This was my 26th cruise. With everything going on with airport security etc., my wife and I wanted to depart from a port close to home (Tampa) and forgo the flying. We have been RCL customers our past eight cruises. Nine years ago we went on a Carnival ship and swore never again. With that in mind, we had a choice between Holland America (very nice, but an older crowd), RCL (an older ship out of Tampa) or infamous Carnival (but a two year NEW ship named Miracle). We decided to chance it with Miracle, and can say, we're glad we did. Here's what we experienced:
Ship: Very nice, clean vessel with really comfortable beds, upscale linens and good layout. The only nasty room on board was the dining room, which by all accounts, is gaudy. I mean really gaudy! If you're a past RCL cruiser, don't compare the glitz of this ship with the classy RCL ships. It's a different flavor, but it's still nice overall.
Staff: Super nice people, always trying please. The only exception was in the main dining room, where we just may have had two guys who just didn't seem to have the enthusiasm as most other staffers we came across. The Staff in Horatio's (the alternative dining bistro) were extra nice, outgoing and bending over backward to please.