Flight to Ft Lauderdale: We took a same day Air Tran morning flight out of BWI to Ft Lauderdale arriving a little after 10 AM. Splurged for the business upgrade ($60 a head). The airport at FLL was a little hectic but that added to the excitement of the trip. Took the HAL transfer bus to the ship and were some of the first pax to arrive at the terminal.

Embarkation: HAL has this down to a science. We were onboard in about a half an hour.

Room: We had adjoining balcony rooms, VE5102 & 04 one for my wife and I, while her mother and my daughter shared the other. This was our (wife & my) fifth cruise, her mother's third, my 34-year-old daughter's first. We found the rooms to be well-sized and nicely appointed. Plenty of room and storage for two people for a seven day cruise. Our room steward, Lili, kept our rooms spotless. We opened the barrier between the balconies which increased our hanging out together which was nice. Read more