Independence of the Seas Cruise Reviews - Reviews

It was not my first cruise with Royal Caribbean, but it was not the best one.  Independance of the seas, room 2322, behind the chair we found a golf ball and a baloune.  In the wardrobe a paper of chocolate.  The window was so dirty, we should see fingers on, so nobody wash it.  The Mirror was not clean we should  touch the dirty things with our finger.  I eat well, I sleep well, the show were well and I am happy.  I reserved 3 rooms for me and 2 others couples.  The one with balcony receive a credit of 50$ in a restaurant, the other one with the room 2314 received a credit of 25$ and me nothing.  Next time everybody will make his own reservation.  In the casino, it was written no smoking and the personnal said nothing when somebody smoke.  Sorry for my English I am French.  Next time my choice won't be with Royal Carribbean.

I enjoyed this trip. 3 days at sea and 2 ports which let me relax!!  The staff on this cruise were great.  Only concern was getting off this ship, it was a mess!! They were very disorganized .

This is a good, inexpensive cruise, especially if you plan on flying from across the country, as flying into Ft. Lauderdale is cheaper, and the airport is close to the cruise terminal. The ship was clean and had lots to do every day at sea. Labadee wasn't spectacular, as it was crowded and food ran out quickly, but it was still nice to veg on the beach. Falmouth was fun and fantastic!

My favorite thing about the cruise was getting home.  Food was poor, the service was poor, and the dessert were horrible.  Strings performance was great but that was the only thing that was worth the trip.  Will think real hard before sailing with this cruises line again.

Everything was wonderful! The shows, the food, the attendants, etc...just everything!!

Would have liked some earlier evening entertainment, but thats ok. Some stuff we missed (we get up early everyday). Get tired!

From the moment we got on the ship, the Independence of the Seas cruise was dynamite. Lots of great shows, like Grease. A fantastic array of excursions, ranging in level of excitement and risk taking. A wonderfully helpful staff from top to bottom. and, a super efficient disembarking. A no-question recommendation comes from my wife and I.

Johnny Blackwell

Relaxing trip.  The crew and staff were very friendly and helpful.  Food was good with good choices.  The mattresses may need to be changed.  They did not give much support.  

FAVORITE PART OF THE CRUISE WAS SITTING TOPSIDE OUT IN THE SUN, CLOSE TO THE BAR, MUSIC AND POOL AREAS. THE OUTDOOR MOVIE SCREEN WAS FUN AT NIGHT UNDER A FULL MOON, SIPPING MERLOT WINE AND MUNCHING ON SOME CHEESE A CRACKERS WE HAD FROM THE DINNER BUFFET. THE DINING WAS SUPERB, BOTH AT THE BUFFET AND FORMAL DINING. STAFF WAS FRIENDLY AND ENGAGING, RESPECTFUL AND GENUINELY CARING. SHORE ACTIVITIES WAS FUN, WE CHOSE THE ATV TOUR/CAVERNS/TEQUILA TASTING. 

The main dining room seemed understaffed.  It took a long time to receive drinks/meals.  The Specialty restaurants were wonderful, Great service and food.  The cabin was clean and we loved the walk in closet and large balcony.  Over all great trip.

One of my favorite parts of the cruise was the show "Grease" and the comedy show with Dennis Blair.  Our excursions were great. We also liked the surf flow rider and rock wall.  We would recommend this cruise for anyone who wants to have a good time. 

Independence of the Seas is very big and pretty boat. Plenty of things do onboard for all ages.  The vessel has great food and drink packages for all ages.  The staff in the Windjammer were excellent, very friendly and really loved their jobs. I highly recommend this boat to anybody.

The best part of the cruise is the port of call , we had a great time and if one of the stops were the Florida Keys it wood be better.The port of call had good ways to get around and we found that sometimes going on our own we can also have a great time.

This was our first cruise on a ship, over all the trip was a good vacation. There was some minor things, like the pool was not large enough and being charged $27.00 dollar tip, for a $ 3.54 soda. Another problem I came in contact with was being charged twice for a photograph that I had already paid for, even after I told the sales person, who didn't wanted to listen to me.

