Let me start out by explaining this was our first cruise so we came into it with an open mind and no preset expectations. With that having been said though we looked at things with a critical eye.

Embarkation - The overall experience we thought was fine. The staff at the port were very helpful, answering our questions as we went through the check in process and if they couldn't answer it they directed us to someone who could. Sure, it was crowded but no worse then I've experienced at an airport boarding gate, proportionally speaking. We were shown where to site and wait and there was always staff coming out at regular intervals to let us know how much time till we could board so the wait seemed fine. Once we got the word to move we were on in no time. We wandered for a while to see what there was to see before we headed into the buffet dining room for a quick lunch before our room was ready.

Cabin - We were pleasantly surprised by the cabin. Not caring if we had a balcony we decided to go for an obstructed ocean view room but we had chosen one between the life boats. The view was fine and it was great to have light coming in first thing in the morning. For all the time we planned to spend in the cabin it was just great. The bathroom area was plenty big enough for two, lots of closet space and places to stash our luggage and clothes. Read more