I generally dislike larger ships, but we were planning a multi-generational cruise for the holidays, and the itinerary worked with our dates. We were a total of 11 people, ages 13-75, and booked 3 Grand Suites. Getting to the port in Miami was a nightmare, as 6200 people were leaving the port at the same time that many of us were arriving. We had a private van that we had booked with American Transportation, thank goodness, but they wouldn't let him drop us anywhere near the check-in. However, once we cleared the mess, we boarded the ship quickly and easily. The ship was recently out of dry dock, and she was clean and beautiful.

We were on board just after 11 am and headed up to Central Park for lunch at the Park Cafe. Disclaimer: I'm a foodie! I found that the dining across the board was very average. We bought a specialty dining package and ate at 150 Central Park (by far the best meal we had), Chops (really average, same as I've found on every other RC ship), and Giovannis (the old folks loved this one, I just thought it was chain-restaurant quality food). Nine of us also did the hibachi dinner one night, fun but way overpriced and no different than you'd get at Benihana on land. We ate in our dining room just once and found the food there to be pretty much the same quality as the specialty restaurants, but the service was actually better. So next time I wouldn't bother spending the extra money on specialty dining. We had one dinner at the Solarium Bistro which was a buffet for appetizers and desserts but we ordered dinner from the menu. It was fine. We didn't think it was worth the $9.95/person charge at Johnny Rockets for a hamburger, so we didn't eat there. We watched the Orange Bowl in the sports bar but were annoyed that the snacks were an extra charge. I never once set foot in the Windjammer Cafe.

As suite guests we had access to the Coastal Kitchen and Suite lounge on deck 17, and we spent a lot of time there. For us it was a wonderful respite from the insanity of the rest of the ship. They offered sit-down breakfast every day, and the service in CK was much better than it was elsewhere on the ship. Buffet breakfast was also available there for those who wanted to eat on the run. Lunch and dinner were also available there, as was an all-day fancy coffee machine. Each evening they put hors d'oeuvres out at 5 pm. When it was sushi it was a very small quantity and usually gone within minutes. Wine and beer were available all day, though we had beverage packages so we were able to get upgraded wine and beer. The bar service in CK was slow and inefficient. Read more