1. Children 2. Children 3. Children 4. Children 5. Children - all the fails of Icon! Children pooped in the pool twice in the swim up bar, children threw up in the pools twice in the largest pee pool at sea.
Oh no!! That's horrible! We didn't have many children on our sailing but it was the maiden one so it was more expensive. I can't imagine having such mayhem. Sorry to hear that your cruise had these issues.
@@CruisingKat Don't get me wrong I loved it, it was just soo many children, that we stayed in the adult only areas. Even the bars at night, you would see children sleeping on the coaches, while their parents were at the bar.
I'm glad to hear that it wasn't completely ruined for you. The Hideaway was our favorite area on the ship and we ended up spending most of the time there, and it was without many kids on the ship. I have already had a number of comments on Icon videos talking about too many kids on the ship and I'm wondering what it will be like once school is out. We're already booked on Star next year, but I don't think I'd want to sail this class during school breaks.
@@CruisingKat I think it will change because its marketed towards kids and the first year is a bunch of new cruisers that don't know how to handle their kids on a cruise!
Cruised the Icon the first week this September without kids. Loved every minute of it. Booked specialty dinning before crushing along with excursions. Went to adults only Hideaway Beach on Coco Cay. Stayed out of families way. Except when we saw the Wizard of Oz. That was amazing as well. Would definitely cruise Icon again. 😊
@@char90303 I agree! While this video was about a few things that we did not like on Icon, overall it is an amazing ship and I have another whole longer video with all the great improvements they have made. We are already booked on Star Of The Seas and can’t wait to go!
Very solid points! We didn’t try Chop’s Grille, but from your video the tables look way too jam packed for specialty dining. Definitely think that would take away from our experience.
So glad you had a great cruise! We did too so I started this video with saying that it was an amazing trip. The purpose of the video was to highlight some of the things that some people won’t like. It’s definitely not once size fits all. But I did another video with 9 big improvements on Icon that made it worth the price. Just trying to be objective 🙂
I didn’t take her comments as negative. Mostly positive and complimentary with some constructive criticism. The whole concept of the “Infinite Balcony” was horrible to begin with. What’s next? A Virtual Balcony for Inside Rooms that can blow hot air in your face to enhance the illusion?
Don’t think they are trying to “put anyone off” these channels (and I watch a lot of different ones) just go over pros and cons so people can make informed decisions when booking. What you loved, others might hate. We just booked Carnival Celebration, but honestly, we have our doubts that we are going to like it, but we had a good discount and a big on board credit, so we figured we would give it a try
I 100% agree that some things may be a pro for one person and a con for another. That's why I think it's important to go over them so that people can decide for themselves if this class ship is for them or not.
I love Oasis class ships - mainly Symphony of the Seas - until the prices come down - no thanks - we'll stay on Oasis or Celebrity ships. And how do you book the specialty restaurants ahead of your cruise? As of our January sailing on Symphony, we had to wait until we boarded....
We came to the same conclusion. We'll stick to Oasis class as our main choice for now. Royal Caribbean usually opens dining reservations 90 days before sailing and closes them 3 days before the cruise. However, sometimes, they have glitches in the system. We are sailing on Utopia in 4 weeks and have 2 reservations. Both of them are somehow glitching so we cannot reserve anything - not dining, not internet, nothing! All our "reserve" buttons are greyed out and even when I called RCCL, the reps couldn't book things for us either. At the same time, in our FB group, people are booking things right and left. So it's possible that your reservation for Symphony had a similar glitch. Thankfully, they always leave things open for booking on-board so you can still do it but it ends up costing more.
Great info. We have friends wanting us to join them for a voyage on either Icon, or Star when it launches… while a ship that large is very cool from a tech and engineering perspective, it will be a hard pass for us. Too many people and too many kids. We did take one trip on Harmony and it was ok, but it was borderline too many people so I’m pretty sure the Icon class would not work for us.
@@rtw67intx Yes, if Harmony was borderline for you, Icon class will probably be over the top. It’s designed to have the feel of an amusement park so if that’s not your preferred style of cruising, you have better choices out there.
Hello, generally on 7-night cruises, on what night number is dinner with the captain? I would like to know in order to reserve the other restaurants on the other available days. Thankyou
@@MargaritaArmienta It’s going to vary between cruise lines, but on Royal Caribbean, on a seven day cruise, it’s usually night two and night six. Keep in mind that the Captain usually does not appear at those dinners any longer. But it’s still a nice dressier night with great food. Also, you should be able to check the theme for every day of the ceiling in the cruise ship app before you book the reservations for other dining. For Royal Caribbean, you would need to look in the mobile app, as their desktop website browser does not show the daily themes.
I never do the theme nights with Royal. I kinda hate partying on promenade. I prefer the venues and lido deck. A one hit wonder night, I actually might go to.
The one hit wonder was a fun party. They did it on Utopia too so well hope they add it to more ships. It’s fun to reminisce and listen to all those songs that were so big over the decades 😁
I very much enjoyed your video and you gained a new subscriber. We love the 70s and 80s shows the most by far on every Royal cruise we go on. We would be very sad to see it go away. We have not sailed on the Icon yet but we will be spending two weeks on the Symphony this summer. Good luckwith your channel. Wishing you all the best.
Thank you so much! The great news is that one of the commenters on this video said that they have now started the 70s night. That's always the most packed party on any Royal cruise we've been on. Symphony should definitely have it. We're sailing on Harmony next week and we've got our 70s outfits ready!
@@riyanair1042 It can be anywhere from a couple of months out to the day that you’re getting on the ship. It will depend on how fast that specific sailing is selling and how many people bid on Royal Up to upgrade their cabins. Enjoy your cruise!
We got ocean view. It doesn’t seem to bad because a regular balcony has bugs and dust on the chairs and tables while when the chairs are indoors it’s not dusty and there are no bugs
How exciting! I'm jealous (in a good way). Unfortunately, I've never seen the number of passengers published anywhere. When you get on board, you can ask the customer service and they can tell you. However, even with a lot of people on the ship, there are so many places for everybody to disperse that you can always find quieter areas if you want to. Also, even though this video was covering a few things we didn't care for on our cruise, I made it to be objective and present all sides. At the same time, I made another video about the amazing improvements they had on Icon - th-cam.com/video/zjpJqsZFOs8/w-d-xo.html. Overall, this ship is amazing and it has something for everyone. Have an amazing cruise!!
@@bradchin7746 No, icon is the highest class right now. Sorry that you had a bad experience with food. We find that food quality really depends on the actual cooks so being the largest and newest ship doesn’t guarantee best food. In fact, we’ve had some of the better food on smaller ships. It’s extremely hard to cook for thousands of people every night, so on smaller ships cooks are not as overwhelmed and you often get better service because of better staff to passenger ratio.
@@CruisingKat that make sense. There was a lot of inconsistency: overcooked to over salted. But it was also disappointing that they would serve lobster tail that already went bad at the main dining room(our family is in the food industry). That is good to know smaller ships can have better food.
@@bradchin7746 If you’re in the food industry, then you’re definitely a more discerning customer than an average cruiser. I don’t know if you tried any specialty dining but if not, that may be something to try on the next cruise. On Icon, the specialty dining restaurants were not as good as many that we had on smaller class ships.
Also Chops has been serving the same thing for two decades. While the steaks are prepared well, they need to upgrade their offerings. The sides could be upgraded as well.
Having been on several RCL ships, I am kind of glad they are updating some of the entertainment. I get some love 70s parties but they have to dable with some more modern musical decades. Offer a mix indeed.
Their “One Hit Wonder” party was pretty good. It had music all the way from the 70s to the 2000s and pretty much all the songs they played were very well-known.
I wouldn't mind them having the same theme nights or something new, just LET US KNOW. We always feel we are guessing on what to bring for attire. When you fly to the destination you can't bring the whole wardrobe. The Wonder won't have the same nights as the Radiance. I learned to look for itineraries online, but they are not always available when you sail on the "Shoulder" cruises.
I have never booked a guaranteed balcony. I always book an ocean view balcony. When I was working for a travel agency I was the artist coordinator and we were short on cabins so I took a Promenade balcony but probably wouldn't do again because it was a little noisy late evening at night time. I'm on Symphony of the Sea, and my girlfriend has booked a Boardwalk balcony for her and her twins, but I have an ocean view balcony as usual. I don't see the icon of the sea in the future for me until it come to Bayonne, NJ. I do not like to fly to board the ship because I overpack. I love your lamp. I have one similar to yours in my bedroom and living room, and I think they add elegance to you're a backdrop. Happy sailing🎉
Thank you for the compliment on the lamp. I was actually wondering if it was too distracting. 😊 We are currently on Harmony of the seas, Symphony’s sister, in an ocean view balcony cabin and loving it so much more than that infinite balcony silliness 😂 Sitting out on the balcony, watching the ocean waves, feeling the breeze as I’m typing this… I will definitely stick to stick to oceanview balconies from now on. Hope you’re enjoying your cruise!
Those infinite balconies seem like a terrible design idea. It seems like whoever was in charge of implementing them, had no clue how a ship actually functions... and they were like, "Here, open this giant window and allow all your air-conditioned air to escape to the atmosphere, while bringing in all 95 degrees/ 99% humidity air into your cabin, while we sail in the middle of the Caribbean Sea!!" 😁😁 *BRILLIANT!*
I agree! We're on Harmony in a regular balcony right now in Cozumel. It's close to 100 degrees outside and it's blistering hot. I could not imagine opening that infinite "balcony" even for a short time.
@@suave-rider , yes, we actually do. Even in the Caribbean, no matter how hot it is during the day, the evening is usually cool enough to enjoy the balcony. We just returned from a weeklong Harmony sailing in a regular balcony and it solidified our decision. It was so much nicer to have the use of a balcony.
I stayed in the Promenade rooms on a Royal Caribbean ship. It’s noisy in the evening when They did the party show up to 12 midnight. Better to not stay there. No wonder it’s as cheap as the inside rooms.
I agree. We've stayed in the Promenade room once on Oasis class ship and it was noisy there too. Of course, you get the tradeoff of having something to look at but I prefer quiet rooms when you are trying to rest.
I did the Infinite balcony for Central Park on the 4/13-4/20 itinerary. I was quite pleased with the comfort level of my stay. My only call out is more security at the basketball court and every room should be providing gratuity if it's auto or cash in hand.
