Niu-ma has finally rolled back home off the cruise ship.
The plan was to sneak in a little update from on board. Then we left port and I discovered there’s no signal at sea whatsoever — and buying the ship’s WiFi runs $160 a day.
Last December, Royal Caribbean — one of the biggest cruise companies in the world — reached out and asked me to help promote their ship Spectrum of the Seas. I said I’ve been on cruises, but never that one, and I can’t vouch for what I haven’t experienced. They said no problem — we’ll just send you on one.
Royal Caribbean runs an Alaska route out of Seattle, which happens to be a place I’d always wanted to see. So last week, the four of us pranced up the gangway of Ovation of the Seas.
Quick note: the ship we sailed is Ovation of the Seas. Royal Caribbean’s ship based in Asia is Spectrum of the Seas — nearly identical in layout, actually an upgraded version tuned for Chinese travelers. If you’re in China and eyeing the Spectrum, everything in this guide still applies. They currently have a third-guest-sails-free deal from about ¥518 per person per night, which is a steal.
Ovation of the Seas
Spectrum of the Seas
Setting sail
The day we boarded, Seattle got its first real rain of the summer. We wheeled our suitcases through the wet boarding tunnel past a handful of scattered passengers. From taxi door to ship deck took less than ten minutes.
Is nobody on this sailing? I muttered to myself, staring up at the behemoth under a gray sky.
Then we stepped inside — a whole different universe. A wall of noise, music blasting: most people had boarded early and the eating, drinking and partying was already in full swing!
You can check in online starting two weeks before departure, basically like checking in for a flight.
After that, download the Royal Caribbean app. Do not skip this. Everything you do on board runs through it — and if, like me, you didn’t buy WiFi, scrolling that app will be the entirety of your phone’s entertainment.
You also pick a boarding window — as early as 10 a.m., as late as 3 p.m. I picked 2, which is why the terminal was empty. Go late to skip the lines; go early to squeeze more hours out of the ship.
Oh, and you can hand your luggage over before boarding and the crew will deliver it to your room. So we happily dumped all our suitcases and strolled aboard, hands in pockets, light as air.
One hour passed. Two hours…… no luggage. My stomach started to knot. In vivid contrast: Niu-ba and the girls, drifting around like a flock of carefree cranes.
Halfway through dinner I couldn’t take it anymore and ran back to check — and there were our precious suitcases, lined up neatly at the door.
If you’re the suspicious type like me, just carry your own bags aboard.
The room
“Behold — our home for the next seven days!” I announced solemnly, and pushed open the door.
Niuniu and Niumei charged in whooping while I took my own inventory. Ours was a four-person family room with a balcony: bathroom on the right as you enter, then a double bed — an honest-to-goodness king — then a desk and a sofa, then the balcony. Blue and cream tones, clean and tidy, downright cozy.
The room is long and narrow and looks small at first, but it’s so sensibly designed it never feels cramped. For starters, storage everywhere — clothes, shoes, suitcases, clutter, all of it swallowed.
The balcony is surprisingly big — you can sit comfortably with both legs stretched all the way out (Niu-ba is 6’2”).
The sofa unfolds into another giant king-size bed. Honestly, this room could sleep two more people.
The bathroom is small but cleverly packed. The shower sits in its own little corner room with a swinging door — roomy inside, genuinely pleasant showers.
Small as a sparrow, complete in every organ — add the endless ocean view and it’s pure luxury.
On the desk were our SeaPass cards. You’ll need them for the next week — meals, activities, getting on and off the ship. Do not lose them.
So far, my first impression of the Ovation: new. No wonder — she was built in 2016, and everything from the ceilings to the floors is kept spotless. Sleek and modern, much more my taste than most of the older ships out there.
Eating
On past trips, Niu-ba would periodically go cranky and irritable, face hanging down to his belt. This time, none of those symptoms — instead, a mysterious little Mona Lisa smile kept flickering across his face.
The reason is simple: he was never hungry.
Eating is half the point of a cruise. The Ovation has a dozen-ish places to eat, roughly: the main dining rooms, the buffet, fast food, casual spots, desserts, and the specialty (read: extra-charge) restaurants, plus one reserved for suite guests.
I personally only ever made it to the main dining rooms, the fast food and the dessert shop. Not for lack of ambition — my stomach simply tapped out.
At home Niu-ba and I skip breakfast, and on board I had no morning appetite either. Lunch and dinner in the main dining room, the occasional pastry in passing — and I still felt stuffed to the eyeballs every single day.
But Niu-ba and the girls seemed to have grown cow stomachs. Every morning while I was still asleep, the three of them slipped out to the buffet for breakfast. Lunch: a three-course sit-down, all together. Afternoon: snacks and ice cream, obviously. Evening: a full dinner of appetizer, entrée and dessert. And at bedtime Niu-ba would still ask whether we shouldn’t go grab a slice of pizza.
Let’s start with the main dining rooms, the ones I know best. There are two at the stern on deck four: a champagne-colored Western one and a rose-red Chinese-styled one.
