dennis-in-ct

we are on the legend Oct 2020 and looking forward to the cruise and the free steam and sauna facilities in the locker rooms.

I prefer this than the newer ships which are coed only

How does the Breeze handle the muster drill?

Do you line-up outside under the lifeboats or sit in a comfy lounge as we did on the MAGIC ?

We liked the aesthetics of the ship but will not sail the sunshine again due to the overcrowding. The pinch points from the lido pool to the buffet were crazy. Standing in line to get through the doorway was crazy. The ship added cabins and the it cant handle the crowds comfortably.

We sailed the Magic a couple weeks ago and loved it. Despite the size, we never felt "crowded" as we felt on the Sunshine. Our room was the lido desk and we had a balcony. We were impressed with the food options and entertainment.

No one has mentioned the muster drill on this ship. We sat in a lounge.

This was the first time we did not have to line-up outside with groups of people under the lifeboats. Rather, we simply went to the indoor lounge/theater and sat in comfy chairs for the drill. It was wonderful. By the way, what other Carnival ships offer this style of Muster Drill?

A first for us on the Magic was the new Guy's BBQ food on deck 5. I loved it but was disappointed to learn it was only open on Sea Days. Our second sea day rained heavily and despite the rains, the crowds lined-up for a BBQ lunch. It would be nice to have a covered waiting area.

Other posters mentioned the lack of deck chairs but we had no trouble. Could be a function of the crowds. Max capacity is 6K including staff - we had 5300 total on our cruise.

Would totally would sail the Magic again. Also I am a fan of the small ships (loved the Liberty as another poster stated). The Cruise Director, Dr. E was phenomenal. He and Matt Mitchem (sp?) are top notch.

As a non-smoker and did not love walking through the casino - but oh well. The Alchemy set-up did feel very different but I assumed was due to the additional areas not found on other ships like the Red Frog Pub.

We have sailed the breakaway twice and love the ship. How nice is it to board a ship in the freezing cold and go to someplace warm. One March we left out of nYC on the Carnival Splendor.

If we could join you we would :) !!

Enjoy ! And I hope you meet some pals

Hello All - my hubby and I have been on other Carnival ships but this will be the first time on the Magic. Western Caribbean- no private island stop.

Any comments from past Cruisers you feel will be helpful, please share.

Thank you !

My hubby and I really enjoyed that Shop last Jan out of FLL to key west and Cozumel.

I've been on the Breakaway on a couple of solo cruises. It absolutely does help if you go to at least one or two of the FOD meet/greets. One word of advice: Don't go and expect others to come to you and strike up conversation. I've noticed over many cruises that people feel awkward, or uncomfortable, or are just simply shy, so they hope someone else will take the initiative. On the Breakaway in particular, these meets are hosted at Shaker's, which wasn't very conducive to the purpose of the gathering. It's open, hence would hinder those that want discretion, plus there's no way to know who is who and whether they're at the bar for the meet/greet, or simply having a cocktail. I just suggestion you smile and say hello. There was one occasion it was switched to Bliss, which was awesome because there weren't any other activities going on, hence most everyone that came in was in the know.

 

My husband and I (and I do the same when solo as well) also take along our own beach towels to lounge by the pool. Mine is a simple rainbow flag towel while his is the bear pride blag. We don't wave them around; we simply put them on a lounger as we would any other towel. And BLAM! Folks know and those that are inclined stop by and say howdy. Made quite a few friends over the years with that tip.

Great advice Rick. My hubby and I had the same experience on the breakaway. We sailed twice and went to Shakers the first cruise. It is an odd and awkward time scheduled. On Carnival the LGBT meets at the Alchemy Bar are at 10pm and is a much better time.

On the pool deck, we noticed guys with pink flamingo towel holders and stuck up a conversation. Another time we saw a couple with Towels that had the Bear flag. I am pretty confident we can spot our own. So say hi when you notice something and don’t rely on the actual meets.

I would walk up to people and say HI when I spotted fellow tribe members. And I also realize just because we all happened to be gay that does not guarantee we will get along. So the comments from others about people not being friendly I understand. Some guys were not so friendly so I just moved on and said hi to other guys that were a better fit for us.

Have a great cruise - breakaway is a great ship.

Hello All -

I am wondering if Carnival will be sailing out of NYC next year in Oct., Nov., or Dec. ??

After searching for departures, I found the 2018 Horizon dates - May - Sept. Nothing after Sept. was listed.

Are we waiting on a Carnival announcement or does Carnival not sail out of NYC after Sept?