This cruise was to celebrate our 47th anniversary. We were impressed the moment we stepped onboard this beautiful ship.  The staff was smiling and friendly from the moment everyday we were onboard.  This was one of the most relaxing cruises we ever experienced.  

There are many choices of things to do onboard.  Sea days were relaxing, and plenty of seating around pools.  The dining room food was excellent with many choices.  The dining staff were all very attentive to our needs.  This was the first cruise we took that the room steward gave us his card with his extension.  Whenever we needed anything, we just had to call him, and he was there with whatever we needed.  He kept our room spotless, and inviting. 

 The only negatives I have to say about this cruise, is the big screen TV at the main pool, on Sunday the Compass advertised NFL game to feature Miami Dolphins.  We are fans and watch all the games.  Well, the game was playing, and right in front of the screen a loud band started playing.  it was very distracting.  The other negative was the internet service we paid for.  It was not very good.  dId not meet our needs as it did on other RCCL cruises.

The entertainment was fantastic.  Grease was the best production show we ever seen on a cruise ship.  All I can say is if you have an opportunity to cruise on this ship, jump at it.

The check in for the cruise was quick and efficient. Our room was ready soon after getting on the ship. Our bags arrived in good time as well. My friend did book a balcony room and if I were to cruise again I think I would spend the extra money for one. It was nice and big and had a lot of space on the balcony. The reason I gave this cruise a poor score was that the food and coffee was not up to par. I have been on three other cruises and one was on the same line and the food was good on that one but awful on this ship. I don't know if it is a new policy for RC to now charge extra for steak and for a lobster tail during formal night ($27.00 for steak and $30 for lobster). My friend cruises a lot, over 10 times, and this was the first cruise that charged for dinner in the main dining room during formal night. My sister ordered a strip steak from the menu and it was the worst steak I have ever had on a cruise. It had a funky taste like it was fake? The main buffet was just as bad. It was the same food everyday at the buffet and was barely editable. I'm not a person that is very picky about food but I was amazed how bad it really was. I wish the ship had more restaurants that were included in the price. I also noticed the crew seemed not as friendly as other cruises I had been on. Maybe tipping ahead makes some not as friendly knowing they will receive a tip regardless. I am a great tipper as I work for them myself and there seems to be less personal care from certain crew members. I am glad I have had good cruises in the past because if this was my first one, I wouldn't cruise again.

The best part of the ship is the sports area. 

The dining option and menu are limited.

Crew members in Cafe look tiring and not very friendly all the time. 

Food service was great, but not the food, food is average. Improvements: need provide more activities, such as ball room dance, choir (Princess provides guest group a choirs and performing at the promenade). Also the line dancing only last for 15 minutes, it should at least 30 minutes. The first night show was terrible, the comedian was not funny enough, some people left early and he keep saying "what did I say wrong?". And the "Grease" show presents two nights which means the 2 bday night there is no show to watch, because we saw already . They should provide new show in each night! Overall the entertainment part is not good.

