Our trip from Ft. Lauderdale to Barcelona on the Emerald Princess was outstanding. We were blessed with great weather and calm seas. The ship is our favorite to date and the staff and crew were excellent. We met the nicest people we have met on any cruise. I have included my personal rating system in parenthesis on a scale of 1-10.

APRIL 13, 2008: We flew from San Diego to Ft Lauderdale on Southwest Airlines and then took the free shuttle to the Super 8 Dania. This typical Super 8 offers free shuttle from the airport and to the port, plus free continental breakfast for $89.86.

APRIL 14, 2008: We boarded the Emerald Princess shortly after noon and proceeded to our portside balcony cabin on Caribe Deck. We met Alfred, our room steward from the Philippines, who took great care of our cabin. After a buffet lunch at the Horizon's Court, we explored this beautiful ship. At 4:15 we had our emergency muster drill and sailed off about 5:30. We did our anytime dining in the Michelangelo Dining room on Deck 5. The welcome aboard Showtime included the Princess cast and show band and a comedian, Rollin' Jay Moore (7). Read more