Weekend Warriors

Seeing that this was our first cruise, our family of four decided to go a shorter cruise out of Florida. Our cruise departed on a Thursday with one stop in Cozumel and arriving in Tampa on Monday morning. We picked a cruising vacation over a resort vacation because everyone we spoke to said "you can't beat the food on a cruise".

I should have know what we were in for during check-in. Loads of loud obnoxious people! I thought, once we get on the boat, it'll be better. It was not the case. The entire four days we were surrounded by loud drunken individuals from early morning until late at night. We were disturbed every night by people partying in the halls outside of our cabin. We called security but it didn't do much good. It was extremely frustrating especially with two kids. We did not get any sleep. It was really bad because you couldn't get away from it.

Secondly, embarking the boat in Cozumel was a joke. There was no crowd control whatsoever. Drunk people throwing up beside us and budding in line. "It was a spectacular scene for my kids to witness!" Not one member of my family wanted to get back on the ship.

Thirdly, the pool facility was not adequate. We spent a lot of time at sea and the tiny pool was full constantly. The second pool was the size of a hot tub. The hot tubs that they did have were either full or closed for whatever reason.

Last but not least, the food....where do I start! The worst food I've ever had. The food was served cold, the chicken was rubber and I can go on. You had to pay extra for a decent cut of meat or seafood. The one night they offered lobster, it was cold and had a rubber texture. It was truly gross! The food was absolutely horrible. I have nothing positive to say about the dining room except the staff was lovely. They were very friendly and attentive. The kids raved about the soft ice cream.

On a positive note, the staff was just so great. The nicest people ever. Our cabin stewart was an awesome guy. I'm not sure how they keep a smile on their faces considering the rude and obnoxious people they were serving.