Our cruise experience began early in the morning on Sunday, December 4th. My fiance and I arrived at Miami airport at 9 am. I had spoken to a Carnival rep the week before to find out what time the airport transfer reps would be appearing so we could buy our transfers to the port. I was originally told 10 am. By 10:15 am, there were at least 3 dozen Carnival passengers walking around aimlessly looking for any sign of a Carnival rep. We were all told different locations to wait by the various airport reps. The true answer is that the Carnival reps show up around 10:30 am at a desk by baggage claim carousel 10. You have to wait for the actual bus by carousel 8. We were on one of the first buses and arrived at the port at 11:45. If I had known how long I would have had to stand around the airport, I would have taken a taxi. The drivers were quoting $25 for the 15 minute ride for the 2 of us. The Carnival transfers were $12/per person/per way.

Embarkation just is bad. They really need a more organized method. Even with us arriving at 11:45 am, we had to wait outside the building in the hot sun for 20 minutes. There are quite a few lines to go through inside so try to be patient. We also had several groups cutting lines which caused some angry comments. The whole process took us an hour. I can't even imagine how long it must have taken for the people who showed up well after we did. My best recommendation here is get there early. It pays off because you are on the ship early and can finally relax.

We headed straight for our room to dump off our carry-ons. The rooms are a bit small, but the balcony was a welcome delight. We spent most afternoons sitting on their enjoying ourselves. We were located on Deck 8 forward which was nice because we were close to the stairs and one deck below Lido where all the breakfast and lunch is served. Read more