My husband and I just got off the Indy for our first cruise a few days ago. We sailed 2/6/2010 (Super bowl Weekend) on the 8 night Eastern Caribbean itinerary (St. Maarten, St. Thomas, San Juan, Labadee). We stayed in 9572 - a Junior Suite on the port side just a few doors back from the hot tubs in the Solarium. There were over 3800 people onboard and 406 of them were kids, but we never had any issues with them. Just as a background, we're in our 30's with a toddler (who stayed at home), and we love to dance (we have both competed in ballroom competitions). Also, for reference regarding the food, we love to cook and can flambE an au poive sauce without setting our kitchen on fire, but we don't usually cook that way (tonight's taco night for instance). I'll try to keep my review as objective as possible, but we loved this cruise!

Pre cruise - We drove our daughter from Dallas to Lubbock to stay with DH's parents. We flew from Lubbock to Fort Lauderdale via Houston the next day and stayed at the Hampton Inn City Center the night before the cruise. Cab fare was about $20 with tip. It was raining when we got in, and the cab driver pulled up to what we thought was the side of the building. There was a small sign next to the door, and he swore up and down it was the front. We got out and he took off, but unfortunately we were correct and had to walk around the hotel in the rain at night. I think the front desk staff felt sorry for us and they gave us a couple of bottles of water complimentary. The hotel has a free continental breakfast. Nothing made to order, but they did have an egg dish and a breakfast meat in addition to the usual continental fare. The room was pretty big, and the shower was large with a built in seat. The hotel was nice and we would stay there again if we couldn't get something closer to the beach.

We took a cab from the hotel to Port Everglades, but stopped to pick up a couple of last minute items at a CVS while the meter was running - again about $20 with tip once we got to the boat. Read more