Once again, we had a great cruise, and much of was thanks to the good folks here at cruise critic! "We" are me and my DH, both in our 40's. This was our 4th cruise.

Hotel in Tampa: We stayed at the Tampa Holiday Inn Express on Dale Mabry (near the stadium). Rooms were fine, and there was a great diner just around the corner to have dinner. Mostly we just vegetated before getting on the ship the next morning. The hotel was full that night.

Embarkation: Piece of cake! We got there early, by 10:30 am. Bags were hauled immediately from our cab by the Carnival porters. No baggage schlepping! We quickly went through the line at the Port of Tampa, and went into the seating area. After a short while and some brief conversations, a Carnival rep asked if she could borrow one of our passports for a demonstration for all passengers. Sure, why not? Read more