When this cruise was launched in November, I SWORE we wouldn’t do it. Royal Caribbean’s Quantum of the Seas and Genting’s Dream cruise are currently the only active cruises in the world. After all the cruise horror shows of last spring, who in their right mind would do this, I thought… And sure enough, in December, one of the cruises has to turn around (if you Google the cruise, this is basically all that will come up) as they had a suspected covid case. But what the news didn’t report was the case was a false alarm and Royal Caribbean boldly sent out the very next cruise, confident their safeguards had worked. Since then roughly 82,000 people have safely cruised. We now know many people who have gone, some multiple times. The resounding response was, in covid times, not being able to leave Singapore, this cruise is the best thing we have. So we “panic bought” ourselves a cruise 2 weeks ago, and on the 25th of March, away we went for our own 4 night cruise.
What’s the Nutmeggers review? We all agreed, this was a great covid vacation. Better for us as a family than a “staycation”. We enjoyed being away from Singapore, all the entertainment and the food. That being said, we are not cruisers. Ryan and I had previously been on one other cruise (celebrity cruise in Alaska). I think we both still feel the same. It’s a fun vacation, but not an all the time option for us. We don’t need or even really like being “entertained” all the time. Now in our 40’s, I think we can see the value in a cruise as a multigenerational vacation. As parents mobility declines and grandkids get older and more independent, a cruise would be an excellent way to get everyone together with the least resistance. It is also a good way to see remote areas (like Alaska). There is also the uncomfortable issue of cruises environmental impact. Being on this moving city (quantum if the seas is the 15th largest cruise ship in the world) really strikes home how catastrophic these beasts are for the environment. As the kids climbed on the rock wall and were blasted by smoke exhaust, it was hard not to consider this. So while I never say never to anything, I think if we did cruise again, it would be on something smaller.
A small review on the particulars of the cruise in case anyone in Singapore is reading this. For our family, have 2 connecting balcony rooms was perfect. The rooms and the balcony’s connected. With the connecting balcony’s, if your rooms don’t actually connect, that would be ok too. For our kids, eating in the main dining room was perfect and we didn’t feel we really needed any food “upgrades”. If we had eaten in a specialty restaurant, I would have probably picked Chops, the steakhouse. But our kids are still so inconsistent with their eating, that it probably would have been a waste. Here’s my quick review on the drinks package (we only bought the soda for Ryan and the kids and a coffee card for me). Ryan and I ended up saving $13 USD overall on drinks (and some friends bought us a drink one night). So if I could go back, I would have bought the two of us the package when we booked the cruise (it was significantly cheaper then). I would not buy the kids the soda package again as we lost money on that for sure. There are plenty of other drinks (juice, etc) and it’s so hot that they mostly drank water. I would pay out of pocket for those. 4 night vs 3 night? The timing of the 4 night was better for Ryan with work (he only had to take 1 day off). Our family would have been happy with the 3 night. We had seen and done everything in the 2 full days. It was nice to rest on the 3rd day, but not necessary.
Onto the pictures! I’ll try to review each aspect of the trip with the pictures. Enjoy the beautiful blue of the South China Sea!
This is our ship “Quantum of the Seas”. 15th largest in the world 
Easiest trip to the dock ever. A 15 minute grab ride from our condo! 
Our side of the ship. Our room was in the 13th floor 
Checking in. As expected, it was very organized 
Boarding on the gangway 
Our room! 
Looking back at Singapore from the top deck 
Our first sunrise, we saw dolphins! 
The rock climbing wall 
Random Instagram bear 
Awesome flow rider 
The North Star observation pod 
Butterfly art 
Our room (1of 2) I had forgotten how efficient cruise cabins are! 
Housekeeping took good care of us 
Running on the deck 
The north star pivoting out 
Two70 at the back of the boat. We saw 2 shows here and ate a quick breakfast. 
Enjoying the COLD pool 
We spent most of our time at the indoor pool. The outdoor was very hot and “full of little kids and drunk adults”. There was an adult indoor pool as well.
Looking back at Singapore 
Sentosa from the boat 
Good morning from the South China Sea! 
Happiness 
Only sight of land we had 
Our route to “nowhere” 
View from the stern 
Sadly, so much trash floating out there 
Storm clouds. Our captain deftly drove away from them 
Tanker. One of many other vessels out there 
Tiny little fishing boat 
Good morning Singapore. Home.
Our tracker bracelet 
They were not joking. Not sipping? You were reminded to pull up your mask. 
This is how distancing was handled for the shows. Reservations were required and you were dismissed by zone. only the dark seats were for sitting
Eating in the main dining room. Our seating was at 6, which I thought was insane, but somehow the kids were STARVING everyday at 6. Go figure. 
Short ribs 
Breakfast 
All you can wat soft serve?!? 
Many helpings were had 
Lamb shank 
Avery, I thought you didn’t like Indian food??? As she ate it fir breakfast… 
Lunch buffet desserts.
Ella 
Avery 
Liam 
Liam. He was eventually able to get on his knees 
Ella. She also could ride on her knees 
Our swimmers. Ella never went in 😩 
Someone win $200! 
Ready to fly! 
Avery 
Liam 
Ella 
Bumper cars 
Ready to bump! 
In storage 
We rode the bumper cars 3 times. Fun every time! We were lucky to book it as it filled up quickly. 
Ping pong with a view 
Nap-time. funny story. Ella was sitting there too. The safety officer came over and asked her to fix his mask. 😂 
Restful 
Card playing by the sea 
Ready for the Beatles 
Shoutout to Stephanie Melillo Branly, you would have LOVED this. 
Sequins and Lace a Vegas style show. 
Ella felt this show was exploitative to women. She wasn’t wrong… Avery thought they were pretty. 
Ready for Starwater 
The “diva”. This show was our least favorite. While the singers were great, it had no discernible plot. 
Front row! 
Last night 
So strong! 
Amazing and beautiful. 
Andre, the male lead was a funny magician too!
Glass floor looking down 5 floors 
Everyday the elevator tiles changed 
Glass elevator time! 
Back of the bear! 
It pivots too! 
Selfie! 
In the glass elevator. 
Towel art penguin? 
Our only family pic. On our balcony. At night. 🤦🏼♀️ 
Last day 
Home. 
Ship model
That’s it! It’s fun to write a blog, a travel blog as I intended this to be. Hopefully a sign of things to come…💕
Nutmeggers in Singapore 
Really interesting to get an insider’s take on what a cruise to nowhere is like! As a former cast member, I can’t help but wonder what it’s like for performers and staff onboard these ships!
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I’d love to know that too! The staff could not have been more kind. It is very brave of them to work in this unknown environment without really any breaks (I don’t think they get off the ship in between sailings). I hope royal
Caribbean treats them well!
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I’ve heard good things about working on Royal from friends! I’m sure it’s tough working onboard without getting off, but it’s also great to be able to get a gig during these times!
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