Royal Caribbean Cruise - August 2010

[handy-andy]

Hey There,

 

Me and my family are going on a Royal Caribbean Cruise in the Med on the Independence on the 14th of August. Just had a few questions, thought I'd ask here as you seem to go on RCI quite a bit!

 

Just wanted to know...

 

When we should be able to get on and off the boat on the first and last day of the cruise?

 

What sort of entertainment we should except onboard?

 

Information about dinning such as how busy is the buffet and which of the speciality restaurants are worth it?

 

Would you recommend the excursions and if so what kind on ones would be best value and most interesting?

 

Also any other information would be greatly appreciated!!

 

Thanks

[handy-andy]

Sorry, forgot to ask one thing, how much should we expect to pay for drinks such as wine and orange juice at bars and restaurants and how much could we be spending on other extras?

 

Thanks Again!

[jamjar]

Nice! I'm on the cruise that gets back on the 14th!

 

I'll answer as many as I can

 

- You should be able to board from early afternoon-ish as people normally go to the windjammer for lunch on the first day. And on the last day you'll be told when to disembark for luggage ect.

 

- The entertainment should be great, I went on independence last year in may for 4 nights, and I only actually watched one show But my family said that they we're fantastic, so I think I'll be looking out for some good ones this year Also, there are two shows per night, one for early seating diners and one for the latter. There are some ice skating shows as well, but they aren't as frequent.

 

- Dining-wise; the main dining room is fantastic! The buffet is kinda busy most of the time, but you'll always get a seat and everything else. The only speciality restaurant I went to (Well, not really speciality ) Was johnny rockets, the american grill thing. But that was only like $6 pp and unlimited fries, onion rings (Not sure what happened here? ) and milkshakes ftw! And there's a pizza place on the promenade called sorrento's which is pretty decent too

 

- I'm not sure about excursions as they are pretty damn expensive. But look at what you will be doing and what suits most of the members in your group would be my advice.

 

- Finally, I really do recommend the unlimited soda fountain package. Its like $6/$7 a day and it is basically unlimited soda, like coke, sprite etc. But it will definitely add up in the end, as drinks are very expensive in my opinion.

 

But apart from that, all I can say is have fun!