I'm new to cruising.  This was my first cruise but my wife had 2 prior Carnival cruises under her belt.  We chose the Legend because of her port of embarkation and her size.  Plus we could get a balcony cabin, something my wife had not experienced.  My wife's sister also joined us.  We were looking forward to visiting four ports but the H1N1 virus and CDC directive not to go to Mexico, changed that to 3 ports.  The extra day at sea just added to our relaxation and enjoyment of the sea. 

We drove down to Tampa on the Saturday before sailing, picked up my sister-in-law at the airport and took advantage of the Hampton Inn's Park and Cruise package which saved us nearly the cost of parking at the port for a week.  The hotel's shuttle took us to the terminal, and picked us up on the return. 

We arrived at the terminal around 10:30 AM on Sunday and were sitting in the embarkation lounge by 11:00 AM.  We boarded in Group 5 and were on board and on the Lido deck for lunch by 11:45 AM.  While they closed the doors to the cabin passageways when we first boarded, we were in our cabin by 1:15 PM and the last of our luggage was in the room and put away shortly after 2 PM.  Very smooth, easy process.   I brought 3 bottles of wine on board via carry on and had no issues getting it on board.  After muster drill, our CC Rollcall met on the Lido deck, with everyone roaming in at different times.  Our intent was to be on the Sky Deck when the Legend went under the Sunshine Skyway Bridge.  Unfortunately just at sail away, a series of showers and thunderstorms rolled through and most of the passage out of Tampa Bay was a wet one.  Read more