What makes a perfect cruise? You must have a great cruise line and an awesome ship. With that lineup comes yummy food and superior service. That's really what we expect from every cruise. But the perfect cruise happens when you connect with really great people who in just seven days turn into friends. That is what happened on the Carnival Liberty - April 24, 2010 sailing.

We drove over to Miami from the left coast of Florida to take advantage of Red Roof Inn's Park 'n Cruise plan. The $90/night plus taxi charges came in a bit under the $20/day parking fees in Miami. PLUS - it's just fun to add a day to the vacation. The hotel is fine. Nothing fancy - but not the nightmare we read about in online reviews. Breakfast was nothing to write home about ... but we knew we'd have more food than we could eat in just a few short hours. The free shuttle doesn't depart the hotel until 1:00 p.m. so we opted to take a cab over. By 11:30 we were waiting in very short lines to use the new kiosk check in. Easy - Breezy! Then just another short wait until they let us board the ship.

By 12:00 we had boarded the beautiful Conquest Class - Carnival Liberty. We have sailed twice before on the Carnival Freedom which is the same class - so we knew the ship's layout. Just a quick word here about the layout. The "Feedo Deck" ... I mean the "Lido Deck" is deck nine - which is also the deck with the two pools and hot tubs. Deck five is the deck with the casino, shops & bars. The best way to get through the ship is either on deck nine or five. If you are going to dinner ... use deck five until you are at midships for the golden dining room or all the way at the stern (aft, back of the boat) if you are in the silver dining. The dining rooms are on decks four and three - but you cannot access them by going to those floors and walking through the ship. You just can't. Use deck five and then the mid or aft stairs or elevators. Another hint ... the cigar bar on deck four is a great place to wait until the silver dining room opens and the line diminishes. Yes, it is a smoking bar ... but the music is usually good and there is a nice dance floor. Read more