Reviewed by: Meg Hill

Cruise Line: Royal Caribbean International

Size of ship and passenger capacity: 167,800 gross tonnes | 4,180 passengers (double occupancy)

Built / Refurbished: Meyer Werft, Papenburg, Germany 2015

Where the ship cruises: Mediterranean, Canary Islands, Bahamas, Caribbean

Currency onboard: US Dollars

Embarkation/disembarkation: As one of three ‘Quantum-class’ ships, Anthem of the Seas features state of the art technology that reveals itself even before embarking the ship. Check-in is conducted in a lounge setting with a personal Royal Caribbean assistant and his/her tablet. After taking our digital photos, our assistant asked us to leave our digital signatures and with that we headed for the ship with our luggage. Not more than 10 minutes and we were onboard and at our cabin door. Awaiting us was a cruise card giving us access to the cabin and our SMART wristbands. Instead of using cruise cards to access the cabin, make purchases, etc all we needed to do was swipe our wristbands.

Main features: Anthem of the Seas, like her sister Quantum of the Seas, boasts an impressive range of ‘firsts at sea’ including a London Eye style viewing capsule that raises over 90m above the sea and offers incredible 360 degree views of the ship and surrounds, a robotic cocktail bar, bumper cars and roller skating in the Seaplex fun zone, and RipCord by iFLY – a vertical sky-diving simulator. Add to that more than 20 dining options including four main, complimentary restaurants serving Asian, an American grill and contemporary international cuisine plus a Jamie’s Italian trattoria by Jamie Oliver, an Alice in Wonderland inspired fine dining experience and a Johnny Rockets American burger bar.

Most suited to: With its vast range of facilities and activities, Anthem of the Seas is particularly ideal for younger couples or families looking for an action-packed holiday. Tweens and teens are especially well catered for with a surf simulator pool, rock climbing wall and the Seaplex fun zone offering circus skill classes, roller skating and bumper cars at different session times, both day and night.

Atmosphere: Anthem of the Seas is a big, bright and contemporary ship that , at times, reminded me of the well-loved Celebrity Solstice that calls Sydney home through our Summer months. The ship features lots of glass, furnishings with quirky yet functional designs and whimsical art installations including a life-size giraffe named ‘Gigi’ wearing a neck to knees swimming costume and swim ring. We always found places on the ship to suit our mood, whether the upbeat Music Hall featuring high quality tribute acts and live music, the lively pool deck or quieter places to escape to, including, surprisingly, the well-stocked library with a great selection of both new releases and classics.

Encounters with service staff: Our captain ran a very happy ship, providing interesting and entertaining updates from the bridge each day. Likewise, the Cruise Director was great value and very visible out and about around the ship. Service staff were always attentive, courteous and willing to help. Our cabin steward created cute towel animals for us each night, staff in the Windjammer Marketplace happily brought us tea in the mornings at breakfast and the Purser’s Desk staff were always very obliging. We especially found the Activities staff in Seaplex and at Flowrider and the iFLY instructors to be extremely friendly and helpful.

Staterooms: We opted for a Superior Oceanview cabin with Balcony. In my opinion there’s nothing quite like having the balcony door open with fresh sea air blowing in and the gentle sounds of the ship moving through the water. Our cabin was very spacious and comfortable for two with ample hanging and drawer space and a comfy couch with oversized cushions in calming blue, green and cream tones. The balcony was large enough for two relaxing deck chairs and the bathroom, though simple, was quite functional and featured a space-saving circular shower and on-trend glass mosaic tiles on the vanity wall.

Dining options: We ate at many of the ship’s dining venues and found the variety and freshness of food to be generally very good. Standouts for us were Jamie’s Italian where the food quality, presentation and level of service were exceptional and Devinly Decadence, a healthy choice restaurant situated within the Adults Only Solarium. At dinner we enjoyed a soup, salad and dessert bar with main courses ordered from an extensive a la carte menu.

Entertainment: The onboard entertainment was very good, headlined by a production of the West End musical, “We Will Rock You”. Another highlight was the ship’s innovative Two70 venue that cleverly combined laser and robotic technology with live performance by aerialists, singers and dancers. We also attended 3D screenings of two new release movies which was lots of fun.

Inclusions: Whilst there is the ability, as on all cruises, to spend lots of extra money onboard, we didn’t find a great need to. Dining at the four main restaurants – Chic, Silk, The Grande and American Icon – is complimentary and offers a diverse range of dining options from one night to the next. There are also several included options for lighter meals and snacks throughout the day. Likewise, activities such as iFLY, Flowrider and the bumper cars are all included, as is the fabulous nightly entertainment.

Exclusions: As you’d expect on most cruises, you will pay extra for dining at some specialty restaurants, some beverages such as soft drinks, alcohol and specialty coffees, shore excursions and spa treatments. That said, Royal Caribbean offer a range of dining packages, well-priced beverage packages and there are spa offers available throughout the cruise.

Self Service Laundry: Like all other Royal Caribbean ships, Anthem of the Seas has no self-service laundry facilities but your cabin steward will be happy to arrange washing, dry cleaning or pressing (for a fee).