We chose this cruise to be able to enjoy seeing Europe. We took an arranged tour for the morning we arrived that was a Royal Caribbean offering. It was given by a woman whose English was hard to understand. We had one stop to use the facilities and take a few pictures. When we got back on the bus she did not have much to say. I promptly fell asleep and woke when it was over.
Boarding was easy and well organized. The cabin we had was a balcony cabin on the ocean side. We were more fortunate than other passengers who complained that they had inside cabins with balconies and had to listen to all the noise from the activities. I was surprised to find that there was no lotion, shampoo or conditioner available in the cabins. No chocolates with turn down service, no robes to use. Everything was extra on board the ship. We also found that there is a VAT tax of 22% on your purchases in Europe. We were told it was refundable to Americans. They post signs about it and mention it in their daily newsletters. Passengers who had cruised with Royal Caribbean before told us to forget seeing that money back. The purchases made on board the ship were never reimbursed. In Florence and other towns in Italy I saw booths for reimbursement for Americans right there. For the money we paid I felt we were getting a stripped down experience.An alcoholic beverage averaged $15.00, with a tip built in and a tax and then they had a line for you to add a tip, if you were not paying attention.We had signed up for activities and shows every night we were on board. They cancelled the comedy shows just before the cruise and did not replace them. The first night we rushed dining to attend a showing of Grease. It was cancelled when it was supposed to begin. We were told that we were all rescheduled for two nights later at 10:00pm (much later than the show we had been scheduled to see). At least that show went off without a hitch.
The food on board the ship was OK. There was nothing exceptional about it. I have been on 5 other cruises and this food was average. Some meals were awful, some were good, but never great. However the servers were charming and really tried to accommodate.
Plenty of room to store your clothes. Small but adequate bathroom. Balcony was just the right size for two people.
Stayed on board and used the pool.
Stayed on board the ship. As were plan to spend an extra week in Italy after the cruise and explore it on foot with a tour guide.
Stayed on board since there was not much to see there based on our tour books.