I'm going to try and be as helpful and honest as I can with this review but will prelude it by saying that if someone is determined not to like something then sadly there's a very good chance of them doing just that. So while there may be a few negative elements to my comments, in the main there are a lot more positive ones and I hope that gives a fair assessment of our experiences on board The Independence of the Seas.

My husband and I had cruised with Cunard last year; on the Queen Mary 2 to the Norwegian Fjiords. It was wonderful but would not have suited (in a million years) our two grown-up children who were to accompany us this summer. So we did our research by looking at reviews on Cruise Critic and also asking friends who had experienced a more diverse range of cruiselines than us. We chose Royal Caribbean because it seemed to suit all our needs in terms of the entertainment it provided for us oldies (well, in our 50's!) and our offspring, both in their early twenties, and in terms of destinations,suitability of dates etc.

As my husband and myself were flying from Ireland and getting a coach down from Heathrow (very well organised by the Royal Carribean staff) our children actually embarked before us as they were already on the mainland. Having arrived earlier than us they perhaps had less time to wait to get on board compared to our forty minutes or so, having arrived during a much busier period. However, we expected some sort of wait because of security so it was no real hradship in any respect. All staff were courteous and polite, a trait that extended into the rest of our trip and I must say that there were times when it must have been difficult for the staff to deal with some of the more demanding members of the public. Read more