I suggest you visit and join CruiseCritic.com. You will find a wealth of information on your ship, ratings by people who have cruised on it, meet up groups that will be sailing with you, optional tour operators and more. We have about 25 cruises under our belt (I know, we are rookies) but never cruise without doing the research on Cruise Critic. I'm also one that disagrees with Ed, I'm retired so get me somewhere the slowest possible way.
I also recommend a balcony, nothing like sitting on the balcony and having breakfast and enjoying the solitude of watching the ocean go by.