We flew into Ft Lauderdale the day before the cruise to meet up with friends. Our flight was leaving Newark, NJ at 6:00 AM so I arranged to have an early check in the with Hilton Gallery One in Florida. The hotel was beautiful and we upgraded to a suite which was magnificent.

The next morning the six of us took a van to the port. Two of the members in our party are diamond members which was a plus for all us. Embarking on the ship went smoothly. I will admit, the staff working at the port were not that friendly. We weren't allowed to sit in the diamond member area before boarding, although we told him we were traveling with members until our friends arrived. This was the only snafu we hit during our entire trip.

We were one of the first of board and was this ship amazing. We went straight to customer service to put cash on our accounts as we are drinkers and didn't want the credit card bill to be outrageous. After we all went to Central park cafe and had the roast beef sandwiches everyone was talking about. They are the best I have ever had. Read more