Just returned from our 5 night RCCL Navigator of the Seas cruise! What a great time and I just wanted to share some of what we experienced. Stuff that's very helpful to a first time cruiser in particular.

EMBBARKING: A friend tipped us that although your ship sails at 5pm and they say you must be on board by 4pm, you can get on the ship as early as 11am. This is such a great thing to do so you can avoid lines and start your overeating at the Windjammer buffet for lunch! You won't be able to get into your cabins until 1pm, but that's no problem since you'll be walking around this beautiful ship as soon as you get on. We couldn't believe how efficient the embarking process was for us arriving early. We were on the ship in less than 20 minutes and our luggage was waiting outside our cabin when we went there at 1pm. If you can, splurge on a balcony room...worth every extra penny!

FOOD: Okay, the Windjammer buffet is pretty standard buffet food. Meals in the dining room is better and even when some of the things we selected weren't the best we'd ever had, the service and the beautiful decor still makes it for a fun experience. We had some great meals there! I know people complain about the food on RCCL but really, you're on vacation, get over it. Beats cooking at home! Read more