Have you ever wanted to go on a cruise? Over February break, I spent seven nights on an Eastern Caribbean cruise aboard the Wonder of the Seas, the third-largest cruise ship in the world. For those who are curious about cruising, I’ll be sharing my experience and even some pros and cons to be aware of on a trip like this one!
The Ship’s Size
The ship, operated by Royal Caribbean, is relatively new, having been launched in 2022. Of course, it is known for its size; at 1,188 feet long, it has 18 decks and can accommodate up to 6,988 passengers. In fact, the Wonder of the Seas used to be the biggest cruise ship in the world until just last year, when two other Royal Caribbean cruise ships, the Icon of the Seas and the Utopia of the Seas, were completed.
The Itinerary
The ship sails from Port Canaveral in Orlando, Florida. The Eastern Caribbean cruise itinerary from my trip consisted of three stops: St. Maarten, St. Thomas, and CocoCay—Royal Caribbean’s private island in the Bahamas. The other three days are spent at sea, enjoying all the amenities that are offered on the ship.
First Impressions
On the evening of February 15th, 2025 I arrived in Orlando the night before the cruise was leaving and stayed in the surrounding area. The next day, I returned to the Orlando International Airport and took a GoPort shuttle to Port Canaveral. The shuttle ride lasted roughly an hour. Afterward, I boarded the ship and found my room with the help of the Royal Caribbean International app. My room was on deck seven, near the front of the ship. Since I stayed in an interior room, there were no windows. The room was pretty small, but the furniture was smartly placed so that the small space was utilized to its fullest extent.
On the first day on the ship, I mainly got familiar with the locations of everything on the ship, from the pools to the restaurants. I was overwhelmed by the vastness of the ship and the sheer amount of activities offered on board—including an ice rink, zip-lining, and FlowRider (a surf simulator). In the evening, I went to the main dining room for dinner, which is complimentary for all guests. The main dining room spans three floors; from deck three to deck five. I was seated on deck four, with a beautiful view of the bottom floor. For dinner, each guest gets to choose an appetizer, entree, and dessert.
The next two days were cruising days, as the ship sailed from Orlando to St. Maarten. For breakfast, I went to the Windjammer on deck fifteen, which is the main buffet on the ship. Deck five is the promenade, with plenty of shops and food/drink spots. One that stood out to me was the Bionic Bar, where drinks are made by robotic arms. The food at the buffets, cafés, and main dining room are also free of charge, but there are a few specialty restaurants that are not included. Many of these are on deck eight, at the ship’s New-York-inspired Central Park. Unfortunately, drinks are also not included in the price of the cruise, so people wanting drinks would need to buy them individually or get a drink package.
Never-ending Fun on the Ship
Decks fifteen and sixteen are where most of the fun happens. Deck fifteen is the pool deck, and deck sixteen is a continuation that contains the sports court, mini-golf area, zip-line, Flowrider, as well as the ultimate abyss slide. On my vacation, I rode the ultimate abyss slide, went on the zip-line, participated in mini-golf, and played volleyball on the sports court. Out of all of these features, the abyss slide is one of great popularity.
The ultimate abyss slide is a slide that is 10 decks high on the aft (back) side of the ship. To be honest, it looks scary because of its height, but sliding down it for me was exciting and not scary at all. The slide starts on deck sixteen and ends on the boardwalk on deck six. The boardwalk is New Jersey-style, complete with a carousel and more food spots. Also on deck six, at the front, is the spa and a fitness center.
The zip-line goes across deck sixteen, and you get a view of deck eight’s Central Park as you fly over it. The zip-line was very short, so it’s perfect for beginners who may not have gone on zip-lines before, but want to try it out. If you’re ever worried about getting bored on the cruise ship—trust me, you won’t.
After a long day of activities and fun aboard the ship, it’s once again time for dinner. The menu for the main dining room changes every day, so you don’t need to be worried about getting sick of eating the same thing. On the cruise I went on, there was a different theme for dinner each day. Many of these were based on the cuisines of different countries and regions, such as Italy, France, Mexico, the Caribbean, and the Mediterranean.
Shows that Blow Your Mind
After dinner was my favorite part of the day, because I could watch a thrilling performance or show! Deck four is the entertainment center of the ship. On this deck, you can find the Royal Theater, The Attic Comedy Club, a casino, and the ice rink—yes, there is even an ice rink on this cruise ship! The Aquatheater, a water-based entertainment venue, is located on the boardwalk on deck six. In total, I watched four shows: inTENse, 365: The Seasons On Ice, Showtime: Randy Cabral, and The Effectors™ II: Crash ‘n’ Burn.
For a couple of the popular shows, you need to reserve online through the Royal app in advance to get seats. On the day of the show, before you enter, a worker will check to see if you have a reservation. Seats are first come, first serve. However, if you show up late after the show begins, you can sit anywhere that’s available, even if you weren’t able to make a reservation.
On the first night, I watched the water show “inTENse” at the Aquatheater, and I was blown away by the performance’s energy and, as the name implies – intensity! There were all kinds of tricks, from diving to dancing to jumping on a tightrope. It was a thrilling show to kickstart my trip.
