We chose this particular cruise because it worked well within the time frame we were looking at. Wanted to be back home in plenty of time for Easter. As well, we liked the fact that it departed from Miami and had stops in Bahamas and Mexico. The price point was great too as we were able to have a balcony room for a decent price. I read a lot of reviews that weren't great on the ships appearance, food, etc. This was our first cruise with RCCL so we had nothing to compare it to, but we were not disappointed and cannot wait to go back. We've already started planning our next trip and may take the exact same ship again. Will likely bring our kids next time though as we do thing they would enjoy it. Last cruise I did was with Carnival 23 years ago so can't really compare.

Embarkation went fine. We got there around 11:30 and were on the ship by 12:45. It seemed a bit chaotic when we arrived at the port, but it went smoothly once inside the terminal. Disembarkation was fine as well. We picked a time of 9:30 to get off and left the boat around 9:15 to make our way out to the terminal. Our bags were there waiting for us on the luggage belt. From the time we left our station on the ship to going through customs, picking up our luggage, and in a taxi on the way back to the airport was 30 minutes.

The ship was great. Could see a bit of sign of aging, but that's expected. For the most part very clean although I did find that our room could have been a bit cleaner. Cabin was a great size. Dining was very good. Limited selection in the main dining room but still liked the food and the service was great (Sheriton and Polvin). My husband complained that he found the portions weren't very big in the main dining room, but I thought they were fine. We had My Time Dining and went to the main dining room three times for supper and once for breakfast. We really liked the My Time Dining and would do that again. I had made reservations ahead of time online before boarding. That worked well. We had a late breakfast on the day of boarding so we didn't eat lunch on board which was fine. We tried to avoid it as many people commented how busy it was at lunch time. We ate at the Windjammer the first night which was fine. Busy, but not too overwhelming. We also ate there once for lunch and for breakfast. I found it annoying that it was a difficult process go get something to drink other than water and some juices. On our third night we ate at Chops Grills. It was amazing. I don't even like steak but ate every bite. Appetizers, desert, service excellent! We ate at Johnny Rockets for lunch once which was okay. Typical burger joint I suppose. I wasn't happy with the fact that the waitress didn't explain that the milkshakes would cost extra (over and above the $6.95 charge for our meal) when she asked if we wanted milkshakes. They were $4.50 each. Definetly would not have gotten them or at least not two. Promenade Cafe was fine for evening snacks. Read more