What a wonderful vacation! We had last cruised with Disney in July 2002 and were a bit concerned that RCI wouldn't quite measure up, but it exceeded our expectations in all areas. The service and entertainment were exceptional, the food was quite good, the staterooms were small but VERY efficiently laid out--with so much storage space that I kept forgetting where I'd put things--and all in all we had a great time. The Grandeur is a beautiful ship (we LOVED all the glass, the Centrum, and the views from the Viking Crown Lounge), and we thought it was the perfect size for a 7-night cruise.

I can't say enough good things about the service staff: our waiter, Attila from Hungary, assistant waiter Shannaz, head waiter Tahsin, and stateroom attendant Galeane couldn't have been more attentive. We felt so spoiled all week! And I have to say a huge "kudos" to cruise director Warren Melhuis, who was always a brilliant ray of sunshine and seemed to be EVERYWHERE, at all hours of the day and night. Does the man never sleep? By the end of the cruise (he was there to say farewell to everyone and even helped maneuver my mother-in-law's wheelchair onto the gangplank), we were convinced he had about 20 clones. He (and all of his staff) were just fantastic.

We were: Me (celebrating the big five-oh birthday); DH (the sole male of the family); his mom, and DD and her friend (both almost 16). I'm now totally sold on cruises as the perfect family vacation--there was something for everyone to do, almost all of the time. Read more