I almost missed my Royal Caribbean Adventure

I cruised with Royal Caribbean International as part of a press group through #Brandcation. While my cruise was complimentary, I did not receive any monetary compensation. As always, all opinions are my own. #SeastheDay

The last few weeks have been totally frantic for me. I cannot even believe what all I have managed to do since the end of March.  I tell people all the time that deadlines don’t register to me until they are here and I certainly waited until the end of the wire to pack for my awesome Brandcation #SeastheDay trip with Royal Caribbean.  My trip was supposed to start at 3 am on Thursday April 3rd.  I did not go to sleep at all and finally got packed at like 1 am.  I got my mostly platonic best friend up at 2:45 and we headed off for Atlanta, GA.  It was supposed to be a 2 hour, 45 min journey.

I guess I should have left at 2 because as soon as we hit Atlanta we hit traffic.  Yes there is still traffic that early in the morning.  It took over an hour for us to get the last three miles to the airport so I didn’t run into the airport until 7:15 for my 7:55 flight.  They told me that I missed it and I couldn’t board.  On top of that, every single flight out to Ft. Lauderdale was overbooked and they said they couldn’t put me on standby. I was devastated.  Finally after talking to Expedia forever and them not helping me, I called Delta directly.  The person I spoke with put me on standby for every single flight out until 1 pm (the ship left at 3:45). I ran back to the gate to get my bags checked and then all the way across the airport to check in for the first flight I could make which was the 9:45 am.  I was 5th in line for standby by the time I got there and it didnt look like they were going to have any seats at all.  Finally though I watched my name get bumped up and I literally ran to the guy to get my new boarding pass and he was SOOO sweet.  He said he was so glad they were able to help me get a flight out.

I made it! I even made it to the port before my group boarded without me.  It was my first time flying since 2009 and my only time every flying alone.  I also had to take a taxi which is a novel experience for me.  It was VERY EXPENSIVE.  Totally worth it though when I got my first glimpse of the Liberty of the Seas.  It is beautiful and super huge.  1,112 feet long and 185 feet wide. Can you even imagine that? We boarded and I was just whipping my head back and forth (hahahaha remember that for my soundtrack) trying to see everything.

My room was super sweet! It was way bigger than I thought it would be considering how many people go on cruises. I was thinking they would be like tiny elevator rooms but I was totally wrong.  I had a and while I was scared in the shower (has anyone ever seen the shower scene in Nightmare on Elm Street 5?) I was very comfortable in my home away from home.

If you want to see a great review of the staterooms and even a virtual tour, you can check out my friend Joy’s post over at JoyfulMusings.  Then you can see why I didnt want to leave my cozy bed everyday. The lure of the awesome ship compelled me though like the amazing restaurants I talked about in my 4Reasons I am Ready to Cruise with Royal Caribbean again.  I love the glass elevators where you can see the whole place jumping with activity.

And the fact that they tell you what day it is on the elevator floors.  I know I was having too much fun to keep track so I didnt even notice that little tidbit until Friday.

Or the really cool artwork all over the building.  These sculptures are made of either cheese, soap, or fruit.  Isn’t that awesome?

There were also cool paintings and artwork all over the building.  There was one wall of quotes that I loved! I don’t know why I liked this one so much but it is the one I chose to take a picture of.

and these awesome guys standing guard by the elevators

My Liberty of the Seas adventure is over but I will have more posts showcasing my awesome time.  Keep a look out on Twitter and Instagram for #SeastheDay to see mine and all the other Brandcation bloggers’ adventures!