Glad to hear you liked the infinite balcony! Most people commenting did not so I'm hoping there are enough people who like them. What happened on the basketball court?
@@Señor_Barba Despite these few things, Icon is still an amazing ship! The improvements on it definitely outweigh these cons. I made another video on this channel about the improvements we loved. It looks like more people are interested in the cons so this video got a lot more views. 😂
That's not a balcony! That's a window! We've never cruised with RCCL - we definitely want to give them a try. You made some great points here. Cheers 🍻
@@tandy101 No, the windows/balconies are chest height for an average adult so even if even if a person is dizzy/tipsy/dare I say, had much to drink, they are not going to fall out of them. Obviously, children should be watched at all times, because they may want to climb, but you still never hear of children falling over cruise balconies either.
I just got off the Icon a week ago and they had the 70s disco party and the one hit wonder party.. sorry you didn’t get to experience both like we did.. and the had an all white laser light dance party for families. They even introduced a new game show for the first time on any of there ships called truth and consequences.
Hey, have just found your channel - hello from your newest subscriber! It's interesting how many 'controversial cabins' exist on Icon - I thought the same with the newest Celebrity ships - a real movement in the industry!
I'm loving reading all the comments and I keep wondering how they decided on this movement. So far, majority of the commenters do not like these new types of cabins. Some do, of course, so it will be interesting to see how the cruise lines will proceed.
I don’t know how you didn’t know about the balconies and locations it was on all correspondence and videos I saw of the ship before it sailed. If you want a certain location then you purchase a specific room at that location. I don’t think it’s fair to list that as a ship con when you have a choice. Also inaugural sailings never have all activities and shows available. You sail on an inaugural to be the first onboard but everything is never available
Thank you for the reply. You're correct, we definitely had a choice. I knew about the infinite balconies and, as I mentioned in the video, we actually wanted to try it out to see what it's about. The main point I was tying to make is that most of Royal Caribbean's marketing is pushing this class cabin as the best thing since sliced bread. These cabins are priced at the balcony level (with the regular balconies being another thousand dollars or so per person - pushing them into a "suite" price range). Also, with more than half of the balconies on Icon class ships being this infinite category, a person who is not familiar with it would think it's a big improvement over regular balconies and then they may end up being disappointed after paying so much for their cruise. So my main goal is to alert others to do thorough research on this topic. Just because RCCL says these cabins are the best, it doesn't mean they will be best for everybody. But some people do love them. 100% agree on the inaugural sailing point. I was happy to hear that they started the traditional themes that we love on cruises and they were just not ready yet. I was hoping they weren't throwing everything away that many cruisers love.
Are inaugural cruises a crap shoot? Never wanted to do one because of the newness of the ship and not all of the staff are completely familiar with the layout. Here you have the Icon. HUGE.
@@downtovacay yes, inaugural cruises have a certain number of issues. We enjoyed ours but you do end up paying more for less. For example, the water show is incredible on Icon and I was really looking forward to it but we only got to see half of it because the performers weren’t ready. Staff was amazing and bent over backwards and I make us feel special though. We’re booked for Utopia and Star but I just can’t see a reason to pay so much more for the inaugural sailing so we’re booked both after a month or so of them launching.
The infinite verandas are not new for Royal Caribbean Group since they have had them for awhile on Celebrity ships but I’m glad they are finally on RCCL. This ship has already lost power or had some similar maintenance issue 3 TIMES in less than its first year.
@@Cruisetravelers Yes, they had them on Celebrity. I haven’t sailed in an infinite veranda on Celebrity, but from videos I watched, they have a hard partition between the balcony and the cabin, which I feel is a lot better design than a thin curtain that really doesn’t do anything. I agree, so sad to hear about all the maintenance issues they’re having.
Oh the boat sailed only 2/3 full! This is a critical fact you revealed in the middle of the video. Everything good you said must be significantly discounted. At a certain level crowds become unbearable, and that level might be just a little higher than the number they allowed on the inaugural cruise.
Yes, I agree. It appears that many people are experiencing more crowds now and many are commenting about too many kids on the ship (which we didn’t have many of on our cruise).
With respect to Giovani’s table, it dated and I found the food offered was boring. They need to upgrade their menu, a spaghetti and meatballs with marinara or meat sauce would be nice. Also a wood fired pizza would be a plus. The pizza in the buffeteria is adequate but it’s certainly not high end.
The infinite balcony is one of the biggest mistake in the cruise industry. I have yet to read one review where someone said "Oh we loved this!!". A ship like the Icon that is pretty much dedicated to the Caribbean agenda where it gets ridiculously hot, the infinite balcony is a horrible idea!! Open it and bye bye AC!! Plus, the AC shuts down when you open it so getting the room cool again takes hours. RCI and the rest of the lines that opted for these are going to regret it in the long run.
I just left this exact comment. LOL. Terrible terrible design. I like how they have the "Save the Waves" program and want you to re-use your bath towel to save a quart of water..... meanwhile, they pump thousands of dollars worth of A/C into the 90 degree Caribbean atmosphere. Make it make sense!!
@@el_covfefe I don't know too many people that sit on their "regular" balcony with the door open, and then complain that their cabin got too hot/humid because all the A/C went out. At least in that scenario, you have a choice to sit out in the hot OR stay in the cold A/C without having to then wait hours? for the cabin to then cool back down. Plus, the cruise line tells you to "Save Resources" by re-using your bath towel, but then they are essentially air conditioning the entire world with their terrible design with their 1000s of these new "innovative" infinite balcony cabins.
@@el_covfefe A plus for a regular balcony is I can close the door and keep my AC going while outside. So can I also count my regular balcony space as usable cabin space?
My wife and I have sailed on all of the oasis class ships and I must say we love the icon we get unlimited dining package every time we sell . We had absolutely zero problems setting up reservations. the morning We boarded at any of the specialty venues we love infinity veranda. We would love to get back one icon however the prices are just out of control. we’re going to try Celebrity for a change.
That's good to hear that you didn't have problems with dining reservations. Hopefully, they fixed it since our cruise. I'm trying out Celebrity in a few months too. It's nice to have our Diamond status carry over there!
Enjoy your cruise! We were looking at Mediterranean on Odyssey next year but they are only doing 7 day itineraries in 2025. I think the 12-day is a lot better.
I took that cruise 2 weeks ago and the theme nights they did have but there was no event for the 70"s and white party but we still had a good time. Oh and yes Chop Grill was a little tight but the food was GREAT!
I just came off ICOn and it was ICONIC!! OMG so Awesome..from my room to the food and impeccable service....Im been on numerous ships which I had a good cruise to a bad cruise..Nothing compares to the ICON!!! CANT wait to try UTOPIA OF THE SEAS!!!
I agree! Even though the purpose of this video was to point out some things we didn't like on the cruise (just to be objective), it was still the best cruise we've ever taken. I did another video going over the 9 biggest improvements on Icon that I think took it to the next level - th-cam.com/video/zjpJqsZFOs8/w-d-xo.html. We're looking forward to Utopia too!
Surfside is not noisy at all. After 8pm it's quite dead. They do silent party there one night so cant hear what they're listening to anyways. Around 10pm you might see couple people with their kids who might like playing the slides at night or just trying to tire them out to sleep. During the day, nobody really hangs out their balcony. I saw maybe 5 people just to take pics. Also it has partial ocean view at the back of the ship from Surfside.
If you don’t want to cruise with a lot of children, sail with Virgin, Cunard, Holland, Viking, Ritz Carlton, Regent Seven Seas. Why would you sail on a ship built for families and complain about kids being on it?!?! That’s like buying a motorcycle and confused as to why you got wet while riding in a rain storm.
I actually don’t mind having a lot of kids on a ship, but many people do so it’s an important factor to consider. With that said, the surface neighborhood cabins are positioned around the kids splash area and playground. Again, it may not be a big deal for some people, but I wouldn’t want to pay this much for a balcony cabin and spend a week listening to the playground sounds instead of the ocean. Just trying to highlight things to think about.
I had a great time on the cruise… but it’s a family cruise. I still prefer the Oasis Class. Inaugural cruises have their own problems. Our sailing in November had no cancellations… just too many kids. It s a new ship… the price will go down in 2 years… as usual.
Thank you for the update. I keep hearing more and more comments that there are now too many kids on this ship. I guess, that's what the ship is designed for so if someone wants a nice quiet vacation, it's definitely a reason to stay away! I'm glad you enjoyed your sailing. We really did too. I just felt that these things were important to mention since it's not a cheap cruise and people need to know this going in.
@@Deepinjersey1 I’m guessing this really depends on each person‘s taste. We’re not foodies, so Royal Caribbean specialty dining restaurants are enjoyable for us. They still vary a lot from ship to ship and we’ve had some very good experiences and some that were mediocre. But I can see how if somebody is used to high end restaurants with exquisite cooking, these wouldn’t seem that nice.
We loved our cruise too! I did this video to be objective but I also made another video about 9 huge improvements on Icon that we absolutely loved - th-cam.com/video/0P8L0pVsEiM/w-d-xo.html. We're already booked on Star of the Seas next year and can't wait to go! 😊
@@CruisingKat i’m following the Star of the Seas as well, If my health will let me cruise again. On the Icon I had to use one of those mobility scooters cause I can’t walk any distance, but it all worked out well. Plus my sons were there to help me, couldn’t do it without them.
I think that this is one aspect of Icon that was better - there is a lot more space for scooters to get around. The elevator system with the large hall for waiting is a game changer vs. older ships where people with scooters struggle to get into an elevator. If you decide to sail on Star, we have a lot of discount group rate prices blocked for about 20 sailings. Feel free to check them out - cruiseandtravelnetwork.com/. These are not "group" cruises in a sense that you have to hang out with people in the group. We just blocked a lot of space to pass on savings to anybody who wants to sail on it.
Children usually have a bed time so I would think it gets quiet at an earlier time than a cabin near the theater venues or adult dining and dance areas.
