART test after disembarking. This time round, both PCR (1-3 days before boarding) and ART test (on the day itself) are done before boarding, no swab test required after disembarking.

The ART test process took about an hour to complete, with lots of queueing, waiting and confusion. The RC team handling the swab test station wasn’t really clear on their instructions.

Check-in

As dine-in is currently only open to those who are fully vaccinated, vaccinated guests will receive a purple wristband as an indication. Certain areas and activities onboard are designated for vaccinated guests only. Unvaccinated guests will dine in their rooms. On top of the wristband, all guests will have to wear a “tracelet” at all times for contact tracing purposes.

Though the cruise is only departing at 8pm, you are allowed to board the cruise earlier. Check-in slots are available starting from 1:30pm. If you’ll like to take some uncrowded photos (like me), it’s good to board the cruise earlier. Though do note that retail shops might be closed and there won’t be much activities available for the afternoon, but food will be available. The staggered check-in timings help to ensure that the cruise centre will not be too packed and for a smooth and quick check-in process.

Remember to bring your passport!

Royal Esplanade.

Tip:

You will be able to view everything that is available on the cruise from the RC app, including food options that rotates daily. Just select an ongoing sailing date, and you can roughly plan out your itinerary beforehand, the actual program for you is likely going to be the same, just don’t select a date that is too far from your departing date. 3-nights (mon-thu) and 4-nights (thu-mon) sailing offers slightly different programs, so be sure that you have selected the correct travelling duration.

Screenshots from the RC app.

However, you can only reserve your slots when you are onboard connected to the ship’s wifi. Do note that this wifi does not give you internet access - and this is chargeable.

RC offers 2 kinds of internet access - VOOM Surf and VOOM Surf + Stream. I got the surf + stream, about $20/day, the speed is actually really fast! Though not as quick as loading immediately, but it actually takes just seconds to load.

Note:

I will skip some of the activities that I have done on my previous trip, so the following does not represent the full program being offered - check out the RC app for the full program.

All activities, entertainment and food are complimentary (included in your cruise ticket), unless stated otherwise. Prices on cruise are in US dollars.

Watch my cruise video if you haven’t!

Day 1

I chose the earliest check-in time available as I want to be the first batch to board so I could go round to take some uncrowded photos first. The first thing you want to do after boarding is to get your safety briefing done as you wouldn’t be allowed to enter any venue on the ship if you skip this. On my trip, I just had to get to my indicated muster station, which was Silk Restaurant, and get my SetSail pass (in the RC app) scanned, easy peasy.

For your SeaPass card, it will be placed outside your room.

On my way to my room, I quickly reserve the 4 staged shows as I’m afraid I wouldn’t be able to get a slot. Note the difference between “reserve now” and “add to calendar” on the RC app. “Reserve now” will guarantee you a seat, but “add to calendar” means it is on first-come-first-serve basis. I had to arrive 15-30mins earlier to start queuing.

Screenshot from the RC app.

The room is equipped with US 110V, EU 220/230V and USB power outlets, do remember to bring an adaptor!

Before you leave your room, always check that you have your seapass card, your tracelet and your mask on!

First of all, went to Windjammer for lunch. So glad to be able to get a table by the window with the amazing Marina Bay view. It’s a buffet-style restaurant, but the chefs will scoop the food instead. There were so many different types of cuisine offered! It was rather crowded, so no photos of the place and buffet spread.

What I've got - steamed rice, broccoli, Malaysian curry chicken, chicken tikka masala, beef rendang, potato salad, orange juice and papadam.

After which, I went to the pool areas to take some photos, then head back to the room to chill. Complimentary movies were provided this time round! Watched “A Quiet Place 2” till about 6:20pm where I head to the SeaPlex for the bumper car ride.

Indoor Pool.

Dinner was amazing - got some shrimp ceviche, mushroom risotto and lemon tart (woooo I love lemon meringue tart!). Went to Two70 to catch the “Starwater” show featuring violinist Nadiia. “Starwater” is a dance and singing performance incorporating special lighting effects and beautiful projections. For this show, it was half of the original Starwater show, followed by the violin performance.

Chilled around for a little while before I catch another staged show called “Sequins and Feathers” at the Royal Theatre. It is a high energy Las Vegas-style show with lots of dancing, singing and acrobatic stunts! This is my all time favourite show and their outfits are so pretty!

