Precruise; We flew into Miami on Friday afternoon and stayed at the Holiday Inn Port of Miami. The hotel is a bit older and is typical of Holiday Inns, clean, and more than adequate for one or two night's stay. I booked online with Holiday Inn and was grateful that they honored my request for a room facing the port. If you can get a good rate here, and don't need luxury, then you cant beat this hotel for location. There is a CVS store one block away, where you can get last minute cruise provisions including wine. The hotel is directly across from the Bayside Marketplace where we had a very good dinner at Bubba Gump's. On Saturday morning I woke before dawn and watched the ships arriving at port, and finally seeing the Liberty among them. What a thrill!

Embarkation; At 11 am, we took a taxi for 10.00 dollars over to the port, checked our bags with the porters and went inside to check in. This went smoothly and we were on board just a few minutes after noon. We explored the ship which is quite colorful in decor, very clean and well maintained. We went up to the Lido deck buffet for lunch, and at 1.30 the rooms were ready so we went downstairs to find ours.

Stateroom; 1382, Riviera deck, ocean view. We liked our room very much. I have previously only sailed alone in a single inside room on Carnival, so having a window was at treat for me. The room was spacious and comfortable. Nice bedding, ample closet and storage space, as well a well equipped bathroom. My mother was with me, and while she has sailed on many other cruiselines, this was her first Carnival cruise, and she was quite impressed with everything. I like that you can book your tours on the TV in the room, as well as monitor your charges on your account. You can also read the day's dining room menu. The room is on the lowest passenger deck but we did'nt hear any unusual noise or notice any motion. Our room attendant Arif took great care of us all week. Read more