We left our Ontario home 2 days early so as not to miss this cruise. We drove to Syracuse N.Y. and stayed at the Best Western Hotel where we parked our car for the week and stayed the night for $125.00 We found JetBlue airline cost $300.00 a ticket cheaper than Air Canada and a very nice air plane to travel with. Arrived Ft. Lauderdale 1 day prior to our cruise and stayed at the Clarion Ft. Lauderdale Hotel. This hotel costs $151.00 a night and had to be paid in advance of our stay. We found this hotel on the web and called to ask if they had shuttle service and how far it was from the airport. They told us it was 10 minutes away and they didn't have shuttle service, but would send a driver for us at a cost of $25.00. The hotel is 30 minute drive from the airport and cost us $35.00 to the hotel and another $35.00 to the port next day. It was under construction and was the worst hotel I have ever stayed in. With this horror behind us we started our vacation with a easy embarkation. Being first timers we didn't know what to expect, but after arriving at the port at 11:30 we were in our cabin by 12:30. They sure have this procedure down pat. We had a queen size bed and asked for the egg carton mattress top which made for a comfortable sleep each night. We also had a balcony with 4 chairs and a small table. We stored our luggage under the bed (lots of room). TV in room with a small frig all well laid out. Our cabin Stewart was Hector and he kept the cabin in ship shape the whole voyage. I really liked having the bed turned down every night with a candy on the pillow.

We ate most breakfasts and lunches in the horizon court. The food is good and always hot. There are several food stations and are always stocked full 24 hours a day. The seating area is large with many tables by windows. You can also eat outside in the pool area. Ice Cream is served every day from 3:30 to 4:30 at the horizon court. We ate dinner in the Botticelli dining room at the first sitting 6 p.m. Each dinner has five courses so be prepared to eat really well. The waiters we had were Sasi and Phillip and they were wonderful. We booked three tours through Princess and we enjoyed them all. In Cozumel we opted to do ourselves. The shops are easy to walk to from the boat. On the last day we booked the Ft. Lauderdale tour since our plane didn't leave till 5 p.m. I'm glad we did as the luggage was loaded onto the tour bus and unloaded at the airport. The tour was both by bus and boat and filled in the day nicely. On Board activities are many and you can not do them all in one trip. The evening entertainment is great. We enjoyed the comedian Joe Katz and the Princess dance group was good as well. We played Bingo, (didn't win) but was fun. We did the casino twice (still didn't win) but was fun. We watched movies in the Princess Theatre, played golf, swam in the pool, and used the hot tub. We are not really bar people but loved having a glass of wine on our balcony each night.

Shopping on board was fun and available while at sea. We had a fun group of dinner mates which made dining that much more enjoyable. The time went by so fast as all good things do. Exiting the ship on the last day was just as easy as boarding it on the first. We were off and on our tour bus in 45 minutes. I read cruise critics for months before going on this cruise looking for helpful tips and finding out negative things people found. I think Princess group reads these comments, because most all negative things I read like, terrible coffee, boat in need of upgrading, public bathroom not clean, unhappy crew staff, dirty curtains or windows in cabins, etc. were not there. The coffee was fine, boat looked great to me, bathroom were clean, and the staff I met were very polite and friendly. They looked happy to me. We had a wonderful vacation and look forward to cruising with Princess in the future.