Pre-cruise we stayed Friday night Nov 7 in Ormond Beach at the Best Western Castillo del Sol after having a very good late lunch at the South Beach Grill in Crescent Beach. The hotel was an older property which had recently undergone a renovation. The rooms were clean, staff friendly, rates very good, and views fantastic.

Saturday 11-8 We checked out early, ate a quick breakfast at the Burger King across the street, then paid our $5 at the closest beach ramp and drove about 10 miles + down the beach. Got back on A1A and drove to the lighthouse on Ponce Inlet (no we didn't walk the 203 steps to the top) then had an excellent lunch and views on the deck at Racings North Turn Grille. Interesting bit of racing history here...check out their website. Drove south to Cocoa Beach and checked in at the Courtyard. Very nice hotel, no view but with clean rooms, good rates, friendly staff, and good breakfast. Talked with several of the Blue Angels team, who were staying here and putting on an airshow the next day at Cape Canaveral. Met our cruisemates at Fishlips, had an ok dinner, and watched Disney Wonder and Carnival Glory sail past us.

Sunday 11-9 We had an early breakfast at the Courtyard, checked out, met our friends at the Residence Inn, who dropped us and our luggage at the Port around 10:30am. Having been recently (mostly) immobilized due to an accident and in a wheelchair, check-in was a breeze (setsail pass pre-printed and Platinum CA members) and we were on the ship around 11:10am. We checked with Guest relations to confirm that our itinerary had not changed due to hurricane Paloma. Lunch in the Windjammer was good, especially the honey chicken and greek salad. As we were leaving (and after purchasing our wine package), we saw our neighbors from home, whom we didn't even know were cruising, much less on the same ship! We promptly went to get them added to our dinner table, which was very easy(2nd seating)changing from a table for 6 to a table for 8. Our cabin 1340 JS deck 10 was ready at 1pm and we went to check it out...plenty of room for the wheelchair, even though not a handicap cabin. Good space, nice balcony with lounger, table and chair, large walk in closet. Good sized bathroom with tub. We met out attendant, Hector, requested a seat for the tub, and had him fill up our small cooler. He did a good job the remainder of the trip, but we rarely saw him. We left him notes, and he always promptly filled our requests, kept our room clean, and filled with towel animals and mints in the evenings. The rest of the afternoon, we sat on deck 12, watched the Blue Angels perform, and listened to Riddim' Wave, the pool band. Paul and Brian, bartenders in the pool and sky bars, took very good care of us that day and the rest of the cruise. After unpacking, and a drink at the Wig and Gavel Pub (thank you Dennis), we met for an unimpressive (food wise) dinner at the DR on deck 5. Our waiters, Veejah and Nicole, did an excellent job taking care of us all week. We didn't make the Welcome Aboard Spectacular, but our friends said Rick Corso and Billy Prudhomme were excellent comedians. Read more