This was our 16th cruise, our 11th on Carnival. A while ago, Mr. Cruise Cat had surgery that got complicated and resulted in a much longer recovery than anyone had counted on. My parents traveled quite a ways to help out during the situation, and it was much appreciated. For this cruise we invited my parents to thank them for all their effort and celebrate Mr. Cruise Cat's recovery.

We had plans to fly to San Diego on the day before the ship sailed (on a Saturday), but an incoming snowstorm forced us to change our plans. We wound up renting a car and driving several hundred miles to Atlanta that Friday and then flew to San Diego from there on Saturday. We made it to San Diego at our planned time (a day ahead of embarkation), which was a big concern. If we had missed the sailing it looked like we would have had to try and meet the ship in Acapulco, three days into the cruise.

Embarkation was very smooth. We are Platinum on Carnival, and there is a separate check-in when you first enter the building. My parents, since they were part of our party, were allowed to check in with us. We filled out some forms and then were escorted to the front of the security line. This made Mr. Cruise Cat very happy, as he was disappointed on our last cruise when the Platinum reception did not start until after the security screening. From there we waited in a special line for Platinum guests to check in, and then breezed through to the ship. Platinum has its perks! Read more