We had hoped for a pleasant and relaxing week with expectations for the usual good service and food that has characterized previous experiences with Royal Caribbean. It saddens me to say that in this case that ain't what happened.

Boarding was fast and efficient-they do an excellent job of moving the line quickly and getting you on the ship. In this case...TOO QUICKLY. Hidden in the packet of "read later" stuff they handed us was a warning letter that the ship had suffered an outbreak of NOROVIRUS-and that you could opt off the cruise if you wanted to. Unfortunately we didn't see that letter until after boarding (and once you walked on-you were screwed-the offer was no longer valid).

IMPORTANT NOTE: The offer was in the final paragraph of a long letter that would take 3-5 minutes to read. Can you imagine standing at the cruise check-in and holding up the line while you read a letter? The agent never mentioned NOROVIRUS nor suggested we take a minute to consider the outbreak and its implications. Read more