Independence 2/19-2/24

[JalenR]

I thought I’d write a short review of my groups sailing onthe Independence of the Seas 5 day to ‘Falmouth’ and Labadee. The Friday beforethe sailing we received an email say the Falmouth had been replaced by OchoRios. I was excited because I hadn’t been there in years.

 

 

Pre-Cruise-

 

 

I booked this cruise in February of 2017. At the time I booked this cruise and the next cruise to do our first back to back. We had the same Junior Suite for both legs so we were excited. We’ve been on Independence many times and love it. We chose it this time because we all wanted to say goodbye to our favorite place on the Voyager and Freedom class ships…. The Club. Our last trip to The Labyrinth.

 

 

Unfortunately life got in the way and we had to cancel the second leg of the trip. It turned out ok because good things happened. A few days after final payment I saw that there was a Grand Suite Guarantee for only $125 more a person. I was a little nervous because I’m weird and like to pick my cabin. After thinking about it I thought there’s really not a bad Grand Suite location so I did it. I checked every day to see if we had been assigned a cabin. Three weeks before the cruise we still did not have a cabin and I was getting nervous. Suites had been sold out for weeks. Then finally I checked and we had been assigned our cabin. I was confused…..it said 1650. I looked again… Owners Suite 1650!! OMG. We got an owners suite for basically the price of a Junior Suite!

 

We flew from Detroit to Ft Lauderdale on Delta the day before and stayed at the Hilton Marina. We usually stay here and get an intercoastal room. We love sitting on the balcony and looking at the yachts. The hotel has a beautiful location.Great pool area and bar. We had a couple drinks there waiting for our room to be ready. We got there a little on the early side. The hotel itself could use a little TLC in some places. No big deal but some paint would help in some areas.

 

 

Boarding-

 

Indy was at Pier 18 on Monday. I think the ship was a rock charter previous to us.They were unloading equipment from the pool deck when we got there. We got there at 10 and went right through security and got checked in. We wanted until just before 11 until we boarded.

 

Room-

 

 

The owners suite was amazing with a huge balcony. We are spoiled now and it will be hard to go back. Room was in good shapewith no issues. It’s right behind the hump. The only think I didn’t like was I couldn’t see the front of the ship. No biggie.

 

 

Food-

 

 

We had second seating on deck 5. Service was amazing. Both waiter and assistant waiter were on top of it. They put the bread on the table now instead of passing it out. The first night my favorite savory bites were not in the basket. I asked about it and the rest of the cruise we had a plate of them waiting. Food was good and we had no issues. We’re not picky and enjoyed all meals. The one change we didn’t care for was ordering desserts at the start. Sometimes I just didn’t order one.

 

 

We went to Giovanni’s on the third night. It was excellent. Everyone got the fillet and they were all cooked perfectly. Desserts were good just kind of unimpressive in appearance. We all missed the fancy desserts from Portofino. We all agreed Giovanni’s is good but it’s like a dumbed down Portofino.

 

 

Lunch and breakfast where at the Windjammer. It’s a buffet and does the job. We can always find something we like. I think the key if to find the off times to go so it’s not too crowded. Sometimes it depends on the cruise what time that is.Always a learning curve!

 

Ports-

 

 

Ochos Rios we didn’t have any plans. We didn’t for Falmouth either. Dunn’s River Falls was thought about but we decided just to walk around. We grabbed a drink at a bar right by the dock then went back on to enjoy the ship. Weather was sunny we had a brief shower.

 

A couple months after booking there was a sale on the cabanas in Labadee. I snatched up an over the water cabana for $225 at Nellie’s beach. They’re normally a little pricey but that was a good price so we enjoyed our day therein the cabana. We got the upgraded lunch buffet since we were in a suite. It was pretty tasty. We were supposed to be in port until 5 but left at 230 due to high winds. We were disappointed but safety first! We got a 40% refund on the cabana so that helped.

