I took my sixth cruise last week (February 9-16) aboard the Carnival Glory. It left from Port Canaveral, Florida and stopped in Cozumel, Mexico; Belize City, Belize; and Nassau, Bahamas. I was traveling with my boyfriend, who had never cruised before. I have cruised Carnival five times and Royal Caribbean once.

Embarkation was organized and easy, as usual. We flew into Orlando and had to take a Mears bus to the port, which was a 45-minute ride. Carnival upgraded us from a balcony room to a suite, and with that we were able to use VIP embarkation services, which meant we didn't have to wait in a long line, but even if you wait, it moves quickly and is very easy. Once on board, we wanted to change our dining room assignment to the main level as we were assigned to the upper level of the dining room. I like being on the main level so that you can see the "show". We were able to get reassigned with a short wait and not too much hassle. Quite a few people came in after us though, so at that point I was happy about the VIP boarding process.

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