Two problems with bars. Schooner bar staff hide in room at back of bar to avoid customers. Went there twice and both times same problem. Second problem is so called English pub put together by American marketing people who have no idea about an English pub. They need to learn an English pub serves English ale not rubbish mass marketed gnats p***

Greece/Turkey - 31stOctober - 10th November 2008

This ship is BIG, too big for comfort. We felt it was a football scrum when everybody was aiming at the same thing, i.e.when returning from trips the Windjammer was packed. The food has gradually 'gone off' on this line and we have been with them five times in 13 years, so we noticed the deterioration. Entertainment only fair and again, venues always packed to capacity to the detriment of the passengers. Much is made of the Royal Promenade but the few shops were full of rubbishy tourist things. Our first trip withu R.C.I. was on The Legend a much smaller intimate ship and I think that 'big' is not 'best' with regard to cruise ships and these monsters are going to prove a liability with people who want a quieter more sedate experience. In our case I was very disappointed with the itineraries and the last but one day in Valletta Malta, a safe and pleasent stop, the day was sliced in half and we got there too late for the shops which were closing, the market had almost gone and the shops would only open again once our ship had departed. This was for the benefit of the crew and not the passengers and spoilt the whole trip for me.

I had my passport stolen one hour before we were due to board on the first day.
We were not allowed to board and was left abandoned on the harbour.
The ship looked good.

It's just as well this proved to be our best family holiday ever, because if it hadn't been, it would have been HT's fault!. My first post last September was to inquire about two ships, the replies from Windjammer, Hamrag and others all said the same thing. You can do better, try Royal Caribbean. We did, and they were right.

Navigator of the Seas is big, and no matter how many videos, photographs and online brochures you look at, you are not prepared for the first sight of this behemoth in real life.

The facilities were first rate, and while pool decks were busy, we never had difficulty getting lounge chairs. The secret I think is not to try beside the pool, but go up a deck. At one point, I began to wonder if cruise lines should reserve the first two rows around the pool for families with young children. In our case, they're 14 and 15, and very god swimmers, so no worries about letting them into the water while we read a book in a quiet spot upstairs. Six or seven years ago, it would have been a very different story. In fairness, the pool deck staff were removing unattended towels from chairs, and the organisation on deck seemed very good.

The food was excellent, although one quibble we had was returning from trips between 4.30 and 5.30, the only outlet open was the Promenade Cafe, and queues were lengthy. I understand they are preparing the Windjammer buffet for dinner, but it would have been good if at least a section of it were open frm 4pm on.

The ship was immaculate inside and out, and our experience of staff was uniformly positive. As cruise director, Kieron Buffery deserves a special mention. His enthusiasm was infectious, and while he no doubt has gone through the routines hundreds of times, his public appearances almost had us believing he was doing this especially for us, and his enthusiasm was infectious.

The entertainment was a little patchy. The RCCL singers and dancers put on excellent shows, the ice show in Studio B was the highlight (I know, everyone says that, but it's true), but the guest acts were a little hit and miss. I was surprised that some events were not well attended at all. At one point, we were the only family to show up for family trivia, on another occasion, I was the only person to show up for morning trivia. I won!!!

My 14 year old son had an absolute ball with the 12-14 group, my 15 year old daughter didn't enjoy the youth facilties as much, but still had a great time doing her own thing.

The itinerary was a fairly standard five night Med cruise - Barcelona (wonderful city), Cannes, Livorno and Civitavecchia.

Cannes was the real surprise. To be on a treadmill, looking out a huge winow over the bridge as the captain brought the ship to a stop overlooking the French Riveria was a wonderful experience. The tendering was a pleasure in both directions, and Cannes itself was lovely. We did the Petit Train big tour, sunbathed and swam in the public beach and walked the promenade.

Livorno was a less picturesque port, but a day trip to Pisa by train was a pleasure. We considered going to Lucca as well, but decided not to. A good decision, I think, as I suspect we will be back in the future. The $6 e/w shuttle cost a total of $48, which was a little steep in my opinion.

Civitavecchia had a free shuttle, and the train trip into Rome was cheap and efficient. In retrospect, we probably walked too much, and should have used public transport, but we managed to visit St Peter's Bascillica, the Pantheon, the Trevi Fountain, the Forum and the Colosseum before getting the 3.40 train back from Termini. I did manage to get lost at one point, but we'll gloss over that!!!!!!

A two day post cruise stay in Barcelona topped off a memorable holiday. We're already booked with Carnival for the Baltic Sea next year, but there is no doubt in my mind that we'll be back with Royal Caribbean. Indepenence of the Seas would be lovely to try out, but we will quite happily return to Navigator.

Thanks to the aforementioned and others for the help I've received on Holiday Truths, and hopefully at some point, in the words of Kieron Buffery (and I suspect every other cruise director) "we'll see you around the ship".

we are just back from the Med and had a great time. We enjoyed the food and went to the Nutcracker every evening. We had late sitting but would choose early next time. Some nights we had to hurry to get to the show at eleven pm and we were also too full of food to enjoy a drink.
We took ship excursions and they were all well organised and I would book ships ones again.
Great holiday.

EXCELLENT - have 2 children aged 3 and 6. loved it. safe and fantastic holiday.booked again

We managed to leave the kids behind and enjoy a romantic break for six days on this ship. Firstly the ship is superb. A completely different class to anything I'd seen before. The cabin (an E2 stateroom with balcony) was large and spacious, the bed was great and the balcony was large enough to sit out on and sip your cocktails !!. The ship was very smooth and even though we had a few rough days, the ship is so big, it seemed unrockable.

The bars and public areas are plentiful and there's loads going on all the time. We rarely went to bed before 1am and we're a couple of early birds normally. There's a main promenade through the middle of the ship that has shops and bars along each side (just like a mediterranean street) where you can sit outside and people watch.

