5/25/08

By jacketwatch

• June 7, 2008

We took this cruise out of San Juan. Being cautious we flew in the day B4 and stayed at the Sheraton Old San Juan which is next to the dock. Much to our surprise the Sheraton put us up in what amounted to a mini apt. with a separate bedroom, living room and dining area and about 4 balconies, two TV's including a large flat screen in the living area. Way to go! I did some research and found that a well reviewed restaurant, the Dragonfly, is in Old San Juan and in fact was a short walk from the Sheraton so we called the day B4 to be waitlisted (no reservations accepted) and actually got in w/o a hitch though we did go early on a Sat. night. The decor was ala a 1930's San Fran bordello and the food was quite good actually, a mix of Asian-Latin flavors. Try the lo mein if you ever get there.

The nexy day, Sunday it was off to the ship. The first thing I noticed was that the Carnival Desting had moored in the dock right across from the Sheraton and the AOS was a bit further back at the Pan Am pier. I must say the profile of the Destiny is very nice with sleek lines and a sort of aero-dynamic look. Nice view to start he day! We cabbed it to the AOS around 1200 or so and check-in was very quick. Don't you just love a short check in. :D Actually by 1245, some 40 mins. after leaving the Sheraton we were on board. The cabins don't open until 1300 so it was off to lunch at the windjammer cafe.

After lunch we explored the ship WOW!! We went with another couple and our son and after seeing the promenade Asha, our friend said she wanted to stay 20 days. :D Yes it is that impressive. So now it was off to our cabin, which was a jr. st. and its the 1st time I had ever booked one. Well my wife saw it and said YES! about 5 times :D and tasked me with this level of accomodations for all future bookings. :rolleyes: OK so I need more OT now. :D

So lets begin a review of the ship;

Public areas: In a word gorgeous. Everything was very well maintained, very clean and virtually spotless. There are many lounges, bars, etc. The shops are nice but not anything more than I have seen on other ships. What really sets this hip apart is the promenade. Its like walking a street really with shops, a bar, a sidewalk cafe style restaurant and a sports bar. The restaurant is open 24 hrs. and serves pizza, pastries, fresh fruit and coffee, expresso and tea. Actually there are inside cabins above this area with windows that I am told have very thick, sound proof glass. You would need this as the promenade is often full.

I did make use of the gym several times and its full service with a good number of aerobic machines, weight machines and free weights. In addition there is a measured walking track up top for exercise.

Food: Now this is always a personal area so here is my opinion only. I was impressed with the service and the quality of food in the gorgeous, three level main dining area. Considering the number of passengers I thought all was very good. Our friends requested Indian ahead of time per the RCI website which has such a feature. Our first night main seating proved to be the only glitch in our trip. We tols our waiter about this and he acted as if this was more than what they could do even though again RCI features this on their web site. So I spoke to the head waiter who gave some mumbo-jumbo through a bing smile about not having adequate spices on the ship for such a request. So we then spoke to the asst. restaurant manager, a great fellow named Jojo John who saved the day. He promised they would do all they could to make Indian food and we had it that night and every night. I must say that last yr. on the Star Princess the Indian food they made had more variety but the AOS had better taste. All in all we were pleased. The lunches at the Windjammer were good, not great and could be improved with more variey and more flavor. The paella was pretty bland and it seemed they had much of the same foods over and over. For me this was fine as I ate salads very day for lunch anyway so its not a deal breaker by any means.

Entertainment: The shows were saw were quite good really. There was some fellow who sang imitating famous peoples vices and he was FUNNY!! He gave a great show and had a great sense of humor. The best show for us was the Drifters. Yes the "Under the Boardwalk" crew with some new faces of course put on the best show of the cruise and ended it with calling the audience up to dance on stage. Well then my trick knee acted up :D so I zoomed some moves in my seat but it was fun. :D Also do see the ice show. This again is another great feature on the AOS. There is a group of professional ice skaters who put on a great show. Tickets are free and there were two shows for this 7 night cruise so do get then ahead of time and enjoy this. You won't regret it.

The cabins: Well what can I say. Its jr. suite from now on. Actually our cabin as spacious, always clean, fresh and it was neat to see the towel animals again. We missed them last yr. on the Star.

Overall this ship quickly became our favorite. I love the size and innovative features but what makes the cruise really is the crrew and I must say overall I give them an A+ for effort and attitude.

What could be improved: Well as mentioned above the lunch selections in the Windjammer could be bettered. Also and most importantly we saw few if any hand sanitizers. last yr. on the Star they were everywhere and often there were crew at the entrance to the eating venues with them just ot make sure you cleaned your hands first. I think this is a major area for improvement.

When RCI calls for mandatory life boat drills they mean it! We had to vacate our cabin as they insisted on this and you have to agree with this even though you may be tired.

Do expect cold running water in you cabin. Oddly and to my astonishmnet the ship simply doesn't have chillers for tap H2O. The water will reflect the temperature of the sea water so get used to brushing your teeth with luke warm water of get some ice. :D