[Cruise Experience] All the fun new things to do on board Royal Caribbean’s Spectrum of the Seas

My son Asher and I enjoy going on cruise holidays together and one of our favourite cruise brands sailing from Singapore is Royal Caribbean. Asher would have been on at least four cruise vacations with me and he had cruised with both Mariner of the Seas and Voyager of the Seas.

Earlier last month, we cruised with Royal Caribbean’s newest and largest ship sailing from Singapore – Spectrum of the Seas. Spectrum of the Seas is currently Asia’s largest and most technologically advanced ship and the first of Royal Caribbean’s latest Quantum Ultra ships to arrive at our shores.

Ever wondered what it is like to skydive, bungee jump, surf and have robotic bartenders serve you all within minutes from each other… all out at sea? Here’s a video highlight of what you can expect when you cruise with Spectrum of the Seas:

The ship comes with first-at-sea features such as Sky Pad, a virtual reality, bungee trampoline experience, and the two-level Ultimate Family Suite with an in-room slide, as well as new innovative dining and entertainment concepts, on top of the iconic Quantum Class favourites, such as the North Star elevated glass capsule, skydiving simulator and bumper cars.

Royal Caribbean officially took over delivery of the 26th ship in its fleet, Spectrum of the Seas, in a ceremony held on 11 April in Bremerhaven, Germany. The ship is still almost new and it is very obvious from the spanking clean interior and smell of fresh paint when you board.

As the largest and most expensive ship in Asia, Spectrum of the Seas can accommodate 4,246 guests at double occupancy and 1,551 international crew members, with its home dock in Shanghai.

Here’s how the room we stayed in look like:

Having been on many other cruises with Royal Caribbean, both Asher and I are very familiar with the standard ship layout, their F&B offerings as well as entertainment facilities and amenities on board. Spectrum of the Seas is a much larger ship than the rest of Royal Caribbean’s fleet in Asia and offers more than the usual. Some of the highlights are as listed below.

Enhanced SeaPlex

The enhanced SeaPlex on board Spectrum of the Seas is the largest indoor sports and entertainment complex at sea. Families get to enjoy bumper cars, roller skating, basketball, new augmented reality games and even laser tags! Asher and I usually do not spend much time at the SeaPlex on other ships but we find ourselves heading back multiple time to try out all the rides and games there on board Spectrum of the Seas.

Iconic Sky Pad

This is a virtual reality bungee trampoline experience that is located on the aft of the ship. If you do not like virtual reality goggles, you can also bounce on the trampoline to soar high into the air at sea. This was one of Asher’s favourite activities on board the ship.

The North Star

This is a glass capsule that takes guests more than 300 feet above the ocean for a magnificent panoramic view of the surrounding and a full view of the whole ship. This attraction is popular with all ages and always draw a strong crowd. As such, book a slot with them early to avoid disappointment.

RipCord by iFly

This is one of the highlights on the ship – you get to go on a complimentary indoor skydiving experience! The instructors here are really patient as they have to cater to a high volume of visitors. Asher was apprehensive at first, but was coaxed to try his first indoor skydiving experience after interacting with our designated instructor.

FlowRider surfing simulator

Ever tried surfing in the open sea on board a cruise ship? This surfing simulator allows you to do just that and is located on the top deck of the ship where you can get a great view of the open sea.

Tech-centric Entertainment in Two70

The brand new Two70 features next-generation entertainment that fuses performance art and technology. With its signature Vistarama technology, which transforms the 270-degree panoramic windows into a projection surface that measures 135 feet wide and 22 feet tall, the iconic venue at the aft of the ship presents spectacular digital art, from iconic city skylines to larger-than-life waterfalls, that takes form in surprise and delight programming. In addition, a troupe of six, agile Roboscreens come to life in perfect sync with music, special effects and multi-talented live performers. Be sure to catch The Silk Road, an original production created by Royal Caribbean International exclusively for Two70, when you cruise with Spectrum of the Seas.

7 Complimentary Dining Venues and 11 Speciality Dining Concepts

Spectrum of the Seas features a whopping 7 complimentary dining venues and an additional 11 speciality dining concepts. The latter include the usual crowd’s favourites like Chopes Grill and The Hot Pot, but also features exciting additions like Wonderland by Dadong and Jamie’s Italian.

Asher was particularly excited to see Jamie’s Italian on board the ship as it is one of our favourite Italian family restaurants in Singapore. For the specialty dining restaurant,s you just pay one price and can order as many F&B items as you can eat from the full menu! We never had so much food in one serving at Jamie’s Italian:

For the complimentary dining venues, Windjammer international buffet has an expanded Asian selection with a noodle bar to boast as well as fresh pasta stations and other exciting additions. There is also a standalone pizzeria, Sorento’s, whereby you can enjoy pizza all time of the day.

Bionic Bar

This features a robot bartender. You order your drink with your SeaPass card and the robot bartender will concoct your drink on-the-spot by itself with no human assistance.

Other entertainment facilities and amenities on board include Adventure Ocean and other kids daycare centres; gym and spa services; swimming pools and whirlpools; theatre performances and other shows.

There is really a lot of things to do on board Spectrum of the Seas!

Asher and I cruised on the ship for 3D2N and we didn’t disembark from the sea when we docked in Port Klang, Malaysia, because there were just way too much activities which we wanted to do on the ship itself.

More details on Spectrum of the Seas are available on the official website. If you missed crusing with Spectrum of the Seas when it set sail from Singapore, fret not, another LARGER ship is coming in November – Quantam of the Seas!

Quantum of the Seas will first see 34 sailings during the six months from November 2019 to April 2020. The ship will then return for a longer season in October 2020, with a total of 40 sailings over seven months till April 2021 – the cruise line’s longest ever Singapore deployment for a Quantum Class ship. The ship offers several of the same exciting amenities that we experienced onboard Spectrum of the Seas – including the North Star, Two70, Bionic Bar, skydiving and surfing experiences, and SeaPlex. The ship also boasts 18 dining venues with cuisines from around the globe.

Have fun cruising!