This was our first cruise. We (my husband, myself, my 17 year old son & his girlfriend (she's cruised lots) decided on a short trip (4 days) to Cozumel from Galveston to see if we would even like to cruise. We were scheduled to begin check-in at 1:30 pm. Even though we were scheduled we ended up being mixed in with every one left to embark (Note: pick an earlier time). Short wait at check-in & then a quick trip through customs. Stopped for a group photo (we were a group of 8) and began the walk to the ship. We were able to go straight to our room (Note: we were told at check-in that our sail & sign cards would be in the pocket next to our room door). Our room was very clean. We had a queen size bed (2 twin beds) and a couch. Plenty of closet space. This room does connect to the adjoining room, which we kept locked and a full glass door to the balcony (2 chairs & small table). I unpacked and waited for muster call. It began to rain. We went to the Muster Station E3, in the Scarlet Restaurant. There were lots of people and no one would be quiet. It was really hard to hear the entire drill. Being that this was my first cruise I really wanted to know what I should do if there was an emergency! Luckily, you can watch a video in your stateroom. Anyway, our dining time was 6 pm so we decided to look around the boat before dinner. (Note: Day 3 - I finally started to figure out the ship - apparently I am slow learner). Night one was pretty confusing for me. At dinner, I wanted a soda so I asked for one. I was informed that my cheers package wasn't yet activated so I would be charged (I knew this already) which was fine.Dinner was good but we were tired and ready to chill somewhere quiet. Day 1& 2 - We decided on room service for breakfast. THE COFFEE IS HORRIBLE (according to my husband). The breakfast was unexpectedly good! We each got a breakfast sandwich & bagels.....way too much food. Lunch was on Lido , we decided on just grabbing tacos at the Blue Iguana Cantina - very good. We also tried the burgers at Guy's - also very good. We did the buffet breakfast on Day 3 & Day 4 - my eyes were bigger than my stomach. Formal dinner was very good. A very special treat was the seafood shack - snow crab was pricey but I love CRAB! It was just as good as any restaurant I've ate crab at! Anyways on to Cozumel - we got off the boat after a 15 minute line wait. The line was very disorganized and people were rude & pushing. Once off the boat you have to walk along the dock and enter a long building (hall) full of vendors and crowds of cruiser that got off before you. Walk through customs and then you are free to roam. Our excursion time wasn't until 11 am so we found a table at Fat Tuesdays. WOW! The bud light is ICE COLD there! The table we sat at was very close to the water so we had awesome views and lots of photo ops. Our entire group decided to do the Land & Sea Excursion, not really pricey. We started off in a semi sub boat - great views of the reef & fish. We then took a bus (very nice - not at all like a school bus) to see the Mayan Cocoa Company to see how chocolate is made and then to discover and sample some really GREAT tequila! The whole excursion was ±4 hours long. We were entertained the entire time with history and fun facts from our tour guide. Because the chocolate portion & tequila portion are on opposite side of the island you get to sight see Cozumel along the ride. After the excursion we stopped to grab a few souvenirs, got a group pic, quick run through customs and back on the ship. One surprise that I wasn't prepared for was that the ship showed the Dallas Cowboys game on the Lido deck! That Sunday I started seeing all these DC team jerseys and I was thinking - what am I missing! So I checked the hub and sure enough the game was on the itinerary line up! We planted ourselves at an awesome table on the deck (rather early) and enjoyed the game with treats and snacks that I retrieved from the buffet. GO COWBOYS!!!! During the this trip we went to a few of the shows, we didn't care to participate in any so we just dropped in and sat in the back or upper levels. WHAT A LAUGH - we went to a newly wed couple type show and laughed way too hard! Gary is the host of entertainment on this ship and he is hilarious! We saw the synchronized swimming on Lido (a must see) and the 80's music party was a BLAST! We disembarked on Monday by 9 am (we were on floor 2 - called first was floor 1, then 2 and then they jumped up to floor 12), the longest part was customs - in Galveston you start off in 2 very LONG lines, closer to the customs gate - I think it was broke down into 4 or 5 short lines. This portion was the longest wait during the whole cruise. The only thing I would have done different was the CHEERS package - on Days 2 & 3, we could get our 'cheers' drink and then purchase another for our son & his girlfriend, but things changed on Day 4 - they only allow you to get the one drink from your cheers programs. No buying extra drinks. I really thought this was odd. So we would go to one of the bars, get our 1 cheers drink and then walk across the deck to another bar and get another 'purchased' drink. I didn't understand why I could not buy a drink separate. (NOTE: find a waiter and tip them really good - they will bring you WHATEVER you want.) Another note about the Cheers program - we never reached our 15 drink minimum and on one of the sea days we gave it hell. Again - I'd do this cruise again! Now off to plan our next cruise, because I am officially addicted!