We took our first cruise 12/27 to 1/3 on the Carnival Freedom with our 2 boys (9 and 16). We have always done the "all inclusive" trips but the kids wanted to try a cruise this year. Our 9 year old always seemed to have plenty to do at the all inclusives but our older son found it hard to find things to do at night. The all inclusives really don't have good "teenage" evening activities. He heard a lot of good things about cruise from friends so he was really exited to try one. I never really wanted to do a cruise for fear of being trapped on a ship all week and the possibility of getting sick. Boy was I wrong. This may have been one of our all-time best vacations.

We flew into Fort Lauderdale a day early and stayed at the La Quinta Inn. Not bad for the price ($90) which included free transportation from the airport, free transfer to the cruise terminal and free continental breakfast. This also gave us an opportunity to stock up on some liquor for the cruise. Rum Runner flasks are the best. (www.rumrunnerflasks.com) We packed a case of water as part of our checked luggage (just put a baggage tag on the plastic wrapped case) and carried on 2-12 packs of soda, a bottle of wine, a bottle of champagne and had rum runner flasks filled with rum and vodka. It all went through - no questions asked. Carnival seems pretty lenient about what you can take on board. In fact, I bought 3 bottles of liquor in Jamaica and openly carried it on the ship without question.

We had a balcony room and it was GREAT. There was plenty of room for the four of us and all our stuff. The luggage fit under the bed no problem. All the beds were all very comfortable and the bathroom was a nice size. The balcony was the best. I couldn't imagine cruising without one. Our room steward did a fabulous job and left towel animals for our 9 year old every night. FYI - there is only 1 outlet in the room so bring an extension cord for charging multiple items. Read more