My boyfriend and I went on this cruise for his birthday and as an early Christmas getaway. We sailed from December 16-23. He turned 20 on the day we set sail and I'm 19. We were able to sail because he is in the Army. This is his 2nd cruise and my 9th, all of which have been Carnival. I had not previously been on the Valor, but had been on its tackier counterpart, Glory, twice. Decor doesn't impact me much either way but I would have to say this ship has some "toned down" accents.

Pre Cruise: Since my boyfriend and I live in Central Florida, we drove down at 7:30 AM the day of embarkation. We escaped the cold front just as it was moving in and encountered rain most of the drive. I didn't want to pay $20/day for parking at the pier. Since I attend the University of Miami, we parked my car there and took taxis to and from the Port of Miami for about $30 each way.

Embarkation: We arrived at the Port around 11:30 got processed very quickly. Everything appeared very organized and the new terminal looks very nice. It took about 15-20 minutes to get from the porters to the ship. The employees were cheerful and wished Robbie a happy birthday. Read more