Second cruise for DH & I, first on Carnival. We were originally booked on the Elation, but she was going into dry-dock, so had to choose another ship & picked the Triumph with an Oceanview Guarantee. My TA said very little chance of an upgrade, so I never called ahead to try & find out our room information.

We flew into Miami the day prior to the cruise & stayed at the Hyatt Regency. It was a nice hotel with a nice balcony. Transfers were arranged though Carnival & we had a Greyhound bus all to ourselves Friday evening when we were picked up. Taxied to Bayside for $4.50? plus tip.

Saturday we were to be picked up by Carnival at 11:45-12:15, but our TA had recommended taking a taxi to the Port and arriving between 10:30 & 11:00. We arrived at 11:00 and were on the ship by noon. If we had arrived even 15 minutes later the line would have been MUCH longer. It went from 50-75 people to wrapped around and out the door in just minutes. Read more