Okay, where to begin, let me start by saying this was my second cruise and my wife’s 40th so I am seeing some things for the first time. We paid for the FTTF (Faster To The Fun) and I believe it was exactly that for the better part. We arrived at the scheduled time specified by CCL and had to remain seated for approximately 30-45 minutes beyond our scheduled embarkation time. I mentioned that because I spoke with other passengers who did not wait and boarded almost immediately according to them (3-4 different people). Our luggage arrived in less than an hour so based on that and the port you depart from, FTTF may well be worth the money. Our on-board process was quick and without incident. We were given maps to guide us to our room and before I forget to mention it; go to your local $1.00 store and purchase lanyards. They charge $7.95 for a lanyard you can purchase for a dollar which should give you an indication as to the cost of items on-board the ship...

We went to the lido deck to find more cruisers on-board than expected. The only group ahead of us were the (Diamond & Platinum cruisers) however, I never imagined the number was that high... I visited Guy's burger joint and found the burgers to be on par with what you would expect when you purchase a handmade burger elsewhere. We dined in the Havana Lounge as a previous cruiser had suggested and it was empty, (Great Advice). The weather was warmer than expected, so we returned to change into short sleeves shirts, who would have imagined that on October 17th, and the temperature being cooler on the previous days. The sail away party was great considering this was my first experience on Carnival. My previous departure on another cruise line did NOT have a sail away party so I was pleasantly surprised.

We did encounter fog on our way to our first port of call, however, none of us controls the weather or it would have been sunny skies and calm seas to sail upon. We were definitely kept busy with many of the events taking place on board however, the timing of many events caused conflicts and we missed some great events. None-the-less let’s talk about one of my favorite people whom I will never forget, (Emma Nixon, Cruise Director). She kept us entertained throughout the voyage with her morning reports and as Master of Ceremony. We arrived at St. Johns and we did not book any excursions simply walked around town and photographed some great architecture. We arrived the next day at Halifax and rode the bus to the Titanic Memorial Site. The bus was $5.00 for the two of us for the entire trip (2-3 hours). Read more