We were newbies.. so here are some notes for other newbies. Hopefully it will help you on your first trip. Hind sight is always 20/20.
Airport:
We flew into Miami International from CA. It was a red-eye. We arrived around 6:30A, which is 3:30A PST. Our plan was to get some breakfast, meet up with other friends who were arriving after us and then go to the port. We found that there were a many good places to eat at the terminal where you land, but when you get out to the baggage claims section (tram ride and quite a bit of walking), there were very few choices. None of them near the baggage stations looked appetizing but we compromised and picked up something light.
Pleasant town.
Checking in was quick