Escape the Winter to Miami

This is our very first cruise experience. After hours and hours of research from cruisecritic, we decided to do a 5 nights western Caribbean cruise with Celebrity century. My experience with them were two thumbs up. It was the best value cruise I think.

We paid about $1000(including tax) for the Balcony state room on deck 8 which turns out perfect. Balcony is about 42 sq. Great for morning coffee and romantic evening conversations. Love the sleek and contemporary cabin decor as well as those tons of storage rooms. We didn't even have to use half of the wardrobe. The only down fall is the bed is little short for my hubby who is 6'+. (Perfect for me tho- 5'7")

My favorite part about the ship is their food. It is also some editor's pick for Best Alternative Restaurants at Sea. I can live with Cafe island for 5 days but no, they have the main restaurant, the SPA restaurant, the open grill as well as the specialty restaurant. We didn't think is was necessary to spend 30 dollars per person for the specialty because the food in their main restaurant was AWESOME. The server was professional, the timing was perfect and the food was delicious. They even bring extra deserts for us to taste!!! Needless to say, both of us gained few pounds at the end of the cruise. Oh, the best part about our dining experience has to be the assigned seat. We were assigned at the tail of the ship which against the huge floor to ceiling window over look the sea and was right next to the captain's table too!

The other thing we liked about this cruise was the schedule they provide. 2 days on sea and 2 days on shore was perfect. You can do as much or as little as you want to . We spent most of our time on board under the sun since this is our winter escape trip from the Midwest. Soaked up the sun is number one priority. We also check out both island and did tuns of fun stuff ourselves.

We didn't use the SPA service or the Shore Excursion service so couldn't really comment on that. But the over all service was excellent! All stuffs were very friendly. We are so happy that we left extra tips for our Maria.

Entertainment was okay. I would imagine it been average cruise standard. There are enough things to do for us so we didn't really care. If you have kids or evening show quality is really important to you then maybe this is not the ship for you.

This is our very first cruise trip. After hours and hours of research, we decided to go with Celebrity Century on a 5 nights western Caribbean cruise. We also spent two night before the cruise as well as three night afterward. It was my very first winter escape from Midwest and I LOVED it!

Fare field Inn is a perfect place for pre-cruise stay. It is on the west side of the airport. What I like the best of it was the service they provides which makes it a great value hotel.

First, you don't have to spend $25-$30 on taxi to get to your hotel. They have 24 hours pick up service. Since they are very close to the airport, as soon as you land, give them a call, they show up within 10 minutes for us. (I've heard people have problem many other free hotel pick up but our experience with this one was excellent. ) P.S. we didn't get in until almost midnight as well.

Secondly, they provide free breakfast. That's perfect for me to start a morning. The variety of their breakfast is more than fare. Probably one of the best in those "Inn" standards.

Third, which is the most important things for me is free wireless. Not only you can use their free internet, they also provide free online access with two computers there so you can do research before you head out.

Last but not least, they also provide shuttle service to the port of Miami for only $7 a person at 10 and 11 in the morning. So if you are there for pre-cruise stay, you can check in , check out, have some free breakfast and hit your road to the port of Miami.

The price is around $100. What you would expect to pay for most Inn standard hotels in Miami.

The bonus for the location of this hotel which was also one of the reason why we chosen it was because it has quite a bit golf courses around. If you are there for the golf trip but don't want to spend too much money, take look at Fare Field Inn.

Earlier this year we had a cruise and decided to stay at Marriott Biscayne for another additional three nights afterward. The over all experience was excellent.

Since we've been a Marriott reward member for a long time, we've got enough points to redeem for the stay so didn't cost us anything for the room. Regular rates are about $250 and trust me, it's well worth it.

Check in was fast. We were told to come after three for a better room. The better room they told us became an ocean view with a balcony! It's facing the port where you can see all the cruise ship taking off which was amazing!

The room was very spacious and well designed. I loved the big desk and my hubby loved the 42" TV. lol

My favorite part was the trail size shampoo and lotion from bath & body works. Because I am fan!

What I thought was also very convenient was the little store/cafe right around the corner. You can get drinks and snack without step out of the mall. They even have a hot deli which serves huge portion of lunch packages.

All and all, loved it.