Day 1: Our family of 5 traveled from Philadelphia suburbs to Bayonne NJ for this trip. It took 1 hour and 50 minutes to get there in the rain on a Thursday morning. We arrived at 10:30 am and were on board at 11:55 am. Our first impression was WOW. The ship is in excellent condition for a 13 year old. We headed up to the 14th floor and walked our way through the entire ship in awe of all she had to offer. I had seen many pictures and videos but to be here! Finally! After exploring for about 40 minutes we headed to the Windjammer for lunch. We didnt have any trouble finding a table and the food was excellent considering they were serving 3000 people. It was hot and tasty. At 1:20 we headed to our staterooms and enjoyed exploring them. Our bags arrived piecemeal over the next few hours; every time we came back there was another bag there. We met our stateroom attendants. (We had one D3 superior balcony and one interior K room with Pullman bed.) Our kids were at a different muster station than us but they are all over 17 years old so we didnt worry. We were on the 6th floor and thought this was ideal since we were able to take the stairs for all the activities at the Palace Theater, Dining Room, Casino, Studio B and all the lower level bars. We were mid ship so very close to the stairs was also helpful. And during the rough seas our rooms were in a good spot. Our room was just aft of the hump so looking directly forward was limited but this really didn't affect our view at all. We almost missed sail away it was so smooth. I was expecting to feel something, Engines revving, a lurch, but nope. I noticed the land moving out our balcony! We headed up to the 12th deck and watched the ship pass under the Verrazano Bridge. It looked like it passed by inches but my DH says it was 20 feet.

DINING experience: Windjammer was consistently good and fast. Healthy options including fresh fruit and salads were always available.

Main Dining: when we booked only MTD was available so as soon as I could I booked 6:30 pm dinners each night online. I highly recommend this as many people were waiting at the dining room each night and we were always seated immediately. After the first night we were seated at the same table #501 which had sort of window seat (obstructed by lifeboats) but it was out of the way in the corner. The best thing about being at table 501 was our servers. After a few days they got to know you and knew what you liked. Bassem and Desmond were fantastic. The food was consistently good. It was always hot and if we didn't like something, Desmond would notice and bring something else. We enjoyed the main dining room for breakfast and lunch on sea days and were able to meet many nice people as it was usually at a large table for these meals. Cafe Promenade was good for a yummy slice of pizza or small sandwich when we wanted something light. Read more