I think of 2022 as the year of the cruise because I went on a lot of cruises last year! I was working on a pretty intensive cruise certification and I’m happy to say I’m officially an Accredited Cruise Counsellor! Last year I sailed on Royal Caribbean, Virgin Voyages, Disney Cruise Line, and Norwegian Cruise Line. We had a blast on each sailing and I’ve decided to level up my cruise knowledge. I’m now working on my Master Cruise Counsellor certification which means more cruises and more knowledge!
Yesterday, we began our journey for some new destinations and a new-to-us cruise line. We’re sailing on Princess Cruise Line and will visit Jamaica, Columbia, Costa Rica, Panama, and Grand Cayman! Princess Cruise Line is known for their Alaska Cruises, but since we were just in Alaska this past September, we wanted to go somewhere new.
Our journey began at the Cleveland Airport. We flew American Airlines and had the luxury of no line at the check-in counter. The TSA pre-check line was longer than normal, but still not long. Once we cleared security, we were on a mission to find The Club. This year I switched my business credit card to a card with more perks. One of the perks is access to select airport lounges. We found the lounge at the beginning of the B terminal and went inside. It was packed and we needed to join the waitlist. We waited about 15 minutes and then we were in.
The Club in Cleveland is a VIP lounge that many gain access to via their credit card or you can pay for a yearly PriorityPass. The lounge was busy, but relatively quiet from a volume level. There is a small buffet that had salad, vegetables, desserts, Swedish meatballs, hummus & pita, broccoli cheddar soup, and a few other things. Brian got the avocado hummus and pita, my son went for the gummy bears, and I had the broccoli cheddar soup. It was all fantastic and “free.” You also get drinks in here. I ordered a Blood Orange Mimosa and Brian had a rum and coke. We had time for two rounds and then off to our gate!
We always travel with a stroller. Sometimes the overstimulation in airports can be too much for my son. When that happens, being able to close him in his stroller with his iPad and headphones does the trick of calming him down. Another perk is that sometimes airlines will give you priority boarding because you have a stroller. That was the case today and we boarded behind one person on a large plane! This is especially nice because an empty plane is much less visually stimulating and my son does better boarding an empty plane.
We took an afternoon flight so that my husband could work a half day and my son could go to school. The downside to this is that only connecting flights were available. We connected in Charlotte which is one of my least favorite airports. The corridors are relatively small at this airport and it’s always packed with people. When we arrived in Charlotte, the first thing we did was look for our next gate. I always like to find my next gate before doing anything else at the airport. There are gates out there that are incredibly strange with much longer walks than you’d think. What happened to us today was a first for me. We got off our Cleveland to Charlotte plane, looked for our gate, and we were already there! We were getting back on the same plane that we just de-planed!
We had about 45 minutes until our next flight so we decided to find The Club Charlotte. It’s located at the beginning of the A terminal and was about a 10-15 minute walk from our gate. This lounge is much larger than the one in Cleveland, but bigger isn’t always better. Food here is ordered from the QR code at the tables versus a self-serve buffet. It took about 15 minutes to get the teddy grams and two pieces of cornbread we ordered. It’s not a terribly long wait, but when you’re in a hurry to get back to your gate, it feels like forever. Alcohol is served only at the bar so Brian walked over there to get a drink. We quickly devoured our snacks and then back to Terminal C.
Our stroller didn’t get us priority boarding this time around. We boarded in group 5 and headed right to the same seats we had just sat in for the first flight. I had another first happen to me on this flight. The flight attendant completely skipped over us. I mean I guess I’ve had this happen when I was sleeping, but that was not the case. It’s like she completely couldn’t see us. After she went a couple rows behind us and it was clear she had forgotten us, I chirped up and she came back to give us some snacks and drinks. My son really likes his snacks.
We gathered our bags from baggage claim and then headed to the hotel pick-up area. The inside signs weren’t marked that well, but once we got outside, it was clear where to go. We arrived at 10:57pm and snagged the last hotel shuttle to SpringHill Suites. The shuttle stops operating at 11pm so we definitely cut it close! Had we missed it, there was a line of taxis next to us we could have taken. Our shuttle driver drove us through a nice shopping/dining area before taking us to our hotel.
Our hotel was in an area called Dania Beach and I’d recommend staying here before a cruise. It’s relatively close to the airport and the cruise port. It obviously had the airport shuttle which was free. They also have shuttles to the port available for $20 per person. There are a lot of restaurants, shops, and entertainment within walking distance. It’s nice when you don’t have a car! This time we didn’t utilize the location since we only wanted to check-in and go to bed, but had we gotten in early we would have explored!
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