Enchantment of the Seas

sailingrose · January 28, 2004

Enchantment of the Seas 9/25/03

We drove to the port and arrived at 12:30. Parking in the garage at Ft. Lauderdale was a breeze as we were the only ship leaving from the port that day. Check in was very quick and we were having lunch in the Windjammer before 1:00.

The Enchantment is a Vision class ship that was built in 1997. She was in wonderful shape with very little sign of wear and tear. The itinerary on this 4 day cruise was Key West and Cozumel. We did no shore excursions having been to each port before and only went to one show that was excellent. More about that later.

The ship itself is beautiful. The centrum was lovely with it's marble floors and Champagne Bar. This is where the art auctions and cooking demos were held. The casino is laid out well and we spent most of our evenings there as both my husband and I like to gamble. The staff was friendly and we had a lot of fun with them. The Dining room was lovely with a few statues and a grand staircase. The pool deck was in excellent shape and the solarium was one of our main hangouts. We enjoyed just laying out and I loved the hot tubs. No kids were ever in the solarium pool or hot tubs when I was there. There were only about 110 kids on board for this sailing.

The food was the typical RCI fare. Good to excellent. Please listen to your waiter when he makes suggestions each evening as they are very honest with you and usually know which items are the best. The coffee on this ship was the worst I have ever had. Nothing helped remove the bitterness. Bring a french press or a coffee pot if you don't want to pay for the coffee at the Seattles Best kiosk in the centrum which is about $3.00 a cup and higher depending on how fancy you like your coffee.

The crew was wonderful. From the cabin attendent to the purser's desk everyone was helpful and very friendly.

The one show I did attend was the Beatle Maniacs. If you are a Beatles fan and love to sing their music then this show is a don't miss for sure. We sang, danced and even screamed like it was the 1960's all over again. The 4 musicians weren't trying to copy the Beatles but salute them and they did a wonderful job, from early to late Beatles. It was the finest show I have seen in years and a don't miss it if your lucky enough to be aboard with them. We also attended the Love and Marriage game that was quite funny. I do with RCI would go back to picking the couples out of a hat as the OOOeeee baby routine just has gotten old. The ship also had production shows, belly flop competion, Quest, Disco night, Horse racing, etc.

I attended the Crown and Anchor Diamond and Platinum party held on the Key West Day as we were sailing out. We enjoyed meeting many of the staff and other Crown and Anchor members. This was the only recognition that the C & A members got. Usually there is a party for all the Crown and Anchor members but there was none this trip. We also received the fanny packs and the postcards in our cabin as well as our coupon books. I was surprised that we received no chocolate covered strawberries in our room as we have on all our previous trips since becoming Diamond members. Guess they are cutting back. Not a big deal as my head waiter brought me some at dinner the last evening.

All in all a great cruise aboard the Enchantment of the Seas. I would not hesitate to sail her again in the future but next time bring my own coffee pot.