Embarkation was smooth and fairly fast. RC has this down very well. Once on our cruise we were able to walk straight to our room. We walked on board at 1PM. The ship is beautiful and there were lots of things for any age to do.

FOOD: This was our first cruise with RC as we have always cruised with Carnival before and have been told we would notice a big difference. Well we did. Except for our steward and our waiter/waitress at Johnny Rockets and Chops... the service was terrible. Food orders were wrong for everyone at our table in MDR and the bar staff seemed to wish we never ordered any drinks even though we were good tippers. The food in the windjammer had a lot to be desired. Another thing Carnival beat them on was food. The Mystery Dinner Theater show was good but the amount of food you get for the price makes it not worth the money at all. You do not get to order off of the Portofino menu.

ENTERTAINMENT: This is RC's strong point and they do have Carnival beat in this category. The ice show, variety shows, magician, and acrobats were all wonderful. The comedian was the only bad show. They also said it was an R rated show. The worse language he used was poop. Make sure you reserve tickets to the ice show online or once you get on board as there are limited seats. For some reason, people thought that using electronic cigarettes was okay in the entertainment venues, which was annoying to those of who did not like the odor. We loved playing trivia in the Schooner Bar and watching movies on the outdoor screen when we were tired. Read more