I have been on several cruises over the past couple years, but this was my first time to cruise with Carnival. Honestly, I have been hesitant about cruising with Carnival because I have heard some negative comments about the line. But, I found an awesome deal on the cruise fare so we decided to give it a shot. I booked a 7-day Western Caribbean cruise on the Carnival Triumph, we had 3 ports: Cozumel, Grand Cayman, and Jamaica. This was my husband's first time cruising... so I had my fingers crossed that it would be a good decision to go with Carnival this time. I booked an inside-guaranteed and my wish was granted when we were updated to an ocean-view room.

We flew into Miami the day before embarkation and stayed at the Hampton Inn Blue Lagoon. I would definitely suggest staying there, I thought that it was a great stay for the deal we got on the room. The beds there are incredible and they offer a complimentary hot breakfast in the morning so we were able to get a good start to the day. I also liked that they offer a free shuttle service to and from the airport, and you can also arrange a shuttle to the cruise port for $10/person.

We arrived at the port around 12:30, and embarkation was a breeze... we were on the ship and in our room by 1:15. I was impressed with Carnival's organization to get so many people on the ship so quickly. Our room steward was fabulous, he kept the room very clean and we always had fresh towels, etc. I liked the layout of the floor plan on the ship, but it was about average when it comes to decor- it was a little too Vegas-ey for my style. Read more