Yes! That would absolutely be the case and a great reason to avoid being near, underneath or above those areas. While my kids were raised on a rather strict bed time schedule, many others don't follow that parenting style so you can still have little kids playing in that area at 10 - 11 pm (when my kids would have been asleep a long time ago.) Granted, it's a lot quieter than during the day when Surfside is a very loud playground. So the point is, if you like peace and quiet (like we do), learn which area to avoid so you can enjoy your time on the ship. If loud noise environment is your thing, then none of those areas would bother you. 🙂
Oasis class is still my favorite. They did a lot of stupid things when they made this ship to turn me off: 1)the infinite "balcony" rooms that are just oversized windows and shuts off your a/c when it's down. 2) taking away the boardwalk and turning it into a kid's playground and relocating the aqua show with less seating. 3) less storage space in the cabins. Baskets in open spaces instead of drawers, less closet space too. 4) the set up of the junior suites. If you open up the sofa bed, it's right on top of the regular bed facing the outside. Less walking space compared to the same room on Oasis class ships. 5) no inside separate adults only solarium; the Icon just has a smaller outdoor area in the bad of the ship, not enclosed 6) the entrance and exit to the teen club is right in Playmakers
Personally I think activities need to vary ship by ship. I would hate to go on a new ship and have repeat experiences, for me it's all about something New...so RCI going away from traditional shows. The maiden voyage was during school time, so makes sense that they had reduced capacity, I went during spring break and it was to full capacity.
I get that these titles are clickbait. It should have been, "5 Reasons you might want to stay away". Great ship if you can afford it. We were on it last month, going back soon. Thanks for the vid.
Thank you for watching and the feedback. 😁. We loved it and I did another video about the biggest improvements we saw on Icon. We’re on Harmony right now and, oh how we miss those elevators!! 😂
The bigger cruise ships get, the more impersonal they become. You have to pre book everything otherwise you won’t be able to get seating in restaurants or shows. The services also become more sporadic, some are good, some are so so. We sailed on Ovation of the Seas and while we enjoyed our cruise overall, there were times we wished for better. That being said, I don’t know if traveling on Icon would be for me. I guess, it all depends what you’re looking to get out of the trip and of course your age group.
I completely agree. That’s why we like to sail on different class ships depending on the circumstances. I’m on Brilliance of the Seas right now, which is the second smallest ship in Royal Caribbean lineup. Very different experience from Icon.
I'm sure you'll love it! Our Icon cruise was absolutely amazing and I did another video on 9 best improvements that we saw on this ship - th-cam.com/video/zjpJqsZFOs8/w-d-xo.html. The water park was one of them. You really don't have to get off the ship to have something to do all week. This specific video was just to be objective and show some of the things that we thought weren't as good and many people have commented since it came out that they noticed them too. Overall, though, it's a great ship!
Royal needs a ship for adults only. It would be maxed out every sailing. Not the swingers kind. Kids are 💩 ing and peeing in the hot tubs, pools. Running unsupervised even in the main dining room
😂 That might be wishful thinking, lol. I think there are plenty of people that will still love this class ship. We actually did and I did another video about 9 huge improvements that we absolutely loved on this ship - th-cam.com/video/zjpJqsZFOs8/w-d-xo.html. I think it's important to know the pros and cons because I'd hate for people to make a wrong choice at this price point.
Just because you didn’t like some aspect of the ship, doesn’t mean others won’t. I hate it when people try to detour people away based on opinion. Overall the reviews for the ship have been outstanding.
@@darianwilliams3452 I agree. I started this video with saying that it was an amazing cruise and we absolutely loved it. I also mentioned that I have another video of nine top big improvements on Icon that made a big difference. That video is here on my channel - th-cam.com/video/zjpJqsZFOs8/w-d-xo.htmlsi=boofJMz_cdkqnouX. I want to be objective for everything I review so, in this video, I went over a few things that were not the best and since then, I’ve heard many people comment that they are bothered by some of these things. However, I am definitely not detouring anybody from Icon because I think it’s a great ship. It’s more about covering all aspects.
@@CruisingKat Another benefit of Windstar is that the cruise line does not believe in sea days. On MOST seven day cruises, you stop at six ports. I am just a lowly budget cruiser who scours for deals all over the internet so Windstar is a little out of my price range. (G)
What's behind the prices, of Not only the " ICON" Class ships, but a good majoriry of the fleet, is Royal Caribbean expects YOU, the cruising public, to help pay to pay to retire their massive billion dollar debt, which they put on themselves. TheOasis class,is where they should have stopped. I go on a cruise to relax, not go to be surrounded by 6,500 people, like an amusement park. The Icon class ships will be a long term fail for them. As you mentioned, your sailing was about 700 passengers below capacity, and that will surely remain that way, with these egregious prices. Those, who just HAVE TO book a cruise on a brand new ship, are like the fools that the cell phone companies target, each year with a new cell offering. No need to do that! And, what happened to that new smaller " DiscoveryClass" of ships they announced late in 2023?
I'm definitely more excited about the discovery ships. Because mega big ships are so limited to what ports they can go to. If they want to fill the ship more, maybe offer more casino comps for icon. It was restricted again this year when redeeming my annual cruise benefit.
Yes, I'm waiting for that new class too! Freedom has been our favorite for a long time. When Oasis class came out, we felt that it was too big so we mostly sailed on Freedom class. But those ships are getting older too. I hope they have some smaller new ships soon for those quiet relaxing vacations.
We were tied up next to Icon at CocoCay, and the design Did Not make me want to get on. As for the picture window, had one on Apex, "Never Again", Biggest joke ever. I am loyal to royal but see no reason for getting on Icon or any ship in that group.
The thought of 7000 people disgorging from the Icon is disconcerting. Also the base price for this boat is beyond my income level. Sadly I’ll never sail on the Icon.
Interesting point. We don't usually eat dinner in Windjammer so I didn't notice that. Was it crowded for dinner there or was is still enough room for everybody?
@@CruisingKat To answer your question they eventually allowed people to sit on the other side, but the buffet cases were empty, so it was a bit overcrowded getting food. Logistically I get it - they have to staff every single restaurant onboard but still believe they should have both sides open. Windjammer is no longer chicken fingers and burgers!
I agree. From what I'm hearing, they are sailing with more people than our cruise was. The staff was telling us that they kept it lower for the first month while they are working out the kinks. It didn't feel crowded at all, which is the opposite of what I'm hearing a lot now from people sailing in the last couple of months. Summertime will probably be even more packed.
Royal has a challenge. A lot of its clients are set in their ways and don't like any change But Royal really has to push its programming forward beyond the same old hackneyed routines that its done for 20 years The 70s party has outlived its useful life. Same exact songs. Same routines. Same order. Meanwhile its more hip competitors like Virgin Voyages and Carnival keep things contemporary and evolving They really need to rethink their staffing in entertainment so things dont continue to get stale led by people largely reared outside the US. They said they want to attract younger crowd with small kids. The same old I Will Survive and Love Train isnt going to cut it
Very good point! I'm all for adding new entertainment options. You're right, the 70s theme caters to older people (like me, lol). Hopefully, they can come up with good quality options for the younger demographic.
They need to do better entertainment. I was on icon of the seas in July and I was so disappointed. There was no parties and you didn’t get to meet the captain. The cruise director was boring as well. It pretty much sucked . Music was awful too on the main pool area. They kept putting the same music. Extremely disappointed and I had a better time on WONDER OF THE SEA.
@@Rose-b3x9b Sorry to hear that you didn’t enjoy the entertainment. We liked the water show and The Wizard of Oz. I agree that the cruise director was boring. You would think they would choose a really good one for the biggest ship in the world!
@@CruisingKat yes the shows were good. But I felt it was a quiet ship this time. The people I met on the ship said the same thing. It wasn’t alive like the other cruises we have taken. They had these entertainment dancers in the lobby that I felt they should have not been used. I am just disappointed
But to all the people complaining that it's a virtual chaos. The ship carries 10,000 people! What do you all expect?😳 It would be like me complaining how chaotic the aircraft carrier that the Navy asigned me to work on. Unless you have the ability to buy your own cruise ship, you are all pretty much stuck with what's available out there. I've been cruising with RCL and they have their ups and downs, but I really don't complain much about the best they could offer for what I could afford to pay them.
I think your title of STAY AWAY FROM THE ICON is a very poor choice. The issues you have with room type and location are alleviated by picking the correct type of room you want. While I agree noise from the neighborhood can be a detriment, I simply would find another or not book at all. It's not necessarily a bad thing, just something you don't like personally. I don't do specialty dining, so no comment. As far as the activities, I stayed busy the entire 7 days, enjoying old things and new. I figure with a new class of ship, might as well have a new class of activities. Price? No argument here, but for what I paid for my cruise I felt that I got at the least my money's worth. Simply put, do your own research, ensure you are aware of the plusses and pitfalls of certain rooms and locations, BOOK DINING ETC EARLY, enjoy the activities that you can, and don't overpay if you feel the price is not worth it. It is an incredible ship, Don't stay away, just research, plan and prepare early.
Thank you for the reply. I actually agree with you on all these points, which is why I started this video with the fact that this was an absolutely amazing cruise. I have another video where I went over 9 big improvements that we saw on Icon Of The Seas and why I think this class ship is in another league. With that said, I read so many reviews, forum posts and social media comments from people that really don't like the ship (and I'm only referring to the ones that actually sailed on it, not the ones that keep comparing it to Titanic or silly things like that). I do see a number of things that, for some people, are not going to be good. Mostly, for those who want a quiet relaxing vacation with fine dining included and not many kids around, this is not going to be the best choice for them. So the goal of this video was to highlight the things we didn't like on the ship because we are trying to be objective. Some of the comments I received on other videos were describing how they hated their Icon cruise for the same reasons I outlined in this video. In the end, every ship will have its pros and cons, which is the reason for the two videos to go over both. Again, I appreciate your feedback!
@@davee8113 I keep hearing about the crowds more and more. That’s so sad because the ship itself is so amazing but many people are not enjoying it because of the crowds.
Ha ha. Good catch! Maybe “late into the evening” would be a better choice of words. But there were definitely kids playing there at 9 and 10 pm, when I would expect it to be quiet outside my normal balcony.
@@Eliminator5555 True. Some things like Caribbean or White nights are easy to fit in instead of the regular clothes. We didn’t use to do it at first, but got into the theme nights as we cruised more. Just another thing that makes cruising different from land vacations! 😁
Food will always b good on a new ship..well,not MSC.. Im not a fan of the new balcony stateroom w motorized window..they were 1st done by celebrity on Edge Class several yrs ago..ac stops when open. Royals shows always good id like to have same shows,parties across fleet..but thats just me..
