We decided to travel to Ft. Lauderdale the day before embarkation and avoid the hassle of morning arrivals. We booked our own hotel, saving over $100.00 over the Princess package at the same hotel. Free ship transfers were provided by the hotel.
Embarkation was efficient, only waiting for 10-15 minutes. The cruise staff onboard guiding you to your stateroom was much less helpful than our prior cruise with Princess. We had a balcony stateroom on Baja which was clean and comfortable. The balcony was much smaller and less private than we would prefer, but allowed us to retreat from the bustle on the ship. Our only complaint is that the cabin steward frequently missed the balcony while cleaning our room.
The food on our cruise was a disappointment. The buffet had much less variety than our previous cruise, and the quality was lacking. Trying to get a table in the buffet is nearly impossible. Cafe Caribe food quality seemed slightly higher than that in Horizon Court.