Two70 has a lot more going on as compared to the Royal Theatre - which is of a standard theatre layout. It is equipped with 18 projectors, 6 robotic screens costing a $100,000 each, and multiple lifting stage! It is named as “Two70” as it provides 270deg of view!

Day 2

Perfect weather on day 2.

To be able to wake up to endless sea view is just so amazing! The weather was really awesome today, and I just can’t stop taking photos and videos! Got some granola, mushrooms and the eggs benedict - was a little upset I didn’t get any perfectly poached eggs.

Failed poached eggs - why are the yolks cooked?

Went to the Music Hall for a napkin folding session. It was quite cool and fun to me as I love crafty things. Learnt a few folding styles... Then some crossword challenge at the Schooner Bar - damn, this crossword was really tough; and back at the Music Hall for an origami session. Learnt to make a butterfly and a lotus, pretty cool.

The butterfly origami photo is upside down because I realised I was holding the butterfly the wrong way.

Went for lunch next, got the tomato soup, mozzarella sticks, lasagna and the carrot cake. So much cheese and tomato for lunch 😂, but it was so satisfying! Went to the SeaPlex to check out the dance class (kpop), and since I have some spare time, I was lucky enough to be able to book the XBOX and it’s 40mins play time per booking.

Spotted the Kpop dance class happening at the SeaPlex.

Glass bridge at deck 14.

Went for the word search challenge next at the beautiful Wonderland restaurant. Wonderland serves magical gastronomy food, currently closed due to covid and used as an activity venue. This one was easy and the prize goes to the one that is first to finish it! Then went to check out the arcade, played some games, it’s $1.50/play. Then a trivia session on international landmarks, I love trivia sessions! Damn, I couldn’t recognise most of the places and never knew these places even exist. Was interesting to learn a few new places like the Lotus Temple and Dead Sea.

Huh what place is this again?

Went round to take some photos, then to SeaPlex Doghouse to takeaway some sausages and back to the room to chill. The sausages are quite good! Skip the buns. Chilled by the balcony, then watched a bit of Tom and Jerry (the movie), took a nap before I head out for dinner. Got some salmon gravlax, coconut shrimp, fish (cod) and chips and a chocolate cake.

Next, went to the Music Hall for some live music performance by Tropical Band. They do a mixture of Caribbean and pop music. Ending the night off with a movie screening at the Royal Theatre called “Chaos Walking”. Starring Tom Holland (as Todd) and Daisy Ridley (as Viola), Chaos Walking is about life on planet New World in 2257 AD. On this planet, only men exists here and all men living here is afflicted with a condition called “noise”, where they can see and hear each other’s thoughts. An unknown spaceship crashed on New World with only one survivor - Viola, and Todd needs to help her escape danger.

Music Hall.

Day 3

Woke up rather late today, went for breakfast at 9:30am. Ordered the “Express Breakfast” which comes with scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, hashbrown and grilled tomato; as well as a fruit plate. The fruits were so juicy and sweet, yums! Went to La Patisserie to get iced latte (chargeable) and chilled a little while before the activity starts. It was US$5.60 (SG$7.50) for a HUGE cup, I’m guessing it’s 20oz, quite acceptable! Always thought that things sold on a cruise are going to be expensive.

The first activity for the day is a heart box making class, then went to the Solarium to chill. The Solarium is an adults only pool area, so pretty and look so tropical, it kind of remains me of the beach! My ultimate favourite spot on the ship actually. It has floor-to-ceiling glass panels, letting in lots of sunlight and warmth! Rather crowded this morning, could barely find any nice seat.

Followed after, a trivia session on famous places. This one was much easier as compared to famous landmarks, but was still stuck on a few. Lunch next with some egg drop soup, roasted cod and key lime pie. Got to dine at the Silk restaurant today. It was always at American Icon Grill by default. Ok, so the Main Dining Room divides into 4 themed restaurants but they all serve the same menu, so it doesn’t really matter which restaurant you get assigned to, but at least there’s a change in dining environment.

Went for a “brain boggler riddles” activity next, this one was quite fresh, hadn’t done something like this! So basically you are given a list of numbers with alphabets combined and you have to guess what phrase that is. For e.g. “12 D of C” which represents “12 Days of Christmas”. It was kind of tricky at first, but it all makes sense once you get it.

