Before I begin, there were three of us on this cruise. My husband and 8 year old daughter. My husband and I have cruised 4 prior times and this was my daughter's first cruise.

Embarking: We arrived early around 9:45 (thought it would take longer) and the other cruise was just getting off. I later learned they got in late due to Earl. Otherwise all went well and we were on the ship by 12 noon enjoying our lunch. Oh, there were two weddings on the ship prior to our leaving Baltimore. The trip out of Baltimore down the Chesapeake was enjoyable. I would recommend being outside to enjoy going under the bridges. Cabin: We were in steerage, in the middle on deck two. But from my past cruise experience I learned we are not in the room much and to be honest it was not too bad. There were three of us in an ocean view room and we had room. I would say the room was small and would have sprung for a balcony but it was over $1000 more and I could do a lot with $1000. Cabin Steward: Leonardo, our cabin steward was the best. He worked very hard to make sure my family and I were taken care of. We particularly loved the towel animals. Dining: Each day we had breakfast and dinner (Main Seating) in the MFL dining room and had lunch in the Windjammer. Aldwyn and Wilson our waiters were wonderful. They were very attentive and did a great job. The headwaiter was really funny and had so many cute sayings "Yum Yum in the Tum Tum". Our table mates were very nice and we enjoyed having dinner with them every night. The food was good, not great but good. My 8 year old had no issues finding food she could eat and in many cases had 2 desserts. Only once when returning from Bermuda did we have difficulties getting a table at the Windjammer. Adventure Ocean: We did not use this much but when we did my daughter really enjoyed it. She would tell us to come back in ½ hour and we would and then she would say pick her up when it ended. She really enjoyed it! As a FYI, the ship had 200 children on board and it really looked like we had no more than 20. I am not sure where they all were. We also did one of the family time activities the Family Disco. We had fun dancing together! Disembarking Bermuda the 1st time: This was the ONLY really bad part of the trip. We were lined up for close to 1 hour before we could get off the ship. I have a daughter who does not do well with crowds or loud noises so I needed to calm her. I would recommend they call by floors if they ever do this again. Bermuda: My daughter had 3 things to accomplish in Bermuda: ride a ferry, snorkel and get sea glass. We did kind of did all 3 of them. Instead of snorkeling, we stood there and because the water is so clear, we did not need the snorkel masks to see the beautiful fish. We went to Tobacco Bay and Horseshoe Bay. Both were beautiful in their own ways. Tobacco bay is a little more rugged. We also went to Sea glass beach which I would highly recommend for sea glass. We sent a number of people from the ship there too. The weather for the most part was beautiful. We experienced one rain storm in St. George, headed for the ferry. It rained heavily on the ferry but when we got off it was beautiful (great timing on our part). We bought a two-day public transportation ticket from the activities desk for $20 each. They allow you unlimited use of bus and ferries and we used them. The buses were a bit scary. Pools: Pools were nice and my daughter had fun with many of the other children. It was very windy on this deck. I really enjoyed the afternoon music by the pool. Rock Wall: I added this as a separate category, because my 8 year old daughter and I both successfully climbed the rock wall. The staff did a great job calming the nerves and getting us to the top so we could ring the bell. What a thrill! Evening: We only attended the two comedians but enjoyed them very much. We did not hit the nightclubs because we were with my daughter. But my husband and I had a few evening in the Viking Lounge. Disembarking: We used the walk-off departure and were in our car by 8am heading home. When we were in the car my 8 year old said "Mommy, when is our next Royal Caribbean Vacation?"