Independence of the seas 8 day Christmas review

The problem is they got rid of the Logo Shop to create more real estate to devote to selling cigarettes, alcohol, and perfume.

That is a bummer. We lost a lot of stuff when the tree fell on our house during Sandy and we had to throw it out because of water damage. I am actually buying logo merchandise again to replace the large amount we lost, such as tee shirts, hats etc.

I can understand the increase in size of any tobacco store when sailing with Brits. When we did TA's from London to the US, on the first day the Promenade had displays selling cigarettes and they were flying off the shelves and stacks.I know Europe has far fewer smoking restrictions then we do.

This is in line with my comment that the store operator does not reset the merchandise when coming to Florida for the winter season.

Glad to hear about the Schooner Bar entertainer. How was the entertainment in the pub?

That is a bummer. We lost a lot of stuff when the tree fell on our house during Sandy and we had to throw it out because of water damage. I am actually buying logo merchandise again to replace the large amount we lost, such as tee shirts, hats etc.

 

I can understand the increase in size of any tobacco store when sailing with Brits. When we did TA's from London to the US, on the first day the Promenade had displays selling cigarettes and they were flying off the shelves and stacks.I know Europe has far fewer smoking restrictions then we do.

 

This is in line with my comment that the store operator does not reset the merchandise when coming to Florida for the winter season.

The tax in the UK is also far higher than europe and the states so usually it is much cheaper for brits to buy when abroad.

I am not a smoker myself and am british so really notice the difference when visiting europe and smoking is allowed in more places.

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I am not a smoker myself and am british so really notice the difference when visiting europe and smoking is allowed in more places.

 

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Nor am I am smoker and I love the fact that I can go into a London pub and enjoy a beer and good company in a smoke free environment.

Nor am I am smoker and I love the fact that I can go into a London pub and enjoy a beer and good company in a smoke free environment.

It really is a revolution however I must say I now drink much more since the smoking ban came into force as I can now visit the pub without stinking

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It really is a revolution however I must say I now drink much more since the smoking ban came into force as I can now visit the pub without stinking

 

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I never considered it from that point of view!:D

I never considered it from that point of view!:D

I may have less asthma attacks buy may develop liver failure

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Glad to hear about the Schooner Bar entertainer. How was the entertainment in the pub?

It was good although Vintages was better. They had a nice duo with the violin and pain, but we spent most of our time in the Schooner as Joe was just so good.

For all the fellow San Juan lovers out there I would like to inform you that Quantum goes there and stays overnight. I would love to see more itineraries like this.

Yes the cabanas on adrenaline are open and have a canvas roof and side flaps. This lets lots of air in and gives you some nice shade. They are brand new and have a nice coach thing in them. The cabanas at Nellie's looked much nicer and enclosed.

 

We booked this cabana onboard as we wanted one but the others were sold out. This was probably due to two ships being in. All these were only available onboard and they all sold out. If you booked one at Nellies then thats where you will be. These were still nice just not as nice as Nellies. With a few tweaks they could be extremely nice. The nicest thing about them was the great water and beach access.

Hope this answers your question, feel free to ask anything else.

Thanks for the info! We're looking forward to our cruise in February.

So funny that 2 families on the same cruise could have different opinions...guess that's why RCCL tries to cater to all.

If I could, some of our thoughts:

* Entertainment was HORRIBLE - some of the worst on any cruise. The production shows are tired, slow, boring - not our idea to sit for an hour and watch someone lip-sync. OUr family of 4 fell asleep almost every night.

* the first guest entertainers - the pop/opera trio were so bad they were laughable. We sat about 3/4 of the way back and watched the crowd walk out on them

* Motown group was great

* Juggler and comedian were both very good - but should have been allowed to have the full hour - and not 1/2 hour with a half hour of Production singer and dancers...

* Dinners in MDR were very good - loved our waiters! They took care of our party of 10 as if we were family....some of the best we have had on any cruise.

* Pool side entertainment - good

* Ice show - talent was great, show was ehh - first 1/2 was boring until the guy does the back-flip.

* Lunch options - very few. The Windgamer is 90% the same each day - must admit that we miss a true deli. AS much as we like RCCL better for a whole bunch of reasons - Carnival (in general) does lunch better - Grills, Deli, Wok, Burritos, etc. Really missed the solarium lunches of Oasis and Allure. Also the options at the Promenade Cafe never seem to change.

