Background Information Six of us booked this cruise around December 2008 and thanks to the Early Saver rate we ended up saving about $200 a person and were upgraded from an ocean view to a balcony cabin. This was my fourth cruise (all on Carnival) and I am 23 years old. Everyone else sailed at least one other cruise and ranged in age from 19 to 80.

Pre-Cruise Hotel We drove into Baltimore a day early and stayed at the Residence Inn Baltimore Downtown/Inner Harbor. The hotel was perfect for us since it had large suites. Our room was on the 16th floor and consisted of a living and kitchen area large enough for the six of us to comfortably sit. One bedroom had a queen bed and a full bathroom and the other bedroom had two double beds and another full bathroom. The sofa in the living room had a pull-out bed. The service at the hotel was in line with Marriot's hotels. The staff was incredibly friendly and greeted us by name. A full breakfast is included that consisted of many hot and cold options. We used valet parking that was $29 a night. We walked about 3 blocks to Inner Harbor and spent the day exploring the area and touring the National Aquarium. The only downside to the hotel is that we could hear sirens at night, but nothing unusual for any hotel in a city.

Embarkation My first three cruises sailed from New York and Baltimore's Cruise Terminal is larger which allowed it to run very smoothly. We drove and parked at the port, so they had a special section were we could pull right up to a baggage cart where porters unloaded the car. Then we parked ($15 a day) and walked right into the building. Once inside the building, you immediately go through security then check in. They had many rows of seats and each row was a separate boarding zone. We were zone 4 and VIP embarkation were both zones 1 and 2. Boarding began around 1:10 with travel agent tours, then 2 wedding parties, followed by everyone else according to zones. We arrived at the terminal at 10:30 and had no waits, but those arriving later had to wait outside to get through security or wait in their car to drop off luggage. The wait for us (seated in our row) went very quickly as we chatted with others and the embarkation staff began tossing beach balls around. The only thing that would help this process would be 3 or 4 more staff members to help direct people where to go. For example, after passing through security it would have been nice if a person directed us into the correct line. Read more