Serenade Of The Seas

The 2003-built Serenade of the Seas cruise ship is the 3rd Radiance-class Royal Caribbean Royal Caribbean liner, with sisterships Jewel OTS, Radiance OTS, Brilliance OTS.

The vessel (IMO number 9228344) is currently Bahamas-flagged (MMSI 311492000) and registered in Nassau.

History - construction and ownership

Royal Caribbean International (RCI) is a US passenger shipping company, trademarked travel brand, and subsidiary owned by Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd (RCCL, shipowner). RCI was established in 1968 and currently has over 1/5 of the worldwide cruise market. RCI also has RCCL's largest fleet as both numbers of vessels and GT tonnage (ship sizes and capacities). All RCI liners have names ending with "of the Seas".

The 2500-passenger ship Serenade OTS fits just within Panama Canal's Panamax measurements. That also means that all Radiance-class boats can access pretty much any region of the world. These mid-sized ships offer plenty of options, from dining to entertainment, and have ~3 acres / 1,2 hectares of exterior glass, including glass-walled elevators with ocean views.

Decks and Cabins

Serenade Of The Seas staterooms (1074 total, in 32 grades) include 61 Suites, 517 Balcony, 247 Oceanviews, 249 Inside (3 Single). Most cabins are sized 165-190 ft2 (15-18 m2). Most cabin balconies are sized 45 ft2 (4 m2). The smallest is Studio Interior (110 ft2 / 10 m2). The largest is Royal Suite (1000 ft2 / 93 m2 plus 105 ft2 / 10 m2 terrace). Wheelchair-accessible cabins are 19.

The boat has 13 decks, of which 12 are passenger-accessible and 8 with cabins.

Shipboard dining options - Food and Drinks

Reflections is Serenade's 2-deck high formal dining room. The focal point of its decor is the cascading waterfall. For dinner, guests can choose between assigned early or late dining, or opt for My Time Dining, in which you pick anytime between 6 and 9:30 p.m. Those passengers who opt for My Time Dining have to pre-pay gratuities. The Reflections restaurant operates under an open seating policy for breakfast and lunch. Food is delicious and offers a pretty good variety, including alternate menu items for guests on restricted diets.

Windjammer Cafe is Serenade's main buffet venue. It is open for breakfast, lunch, afternoon snacks and informal dinner. Numerous stations serve up pasta, burgers, salads and sweets. Portofino and Chops Grille are ship's alternative restaurants. Chops is a steakhouse venue with an open kitchen. Enjoyable as Chops is, the real highlight of Serenade's onboard dining is Portofino with favorites including tiger shrimp risotto and spaghetti with lobster sauce. Both Chops Grille and Portofino levy a per-person service fee ($30 in Chops and $20 in Portofino).

Follows the complete list of Serenade of the Seas restaurants and food bars.

• Reflections Restaurant (1096-seat aft Dining Room, with two smaller private dining rooms: 30-seat Mirage and 102-seat Illusions)
• Windjammer Cafe Lido buffet restaurant (638-seat, offers Early Breakfast at 6:30 am, Breakfast between 7-11:30 am, Lunch 11:30-3:30 pm, and Dinner 6.30-9 pm)
• Chops Grille (95-seat specialty restaurant; reservations recommended)
• Giovanni's Table (Italian specialty restaurant; reservations recommended)
• Chefs Table (12-seat gourmet dining room)
• Park Cafe (deli restaurant; complimentary - serves the Solarium area)
• Izumi (Asian specialty restaurant)
• Rita's Cantina (84-seat Mexican specialty restaurant).

Shipboard entertainment options - Fun and Sport

There is no shortage of entertainment onboard Serenade of the Seas. Cultural and educational courses like digital photography and wine tasting seminars are offered, along with horse races, blackjack tournaments, elaborate production shows in ship's Tropical Theater, and informal dancing in the atrium lobby. Those looking for more excitement have to visit the Vortex Disco on deck 13 (featuring a spinning bar), the spot for singles to congregate. The DJ plays everything from Top 40 rap hits to the Village People till late each evening.

Additional amenities include Complimentary 24-hour Room-Service, Supervised Youth program, Internet/WiFi Access, Laundry.

Follows the complete list of Serenade of the Seas lounges, clubs and other entertainment venues for kids, teens and adults.

• Tropical Theatre (915-seat, features grand production shows with dance, acrobatics, comedy and games)
• Vortex Disco and Nightclub (126-seat; revolving bar)
• Photo Gallery and Shop; Art Gallery
• The Centrum (social hub, offers aerial acrobatics entertainment); Card Room; Next Cruise Lounge; Safari Lounge (320-seat, hosts religious services and auctions); Diamond Club and Lounge; Concierge Club (suite and past guests only); Viking Crown Lounge and Nightclub
• R Bar (59-seat cocktail bar); Cafe Latte-tudes Bar (46-seat specialty coffee bar, Starbucks Coffee); Crown and Castle English Pub (sports bar); Vintages Bar (wine bar); Schooner Bar (74-seat piano bar); Sky Bar
• Centrum Boutiques (duty-free; clothes, perfumes, accessories, jewelry, logo souvenirs, General Store/alcohol and cigarettes)
• Casino Royale (258-seat)
• Royal Caribbean Online Center (Internet computers room; 24-hour)
• Vitality at Sea Spa and Fitness Center; 3 Jacuzzies; 2 pools
• Solarium lounge (includes Cafe Bar, pool bar and adults-only pool area)
• Outdoor movie screen; Cinema (53-seat)
• Video Games Arcade; Fuel Teen Disco club; Royal Babies and Tots Nursery
• Adventure Beach; Adventure Ocean kids lounge area
• Sports Court (golf simulator, table tennis, basketball court); Jogging Track; Rock-climbing Wall; Fairways of Serenade Mini-Golf Course.

