Brief background: my son turns 18 in November and for his birthday present he chose a trip. Thought we (just he and I) would try a cruise. I chose Royal Caribbean specifically because of their children's program - the other lines I looked at grouped "teens" as 12-17 yr olds, but RC split it 12-14, and 15-17. They also offered Teen Excursions at port. More on that later. I booked a 5 night on the Explorer of the Seas from Bayonne/Cape Liberty NJ to Bermuda.

Boarding: incredibly simple and quick. From drop-off to being on ship was less than 30 minutes. I had all of our paperwork fully completed and had checked in online. I had my passport, my son had driver's license and birth certificate (I know there have been many threads about single parents and traveling - we had no problems). Were on board about 11:30, cabins not ready til 1:30 so it was time to explore! It was great - played a round of mini golf, got my first pina colada of the trip, went to the library for a book and basically got the lay of the land.

Cabin: fantastic. No complaints. Sure - the railing could use some paint but I've read some really nit-picking reviews here and I have to say - overall - very good. We had a balcony room and loved it. Tons of storage! Very well laid out cabin. Our cabin steward - Chanel - introduced herself right away and took excellent care of us. It was also very quiet. Read more