This was my 18th cruise. I can't help but compare each cruise to our best experiences at sea. So here goes... We arrived in FLL one day before the cruise. Princess booked us at the Hollywood Beach Marriott. The price was $300 plus for one night! If I could do it over, I would book a 4-star on hotwire.com for at least half off that price. Wished our travel agent had advised us that we didn't have to go through Princess. We liked that the hotel was located on the beach. We dined at the hotel for dinner and then breakfast on cruise day and enjoyed both meals. The hotel, however, didn't look like a typical Marriott. It was an older building that most likely Marriott had purchased from another chain. The interior was refurbished nicely. Still, not worth the steep price. The room was fine except that there wasn't a full-length mirror and the bathroom door was glass! Pretty, but not too private for families. Tip* If you have booked your pre-cruise night through Princess and want to get to the ship late morning, do not take the transportation they provide! They'll start lining you up like cattle at 1pm, and you'll be lucky to be on the ship by 2:30. The concierge will hire you a taxi. Four of us split the $35 cost, and we had our driver make a stop at a liquor store (Crown Liquor?) that was adjacent to Walgreens. We picked up some champagne splits and wine. We then hit Walgreens for some items we forgot and a big 2.5 gal. of purified water I like to have in the stateroom.

Embarkation: A breeze for us at approximately 11:30 a.m. Our room (mini suite on Dolphin 9) was ready for us. This was a relief as some cruise lines (such as Disney) will not even let you drop off luggage before 1 p.m. Tip* I always make sure I bring on a roll-aboard (carry personally, don't check with the porter) all the bathroom toiletry items and makeup, clothing, sunscreen, etc. so that I can start setting up "my areas" and change to a swimsuit and coverup, or whatever and not have to wait for a late-arriving suitcase. Beware, if you are want a totally private balcony, the mini-suites on the Dolphin is not your floor. All balconies on this deck are 100% exposed. People standing on the top deck down to deck 10 can see you. As soon as I pop out of bed I like to go out on the balcony. Can't do that on deck 9 without feeling self-conscious.

The ship is attractive, but I find that of all new ships I've been on. I guess I have to say the The Brilliance of the Seas was the prettiest with the glass elevators with the view to the sea beats all. I was hoping that the Piazza, the main atrium area, would in a small way compete with the Royal Promenade on the larger Royal Caribbean ships. It does not. Saw a woman doing the hoola hoop one day....Okaaay.... My husband and I seemed to get disoriented on this ship a little more often, even late into the cruise. Not sure if it was us or this boat. Read more