Pre-Cruise: Following five cruise cancellations during Covid, it was great to be cruising again! Following a 7-hour drive from North Florida, we stayed at the Courtyard in Dania Beach ($269/night). The hotel was clean and well maintained and was very convenient to the airport and cruise port (5 minutes). However, we found the hotel to be very noisy due to the proximity to the airport runways, a commuter rail station across the street, and a nearby interstate highway; I would not recommend the hotel.

Embarkation: Celebrity had assigned us a 12:30 terminal arrival time, so we left the hotel at 10:30 am and drove to the port (10 minutes). It took about 45 minutes to clear the security at the port entrance, drop our bags curbside, and to park the car in the adjacent port garage ($15/day). The garage has automated the payment of parking fees, so take the ticket with you and pay at the machines by the elevators when you return.

We walked to the terminal around 11:45 and they had a series of lines outside the terminal designated by arrival times. Mask are required for all guests during the embarkation process. A number of people were already in line, and they were letting a few people into the terminal from each line on a rotational basis. Have your boarding pass, passport, COVID vaccination record, and COVID testing results in hand as each will be checked as you enter the terminal. The check-in process is handled while you are in line entering the terminal, so there is no need to go to the counter inside as in the past. The embarkation was well managed and after a short wait in the terminal, we were on the ship, by a little after noon. Read more