Ports:

* St. Kits - beach day - very nice

* San Juan - Fort and walk back to ship - ok

* St Marteen - went snorkeling - bad weather so no comments

* Labadee - loved the beach - went Jet Sking - was fun...BUT, there is a security problem with the vendors. WAY TOO aggressive - they harassed my 12 yr old daughter - and we found them stealing food off of the Buffet. Saw 1 vendor change her shirt to look like a passenger and go through the line..had a beach bag with her that she filled with fruit and rolls. Then she sat down at the pick nick tables and started gobbling food - just to look up and greet a friend that was doing the same thing. While I am not cold hearted, and understand how poor Haiti is, I also know that RCCL gives heavily to the local community (including power and water sources and food)...there needs to be a better organized way for charity.

Overall had a great cruise - but the ship just felt a little "tired"...could use a boost of energy. Would we go RCCL again - absolutely - but probably not on Indy.

We're on this itinerary for spring break. Im ready.

For all the fellow San Juan lovers out there I would like to inform you that Quantum goes there and stays overnight. I would love to see more itineraries like this.

Actually, there is another thread about how Quantum's overnight in San Juan has been replaced with an overnight at Labadee. I'm not sure if it is just the one particular cruise that the poster was writing about or if it is Quantum's revised itinerary.

So funny that 2 families on the same cruise could have different opinions...guess that's why RCCL tries to cater to all.

 

If I could, some of our thoughts:

* Entertainment was HORRIBLE - some of the worst on any cruise. The production shows are tired, slow, boring - not our idea to sit for an hour and watch someone lip-sync. OUr family of 4 fell asleep almost every night.

I, too, could not stand the production shows when we were on Indy this past March. In fact, I thought most of the entertainment was pretty poor.

The problem is they got rid of the Logo Shop to create more real estate to devote to selling cigarettes, alcohol, and perfume.

I was on the 11/15/2013 sailing of the Independence. I missed the Logo shop and wasn't there also a General Store before? I used to buy a decorative spoon of the ship I was on and maybe a Christmas ornament, all of which I admit are touristy things to buy, but I smile when when I hang the cruise ship ornaments on my tree each year. I have a spoon in my spoon case for each ship I have been on except for Independence. I even asked about it and they don't have this anymore. The purse store was almost always empty, but the purses looked really nice.

In one of the Tax Free stores, there is a floor to ceiling wall of bags of snack foods. This is something new, also.

I think as the Royal Promenades get updates, we will lose the Logo store and General Store on more ships.

So funny that 2 families on the same cruise could have different opinions...guess that's why RCCL tries to cater to all.

 

If I could, some of our thoughts:

* Entertainment was HORRIBLE - some of the worst on any cruise. The production shows are tired, slow, boring - not our idea to sit for an hour and watch someone lip-sync. OUr family of 4 fell asleep almost every night.

* the first guest entertainers - the pop/opera trio were so bad they were laughable. We sat about 3/4 of the way back and watched the crowd walk out on them

* Motown group was great

* Juggler and comedian were both very good - but should have been allowed to have the full hour - and not 1/2 hour with a half hour of Production singer and dancers...

* Dinners in MDR were very good - loved our waiters! They took care of our party of 10 as if we were family....some of the best we have had on any cruise.

* Pool side entertainment - good

* Ice show - talent was great, show was ehh - first 1/2 was boring until the guy does the back-flip.

* Lunch options - very few. The Windgamer is 90% the same each day - must admit that we miss a true deli. AS much as we like RCCL better for a whole bunch of reasons - Carnival (in general) does lunch better - Grills, Deli, Wok, Burritos, etc. Really missed the solarium lunches of Oasis and Allure. Also the options at the Promenade Cafe never seem to change.

 

Ports:

* St. Kits - beach day - very nice

* San Juan - Fort and walk back to ship - ok

* St Marteen - went snorkeling - bad weather so no comments

* Labadee - loved the beach - went Jet Sking - was fun...BUT, there is a security problem with the vendors. WAY TOO aggressive - they harassed my 12 yr old daughter - and we found them stealing food off of the Buffet. Saw 1 vendor change her shirt to look like a passenger and go through the line..had a beach bag with her that she filled with fruit and rolls. Then she sat down at the pick nick tables and started gobbling food - just to look up and greet a friend that was doing the same thing. While I am not cold hearted, and understand how poor Haiti is, I also know that RCCL gives heavily to the local community (including power and water sources and food)...there needs to be a better organized way for charity.

 

Overall had a great cruise - but the ship just felt a little "tired"...could use a boost of energy. Would we go RCCL again - absolutely - but probably not on Indy.

