Background: We are three couples who have been friends forever. This was the second cruise for DH and me, and the first cruise for the other two couples. It was our first experience with Royal Caribbean. I am a vegetarian who is lactose intolerant and allergic to tree nuts, peanuts, and sesame (and yes, I tipped our wait staff appropriately!!). I was a voracious reader of all the reviews posted here, so I wanted to return the favor.

Day 1: Embarkation- We were up early and excited to get to the boat. We had hired a van to pick us up and drop us off and it arrived about 10:45. We arrived at the terminal a little before noon and proceeded to go through the boarding process. Pretty easy boarding... there were lines, but not bad at all and the whole process was easy. Pretty soon, we were boarding the shuttle to take us to the ship. We were on the ship by 12:30 and headed to the Windjammer. It was hopping, but we were able to find seats. Food was good.

By the time we ate and wandered around the ship a little, and made sure that the MDR was aware of my eating difficulties (!), we went to check to see if our rooms were ready- they were. We had an inside cabin with an adjoining door with our friends. The room was cozy, but I didn't think it was bad at all. The bathroom was also cozy, but it had plenty of room for me. The biggest surprise was the shower. I thought it was huge compared to the one we had had onboard the Island Princess for our first cruise. Plenty of room to turn around and shave my legs- which is always good! Read more