On this cruise were my husband and me (ages 30 & 29) and my in-laws. This was my sixth cruise (4 previously with RCI and 1 with Carnival), my husband's third, and my in-laws' first. We arrived in San Juan the day before the cruise and stayed at the Sheraton in Old San Juan. This hotel was a 10-15 - minute drive from the Pan American Pier. I loved staying in Old San Juan because there was plenty to do and see there. We had dinner at the Parrot Club, which was excellent. My husband and I went to Senor Frog after dinner, but it was pretty dead there, so we had just one drink and then decided to use the match play coupons given to us by the hotel. (This hotel has an attached casino.) I won $75 in blackjack that night (which was later "donated" to the casino on Adventure)! The morning of the cruise, we had breakfast at La Bombanera, which (along with Parrot Club) had been highly recommended here on Cruise Critic. The food at La Bombanera was great (Try the mallorca!), but the service left a lot to be desired.

Embarkation was the fasted and easiest I have ever experienced. We arrived a little before noon. It took less than 30 minutes from stepping out of the taxi to stepping on to the ship. The only time we had to wait in a line was to drop off our luggage with the porters. Since it was so early, the cabins weren't ready yet, so we headed to the Windjammer. I was still full from breakfast, so I can't comment on the food, but the service was much better than it had been on previous cruises. There was always a server available to bring a drink or clear away the used plates.

The cabins were supposed to be ready by 2:00, but by 2:05 the doors to the hallways were still closed (at least on Deck 9). After seeing several people open the doors themselves and go to find their cabins, I decided to do the same. The cabin was ready, but this was the messiest cabin I have ever had. I always bring a packet of Clorox wipes with me to disinfect things like door handles, the phone, and TV remote; but this time I actually had to use them to clean the cabin. Some kind of liquid had been spilled or splashed (and dried) against the wall, the cabinets, and drawers, so I cleaned those off myself. There was a similar type of stain on the outside of the front door that would not come off. Read more