Traveled with 14 family members over Christmas 2007 from San Juan. We flew from Detroit non stop on NW and were met in the baggage claim area by our driver for private transportation to the pier (highly recommended!). We had 4 cabins on the Riviera Deck (two sets each connecting) and my cabin was close to the elevator which worked out well traveling with small children. Met our cabin steward and his assistant who were very friendly, then headed up to the Lido deck to grab a bite to eat. Half of the buffet line (think school cafeteria!) was closed but opened as it got busier. My first impression of the Carnival food was about enough to make me want to eat salads all week. Maybe because it was the 1st night out, and the staff wasn't prepared for everyone? Did the muster drill and headed off to bed since we had been up since 430AM! Bed was very comfortable. Woke up the next morning in St. Thomas and got off the ship to walk around the duty free shops. Couldn't really do any excursions, again, because of the kids. Did see the Butterfly Farm which was a 10 minute walk from the ship...very cool. About $20.00 for adults and $10.00 for kids under 3. Had dinner in the Universal Dining Room and that was actually pretty decent. Word of advice-if you're traveling with little ones, the kitchen has chicken nuggets and macaroni and cheese ready so they can eat before the adults. We danced in the dining room almost every night. Fun! The rest of the ports was the same thing-get off, walk around, go back to the ship. We did take a taxi in Barbados to the beach-about $15.00 per person. Very crowded, apparently the only public beach? My daughter got her hair braided there and loved it. We did walk up to Camp Carnival one afternoon-I was not impressed. The staff didn't seem to be interacting with the kids that were in there, and so we didn't even bother letting our 3 year old participate. Had she maybe been older, I would have considered it... Night life on the ship for us was pretty much non existant-DH and I took turns going to the casino but didn't make it to the night club. We did see a couple of shows, and they were good. The captain "welcome aboard" party was not like I thought it would be. We didn't even get to shake hands with him, unless you wanted to go chase him down on his way to the next venue. The ship was overall clean but just didn't have that "wow" factor for me. We have sailed on 3 RCCL ships, and maybe I had too high of an expectation for Carnival. The staff spent a lot of time cleaning and painting. Would I go on Carnival again? Maybe-I'd like to try a newer ship. It was a lot to travel with kids, but they had the most fun swimming in the pool and riding the glass elevators! Embarkation and Disembarkation were a breeze. Duty free shop in San Juan right after you check in. Most guests seemed very friendly and I think it was about 60% American and the rest foreign. Didn't notice any inappropriate events. But again, I was in bed every night by 11PM :)