Thank you for pointing that out, we actually did not go to Fish and Ships and didn’t realize it was free! I believe cafe 270 was the one where it was kind of buffet style except you had to order and have them “prepare” it for you?
It is definitely not a surprise that you found cruising between NZ and AU rougher than the Med. The crossing to NZ is often very rough and it’s very common for people to get seasick on it, you’re experiencing a particularly bumpy part of the real ocean versus a protected sea that’s generally pretty calm in most areas.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts on the ship! Very helpful to hear what Ovation is like before we get on her in a few weeks. I think the thing with RCL's Icon/Oasis/Ovation class ships (and all major mass-market cruise line ships, from what I can see) is that it requires a lot of planning and research in advance to get the most out of your experience. If you're thinking you'll just walk on with no prior knowledge like it's a small ship that only holds 1,000 people, you're going to be pretty disappointed - and I can see why you'd feel negatively towards the ship if you didn't know about these things in advance.
Thanks for the comment! I agree with you, knowing exactly what you’re going to experience beforehand and being happy with that will make your trip much better. Some of the things we mentioned, we had heard about beforehand, but were a little too optimistic that things would be different once we got on board! Have fun on your cruise! I think Ovation is starting Alaska cruising soon?
Thank you for the update! We have sailed Norwegian many times and going on our first RC cruise in may (ovation). Can you explain the tv situation in the cabin? You have to pay for movies? Normally Norwegian has 2-3 movie channels that are always playing for free
Hello! There are definitely TV channels playing movies, but the on demand movies cost. Just surprised us since there wasn’t a ton to watch on the main channels. On the other hand I didn’t mention that they did have movies playing in the theatre and at the pool every so often. Hope you have fun on your cruise! Where are you headed?
Good review. Royals food took a nose dive this year. I don't think we will sail Royal again until it's fixed. I wasn't a fan of the Ovation. Alaska was amazing but the boat....meh
Good to hear it wasn’t just us that felt that way. People were really hyping up Royal for us before we went. Glad you liked Alaska though, we’re going later this year. Any advice on things to do?
Hello! Prefer the smaller ship mostly just because there are less people. We didn’t really get sick on either ship, just felt the movement a lot more on Ovation. That had more to do with the location of our room and also the roughness of the sea, not so much the ship, we think! Have fun on your cruise! Will it be in Alaska by then or still going to New Zealand?
Haha good catch, it was in port the day before, I didn’t have a great picture of the Ovation that was my own but am trying to find one to swap it in. #sorry
Quantum Class is poorly designed. Bigger ship but just more cabins with no changes to the sizes of pubs, clubs & bars. Everything is cramped. The food quality has also gone down the hill.
You left out Cafe270 and Fish and Ships. Both are free food venues.
Thank you for pointing that out, we actually did not go to Fish and Ships and didn’t realize it was free! I believe cafe 270 was the one where it was kind of buffet style except you had to order and have them “prepare” it for you?
@@RoamTwo Cafe 270 has sandwiches, soup and salads. There is also free hot dogs/sausages by the Seaplex deck 16
It is definitely not a surprise that you found cruising between NZ and AU rougher than the Med. The crossing to NZ is often very rough and it’s very common for people to get seasick on it, you’re experiencing a particularly bumpy part of the real ocean versus a protected sea that’s generally pretty calm in most areas.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts on the ship! Very helpful to hear what Ovation is like before we get on her in a few weeks.
I think the thing with RCL's Icon/Oasis/Ovation class ships (and all major mass-market cruise line ships, from what I can see) is that it requires a lot of planning and research in advance to get the most out of your experience. If you're thinking you'll just walk on with no prior knowledge like it's a small ship that only holds 1,000 people, you're going to be pretty disappointed - and I can see why you'd feel negatively towards the ship if you didn't know about these things in advance.
Thanks for the comment! I agree with you, knowing exactly what you’re going to experience beforehand and being happy with that will make your trip much better. Some of the things we mentioned, we had heard about beforehand, but were a little too optimistic that things would be different once we got on board!
Have fun on your cruise! I think Ovation is starting Alaska cruising soon?
Thank you for the update! We have sailed Norwegian many times and going on our first RC cruise in may (ovation). Can you explain the tv situation in the cabin? You have to pay for movies? Normally Norwegian has 2-3 movie channels that are always playing for free
Hello! There are definitely TV channels playing movies, but the on demand movies cost. Just surprised us since there wasn’t a ton to watch on the main channels. On the other hand I didn’t mention that they did have movies playing in the theatre and at the pool every so often.
Hope you have fun on your cruise! Where are you headed?
Thank you for updating us! We will be headed to Alaska! Thank you again for posting this video 😊
Good review. Royals food took a nose dive this year. I don't think we will sail Royal again until it's fixed. I wasn't a fan of the Ovation. Alaska was amazing but the boat....meh
Good to hear it wasn’t just us that felt that way. People were really hyping up Royal for us before we went. Glad you liked Alaska though, we’re going later this year. Any advice on things to do?
You prefer a smaller ship but you got motion sickness on a big one?
Great breakdown other than that. We're so excited to get on Ovation in May!
Hello! Prefer the smaller ship mostly just because there are less people. We didn’t really get sick on either ship, just felt the movement a lot more on Ovation. That had more to do with the location of our room and also the roughness of the sea, not so much the ship, we think!
Have fun on your cruise! Will it be in Alaska by then or still going to New Zealand?
Why is the thumbnail a pic of a Princess ship? #disconnect
Haha good catch, it was in port the day before, I didn’t have a great picture of the Ovation that was my own but am trying to find one to swap it in. #sorry
Quantum Class is poorly designed. Bigger ship but just more cabins with no changes to the sizes of pubs, clubs & bars. Everything is cramped. The food quality has also gone down the hill.
Thanks for your comment!