Originally My DH and I were going to do a Sea of Cortez cruise on another cruise line during this time period, but then we got a great offer on a 14-day cruise to Hawaii (On the bucket list) and felt the need to "jump ship". We had a fabulous time, and one of the ports I had really wanted to go to on the Sea of Cortez cruise got cancelled due to high winds, so we made the right decision.

A little background; I am 48, DH is 53. This was our 11th cruise together, and our 9th time on Princess. This was also our second time on the Golden Princess. Our very first cruise together was on the Golden in 2004 so I was curious about the changes made during her Dry Dock a year ago.

After reading so many threads about missed ships I have come to the conclusion that it is folly to fly out the same day of your cruise if traveling during the winter, thunderstorm season, or if flying coast to coast. Keeping that in mind we flew out the day before, staying in Long Beach at the Hotel Maya a lovely boutique hotel that may have been a bit too trendy for 2 hillbillies from West Virginia, but we still managed to enjoy. The next day we took a taxi ($30) to the San Pedro pier. Read more