 

Drinks-

 

We all got the deluxe package. The pre cruise planner let us use our on board credit so we bought them before the cruise for 20% off. I think it was $47 a day. Bar service was great and never much of a line. There were plenty of bar tenders wandering the pool deck. As I read on here previously, they have a new frozen drink vendor and no more Island Oasis. I don’t drink many frozen drinks for the most part but I do enjoy a Labadoozie in Labadee. They are nothing like they used to be. They’re covered with the drink package and last year when I was there I had many. This time I didn’t even finish my only one. They’re not good at all. That was a disappointment.

 

Entertainment-

 

Shows were good. There was a comedian, magician, and two shows we went to. Grease was excellent as were the singers and dancers. Pub and Schooner bar musicians were also good.

 

 

Concierge-

 

Jackie was our suite concierge. She was absolutely the nicest most helpful person. We loved going in for a drink before the evening activities and chatting. She’s been on Independence for 3 ½ years. This was her last cruise on it. She will be moving to Symphony when it is launched. They cruise got her a cake and champagne and we all toasted her. Independence loss is Symphony’s gain.

 

Ship-

 

 

Independence is one of our favorites. Like I said earlier,we picked it because we wanted to go on last time on an unadulterated Voyager or Freedom class ship. Ship was in great shape. Carpet in spots was worn but nothing more than the usual ship wear. I’m not a person that hates change. I realize it’s part of life. Some change is good. Some change isn’t always. The slide will be cool. So will the Escape room. I can accept putting new cabins in around the track even though it sort of ruins the look of ship. They are a unique kind of room. However cramming inside rooms in every possible space they can think of starts to look kind of desperate. Taking out open spaces (library, online area). Shrinking or removing public spaces (gym, club). It starts to take some of the fun out of the whole experience. Take the club out that was packed every night and put in cabins and a restaurant, that on Navigator, was almost always empty and had someone standing outside it try to get you to come in isn’t cool. I own a business. I know you need to make a good profit. At some point though yous tart crossing a line where your product suffers. Will I be back on Royal? Of course I will. They still have a great product. I just hope this trend that every time a ship goes into dry dock they come out with more cabins and less public spaces.

 

I can try and answer questions! Thanks!

Edited March 2, 2018 by JalenR

[mcatmcat]

Thank you for the review.

What do you think about the cruise director and about the MDR since you now order dessert at the same time as main dishes do they bring both menus or is it a new menu with everything on it. Last but not least, is it a new menu or the same old one

 

Thank you

 

 

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[Clarea]

Did you see any drink or beer cards for sale?

[JalenR]

Thank you for the review.

What do you think about the cruise director and about the MDR since you now order dessert at the same time as main dishes do they bring both menus or is it a new menu with everything on it. Last but not least, is it a new menu or the same old one

 

Thank you

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

Simmona was our CD. She was ok when she was around. She seemed to disappear for a couple days. The Activity Manager did the morning show one day and she wasn't on it. I think I actually only saw her the Welcome show and Farewell show.

 

The menus are new. The stuff on them seemed about 90% the same. It's one menu with dessert on it. I did notice they have french onion soup every night which was new. It was pretty good!

[JalenR]

Did you see any drink or beer cards for sale?

 

Yes! They were on sale starting on day 3. I think they were 10 drinks for $80 or $85.

[Clarea]

Yes! They were on sale starting on day 3. I think they were 10 drinks for $80 or $85.

Thanks!

[mcatmcat]

Simmona was our CD. She was ok when she was around. She seemed to disappear for a couple days. The Activity Manager did the morning show one day and she wasn't on it. I think I actually only saw her the Welcome show and Farewell show.

 

 

 

The menus are new. The stuff on them seemed about 90% the same. It's one menu with dessert on it. I did notice they have french onion soup every night which was new. It was pretty good!

 

 

 

Thanks, was lobster offered for free one night? Since it’s a new menu those entrees with a fee still offered ?

 

 

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[JalenR]

Thanks, was lobster offered for free one night? Since it’s a new menu those entrees with a fee still offered ?

 

 

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Yes. It was on the first night!

 

 

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