I thought the pop/opera group had amazing voices, but their style of entertainment was not mainstream enough for a cruise ship. I kept waiting for the "pop" part of the show to start.

I enjoyed the ice show. The ship was moving and two skaters fell, but the show was still a good one, I thought. What people think of entertainment is very subjective - we all come with different expectations and taste.

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Sain

Labadee was our fav port. We were ther in early Dec and only ship at port. Merchants in the village were a bit agressive for me and. Most had the same stuff.

I have heard that the fee to dock at San Juan is very high and billed in the length of time the ship is docked. If this is true, I can understand the reason for the short stay.

In Hati, we rented a scooter from Liz Peiria Tours and loved being able to drive the entire island. We saw so much more this way including Turtle Bay and their multi million dollar estate homes.

I knew I wanted to buy a Tag Heuer watch on this trip. I priced them on board and then went into St. Marteen and got a better deal. Ended up buying 2 watches. Family next to us were buying their 5th & 6th Tag Heuer's. This was the highlight for my trip.

On board shopping was so-so. That purse store was a ghost town most times, the smoke shop was boaring and other clothing stores didnt have any awesome deals.

This is the first time we saw so much security visible during any of our cruises on board. Wonder why? Guess it was helpful when two older....uhm 'ladies' got into a physical altercation.

We will do this trip again. Right now booked on NOS out of Galviston in Nov 9. BTW - right now there is a 60%+ drop on cabin prices for this ships sailing on 5/24.

Seriously? You did this on Haiti? How did you even get out of RCI's compound?

Curious about this too...

I had a Royal Caribbean tour booked for a "Haitian Cultural tour" but I cancelled at the last minute..

Actually, there is another thread about how Quantum's overnight in San Juan has been replaced with an overnight at Labadee. I'm not sure if it is just the one particular cruise that the poster was writing about or if it is Quantum's revised itinerary.

Oh didn't know that, I was looking on the website and it still showed San Juan. It would be interesting to see how an overnight at Labadee would work. I guess they would have everyone get back on the ship at night since there really isn't anything there.

So funny that 2 families on the same cruise could have different opinions...guess that's why RCCL tries to cater to all.

 

If I could, some of our thoughts:

* Entertainment was HORRIBLE - some of the worst on any cruise. The production shows are tired, slow, boring - not our idea to sit for an hour and watch someone lip-sync. OUr family of 4 fell asleep almost every night.

* the first guest entertainers - the pop/opera trio were so bad they were laughable. We sat about 3/4 of the way back and watched the crowd walk out on them

* Motown group was great

* Juggler and comedian were both very good - but should have been allowed to have the full hour - and not 1/2 hour with a half hour of Production singer and dancers...

* Dinners in MDR were very good - loved our waiters! They took care of our party of 10 as if we were family....some of the best we have had on any cruise.

* Pool side entertainment - good

* Ice show - talent was great, show was ehh - first 1/2 was boring until the guy does the back-flip.

* Lunch options - very few. The Windgamer is 90% the same each day - must admit that we miss a true deli. AS much as we like RCCL better for a whole bunch of reasons - Carnival (in general) does lunch better - Grills, Deli, Wok, Burritos, etc. Really missed the solarium lunches of Oasis and Allure. Also the options at the Promenade Cafe never seem to change.

 

Ports:

* St. Kits - beach day - very nice

* San Juan - Fort and walk back to ship - ok

* St Marteen - went snorkeling - bad weather so no comments

* Labadee - loved the beach - went Jet Sking - was fun...BUT, there is a security problem with the vendors. WAY TOO aggressive - they harassed my 12 yr old daughter - and we found them stealing food off of the Buffet. Saw 1 vendor change her shirt to look like a passenger and go through the line..had a beach bag with her that she filled with fruit and rolls. Then she sat down at the pick nick tables and started gobbling food - just to look up and greet a friend that was doing the same thing. While I am not cold hearted, and understand how poor Haiti is, I also know that RCCL gives heavily to the local community (including power and water sources and food)...there needs to be a better organized way for charity.

 

Overall had a great cruise - but the ship just felt a little "tired"...could use a boost of energy. Would we go RCCL again - absolutely - but probably not on Indy.

The production shows where without a doubt the worst I've seen on a ship. The singers just weren't very good and the last production show was just a bunch of randomness thrown together. The dancers were top notch though.

Also they should have given the comedians more time instead of the singers I believe would have made it much better.

I agree that the ship needed something it was our worst experience with Royal but we will defiantly cruise with them again just not on the Independence ever again more than likely.

