We (myself and my girlfriend, in our early 30s) and my parents (in their 60s) decided to book this cruise for Thanksgiving week since we all had vacation time and wanted to spend the week together. We chose this cruise mainly based on the ports and the timing (Sat-Sat) that worked out for all of us. My parents are Platinum on Carnival and this was my first cruise on Carnival and second overall.
We all flew in the night before and stayed at the Embassy Suites by MIA, which is a typical Embassy Suites, not much to be said. We ordered a van cab for the four of us to get to the cruise terminal, which ran about $35 with surcharges, tolls, and tip.
We got there about 10:30, and since my parents are Platinum, we were able to get all of the luggage tagged with the orange FTTF and VIP stickers. We went inside and checked in the VIP desk which is downstairs from the main check-in area. Waited in the VIP area until they called us for boarding about 11:30. We were able to get right on board and not only were the rooms ready, but the bags were already sitting outside waiting for us.
nice location near the back of the ship, close to the elevators/stairs, but not close enough that you get any noticeable foot traffic.