365: The Seasons On Ice is the cruise’s figure skating show at the ship’s ice rink. To be honest, this show surprised me the most because I never thought there would be an ice show on a cruise ship! It’s like something that came out of the future! I was lucky enough to get a front-row seat, so I could see the skaters and their performances perfectly. It was exhilarating, but at the same time nerve-wracking; whenever the skaters attempted a complicated jump or backflip, my heart would jump with the skater, and I would hold my breath in anxiety. In the end, though, I loved this show a lot. The lights, music, and costumes were coordinated really well and there was a variety of emotions in performances. It amazed me how the performers can stay focused and perform so well, even on a rocking ship.
The Showtime event featured Randy Cabral, a professional comedy juggler. He performed all kinds of tricks, from juggling and eating apples at the same time to balancing a rod with a hat on his nose.
Lastly, The Effectors™ II is a live-action theater performance about four superheroes—Captain Viz, Reverb, Lume, and Pixel—who are battling their enemies, Crash and Burn. Each of the characters has their own distinct personality, and I loved how they were clearly expressed through their songs and performances.
Eastern Caribbean Ports
After three days, the ship finally arrived at its first port: Philipsburg, St. Maarten at around 8 AM. The ship’s time changed an hour forward to match St. Maarten’s time, so I planned ahead and went to sleep a bit earlier the day before in anticipation of our early arrival. St. Maarten belongs to both France and the Netherlands—there’s a French side and a Dutch side—and the country is known for its mountains and white-sand beaches, like Orient Bay and Mullet Bay. Another famous beach in St. Maarten is Maho Beach, where many enjoy watching planes fly very low over their heads during takeoff. The excursion that I went on took me from the cruise port to Mullet Bay Beach, located on the Dutch side of the island. During the car ride there, the car went up the mountains, and the view was breathtaking. Once I arrived at the beach, what surprised me was how bright and blue the water was, especially when the sun came out. The beach looked exactly like those pictures on Google that come up when you search up “Caribbean beaches” which look clearly Photoshopped. Except for the fact that this was very much in real life and also without Photoshop, obviously. Here is a picture I took on my camera (trust me, it’s unedited).
The next day, at 7 AM the ship arrived at St. Thomas of the U.S. Virgin Islands. I was extremely sleepy, but my motivation to see St. Thomas and not miss the excursion was enough to get me to wake up at 6 AM. Today’s excursion was going to Magens Bay Beach and Mountain Top, the highest point of St. Thomas. The vehicle that took our tour group to the beach was like a truck with a safari-style bus attached to it. Waking up at 6 AM (technically 5 AM, right?) was brutal, but it was 100% worth it. When I walked into Magens Bay Beach, I was immediately in love. It was one of the most beautiful beaches I had ever seen, with clear blue water and a beautiful backdrop of lush green mountains. After an hour and a half at the beach, I was reluctant to leave. When I thought things couldn’t get any better, the tour bus arrived at Mountain Top. From a height of 1,500 feet, you get a panoramic view of the rest of St. Thomas—including Magens Bay Beach!—and multiple nearby islands. I don’t have enough positive words to describe the view.
The last port of my vacation was CocoCay, Bahamas. CocoCay is Royal Caribbean’s private island that only their ships go to. It is designed like a giant theme park, with waterslides, pools, beaches, cabanas, and more. There are a lot of things to do at CocoCay, but I will warn you in advance that most of them are not included, which can be annoying. For example, the Coco Beach Club, where I spent the day, had to be booked in advance for an additional cost. That said, at the Coco Beach Club, if you do have an access pass, you can enjoy a private beach, restaurant and bar, chairs and towels, and even an infinity-edge pool. Overall, it was a relaxing little paradise tucked away from the chaos of the waterpark and other beaches, perfect for chilling on the last day of the cruise.
Pros and Cons
Pros:
The ship is wonderful! It’s like a mini floating city with everything you need
Includes almost all aspects of travel, so you don’t need to worry about booking hotels, renting cars, etc.
Beautiful itinerary
Visit multiple locations in just one week
Can watch amazing shows/performances every night
Unlimited food
Lots of activities and entertainment
Cons:
A lot of things have additional costs and are overpriced, which can add up quickly, such as:
WiFi (You have to pay for it on an individual basis).
Shore excursions
Drinks
Spa services
The ship only spends a few hours at each port, and you must be back on the ship before it leaves, which may feel restrictive and may not always feel like enough time at a location.
Seasickness?
Seasickness is one of the main potential issues that drives people away from wanting to cruise. I am actually someone who gets seasick easily; whenever I’m on a small boat, I get dizzy and nauseous. I could feel the ship moving, especially at night, and sometimes there were larger waves that made the ship more rocky. However, because cruise ships like the Wonder of the Seas are so big, I could tolerate it and I did not get seasick on the trip. Some people may choose to take seasick medications, but I was fine without it.
Final Thoughts
Overall, I loved my experience on the Wonder of the Seas and I would highly recommend going on a cruise if you’re interested! In the span of one week, you get the best of both worlds— paradise on multiple Caribbean islands and fun and community of cruise life. I loved the ship so much because of the sheer amount of activities and amenities onboard. I feel like everyone can find something on the ship that they enjoy, whether it’s going down the waterslides, skating in the ice rink, or simply relaxing by the pool. Even though there were some cons, I would definitely want to go on another cruise vacation in the future and would highly recommend this one!
