This was our first cruise as a family and I give it at 10 out of 10! My kids loved it, I loved it. Naomi loved it. From our fabulous aft cabin with the ridiculously amazing (and huge) balcony, to The Haven dining room, to our specialty dining (minus Teppanyaki) to the almost empty Haven pool during sea days (and the Veuve Clicquot on TAP the entire trip) it was a trip of a lifetime. Were there things I would do differently now that I have cruised with my kids? Definitely - there are more blogs to come with new cruises we’ve taken and all the lessons I learned from our first voyage.

On the morning of disembarkation we had breakfast in The Haven dining room and when finished we were escorted off the ship by a butler - took less than 10 minutes. We cleared through customs and security in no time and had our bags and were ready for pick up. This was the trip that the cruise bug bit me hard in the tush (and my kids too) and we decided that cruising would become a major part of our vacation lives.

A couple a quick notes - having traveled in The Haven our experience was not typical of cruises with the masses. I must say that it did not impact us when we sailed in a non-suite level class! We just LOVE cruising no matter what the cabin or class! My kids are so flexible and love cruising that they just don’t really notice or care that the last 3 cruises we’ve been on have been non-suite/Haven-class level and they have had a fabulous time. Do I miss it? YES! Once you’ve sailed in The Haven it is hard to not have all those fabulous amenities but you’re still ON A CRUISE! I am not cleaning, or cooking and for this busy single mom that’s all I need for a great vacation.

I hope this information has been helpful and look for my next installation on my girls trip, themed cruise, The Broadway Cruise, coming soon!