Anthem of the Seas | Spain, Madeira & Canary Islands

I’ve recently got back from a two week cruise to the Canary Islands on the Anthem of the Seas. I love cruising and have done since I was young, and as Royal Caribbean is one of my favourite cruise lines I thought I would share my holiday with you. This is just going to be about our time on ship and what it offers as I will be writing separate blog posts on all of the places that we visited.Upon leaving Southampton we experienced the most beautiful sunset, it was the perfect start to our holiday! Now I thought I would briefly mention our room, we decided to go for a Superior Ocean View Stateroom with Balcony. There was only me and Aaron however these rooms can sleep up to four people, also there is nothing better than going out on the balcony and seeing such a beautiful view of the sea (especially when you wake up in the morning). I didn’t really take photos of the cabin however I did a little tour of the room in my vlog which you can watch here if you’re interested.There are so many amazing things to tell you about so I’m not completely sure where to start, however I will start with some of my favourite activities onboard. The most exciting has to be the Ripcord by iFly in which is the first skydiving simulator at sea. It’s a vertical wind tunnel which creates a cushion of air to float on by using wind of over 100 miles per hour. It’s possibly one of the weirdest yet most amazing feelings I’ve ever felt in my life, I loved every minute of it! At first they hold onto you to help you get in the correct position, but once you’re doing good they let go and you’re flying on your own. Moving onto the North Star which I didn’t actually go on as I’m claustrophobic, however Aaron did and loved it. It’s a little pod which takes you 300 feet above sea level, it’s a great opportunity to see around the ship from above or the city in which you are docked. It lasts around 15 minutes and moves up and over both sides of the ship so you get to see a few different angles, also as it’s glass all around you can see 360-degree views.Please ignore my face in this photo, there was a lot of concentration going on haha! This is the FlowRider, something that after many cruises with Royal Caribbean I’m still not that good at. I tend to get better nearer the end of the cruise however by the time my next holiday comes around I’m like a newbie all over again. The FlowRider is a surfing machine and there are two different things which they can teach you, the first is boogie boarding where you jump down on your stomach with the board underneath you and then there’s stand up surfing. Once you get the hang of it they do show you how to do a few little tricks which is always fun to try out. I love bumper cars as they’re so much fun, however I did end up hurting myself a few times. I found out the hard way that people can bump you a lot harder on these ones in comparison to normal bumper cars as I hit my head and sprained my neck when someone went into me really hard, however it did make them a lot more fun. This is in the SeaPlex where they also do other activities such as football, basketball, rollerskating, circus school and much more. I attempted the flying trapeze which I must admit was terrifying, however I did end up really enjoying it. They teach you how to do a backflip and some people were really good at it! The photo quality isn’t the best as Aaron filmed me so this is just a screenshot from the video. There’s so much to do on this ship I could talk for ages but a few other activities include the rock climbing wall, selection of pools with an outdoor cinema screen, spa, and gym as well as activities put on throughout the day in which you can take part in. The entertainment throughout the cruise was amazing with my favourites being Will We Rock You which is the same as the full feature length production on the West End and The Gift. There’s the Royal Theatre where the main productions take part, another of my favourites was the hypnotist Christopher Caress which was hilarious. Another entertainment venue is Two70 where there are many more performances, during the evening the panoramic views on the sea turn into animated screens as well as screens which come down and move. The production of Spectres Cabaret was amazing using the screens as well as the virtual symphony. Other entertainment venues include the Music Hall, Boleros and the Bionic Bar. Now to tell you about one my favourite my things, all the different food venues and choices! Onboard there are four main restaurants offering different cuisine: The Grande, Silk Chic and American Icon. However there are several speciality restaurants such as Devinly Decadence where we experienced healthy cuisine, Jamie Olivers, Chops Grille and Wonderland to name a few. As well as them there are also several cafes such as the Windjammer, Two70 cafe and Sorrento’s where you can make your own pizza. We had ‘dynamic dining’ which gives you the freedom to go anywhere you like for dinner each night and at whatever time is best for you. I had the most amazing two weeks on the Anthem of the Seas, I could have written so much more however I did vlog my holiday so look out for those videos over on my YouTube channel if you’re interested in watching them. I’ll also be doing individual posts on all of the places which we visited!

Rebecca x