We arrived in San Juan for the January 14th 2012 sailing of the Serenade of the seas having high expectations. We couldn't have been more satisfied with our last RCL experience on the Navigator of the Seas a year previous and the Serenade reviews were and still are at the top of the list. I had specifically picked this cruise because of the itinerary and the Cruise Critic reviews of the Serenade.

Boarding seemed to take longer than it should have and we were later informed the reason was due to sanitizing the ship due to a Norovirus outbreak on the previous cruise. I have no qualms waiting when health is concerned, but it would have been nice to have been informed as to the reason while we were waiting instead of finding out later from passengers that were doing back to backs.

We boarded, had lunch at the Windjammer and headed to a 5pm couples massage at the spa. The massage was great but I am really starting to grow weary from the pressure applied towards buying products before leaving spas. We then wandered the ship getting familiar with the deck plans followed by dinner where we met and enjoyed the company of two other couples. We were a little rushed for dinner because of the muster drill but after the drill spent the remainder of our evening on deck five starboard enjoying the night sky and bay as the Serenade made its way out of port. It was a beautiful relaxing start to a warm vacation, keeping in mind the temperature at home were in the teens. We left after dark and the lights of the city were beautiful as we left on our voyage. Read more