As would-be first time cruisers, my husband and I debated for several weeks whether or not we should even take a cruise vacation. Weighing concerns over claustrophobia (a red herring worry) and seasickness (ditto, except for some weird feelings of suspended equilibrium the first night) and the feeling that we would be big losers not to take a cool vacation for once in a long time, we finally decided to give it a shot.

But then, next big decision! Where to go, what cruise line, when, how long? Our nearest embarkation port was Jacksonville, serviced primarily by Carnival. After a little research on this website and others, we decided that Carnival was not the way to go for us. We are thirty-something professional types with no kids, but being the party animals at our age when we weren't at 21 is not our idea of a fun way to spend a vacation. Visions of dressing up for dinner and "adult" music and beautiful public areas kept popping up in our head. In all fairness, we have not cruised with Carnival, so it may be the place for you, but from what we researched, it would not have suited us.

We looked farther afield, and discovered that the selection was much bigger in Port Canaveral. Disney, Carnival, RC (we think), and Holland America (HAL) all sail from there, and to boot, the port was only a four-hour straight shot from us down I-95. Again, the Internet was very helpful, and HAL emerged as the victor. We liked the fact that all the reviews raved about the good food and classy interiors, and we appreciated the fact that while some complained about a slower night life and social calendar, that was just our speed. Read more