Very nice review considering so many Spring Breakers. Empress is one of our favorite ships!!!

FWIW, She was not understaffed. Since she is a small ship, crew quarters are quite small and they are filled to capacity. There is no room for additional crew when the ship is at max occupancy. They do a great job, don't they?

Thank you for the perspective. The staff was so impressive.

Thanks for your review! I'm a first time cruiser booked on the Empress for May 25-29 with my daughter to celebrate her college graduation. Reviews like yours help me manage my expectations!

You will have a GREAT time !!! :D Sounds like you will roll with the good and "eh" and enjoy yourself. Experiencing a newer (and bigger) ship is very different experience. I hope this cruise will make you want to cruise again.

And congrats on the graduation. So exciting.

My husband was married before we met and has three daughters. The youngest graduated four years ago. We have hopes that one day all the girls and their families to agree to a big family cruise.

Thanks for the review! I was on Empress a couple of weeks before you and am amazed at how similar our experiences were. I also had the sense that the ship was understaffed. Although the crew worked very hard, you could still tell that they were overwhelmed at times.

This surprises me. I really thought the understaffed feeling was due to spring break.

Oh, dear God!!! That's too funny! I wish I'd been there to witness the soup!! And had I been there, you would have had a 3x5 card in your room about the sub-group my mom and I invented...it's called "Friends of Friends of Dorothy". We just lurk in the shadows of the planned FOD get-togethers to choose who our new cruise friends will be! [emoji8]

 

 

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We would have hung out and laughed our asses off the whole cruise :')

Loved your review....very entertaining!!

Thank you for the kind words !

We never were able to use the pool or hot tub due to the Spring Breakers. It was like The Lord Of The Flies. They also seem to drink non-stop and never GET OUT of the hot tub.

The comedian who performed in the big theater joked about the crowd on the ship and nicknamed the hot tub "Chlamydia Soup"

Is there a Formal Night on Empress?

 

Thanks!

They either have "casual" or "smart casual"

We wore shorts and a collar shirt the whole time and it was fine. Very informal ship.

Usually on a small 3x5 card on an announcement board by guest services.

hysterical ... thanks for the info.

I never thought to ask Guest Services. I will keep that in mind.

Thanks for your review. Will be on Empress next month. Just curious what food they had for late night snacks and if you happen to recall how late food is available?

 

 

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Hello -

the buffet area called the Windjammer Café offers late night snacks from 10:30pm to 12:30am

The selections were -

- big salad bar

- fruit

- plain pizza squares

- peperoni pizza squares

- hot dogs

- breads

- chicken wings

- tacos

- desserts

- lobster (one night) must have made too much from that evenings dinner

- Sweet and sour chicken (one night)

- meat stuffed dumplings (one night)

Then the late night sandwich bar is 12:30am to 1:30am

- bad lunch meat - some loaf type stuff

Afternoon snacks are from 3:30pm - 5:00pm

Main dining room is until 9pm

Specialty dining is until 9:30pm

coffee bar open until 9pm in the Baleros Lounge (the BEST lounge - don't miss it !!! )

Room Service menu on the TV and I heard small portions is available from 6am to 2am

Hell All -

I finally made some time to share some thoughts about our March 3, 2017 sailing on the Empress of the Sea out of Miami and sailing to Cozumel and Key West.

FIRST OFF -

The cruise director - Carlos Torres - was one of two BEST directors. For me, he tied with Matt Mitcham on Carnival. The cabin steward Manuel for our cabin was outstanding.

THANK YOU to all the talent and performers. The live music was abundant and appreciated. Created such a nice vibe. Loved the performers and entertainment.

The food was average to poor.

Quick thoughts:

The ship felt understaffed but the people on this ship all worked very hard. The quality of the entertainment was phenomenal. The food was not good. I am curious to see if the newer larger ships offer better food quality. I am curious but hesitant to book another Royal Caribbean ship. I understand this is an older ship and the reason for the ship in the fleet is to travel to CUBA but the ship needs some TLC. We affectionately nicknamed it "The floating fart" ... the odors of the ship were often overpowering. The other maintenance issue was the large amounts of water that would periodically flood the pool deck from the base of the stair cases that led up to the open air deck. The people who were laying on the deck due to the lack of available chairs would have to get up and the workers would wet-vac the area.

Ship is very small and we were grateful that it did not rain. If it rained, there is really no place to go except the inside lounges and stare at each other. As compared to a lot of the Carnival ships which offer a pool towards the back of the ship with a roof that closes to shield you from the rain.

