My daughter chose this cruise for us because of price and dates of travel. This was our 16th cruise, and our first on Royal Caribbean. We've traveled on several cruise lines, but NCL has always been our preference, where we are Gold Latitude members with lots of perks. We were apprehensive to cruise RCCL starting back at ground zero. There were 18 of us - my husband, my friend, my 3 adult children, 2 of their spouses, and 10 grandchildren, ages 2 to 12. We had interior rooms on deck 2 and that worried me, as we typically have balconies or suites.

I should not have been concerned. We Loved the ship, we Loved the staff, and we loved the cruise! We accidentally showed up without any printed cruise documents, but were quickly and cheerfully processed and on board the ship. We went immediately to deck 11 for lunch. It was not crowded and we enjoyed a nice meal. Our luggage arrived promptly and we shortly headed for the pool. This was the only portion of the trip that made me uncomfortable. As the grandmother of 10 young kids, I found it difficult to keep an eye on them with so many people gathered there, and it seemed that everybody was there. The band was wonderful and we enjoyed them each time they performed. After sail away, the crowd dispersed and during the rest of the trip the pool area, although crowded, was not unbearable.

Our room was the smallest that we've ever stayed in. But it worked out fine. We travel with 1 suitcase each and limited clothing changes. Our room steward kept everything neat, although we rarely saw him. The bathroom, although small, was sufficient. Read more