This was our second cruise on the Carnival Pride and the different itinerary from the first plus the low price made it an easy decision. I compare cruise prices all the time and for four people to have an all inclusive 7 day vacation for under $3000 is a pretty good deal. We travel with our pre-teen boys so the family friendly Carnival line checks all of our boxes. The extra added bonus of being able to drive to the port is just icing on the cake. If we had to fly to FL to get on the ship it would cost an extra $1000 for us, but parking at Baltimore is convenient and only $115.

Just like with our prior cruise on the Pride, Carnival called a few days prior to offer a cabin upgrade. This time they wanted me to upgrade from an extended balcony to the Grand Suite for $1200. I declined, but they later called back to offer the Ocean suite for $700. I accepted. The ocean suite was much more comfortable for the four of us, and the balcony had 4 chairs so we enjoyed the extra size and amenities (priority boarding, disembarkation) for an extra $100 per day.

The ship came in late and had some issues so boarding was a nightmare. There was not enough space inside the terminal for the incoming passengers, so many of them had to stand in a long line, outside in the heat with no water or shade. The harbor staff had no information other than the ship came in late and boarding would be delayed. With our priority boarding status we were able to check in but then we spent about 2 hours just waiting in a staging area of the terminal. Boarding started about 1:30pm. We arrived at the port at 11:00am so our vacation started with a 2.5 hour delay in the terminal, and we were lucky. This had to be the worst of my cruise embarkation experiences. Read more