Now for the Ugly:

A disclaimer first though, I am an advanced surfer and boogie boarder on the flow rider.

Now with that said the sports staff on the Independence are just flat out horrible. They are by far the worst group I have ever encountered on a ship. Normally the sports staff are some of the most fun and enjoyable people to be around not here though. Throughout the week I met just one nice one that was helping people. They refused to be helpful and help others that needed help to learn how to surf and were just way to uptight.

The flowrider restrictions were supposed to be eased and more tricks allowed per Adam Goldsteins blog post. This however is most defiantly not the case. You are allowed to do 3 tricks on the boogie board, a knee 360, lay on it, or sit on it. That is all. I know numerous other tricks many of which I have learned on their ships but was allowed to do none of them. When I said that the restrictions have been eased I was brushed off and said no they haven't, and were like that throughout the fleet which contradicts other reports. On the surfing side many tricks were outlawed as you always had to have the board on the surface. To make matters worse the staff wouldn't follow these rules and do whatever setting a bad precedence after jumping others for doing it.

The thing that is was the most ridiculous was that the sports manager got mad and was seriously yelling at me for carving the wave and sending water over the side, saying that it was serious and illegal. I kindly said that it was a splash zone and that there are signs and he should know that its a splash zone since he works there. Normally you would be encouraged to try new tricks and cheered for being good, but aboard the Independence it was the exact opposite.

Needless to say we shall never cruise the Independence again and go back to the other lovely Royal ships.

Now for the Ugly:

 

A disclaimer first though, I am an advanced surfer and boogie boarder on the flow rider.

 

Now with that said the sports staff on the Independence are just flat out horrible. They are by far the worst group I have ever encountered on a ship. Normally the sports staff are some of the most fun and enjoyable people to be around not here though. Throughout the week I met just one nice one that was helping people. They refused to be helpful and help others that needed help to learn how to surf and were just way to uptight.

 

The flowrider restrictions were supposed to be eased and more tricks allowed per Adam Goldsteins blog post. This however is most defiantly not the case. You are allowed to do 3 tricks on the boogie board, a knee 360, lay on it, or sit on it. That is all. I know numerous other tricks many of which I have learned on their ships but was allowed to do none of them. When I said that the restrictions have been eased I was brushed off and said no they haven't, and were like that throughout the fleet which contradicts other reports. On the surfing side many tricks were outlawed as you always had to have the board on the surface. To make matters worse the staff wouldn't follow these rules and do whatever setting a bad precedence after jumping others for doing it.

 

The thing that is was the most ridiculous was that the sports manager got mad and was seriously yelling at me for carving the wave and sending water over the side, saying that it was serious and illegal. I kindly said that it was a splash zone and that there are signs and he should know that its a splash zone since he works there. Normally you would be encouraged to try new tricks and cheered for being good, but aboard the Independence it was the exact opposite.

 

Needless to say we shall never cruise the Independence again and go back to the other lovely Royal ships.

I guess that answers my question I aksed you on the other thread about your Flowrider experience on your cruise. That is horrible. I am so sorry you had a bad experience. The sports staff that was on our IOS cruise last March was hands down, the best staff we have ever encountered and we have stayed in touch with most of them to this day. I hope that some of those people come back to the IOS before we board the ship in March.

Also, thanks for the "head's up" about them not knowing about the relaxed rules. I believe I will print that information out before we board the ship.

So funny that 2 families on the same cruise could have different opinions...guess that's why RCCL tries to cater to all.

 

If I could, some of our thoughts:

* Entertainment was HORRIBLE - some of the worst on any cruise. The production shows are tired, slow, boring - not our idea to sit for an hour and watch someone lip-sync. OUr family of 4 fell asleep almost every night.

* the first guest entertainers - the pop/opera trio were so bad they were laughable. We sat about 3/4 of the way back and watched the crowd walk out on them

* Motown group was great

* Juggler and comedian were both very good - but should have been allowed to have the full hour - and not 1/2 hour with a half hour of Production singer and dancers...

* Dinners in MDR were very good - loved our waiters! They took care of our party of 10 as if we were family....some of the best we have had on any cruise.

* Pool side entertainment - good

* Ice show - talent was great, show was ehh - first 1/2 was boring until the guy does the back-flip.

* Lunch options - very few. The Windgamer is 90% the same each day - must admit that we miss a true deli. AS much as we like RCCL better for a whole bunch of reasons - Carnival (in general) does lunch better - Grills, Deli, Wok, Burritos, etc. Really missed the solarium lunches of Oasis and Allure. Also the options at the Promenade Cafe never seem to change.

