We booked this cruise (with the help of a more experienced cruiser) to celebrate my 40th birthday. We opted to bring our two children, aged 5 and 8 AND some dear friends with a 6 year old joined us too.
EMBARKATION: After a long 24 hour journey by (car, ferry and two planes) we were dead tired. Luckily, we stumbled across the Carnival check-in desk at Miami Airport and thus we able to avoid some of the long lines at the cruise ship terminal. Don't get loaded before the safety briefing, they take this very seriously, as they should ... but don't sell me a drink and then take it away from me!
* a cab for 4 from the airport to the ship was $24 for the four of us, while transfer on the Carnival shuttle would have been $16 each.
Close proximity to elevator although pretty soundproof. A few cabins over and one floor up from the tender zone on the port side, so the noise woke us up when docking in San Juan. Nice views.