A little background: this was my 2nd cruise (1st was Carnival Legend, June 2009), DH's 1st ever, we're Gen-X'ers with 2 teens, both of whom stayed with family while we went on a romantic vacation of our own. Our itinerary was Cozumel, Honduras, Belize & Costa Maya, Mexico.

This is a little long, because I too had read a LOT of bad reviews and wanted to address some of what I read.

Embarkation: In a word, awful. It was about 28 degrees with cold rain in Port Canaveral when we arrived and the terminal is exposed to the elements, unlike the Tampa one. While I know it's normally 50-90 degrees perhaps, this unusual weather anomaly is one they should prepare for. I saw people shivering and getting ill with the over hour long wait out of doors just to get inside, as they had assumed Capri pants and hoodies would be sufficient. Fortunately we were flying from VA, so we dressed appropriately for the 18 degree temps & snow we were leaving. Read more