This was the 2nd of back to back cruises over the kids winter break 2013-2014. This was the week of New Years. We knew the ports were not going to be spectacular on this cruise, so we added a few days of snorkeling off the Carnival Victory first.

We had connecting cabins with a Central Park view. There was a problem with "norovirus" on the previous sailing so they delayed our boarding by and hour or so and did a super special disinfection. They made us squirt antiseptic gel on our hands at all the dining venues throughout the cruise as well. Boarding was really easy, no big deal. We came from the Port of Miami, took the free trolley (look for the orange tree logo trolley stop) to the Metro Rail to the Tri-Rail to the free FLL airport shuttle and from there took a cab to the port. Total cost was about $50 for 4 of us.

Cabins were a little smaller, if a little more modern than on the Carnival Victory. You can book restaurants, shows and shore excursions through the TV as well as check you schedule and charges. Its not an awesome system, more like a work in progress. Read more