For the third year we decided to cruise for the Christmas holidays. We have traveled on Carnival many times and knew what to expect. Last year we cruised Holland America and had more of a festive experience. This year I traveled with my family, my mother and her husband and my best friend and her family. In total we had 4 teenage boys with us ages 19, 16, 16 & 14. We chose Carnival for the price and the fact that we wanted 2 rooms for our family.

We drove about 3 hours to the Port of Miami on Dec. 24th. It is extremely easy to travel to the ships at the port (unlike Ft. Lauderdale where you must pass through a security checkpoint while still in your car). Inside the terminal was a different world! Lines everywhere. Once we were checked in we were given a Zone 20 boarding card. As we waited and waited...they called Zone numbers in the 40's...my son asked me "are the going to 100?" Suddenly, they called General Boarding...and everyone headed up the escalators to the ship. So frustrating!

We occupied a balcony room on Deck 9. Our friends were next door and our boys were in Inside rooms across the hall. I love Deck 9 forward. It is pretty much a dead end, so not many people pass by your cabin. Walk the other direction and there's the pool and buffet. Our cabin steward was Josico and he was fabulous!! I usually feel guilty about the amount of time my teenagers sleep on a cruise during the day...but from day one Josico said to not worry about a thing this was the boys' vacation too!! Wow! He even took our friends next door under his wing even though he was not their assigned steward. Read more