We are avid cruisers, having taken at least a dozen cruises on 4 major lines. We were repeat customers on Holland until infant twins entered the picture and we switched to Royal Carribean on this trip specifically because I believed it would cater to families.To begin with the ship has a little bit of wear (very small and really not worth fussing about at all), but is still a fabulous ship. It was decorated for Christmas and my only regret about the ship itself is that it is not home ported in New Orleans so we could easily go on another trip on her. Our waiter Agnelo and our room steward John (3rd floor) were fabulous- service was generally top notch with one exception mentioned below. The ship has lots of activities and still holds her own in the age of mega ships (the exception being that ballroom dancing was a no go this trip unless you counted an hour total each day, 30 min 2X, of Latin music adequate). We chose this ship primarily for what we viewed as family friendly atmosphere and the ship left us scratching our head in this area. A small splash pad for infants was much appreciated, the nursery was adequate (although being charged $6 to $8 an hour for a passenger that was already charged full fare is a question mark), and I found 2 of the best changing stations at sea (complete with gloves, wet wipes, and a diaper pail). They also allowed us to sit in the lounge after reporting to our life boat session to hear the rest of the presentation in comfort (we had an 8 yo, a 3 yo, and two 16 month old twins). The front desk and John helped us get a second pack and play when they ran out in our area. On the flip side, a lot about the ship was not family friendly. The majority of restrooms did not have changing centers and I or my husband were left kneeling on a bathroom floor multiple times. There were no family restrooms for fathers to assist with daughters who may still need help. The ship also allowed smoking on the pool deck and promenade (places where you take kids) and it seemed the ship was dominated by smoking--- the breeze carried the smoke into the child's pool area and down the entire length of the promenade. To get to the other side of the ship on deck four avoiding the promenade your only other option was to take the kids through the casino (where you guessed it more smoking dominated the area). My view on smoking is that it should be done in such a way that you can actively avoid it if needed. The worst disappointment was in the kids club. It was ok,l but my daughter did not want to go (on Holland America's Eurodam it was more structured with more craft activities and parades/ hunts and she couldn't wait to go back). My son was three and a big incentive for him to become potty trained was this trip (he understood he could not go to the kid's club or the big kid's pool if he was not). He had not had any accidents during the day for weeks and we thought we were good to go. Like many adults, the strange water and food had effects. Midway through the cruise he developed issues and had an accident at kid's club. We fully understand the rules, but when we were paged (literally on the other side of the wall as we were picking up my daughter to go to the show) the worker ranted to my husband for 10-15 minutes about rules. Meanwhile I was still waiting for my daughter because she is in line for the bathroom. My husband was unaware they had sent him to the restroom alone. When he asked where he was they finally mentioned he was in the bathroom. My husband asked if he was being helped (because why else would you not let a father check on a child?), he was told it was against policy.When my husband asked to help, they waited for the entire line of kids to finish before allowing him back (DD finally comes back 15 minutes later when my husband ordered her out of the line so he could get to my son quicker). The little guy was in the room bawling his eyes out trying to figure out how to clean up the mess and making it worse. He kept crying about being kicked out and was very upset at soiling himself. Kids (and adults) have accidents. It is going to happen. The expectations are unrealistic for kids 2-4 and the nursery is really only designed for up to age two.  If you are going to be unrealistic and not prepare for an opps, the very least you can do is have compassion on the little kids and let parents in ASAP to help. When we questioned leaving a three year old in a bathroom for 15 minutes by himself crying the supervisor of the kid's club stated that the man said they immediately cleared the line to let him back... I know it is a lie from the extended wait for my daughter who told me that the reason she wasn't back was she was waiting in line and Daddy sent her back. Lecture AFTER the child is taken care of, minimum. This is in general a great ship with good service (and limited chair hogging by the pool... a first in 15 or so years of cruising 4 major lines). This is not as family friendly as you would expect (especially for kids 2-4 years). After spending roughly the same as a suite for our family, we felt a bit cheated when forced to kneel down in restrooms and our son was left alone for an extended period. To improve- add changing tables to handicap stalls in all restrooms, create ships with family restrooms on newer ships, take a hard look at smoking policies, consider charging $3 to $4 an hour per child for the nursery (what are we getting for paying full fare?), consider adding a cool playground on the ship- doesn't have to be large, but someplace you can play with your child outside on deck or in an area other than the kid's program area, and please look at land based daycare programs to design a program and rules that are appropriate for a 2-4 year old. In this day of mega ships, it is hard to believe that toddlers do not fit somewhere in the kid's program (put a special toddler nursery in with appropriate toys and mini toilets/ changing tables). Toddler's are not older babies or mini kids, they are a unique developmental phase that needs more independence than the nursery and more guidance than older groups. Instead of allowing our family to continue cruising, we are now turned off by RCI and will wait until all of our kids are old enough for HAL's program to cruise again. My husband left the ship more stressed than we arrived, and I would say that was probably the same for me.

I think this is a great cruise line. I wouldn't repeat this specific cruise because I think it was too much time in the ship and just one day at the beach. I like better the Bahamas' cruise style, which you get to visit more beaches, so when you get back to the ship you're more wiling to stay on it.

Very POOR communication to guests on departure procedure.

Ship phone system did not work. All numbers were always busy. Talked to the service desk and demonstarted it live (had them try and call the operator). Busy or no answer after many rings. Never received an answer back on what is being done to fix the lack of phone answering.

This fact indicates that the service area is under staffed. If there was an emergency it be impossible to ring for help. Totally unacceptable.

Therefore the GRADE is F or   ZERO STARS.