Although the flooding was substantial & most roads to NOLA were blocked the day before our cruise, we found some small backroads to gain entry to the city by going around Baton Rouge--others weren't so lucky & had to cancel.

Embarkation was smooth as silk-we had no FTTF nor are we Plat/Diamond yet (next cruise!), but it was no problem at all as we were onboard and eating at Pasta Bella by 11-ish. :) DS ate at this place many times during the voyage & we highly recommend it, but it's especially great on embarkation since the Lido is always mega crowded (and not near as delish. ;)

Our room (interior on Main deck) was ready on time & we found it to be clean, a fabulously cool temp the whole week (no fan needed and I hot flash a lot...), and our steward, Jury, was very attentive. He appeared at our cabin kinda late on the first evening & asked if we'd like AM or PM room servicing, to which I answered "both". He immediately made note of it & our cabin was cleaned and towels replaced twice a day as we've all become accustomed. I even asked for our ice bucket to be filled daily and he happily obliged! Great guy for sure. In fact, the service was among some of the best ever, even with our having YTD in the Crimson. We like being able to come to dinner at our leisure, so we've chosen this each time we cruise these days. Read more