Thank you for the reply. I’ve never been on Celebrity, but from watching videos, I saw that it has a hard partition with sliding / folding doors to close off the balcony area. At least that would help with air a little. But Icon only has curtains so they don’t do anything to keep the cool air in. I’m with you regarding the shows.
Unfortunately, that’s most of the current ships out there right now. Have you done river cruising before? That’s on my to-do list. A lot smaller and relaxing.
Im sorry but just because you didn’t care for something doesn’t mean other people should stay away from it the title is a bit misleading and definitely Doesn’t match the positive statements you occasionally made I would have just posted the original video you had of good and bad opinions. Unfortunately most people just are happy to be on a cruise to be honest these are very small critiques your free to give whatever opinion you want but this was more your personal preferences and like people have already stated “are not a reason to stay away from the ship” definitely reconsider how you title this.
Thank you for the feedback. I originally planned to do a pros and cons of Icon video but it ended up being too long so I broke up the topic into 2 videos and released them one after another. The first one was about 9 upgrades that we loved - th-cam.com/video/zjpJqsZFOs8/w-d-xo.html, and the second one is this video about 5 things that we thought were not good. We did love our cruise on Icon, but there are so many people that absolutely hate it for one or more reasons stated in this video. There are many comments on this video saying they'll never go on it again. So for those people, these factors would be true reasons to stay away from this ship. I feel that it's important to outline all the pros and cons so that each person can decide if those factors are important enough for them or not and it will really depend on each person.
@@downtovacay definitely, it’s pitch black in there, lol. It’s a good cabin choice on a cruise with few sea days when you don’t spend much time in your cabin anyway.
REASON NUMBER ONE TO STAY AWAY.... THE PRICES FOR THE CRUISES ARE OFF THE HOOK EXPENSIVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Infinite balcony staterooms were introduced on Celebrity's newest ships.
They have designated smoking areas on the top deck near the pool and you can also smoke in the casino. They specifically ban smoking on your balcony and it can get people kicked off the ship.
Thank you for watching. 🙂 You are correct, I chose this cabin and I'm glad I got to try it out. The goal of the video is not really to complain but to go over some points on a brand new ship to help others make a choice that will work best for them.
That's correct! We wanted to experience the excitement of the inaugural cruise and were actually able to save by finding a great deal, but either way, it was more expensive than any cruise we've ever taken.
I would never book this ship too many kids way too many kids it’s built for kids. Why would I adult go on this? It’s like going on a Disney ship even worse does not feel to me at all, bro Caribbean. You’ve been my cruise line since I started cruising, but this is a definitely strike out
Just cruise Icon, it broke while we were on it….and after cruising on 20 cruises I have to say Icon was the worst cruise we have ever been on. It sucked on every category….. For being such a big boat, the layout sucked, the pools were the smallest pools I’ve ever seen, and there was no entertainment, the shows were a joke, and even the aqua show was lacking. Stay away from Icon.
@@MoombaMakai So sorry to hear about your experience. It was big news that they cancelled the sailing that was supposed to go out today. Very sad that your cruise was impacted and that so many people had their vacation plans got ruined last minute.
When I have watched online videos of Icon. To me it just looks a lot more cluttered. At least on an oasis class ship, things are more spread out. And you don't have as many decks between other decks. Icon, I feel they needed to fill every piece of empty space. Sometimes having some empty space is a good thing so I don't feel like I'm sitting on top of other people. Plus the itineraries are basically the same on Icon as they are with the oasis class ships because at many of the carribean ports, large ships cannot dock and it would be chaotic of they did a tender port.
I agree that some areas felt more cluttered, while others (like the pool deck and promenade) felt more spacious. I think it would really depend on where you spend most of your time on the ship. We loved the Hideaway on the back of the ship and there was always plenty of comfortable seating and gorgeous views. At the same time, there were only 5,000 passengers on board for the inaugural cruise so this may change with a full sailing.
@@CruisingKat Inaugural is the first sailing so issues can happen when it's the first time for both the crew and ship carrying lots of passengers. The prices seemed to be insane. Another thing I forgot to mention is while I like that the newer ships have more amenities and actually have working air conditioning. There ports are so limited. At least the smaller to medium sized ships can stop at different ports. The large Oasis Class Ships and Icon all seem to have the same itineraries. Lack of diversity of port stops.
Yes, very good point. On our Icon sailing, we didn't even get off the ship except for CocoCay. Same ports, been there... done that. The ship becomes the destination at that point. Plus, with most people gone, you can really enjoy the ship's amenities a lot more. But that won't stop us from continuing to cruise on smaller ships to get to more interesting ports.
@@Determination212 I priced the Icon for 2025 and still the same $6500. We won't be sailing on it again because of that very reason. One of the biggest and best, but just too many kids and not enough quiet space for adults. Cloud 17 is supposed to be adults only but still had kids in the area. Not good.
After the way RC treated us on our last cruise, never again. It is clear the RC does not care about their customers and will jerk them around at their convenience.
Oh no! So sorry to hear about your experience. We have cruised on most major cruise lines and have usually had excellent service from Royal Caribbean (compared to many others). But, I'm sure, customer service is only as good as the actual person you're communicating with. It's unfortunate that you had such a bad experience.
I understand your point. Obviously, everybody has different levels of income and we've gone through financial hard times like many people. I would not consider us rich (other than living in the US, which makes us all rich in comparison to the rest of the world). Statistics say that an average US household spends anywhere from $3,000-$5,000 per year eating out in restaurants. Our family doesn't. We cook all our meals from scratch, grow a lot of the food we eat, and rarely use pre-packaged foods or junk food. This amount alone is enough to go on 2-3 weeklong cruises per year. We don't spend money on going to the movies or buying many clothes. We drive 10 year old cars and just don't spend much money outside of bills and basic necessities. So we're just using the money that average Americans spend on daily lives and choose to go cruising instead. Many people would find our regular lives boring and would not want to stop eating out or spend money for entertainment. The beauty of it is that everybody can choose what's important to them.
Exactly. I think, for many people, that's the right answer. We did enjoy our Icon cruise and I did another video about 9 huge improvements we saw. So for many other people, it's a good choice. That's the reason I did these two videos. I don't think it's once-size-fits-all like many ships are.
Royal hinted that they are planning a smaller Discovery class ship about a year ago. They haven't announced anything since then. We're all hoping for it to come soon!
1. Children 2. Children 3. Children 4. Children 5. Children - all the fails of Icon! Children pooped in the pool twice in the swim up bar, children threw up in the pools twice in the largest pee pool at sea.
Oh no!! That's horrible! We didn't have many children on our sailing but it was the maiden one so it was more expensive. I can't imagine having such mayhem. Sorry to hear that your cruise had these issues.
@@CruisingKat Don't get me wrong I loved it, it was just soo many children, that we stayed in the adult only areas. Even the bars at night, you would see children sleeping on the coaches, while their parents were at the bar.
I'm glad to hear that it wasn't completely ruined for you. The Hideaway was our favorite area on the ship and we ended up spending most of the time there, and it was without many kids on the ship. I have already had a number of comments on Icon videos talking about too many kids on the ship and I'm wondering what it will be like once school is out. We're already booked on Star next year, but I don't think I'd want to sail this class during school breaks.
@@CruisingKat I think it will change because its marketed towards kids and the first year is a bunch of new cruisers that don't know how to handle their kids on a cruise!
Hopefully!
Cruised the Icon the first week this September without kids. Loved every minute of it. Booked specialty dinning before crushing along with excursions. Went to adults only Hideaway Beach on Coco Cay. Stayed out of families way. Except when we saw the Wizard of Oz. That was amazing as well. Would definitely cruise Icon again. 😊
@@char90303 I agree! While this video was about a few things that we did not like on Icon, overall it is an amazing ship and I have another whole longer video with all the great improvements they have made. We are already booked on Star Of The Seas and can’t wait to go!
Very solid points! We didn’t try Chop’s Grille, but from your video the tables look way too jam packed for specialty dining. Definitely think that would take away from our experience.
Thank you! Chops was the most shocking to us since we usually go to it on every ship. Even Freedom class Chops is better than this one.
Don't let any TH-camr put you off, we had the best cruise ever last month on Icon! Well worth the money.
So glad you had a great cruise! We did too so I started this video with saying that it was an amazing trip. The purpose of the video was to highlight some of the things that some people won’t like. It’s definitely not once size fits all. But I did another video with 9 big improvements on Icon that made it worth the price. Just trying to be objective 🙂
I didn’t take her comments as negative. Mostly positive and complimentary with some constructive criticism. The whole concept of the “Infinite Balcony” was horrible to begin with. What’s next? A Virtual Balcony for Inside Rooms that can blow hot air in your face to enhance the illusion?
@@briandaly6868 that’s a funny thought! Don’t give Royal any new ideas 😂
Don’t think they are trying to “put anyone off” these channels (and I watch a lot of different ones) just go over pros and cons so people can make informed decisions when booking.
What you loved, others might hate. We just booked Carnival Celebration, but honestly, we have our doubts that we are going to like it, but we had a good discount and a big on board credit, so we figured we would give it a try
I 100% agree that some things may be a pro for one person and a con for another. That's why I think it's important to go over them so that people can decide for themselves if this class ship is for them or not.
I hate those new balcony. Those aren’t balconies, those are rooms with a window. Those people are cheated
I agree. We're currently on Harmony in a regular balcony and it's so much better!
Great Info, we will be sailing on Jan.18, on the ICON. Thank you for this video.
@@Aquatogo1 Enjoy your cruise! Overall, it’s an amazing ship.
I love Oasis class ships - mainly Symphony of the Seas - until the prices come down - no thanks - we'll stay on Oasis or Celebrity ships. And how do you book the specialty restaurants ahead of your cruise? As of our January sailing on Symphony, we had to wait until we boarded....
We came to the same conclusion. We'll stick to Oasis class as our main choice for now. Royal Caribbean usually opens dining reservations 90 days before sailing and closes them 3 days before the cruise. However, sometimes, they have glitches in the system. We are sailing on Utopia in 4 weeks and have 2 reservations. Both of them are somehow glitching so we cannot reserve anything - not dining, not internet, nothing! All our "reserve" buttons are greyed out and even when I called RCCL, the reps couldn't book things for us either. At the same time, in our FB group, people are booking things right and left. So it's possible that your reservation for Symphony had a similar glitch. Thankfully, they always leave things open for booking on-board so you can still do it but it ends up costing more.
