Embarkation--We arrived at the pier at 11:30 and went to the VIP room checked in and were on the ship before noon. Process was uneventful and moved along very well.

Lifeboat drill---What an embarrassment. At some point the Coast Guard needs to step in and watch what happens. My group was sent to the conference room. Several hundred people crammed into an area a little bigger than a three car garage. People sitting on the floor, chairs, standing and a divider in the middle of the room. For those siting and shorter than the taller ones in the front of the room you could not see the demonstration or the video. Of course you could not hear the video or instructions. People, as usual, brought their food and drink to the drill. At no point were we taken to the deck to see where the lifeboats were and which ones we should report to. The number of people in the room was a life safety issue that would not have been allowed on shore. It's amazing how once you get on the ship the life safety issues of land are no longer adhered to. The next major loss of life in the cruise industry will not be from a ship accident but from a fire or panic situation where rooms are over crowded and exits are locked and or blocked. Comments ranged from, this was ridiculous, someone should report this to the Coast Guard and we are all going to die!

Room-- We were in a cove balcony, 2379. The balcony was nice and roomy. Room was the standard design with the end section of the cabinets missing. King bed, couch, new rectangular table with a shelf on the bottom, flat screen TV that pivoted so you could watch it easier while in bed and there was no chair in the room. The colors were bright and the decor refreshing from the previous ships. The balcony while underway in rough waters received a good deal of spray and at one point the deck was coated with salt to the point that you could feel it crunch under your feet. Calmer days and while in port were great. The rail is lower than the glass on higher balcony decks. There is a ledge that you can put your drinks on. This particular room was extremely noisy as we later found out the pot scrubbing station for the dining room was right above us. It stopped around midnight and started back up at 3:30. There is no way I would ever recommend this room or any around it. People down the hall had the same Read more