As first time cruisers we were very excited to go! I cannot express how much Cruise Critic helped answer so many questions, give the best tips and lots of encouragement to relax and enjoy! Thanks so Much!

To book our Cruise we went to a TA and pointed to a cruise in the Carnival book and said this is what we wanted to do and she booked it. Not having many friends or family that have been on cruises to give us pointers - well let's just say that we won't do that again! Not after learning so much on CC - after we were all set up!

We flew out of Albuquerque at 6:00 am - during a severe thunder-storm that was washing out the roads, so it was an adventure just getting to the airport. Landed in Atlanta - quick change of flights to Miami. Carnival put us up at the Airport Hilton and we really liked it there. We took a taxi to Bayside for a late lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe and then to enjoy the music and just shopped around a bit. Back to the hotel for a much needed good night's rest. Read more