Great info. We have friends wanting us to join them for a voyage on either Icon, or Star when it launches… while a ship that large is very cool from a tech and engineering perspective, it will be a hard pass for us. Too many people and too many kids. We did take one trip on Harmony and it was ok, but it was borderline too many people so I’m pretty sure the Icon class would not work for us.
@@rtw67intx Yes, if Harmony was borderline for you, Icon class will probably be over the top. It’s designed to have the feel of an amusement park so if that’s not your preferred style of cruising, you have better choices out there.
Hello, generally on 7-night cruises, on what night number is dinner with the captain? I would like to know in order to reserve the other restaurants on the other available days. Thankyou
@@MargaritaArmienta It’s going to vary between cruise lines, but on Royal Caribbean, on a seven day cruise, it’s usually night two and night six. Keep in mind that the Captain usually does not appear at those dinners any longer. But it’s still a nice dressier night with great food. Also, you should be able to check the theme for every day of the ceiling in the cruise ship app before you book the reservations for other dining. For Royal Caribbean, you would need to look in the mobile app, as their desktop website browser does not show the daily themes.
I never do the theme nights with Royal. I kinda hate partying on promenade. I prefer the venues and lido deck. A one hit wonder night, I actually might go to.
The one hit wonder was a fun party. They did it on Utopia too so well hope they add it to more ships. It’s fun to reminisce and listen to all those songs that were so big over the decades 😁
I very much enjoyed your video and you gained a new subscriber. We love the 70s and 80s shows the most by far on every Royal cruise we go on. We would be very sad to see it go away. We have not sailed on the Icon yet but we will be spending two weeks on the Symphony this summer. Good luckwith your channel. Wishing you all the best.
Thank you so much! The great news is that one of the commenters on this video said that they have now started the 70s night. That's always the most packed party on any Royal cruise we've been on. Symphony should definitely have it. We're sailing on Harmony next week and we've got our 70s outfits ready!
Hi, thank you for video..I booked on icon for Dec sailing GTY category.. so when generally rooms gets assigned on icon?
@@riyanair1042 It can be anywhere from a couple of months out to the day that you’re getting on the ship. It will depend on how fast that specific sailing is selling and how many people bid on Royal Up to upgrade their cabins. Enjoy your cruise!
@@CruisingKat - Thank you for reply
We got ocean view. It doesn’t seem to bad because a regular balcony has bugs and dust on the chairs and tables while when the chairs are indoors it’s not dusty and there are no bugs
Good point. If you would rather have the extra room inside, the ocean view setup works great.
I got trip on Icon on October 19.Is there any chance to find how many people will be on board before I get there?Thank you.
How exciting! I'm jealous (in a good way). Unfortunately, I've never seen the number of passengers published anywhere. When you get on board, you can ask the customer service and they can tell you. However, even with a lot of people on the ship, there are so many places for everybody to disperse that you can always find quieter areas if you want to.
Also, even though this video was covering a few things we didn't care for on our cruise, I made it to be objective and present all sides. At the same time, I made another video about the amazing improvements they had on Icon - th-cam.com/video/zjpJqsZFOs8/w-d-xo.html. Overall, this ship is amazing and it has something for everyone. Have an amazing cruise!!
My first cruise is on Icon and I thought the food was terrible. For the price, I was expecting better. Unless there is a higher class than Icon?
@@bradchin7746 No, icon is the highest class right now. Sorry that you had a bad experience with food. We find that food quality really depends on the actual cooks so being the largest and newest ship doesn’t guarantee best food. In fact, we’ve had some of the better food on smaller ships. It’s extremely hard to cook for thousands of people every night, so on smaller ships cooks are not as overwhelmed and you often get better service because of better staff to passenger ratio.
@@CruisingKat that make sense. There was a lot of inconsistency: overcooked to over salted. But it was also disappointing that they would serve lobster tail that already went bad at the main dining room(our family is in the food industry). That is good to know smaller ships can have better food.
@@bradchin7746 If you’re in the food industry, then you’re definitely a more discerning customer than an average cruiser. I don’t know if you tried any specialty dining but if not, that may be something to try on the next cruise. On Icon, the specialty dining restaurants were not as good as many that we had on smaller class ships.
Also Chops has been serving the same thing for two decades. While the steaks are prepared well, they need to upgrade their offerings. The sides could be upgraded as well.
Having been on several RCL ships, I am kind of glad they are updating some of the entertainment. I get some love 70s parties but they have to dable with some more modern musical decades. Offer a mix indeed.
Their “One Hit Wonder” party was pretty good. It had music all the way from the 70s to the 2000s and pretty much all the songs they played were very well-known.
I agree. They need to freshen things up
I wouldn't mind them having the same theme nights or something new, just LET US KNOW. We always feel we are guessing on what to bring for attire. When you fly to the destination you can't bring the whole wardrobe. The Wonder won't have the same nights as the Radiance. I learned to look for itineraries online, but they are not always available when you sail on the "Shoulder" cruises.
@@charlesschroeder4062 that’s a great point! I agree that they should let people know more ahead of time.
Infinity balconies make more sense in cooler climates like the Baltic or Alaska. Regular balconies for warm climates.
100% agree!
I have never booked a guaranteed balcony. I always book an ocean view balcony. When I was working for a travel agency I was the artist coordinator and we were short on cabins so I took a Promenade balcony but probably wouldn't do again because it was a little noisy late evening at night time. I'm on Symphony of the Sea, and my girlfriend has booked a Boardwalk balcony for her and her twins, but I have an ocean view balcony as usual. I don't see the icon of the sea in the future for me until it come to Bayonne, NJ. I do not like to fly to board the ship because I overpack. I love your lamp. I have one similar to yours in my bedroom and living room, and I think they add elegance to you're a backdrop. Happy sailing🎉
Thank you for the compliment on the lamp. I was actually wondering if it was too distracting. 😊 We are currently on Harmony of the seas, Symphony’s sister, in an ocean view balcony cabin and loving it so much more than that infinite balcony silliness 😂 Sitting out on the balcony, watching the ocean waves, feeling the breeze as I’m typing this… I will definitely stick to stick to oceanview balconies from now on. Hope you’re enjoying your cruise!
Those infinite balconies seem like a terrible design idea.
It seems like whoever was in charge of implementing them, had no clue how a ship actually functions... and they were like, "Here, open this giant window and allow all your air-conditioned air to escape to the atmosphere, while bringing in all 95 degrees/ 99% humidity air into your cabin, while we sail in the middle of the Caribbean Sea!!"
😁😁 *BRILLIANT!*
New things can only be designed by those who know absolutely nothing of the topic.
I agree! We're on Harmony in a regular balcony right now in Cozumel. It's close to 100 degrees outside and it's blistering hot. I could not imagine opening that infinite "balcony" even for a short time.
@@CruisingKat ah yes but are you using the balcony at all since its so hot?
@@suave-rider , yes, we actually do. Even in the Caribbean, no matter how hot it is during the day, the evening is usually cool enough to enjoy the balcony. We just returned from a weeklong Harmony sailing in a regular balcony and it solidified our decision. It was so much nicer to have the use of a balcony.
I stayed in the Promenade rooms on a Royal Caribbean ship. It’s noisy in the evening when They did the party show up to 12 midnight. Better to not stay there. No wonder it’s as cheap as the inside rooms.
I agree. We've stayed in the Promenade room once on Oasis class ship and it was noisy there too. Of course, you get the tradeoff of having something to look at but I prefer quiet rooms when you are trying to rest.
I did the Infinite balcony for Central Park on the 4/13-4/20 itinerary. I was quite pleased with the comfort level of my stay. My only call out is more security at the basketball court and every room should be providing gratuity if it's auto or cash in hand.
Glad to hear you liked the infinite balcony! Most people commenting did not so I'm hoping there are enough people who like them. What happened on the basketball court?
New subscriber here! It was a pleasure meeting you!
So nice meeting you too!
Hi. Kat, thank you for that wideo... I was the one who worked on that ship during commissioning phase 😁... Stay safe 👍
@@Señor_Barba Despite these few things, Icon is still an amazing ship! The improvements on it definitely outweigh these cons. I made another video on this channel about the improvements we loved. It looks like more people are interested in the cons so this video got a lot more views. 😂
That's not a balcony! That's a window! We've never cruised with RCCL - we definitely want to give them a try. You made some great points here. Cheers 🍻
Absolutely. It's a window that opens. We love RCCL and cruise almost exclusively with them but I would definitely recommend a regular balcony instead.
Can someone fall out the window
@@tandy101 No, the windows/balconies are chest height for an average adult so even if even if a person is dizzy/tipsy/dare I say, had much to drink, they are not going to fall out of them. Obviously, children should be watched at all times, because they may want to climb, but you still never hear of children falling over cruise balconies either.
I just got off the Icon a week ago and they had the 70s disco party and the one hit wonder party.. sorry you didn’t get to experience both like we did.. and the had an all white laser light dance party for families. They even introduced a new game show for the first time on any of there ships called truth and consequences.
Oh, I'm so happy to hear that! Thank you for letting me know. It's great that they are keeping the old favorites AND adding new things!
Ok, gotta say, you video inserts crack me up! 😂 Very informative AND entertaining video. Well done.
Thank you so much! I’m glad you enjoyed my quirkiness 😂.
Hey, have just found your channel - hello from your newest subscriber!
It's interesting how many 'controversial cabins' exist on Icon - I thought the same with the newest Celebrity ships - a real movement in the industry!
I'm loving reading all the comments and I keep wondering how they decided on this movement. So far, majority of the commenters do not like these new types of cabins. Some do, of course, so it will be interesting to see how the cruise lines will proceed.
@@CruisingKat totally agree!
I don’t know how you didn’t know about the balconies and locations it was on all correspondence and videos I saw of the ship before it sailed. If you want a certain location then you purchase a specific room at that location. I don’t think it’s fair to list that as a ship con when you have a choice. Also inaugural sailings never have all activities and shows available. You sail on an inaugural to be the first onboard but everything is never available
Thank you for the reply. You're correct, we definitely had a choice. I knew about the infinite balconies and, as I mentioned in the video, we actually wanted to try it out to see what it's about. The main point I was tying to make is that most of Royal Caribbean's marketing is pushing this class cabin as the best thing since sliced bread. These cabins are priced at the balcony level (with the regular balconies being another thousand dollars or so per person - pushing them into a "suite" price range). Also, with more than half of the balconies on Icon class ships being this infinite category, a person who is not familiar with it would think it's a big improvement over regular balconies and then they may end up being disappointed after paying so much for their cruise. So my main goal is to alert others to do thorough research on this topic. Just because RCCL says these cabins are the best, it doesn't mean they will be best for everybody. But some people do love them.
