Independence of the Seas Review
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My very first cruise was on RC in 2001. I absolutely hated the in your face attempts to sell specialty drinks or snap a photo back then. I remember asking for a glass of water and being given a scowl (others in my party had ordered drinks, so it wasn't like there was no opportunity to earn a tip). It seemed like every day was filled with people trying to separate me from my sea pass.
I was expecting the same kind of experience all these years later, and I was pleasantly surprised. Last August was our first cruise in ten years, since before our daughter was born, and we went on the Disney Fantasy (I wrote a review on that cruise). Yet, despite often hearing about "the Disney difference," I think that RC compares very favorably - I've noted some of the good and bad comparisons below as it was something that I was interested in when researching this RC cruise.
BEFORE THE CRUISE:
Cabin Review
Deluxe Oceanview Stateroom with Balcony
We were able to reserve cabin #7408 after doing some research on Cruise Critic (aft balcony, starboard corner). We loved our balcony - it was the best one we've ever had! It wasn't as big as my imagination based on the descriptions and some videos I'd seen, but it was really, really nice. We could look down into other balconies, but no one could look down on ours and that was nice.They had egg crate foam on the very large bed. It was so comfortable! There was ample room to store clothing and supplies for all three of us, but I do also bring a shoe holder to give us extra storage space. There were six drawers in the dresser, and one drawers and a cubby hole in the each of the two night stands, along with shelving in the closet. We also use the space under the bed to store the suitcases. I loved the way that they used the space in the bathroom to enlarge the shower. It was a circle that extended a little way into the bathroom. It gave more shower space and didn't take too much space from the interior of the bathroom. I would have liked two side medicine cabinets instead of one.The interior of the cabin was a little smaller than the Disney Fantasy cabin, but it met our needs well. My daughter slept on a bunk bed that came down from the ceiling and loved it (Disney had a fold out couch that wasn't nearly as comfortable as the bunk bed). We didn't love the bunk bed to the extent that we both hit our heads on the bed (it stayed down all week), but we got used to it after awhile. Our cabin attendant, June, was great (though I was disappointed that we only saw towel animals on three of the eight nights - my daughter was looking forward to them as well). Since RC doesn't provide chocolate on the pillows, we should at least get towel animals, I think. But the lack of towel animals was our only complaint about June, and in fairness, we didn't mention it to him.