Itineraries

Serenade of the Seas itinerary program was based on Caribbean (homeporting in Fort Lauderdale) and Northern European voyages (Baltic Sea ports in Scandinavia and Russia), with Transatlantic repositioning crossings between Europe and Florida USA. The ship also operated Fall Foliage voyages (to Canada and New England) from NYC/Bayonne.

Following the Coronavirus crisis, in 2021 Serenade OTS restarted services on July 19, with an Alaskan cruise roundtrip from homeport Seattle WA. The 7-day Alaska Glacier itinerary included as destinations/call ports Sitka, Icy Strait Point, Juneau, Ketchikan, as well as Tracy Arm Fjord (Endicott Arm and Dawes Glacier). Serenade became the industry's first liner to resume operations in Alaska and RCI's second to restart services in the USA (after Freedom OTS from PortMiami /July 2).

After the Alaskan season, for Serenade OTS was scheduled an Australia-New Zealand deployment (2021-2022 winter/October-March, with homeporting in Sydney NSW), followed by Alaska 2022 (from Vancouver BC) and Bahamas-Western Caribbean from Tampa FL (2022-2023). However, the Australian program was canceled and replaced with the Caribbean (4-5-day roundtrips from Tampa) to Mexico (Cozumel, Costa Maya) and Bahamas (Nassau, CocoCay).

World Cruise 2023-2024

In October 2021, RCI announced the company's first World Cruise, which is also one of the world's longest.

The 274-night itinerary (themed "Ultimate World Cruise"/December 10, 2023, thru September 10, 2024) is scheduled for Serenade OTS. The roundtrip from Miami visits 150 ports and islands (57 new for RCI) in 65 countries and all 7 continents.

Itinerary segments include:

• 64-days (Dec 10 - Feb 11) "Round the Horn: Americas and Antarctica Expedition" itinerary visits 36 ports/islands, 3 continents, and destinations in the Caribbean, Central and South America, Cape Horn, Antarctica, Rio de Janeiro (New Year's Eve overnight), Los Angeles (overnight).
• 87-days (Feb 11 - May 9) "Wonders of Asia and the Pacific Expedition" itinerary visits 40 ports/islands, 3 continents, and destinations in North America (Hawaii), Oceania (French Polynesia), New Zealand, Australia, Asia (Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, India, Japan).
• 63-days (May 9 - July 10) "Middle East Treasures and Marvels of the Med Expedition" itinerary visits 44 ports, 3 continents, and destinations in Arabia (Dubai, Jordan), Africa (Egypt), Mediterranean (Turkey, Greece, Italy, France, Spain), Adriatic (Croatia).
• 63-days (July 10 - Sept 10) "Capitals of Culture" itinerary visits 40 ports, 3 continents and destinations in the Mediterranean (Spain, Morocco), Baltic (Russia/St Petersburg, Norway), with the Transatlantic crossing from Europe to the USA (via Iceland and NYC New York) ending in PortMiami.
• Balcony stateroom cost USD 75,000 ($136 pp per day), the 4-passenger Royal Suite cost USD 760,000. ~70% of the ship was booked within the first week.
• The above-listed itinerary segments were opened for booking on Feb 10, 2022.
• Note: Pricing for these segments/expeditions will be announced in December 2021. Full-paid early bookings (made by January 6, 2023) receive a 10% discount. Additional costs include taxes-fees-port charges (USD 4667 USD pp).

Fares are inclusive of business class flights, land transportation, pre-cruise 5-star hotel overnight. Loyalty program's Platinum and above members receive as perks shore excursion package, Deluxe Beverage package, free Internet (VOOM Wi-Fi), free laundry service.

Serenade is one of Royal Caribbean's Radiance-class liners, with sisterships Brilliance, Jewel, Radiance. Serenade was completed in 2003 - built by Meyer Werft (Papenburg Shipyard). Vessel's godmother was the always charmingly smiling Whoopi Goldberg (US actress, Oscar winner). The naming ceremony was held in NYC on August 22, 2003. The inaugural cruise (maiden voyage) started on August 25.

All Radiance-Class ships were constructed in compliance with Panamax standards allowing marine vessels to transit through Panama Canal. Serenade, along with all her sisters, has gas turbines instead of diesel engines. This makes them more fuel efficient, also reducing the emissions of harmful gases.

Serenade OTS refurbishments review

The list of deckplan changes after drydock refurbishment 2012 included:

• upgraded cabin amenities (flat TVs, bathrooms with shower floors)
• Jumbotron (huge poolside LED screen for movies / located close to the main pool on Lido Deck)
• new lounges (“Diamond” and “Concierge”)
• new gourmet dining options at an additional charge (“Giovanni’s Table”/Italian Trattoria, “Izumi”/Asian, “Rita’s Cantina”/Mexican, “Chef’s Table”/5-course dining)
• Nursery
• upgraded “Centrum” entertainment options (acrobatic shows, LED screens)
• “R Bar” (retro 1960s-themed, replacing the old Lobby Bar), “Vintages” Bar (wine), an English pub
• Wi-Fi coverage was upgraded to shipwide.
• Digital signage boards were installed.

The last drydock (in 2022) included mainly routine maintenance works (hull cleaning and painting, mechanical/machinery inspections and upgrades), outdoor spaces renovations (sundeck, swimming pools), recarpeting of all indoor public areas (hallways, bars, lounges).