I had been perusing the cruise critic member reviews and boards for almost 2 weeks before booking MY first cruise(not booked by or paid for by my parents). I got so many great tips from this site and enjoyed reading so many member reviews before making my decision, that I felt the need to give back. So here goes.
Some background. I have been on a Big Red Boat cruise, a Princess cruise to Alaska and a RCL cruise to the Caribbean in my life, but had never actually booked or paid for the cruises myself. So this was a bit daunting when I realized how pricey excursions could be and the process of selecting cabin types was tough as well. Not to mention, picking the actual cruise and itinerary wasn't easy either.
My girlfriend and I wanted to cruise the week before Memorial Day and I broke down our choices to either a RCL cruise leaving out of Miami, or the Miracle out of NYC. Now, I live in Brooklyn, so I preferred the easy departure out of New York, but I was a bit worried about spending so much time on the ship. I did the math, and you actually spend 85% of your time on the ship and 15% of it on actual land. A big part of my decision to cruise the Miracle was definitely to avoid the hassle of booking flights and arranging transportation to and from Miami. In the end, the chance to simply grab a cab to the port cinched it. Besides, the Carnival was quite a bit cheaper. By the time I booked the cruise (4 weeks prior to sailing) the only rooms available were Interior Staterooms, so I decided to book the best available room which was a 4B (Interior Stateroom - Upper or Main Deck Guarantee) with no specific room number.
5224. Great balcony, but kind of an alcove. Overlooks a life raft and the room on the right (5222?) extends out in front of it so blocks the view to the right. Quiet and convenient to the aft pool and 24 hr ice cream and frozen yogurt machine on Lido deck.