So .... We choose this ship because it landed on a birthday and went to the ports we enjoy and feel safe exploring on our own.

We are a couple in our 50's and have been on other cruises:

- MSC Poesia

- Carnival Glory (x2)

- Carnival Splendor

- Carnival Freedom

- Carnival Victory

- Norwegian Breakaway (x2)

- Royal Caribbean Empress (this review)

- and my prior cruises before marriage were Holland and Norwegian

We had a good time. Please do not misinterpret my comments as totally negative. Despite the 1300 spring breakers on board (out of 1800 passengers) and 900 of the 1300 bought drink packages which made it a little tough to get a drink but I fought my way into the bar. The ship felt understaffed on this cruise. I am guessing they staff the ship for the typical cruise - not a spring break "booze-up". The bar staff worked VERY HARD and did their best. We did not have a drink package. It was about 60.00 per person and I think my total bar bill was about 105. - or 16 beers total for the 5 day trip. It is worth it to note that Royal allows one person to buy a package as compared to Carnival which makes BOTH people per cabin buy the package. My husband does not drink so I never buy the package. I find it is cheaper - for me - to just order what I want - when i want and not worry about the cost.

The staff worked their asses off and were amazing. They truly did their best under the circumstances.

To be fair to the spring breakers - they really were well behaved and just having fun. They were polite and dressed well for dinner and made conversation. Some even "apologized" for their overwhelming presence on board. We just laughed and let them know all their "antics" were providing us with a lot of entertainment. We heard a young man say to his friend "hey - LANGUAGE" when his bro was using profanity. It was surprising and impressive to us.

CABIN -

We were on the 3rd floor and had an inside. The first time for us. I would not want to book an inside again. I feel I need a window at minimum.

Cabin was very small but we managed. And it was in very good condition. Seriously - no complaints. The only challenging thing was the shower. Very small. The joke from the cruise director (amazing and talented man - top notch) was to soap the walls of the shower and spin around to get clean. So true.

ENTERTAINMENT -

Outstanding. A large amount of gratitude to the performers and musicians. The live music in the lounges was lovely. What was new and surprising to us on this cruise was the variety of entertainment. In addition to the standard stage reviews, this ship offered a las vegas and America's Got talent people - and comedians. Granted - on larger ships I have sailed they have a separate comedy lounge. On this ship, there is none. Too small.

And a big SHOUT OUT to the DJ. It was so refreshing to hear an actual well balanced mix of music as compared to Carnival which seems to play the same over-aggressive 6 songs. I once spoke to a DJ on Carnival who commented they were only allowed to play the songs that Carnival bought a license to play. If that is true - I beg them to license more songs or hire new DJ's that will USE the song library.

SPA and FITNESS -

Ship is small and the the fitness "area" is really an overhang in the disco. So ... you are on a treadmill staring at a disco ball. No locker areas with showers, steam or sauna to use either. The spa downstairs from the fitness area has a small locker room with one shower they will let you use (ask nicely).

Again - back to if the weather is bad. Other ships have some type of steam / sauna areas to purchase. Co-ed areas with heated stone lounges, etc .... Not here on this ship.

FOOD -

Loved the Salad Bar options. Thank you. Saved us. Otherwise - Good to poor. The food was not really cooked well and the quality was not good. What the hell kind of lunch meat was offered? There were two loaf-like versions offered that I could not identify. What is wrong with having a deli sandwich station? Seriously.

One day in particular was a new low. The soup container offered FISH BROTH. Really? Who east THAT? And to make matters worse, the chocolate rice pudding dessert (looked like fried beans or worse) was next to the FISH BROTH. I think I walked out.

We appreciated the hamburger and hot dog station the ship would set-up by the pool area during lunch to alleviate the crowds in the buffet. Well done. And the ice cream machine was not self serve. They had a person stationed there at all times to dispense. The ice cream quality was better than Carnival.

In the main dining room I would have appreciated some standard choices - like a pasta dish. The "roasted chicken" was always on the menu and came out like a roof shingle. Would not order that again. It was a very tough over-cooked breast - nothing roasted about it. What I did appreciate in the min dining room was the ability to be served a drink in a timely manner. Thank you Iryvna (sp?) ... on Carnival, it is near impossible to get a drink on any of the ships I have sailed.

The late night snacks were embarrassing. This ship needs to do better.

