My husband and I sailed on Mariner of the Seas from May 20 - May 27, the Western Caribbean. We had a great time and would definitely take another Royal Caribbean cruise. I read many cruise critic reviews. Most of them were very helpful. Hope I can be helpful as well. Here are a few thoughts:

Embarkation: Check in was a breeze, as we did the registration on line. The only hold up was we were unable to board the ship until Noon or so. As a result there were many long lines and little guidance about what was going on. The obligatory picture line slowed everyone down, but that was understandable.

Food: We really enjoyed Windjammer. We were not expecting gourmet, five-star dining. As a result, we were not disappointed. The Windjammer serves the usual items each day, (such as hamburgers, hotdogs, pasta) but also had a nice selection of hot dishes that change for every meal. These dishes were surprisingly delicious. We tried the main dining room for a couple of breakfasts. The food was pretty good and the service was excellent. Would recommend if you get tired of Windjammer. We ate in the main dining room for dinner most every night. Again, the selections were great. We never had a bad experience. We had the second seating and were always finished around 10pm. The meal was served at a great pace; not too fast, not too slow. Because we enjoyed the meals we didn't feel it necessary to dine at Portofino or Chops. Room service for the most part was great. We didn't receive our breakfast one morning, but that was the only flaw. If we weren't in the room when it was delivered, they seldom left it for us. But, that was probably kind of rude on our part as well. Read more