Celebrated my mom’s and my ex-nanny’s birthday with my 2 daughters, eight and ten years old. The entire crew was so attentive and thoughtful to everyone in our party! I noticed they treated the other passengers equally well. I am a typical cynical New Yorker and hard to impress, but this was the best service I think I’ve ever experienced and witnessed in my city. My mom and ex nanny were each presented with little candles on their dessert as well as a bouquet of a half dozen roses!
I thought the cruise route would be longer, but it is only a 2 hour cruise at a leisurely speed. We left from Chelsea piers (approximately 20th Street) and rounded the southern tip of Manhattan. To say that we cruised the east river is probably a technicality. We went as far East as the Brooklyn bridge and turned around without going under it.
Highlights were the Statue of Liberty and governor’s island. The host was equally as informative as the jazz pianist and made it a point to engage my 8 year old with cool facts about the sights.
There were romantic couples celebrating anniversaries and other milestones, in addition to families with young babies and of course tourists. The boat wasn’t completely filled, likely due to the coronavirus scare, but tables were spaced well apart so even if full to capacity, I would imagine it would still be comfortable.
The on board photographer was the only unpleasant part of the entire experience. She did not look like she wanted to be there and it showed in her rushed manner and the quality of pictures. There was also a discrepancy in pricing, but it was corrected and I give her the benefit of the doubt. Photographers are independent from the cruise company, so this experience did not get factored into my impression for the latter.
All in all I am grateful to the crew for making this special occasion so memorable. I’m now looking at other cruise experiences from this company to take out of town guests. I’m hoping the excellent service will never change!