Overall it was a average cruise. Cruise staff was friendly and help full. Cruise director was funny and friendly. Ship is in good shape but has signs of wear. Strange odor some days at the Windjammer. MDR food was hit or miss more miss thought. If you went to the Royal Promenade for coffee you heard jack hammers and saws because they were installing a new office for future cruises what a mess.

Service in the dining room was good but the food was mediocre at best. The hot food wasn't very hot and the cold foods were kind of lukewarm. We didn't feel the selections in the dining rooms were as varied and good as on other lines. The dress code for all nights in the MDR including formal nights should just be shredded as no one enforces it. We dress for dinner each night per the code and it is frustrating when others disregard it. It takes very little effort for pullover shirts/cotton pants/sundresses for casual nights and suits/cocktail dresses for formal nights. It is also a valuable asset for children to learn how to dress for different occasions. The only specialty dining we did was at Johnny Rocket's and this was the best meal we had all week! Great service and great food. The $6.95 cover pp was appropriate.

All in all, this was a cruise vacation and we had a good time. However, it was not the wonderful experience that we have had in the past and that makes us very sad. We have been loyal to Royal but may have to explore other cruise lines for our next vacation. RCI has been building more and more ships but grossly neglecting their customers. The cutbacks are very evident especially in the quality and choices of the food. We shouldn't have to go to specialty restaurants to get good quality food. Read more