We were two families and all first time cruisers. Our children ranged from 6-17. We arranged to stay at the Embassy Suites in Ft. Lauderdale and take the charter bus to the port. The hotel was nice with pool, hot tub and sauna. There were plenty of restaurants and stores (even a dive shop) nearby for last minute items.
The bus was an hour late picking us up. This lead to our late arrival at the port. We were through the boarding process in about a half an hour. We were rushed to get to the Windjammer buffet and eat before the muster drill. We dined during the second seating and met our wonderful waitress. Bettina was great with the children and had a trick or challenge each night for them.
The second day was at sea all day. It was cloudy, windy and raining. The ship was tossing enough to have the pools drained and the deck was empty. Some "seasoned" cruisers said it was the worst they had seen. Below deck it was not bad and sleeping was not a problem. Day three was San Juan. We did the Barcardi and fort trip, which was fun. The fort was closed so we ended up shopping in old San Juan. I filled out a form and RC was great about refunding half our money since the fort was closed. Next stop was Saint Martin. This was our favorite port by far. We did the full day tour. The bus was fairly new with AC and was clean. The second part was a catamaran ride around the bay to Marigot. The boat was clean, stable and drinks were served. We celebrated my sons 17th birthday in Marigot. We had lunch at the Tropicana restaurant. The Tropicana is near the dock and overlooks the bay. I can not recommend this small French restaurant enough; it was moderately priced and served great French food. The open air market was hard to find but had a great assortment of local vendors. The bus then takes you to Pinnell isle for snorkeling. This was great. Equipment was provided and guides swim out with you and feed the fish. There was no food or drink on the island and no place to change until we returned to the ship after a 45 minute ride. This was a great day!