UPDATED APRIL 2024. Here at Get Away Today, we love setting sail to explore the world and Royal Caribbean Cruises are at the top of our must-do list! If you’re ready to see far off locations and tropical destinations, Royal Caribbean Cruise Line and Get Away Today are a great place to start.
When you step aboard a Royal Caribbean cruise, get ready to take the adventure to new heights. No matter where you wander, you’re in for a getaway unlike any other and Get Away Today is here to help!
Image Courtesy of Royal Caribbean
Royal Caribbean Cruise Line’s Vision Class
With more than 30 ships in use or announced, Royal Caribbean Cruises makes sure all your vacation dreams come alive onboard.
Royal Caribbean Cruise Line offers these distinct ship classes including:
- Icon Class
- Quantum Ultra Class
- Quantum Class
- Oasis Class
- Freedom Class
- Voyager Class
- Radiance Class
- Vision Class
- Grandeur of the Seas (1996/2012)
- Rhapsody of the Seas (1997/2012)
- Enchantment of the Seas (1997/2016)
- Vision of the Seas (1998/2013)
Vision Class Rhapsody of the Seas – Rooms
When booking a cruise on the Rhapsody of the Seas, you’ll need to decide on which room type you’d like. Our group had both ocean view and balcony staterooms, which were even more spacious than we had thought.
The ocean view rooms included a large square window along with a small couch, king-size bed and desk area. The king-size bed can also be reconfigured into two double-size beds for friends traveling together.
The window was much bigger than we had expected and was perfect for not only viewing the scenery but letting in that much-needed natural light. These rooms can fit up to four guests and adjoining ones can be requested. They are limited and not always guaranteed, so make sure to book early if you’d like two staterooms connecting.
The balcony stateroom provided even more room, with a larger sitting and desk area as well as the balcony itself. All balcony rooms are on higher deck levels, which means guests are likely to feel the motion of the boat less. This could help guests who are worried about experiencing sea sickness – especially if cruising for the first time.
The balcony was perfect for enjoying a cup of tea as we sailed into each new port, or simply enjoying the sea on sailing days.
Both room types offered plenty of storage, with large closets and plenty of drawer space in the desk, bathroom and side tables. The bathrooms were quite spacious as well, with enough room for a shower, toilet and sink with moderate counter space. The room types also included the normal amenities, such as a flat screen TV, plenty of US plugs and a hairdryer.
Overall, our entire group was impressed with the staterooms on the Rhapsody of the Seas. The stateroom attendants had a large part in that, as they delighted us with towel animal creations and did their best to make sure our rooms were always to our liking.
Image Courtesy of Royal Caribbean
Vision Class Rhapsody of the Seas – Kids Activities
All Royal Caribbean ships have exclusive kid and teen areas. Aboard the Rhapsody of the Seas, The Adventure Ocean is only accessible for those under 17 and is broken into different groups based on children’s ages:
- Aquanauts 3-5 years old
- Explorers 6-8 years old
- Voyagers is for 9-11 years old
- Teens have their own spaces in the Video Arcade and FantaSeas teen club
Vision Class Rhapsody of the Seas Review – Amenities
Amenities were another reason we loved cruising on the Rhapsody of the Seas. The ship has two pools to choose from. The first is the main pool, with several whirlpools and a large movie screen that plays movies nightly. The second is the adults’ only pool in the Solarium.
We loved the Solarium whenever we were looking to relax in the whirlpool or read a book in the sun without too much noise. The Solarium is also where the spa is located, which was another reason why this spot was a favorite for some in our group.
Swimming and the spa weren’t the only activities on-board, though. The Rhapsody of the Seas has an art gallery, plenty of shops, and a casino for those old enough to gamble. Our group spent most of their time in the lounges playing trivia and competing in ping pong tournaments.
The ship even boats a rock wall and holds fun competitions to see who can climb the fastest! We especially enjoyed the daily movie at the Broadway Melodies Theatre, with many being new blockbuster hits. The Broadway Melodies Theatre was also home to nightly shows, which leads us into the entertainment portion of our Rhapsody of the Seas review.
Image Courtesy of Royal Caribbean
Vision Class Rhapsody of the Seas Review – Entertainment
For a smaller ship and crew, the Rhapsody of the Seas did not disappoint with entertainment. The Broadway Melodies Theatre wowed with a different performance each night, ranging from musical spectaculars to comedians and dance competitions. Karaoke, DJs and dancing could be found almost any time of the night at the different lounges throughout the ship.
