I read all the reviews here before booking. I heard people complain about the decor and others say "who cares". I fell into the "who cares" camp. I heard people complain about nude artwork and children and others say "who cares". I fell into the "who cares" camp. I read that Carnival had the "best" pizza and thought hurray! Kids will be happy (they LOVE Royal Caribbean pizza)! And I did my research to ensure the pools/water features were going to work for my kids. Yep... the pool was not too deep (like it is on RC ships) and they had cool water slides that the kids went nuts over. Couldn't WAIT to go.
And then we got there.
And we saw just what people meant when they complained about the decor. It's not that the decor is hideous. But it's a SHIP on the way to the Caribbean and the colors are DARK. Dark grey walls, Gilded mirrors, Dark marroon furniture... add in Low Ceilings and it does not create the "i'm going on a cruise to the caribbean" feel. It creates a "who was the fool who came up with this idea?" feel. It would work GREAT in Italy. It does not work at all for a Caribbean bound ship. The ambiance is just wrong and sets the vacation off on a weird foot.