My husband and I cruised the Western Caribbean, 7 nights, on the Carnival Valor departing Miami Sunday Sept. 3, 2006. Since we booked our own airfare, we flew into Ft. Lauderdale the evening before the cruise and rented a car from Hertz (approx. cost $40) as they have a drop off for car rentals at the port of Miami and provide a free shuttle to the ship.
The line up for embarkation looked really long, we were about 1 hour from the time we joined the line until the time we hit the buffet for a late lunch. The ship is huge, and we needed a map to help us out. On past cruises there has always been someone handing out maps as you come aboard, or, at the very least, a map in your cabin.
Anyhow, our luggage was at our door after we had our lunch, and the life boat drill followed just prior to 5 p.m. which was sail-away. We were really bothered by the way that the activities were forced on everyone. For example, all pool activities happen at the main pool which is mid-ship.