Great Ports!

This was the biggest disappointment on the cruise. The food was of poor quality. From small things like not having cream for coffee only non-dairy creamer to over or under done meat in the dining room. The food was consistently bland and unflavorful. The dining room was elegant but the staff seemed unorganized. We were served duck that was so dry and hard it was inedible, and prime rib that was overcooked on the outside and raw in the center (obviously from cooking from frozen). The Windjammer buffet was also bland and quickly became tired of the same items over and over every night. The hours for the buffet were not long enough for people who stayed late at ports of call (closed at 9:00). Staff was spread too thin and would have two or three plates on your table before you would see anyone to take them away. We had a wine package and often would get our wine after we finished our meal. Again, the staff seemed unorganized... until it came time to clean the buffet station.

We only participated in a few of the onboard activities since most did not appeal to us. The cruise director was good just the variety of activities were not interesting. We attended the ice skating show which was good, and participated in the Walk for Wishes, as well as attending a few of the organized parties. The staff does a good job getting the crowd involved.

The lines at Guest Services were rediculous. We stood in line for an hour to get our room keys re-coded when they stopped working. A simple action like that took far too long. The excursion line was even worse. We found it hit and miss in the service offered by the people behind the counter. We would have an excellent experience with one individual, then have someone very rude and give us incorrect information. Unfortunatly you always seem to remember the bad over the good.

There is plenty of space on the ship to find a spot to chill out. There are plenty of bars and lounges to sit quietly or night club to get your groove on. The decor is dated with it's coral and mint color scheme and brass accent. Even though there appeared to be plenty of elevators, you spent a lot of time waiting for them. When they did come, they were often completely packed forcing you to use the stairs.

We loved our stateroom and our stateroom attendant. This cruise we opted for a balcony after having both interior and portal windows in the past and it made a huge difference. The size of the room was adequate and storage was ample. Having the space under the bed to store empty suitcases was great. Again, the decor cold have been updated from the carribean colors of coral and mint to something more modern and the a flat screen TV would have also saved space. We chose a room on deck 7 mid way down the ship. Nothing above or below other than staterooms was great. The library is also on this floor so it added to it's quietness.