We just got back from a fabulous voyage aboard Royal Caribbean’s newest vessel, the
Icon of the Seas. This trip was planned over a year ago and the anticipation has been
building ever since. Let me tell you, the Icon did not disappoint!
The ship, like Royal has been doing with all its latest ships, is built around neighborhoods, each with its own distinctive design and purpose. From quick stop cafes to specialty dining, family fun areas and adult only venues, a lot of thrills and some quiet places to chill, the Icon is the perfect fit for a great getaway.
Our weeklong voyage started with us stepping into the promenade of the Icon and
setting our eyes on THE PEARL, an architectural marvel that makes your jaw drop with
over 3600 tiles that glow and shimmer as you ascend the marble staircase. Needless to
say, this was designed to the made for the perfect WELCOME TO THE ICON picture.
The Pearl definitely has a magnetic draw as we visited the Pearl many times during our
trip to grab “just one more selfie”.
On to our stateroom, a verandah cabin for us, and were thrilled with its roominess,
storage, and for me the best feature – no keycard was needed to turn the lights on.
(Let’s face it, how many of us have walked out of our cruise stateroom before and left
our keycard in the light switch?? – none of that on the ICON).
As we began to explore the ship, there we continued to be amazed and discovered
something to love around every corner. Here are a few of our favorites:
Surfside – Located in the Aft of Deck 7, this is the perfect place for young
families to stay and play. With a water park designed just for the youngest
cruisers, daily games and face-painting, a carousel with whimsical creatures,
quick-serve café and all you can eat ice-cream as well as a bar featuring a
number of adult and kid-friendly drinks it’s enough to make you want to stay put
the whole week. Our favorite part of this area? Pier 7 with all day brunch. It is a
specialty dining venue but found it easy to make a reservation once we were on
board.
The Hideaway – Located in the Aft of Deck 15, the Hideaway is an adult-only
neighborhood with a beach club vibe. With loungers, day beds, swim-up pool
beds and a dedicated bar, there is no better place to stretch out and relax with
beautiful sea views in site. Did we mention our favorite part? The first suspended
infinity pool at sea – if you’ve never been in an infinity pool on a cruise, you don’t
know what you are missing. This area could get crowded, but it is well worth
spending a few hours here hanging out.
Thrill Island -Jammed packed with water slides, mini golf, a rock wall, and the
Flow Rider, this neighborhood on Deck 16 caught our attention very quickly and
had us whooping and hollering with excitement. Yes, we were a little
apprehensive about a few of the slides but did make sure to try out several of
them. And the biggest thrill?
Crown’s Edge, the combination obstacle course and zipline that has participants navigating over the side of the ship before being dropped to zip over the ocean below and back to the landing spot on board. Of course, in the name of research, I had to try it out. Was I nervous? Extremely! Was it costly? Yep! Was it worth it? For those of you that like a thrill, most definitely! You are only able to book this experience once for each voyage but have two trips around the course and the experience includes a video of one of your trips (check out my video below). I will be doing this again when I sail the Icon again.
The Outlook – located in the AquaDome Neighborhood, the outlook is a hidden
gem on the ICON. With relaxing day beds, couches, hidden coves and food and
drink nearby, it’s the perfect place to escape the busyness of the ship to find
some peace and quiet. At night the area transforms into a mesmerizing
entertainment venue for the Aqua show and other late-night shows, so be sure to
enjoy it during the day time. It was a fabulous spot for us to enjoy sailing away
from one of our port calls.
Entertainment – located across the neighborhoods of the Icon, there were so
many different shows to enjoy. From the Iconic Wizard of Oz to family fun “Once
Upon a Time: The King’s Royal Ball” ice show and the thrilling “Aqua Action”
Water show, the show line up is sure to please everyone in your family. We will
say that we were not as impressed with the Aqua Show as we have been on
other Royal Cruises as it felt very disjointed and included portions we did not feel
really fit (like skateboarding), but the other shows were very well done and quite
enjoyable.
And More – as you can imagine, since the Icon is the world’s biggest cruise ship,
this could also be the longest review ever to cover it all. We have not even
touched the amazing food venues; the fun sculpture and artwork; the near
perfect itinerary and Hideway Beach – the newest addition to a Perfect Day at
CocoCay. The only way to really get a good feel of what an astonishing getaway
the Icon offers is for you to experience it for yourself!
Want to book your own ICONIC vacation, reach out to one of our amazing Diserella Travel Advisors to get started. Our services are complimentary when you book your vacation package or cruise with us!
