Royal Caribbean Independence of the Seas

5 Night Western Caribbean & Perfect Day Cruise - September 30, 2024

Sometimes the best cruises are the ones you almost don't take. As a travel advisor, I had booked several of our close friends on this Royal Caribbean Independence of the Seas sailing, and they kept asking us to join them. At first, we said no because it just wasn't in our budget. But as the cruise got closer, the FOMO became too real. Jay finally gave in and said we could book it, but only if we stayed in an inside stateroom. Then he wanted to see how long we could keep it a surprise!

Since we see these friends all the time, keeping the secret was very difficult, but somehow we made it all the way to embarkation day without slipping up. Seeing the look on their faces when we surprised them on board made every bit of secrecy worthwhile!

Itinerary

Monday - Sep 30 - Miami, FL

Tuesday - Oct 1 - CocoCay, Bahamas

Wednesday - Oct 2 - Sea Day

Thursday - Oct 3 - Cozumel, Mexico

Friday - Oct 4 - Sea Day

Saturday - Oct 5 - Miami, FL

Embarkation Day

Jay and I boarded before our friends, giving us the perfect opportunity to explore the ship while we waited for them to arrive. We were standing in line for a slice of Sorrento's Pizza when we suddenly heard a delighted scream behind us. We'd finally been spotted! Their reactions made all the weeks of keeping our cruise a secret completely worth it.

For the first time ever, Jay and I were staying in an inside stateroom together. Would we normally choose an inside cabin? Probably not. But getting to cruise with great friends made it absolutely worth it! And I have to admit, it's true what they say... you really do get some of the best sleep in an inside stateroom.

After the surprise, we spent the afternoon exploring Independence of the Seas together and soaking in that first-day excitement that never gets old.

We kicked off the cruise with dinner in the Main Dining Room, where Jay and I enjoyed our meal of shrimp cocktail, caesar salad, crispy crab cake, escargots a la bourguignonne, new york strip steak, slow roasted prime rib, dark chocolate custard, and key lime pie.

Then we spent the evening at Playmakers Sports Bar, enjoyed live piano music at Schooner Bar, and finished the night dancing in the nightclub.

Tomorrow we're headed to Perfect Day at CocoCay. It will be my first visit since 2009, before the island's incredible transformation, and Jay's very first visit ever!

Perfect Day at CocoCay

Today we spent the day at Perfect Day at CocoCay, Royal Caribbean's private island in the Bahamas, and it definitely lived up to its name.

We purchased passes to Hideaway Beach, the adults-only section of the island, and it was exactly what we were looking for. We relaxed in comfortable lounge chairs overlooking the beach, cooled off with a few swims in the crystal-clear water, and simply enjoyed a carefree day in paradise.

When hunger struck, we grabbed lunch from Hideaway Hut. The menu includes hamburgers, hot dogs, chicken sandwiches, and fish sandwiches. We both went with hot dogs and mozzarella sticks, which hit the spot after a morning in the sun.

After soaking up enough sunshine, we headed back to Independence of the Seas to escape the afternoon heat and cool off in the air-conditioned Royal Promenade.

Tonight, we had dinner with our friends at Giovanni’s Table, the Italian specialty restaurant on board Independence of the Seas.

The food was absolutely outstanding. The only downside was the service. With a table of eleven guests, our waiter understandably became overwhelmed and even mentioned he could have used additional assistance throughout the meal.

For dinner I ordered Giovanni’s minestrone soup, the cheese & cured meat board, pasta bolognese, garlicky herb prawns, and chocolate-hazelnut cake. Jay ordered beef carpaccio, crispy calamari, tagliatelle carbonara, seared filet mignon, and cannoli.

Even with the slower service, the evening was filled with laughter, great conversation, excellent food, and plenty of wine whenever we could catch our server. One of the best parts of dining with friends is sharing bites of everyone's meals, and the unanimous favorite dessert at our table was the tiramisu.

After dinner we spent time at Boleros before finishing the night back at Playmakers.

Tomorrow is a relaxing sea day as we sail toward Cozumel, Mexico.

Sea Day

There's something special about waking up with nothing on the schedule except enjoying the ship.

We started our sea day with a leisurely breakfast in the Main Dining Room before changing into our swimsuits and heading poolside.

Most of the afternoon was spent near Splashaway Bay, where our friends' kids had an absolute blast. It also happened to be just steps away from Fish & Ships, and we quickly discovered their chicken tenders make the perfect afternoon snack.

As evening approached, it was time to get dressed for Formal Night.

We headed back to the Main Dining Room for another delicious dinner. Tonight’s theme was “A Taste of France.” We ordered escargots à la bourguignonne, baked French onion soup, roasted beef tenderloin, classic beef bourguignon, cappuccino chocolate cake, and warm apple cobbler.

It was another wonderful evening of great food and even better company! Tomorrow we'll arrive in Cozumel, Mexico, our final port of call.

Cozumel, Mexico

Our final port was Cozumel, Mexico. Since we've visited Cozumel several times recently, we decided to keep things simple this time around. We walked around the port area, browsed a few shops, and stopped for margaritas and tacos before making our way back to the ship.

Once onboard, we met up with our friends for drinks at the Ale & Anchor Pub before spending the afternoon relaxing by the pool.

Before dinner, Jay and I headed up to the Viking Crown Lounge, one of our favorite hidden gems onboard. The floor-to-ceiling windows offer incredible panoramic views of both the ship and the Caribbean Sea.

Tonight’s menu in the Main Dining Room was “A Taste of Mexico.”

I loved the roasted poblano pepper soup and chili-lime crusted salmon. Jay had the shrimp cocktail and carne asada. For dessert, we couldn't resist the Tres Leches Cake and another serving of the Warm Apple Cobbler.

After dinner we spent most of the evening listening to live music at Ale & Anchor Pub. I popped over to Vintages Wine Bar a couple times to try some of their wines by the glass.

Tomorrow is our final full day at sea before returning to Miami.

Last Sea Day

It's always bittersweet when the last sea day arrives. We enjoyed one final breakfast with friends before returning to our favorite poolside spot near Splashaway Bay.

Before saying goodbye to vacation mode, we made sure to ride both of The Perfect Storm waterslides, Cyclone and Typhoon. They were the perfect way to finish off the afternoon.

Eventually, reality set in. Back in our stateroom, the luggage tags were waiting on the bed, signaling that it was time to pack. That's never a fun moment on any cruise.

After placing our luggage outside the cabin, we met friends for pre-dinner drinks in the Viking Crown Lounge before heading to one final specialty dining experience at Chops Grille. It was the perfect farewell dinner!

I ordered the jumbo lump crab cake, wedge salad, wild mushroom soup, filet, and key lime meringue pie. Jay had beef carpaccio, grilled black pepper bacon, lobster bisque, prime bone-in ribeye, and warm apple pie à la mode.

The family-style side dishes allowed everyone to sample a little of everything, and every bite was outstanding.

To close out the cruise, we joined the lively 70's Party in the Royal Promenade before calling it a night.

Miami, FL

Before we knew it, we woke up back in Miami.

Disembarkation was quick and efficient, customs was a breeze, and within no time we were back in our car heading home to Fort Lauderdale.

This was a shorter cruise, but it was exactly what we needed. Spending quality time with friends, revisiting CocoCay, enjoying some fantastic specialty dining, and simply unplugging for a few days reminded us why we love cruising so much.

Until next time... Happy Cruising!