We are going to miss our balcony at the Hilton. There is always something going on in and around the marina. Since it’s the start of the weekend, we have a sailing class that’s about to get started:
Some are being pulled along. They will get their feet wet out along the coast on the Atlantic. When you see them farther away in the ocean, they look like “tiny pups” on the water. So cute that I want to take one home with me!
Hubby and I head out for a quick coffee run and simple breakfast and want to get back to enjoy a quick view of our ship, Caribbean Princess which is docked at Terminal #2:
She pulled in versus backing up into the dock area and so we were pleasantly surprised to see her facing us. What could we do but just smile at her beauty.
Back at the hotel, we finished some packing. D and M came for a quick visit to see our room with a view. Since there were four ships in port today, we were not allowed to do a late checkout at 12 noon. We said goodbye to our balcony and waited for what seemed like eons for an elevator to arrive. Two of the three elevators were working.
After our coffee run, I made a last minute reservation for shuttle service. This was a first for us. Normally, we would use the Princess transfer to get on and off the ship. We decided to do this on our own. There’s a company, Quick & Easy, that mans a temporary desk in the lobby and offers shuttle services to the cruise port. They only take cash and I made arrangements for a 12 noon pickup for a party of 4. We all checked out of our rooms by 11am and settled in around the bar and pool area with our luggage. No need to have Concierge hold the luggage for a short amount of time. Save some $.
Around 11:45, I checked to see if a shuttle would be on time. Much to my surprise, they were waiting for us. We all hopped into a van with 5 suitcases and 4 bodies and were on way to Port Everglades. It was at most a 10 minute ride and we were dropped off in the luggage drop off area. A porter immediately took our luggage. Since we are Elite, we were able to get D and M to board with us. We quickly went through security and then through a quick line at the counter to get our cruise cards. It took about an hour from the time we left the hotel to the time we arrived on the ship. This was the fastest and hassle-free boarding we have done in our history of cruising. Another first in our adventure.
I help direct D and M to their cabin on Emerald deck. They have an obstructed-view window cabin. On this ship, Princess has done a great job with arranging the furniture and bed in this cabin. Makes it easier to get into bed from the sides. Other variations, you would have to get into bed by crawling from the end. Their view is between two of the ship’s tenders. Good view.
I head up one deck to Dolphin to our mini-suite/balcony cabin to look for Hubby. He is relaxing and already in cruise mode. It didn’t take long for him.
I survey our room and make mental notes or things to do to get our room “functional”. Last year, we were cruising on Princess’ newer ship, the Regal Princess. We also had a mini-suite, but the configuration was slightly different and the cubby holes/drawers were much larger and well just more abundant in that cabin. For example on the Caribbean Princess we have tiny desk drawers, where on other ships we would have shelves behind a door. Just little differences in where I store things and then trying to remember what’s where.
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