100% agree on the inaugural sailing point. I was happy to hear that they started the traditional themes that we love on cruises and they were just not ready yet. I was hoping they weren't throwing everything away that many cruisers love.
Are inaugural cruises a crap shoot? Never wanted to do one because of the newness of the ship and not all of the staff are completely familiar with the layout. Here you have the Icon. HUGE.
@@downtovacay yes, inaugural cruises have a certain number of issues. We enjoyed ours but you do end up paying more for less. For example, the water show is incredible on Icon and I was really looking forward to it but we only got to see half of it because the performers weren’t ready. Staff was amazing and bent over backwards and I make us feel special though. We’re booked for Utopia and Star but I just can’t see a reason to pay so much more for the inaugural sailing so we’re booked both after a month or so of them launching.
@@CruisingKatHow much are the 2?
The infinite verandas are not new for Royal Caribbean Group since they have had them for awhile on Celebrity ships but I’m glad they are finally on RCCL. This ship has already lost power or had some similar maintenance issue 3 TIMES in less than its first year.
@@Cruisetravelers Yes, they had them on Celebrity. I haven’t sailed in an infinite veranda on Celebrity, but from videos I watched, they have a hard partition between the balcony and the cabin, which I feel is a lot better design than a thin curtain that really doesn’t do anything. I agree, so sad to hear about all the maintenance issues they’re having.
Oh the boat sailed only 2/3 full! This is a critical fact you revealed in the middle of the video. Everything good you said must be significantly discounted. At a certain level crowds become unbearable, and that level might be just a little higher than the number they allowed on the inaugural cruise.
Yes, I agree. It appears that many people are experiencing more crowds now and many are commenting about too many kids on the ship (which we didn’t have many of on our cruise).
With respect to Giovani’s table, it dated and I found the food offered was boring. They need to upgrade their menu, a spaghetti and meatballs with marinara or meat sauce would be nice. Also a wood fired pizza would be a plus. The pizza in the buffeteria is adequate but it’s certainly not high end.
We feel the same way about Giovani’s Table so if we do any specialty dining, we choose other restaurants.
The infinite balcony is one of the biggest mistake in the cruise industry. I have yet to read one review where someone said "Oh we loved this!!". A ship like the Icon that is pretty much dedicated to the Caribbean agenda where it gets ridiculously hot, the infinite balcony is a horrible idea!! Open it and bye bye AC!! Plus, the AC shuts down when you open it so getting the room cool again takes hours. RCI and the rest of the lines that opted for these are going to regret it in the long run.
110% agree!
I just left this exact comment. LOL. Terrible terrible design.
I like how they have the "Save the Waves" program and want you to re-use your bath towel to save a quart of water..... meanwhile, they pump thousands of dollars worth of A/C into the 90 degree Caribbean atmosphere. Make it make sense!!
If you don't close the door the same thing with the standard balcony. However the plus is your cabin is larger than the standard cabin.
@@el_covfefe I don't know too many people that sit on their "regular" balcony with the door open, and then complain that their cabin got too hot/humid because all the A/C went out. At least in that scenario, you have a choice to sit out in the hot OR stay in the cold A/C without having to then wait hours? for the cabin to then cool back down. Plus, the cruise line tells you to "Save Resources" by re-using your bath towel, but then they are essentially air conditioning the entire world with their terrible design with their 1000s of these new "innovative" infinite balcony cabins.
@@el_covfefe A plus for a regular balcony is I can close the door and keep my AC going while outside. So can I also count my regular balcony space as usable cabin space?
My wife and I have sailed on all of the oasis class ships and I must say we love the icon we get unlimited dining package every time we sell . We had absolutely zero problems setting up reservations. the morning We boarded at any of the specialty venues we love infinity veranda. We would love to get back one icon however the prices are just out of control. we’re going to try Celebrity for a change.
That's good to hear that you didn't have problems with dining reservations. Hopefully, they fixed it since our cruise. I'm trying out Celebrity in a few months too. It's nice to have our Diamond status carry over there!
Royal pricing is why we now shop Princess and Viking for our cruise 🚢. Currently on Odyssey and got a good deal 12 days Mediterranean
Princess is nice but I haven't been on Viking yet. Enjoy your Mediterranean cruise! That's on my list to do soon.
Would love to do the Odyssey Mediterranean cruise where did u get the deal?
@@cherylmcknley7498 I bought a year in advance during a Royal Caribbean on line sale. Unfortunately prices have gone up since then
Enjoy your cruise! We were looking at Mediterranean on Odyssey next year but they are only doing 7 day itineraries in 2025. I think the 12-day is a lot better.
I took that cruise 2 weeks ago and the theme nights they did have but there was no event for the 70"s and white party but we still had a good time. Oh and yes Chop Grill was a little tight but the food was GREAT!
@@etipton77 Interesting, so they are changing the theme nights again. I agree about the food - Chops is excellent!
I just came off ICOn and it was ICONIC!! OMG so Awesome..from my room to the food and impeccable service....Im been on numerous ships which I had a good cruise to a bad cruise..Nothing compares to the ICON!!! CANT wait to try UTOPIA OF THE SEAS!!!
I agree! Even though the purpose of this video was to point out some things we didn't like on the cruise (just to be objective), it was still the best cruise we've ever taken. I did another video going over the 9 biggest improvements on Icon that I think took it to the next level - th-cam.com/video/zjpJqsZFOs8/w-d-xo.html. We're looking forward to Utopia too!
Thanks Kat ! This is a great & informative review of this HUGE ship !
I subscribed from DC 💙
Thank you so much! Glad you enjoyed it 😊
Surfside is not noisy at all. After 8pm it's quite dead. They do silent party there one night so cant hear what they're listening to anyways. Around 10pm you might see couple people with their kids who might like playing the slides at night or just trying to tire them out to sleep. During the day, nobody really hangs out their balcony. I saw maybe 5 people just to take pics. Also it has partial ocean view at the back of the ship from Surfside.
Glad you had a good experience in a Surfside cabin!
They are all in the adult areas with their parents.
If you don’t want to cruise with a lot of children, sail with Virgin, Cunard, Holland, Viking, Ritz Carlton, Regent Seven Seas. Why would you sail on a ship built for families and complain about kids being on it?!?! That’s like buying a motorcycle and confused as to why you got wet while riding in a rain storm.
I actually don’t mind having a lot of kids on a ship, but many people do so it’s an important factor to consider. With that said, the surface neighborhood cabins are positioned around the kids splash area and playground. Again, it may not be a big deal for some people, but I wouldn’t want to pay this much for a balcony cabin and spend a week listening to the playground sounds instead of the ocean. Just trying to highlight things to think about.
I had a great time on the cruise… but it’s a family cruise. I still prefer the Oasis Class. Inaugural cruises have their own problems. Our sailing in November had no cancellations… just too many kids. It s a new ship… the price will go down in 2 years… as usual.
Thank you for the update. I keep hearing more and more comments that there are now too many kids on this ship. I guess, that's what the ship is designed for so if someone wants a nice quiet vacation, it's definitely a reason to stay away! I'm glad you enjoyed your sailing. We really did too. I just felt that these things were important to mention since it's not a cheap cruise and people need to know this going in.
Woulnd't go as far as saying that any of the "upscale" dining options on RC are exceptional. Some drinking options are, but not eating options.
@@Deepinjersey1 I’m guessing this really depends on each person‘s taste. We’re not foodies, so Royal Caribbean specialty dining restaurants are enjoyable for us. They still vary a lot from ship to ship and we’ve had some very good experiences and some that were mediocre. But I can see how if somebody is used to high end restaurants with exquisite cooking, these wouldn’t seem that nice.
I cruised on Icon Feb 10 to 17. Great ship, great food, great cruise. 😊
We loved our cruise too! I did this video to be objective but I also made another video about 9 huge improvements on Icon that we absolutely loved - th-cam.com/video/0P8L0pVsEiM/w-d-xo.html. We're already booked on Star of the Seas next year and can't wait to go! 😊
@@CruisingKat i’m following the Star of the Seas as well, If my health will let me cruise again. On the Icon I had to use one of those mobility scooters cause I can’t walk any distance, but it all worked out well. Plus my sons were there to help me, couldn’t do it without them.
I think that this is one aspect of Icon that was better - there is a lot more space for scooters to get around. The elevator system with the large hall for waiting is a game changer vs. older ships where people with scooters struggle to get into an elevator.
If you decide to sail on Star, we have a lot of discount group rate prices blocked for about 20 sailings. Feel free to check them out - cruiseandtravelnetwork.com/. These are not "group" cruises in a sense that you have to hang out with people in the group. We just blocked a lot of space to pass on savings to anybody who wants to sail on it.
this is why you never do a review of a new ship on the inaugural sailing.. things are not really ready yet..
Yes, I learned that the hard way. That was our first inaugural and probably the last.
There are real balconies on this ship also. You could have picked on of them easily.
Yes, next time we definitely will. We wanted to try this type since it was new but we won’t do it again.
I’m going on this cruise in 2 weeks and I couldn’t be more excited. I can’t wait to do all the activities
@@acedreamer2004 You’ll love it! This ship is amazing! 😁
Big thumbs up for the Cowboy Way clip.
@@blargblarg5657 Thank you 😁
Children usually have a bed time so I would think it gets quiet at an earlier time than a cabin near the theater venues or adult dining and dance areas.
Yes! That would absolutely be the case and a great reason to avoid being near, underneath or above those areas.
While my kids were raised on a rather strict bed time schedule, many others don't follow that parenting style so you can still have little kids playing in that area at 10 - 11 pm (when my kids would have been asleep a long time ago.) Granted, it's a lot quieter than during the day when Surfside is a very loud playground.
So the point is, if you like peace and quiet (like we do), learn which area to avoid so you can enjoy your time on the ship. If loud noise environment is your thing, then none of those areas would bother you. 🙂
Oasis class is still my favorite. They did a lot of stupid things when they made this ship to turn me off:
1)the infinite "balcony" rooms that are just oversized windows and shuts off your a/c when it's down.