Main dining room No. 1: My Time
Main dining room No. 2: Silk
Silk’s modern-Chinese decor — gorgeous
Whichever room you pick, though, the menu is mostly Western with a sprinkling of Southeast Asian and Indian. Both serve lunch and dinner, a proper three courses — appetizer, main, dessert — different every day.
The staff, from the host stand to the food runners, are warm and smiling to a person, and the service is genuinely high-end: menus introduced with enthusiasm, napkin laid across your lap, finished cutlery whisked away, tablecloth scraped clean with a little blade before dessert arrives.
Cruises charge a service fee that isn’t in the ticket price — ours was $18 per person per day, and beyond that you tip no one for anything. If you book a different ship, look up the gratuity rate ahead of time.
The food is solidly good overall. My favorites were the salads, the fish and the Indian dishes; the steak was ordinary; the desserts fell a bit short — including, sadly, the ones at the dessert shop.
When you stagger back from a long day ashore, the mere thought that a table, good food and kind service are waiting on board warms you enough to put actual speed back in your step.
The fast food covers a hot dog stand, a fish-and-chips shop and a pizzeria. Kids love the hot dogs. The fish and chips sit right by the pool — swim a little, eat a little, then go soak in the hot tub; obscenely pleasant. And the pizzeria and the dessert shop next door stay open until 3 a.m. and are never empty. You will never, ever go hungry on this ship.
The specialty restaurants — Italian, Japanese, American, plus assorted bars — I can’t review, because we didn’t eat at any of them.
In my defense, the paid restaurants were all deserted anyway — Americans won’t pay extra when the free food is this close. Though if you feel like splurging, I’m sure they’re a cut above.
The Japanese restaurant
The Italian restaurant
The bars, on the other hand, were hopping. Plenty of people cruise precisely to drink and be merry, and they do not economize on alcohol — by the afternoon of boarding day, some passengers were already listing to one side.
The robot bartenders — very entertaining
As for drinks: the free options are water, milk, coffee (urns, pre-brewed, decaf available), lemonade, iced tea, hot water and tea bags.
Alcohol, soda and juice all cost extra, and there’s a paid Starbucks on board. If you want any of that, buy a drinks package — the cheapest is the soda package, which gets you a loudly-colored special cup that unlocks the soda machines.
The food really is good — but if you have a Chinese stomach, a week without Chinese food can wear on you. Consider packing some instant noodles. (If you’re on the Asia-based Spectrum, no problem at all — it’s loaded with excellent Chinese food.)
What to pack
We packed seven days of outfits for a seven-day trip. Verdict: way too much. You just don’t change clothes that often on board, especially on the sea days.
It was August, but Alaska still demands warm layers. A fleece and a waterproof shell are non-negotiable; some packing lists insisted on hat and scarf, so I stuffed those in too.
Never touched them. We didn’t attempt anything hardcore like glacier trekking; the coldest moment of the trip was standing on deck at dawn in the wind hunting for glaciers, and the jacket’s hood was plenty.
Up at dawn, one hour on deck, still no glacier. Displeased.
Do bring a swimsuit, even though the weather kept Niu-ba and me out of the water. And bring one set of workout clothes — even if you skip the gym, you can jog off dinner on the track.
Every cruise has a formal night or two. I packed a dress, Niu-ba packed a suit jacket. Then on the actual night, I came straight from working out, walked into dinner in my gym clothes, and nobody stopped me.
Whatever the dress code, some people show up dazzling, some in T-shirts and shorts, someone watches the show in pajamas — and nobody gives anyone a second look. Modern cruising is relaxed about the rules. That said, dressing up for the full experience is never wrong — the ship is wall-to-wall photo backdrops!
Playing
The first night, scrolling the app, I spotted early-morning yoga and dance classes and announced to the other three that I would be rising at dawn for a healthy, active cruise.
……I did not get out of bed before nine. Once.
Which doesn’t mean I missed my chance to move! There’s a gym, pools, a jogging track, a climbing wall, sports courts…… if you want to sweat, the options are endless.
There is simply too much to do on this ship. Open the app: shows, trivia with prizes, shopping events, wellness talks — something different every hour.
Fancy girls can hit the spa; quiet souls, the library corner; thrill-seekers, the arcade or a round at the casino; shoppers, the boutiques. Or do absolutely nothing — order a drink, find a seat, and stare at the ocean. Everyone finds their spot.
Towel-animal folding class
A chef teaching cake decorating
The giant 270-degree lounge at the stern hosts all kinds of events
But the Ovation’s signature attractions are these three: the North Star, the FlowRider surf simulator, and skydiving on deck.
The North Star observation pod rides a giant mechanical arm into the sky — genuinely jaw-dropping
Cold weather could not stop the surfers
Deck “skydiving” is essentially one enormous hair dryer
These three cost extra. I hear they’re even more competitive on the China sailings — there you can pre-book the hot activities before departure through the official WeChat mini-program, along with WiFi packages and premium shore excursions. Pick whatever suits you.
Surfing proved a bit beyond us, but we tried the North Star and the skydiving — both a blast. Recommended!
