On board the cruise giant back in Australia for summer

The ship: Quantum of the Seas

• The cruise Brisbane to New Caledonia and Vanuatu (seven nights)
• Built 2014
• Passengers Up to 4905
• Crew 1500
• Passenger decks 14
• Length 348 metres

Quantum of the Seas is one of the largest ships to cruise Australian waters.

The ship

Although not quite as large as some of Royal Caribbean’s other cruise giants (including the recently launched largest ship in the world, Icon of the Seas), Quantum of the Seas still hits the top 30 for the world’s biggest and is the second-largest ship to cruise Australian waters (behind sister ship Spectrum of the Seas). It returned to Australia on December 1 for another season homeporting in Brisbane.

Boarding

Given the massive number of passengers, you’d expect some level of chaos during boarding, so it’s a surprise to discover how smooth the process is. Cruise ships only started using Brisbane’s new terminal in 2022 and the facility has been well designed to handle large crowds. More impressive is the number of staff on hand to guide everyone through the process of check-in and security. There is some waiting in queues, but everything moves fairly quickly. The worst part about the terminal is its distance from the city (21 kilometres) though it is quite close to the airport if you’re flying in from interstate and heading straight to the ship.

The design

As you’d expect with a cruise ship of this size, it takes a while to get your bearings but there’s helpful signage throughout to help you work out where you are quite quickly. Surprisingly, despite having thousands of passengers on board, it rarely feels crowded (with one exception – see “The food” below). Like most of Royal Caribbean’s giants, Quantum is split into “neighbourhoods” which helps create a feeling of separation between different parts of the ship. The look is contemporary and colourful, though as you’d expect on a ship this size with this amount of variety, it’s a bit of a mishmash, where an English-style pub sits below a Japanese sushi restaurant. In that sense, it can feel a bit like a high street… or a shopping centre.

The spaces

The Royal Esplanade is the main thoroughfare through the ship.

Spaces? There are a lot of them. Rather than a mere atrium, Quantum has two indoor promenades consisting of cafes, restaurants, pubs, shops and more. The “Royal Esplanade” winds its way through the centre of the ship on deck four. It and “The Via” on deck five, form the main thoroughfares on board. On the 14th deck, there are three main pools – one outdoor, one indoor and a small wave pool for kids, along with several whirlpools and a small water play area for toddlers. There’s an additional pool in the adults-only Solarium space (which also features a bar and restaurant) at the front of the ship on the same deck. While parents relax there, children can enjoy the two-level Adventure Ocean kids club. There’s a multitude of large spaces dedicated purely to entertainment (see below).

The stateroom

A balcony room.

We’re in a balcony room on the 10th deck, which features a queen bed and a sofa bed. With my partner and two small kids in tow, there’s ample space across the two beds for all of us. There’s a small desk and a fridge (the latter comes in handy for keeping snacks available for the kids when needed). The bathroom features a curved sliding door on the shower rather than a curtain, which helps keep the rest of the space dry. The balcony is large enough for two of us to enjoy together, but not all four (a child-lock ensures the kids can’t get out there on their own). One nice feature for those in the entry-level, interior rooms is that they feature a virtual window – a TV screen that shows real-time footage of the view from the ship.

The food

The Alice in Wonderland-themed Wonderland restaurant.

There are a whopping 21 eateries on board, with five main dining rooms – again, the use of separate spaces helps create the impression the ship isn’t all that crowded. We’re assigned the American Icon Grill, where we have a reserved table every night, though the food across the dining rooms tends to be consistent. We also eat at several of the eight specialty restaurants (each carries a surcharge), including Jamie’s Italian (from Jamie Oliver), Japanese Izumi and Wonderland – the latter an Alice in Wonderland-themed restaurant with highly creative and unusual dishes (perhaps a bit too creative for my kids, who prefer the simpler fare at the main dining room). A breakfast buffet is served at the Windjammer marketplace, but this is the one spot where I really feel how many passengers are on board. It’s hard to find a seat amid the feeding frenzy. Fortunately we discover that breakfast can be delivered to our room for free, so we opt to eat in the peace and quiet of the cabin on several mornings.

Wellness

Panoramic views in the fitness centre.

The Vitality Spa and Fitness Centre offers all the usual treatments you’d expect from a ship’s spa – various massages, facials – along with a wet and dry sauna. There’s also a salon for hair and nails and the “YSpa” menu designed specifically for tweens and teens to try. The gym is enormous, spreading from port to starboard at the forward end of the ship and offering fabulous views for those using the many treadmills.

Entertainment

The SeaPlex is a two-level multipurpose space used for various entertainment including dodgem cars.

Where to begin? When Quantum of the Seas first launched, it introduced several features that had never been seen on a cruise ship. This includes an iFly skydiving simulator, robot waiters that mix cocktails and the North Star – an observation capsule on an arm that lifts passengers more than 90 metres above sea level (though it’s not working during our cruise). The SeaPlex is a huge activity space at the rear of the ship spread over two levels, which serves various purposes, including a dodgem car track, basketball court, indoor soccer pitch and a laser-tag facility, which uses inflatables to create a maze-like space. Behind the Seaplex is the FlowRider surf simulator. The kids are too young to try it, but we enjoy watching other passengers having a crack (and occasionally falling off into the stream). Want more? The 1299-seat Royal Theatre plays host to cabaret, theatre shows and movies, while at the rear of the ship is Two70, a three-level cafe and bar named for its 270-degree panoramic view, which transforms in the evening into a multimedia theatre.

The crew

Despite the number of passengers, the crew have an extraordinary capacity to remember everyone – including favourite drinks and dishes. The ability to offer some level of personalised service on a vessel this big is quite an achievement. We’re well looked after by our cabin attendant and the staff at American Icon Grill welcome us back with great enthusiasm when we return after a night at one of the specialty restaurants. The crew makes getting off the ship, even when using tenders at Mystery Island, efficient and relatively easy, despite the huge number of passengers.

The verdict

The adults-only Solarium space.

Royal Caribbean builds megaships for those who want to experience a wow factor on these engineering marvels. While travelling aboard these cruise giants isn’t for everyone, Quantum of the Seas is cleverly designed to make you feel like you’re not one among thousands.

The details

Quantum of the Seas will cruise from Brisbane until April. An eight-night South Pacific holiday from $1199 a person, with balcony rooms from $1699. See royalcaribbean.com

Our rating out of five

★★★1/2

Swell

There are so many things to do, you (and the kids) will never get bored on board.

Not so swell

The North Star observation capsule is not running during our cruise (we can see one of its glass panels is missing when passing it on the top deck) but it has been fixed for this season’s passengers.

The writer was a guest of Royal Caribbean.