Amsterdam Review
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We had a wonderful time on our cruise and believe much of our great attitude about everything was thanks to Cruise Critic. We discovered that a great way to really appreciate all aspects of the trip was to take the time before hand to set our expectations in-line with reality. Our expectations were met (and even exceeded sometimes) during our cruise thanks to the fact that we knew exactly what kind of service, food, excursions, ambiance and fellow passengers we were buying in to. Thank you to everyone who participates on this message board.
My husband and I are in our late 40's and were celebrating our tenth anniversary. This was sort of our first cruise, proper. My husband's only other ship board experience was a six-day crossing aboard the QE2 for our honeymoon. Our captain aboard that vessel made it quite clear that it was a "crossing" not a "cruise." I had been on a couple of short Carnival Cruises years ago, but that was for work (sales conferences) so it wasn't the same thing.
We recommend the 14-day cruise. It was worth the extra dough to really get immersed in the experience. Plus weather becomes less of a factor since a few days of rain isn't that big of a deal when you're travelling for two weeks.
Cabin Review
Large Ocean-View Stateroom
Our stateroom was more generous than we expected, especially when it came to storage. We brought EVERYTHING and weren't even close to filling all the storage space. Actually we didn't even find all the storage space until the second half of the trip. (There are drawers under the bed - who knew?) Loved the CC advice about bringing a digital clock, power strip and extension cord and the over-the-door clear plastic shoe holder was such a great organizer for all our junk that would have otherwise been all over the dresser top. (Loved that trick so much I'm going to use it at home.)
Our cabin location was pretty good - nearly mid-ship. The only noise we ever heard was some deck chairs scraping on the promenade, but it wasn't very loud nor a regular occurrence. 2586 offers a great view of the tenders being lowered. Number 10 goes right past the window. It was fun to watch that procedure.