During the day, we were more than entertained with the game shows and trivia quizzes. Our favorite had to be the energetic dance classes in the Centrum. Live music seemed to always be playing somewhere on the ship and the entertainment crew did a wonderful job of directing us to all the fun.
Even though the ship provided plenty of entertainment, we still found ourselves with nothing to do once or twice a day. This wasn’t because of a lack of entertainment, but because nothing interested our entire group. It’s why we always recommend that cruisers bring a few games with them. While you could cart around a board game, we suggest something easier like a deck of cards or dice games that don’t have too many pieces. They come in handy when you have some downtime!
Vision Class Rhapsody of the Seas Review – Dining
We couldn’t have a Rhapsody of the Seas review without mentioning the food. Our whole group loved dining aboard the Rhapsody of the Seas, although the main dining each night was definitely our favorite.
For casual dining like breakfast and lunch, we could pick from a few options. The most popular, with the longest hours for both lunch and dinner, was the Windjammer Café on the ninth deck. We could always count on the Windjammer Café to have something delicious, since it offered a huge buffet.
The Edelweiss Dining Room also offered breakfast for a few hours in the morning, or you could have a continental breakfast delivered to your stateroom for no charge. Late night foods like pizza and sandwiches were easily found at the Park Café in the Solarium as well.
Dinner on the Rhapsody of the Seas is always held in the Edelweiss Dining Room, with either a late or early time that you choose when booking. This was our favorite part of the dining experience, mainly because of the fantastic waitstaff.
Your server and assistant server stay the same for the entire cruise, which gives you plenty of opportunity to get to know them. The fact that the food was always delicious was simply a bonus!
If you want to try something new, or celebrate a special event, there is specialty dining available for an additional cost on the Rhapsody of the Seas. You can make reservations at Giovanni’s Table, Izumi or Chops Grille. Giovanni’s Table offers Italian fare while Izumi focuses on sushi and Chops Grille specializes in all things steak. We recommend booking in advance online or to get the best prices possible on your Royal Caribbean Cruise.
Vision Class Rhapsody of the Seas – Itineraries & Wrap-Up
The best part about any cruise has to be the itinerary and that was no different on the Rhapsody of the Seas. Since it is a smaller ship, it’s able to access some ports in the Mediterranean that cannot be accessed by the much larger ships.
For example, our cruise began in Venice and stopped at Croatia, Montenegro, Naples and Rome before ending in Barcelona. We met several people on the ship who were staying on the ship for the next adventure; seven days of sailing, a few stops in the Caribbean and finally Tampa, Florida.
The Rhapsody typically sticks to these types of destinations, moving between the Caribbean and Mediterranean once or twice a year. If you haven’t visited the Mediterranean or Caribbean before, you might find a cruise on the Rhapsody of the Seas is the perfect answer. It will help you visit a multitude of locations in one vacation, giving you a taste of destinations that you can come back and explore on your next trip.
We highly recommend planning your cruise as far in advance as you can, since the best cruise rates – and cabin availability – are found then. You may find a few last-minute deals, but the savings are often negated by how high the airfare costs to leave so soon.
For help planning a cruise on the Rhapsody of the Seas, or any of the wonderful Royal Caribbean Cruise ships, let our team of cruise experts help. Our staff has experienced nearly all of the ships, giving them first-hand experience to help you have the best cruise vacation. You can also browse our cruise packages online or give the team a call at 877-510-2929. Whether you’re sailing through the Mediterranean, Caribbean or beyond, we can’t wait to help!
Join the Conversation!
Leave A CommentAnonymousJuly 11 2020
Headed out again...probably 4th or 5th time....we live in Tampa and enjoy all Royal Caribbean Cruises. There is no other Line. For us.
Get Away TodaySeptember 03 2019
Mark- So glad to hear you enjoyed your voyage!
MarkSeptember 03 2019
We went to the west Caribbean in March of 2019. The ship was clean, rooms were roomy and we slept soundly. The food was really great. Entertainment was top notch.
Get Away TodayAugust 08 2019
Owen- You're welcome! Thanks for visiting our article on Rhapsody of the Seas. So glad to hear you like this ship and your time spent cruising on it!
Owen August 07 2019
Thanks for this. I liked this ship even though it’s not super new or fancy. It’s well run. Made the cleanest cruise ship last year....
AnonymousJuly 08 2019
Thank you for the great article We will be saling this ship the end of the month. We fill more prepared now.