Everything I Experienced (And Ate!) Aboard Crystal Serenity
I’ve known about Crystal Cruises and sold them for a long time, however I never knew how good the food was onboard!
I was lucky enough to sail from Malaga to Barcelona this August and tried everything on the menu in every restaurant. When I embarked I was greeted by the very welcoming team onboard and made my way to my stunning Sapphire Veranda Suite.
As soon as I walked in I was wowed by the size of the suite, spanning 430 sq ft with a very decent sized balcony at 107 sq ft. This suite offers a walk-in shower and wardrobe, separate living room with sofa and dining room and a private veranda! Additions included in this suite are the daily canapes (which were delicious!!), complimentary laundry, dry cleaning and pressing - this is a fantastic touch that I made the most of.
All room categories onboard Crystal Serenity include 24-hour private butler service, pillow menu, select wines, premium spirits and soft drinks, a fully stocked minibar, all dining venues included including specialty dining and unlimited wi-fi available on multiple devices.
The highlight for me had to be the food onboard, we were on a shorter cruise of 4 nights and in that time we tried every dining venue on board! Food is one of those statements that all cruise lines shout about but Crystal definitely CAN brag.
Here are my favourite dishes I enjoyed on board:
Beefbar - This might be my favourite dining venue that we tried on board and was possibly the best steak I’ve ever had at sea.
Experience Riccardo Giraudi’s exciting Beef, Reef and Leaf concept which showcases the finest cuts of steak and is designed to be shared. We ordered every starter on the menu including angus beef Taco’s, Korean Bao Buns, tuna ceviche and that was just for starters. There were a number of steaks available including filet steak, ribeye and NYC striploin (this was the steak I ordered and WOW!). For a supplement they also had available wagyu beef, if you dare to try the tomahawk steak which was 49.38oz!!
Osteria D’ovidio is the Italian cuisine in collaboration with the Michelin-rated Alajmo brothers. Again this could be my favourite...
This restaurant has multiple options for dining, you can enjoy the tasting menu or mix each of the menu options and pick whichever takes your fancy. These dishes emphasize lightness and flavour, paired with some of the best wines onboard. For starters I chose the cuttlefish with ink and light potato cream followed by a pasta dish which was a perfect carbonara followed by sea bass and the highlight of the evening had to be the homemade tiramisu which they made at the table.
Umi Uma - the world famous Nobu. Now this was a perfect way to end a fantastic trip, we enjoyed Umi Uma on our last night. If you haven’t heard of Nobu before, this is the only Nobu at sea. Reservations ashore are very hard to come by and are typically around £500, when you dine onboard this restaurant is included in the fare! We started with the sushi bar and ordered nearly every option, my favourite was the shrimp tempura roll!
Again we ordered a number of different things on the menu and shared between us, which is definitely something I would recommend.
Did you know that Crystal has a very lively nightlife onboard? Our first night we joined the famous white party! This was a fantastic event where all guests dressed in white and had signature cocktails, enjoyed entertainment including a special performance from the cruise director (who performed previously on Broadway!) danced the night away with some great music. The following evening we enjoyed after dinner drinks in the jam packed Avenue Saloon which is a gorgeous intimate piano bar. Another must is to visit the galaxy lounge take a sea for one of the nightly show’s, on our evening we enjoyed an evening with Billy Joel followed by a karaoke in the pulse nightclub.
Overall I enjoyed a fantastic ultra-luxury cruise in ultra-luxury on board Crystal Serenity, I can’t wait to get back on board.
You can find out more about Crystal here.
