It Started When I was Surfing the Web.....

It was about two years ago, and I was doing an usual activity of mine before retiring for the night waiting for Marty, who takes much longer to get ready for bed than I, perusing the different cruise web sites looking for a good deal, or an idea for that next "dream vacation."

I was on Carnival web site and they were promoting their newest ship; the as of then, unbuilt, but newly named, Carnival Vista. As this point it was all conceptual drawings, but it did look like a nice ship. We had sailed on the Carnival Magic in March 2013, and had really enjoyed all the ship had to offer. I was sure that this ship would have everything the Magic had, and more. One thing really intrigued me; The Havana Cabana cabins. I loved the concept, a cluster of cabins on deck 5, with exclusive access to its own pool area, and the outside cabins and suites had, instead of balconies, patios with ocean views. The patios were enclosed with a low fence to give you some semblance of privacy, but there was a walkway where others, I presumed other Havana guests, could walk past the patio. These patios were much larger than standard balconies and had a chair with footstool, lounge chair, and a hammock swing chair. When Marty finally came to bed I showed it to him and he was mildly interested, and I checked the available dates for December 2016 (The ship would not launch until May 2016, and not start its Caribbean sailings until November). I quickly honed in on the fact there were only four suites in the Havana area, and two were already booked. That's when the seed was planted for this trip. I would make it first class all the way! Book a suite, fly to Miami First Class, have a limo pick us up to take us to the airport, and fly down a day or two early and stay at a fancy resort. Maybe even go down to Key West for a couple of days, AND keep all the details a surprise for Marty.

The first step was to book the cabin, which I immediately did, placing a 24-hour hold, until I could call the next morning and place a deposit.

Two years is a long time to wait, and it was far too early to book airfare or hotels, so I busied myself with planning other trips until I got to December 2015, when a new idea popped into my head, courtesy of a cancelled cruise on NCL's Epic.