We liked this cruise because I work weekends, so the Monday-Friday format suited our schedule perfectly. Comparing cruises is difficult because the service, food, venues - everything is always dependable and professional, so it's always a wonderful experience. There is so much to do on Independence of the Seas that we had to budget our time carefully; with activities each day and shows every night; you do need to use the calendar to keep your plans from overlapping. I have so. much more to share about the wonderful experience we enjoyed; head over to my blog at DeepWaterHappy and I'll take you through how we maxxed out our experiences over this four night cruise.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Even faster than anticipated! We were on board by 11:30 a.m.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
5 out of 5
We tried it all - Windjammer, main dining room for breakfast, lunch, dinner, Giovannis, and even Fish N Ships - always dependable, always fresh, attractive, delicious.
Onboard Activities
5 out of 5
We absolutely loved the open-roof Solarium with its enormous cantilevered hot tubs; room for eight times as many people! The fitness center is huge; I never had any trouble finding an open treadmill. The equipment is modern, well-maintained, and the gym is so big that it's never crowded. If you've never tried the morning stretch or abs class; plan to join them - what a great way to start your day. Also, the ice skating is great fun; so easy to pop in and get on the ice. Every cruise we begin with a massage to get the vacation started; this was one of the best ever.
Entertainment
5 out of 5
We went to a juggling show - and it was as much comedy as juggling. The ice show Freeze Frame is worth seeing as well; what the skaters accomplish on the small arena is amazing.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
Immediate response is the best way to describe the service - no matter what we requested, it was taken seriously and immediately addressed. Printed Compass? Absolutely. Change dining time? Right away.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
Constant cleaning is what we observed; the ship was nearly spotless all the time. We love the layout and design - so many areas to explore and no crowds. Don't forget to visit the helicopter pad, the Promenade, and explore every deck. There's so much to see!
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
What a delightful surprise - we took a Royal Up from an inside on deck 6 to a window on deck 2. We were worried. It turned out to be not only spacious, but a lot lighter than we anticipated. We now would not hesitate to book a window cabin! We usually book a balcony to dry our scuba diving gear, but we managed just fine this trip. Every time we got back to the cabin, I was absolutely chuffed at the size and brightness. The layout was so good - easy-to-access closet, plenty of drawers and the areas to the sides of the mirrors, plus other shelves. So clever.
Ship tip
Deck 2 and 3 are split; you can't travel bow-to-stern on these; pay attention to the maps when accessing areas forward or aft of the division. You must go up to deck 4 to "get across" the gap, then back down to access areas fore or aft on these decks.
We walked a self-led tour to the Queen's Staircase, Fort Fincastle, Greycliffe, and Watlings Distillery as well as the downtown jewelry shops. We LOVE Nassau. The new terminal is well-designed as well.
Scuba Diving with Hopeton - always a great dive. You are taken to the reef by jet ski! Then a good long shallow dive allowing plenty of time to view the reef, which is slowly recovering from hurricane damage. We were thrilled to see new coral growth, fan growth, and plenty of fish.
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