We live in Minnesota and drove down to Disney World for a week and then onto Port Everglades for the cruise. My wife (Dawn) and I (Peter) are in our late 30's and have 5 kids (Zach - 13, Cody - 10, Molly - 5, Abby - 3, and Emily - 2). We drove down the Florida Turnpike(Toll), which, while costing extra, probably saved us time. We got to the port on time, around 12pm. Drop off went very smoothly, even though we were all riding in a Suburban and towing a small trailer. I dropped of Dawn and the kids off and then I drove over to the Park n' Fly since the Port Ramp does not allow "oversized" vehicles (trailers, campers, RVs, etc). Here was the biggest "headache" we had, and my biggest recommendation. Be sure to prepay our reservation, because when I drove up, they were "full". But after some begging and pleading, they let me in since I had agreed to disconnect the trailer and park it in a regular spot.
We got through check-in easily and as far as I am concerned very timely. We did have to wait a bit to cross the gangway, as there was some gusty wind causing it to sway. Once on the ship, we waited a little bit, due to the stroller, to get an elevator up to Deck 8. Like everyone else, after finding our room, we went and grabbed a snack at the Windjammer and had a bit of difficulty finding a table for all 7 of us. I immediately purchased a "soda" sticker, very worthwhile not only for the drinks, but also the large free travel mug that was included. My oldest greatly appreciated the fact that there was a "teen" event schedule waiting in the room when we got there, plus each day of the cruise. I have to admit, I hardly ever saw Zach, except for meals and when we asked him to watch his siblings for 1 night. He loved the events and teen center. Cody was just as excited for the events for his age group. I liked the fact that RCI allowed him to check himself in or out with my prior approval. For Molly and Abby, they loved their play group as well.
As far as the rest of the day-to-day cruising, we loved it. Outdoor pools were great, since Solarium is adult-only we never went there. We ate dinner every night in the My Fair Lady restaurant. I can not state it enough. Our Waiter, Joao, and Assistant Waiter, Max, were wonderful. Max remembered drink orders and that my kids love ketchup. Joao did "magic" tricks every night, gave great meal recommendations as well as helped us in the Windjammer for breakfasts during is "other" job. Food was delicious, decor was perfect. Our cabin was WONDERFUL!!!! We had 2 "full" bathrooms, 4 single beds, a queen size bed with curtains to block out light for naps and late night TV. All in all the day-to-day could not have been better. I do admit I am not picky about ship decor (carpets, couches, wall color, artwork, etc.) so it did not bother me what so ever. The evening events (The Quest, Love & Marriage, Dances, shows) were very funny. Cody even got to be part of the juggler's comedy act. I would recommend not bringing children under the age of 16 to "The Quest" game show. It can get a little "risque" for younger viewers (should have been rated NC-17, and not PG-13). As far as excursion, at the Cayman Islands, the boys and I did the Stingray City Adventure(GC27). As I have recently read, younger kids (as well as some older "kids") can be easily frightened of the rays as they can be quite large(36"+) and scary. I do wish we had more time there, but it was awesome regardless. The "girls" stayed on the boat for some "girl time", since we couldn't find anything for the entire family which was a small drawback. In Cozumel, we all went to the Deluxe Beach Break. Which was average. Plenty of chairs, but due to the heat and bright, bright sun there weren't enough sun umbrellas until another cruise's tour leftand then there were plenty. Food was good, plenty of fruit and salads. I really like authentic Mexican food, which was in short supply. Would recommend either excursion, as they both met our needs and expectations perfectly.