Next, a cartoon characters trivia at Schooner Bar - childhood memories! Can’t believe I forgotten “Chip & Dale”’s names, I used to love them so much when I was a kid! Followed by a game session called “Name the Lyric”, so the host will flash some lyrics and we have to guess the song name. This one was tough, really! Only managed to guess one song out of 15! It’s definitely much easier if it’s “name the melody” instead.

Spotted outside Schooner Bar.

Then went to Sorrento’s to chill. The pizzas here are quite good, better than some pizza places in SG! There are a few types of pizzas to choose from, as well as some cold sides. Next to it is the Cafe Promenade which offers small bites and cakes - erm… just skipped these.

Next, a photo scavenger hunt. You will be given a list of places to search for, only managed to find 23 out of 33 places! Went for the James Bustar juggling show next at Two70, a really funny guy! Decided to head back to the room to chill a little while and was greeted with a cute rabbit towel when I opened the door!

Headed to deck 15 wanting to take some sunset photos but it was rather cloudy (meaning no obvious sunset) and rather crowded, so headed for dinner straight. Dinner was at CHIC tonight, it was so pretty in a shade of champagne and gold! The chairs has gold trimmings and the place is filled with chandeliers! Got some potato soup, beancurd and bamboo salad, grilled pork chop and a cheesecake. The pork chop was slightly tough but the sauce was really good!

Lastly, went to the Music Hall next for some live music performance by Kinetic Band, they perform a mixture of oldies and pop hits. Back to the room to continue watching Tom and Jerry, and got hungry halfway through. Decided to try ordering the room service and you know what? All the food is complimentary too! Just have to pay a delivery fee of US$7.95 + 18% gratuity. Got the caesar salad with shrimp, grilled salmon and rigatoni bolognese. The salad looks and tastes better than the one offered at Main Dining Room, at least the prawns are of a better grade. The grilled salmon was perfect and the pasta was overcooked - the pasta was soft and breaking apart - but the bolognese sauce was delicious.

Day 4

Woke up early to film a time-lapse of the sunrise, but was greeted with a rather cloudy sky. Brought along some drip coffee bags from Perk Coffee and packet milk, and decided to make coffee - kettle is provided in the room. The coffee was so aromatic! Just relaxing at my balcony, enjoying some morning breeze and sipping my coffee with the amazing sea view. Watched a bit of “Sonic the Hedgehog” and headed out for breakfast.

Got a chocolate donut to start and ordered the french toast, some fried eggs and a granola with yogurt. The french toast was so soft and fluffy, coated with cinnamon sugar and served with berry compote and whipped cream. Went for a morning sudoku challenge, followed by a word finder challenge.

Headed to the Music Hall for a towel folding session where we learnt to fold a cat, a crab and a little pup. Continued with Marvel Trivia - this one was popular! The questions were mainly from the comics so it was tough for me as a Marvel-movie-fan-only.

Lunch next with some shrimp risotto, caesar salad with shrimp and a seafood burger - sandwiched with fried fish, squid and shrimp. Followed after, a ribbon-to-rose folding session, pretty cool and love how pretty the rose turned out to be.

Next, a game called “Scattegories”. So basically at each round of the game, you will be given 5 categories and an alphabet, and you have to name an item from each category starting with the giving alphabet; and if your answer is not the same as the host, you score a point! So go unique and uncommon! And the winning team got a RC logo-shaped gold medal, so jealous! It was quite pretty and unique.

Went to Cafe Two70 to chill - my 2nd favourite spot on the cruise! Cafe Two70 is decked in marble, so pretty! They serve salads, small bites and soups here. Created my own salad with shrimp-lettuce salad, corn, boiled eggs and pesto pasta salad, topped with some ranch dressing. Got a seafood soup, a pita stuffed with ham, salami, prosciutto, mozzarella and capsicum; and a black forest cake. The seafood soup looks mediocre, but it turns out to be quite good with lots of ingredients! Clams, mussels, scallop, shrimp, diced carrot and zucchini, and corn.

On my way back to the room, I realised it was actually raining really heavily! Received another towel animal! Can you figure out what it is? As well as disembark info for tomorrow.

Bionic Bar - equipped with 2 robot bartenders. Customise your own cocktail / mocktail from 30 spirits and 21 mixers.

The Via.

