We chose this cruise because it fit the time we wanted to travel, the week before Christmas. Since we had never cruised before we weren't picky about the itinerary, we just wanted warm and that's what we got. Getting on the ship was a major hassle, it was a 2 hour wait in various lines. More experienced cruisers in the line told us this was the fault of the port and not RC. We wanted to board early but were delayed due to bad weather in the north, it could be that they were slammed because many folks were in the same boat. We had two staterooms, teenage kids in an interior cabin and adults in balcony port side cabin. This worked well for us, the teens could sleep in and they often came over when we were docking to enjoy the views. The balcony fit our family of 4 comfortably. The staterooms were a little tired decor wise and the showers were small. Otherwise no complaints, you don't go on a cruise to sit in the room. The stateroom attendants were excellent, everything was cleaned constantly. Ditto for the common areas of the ship. Cute towel animals every night! We tipped about $5 each day average. Days at sea: People do reserve chairs but it's not crazy. As long as you were on the pool deck by 9 you could get a seat. On port days you don't need to worry. They don't make it very clear that you have to check your pool towels back in or get charged. I had read this prior to sailing but it took a lot of folks by surprise. We found the main pool with the screen and the band too noisy, so after the first day we sat at the adult pool. Dining: If you want to eat in the specialty restaurants wait for a BOGO deal. We ate in Chops, Giovanni's Table, and Sabor all BOGO. We loved the food in all of them. The service at Giovanni's was awful, the other two had good service. Main dining room: ate there for dinner two times, food and service were good. Windjammer: the food is just ok. For our family it worked well just to get sandwiches from the Starbucks throughout the day and eat them at the pool. The coffee in the back of Starbucks (not the specialty drinks) and the food is included in your dining package. Since you can eat as much as you like and order or get an alternative dish if you dislike something I don't really understand all the complaints about the food. Ports: There were 5 ships at Grand Cayman the day we were there so it was crowded. Took forever to get off the ship. We had lunch in a bar and followed the bartender's recommendation of Calico Beach. $20 for a umbrella and 4 chairs. Very beautiful, but with the limited time and the crowds it was our least favorite port. Costa Maya: A strange place. Appears to have been built up solely for the cruise tourists. We did the water zip line adventure park. It was just ok. The slides were very rough. The lazy river was almost too lazy. Lines for the zip lines. There was an area for small children that looked nice. Included was a shuttle to the beach, free chairs and booze. The beach was not the cleanest, the drinks were not good, and the vendors were relentless. I would note that many others commented that doing this excursion through RC is a rip off, I disagree. I did not get a good vibe and was very happy to be part of the RC official excursion. Cozumel: We did the dolphin swim/push/ride experience. Can't say enough about how wonderful this was. The dolphin park also had many other shows, exhibits, and a beach with great snorkeling. You will pay extra money to rent the snorkel equipment and eat/drink on the beach. We all agreed this day was the highlight of our trip. I strongly suggest you go early if you book this excursion. You need the whole day if you want to enjoy the park and the beach. We were told that they will have as many as 12 in a group with a dolphin, but since our group was smaller we ended up with each family getting a private experience with a dolphin. I also think it helped with the picture prices. We knew how expensive they were so we agreed beforehand that we would not buy them. We hate to haggle so we were not going to bargain either. The picture area was uncrowded. We viewed the pictures and then said we would not be buying and started walking. The girl kept going to her manager and bringing the price down. We never made a counteroffer, just said no each time and started walking. Finally when she offered 50% off ($120) we caved and bought the cd. If it had been more crowded/busier I doubt very much they would have bothered with us. We liked the shows, especially the ice show. The cruise director Casey did a great job. We did the early walk-off with your luggage and were off the boat in less than an hour. The only less than wonderful employee we experienced was the gentleman at Starbucks. He reminded me of my own surly Starbucks dude at home! However, he was seriously overworked, RC needs more staff at the Starbucks. Overall we had a wonderful time and can't wait to cruise again!