This was our now second annual cruise with just my DW and I. Last year we did the AOS out of San Juan and this year we convinced our good friends to join us for their first cruise. We(I) picked the Serenade this time largely to see what the radiance class ships were like. The ports were also a factor as we hadn't been to St. Croix, St. Kitts, or Dominica before.

We flew down to San Juan from ATL the day before our departure on Saturday. Stayed at the Caribe Hilton (where DW and I stayed last year). Arrived at the ship around 11:45am. Check in was a snap and were on the ship in less than 20 minutes. Went to the Windjammer for lunch. After lunch we showed our friends (and ourselves) around the ship and headed to the rooms around 1:30 to drop our bags. We splurged for an OS along with our friends. Did some more exploring and relaxed with some drinks prior to the muster drill. Nice not to have to lug jackets.

We had the early seating for dinner (6pm) and sat with some very nice couples and two newly weds. Service in the main dining room was very good the entire week. Entrees were good, deserts we so so but I'm not a big desert person anyway. We ate at Chops one night and Portofino's another. Food was great at both and deserts seemed better there. The only thing we would probably do differently would be to opt for the late dinner seating or my time dining as the 6pm start time put us in a rush each day when we got back from our excursions. Read more