 

Ports:

* St. Kits - beach day - very nice

* San Juan - Fort and walk back to ship - ok

* St Marteen - went snorkeling - bad weather so no comments

* Labadee - loved the beach - went Jet Sking - was fun...BUT, there is a security problem with the vendors. WAY TOO aggressive - they harassed my 12 yr old daughter - and we found them stealing food off of the Buffet. Saw 1 vendor change her shirt to look like a passenger and go through the line..had a beach bag with her that she filled with fruit and rolls. Then she sat down at the pick nick tables and started gobbling food - just to look up and greet a friend that was doing the same thing. While I am not cold hearted, and understand how poor Haiti is, I also know that RCCL gives heavily to the local community (including power and water sources and food)...there needs to be a better organized way for charity.

 

Overall had a great cruise - but the ship just felt a little "tired"...could use a boost of energy. Would we go RCCL again - absolutely - but probably not on Indy.

I will agree with practically all of this. Entertainment on IOS was no where near the level of other ships. However, Motown was good as well as the juggler and comedian. I agree that the comedian should have been given more time on stage. The Ice show was not interesting until probably the last 15 minutes. Food was average for RC ships. My dining staff in the MDR was fantastic. The best team of waiter and assistant waiter I've ever had.

As for the ship itself, maintenance seemed to be lacking to me. The AC broke in my JS three separate times, the air vent in the shower literally fell out of the ceiling while I was showering, the door handle on the balcony door actually came off in my hand when I was going out on the balcony one night. Lights by the pool were burnt out and not replaced.

Now this isn't to say that all experiences were horrible onboard. I met a few great crew members and thoroughly enjoyed my conversations with them.

Was it THE worst cruise I've been on? No. However, it's close. I, too, will not be returning to IOS.

...In Hati, we rented a scooter from Liz Peiria Tours and loved being able to drive the entire island. We saw so much more this way including Turtle Bay and their multi million dollar estate homes...

Probably the #1 tourist attractions in Haiti (Citadel, Sans Souci, Ramiers are on the UNESCO World Heritage List) are only about 10 miles from Labadee. I acknowledge there would be significant logistical and other issues, but it would be nice to have these as alternatives to beach activities.

Thom

Now for the Ugly:

 

A disclaimer first though, I am an advanced surfer and boogie boarder on the flow rider.

 

Now with that said the sports staff on the Independence are just flat out horrible. They are by far the worst group I have ever encountered on a ship. Normally the sports staff are some of the most fun and enjoyable people to be around not here though. Throughout the week I met just one nice one that was helping people. They refused to be helpful and help others that needed help to learn how to surf and were just way to uptight.

 

I guess that answers my question I aksed you on the other thread about your Flowrider experience on your cruise. That is horrible. I am so sorry you had a bad experience. The sports staff that was on our IOS cruise last March was hands down, the best staff we have ever encountered and we have stayed in touch with most of them to this day. I hope that some of those people come back to the IOS before we board the ship in March.

 

Also, thanks for the "head's up" about them not knowing about the relaxed rules. I believe I will print that information out before we board the ship.

When I got back from Indy last March one of the things I wrote about was my poor experience with the sports staff also. The first morning (sea day) that we went to do the rock wall there were only three of us climbing. As soon as we got down the staff immediately tried to get us out of the equipment. There was no asking if you wanted to do another climb, no good job, no conversation. Nothing. I always have a great time with the sports staffs on the ships but it didn't happen on that cruise. I wrote about it on my comment card too.

I will agree with practically all of this. Entertainment on IOS was no where near the level of other ships. However, Motown was good as well as the juggler and comedian. I agree that the comedian should have been given more time on stage. The Ice show was not interesting until probably the last 15 minutes. Food was average for RC ships. My dining staff in the MDR was fantastic. The best team of waiter and assistant waiter I've ever had.

 

As for the ship itself, maintenance seemed to be lacking to me. The AC broke in my JS three separate times, the air vent in the shower literally fell out of the ceiling while I was showering, the door handle on the balcony door actually came off in my hand when I was going out on the balcony one night. Lights by the pool were burnt out and not replaced.

 

Now this isn't to say that all experiences were horrible onboard. I met a few great crew members and thoroughly enjoyed my conversations with them.

 

Was it THE worst cruise I've been on? No. However, it's close. I, too, will not be returning to IOS.

Don't get me wrong - it was a ton of fun...just not as "perfect" as some other cruises....