We sailed on the Carnival Conquest out of Galveston on 5/27/07. I sailed with my DH and my DD (who is 6 ½ years old). We arrived the day before the cruise and stayed with a relative who took us to the port that morning.
Embarkation: We arrived at the port at about 10:30 a.m. This was perfect timing as we were one of the first 200 people in line. We were through the line and checked in by 11:30. By coming this early it enabled us to sit in the chairs and hang out before boarding the ship instead of waiting in a long line. We were on the ship by 12:30 p.m., eating lunch. Embarkation was smooth. We have been on 6 cruises and this was the best embarkation yet.
General Overview of the Ship: The ship had a great layout for families as the bar scene and casino were on Deck 5. This allowed my 6 year old to hang out at the pools and lido deck in the evening without witnessing the bar scene. The pools were great and never overcrowded. The ship was relatively clean; however, there is room for improvement in this area. We were a little disappointed in the bar/pool service. Stateroom: We had a balcony on the promenade deck. This was great. We brought our own chairs from home, which was a great as the chairs provided are not comfortable. Our stateroom was fine, although it was smaller than the Disney Cruise Line's stateroom.