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This was my 7th cruise and my wife's 5th, we are in our early fifties and like to get away a few times a year. Our flight was from Seattle just ahead of a little snowstorm and landed in Ft Lauderdale sunshine Friday Morning. The plan was the the town and surrounding areas a little as we've never been there before. My wife booked the Sheraton Plantation Suites as the price was half that of the hotels near the beach, we got an entire suite for $145 per night but had to drive 25 minutes to get anywhere, this was good and bad, but still had a great time. I really like the Sheraton but will probably stay somewhere near the river and shops next time.
Sunday Morning we dropped the rental car and took a cab to the pier. Within 10 seconds of exiting the cab we were greeted by a porter and were directed to the boarding line nearby. Princess is very organized, about a 40 minute continually moving line which just helped to build the excitement and lots of friendly smiles everywhere.
The cabin was a little smaller than on Carnival but much nicer. After unpacking, we went up to the Lido deck for lunch and explored the ship.
The spa: I enjoyed the spa and gym as my wife and I like to workout daily but this place is really expensive if you want more than a workout. We opted for the couples mud bath and full access to the spa and 4 saunas, $240...Too much, not really worth it, enjoyed it but not again. Spinning class was a great workout and the gym equipment was first rate.
We had booked that late seating for dinner and enjoyed the first 3 nights with a nice couple at a table for 4. The food was great, not perfect but nothing to stop us from ever going back. I've read a lot of bad reviews about the food on this boat but found it to be as good or better than I get at home. This ship and most others are filled with overweight people so I'm sure most of them are a better judge that us but we loved every bite. When you only have a week of vacation and only so many hours of prime time entertainment to see, skip the dining room with its 2 hour meal and drop by the buffet for 20 minutes, much better use of your time.
The entertainment was good in most places but don't waste your time on the dream show in the main theatre, this was easily the worst show I have ever seen. The magic show was pretty good but not good enough after being on other ships. Stick to the lounges as all had great entertainment.
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