This was our first sailing with RC and a bit wary of sailing on an older ship.We need not have worried as Splendour is still a very impressive ship despite her age.I think the atrium with it's glass lifts is one of the prettiest I've seen.

Pros---less formal than some ships.
Nice staff.
The sail-away from Venice.
The most comfy beds you will ever sleep in.
Windjammer restaurant is brilliant for evening meals.
Good casino.
Nice lounges.
Some good entertainment.
A fantastic midnight buffet.
Relaxed atmosphere.
Free - pour shorts (vodka,bicardi etc)).

Cons:

Drinks are a bit expensive
Pool area is small.
No speciality restaurants.
No ironing rooms.
Only one midnight buffet per week.
No theme nights.
Food in dining room not to our liking(ate in the windjammer).

All in all a very nice cruise for the money we paid for it.Ports were fantastic,and weather was perfect.

Splendour of the Seas, from Venice to Dubrovnik, Kusadasi, Santorinr, Corfu.

Took our son and his partner and our 3 year old grandson. They thoroughly enjoyed themselves but this was our 4th trip with RCI and had our previous 3 been with another company and this our 1st on RCI it would have been our last.

Flight from Heathrow to Venice, transfer to dock and processing to get on board meant we arrived as the majority made there way to the muster station for ewmergency drill.

Dining room staff wouldn't last long out of Miami or L.A. We hardly saw or head waiter until the final night which was tipping night. Food very average and for the first time we went to the Windjammer for evening meal. Sous chef in Windjammer and waiting staff so different from King and I.

Spoke with cruise director Jill who said that with 42 odd nationalities cruising it would be impractical to have a comedian or such RCI favourites as The Quest but they did have Mr and Mrs!! Four Tops tribute band Soul Sensation were very good however.

Nice stops, (Santorini was the hottest it had been all season according to the Captain,) but Corfu a wash-out.

Why do they allow children into the Solarium? Staff turned them out but within minutes they were back in again.

Look forward to the arrival of Oasis in December 2009.

This was our first cruise and was so wonderful we have booked another 2 for this year! We booked it as a fly/cruise which worked out a bit more expensive than making our own flight arrangements but because I use a wheelchair we didn`t want the hassle of trying to negotiate our way around Venice. The flight was a BMI charter from Manchester it was small plane with 45 passengers all on the cruise and was very comfortable. In fact it was probably the best flight I have ever taken. RCI staff were at the checkout in Manchester and met us off the flight in Venice where we were directed to our transport. Everything was totally hassle-free and we were soon enjoying a very pleasant lunch in the Windjammer while waiting for our cabin to be ready. We were very pleased with the cabin. It was very clean and the bed was very comfy! Venice must be one of the best ports to sail out of travelling down the Grand Canal in the evening with people waving at the ship. We thought the food was excellent and the King and I dining room absolutely beautiful. We took breakfast mostly in the Windjammer but did try one morning in the dining room. The food was just the same quality in either.
Our first port was Athens and as we were only there for an afternoon we decided to book the Panorama tour which was a bus tour around all the usual places of interest with a couple of opportunities for photo stops. We didn`t book any other tours, just did our own thing. We loved Mykanos and had a fabulous day just wandering around Mykanos town. Some people go back to the ship for lunch but we enjoyed a lovely lunch at a taverna. We did the same thing in Corfu Town and Split. The only port we found to be a waste of time was Katakolon. Not much there but a few over-priced shops. This is where you pick up the tour buses for Ancient Olympia but as we didn`t do the tour we went back onboard and had a relaxing day. Our wonderful week passed very quickly and the journey home was as hassle-free as before. We celebrated our 30th Wedding Anniversary on our last full day and our fantastic table mates who were all complete strangers to us had organized drinks and canapes in the Champagne bar and presented us with framed photograph of us all from the formal night dinner.
Every single member of staff we came accross were brilliant especially our table staff who entertained us every night. Because we were on late sitting we didn`t get to see any shows. You can go to the earlier shows but we preferred to have a quiet drink in the bar before dinner and on a couple of occassions took part in the Trivia quiz. After dinner I enjoyed listening to the trio and watching the dancing.
I wouldn`t hesitate to recommend this cruise and would definitely do it again tomorrow!

The ship is well maintained and is constantly being cleaned and tidied.
The food was good, however, in the King and I we felt the portions were on the small side and the main course lacked vegetables/salad. You just got exactly what the menu said, but this meant that the vegetables were often just a token measure. The shrimp cocktail starter had 4 shrimps! The ravioli main had 5 pieces! There are bread rolls offered from the moment you sit down and these fill you up more than the meal itself. We went to the Windjammer once for evening meal and also breakfast and lunch. There is a very good variety and it is more relaxed being self service but does get busy and seats can be hard to find.
We were slightly disappointed that there was no elaborate midnight chocolate buffet as we had seen on a previous cruise. There was a midnight poolside buffet with some ice carvings but it was not exceptional.
The staff are very friendly and attentive. Too much sometimes- at breakfast in the King and I at least 3 waiters would be constantly asking or topping up your drinks or food. The cabin attendant makes towel animals which are very good- We had a swan, rabbit, monkey.
We only went to one show so can't comment much about entertainment but it was ok.
We were surprised by the amount of movement felt everywhere on the ship. It was like a constant shake/ rumble you might feel on a train but without any noise. I didn't expect this as last ship was like sailing on glass it was totally smooth with no movement. We asked others and they also said the same.
The spa treatment was excellent- I had the ladies night at $99, using Elemis produscts. One of the best I have ever had!
A few current prices rounded up- tipping $10 per person per day/cocktails $5/ cappucino $3/ photos (10x8) $20.
Overall a very good ship and would recommend.

