Fourth cruise, second with RCI. Family of four with two boys, 6 & 9.
Pre-Embarkation:
We stayed at the Ramada Oakland Park which was fine; there is a mall, supermarket and some restaurants in walking distance which is good. Breakfast was typical. Free and good enough. They are 9 miles from the airport and traffic gets so bad sometimes that it takes an hour to drive that route so if you need shuttle service during rush hour I'd recommend staying elsewhere. Even though I came at an off-time it still took them 50 minutes to pick us up. My brother-in-law had just a short wait so it's hit or miss. (Publix is perfect place to purchase your pre-trip wine.)
Stayed in promenade-view room 7601, just forward of midship. Location of room was great. Very convenient to promenade & central park, theater, spa/exercise room & kids area but also easy to go aft for dinner and other activities. Even when big noisy events were going on in the promenade, the sound was easily drowned out by a normal volume TV. Liked being able to look out into the Promenade.
Lockbox not big enough for a full-size laptop so I'm glad I didn't bring one this time.