Cruise Ship Review: Anthem of the Seas
- Greta Smith
- Jul 3, 2019
- 5 min read
Updated: Mar 26
A few years ago, I had the opportunity to spend nine days on the Anthem on a performance cruise. I love cruising with a group- there’s always someone to do something with, we run into each other all over the ship, and the kids are never complaining about being bored because they are with friends. That said, this ship presented some challenges for us.

Things we liked:
Everyone enjoyed the IFly - definitely a ‘must’. Make your reservation as soon as you get onboard or you may not get in.
The theater tech - There are some very cool effects, especially in Two70. I had the advantage of traveling with a friend who is a theatrical lighting designer, which gave me an appropriate appreciation for exactly HOW cool that $37 million multi-purpose space really is.
Bumper Cars - Those who got to do it had fun, but the session my daughter went to was so packed that she didn’t get to try it. If you want to do it, go to the morning session.
Cabins - The cabins on Anthem are more spacious that those on the older Royal ships, and they have done away with the attacking shower curtain in favor of glass shower surrounds. There is also more shelf space- we used our over-door shoe holder for shoes instead of bathroom items this time.
Shows - there was something “trippy” about all three of the main shows, which made them very fun. The dancers are fantastic and the singers are all very skilled.
Things we didn’t like:
Most of the group were “classic cruisers” who prefer grand dining rooms, cavernous promenades, and shows after dinner. The separate dining rooms were underwhelming for them and the promenade was not an open center of the ship they were accustomed to. The organization of public spaces on decks 3, 4 and 5 was also a little confusing.
The only show that had problems with getting people in was the performance of “The Gift” that we had reserved. Our second night out was quite bumpy and both The Gift and Spectra’s Cabaret had to be cancelled. Another performance of Spectra was added later in the week for those who had reservations for the cancelled show, but folks who had reservations for The Gift were told to attend the scheduled performance the following evening. Apparently, no one did the math and figured out that this resulted in more reservations than seats in the theater. People ended up standing in the back of the theater to watch the show.
Other events onboard were more difficult to squeeze into. We got into the habit of arriving a full hour early for things like karaoke, Battle of the Sexes, etc because it was the only way to ensure that at least some of us got seats. The worst was Quest- on Anthem, it is held in Two70 which has a little bit of stadium-style seating close to the front but is mostly arranged in conversational niches on various levels. Knowing Quest is popular, we tried to arrive very early. But there was a performance of Spectra’s Cabaret immediately before it, so most of the best seats went to the people who were there for the show and stayed. It was very difficult to participate from the back- not everything was put up on the screen, and there is absolutely no visibility of the floor if you are at the door level. There is a balcony area which offers a better view, but it would be impossible to participate at all from there.
The Music Hall doubles as the night club. This can be problematic for groups that include teens- prior to 11pm, the programming is family friendly (or at least youth-inclusive). But when it becomes the adult nightclub, there is no system to prevent underage guests from staying in the space.
I have always been impressed with the food quality and variety on Royal’s ships, but scaling is an issue here and the food comes off like it’s been prepared en masse. On the whole, our group agreed that the food was disappointing. Shrimp cocktail was a daily offer, and several guests complained that they got shrimp that was still frozen. One exception- almost anything on the menu can be made gluten free and dinner is pre-ordered the evening before. Our gluten free guests received much better service (the head waiter handled them) and seemed much more impressed with their meals. The ship has a separate gluten free kitchen where those meals are prepared. The smaller batch cooking and attention to individual plates led to a better dining experience.
Disembarkation was a two-hour mess of a process. Our “lounge” was in Two70, the path to which criss-crossed the line to get off the ship. The crew was confused about which line people wanted to be in, they made us stand in the disembarkation line to get into Two70 while other people just walked by and nothing was said (even after I explained that we were trying to get to our lounge to get breakfast and tried to follow someone else who was allowed to go ahead). When we got off, there was not enough space allotted for luggage in the assigned areas- our four bags were finally located under three different numbers and the “lost luggage” wall (the tag had been ripped off one of my cases).
The group I was with will not be sailing a Quantum-class ship again. However, I have a friend who is a huge fan of the Anthem. Her experience did not mirror mine, but I think the difference is in the circumstances of our trips. She sailed in May with her husband. We sailed in mid-July with a group of 120. Her sailing was nowhere near capacity, while every cabin on our ship was taken. I think this is the crux of the problems we had- Anthem is not scaled well for her full capacity. Activities that would be split between the night club, Studio B, the Star Lounge and the Royal Theater on a Freedom Class ship are crammed into the Music Hall, Two70 and the Royal Theater with little expansion in seating capacity (and in some cases, it seems less seating than the Freedom Class venues).
A word of caution for those who are prone to motion sickness- the Anthem is tall (15 decks) and skinny (136 ft vs 185 ft for the Independence). This seems to lead to less stability than I’ve experienced on other Royal ships. On the Independence, for instance, we knew the seas were rough if we felt a little wobble now and then. The Anthem rocked constantly, even when the seas looked calm. Also, there was noticeable engine vibration when they would fire up the props to leave port.
Bottom line, Anthem is a beautiful ship that is probably very comfortable in the off-season. It would be great for small groups and adult vacations, but would not be my first choice for a large group.
This is why I go- so you know! Ready to start planning your studio's performance cruise? Submit a PERFORMANCE REQUEST.
Comments