Fathom Adonia
Pre-Cruise Information
The information on the cruise is lacking in comparison to other cruise lines. At the time I booked our cruise, the website did not provide details about cruise arrival or departure times. Once the cruise was booked, this information was provided but not upfront. I was emailed an affidavit to complete online prior to the cruise which confirms your reason for traveling to Cuba. I recommend selecting both the Fathom-Guided P2P option & 1 P2P Travel. This will allow you to participate in both Fathom’s P2P tour or you can do your own P2P tour. If you do not participate in Fathom’s P2P tour you must keep a record of your P2P interactions for 5 years. It took about three days before I was able to access my online documents and there was not much to it. It asks for your information and that is it. It shows there are evening options to choose from in Havana but it did not give the option to book anything. In addition, there is no information about dining dress code (which is come as you are), if there are beverage packages (there is not), and if beverages can be brought on board (one 750 ml bottle of wine per person & all the water you can carry).
Embarkation
When we arrived at the cruise terminal, there are people out front ready to assist with checking your luggage. There was not much of a security line and it went very quick. Once we left security we were asked to complete the affidavit. I advised we completed it online but I was told this had to be printed. So we had to complete two affidavits each (one for Fathom and one for us). I’m not sure what the point of doing it online was if we still had to complete a paper one. Once we completed the affidavit, we got in line to check in. The line was rather short and and moved quickly. We provided our information to the agent and they set up our onboard account and provided us with our room keys. We were also advised that rooms would not be available until 2:00. Boarding the boat was a little confusing. We did not have a boarding group and from what we could tell, they were just calling groups of people to board. It was pretty unorganized.
Common Areas
This is an older ship that has been refurbished. There were several common areas on board and each was tastefully decorated and comfortable. The Glass House was probably one of my favorite common areas located on deck 10 that had amazing views. It is primarily a wine and champagne bar but they serve any drink you want. The ship also offers a spa, health center, coffee bar, and library.
Rooms
I had an opportunity to tour all room categories offered. The inside, ocean view, and balcony rooms are all very similar. The biggest difference is the view. The rooms can be set up with two single beds or combined for one larger bed. The inside and balcony room had a small sofa and the ocean view I toured only had a chair. The bathroom in these rooms are small but that is expected on a cruise. If you are looking for a room with more space and a normal sized bathroom, you might consider the suite. The suites have a significantly larger balcony, a half bath, living/dining area, separate bedroom, ample closet space, and a normal sized bathroom with jetted tub. For what it is worth, our cruise was mid-May and it was so hot that we never used our balcony and wish we would have opted for the ocean view.
Beverages
Beverage packages are not offered on board but the drinks were reasonably priced. For a mojito or pina colada you can expect to pay $8.50 a drink, Caribbean beer $5.50, Vodka starts at $5.50 for Skyy, and rum starting at $6.95 for Bacardi. You can bring one 750 ml bottle of wine or champagne per person on board. To save on corkage fee I would recommend brining a wine opener and just open the bottle in your room and pour your own glass. You are also allowed to bring as much water as you can carry. We brought two cases of water on board and used a luggage cart.
Food
There are four areas on board you can eat. The Lido Café is located outside and serves things like Cuban sandwiches. The Pacific Restaurant is the main dining room. The service is good but I was disappointed when the menu offered a lot of the same thing offered at the buffet. Ocean Grill is another dining option but has a cover charge. We never ate at the Ocean Grill but another couple said it was not worth the extra cost. The Conservatory Buffett is where we primarily ate for the variety of food. For breakfast they have a waffle and omelet station, cereal bar, pastries, and a variety of hot items. Lunch and dinner would occasionally have a Cuban dish but a lot of the food was curry based. Overall I felt the quality of the food was just ok and wished they would have more Cuban options. I only recall seeing black beans and rice once and it was mostly rice with a couple of black beans. I would have also liked to see completely different items in the main dining room from the buffet.
On Board Activities
There are several on board activities throughout the day. The first night on board we attended a seminar on what to expect in Cuba which gave information I felt they should provide on their website. Throughout the cruise they had seminars that allow people to share their stories from Cuba. There were also seminars for things like posture and Chinese medicine but both seminars were nothing but sales pitches to sell Good Feet and the Chinese Herbs. They did a pool side lunch cookout a couple of times with live music that was enjoyable. They would also have live music through the afternoon and evening. While we were in Cuba, they would bring local bands on board which I thought was fantastic. They also offer cocktail classes (cover charge), dance, meditation, yoga, pilates (cover charge) and cycling classes (cover charge).
