First Family Cruise

Kelly Durrington on 08 October 2019
I am recently back from our first full length cruise holiday and wanted to share it with you all. I know there a lot of people who wont consider cruises, due to false pre-conceived ideas and cruising myths.

To start I travelled with my husband, 9 year old son and my Dad. We left from Southampton on 8th October with Royal Caribbean Independence of the seas for 11 nights. On arrival to the ship terminal it was super easy. Our cases were taken off us, boarding passes were scanned, photos taken and then straight on to the ship. The whole process took less than half hour, much quicker than the airport. Another big bonus sailing from Southampton is that you have unlimited baggage allowance!

First impressions of the ship…..just wow! We was greeted by friendly staff, offered a drink straight away, offered lunch etc and the ship is huge! We were able to get into our cabin at 1pm where our sea pass cards were waiting for us. Sea pass cards are literally everything. Your cabin key is what you need to get on and off the ship and to make payment. Ships are cashless, so you scan you sea pass for everything you want to buy and settle your bill at guest services with cash, or you can add a credit card to the account and you don’t even need to settle as it will automatically come off the card. So simple! Your sea pass card will also have your dining time, table number and your muster point in case of an emergency.

We had a drinks package included in our cruise, which I would recommend. You can have alcoholic packages or soft drinks packages. The cheapest alcoholic beverage on board was $8 so the package is value for money (sometimes you can even get it included) The drinks on board are all branded and so varied. Anything you can think of is there and the cocktails are amazing!

We opted for an inside cabin as we knew we wouldn’t be in there often and preferred to use the extra cash towards spending money. There are great options of cabins for all though and everyone will have different tastes and needs. The inside cabin was spacious enough and had plenty of storage.

The service on board was amazing. All the staff were so friendly and helpful. Especially our room attendant and waiters in the main dining room. Our room attendant helped with anything we needed and in the turn down service of an evening left a sea compass (information sheet with all the activities and main things to note for the next day) and towel animals. The waiters in the dining room went above and beyond. From the first evening they knew our drink and food preferences, had special dessert of bananas and custard made for our son, cut up our son's food and always brought us different food if we tried a new dish and wasn’t too keen.

On the Independence of the Seas there is a main dining area in which you eat every evening if you choose. You have the same table and waiters which is nice. Here you can choose from different options over 3 courses. There is also the windjammer buffet which isn’t like a typical buffet, the food is just as good. The windjammer is more relaxed. There are 3 speciality restaurants, which do have a small charge but worth trying – Steak House, Italian and Japanese. There also a pizza shop which also offers pies, café which offers pastries, cakes, cookies, wraps, sandwiches and other snack options, Ben and Jerry's, sweet shop, American Diner and Fish and Chips. All the food on the ship was top quality and I couldn’t fault any of it. We also took a tour around the kitchens to get an idea of what goes on. It was a brilliant experience and really makes you appreciate the hard work all the staff do to make sure you receive the best food and service possible.

There is so much variety you can always find some entertainment you will enjoy. All day there is something going on at different areas of the ship so you could never be bored. Through out the day there are movies, yoga, dance classes, cooking classes, quizzes, bingo, singers, bands etc. During the evening there is a pool movies, nightclub, casino, a main show in the theatre which usually shows twice (some we experienced include Grease, European champion dancers, magician and juggler, comedian, violinist etc) singers, karaoke, bands, ice skating shows and more. The sea compass will let you know what time and where all the activities happening. A good tip is take a highlighter and highlight the things you don’t want to miss the following day. The kids club for kids is also brilliant. My son has been abroad a lot over the last 9 years and never wanted to do kids club, on the cruise we couldn’t get him out of it!

Other facilities on the ship are so varied for everyone too. There are adult only areas and bars, a lovely spa that offer complimentary services and workshops, two big water slides, a splash pad with smaller slides and sprays, a trampoline which can also be experienced using a VDR headset, laser tag, ice skating, flow rider surfing, the royal promenade has a variety of shops, Ale and Anchor pub, gin bar, pizza shop, sweet shop, guest services, book your next cruise office and during the night holds silent disco parties, 80 parties, other themed parties and discos and parades.

So now I have included the most important things I can think of I am going to explain why I prefer and why I recommend a cruise over an all-inclusive hotel resort.

• Food and drink cant be beaten. Top class and plentiful • Different place every day – getting to see more of the world and not being stuck in one place • Top class service – cant do enough for you • Top class and varied entertainment – not just 1 main show and a few pool games • So many facilities on board you can not get bored. • More space – this ship is like a floating hotel resort but doesn’t feel overly busy like some hotels. No sunbed wars either lol • Something for everyone – the whole family regardless of age or likes can find something on this ship. Pleases everyone.

You might have your own reservations. Please let me know and I will reassure you. I was someone who would never consider it before and now I am totally sold and already researching the next cruise. I honestly couldn’t recommend a cruise more and there isn’t anyone who I don’t think it would suit.

Get in touch if you have any questions or want more information about cruising. There is a reason it’s the fastest growing area in travel and why there is a massive repeat booking rate.