Our extened family was on this past New Year's sailing out of Fort Lauderdale. I should preface my review with some background information about my family to enable my readers to gain better insight into my review. We are a family of 4, DH, DS(16 yrs), DD(13 yrs) and myself. We have been on 6 cruises over the past 10 years: Disney Magic, Golden Princess, Splendour, Brilliance, Celebrity Equinox (Summer 2011) and finally the Oasis. We have always reserved in a suite, this time was no exception as we had a Grand Suite connecting to an OV balcony (10260-10262). We travel extensively and do appreciate luxury surroundings and fine service. Okay, so now you know that I set the"bar"quite high.......

PRE-CRUISE STAY: Hampton Inn Ft. Lauderdale Airport North Cruise Port. We arrived very late into FLL. Based on TripAdvisor reviews and cost, this hotel provided outstanding service, very clean rooms (I am very fastidious in this department), and great transportation options. For what we needed, this hotel delivered. I would not hesitate to use them again as a pre-cruise hotel.

EMBARKATION: We arrived at the port in the complimentary Hampton shuttle (be sure to pre-reserve the previous day) at 11:15. We were on the ship by 11:30 with a complimentary glass of sparkling wine in hand. WOW, that was amazing. I should mention that we were in a separate line for suite guests, actually it wasn't a line, it was more like we were escorted to the counter. We never did see the Suite Lounge for pre-boarding as we just kept walking right onto the ship! Absolutely painless. WOW. Read more