Independence of the Seas?

[APDMOM]

We loved Indy. She is currently our second favorite, after Freedom. The main reasons we like Freedom better are the Dreamworks characters and the fact that the shows on Freedom were better.

 

You can see many pictures and tips on my review here: Enjoy planning!

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2014636

Edited April 18, 2015 by APDMOM
typo

[Missus Makkem]

Hurray we are getting the Indie back in Southampton next year cannot wait.

Love her.

[signalarmywife]

We just got back from a cruise on the Indy with a large group (6 cabins) and it was the worst cruise we have ever taken. I was not a fan of this ship at all. Don't get my wrong it is a beautiful clean ship but the service was seriously lacking on this ship. I am not saying the staff wasn't nice and cordial the problem is there isn't enough staff to deal with the amount of guests on the ship. The food was hands down the worst on any of the ships and I am still wondering if there is a cruise director on the ship as the entertainment was seriously lacking. I have never waited in so many long lines on a cruise ship (not your normal lines but extremely long lines). I couldn't wait to get off the ship at the end of my cruise.

 

I have also been extremely disappointed with RCCL post cruise. I have reached out to them many times and have yet to hear back from anyone.

[ptf2009]

I'm currently onboard Independence of the Seas... my second Royal Caribbean cruise after many with Carnival and a few with Princess and Norwegian.

 

I'm one of those weird people that eats all meals in the buffet restaurant and never sets foot in the main dining room of a cruise ship anymore. I have to say that lunch and dinner in the Independence Of The Seas buffet restaurant is the best cruise ship food I've had in all 29 of my cruises. There's lots of choices, and plenty that fits my particular taste in food. I can't honestly say I like their breakfast options... but lunch and dinner have been fantastic.

 

Here's the thing that's a disappointment to me, though: the entertainment. It hasn't been good, and it's also been sparse. A lot of the music acts don't even get going until after 9:30 PM. Comedy has been almost non-existent. Carnival just completely blows Royal Caribbean out of the water when it comes to comedy. Also, no waterslides, and no self-service laundry facilities.

 

It's weird how their is little to no entertainment until later in the evening. When you have a 8 AM call for a shore excursion the next day, you really can't attend an 11 PM musical performance.

 

Not to imply we're having a bad time... we love to cruise and can have a good time on just about any cruise. But this is weird how little entertainment there is at night here!

 

We were just on the Indy in Dec. and are going on May 3 again. The entertainment was great and we looked forward to the shows every night. We were usually in bed by 11:00 and only missed the "adult comedy" at midnight which we really didn't mind. Check your cruise compass. The singers and dancers were great, the comedian, illusionist, a guy who did an Elton John impression, the fabulous ice skating show, love and marriage game, quest game, karaoke, just to name a "few." Besides the beautiful blue caribbean beaches and just being on a cruise ship, I look so forward to the entertainment and read the daily compass front to back so we don't miss anything!

 

Have fun....12 more days for us!

[Paulette3028]

We cruised on Indy in February, and had a very good time. We found the entertainment just fine and plenty to fill our 'entertainment quota' as I look at it. I don't enjoy a juggler, so when they have that as the headliner, we usually don't go....sometimes there is a comedian and sometimes not on a ship; if there is we go....although we don't usually attend the adult comedy act, because it usually conflicts with Karaoke (we try never to miss Karaoke -- DH loves to participate).

 

We have found that the best way (for us) to enjoy most of the evening entertainment is to have dinner early, so the traditional early dinner seating works for us and we enjoy having set tablemates and wait staff.

 

After dinner we can make the show, and work in whatever else is on the evening agenda in any one of the lounges. We enjoyed the musical shows they presented and the ice skating show. Some people felt that they did not offer the ice skating show enough times. We did it on the last sea day in the afternoon, by then we had enough sun on our 8 day cruise. We had a wonderful piano bar musician that took requests when we were on Indy, along with a wonderful band playing in the club. One night the Karaoke was with the live band and that was terrific. Add to that Love and Marriage and Quest games....I can understand if someone doesn't want to stay up past 11pm, some of these activities you may miss....I laugh at myself on a cruise, where I can stay up well past midnight and still get up early for a shore excursion, when at home at 10pm I'm tired. For me, it must be the magic of vacation and a little late afternoon pool nap, always helps.

 

So for us, we surely found good entertainment on board.

Edited April 21, 2015 by Paulette3028