Quantum of the Seas : Royal Caribbean

Some things that I am invited to as a lifestyle and travel blogger are so special, I seriously have to pinch myself. This weekend was just such an occasion.  I had been invited to board to Quantum of the Seas for its pre-inaugural voyage. We would be the first guests to ever test out this new ship that was heralded as the one that changes everything!

Tall Dad (my hubby) and I spent the first two nights experiencing as much as we could of the worlds first smart ship.

This ship really is a game changer.  It takes all of the much-loved Royal Caribbean cruising experiences, extensive dining, fun activities, beautiful rooms and entertainment and moves them on, making the look and total feel of the ship to be much more modern.  However it certainly didn’t reduce the level of service that we received and the friendly and professional staff were (as ever) amazing!

So I wanted to show you my favourite things, Quantum of the Seas has to offer.

The Bionic Bar (powered by Makr Shakr) – The inner geek in me loved this idea, and it really is a cool thing to try out and see in person.  You can choose a cocktail from the many that are preset, by using a tablet. I think in reality, it’s not really about the drink that you receive, it’s just all part of the way entertainment on-board this ship has changed. This combination of the mixology and robotics is still being tweaked, and soon you will be able to order any combination of drink.  Will you be able to say ‘same again please bartender’ soon I wonder?

North Star — I was lucky enough to take a trip on North Star, and it really was crazy, good crazy but still madness.  To be so high up on the Quantum of Seas, and looking down on the ship, it felt like a silent helicopter ride.  It was a smooth ride in the glass capsule as we rose more than 300 feet in the air, the arm then moved to the left and right giving incredible 360-degree views. The views were amazing, I would love to do this again, but when the ship was in port…can you image how cool some coastlines would look from this angle?

This was one of the views down, can you spot Tall Dad?

 

The Views – I think sometimes its easy to forget that even though, your time on the ship can be as fun-filled and busy as you could imagine, it’s so easy to slip away, and just relax and enjoy the view! I think that’s something that always surprises me, even though the ship was I think just over over half its full capacity, it really doesn’t ever feel crowded.

 

RipCord by iFly —  I still can’t believe I was daredevil enough to do this, but I’m a firm believer in trying everything once (eek!) so I had to give it a go.  Now I wasn’t very good, in fact I could not seem to co-ordinate what I knew I should be doing (you are given full instruction and tuition and a funky boiler suit before hand) and what the devil my body was doing.

However I absolutely loved it.  You are first given the opportunity to get the hang of it on your own (I was useless at this bit)  but then the second instructor comes in, to really show you what it would feel like to do a skydive.  Amazing, and I love the huge grin on my face whilst it was happening, not sure that went away for the whole day.

Here are two of my fellow sky divers (and very famous vloggers) to the left Alfie Deyes and to the right Jim Chapman.  They were so lovely!

Well here is the video evidence of the sky dive bit…don’t laugh, well you can, but just don’t tell me.

A home away from home – the rooms were really well-appointed, and I think except the new interconnecting style, I viewed every single type of room available on board, and I was very impressed.  With USB ports, flat screen TV’s, bath and shower rooms and beautiful soft furnishings, they had lovely finishing touches throughout all the styles.  You can really tell that lots of thought has been put into each one.  The room below is an internal stateroom, one of 375 that you will find on board.  It has been fitted with a virtual balcony, another first for Royal Caribbean in cruising.  I’ve got to say, even though I am a huge lover of having a balcony when on a cruise, I would very happily stay in this room and not feel short-changed.

This was the TV/Movie room in one of the loft staterooms, it converts to an additional bedroom if you need it. Plush and modern fixtures and fittings.

This was the dining room of the loft, it had an expansive balcony and amazing view, and two hot tubs….two!

 

The Dining – There is just so much choice on board, it would be impossible to get bored with the food. I was just checking the menus, and they have been tweaked already.  Royal Caribbean have called this expansive way of eating Dynamic Dining. There are 18 different places to eat, 8 of which you would need to pay a little extra for to dine in – this price varies.

We tried two restaurants in the evening, both of which were complimentary restaurants, so a good indication of the quality of food.

Silk, a fusion restaurant, of Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Vietnamese and Indian cooking.

Really flavourful, and I think they may have converted me to tofu…I hate tofu, so I really don’t know how they managed that!

We also tried Chic Restaurant, which served very light and fresh food, in a contemporary style.

The Artwork- There is over $5 million worth of artwork onboard Quantum and it really does make a difference as you explore the ship.  There is always something to stop and take in.  Even the lifts have really fun pieces in.  I loved the 30-foot-tall magenta polar bear on one of the top decks, as well as the huge wall of 210 butterflies named “Crossing” by  Paul Villinski.  I think my favourite was these divers above the pools though.

 

The Entertainment – There was so much entertainment on board, in the day and evening. Some of our favourites, were the live music at the Music Hall. A DJ seamlessly took over later, and it really was the place to dance the night away.

 

I should also mention how much Tall Dad and I loved the 80’s band, the lead singer had a great voice and some funky dance moves! The dodgems and circus skills would definitely be good fun for all the family in the day.

Day and evening I think my favourite place was Two70°— whatever time of the day you visited, I just felt the atmosphere really worked. There was a great bar, and cafe, even a reading area.  It is two/three levels deep, with lots of formal and informal seating. Having a dramatic 270-degree panoramic sea views through vast, floor-to-ceiling glass walls. In the evening it transformed to an area that was filled with drama as we watched the Starwater production.

A huge thank you to Royal Caribbean and all of the people that we met on-board, it was an amazing trip, and I can’t wait to try out Quantum for a summer holiday.  I’m dreaming of the Bahamas, how about you?

Prices start from £768 for a 8 night Bahamas Cruise – Cape Liberty, New Jersey; Port Canaveral, Florida; Nassau, Bahamas; CocoCay, Bahamas; Cape Liberty, New Jersey.