My wife and I sailed on the Glory as the first half of a back-to-back cruise, with the Breeze (Southern Caribbean) as the second half. Our teenage children joined us for the second cruise. The total cost of the two cruises was $16,000, consisting of $9,500 in cabin fare and related costs, $3,600 in air fare, $1,500 in activities, $500 in meals & beverages and $900 in “other” (including pre-cruise accommodation, souvenirs, telecom, photos and miscellaneous). Those figures reinforce my view that a cruise is not the inexpensive vacation that Carnival and others try to make it out to be.

We arrived at the port around 1:00 after staying overnight at the Miami International Airport Hotel. We got our cab driver to stop at a grocery store along the way so we could pick up soda and champagne. Check-in was pretty quick. From the time we entered the terminal building to the time we boarded took about 30 minutes. Our luggage, which we had checked with the porters arrived within a couple hours.

This was our sixth cruise in total and 5th on Carnival. The first was 1991. We always have a fun time, although I have to say having now also completed our 7th cruise, the novelty has somewhat worn off. I always think a vacation should be, as much as possible, a combination of relaxation and adventure. After five Carnival cruises in five years, the simple act of being on a cruise no longer contributes much to the “adventure” component. Read more