Not a good choice

Independence of the Seas Cruise Review to Caribbean - Eastern

Cruises: 1 cruise (first)
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 3

Overall rating:

2.8 out of 5
Independence of the Seas

4 Night Eastern Caribbean (Miami Roundtrip)

Sail date: April 04, 2024

Ship: Independence of the Seas

Cabin type: Balcony

Cabin number: 9562

Traveled as: Singles/Friends

Reviewed: 6 months ago

Review summary

This was a charter 7-day cruise with ports of call to Grand Turk, Puerta Plata, DR and San Juan, PR, so my review will reflect as such: Ship/cabin: The ship itself is definitely showing its age. The decor is very dated, and the amenities are pretty worn down. Our cabin was nothing at all to write home about and the bed was very uncomfortable. There were also major electrical problems that interfered with our charter's ability to hold events, causing delays. That ultimately required the ship to sail faster than usual to make our ports of call which in turn resulted in a rocky trip...lots of swaying back and forth and nausea... The gym was ok. Very basic. Signed up for a vybe ride spin class, and got an attendant standing in front of me with a stopwatch who called it an interval training, which I could have done by myself with the preprogrammed option on the bike. They had the nerve to charge me for it! Still going back and forth over that... Food: Very hit or miss. The Windjammer Cafe was pretty bad most days, and by day 7, I was also over the main dining options. We didn't go to any of the pay restaurants because ultimately they all have the same food sources so why would they be much better? Service: Our room attendant, Mustafa was very nice and did his best to provide us timely service. The communication between the charter and the ship crew was nonexistent, which I do in part blame on RCI as they should have ensured certain details were obtained prior to embarking. Also, the disembarkation process was an utter nightmare/felt like cattle. They kept rushing us off, only for us to stand in line waiting to get off for an hour and a half. My cabin had a good view and location. Other than that, wish I'd not gone. My first cruise experience was pretty awful, and I am very disappointed I wasted thousands of dollars on this abysmal experience!

Embarkation

2 out of 5
not great

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

3 out of 5
The Main dining better than Cafe but not great.

Onboard Activities

3 out of 5
mediocre

Entertainment

charter/provided by others

Children's Programs

no children on board

Service and Staff

4 out of 5
staff generally very good

Ship Quality

2 out of 5
very dated and weird set up to get around

Cabin / Stateroom

3 out of 5
hard uncomfortable bed. cramped for what I paid

Ship tip

pick another ship

Ports of call

Miami, Florida

2 out of 5
My excursion was canceled by RCI, and I'd paid a fee to change an already booked flight to accommodate the excursion. More wasted $$!

Grand Turk Island

3 out of 5
Chukka excursions are AWFUL...stay away/avoid them!

Disembarkation

1 out of 5
Very rushed
Was this review helpful? 3

7 Comments

RyanWoirol     6 months ago

That's a long cruise for your first. I was just on Indy Apr 18th and it was also my first. We had a small 4 night but we didn't have any negatives. Bummer it didn't work out for you.

javawoody     6 months ago

Appreciate your comments

BnCTcruising     6 months ago

Thanks for sharing.

AuntPinkie     6 months ago

Appreciate your detailed feedback. Sorry this cruise didn’t was disappointing.

Gwbigdog     6 months ago

Thanks for sharing

cruising2004     6 months ago

Sorry this cruise is not up to par.

HeavySeas     6 months ago

Thanks for sharing

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