Since we booked this cruise in the summer we had been counting the days until sailing. We took an early morning flight from TN to Boston (we left home at 4 a.m.) which made for a long day. It was quite easy to get a cab (van) from Logan airport to the cruise terminal for about $30 for all of us. Although the Black Falcon Terminal is pretty depressing, the personnel were friendly and our wait was minimal. We were soon on board and enjoying the Jewel of the Seas. Having sailed Royal Caribbean 17 times, we have experienced most of the different categories of vessels (haven't done the Oasis yet). However, I think that the Jewel is probably the most beautiful in the fleet. Lots of wood, brass and windows. The staterooms were ready when we boarded at a few minutes past 1 pm so we went to drop off our carry-on bags. Having booked a guaranteed inside cabin I was somewhat surprised to find that we were on deck two which is primarily the infirmary and crew cabins. I guess my Diamond Crown and Anchor didn't get me any perks as far as cabin assignments. Other than the inconvenience of waiting on the elevators it really wasn't bad. The cabin was spacious enough with plenty of storage.

We met up with our traveling companions and headed up to the Windjammer for some lunch. The selection was good and the layout was conducive to a favorable flow of folks loading up their plates for the first time on this cruise. The staff in the Windjammer was friendly and service was good with the waiters offering to fetch whatever you needed to drink which was a pleasant surprise. All during the week we continued to eat all breakfasts and most lunches in the Windjammer and the service stayed consistently good.

We had requested a table for 4 in the main dinning room so I went to check it out and found that we were actually at a table for 6. I left a request to have the table changed to a smaller table since we wanted to spend time with our traveling companions on their first cruise but to no avail. We were told that the main seating was completely full and unfortunately nothing could be done. I figured this would not be a major problem since most of the folks I have been seated with on cruises have been wonderful people. When the four of us arrived at dinner that night we were surprised that our other two table mates never materialized (and they didn't ever show up for the whole cruise). So we actually got our table for four after all. Since I'm talking food I will go ahead and provide my review on this important aspect now. After doing 5 RCCL cruises in the last year we pretty much have the menu memorized. In the main dining room the food was consistently good and occasionally great. The service was consistently great but occasionally average (asst waiter was sometimes a little slow but responded quickly if reminded). It would be nice if a few more entrees were added to the menu just for variety for frequent cruisers. Read more