The food was good quality. The windjammer (and Jade, it's eastern sidekick) are buffet style restaurants where you can eat practically all the time and never have to change out of your shorts. However, for me, the windjammer food would begin to pale after a few days (especially as you have breakfast and lunch in there as well !), so the evening meal in the three storey restaurant is a real treat and it's fantastic quality.

Drinks are reasonably priced (for a ship) with a beer coming in at around $6, a cocktail at $6 and a bottle of wine starting around $25. However, you can buy a 5/7/10/12 bottle of wine deal where you get a discount. Beware of the tax they add and the automatic 15% 'gratuity'.

Entertainment was excellent with big shows every night. We had a guest act from Las Vegas who were brilliant. The ship's own company of singers and dancers really put everything into the shows and the singers has great voices.

Reading earlier posts, they seem to have changed the tipping procedure. You now get a form in your cabin a few days before the end of the cruise. If you fill it in and return it, they will work out the tips for you (so much per day per person for the room attendant, the waiter, assistant waiter and head waiter). You then get vouchers (deducted from your sea pass account) which you can hand out as appropriate. Failing that, you can just hand out cash. They even give you appropriately addressed envelopes. It's amazing how even more polite and attentive the staff become on that last night !!. I have to say that even with this new way of doing it, it still doesn't sit right with me that only a select 'few' get tipped and the poor sods in the bowels of the ship get bugger all. They are all only 'doing' their jobs after all. The way the head waiter came sniffing round on the last night for his tips (hardly saw him before that) was both comical and slightly sad.

However, it didn't ruin what was a great experience.

Having sailed on "Freedom of the Seas" last year, I was very impressed whith this ship, Larger, bigger, and so much better. Me and my freiend was very lucky as we got this 12 day cruise from Southampton to the Canary Islands for ONLY £698 each Fantastic Offer!!!!???
Only one draw back and that was, towards the end of the cruise we was left a letter in our cabin saying that the tips would be appropiate for 4 members of staff and in the letter we was given the oportunity to opt out by signing the letter and retuning it to customer relations on board ship or the money approx
$400 would be taken automaticaly from my account.
Disgusting...I tipped the Staff who to me had given extra service during the cruise, not to be told who to tip, Just be weary if you travel with Royal Carribean on who you tip or you could find a large amount of money taken from your account.

Did the 10 Night Canary cruise from Southampton. Very nice not to fly for a change. Check in was smooth having completed all paperwork online 6 weeks before. However, they did manage to break my camera!!
Cabin was inside on deck 8. Having had outside before found it a bit claustrophobic (however I am asthmatic so that might have been why). Could not get used to not knowing what time of day it was as you had to have lights on all time. Personal choice - would not have inside cabin again. Also with 2 adults and 15 year teenager it was really difficuly to keep tidy. The drop down beds are really uncomfortable.
The ship was enormous - went on the Thomson Spirit in 2005 and the difference was amazing.
The drinks on board were reasonable and we really liked Boleros and got to know the guys really well. We did not see much of our 15 year old as he had friends already on board from school and went into the teen club called Fuel every night - beware they can get in later than the adults. The nightclub - the dungeon was rubish.... the DJ was useless and as this was the only real place to dance, was disappointed. On Thomson they had the High Spirits and not only was our lad allowed in there it was great to dance in. Beware of the american ships if you want to see something of your kids!!!! But if you don't mind then they are fantastic. It was the only holiday where my son go a bit upset when we left.
We chose to eat in the 3 tier dining room each evening (swan lake), and sat on a table with some great people who we got to know really well. Our waiter was Rico and his assistant Charles, they were absolutely brilliant. Keep up the good work guys......The food was nice, 3 courses which with a bottle of wine each evening was just enough without over indulging (for a change). There are two formal nights which we attended, but if you didn't go you did not feel that left out, mainly due to the ships size (unlike on Thomson where it was really noticeble)...
MOANS: Ate in the windjammer for breakfast but if you don't get in there before 10 it is jam packed and I found it hard to cope as I think the tables are too close together. They seem to have too many cabins and not enough places to go at night. Also you do have to do the same old get out on deck early to get a sun lounger..... We did not get off at Lanzarote as it was a short stop and been there loads of times before and it was lovely and quiet. The entertainment was a lot better on the Spirit. They also have more of the personal touch going on which I did not really feel on this ship, probably due to its size.
All in all a great ship and would sail on her again but would have balcony cabin. For families with kids over 3 its the best holiday you can have and you really feel safe. It definitely has the wow factor and you are treated like royaly in the dining room.
However, I would not rule out Thomson in the future.
We have definitely got the cruise bug and as we only cruise every other year will be looking to P&O next for the Caribbean..... Hope this review has helped.
Happy sailing folks......

we sailed on the Navigator of the Seas on June 30th for 14 nights.

From the moment we arrived at the car park, we found all staff extremely helpful, as we had completed our documents online prior to arrival the boarding process took about 20 minutes.
We found our cabin easily, a little on the small side for a family of 4, however we found that we spent very little time in it as there is so much to do on board.
This was our first cruise and therefore have nothing to compare it too, however we had little or no complaint, food excellent, entertainment varied and something for everyone. We didn't see much of the daytime activities as we went ashore at every port.
The days we were on board were spent doing sporting stuff with the kids or relaxing by the pool.
I would point out that this ship is definitly aimed at families with active children the ship was full to capacity and there were lots of lively teenagers in groups around the ship. Some people found this disconcerting and I heard many comments from seasoned cruisers about this. However as this is the new market targeted, people should be aware of this. We would love to do more cruises and would highly recommend RC for families (just need to start saving).