2) taking away the boardwalk and turning it into a kid's playground and relocating the aqua show with less seating.
3) less storage space in the cabins. Baskets in open spaces instead of drawers, less closet space too.
4) the set up of the junior suites. If you open up the sofa bed, it's right on top of the regular bed facing the outside. Less walking space compared to the same room on Oasis class ships.
5) no inside separate adults only solarium; the Icon just has a smaller outdoor area in the bad of the ship, not enclosed
6) the entrance and exit to the teen club is right in Playmakers
Yep, I agree on all of these points. And we also like Oasis class the best at this point.
Personally I think activities need to vary ship by ship. I would hate to go on a new ship and have repeat experiences, for me it's all about something New...so RCI going away from traditional shows. The maiden voyage was during school time, so makes sense that they had reduced capacity, I went during spring break and it was to full capacity.
Thank you for the feedback. I think it's an interesting topic so I love to hear what people think.
I get that these titles are clickbait. It should have been, "5 Reasons you might want to stay away". Great ship if you can afford it. We were on it last month, going back soon. Thanks for the vid.
Thank you for watching and the feedback. 😁. We loved it and I did another video about the biggest improvements we saw on Icon. We’re on Harmony right now and, oh how we miss those elevators!! 😂
The bigger cruise ships get, the more impersonal they become. You have to pre book everything otherwise you won’t be able to get seating in restaurants or shows. The services also become more sporadic, some are good, some are so so. We sailed on Ovation of the Seas and while we enjoyed our cruise overall, there were times we wished for better. That being said, I don’t know if traveling on Icon would be for me. I guess, it all depends what you’re looking to get out of the trip and of course your age group.
I completely agree. That’s why we like to sail on different class ships depending on the circumstances. I’m on Brilliance of the Seas right now, which is the second smallest ship in Royal Caribbean lineup. Very different experience from Icon.
Central Park its very NOISY , the music of the pool its VERY LOUD......DJ ALL DAY.....by by to the old type CENTRAL PARK ROOMS...
Yes. It's the same on Utopia too! I don't know why they made music on both of these newest ships so loud!
My parents spent 7 grand on this cruise. I think I might like it because the category 6 water park
I'm sure you'll love it! Our Icon cruise was absolutely amazing and I did another video on 9 best improvements that we saw on this ship - th-cam.com/video/zjpJqsZFOs8/w-d-xo.html. The water park was one of them. You really don't have to get off the ship to have something to do all week. This specific video was just to be objective and show some of the things that we thought weren't as good and many people have commented since it came out that they noticed them too. Overall, though, it's a great ship!
Royal needs a ship for adults only. It would be maxed out every sailing.
Not the swingers kind.
Kids are 💩 ing and peeing in the hot tubs, pools. Running unsupervised even in the main dining room
That would be great!
Go to Virgin, ALL THE SHIPS ARE ADULT ONLY!
Keep all the negatives coming! I love it because it will bring their rates down if cruisers start getting spooked!👍👍👍
😂 That might be wishful thinking, lol. I think there are plenty of people that will still love this class ship. We actually did and I did another video about 9 huge improvements that we absolutely loved on this ship - th-cam.com/video/zjpJqsZFOs8/w-d-xo.html. I think it's important to know the pros and cons because I'd hate for people to make a wrong choice at this price point.
I doubt it, There are. Ore positive reviews than negative. Especially when the kinks get worked out, The price is not going down.
Just because you didn’t like some aspect of the ship, doesn’t mean others won’t. I hate it when people try to detour people away based on opinion. Overall the reviews for the ship have been outstanding.
@@darianwilliams3452 I agree. I started this video with saying that it was an amazing cruise and we absolutely loved it. I also mentioned that I have another video of nine top big improvements on Icon that made a big difference. That video is here on my channel - th-cam.com/video/zjpJqsZFOs8/w-d-xo.htmlsi=boofJMz_cdkqnouX. I want to be objective for everything I review so, in this video, I went over a few things that were not the best and since then, I’ve heard many people comment that they are bothered by some of these things. However, I am definitely not detouring anybody from Icon because I think it’s a great ship. It’s more about covering all aspects.
Great video! Thanks.
Thank you! 😊
Dont like the title of this video - very misleading
Thank you for the feedback.
Ridiculous high fares. I could take a 7 day yacht cruise on a Windstar ship in a suite for 30% less than an inside cabin on Icon of the Seas.
Oh, that sounds like something I need to check out!
@@CruisingKat Another benefit of Windstar is that the cruise line does not believe in sea days. On MOST seven day cruises, you stop at six ports.
I am just a lowly budget cruiser who scours for deals all over the internet so Windstar is a little out of my price range. (G)
My beef with Royal, regarding Izumi, is, the Teppanyaki option is ONLY on two ships, Oasis and Spectrum OTS. That stinks!
Interesting! I didn't even realize there is a difference. Do you like Teppanyaki better?
What's behind the prices, of Not only the " ICON" Class ships, but a good majoriry of the fleet, is Royal Caribbean expects YOU, the cruising public, to help pay to pay to retire their massive billion dollar debt, which they put on themselves. TheOasis class,is where they should have stopped. I go on a cruise to relax, not go to be surrounded by 6,500 people, like an amusement park. The Icon class ships will be a long term fail for them. As you mentioned, your sailing was about 700 passengers below capacity, and that will surely remain that way, with these egregious prices. Those, who just HAVE TO book a cruise on a brand new ship, are like the fools that the cell phone companies target, each year with a new cell offering. No need to do that! And, what happened to that new smaller " DiscoveryClass" of ships they announced late in 2023?
@@CruisingKat Yes I prefer the Teppanyaki more. Not a sushi fan. Still offer that for those who do, but add Teppanyaki!
I'm definitely more excited about the discovery ships. Because mega big ships are so limited to what ports they can go to. If they want to fill the ship more, maybe offer more casino comps for icon. It was restricted again this year when redeeming my annual cruise benefit.
Yes, I'm waiting for that new class too! Freedom has been our favorite for a long time. When Oasis class came out, we felt that it was too big so we mostly sailed on Freedom class. But those ships are getting older too. I hope they have some smaller new ships soon for those quiet relaxing vacations.
We were tied up next to Icon at CocoCay, and the design Did Not make me want to get on. As for the picture window, had one on Apex, "Never Again", Biggest joke ever. I am loyal to royal but see no reason for getting on Icon or any ship in that group.
I'm with you on that cabin! We had the infinite balcony on Icon and hated it!
cruising with 7k people sounds like a nightmare, bigger is not always better
I agree. Hopefully, Royal will start working on that new smaller Discovery class that they hunted at last year.
The thought of 7000 people disgorging from the Icon is disconcerting. Also the base price for this boat is beyond my income level. Sadly I’ll never sail on the Icon.
Definitely a lot of people on this ship! We will hope that pricing will come down at some point when novelty wears off.
Very intelligent, articulate, thoughtful presentation
Thank you so much!!😊
The ONLY thing we did not like about this ship is that they only opened up 1 side of the wind jammer at dinner.
Interesting point. We don't usually eat dinner in Windjammer so I didn't notice that. Was it crowded for dinner there or was is still enough room for everybody?
@CruisingKat yea they have rack of lamb, porterhouse, NY strip, lobster.
That's very nice!
@@CruisingKat To answer your question they eventually allowed people to sit on the other side, but the buffet cases were empty, so it was a bit overcrowded getting food. Logistically I get it - they have to staff every single restaurant onboard but still believe they should have both sides open. Windjammer is no longer chicken fingers and burgers!
@@DS-mo7vu 5
Thank you for letting me know. I’ll need to check it out on the next cruise. 🚢
5000 people on a 7600 capacity ship is a sold out ship, that capacity number is putting 4 people in every cabin
I agree. From what I'm hearing, they are sailing with more people than our cruise was. The staff was telling us that they kept it lower for the first month while they are working out the kinks. It didn't feel crowded at all, which is the opposite of what I'm hearing a lot now from people sailing in the last couple of months. Summertime will probably be even more packed.
Royal has a challenge. A lot of its clients are set in their ways and don't like any change
But Royal really has to push its programming forward beyond the same old hackneyed routines that its done for 20 years
The 70s party has outlived its useful life. Same exact songs. Same routines. Same order. Meanwhile its more hip competitors like Virgin Voyages and Carnival keep things contemporary and evolving
They really need to rethink their staffing in entertainment so things dont continue to get stale led by people largely reared outside the US. They said they want to attract younger crowd with small kids. The same old I Will Survive and Love Train isnt going to cut it
Very good point! I'm all for adding new entertainment options. You're right, the 70s theme caters to older people (like me, lol). Hopefully, they can come up with good quality options for the younger demographic.
They need to do better entertainment. I was on icon of the seas in July and I was so disappointed. There was no parties and you didn’t get to meet the captain. The cruise director was boring as well. It pretty much sucked . Music was awful too on the main pool area. They kept putting the same music. Extremely disappointed and I had a better time on WONDER OF THE SEA.
@@Rose-b3x9b Sorry to hear that you didn’t enjoy the entertainment. We liked the water show and The Wizard of Oz. I agree that the cruise director was boring. You would think they would choose a really good one for the biggest ship in the world!
@@CruisingKat yes the shows were good. But I felt it was a quiet ship this time. The people I met on the ship said the same thing. It wasn’t alive like the other cruises we have taken. They had these entertainment dancers in the lobby that I felt they should have not been used. I am just disappointed
But to all the people complaining that it's a virtual chaos. The ship carries 10,000 people! What do you all expect?😳 It would be like me complaining how chaotic the aircraft carrier that the Navy asigned me to work on. Unless you have the ability to buy your own cruise ship, you are all pretty much stuck with what's available out there. I've been cruising with RCL and they have their ups and downs, but I really don't complain much about the best they could offer for what I could afford to pay them.
Very good point.
I think your title of STAY AWAY FROM THE ICON is a very poor choice. The issues you have with room type and location are alleviated by picking the correct type of room you want. While I agree noise from the neighborhood can be a detriment, I simply would find another or not book at all. It's not necessarily a bad thing, just something you don't like personally. I don't do specialty dining, so no comment. As far as the activities, I stayed busy the entire 7 days, enjoying old things and new. I figure with a new class of ship, might as well have a new class of activities. Price? No argument here, but for what I paid for my cruise I felt that I got at the least my money's worth.