Fell asleep unknowingly and overslept 😖 so I had to skip dinner so I wouldn’t be late for my show. Tonight’s show is “The Magic of Zlwin” at the Royal Theatre. Went up to deck 15 for a night walk. It was really cooling and breezy after the rain, but the seats were still wet so can’t lay down to chill. Went to the Music Hall for Tropical Band again, and then Kinetic Band again. They performed different songs from the other day.

Due to current covid19 measures, the singer has to sing backstage.

Lastly, went to Sorrento’s to takeaway some pizzas and a hot chocolate from Cafe Promenade which is just next to it. There was a short queue as this is the only complimentary place that is still open at 11pm. Who doesn’t love free pizzas? Waited quite a while and poor chef was so busy shoving pizzas into the oven.

Back to the room and continued watching Sonic, which I regretted (now as I write this) not finishing it - thought it was on Netflix!

Day 5

Last day onboard, nothing much going on, just have breakfast and wait for your turn to disembark. Breakfast will start earlier and we have to disembark in batches to avoid crowding. They will then get the ship prepared for the next batch of guests to board in the afternoon.

Totally had a hard time waking up this morning! Last meal onboard :( Ordered the make-your-own, NY bagel and the fruit plate. The bagel comes with cream cheese, smoked salmon, cucumber, pickled onion and arugula. I hadn’t even finish my breakfast and they already announced final call for disembarkment 😅 This is at 8:15am.

Quickly head back to my room and shove everything into my luggage, and that’s it for the trip.

Gonna miss this.

Is it Worth It?

While, I would definitely say yes! And if overseas travelling is still not possible next year, I’ll probably go for another cruise again! The programme changes slightly from time to time anyway, and I miss the food! Although you are not docking anywhere, the onboard programme is more than enough to keep you entertained!

Plus with the ongoing “50% off + kids sail for free” promo, it makes it even more worthwhile! There’s an Adventure Ocean programme for the little ones, separated into different age groups, which offers games and activities; so parents can have some time on their own while the kids get entertained by the professionals!

Let’s do a quick calculation.

Price to beat: $850

Duration: about 4 full days (day 1, 2pm - day 5, 8am)

4-night Accommodation (~$600-800)

How much would a 4-night accommodation with sea view balcony usually costs? Accommodation is expensive in Singapore. A standard hotel with no view would already cost you about $200/night.

Restaurant Standard Meals (~$250)

Expect standard breakfast items like eggs benedict and buttermilk pancakes. Lunches and dinners are 3-course meals - appetisers, entrees and desserts. Expect plated dishes like caprese salad, cheese board, steak, burgers, risotto and pasta. There is a small selection of Eastern food offered as well, like stir-fried noodles, butter chicken and laksa.

Apart from the 3 main meals, there are snacks available throughout the day, like pizzas, soups, wraps and salads. You will never go hungry on a cruise!

All food are complimentary at no limit. Basic drinks like coffee, tea, instant drinks and juices are complimentary. Carbonated drinks, fresh juices and alcoholic drinks are chargeable.

Let’s do a rough estimation for meals.

Breakfast: Eggs Benedict $15 x4 meals = $60

Lunch: International buffet style ~$50

Lunch: Tomato Soup $4, Pulled Pork Burger $16, Lemon Tart $7 = $27 x3 meals = $81

Dinner: Caesar Salad $7, Lasagna $14, Cheesecake $7 = $28 x4 meals = $112

Total: ~$303

And this is just the main meals, how about all the complimentary snacks?

Staged Shows (~$180)

A standard Las Vegas-style show running at 75mins would cost you US$180 (SG$245). Something similar offered onboard is the “Sequins and Feathers”, this is one show you wouldn’t want to miss! There are about 3-4 staged shows offered on rotation.

These shows are 45mins and Starwater is 55mins. If each show was to have a value of about $60, that will be $180 for just 3 shows.

FlowRider (~$35-40)

A surf simulator, similar to the one offered at Wave House Sentosa (which has now closed). An hour‘s ride is $35 on weekdays and $40 on weekends.

Onboard, you can ride as many times as you like!

Rock Climbing ($22)

There are many rock climbing venues in Singapore. Based on Climb Central’s rates, it’s $22 for a 2hr climb.

Onboard, you can climb as many times as you like!

Bumper Cars (~$16)

Bumper Cars or Dodgems, it sure is a must ride at carnivals! Couldn’t find a real price for this, but based on the Marina Bay Carnival, I’m guessing it’s about $8/ride. Let’s just put down a value for 2 rides.