The information on the cruise is lacking in comparison to other cruise lines. At the time I booked our cruise, the website did not provide details about cruise arrival or departure times. Once the cruise was booked, this information was provided but not upfront. I was emailed an affidavit to complete online prior to the cruise which confirms your reason for traveling to Cuba. I recommend selecting both the Fathom-Guided P2P option & 1 P2P Travel. This will allow you to participate in both Fathom’s P2P tour or you can do your own P2P tour. If you do not participate in Fathom’s P2P tour you must keep a record of your P2P interactions for 5 years. It took about three days before I was able to access my online documents and there was not much to it. It asks for your information and that is it. It shows there are evening options to choose from in Havana but it did not give the option to book anything. In addition, there is no information about dining dress code (which is come as you are), if there are beverage packages (there is not), and if beverages can be brought on board (one 750 ml bottle of wine per person & all the water you can carry).
Embarkation
When we arrived at the cruise terminal, there are people out front ready to assist with checking your luggage. There was not much of a security line and it went very quick. Once we left security we were asked to complete the affidavit. I advised we completed it online but I was told this had to be printed. So we had to complete two affidavits each (one for Fathom and one for us). I’m not sure what the point of doing it online was if we still had to complete a paper one. Once we completed the affidavit, we got in line to check in. The line was rather short and and moved quickly. We provided our information to the agent and they set up our onboard account and provided us with our room keys. We were also advised that rooms would not be available until 2:00. Boarding the boat was a little confusing. We did not have a boarding group and from what we could tell, they were just calling groups of people to board. It was pretty unorganized.
Common Areas
This is an older ship that has been refurbished. There were several common areas on board and each was tastefully decorated and comfortable. The Glass House was probably one of my favorite common areas located on deck 10 that had amazing views. It is primarily a wine and champagne bar but they serve any drink you want. The ship also offers a spa, health center, coffee bar, and library.
Rooms
I had an opportunity to tour all room categories offered. The inside, ocean view, and balcony rooms are all very similar. The biggest difference is the view. The rooms can be set up with two single beds or combined for one larger bed. The inside and balcony room had a small sofa and the ocean view I toured only had a chair. The bathroom in these rooms are small but that is expected on a cruise. If you are looking for a room with more space and a normal sized bathroom, you might consider the suite. The suites have a significantly larger balcony, a half bath, living/dining area, separate bedroom, ample closet space, and a normal sized bathroom with jetted tub. For what it is worth, our cruise was mid-May and it was so hot that we never used our balcony and wish we would have opted for the ocean view.
Beverages
Beverage packages are not offered on board but the drinks were reasonably priced. For a mojito or pina colada you can expect to pay $8.50 a drink, Caribbean beer $5.50, Vodka starts at $5.50 for Skyy, and rum starting at $6.95 for Bacardi. You can bring one 750 ml bottle of wine or champagne per person on board. To save on corkage fee I would recommend brining a wine opener and just open the bottle in your room and pour your own glass. You are also allowed to bring as much water as you can carry. We brought two cases of water on board and used a luggage cart.
Food
There are four areas on board you can eat. The Lido Café is located outside and serves things like Cuban sandwiches. The Pacific Restaurant is the main dining room. The service is good but I was disappointed when the menu offered a lot of the same thing offered at the buffet. Ocean Grill is another dining option but has a cover charge. We never ate at the Ocean Grill but another couple said it was not worth the extra cost. The Conservatory Buffett is where we primarily ate for the variety of food. For breakfast they have a waffle and omelet station, cereal bar, pastries, and a variety of hot items. Lunch and dinner would occasionally have a Cuban dish but a lot of the food was curry based. Overall I felt the quality of the food was just ok and wished they would have more Cuban options. I only recall seeing black beans and rice once and it was mostly rice with a couple of black beans. I would have also liked to see completely different items in the main dining room from the buffet.
On Board Activities
There are several on board activities throughout the day. The first night on board we attended a seminar on what to expect in Cuba which gave information I felt they should provide on their website. Throughout the cruise they had seminars that allow people to share their stories from Cuba. There were also seminars for things like posture and Chinese medicine but both seminars were nothing but sales pitches to sell Good Feet and the Chinese Herbs. They did a pool side lunch cookout a couple of times with live music that was enjoyable. They would also have live music through the afternoon and evening. While we were in Cuba, they would bring local bands on board which I thought was fantastic. They also offer cocktail classes (cover charge), dance, meditation, yoga, pilates (cover charge) and cycling classes (cover charge).
