First, all of our cruises have been with RCI. This cruise was our ninth. The third cruise in the class, but first on the Independence. From arrival at the port, the boarding process was speedy, with some of the most helpful port teammates we have encountered. Once on the ship, we noted it was very clean and tidy, as if it had just left refurb. Our room, a Jr. Suite was excellent, and the attendant (Dhany) was super. His smile was often the first thing and the last thing we would see each day. Otherwise, the crew and much of the staff underwhelmed us. On a personality scale of 1-10, with 1 being no personality, The crew of the Independence gets a 4. There were standouts, like Victoria in the Dog and Badger and Sharon in Olive or Twist. But considering their core business, the ship should be full of standouts. One standout was not our dinning room server. Somewhat brash and not very helpful. Questions went unanswered and getting a menu suggestion was challenging. We seriously did enjoy the acoustic guitar renditions of Metalica (Where ever I may roam) and Scorpions (Still Loving You) during the evening meal. We were surprised to see the Independence does not capitalize on processes and best practices from other RCI ships. For example, the herding of passengers in the Alhambra theater was inefficient and bordered on the unsafe. No automated beverage dispensers like on the Freedom. No nautical chart showing the planned route. If one existed, we never found it. We did appreciate the ship being DreamWorks free. We were very pleased to have received a full refund for one excursion curtailed by severe weather in Grand Cayman. I am giving the value for money a very good because we paid such a low price for the cruise.