Background:
We are a married couple in our thirties with 2 young kids (DS 4 and DD 2). This was our 5th cruise, 2nd with CCL, all others with NCL. We like NCL and have come to find CCL very comparable with a few pros and cons for each line. Which i will list later on. We took this cruise with some extended family, my parents in law, sister in law, her DH and her DS.
We live in OH and in an effort to save $, we decided to drive down to FL. So glad we did! Sure, it was a long drive with the lils in tow but it wasn't bad at all. My family of 4 saved over $700 by driving. We did the 14 hr drive over 2 days, stopping in Columbia, SC on the way down. I am a firm believer in driving if it means more cruises in the future :)
Loved the cove the 1st half of the week. It was nice being close to the water when seas were calm to moderate and winds were calm. The 2nd half of the week, the winds were strong and seas were rough so our cove was constantly wet from sea spray. It was not really usable the whole 2nd half of week because you would get wet sitting out there. We still liked it, and would still book it again to save money. But I could see how some people would not like it.
The room was a great size for a stateroom. Plenty of storage and floor space even with 4 ppl in the room. Beds were comfy. Room was quiet, located just above shore excursion desk. Bathroom was a good size. Balcony was also a good size compared to other ships.
Room steward was excellent!