Simply put, do your own research, ensure you are aware of the plusses and pitfalls of certain rooms and locations, BOOK DINING ETC EARLY, enjoy the activities that you can, and don't overpay if you feel the price is not worth it.
It is an incredible ship, Don't stay away, just research, plan and prepare early.
Thank you for the reply. I actually agree with you on all these points, which is why I started this video with the fact that this was an absolutely amazing cruise. I have another video where I went over 9 big improvements that we saw on Icon Of The Seas and why I think this class ship is in another league.
With that said, I read so many reviews, forum posts and social media comments from people that really don't like the ship (and I'm only referring to the ones that actually sailed on it, not the ones that keep comparing it to Titanic or silly things like that). I do see a number of things that, for some people, are not going to be good. Mostly, for those who want a quiet relaxing vacation with fine dining included and not many kids around, this is not going to be the best choice for them.
So the goal of this video was to highlight the things we didn't like on the ship because we are trying to be objective. Some of the comments I received on other videos were describing how they hated their Icon cruise for the same reasons I outlined in this video.
In the end, every ship will have its pros and cons, which is the reason for the two videos to go over both. Again, I appreciate your feedback!
We all know that Icon of the Seas has really pushed there passenger count to above 7,000. So then a review to now is much different
@@davee8113 I keep hearing about the crowds more and more. That’s so sad because the ship itself is so amazing but many people are not enjoying it because of the crowds.
Surprised to hear surfside staterooms are loud with children playing “late into the night”
Ha ha. Good catch! Maybe “late into the evening” would be a better choice of words. But there were definitely kids playing there at 9 and 10 pm, when I would expect it to be quiet outside my normal balcony.
Who goes on cruises for themed dance parties?
Well, they may not go there for them but many people do enjoy them as a part of the cruising entertainment and experience.
@@CruisingKat Perhaps they might. It's way too much trouble to pack specifically for such events though.
@@Eliminator5555 True. Some things like Caribbean or White nights are easy to fit in instead of the regular clothes. We didn’t use to do it at first, but got into the theme nights as we cruised more. Just another thing that makes cruising different from land vacations! 😁
Food will always b good on a new ship..well,not MSC..
Im not a fan of the new balcony stateroom w motorized window..they were 1st done by celebrity on Edge Class several yrs ago..ac stops when open. Royals shows always good id like to have same shows,parties across fleet..but thats just me..
Thank you for the reply. I’ve never been on Celebrity, but from watching videos, I saw that it has a hard partition with sliding / folding doors to close off the balcony area. At least that would help with air a little. But Icon only has curtains so they don’t do anything to keep the cool air in. I’m with you regarding the shows.
Any ship larger then 2000 passengers is not for me
Unfortunately, that’s most of the current ships out there right now. Have you done river cruising before? That’s on my to-do list. A lot smaller and relaxing.
Im sorry but just because you didn’t care for something doesn’t mean other people should stay away from it the title is a bit misleading and definitely Doesn’t match the positive statements you occasionally made I would have just posted the original video you had of good and bad opinions. Unfortunately most people just are happy to be on a cruise to be honest these are very small critiques your free to give whatever opinion you want but this was more your personal preferences and like people have already stated “are not a reason to stay away from the ship” definitely reconsider how you title this.
Thank you for the feedback. I originally planned to do a pros and cons of Icon video but it ended up being too long so I broke up the topic into 2 videos and released them one after another.
The first one was about 9 upgrades that we loved - th-cam.com/video/zjpJqsZFOs8/w-d-xo.html, and the second one is this video about 5 things that we thought were not good. We did love our cruise on Icon, but there are so many people that absolutely hate it for one or more reasons stated in this video. There are many comments on this video saying they'll never go on it again. So for those people, these factors would be true reasons to stay away from this ship. I feel that it's important to outline all the pros and cons so that each person can decide if those factors are important enough for them or not and it will really depend on each person.
Chuck Norris ramed 100 icebergs with it and after his arrival the icon sank.
Well, Chuck Norris is a legend...
Best cabin is always the interior cabin. Cheaper, darker, peaceful.
We've stayed in a number of interior cabins. Best sleep we ever got!
I def need a night light if we do an interior. Haven't sailed in one yet.
@@downtovacay definitely, it’s pitch black in there, lol. It’s a good cabin choice on a cruise with few sea days when you don’t spend much time in your cabin anyway.
Too many kids!!! Disney cruises have less kids, wth??
Yes, I’m hearing that more and more now. Summer will probably be even worse.
REASON NUMBER ONE TO STAY AWAY.... THE PRICES FOR THE CRUISES ARE OFF THE HOOK EXPENSIVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Infinite balcony staterooms were introduced on Celebrity's newest ships.
Agreed!
can you smoke on the ship?
They have designated smoking areas on the top deck near the pool and you can also smoke in the casino. They specifically ban smoking on your balcony and it can get people kicked off the ship.
She’s really complaint about the cabin that SHE booked?! lol it was your choice!! Jesus.
Thank you for watching. 🙂 You are correct, I chose this cabin and I'm glad I got to try it out. The goal of the video is not really to complain but to go over some points on a brand new ship to help others make a choice that will work best for them.
Going on an inaugural cruise is the opposite of saving money.
That's correct! We wanted to experience the excitement of the inaugural cruise and were actually able to save by finding a great deal, but either way, it was more expensive than any cruise we've ever taken.
Title designed to draw you in.....misleading? Maybe!!
Thank you for the feedback. 😊
I would never book this ship too many kids way too many kids it’s built for kids. Why would I adult go on this? It’s like going on a Disney ship even worse does not feel to me at all, bro Caribbean. You’ve been my cruise line since I started cruising, but this is a definitely strike out
I'm hearing that more and more as the time gets closer to summer. I'm wondering what it will be like when school is out.
Just cruise Icon, it broke while we were on it….and after cruising on 20 cruises I have to say Icon was the worst cruise we have ever been on. It sucked on every category…..
For being such a big boat, the layout sucked, the pools were the smallest pools I’ve ever seen, and there was no entertainment, the shows were a joke, and even the aqua show was lacking. Stay away from Icon.
@@MoombaMakai So sorry to hear about your experience. It was big news that they cancelled the sailing that was supposed to go out today. Very sad that your cruise was impacted and that so many people had their vacation plans got ruined last minute.
Cozy atmosphere on a 7k guest Ship, isn't that an oxymoron...
Yep, pretty much… 😂
When I have watched online videos of Icon. To me it just looks a lot more cluttered. At least on an oasis class ship, things are more spread out. And you don't have as many decks between other decks. Icon, I feel they needed to fill every piece of empty space. Sometimes having some empty space is a good thing so I don't feel like I'm sitting on top of other people. Plus the itineraries are basically the same on Icon as they are with the oasis class ships because at many of the carribean ports, large ships cannot dock and it would be chaotic of they did a tender port.
I agree that some areas felt more cluttered, while others (like the pool deck and promenade) felt more spacious. I think it would really depend on where you spend most of your time on the ship. We loved the Hideaway on the back of the ship and there was always plenty of comfortable seating and gorgeous views. At the same time, there were only 5,000 passengers on board for the inaugural cruise so this may change with a full sailing.
@@CruisingKat Inaugural is the first sailing so issues can happen when it's the first time for both the crew and ship carrying lots of passengers. The prices seemed to be insane. Another thing I forgot to mention is while I like that the newer ships have more amenities and actually have working air conditioning. There ports are so limited. At least the smaller to medium sized ships can stop at different ports. The large Oasis Class Ships and Icon all seem to have the same itineraries. Lack of diversity of port stops.
Yes, very good point. On our Icon sailing, we didn't even get off the ship except for CocoCay. Same ports, been there... done that. The ship becomes the destination at that point. Plus, with most people gone, you can really enjoy the ship's amenities a lot more. But that won't stop us from continuing to cruise on smaller ships to get to more interesting ports.
@@Determination212 I priced the Icon for 2025 and still the same $6500. We won't be sailing on it again because of that very reason. One of the biggest and best, but just too many kids and not enough quiet space for adults. Cloud 17 is supposed to be adults only but still had kids in the area. Not good.
🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
😁😁😁
After the way RC treated us on our last cruise, never again. It is clear the RC does not care about their customers and will jerk them around at their convenience.
Oh no! So sorry to hear about your experience. We have cruised on most major cruise lines and have usually had excellent service from Royal Caribbean (compared to many others). But, I'm sure, customer service is only as good as the actual person you're communicating with. It's unfortunate that you had such a bad experience.
A lot of complaining about nothing in this video!
Thank you for watching 🙂
We would NEVER sail on a ship this big.
They are definitely not for everybody. What size ships do you like?
Reason #1: It's too big!
It's definitely its claim to fame!
Not everyone is rich like you
I understand your point. Obviously, everybody has different levels of income and we've gone through financial hard times like many people. I would not consider us rich (other than living in the US, which makes us all rich in comparison to the rest of the world).
Statistics say that an average US household spends anywhere from $3,000-$5,000 per year eating out in restaurants. Our family doesn't. We cook all our meals from scratch, grow a lot of the food we eat, and rarely use pre-packaged foods or junk food. This amount alone is enough to go on 2-3 weeklong cruises per year. We don't spend money on going to the movies or buying many clothes. We drive 10 year old cars and just don't spend much money outside of bills and basic necessities. So we're just using the money that average Americans spend on daily lives and choose to go cruising instead. Many people would find our regular lives boring and would not want to stop eating out or spend money for entertainment. The beauty of it is that everybody can choose what's important to them.
OVERPRICED OVERPRICED OVERPRICED !!!
Yep, and it's like that for the foreseeable future...
So, don't sail icon.
Exactly. I think, for many people, that's the right answer. We did enjoy our Icon cruise and I did another video about 9 huge improvements we saw. So for many other people, it's a good choice. That's the reason I did these two videos. I don't think it's once-size-fits-all like many ships are.
Bring back smaller ships
Royal hinted that they are planning a smaller Discovery class ship about a year ago. They haven't announced anything since then. We're all hoping for it to come soon!
It’s called teppanyaki not hibachi
So why it is called “Izumi ‘HIBACHI’” on the Royal Caribbean’s cruise planner pages?
Yep, it's all confusing... 😂
First world problems. 😟
Definitely!! 😂
Definitely!! 😂