We arrived a day early as we have done in the past. Did not want the weather to play a factor as it very well could in Minnesota. Settled down, found the grocery store near the hotel to get our 12 packs of pop and time to get some rest as the next 7 days are going to be packed full of activity.

We took the shuttle service from the hotel and it was a little cheaper. Not much but we needed to get to the boat regardless. Arrived at the Port of Miami around 11:30 and got into line after passing our bags off and it was time for the fun to begin. Being that we were in the new cruise terminal it was, I felt a lot quicker than in past years. Nice facility. We were onboard around 12:30 and ready to get some lunch. Our rooms were not quite ready yet, as this was our first time on a Conquest style ship, we needed to explore and figure out the design so we could easily navigate for the next week. Ate our lunch, and the food up on lido was yummy. Headed down to our room around 2 and my bags had already arrived. It was nice, got myself all setup for the week.

Being that I had signed up for the bloggers events, we had a welcome aboard party for the bloggers with snacks and free drinks. It was fun. John Heald is one funny man. I would have to rate him the best in the 3 cruises I've taken with Carnival. Read more