We just got back from our sailing on Serenade of the Seas.
This was our fourth cruise and the second one on Royal Caribbean. We were in a Deluxe Stateroom with a balcony on the 9th deck Aft. It was our first time sailing with a balcony, and we will never go back to an ocean view stateroom!!! We used the balcony to have our morning coffee while pulling into each port and enjoyed the balcony every evening with a cocktail while we watched the beautiful sunsets!! We left the balcony door open every night and fell asleep listening to the waves. The only complaint we had was that we had a cigar smoker who would come out on the balcony at least three or four times a day to smoke and the smell always managed to blow right over to our balcony. Ick!!
Our room was very quiet and well kept by our stateroom attendant. However, her people skills were sorely lacking, including acting very put out whenever we asked for ice and not smiling once. We had more interaction with the other stateroom attendants near our stateroom and asked them for what we needed instead of our own attendant!!! They were always happy to help. (And with a smile no less)