NeonD7

It definitely has its advantages!  The pier is literally 10 to 15 minutes from my house. 
Ok, there is one negative, I have to drive right by the cruise terminals every day on the way to and from work.  Do you have any idea how hard that is to be a cruise addict and have these ships dangling under my nose all week???  When I leave work, I see the ships heading out of the port, and my mind sits there and counts down the days until my next cruise....
 

It definitely has its advantages!  The pier is literally 10 to 15 minutes from my house. 
Ok, there is one negative, I have to drive right by the cruise terminals every day on the way to and from work.  Do you have any idea how hard that is to be a cruise addict and have these ships dangling under my nose all week???  When I leave work, I see the ships heading out of the port, and my mind sits there and counts down the days until my next cruise....
 

I feel your pain.... my wife and I have seven cruises lined up on the books.  I look at the calendar and its like watching paint dry as I'm waiting for the cruises to finally get here!!  

As you can see in my signature, my wife and I have seven eight cruises on the books as we steadily inch our way to Diamond Plus.  :-)   Getting very close now!
In late 2019 when the Mariner makes Port Canaveral its home, we plan on taking that ship for three day weekends on an every other month basis.  

As you can see in my signature, my wife and I have seven eight cruises on the books as we steadily inch our way to Diamond Plus.  :-)   Getting very close now!
In late 2019 when the Mariner makes Port Canaveral its home, we plan on taking that ship for three day weekends on an every other month basis.  

My wife and I just got off the DIsney Dream yesterday, Concierge level.  I'll be honest.... Disney does have a nice ship - the fit, finish, and attention to detail is incredible.  The food was great as well.  The concierge suites were so plush it was hard to leave when the cruise was over!  
That being said, the ONLY reason we did Disney was because RC has stationed the Majesty of the Seas at Port Canaveral.  We live ten minutes from the pier.  We had actually driven down to Miami a few months ago to go out on the Enchantment we were so desperate for a decent weekend cruise......  On Saturday my wife and I were in Nassau standing on the top of the Dream and watched the Majesty pull into the dock.  Ugh.... it isn't a very pretty ship and shows its age. 
Thankfully RC has heard our cries and is moving the Enchantment and eventually the Mariner to Port Canaveral.  Now my wife and I can get back to going out on weekend cruises every few months in addition to RC cruises from other ports.  Loyal to Royal!  :-)  

My wife and I just got off the DIsney Dream yesterday, Concierge level.  I'll be honest.... Disney does have a nice ship - the fit, finish, and attention to detail is incredible.  The food was great as well.  The concierge suites were so plush it was hard to leave when the cruise was over!  
That being said, the ONLY reason we did Disney was because RC has stationed the Majesty of the Seas at Port Canaveral.  We live ten minutes from the pier.  We had actually driven down to Miami a few months ago to go out on the Enchantment we were so desperate for a decent weekend cruise......  On Saturday my wife and I were in Nassau standing on the top of the Dream and watched the Majesty pull into the dock.  Ugh.... it isn't a very pretty ship and shows its age. 
Thankfully RC has heard our cries and is moving the Enchantment and eventually the Mariner to Port Canaveral.  Now my wife and I can get back to going out on weekend cruises every few months in addition to RC cruises from other ports.  Loyal to Royal!  :-)  

AMEN!!!  Royal Caribbean has heard our pleas and answered them..... THANK YOU ROYAL CARIBBEAN!!!  Although November 2019 is a ways away before the Mariner comes to Port Canaveral, we already have a bunch of other cruises booked, so it would have been hard to squeeze an additional booking in between the already booked ones.  But after it arrives, I can see my wife and I going out on it every three months or so.  It has been a wonderful thing to live a short ten minute drive over the bridge to the Port, and I drive by the ships every day on the way to work.  
In addition, the Harmony will be a nice addition to Port Canaveral.  I've been on the Oasis once, another trip planned in April.  From what I've read, the differences between the ships are minor, but that will give us an excuse to give Harmony a try to see for ourselves.  
Anyone know what will happen with the Majesty?  Sold for scrap?  Artificial reef?  Target practice for the navy?  
 

I totally understand your concern - its always a total crapshoot if you end up with compatible table mates.  My wife and I have only been seated at a four top once before, all others were six tops and up.  Luckily the other couple at the four top was very nice and we had an enjoyable time talking with them.  Our last cruise we sat at a 12 top and we ended up pairing off as two groups of six.... and the two groups never said a word to each other.  It wasn't awkward, we just really had a lot in common with the other four people at our end of the table and it was nonstop conversation!
My suggestion, see what you get and you can always get it changed after the first night.  That is especially important on a longer cruise - we have been lucky and only had one cruise where we could not STAND the obnoxious drunks we were seated with and asked (insisted) to be moved to another table.

I'll have to agree with the OP,  I'm also local to Port Canaveral and have avoided taking the Majesty for a weekend cruise due to several issues.  For reference, I have been on two other Sovereign-class cruise ships many years ago and at this point, they are all "long in the tooth".  I'm not afraid of the smaller ships, in fact the Enchantment is one of my favorites (and I'll be driving down down south next week to take it out of Miami).  
What do I gain for the hours of time spent driving down to Miami for the Enchantment instead of a ten minute drive and taking the Majesty out of Port Canaveral?  I get to dine in Chops and Giovanni's Table, I get to enjoy both a Diamond and Concierge lounge, and much better on board shops.  My wife and I are Diamond members who always book Grand Suites or above and these perks are important to us.  In spite of it being older, the Enchantment is well maintained and we love the ship, with the exception of the Windjammer layout which tends to get too crowded.  
I've had two friends who have sailed this year on the Majesty, one a single girl and the other a family, and both came back saying "NEVER AGAIN".  They both had the same story, raw sewage smells in the halls, unfriendly employees, horrible bar service, plumbing issues in the cabins, and mediocre dining experiences.  Why would I want to risk a horrible experience?  
As for my wife and I, we have started taking the Disney Dream out of Port Canaveral for weekend cruises, we have been on one earlier this year (it was fantastic) with another one booked for December.  We will also be driving down to Ft. Lauderdale next March to take the Serenade for a weekend cruise, we wanted to try the ship before we take it again later in the year on a week long voyage out of Boston on a Fall Foliage cruise with family.  
In short, I know some people may find the Majesty "acceptable", but we shouldn't have to settle for scraps.  When given a choice, I seriously doubt many people would choose it over ANY other ship in the RC fleet.  ALL of the other ships in the fleet have more amenities, specialty restaurants, and other features the Majesty just can't compete with.  We truly long for the day that the Majesty takes it last sailing out of Port Canaveral and is replaced with something, anything......  

We were on the Radiance on the Southbound route out of Seward at the beginning of the 2016 cruising season, the concierge booked the Skagway White Pass train for us while we were on board, no issues.  We might have just been lucky, that is one excursion you don't want to miss!  Next time we go in 2019 we will definitely catch the whalewatching tour at Icy Straight.

How about RC keep the Rhapsody, cut it in half and add another section like they did with the Enchantment and then sell the Majesty of the Seas for scrap.  Its an old dilapidated ship and my wife and I are furious that they based it in Port Canaveral, which we live very close to.  We refuse to go out on that ship and its really slowed down our weekend cruising!!!  At least we got the Oasis for week long cruises.