The first cruise I ever took — the Sun Princess in October 2024 — happened to collide with Hurricane Milton. Leave it to me to take my inaugural sailing during peak storm season.

Honestly, I wasn’t even sure I’d make it to the ship at all. My flight from San Francisco to Fort Lauderdale was almost rerouted; the gate agent warned us we might land in Miami instead. In the grand scheme of things, a 45-minute Uber ride didn’t sound catastrophic — but when you’re starting your first ever cruise, every unknown feels oversized.

Luckily, my flight did land at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport as planned. The cruise itself? Not so simple. The Sun Princess didn’t actually set sail as scheduled. We left a full day late, as the port was closed to new ships coming in.

For me, that me

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