For our first ever cruise, this was everything we wanted it to be. A wonderful experience on a wonderful ship. Maybe not the largest but certainly a very friendly one. Staff couldn't have been more helpful without being in your face and facilities/activites also very good. Didn't do all the shows but those we did see were very professional. Food in both King and I and the Windjammer was exceptional, you could eat all day if you went from one place to another!! Had to miss the midnight buffet though, you can only do so much!! Lots to do on board, but only if you wanted to. Found the shore excursions very well organised, but quite expensive. Venice was a perfect start to this cruise, a couple of days prior was not really long enough. Roll on my next cruise!!!

Stayed in Santiago at Crowne Plaza Hotel pre cruise, The hotel was clean and friendly, the food was to die for, never tasted Chilean food before but it was fantastic.
The cruise from Valparaiso through the straits of Magellan was rough but not to be missed. Buenos Aires we fell in love with and will return in the near future, we were very impressed. We booked a back to back and from Brazil we sailed transatlantic via Madeira to Portugal. The staff on board were very friendly, we had a good stateroom attendants called Carlos and Lesroy. Our table waiter from Romania, Levue and Thomas, head waiter Kumar were great ,also Christian Torre's (Excellent Chef) who treated us to a Costa Rican dish which was delicious. We would like to taste a lot more South American dishes as we are adventures eaters. Raynard and Augustus in the Viking lounge were excellent, if any one can make a cocktail its Raynard. We both experienced no illnesses on board this ship just a spare tyre on our departure. Cruisers where wanting to know how to purchase shares in RCCL, this can be done through the Halifax, by go to the website then go to the sharedealings page. Set up an account and the rest will be explained. Total charges for purchases of shares around £17.00. You need to purchase 100 shares to qualify for on board spend.

We have just returned from picking the ship up from venice and crusing round greece and crotia. This ship was lovely very simular to the oceania (P&o) The food in the resturant was excellant, also in the windjam. All the staff were freindly and was always happy too help the cabins were spacious.
We couldnt fault it and cant wait to return already booked for next year. We stayed in venice fro 3 days before picking the cruise up would definetly recommend doing that before.

THIS WAS OUR FIRST CRUISE AND IT WAS BRILLIANT,WE FLEW TO VENICE WITH RYAN AIR AND GOT A PRIVATE TAXI TO THE SHIP THIS WAS ALL HASSLE FREE AND CHECKING IN ON LINE PREVIOUS WAS EXCELLENT.
THE SHIP WAS VERY IMPRESSIVE, VERY CLEAN EVERYWHERE. CABINS CLEANED TWICE A DAY, WE WOULD BOOK A SEA VIEW NEXT TIME AS IT WAS UNUSUAL TO WAKE UP EACH MORNING WITH NO DAY LIGHT!!
KING AND I RESTAURANT EXCELLENT, WITH A GOOD MENU AND EXCELLENT WAITERS,WINDJAMMER CAFE ALSO GOOD WITH A GREAT CHOICE OF FOOD AT EACH MEAL TIME.
WE FOUND ALL THE SHIP STAFF VERY FRIENDLY AND WOULD DO ANYTHING TO HELP.
WE ONLY GOT TO ONE SHOW WHICH WAS GOOD, WE WERE ON THE SECOND SEATING FOR EVENING MEAL WHICH WAS AT 9.00PM SO IT WAS 11.00PM BY THE TIME WE HAD FINISHED DINING AND THEN WE WOULD RELAX IN THE VIKING BAR,WE COULD NOT FIT EVERYTHING IN , THE TIME AND DAYS SAILED BY!!!
THIS WAS A 7 NIGHT CRUISE 1ST STOP VENICE, THEN CROATIA,TURKEY,SANTORINI, AND CORFU, MOST ENJOYABLE CRUISE AND WE WOULD ALL RECOMMEND IT AND DO IT AGAIN.

Four of us travelled with our 15 year old grandson Dan. We flew to Munich then to Venice from where we sailed to Dubrovnik, down the Adriatic to Messina in Sicily, up and across the Mediterranean to Barcelona, Alicante, Malaga, through the Straits of Gibraltar , south to Tenerife (Santa Cruz). Then we sailed for 6 nights across the Atlantic to Nassau in the Bahamas, then to Key West, Florida (best place of all!), across the Gulf of Mexico to our final port - Galveston, Texas. From there we were bussed into Houston for the flight to Frankfurt and on to Manchester. Cabins (balcony) spotless as was rest of ship. Beautiful food in King and I Restaurant and in Windjammer cafe - lots of it and spoilt for choice. Superb bars - drinks slightly expensive. ALL Staff just great - we were treated like royalty. Nightly shows in theatre could have been longer but OK. Excursions average prices for a cruise ship, but we went on our own a lot and was just as good. All places visited were lovely - outstanding were Dubrovnik, Nassau and best of all the fabulous Key West - we could set up home there! Out of the 2000 or so passengers the Brits numbered around 150 - the rest by far were Americans, then Canadians with a few Mexicans and Aussies. In the restaurant we sat at a table for eight, but we five had it to ourselves. Only thing disappointing was there were no other teenagers on board for our grandson to make friends with - in fact you could count the number of kids on one hand - probably due to being out of season and schooling difficulties. But for all that Dan thoroughlly enjoyed the holiday. So - a fantastic holiday - we would definitely sail with Royal Carribean again and on the beautiful Splendour of the Seas. For a bit of glamour and star treatment it cannot be beaten!

beware this ship is in need of refurb cabin are small even the so called large ones carpet very dirty and cig burns all over the place did complain but was told they could do nothing and as for the drinks you could buy from duty free for room it was a big no-no even when it was in the mag when booking. taking this to trading standards.