The North Star is like a very tall Ferris wheel — you look down over the whole ship and out to the horizon. (Also, my flying form was pretty solid, no?)
Of everything on board, though, my favorite was the shows. The bow of deck four is one huge theater, and — ship or no ship — the sound, lights and staging rival a professional Las Vegas production.
Every night, with or without Niu-ba, I went to the show, and every night delivered: some hilarious, some glittering, some simply gorgeous. First-rate singing and dancing all around — Royal Caribbean’s shows are absolutely worth your evening.
Niumei’s favorite place was the kids’ club — drop-off childcare, with a nursery area, a kids’ zone and a teen lounge.
The toddler play area
The kids’ activity room
From the day Niumei discovered it, any hour she wasn’t eating, she wanted to be there — drawing, playing games with the counselors. She even made a few friends.
Niuniu judged the 9–11 room too babyish and the teen room too grown-up, and preferred marinating in the pool or wandering the ship with me.
And Niu-ba? His favorite venues were the restaurants — all of them — plus the room, for movies and epic naps.
The Ovation is simply enormous. Seven days aboard, and I was still discovering new places on the last one.
Alaska
We called at four ports: Sitka, Skagway and Juneau in Alaska, plus Victoria in Canada.
The scenery on the road from Skagway toward the Yukon is unreal
The app lists the all-ashore and all-aboard times for every port — do not miss the ship. And carry your SeaPass card; you swipe it getting off and back on.
Cruise sightseeing is, let’s be honest, a light skim of each destination, mostly via small shore excursions. You can book them on the ship or in the app, or book locally once ashore.
You can also go independent. In Skagway we’d booked a Yukon sightseeing tour; they somehow ran out of seats, so they handed us a car and told us to drive the route ourselves.
Verdict: driving yourself beats the tour by a mile.
Stop for photos whenever you like — including at an actual patch of desert in the middle of the forest
In Juneau, the famous glacier runs $100-plus per person booked through the ship, and $170 a carload for a shuttle at the pier — our Uber cost $35. The city bus is $2 a head. Do a little homework and you can save real money.
At the rate this glacier is melting, every visit could be your last chance
My two great Alaska hopes were wild bears and the northern lights, and we struck out on both. But on the way back we ran into a huge pod of whales, so I’m counting my wildlife wish as fulfilled.
A bear at Sitka’s bear sanctuary — perfectly spherical
So who should take a cruise?
I think you’ll thoroughly enjoy cruising if: you want easy, comfortable, zero-logistics travel; you’ll actually use the onboard activities; you’re traveling as a big family with grandparents and kids, several families together, or a pack of friends; or if lots of walking and transit-hopping is hard for you.
If you want to go deep on one destination and stomp every street of it, a cruise is not your tool.
Now, for readers in China: Royal Caribbean is running 2025 deals on the Spectrum of the Seas routes from Shanghai to Japan and Korea — third guest in a family room sails free, fares from ¥518 per person per night, stackable with an exclusive $75 onboard credit for my readers. If you’ve been cruise-curious, this is your moment.
The ticket deals: during the 9.9 sale week, eleven select 2025 Spectrum sailings out of Shanghai offer third-guest-free on family rooms, stacking with discounts for the first two guests, from ¥518 per person per night. Flower chasers, don’t miss the late-March and early-April departures.
There are also extra deals for the 2025 winter school break: four designated Shanghai sailings with third guest half price in any family room, early-bird from ¥793 per person per night — ideal for families with school-age kids planning ahead.
Sample balcony-room prices (interiors are cheaper); the mini-program shows current numbers
Remember the fare covers your international transportation and local transfers, five-star-comparable lodging, three meals a day plus afternoon tea and late-night snacks, three Broadway-level shows, free professional childcare, dozens of free activities and sports, four pools, and the port stops. A few routes worth a look:
More promos: the only two Qiaohu-themed sailings of the year (November 22 and 27, 2024) take up to ¥4,400 off per cabin, stacking with half price for guests three and four — a must for Qiaohu superfans. You can search all routes on the booking page.
Enter the code NLH75 when you book and you’ll get $75 (about ¥550) of onboard credit — enough to cover four nights of gratuities, three nights of WiFi, hot pot at sea for two, or specialty restaurants, drinks, paid activities and duty-free shopping.
The fine print: the code works through the official mini-program, website or booking hotline, through September 25, 2024, on most Shanghai Spectrum sailings departing late October 2024 through November 2025 (a few room types and single cabins excluded; the list shown at checkout governs).
Quick FAQ: cruise passengers visit Japan and Korea visa-free on these itineraries — Jeju routes need nothing, and on Busan routes, guests who book through official channels and join a Royal shore excursion get their landing permit arranged free. Babies can sail from six months, there’s no upper age limit, every child counts as a full fare, and each cabin needs at least one guest over 21. Booking through the official site or mini-program lets you self-select and change cabins. There’s a medical center on board, but bring your regular medications.
Oh, and one last warning. Cruising comes with a side effect, and it’s a serious one—
After a week of lovely food appearing right on schedule, attentive service, and never once clearing my own dishes — being back home is a very, very hard adjustment. AAAAAH!