FELLOW PASSENGERS -

As always - I love meeting the people of the cruise ships and this ship was even friendlier I think due to spring break. The people on the ship who were NOT part of the spring breakers seem to bond more than usual :) ! We needed to band together - lol

One disappointing note: No LGBT meets listed in their daily activities. Most other ships seem to list an LBGT meet.

EMBARK - IMMIGRATION - ETC

The easiest on this ship than any other. They do a phenomenal job.

In conclusion, we had a very good cruise. Was it my favorite? no.

But it met our needs to timing, ports, cost and a good time !!

The only reason for me to sail her again would be to visit CUBA.

Thank you Empress

we were on the Jan 2nd sailing and the Seafood Shack was up and running. The clam chowder in the bread bowl looked delicious

Is there a formal night and if yes which night was it held?

There is a dress-up night - day 2 - the night of the Key West visit

So, we avoided the mess by eating in the dining room. QUOTE]

 

Agreed.

We also did the same for the same reason.

 

 

At work, our dept. organizes the company Christmas party. It is a nice sit-down meal for 300 plus people. At the end of the mean, the dessert tables open. The series of tables are lined up. Cordials offered at one table, ice cream at other, crepes at another and so on. Well - people like to line up.

 

The venue expects people to approach the different tables with the item you want, take that item and leave. But people still line up. It is an insane LOOOOOONNNGGGG line - yet, people stand in line even if they only want one chocolate cordial baileys drink or just an ice cream that is at one table with no one in front.

 

We have BEGGED the venue to move the tables away from each other into separate stations so people are comfortable approaching the one table they are interested in - and the venue won't do it for logistic reasons. They insist that people will approach the tables and not line up .... and each year there is an exhausting line of people starting at the beginning. People like to line up.

 

Other Carnival ships have a station for bread items, fruit items, etc ... or dessert items at lunch time. And only the hot food items are in the buffet line. THAT is the ideal situation. The VICTORY arranges all the offering in one line due to space limitations. It is frustrating.

Our other port of call was Cozumel. I think the pier we docked at was new since a previous trip there as I don't recall the "shopping village" area. We didn't explore beyond there because during our last visit into Cozumel proper as we were exploring we saw a small pick-up truck drive by with an armed guard standing in the back ~ that was a little scary so this trip we decided to avoid that area.

Agreed.

We took a cab to "Centro" which is the downtown shopping area. Within seconds of leaving the cab, we were harassed non-stop for drugs, cigars, naked women and so on ... we got sick of the nonsense and took a cab right back to the port shopping area which is very nice and we learned our lesson - there is no need to leave that port area.

We did want to buy antibiotics and the pharmacies are downtown. If you want to buy pharmacy items, there are two right across the street from the port. No need to take a cab into town (Centro). Maybe the meds are slightly cheaper "in town" but when you weigh the 16. dollar cab ride (roundtrip) and the harassment, I would recommend just buying what you need at the two places across the street from where you get the cabs at the port.

Steam Room Temperature Question.

How hot is too hot?

I sailed the Carnival Victory Jan 2nd and they have the steam room set at 55 Celsius (which is 130 F.) Myself and other complained but they said it was set correctly. It really felt unsafe. The temp. gauge hanging inside the room read 138 - 140 F.

I googled the average temp and I found 110 F to 116 F is normal.

I was kind of annoyed because the room temp made it impossible to enjoy at such a scalding temp.

To answer the other question, if there is no free separate, I would purchase a pass if the facilities were not co-ed. If I am on a ship where the only option is a fee based co-ed, I would skip the whole thing and just hang out at the pool. And try like hell to NOT sail a ship if there are no separate facilities.

p.s. The Carnival Victory has free separate steam and sauna.

Great comments.

My husband and I were also on this cruise and had a blast. We loved the ship and the crew. Definitely would sail this ship again.

I would like to add some additional comments:

- Check-in: The lines to enter the building were outside along the sidewalk. Seems like a small building but the lines moved. It only took one hour total from getting in line on the sidewalk to walking onto the ship's lobby.

- The ship did not leave the port until approx. 8pm. No reason given for the delay. The sail away party was on time and fun. By the time the ship left, we were having dinner near a window and enjoyed the view as we set sail. Looking out the window we imagined a River cruise would offer a similar view.

- During the night, the Victory assisted in a search and rescue for Cuban refugees. The Captain made the announcement in the morning which explained the delay in docking at Key West. Instead of leaving at 1:30, the ship left at 2:30pm. Hope the refugees were safe.

- The lines at the lido were long. It reminded me of the Sunshine but less crowded. Our guess is the floor space does not allow for more food stations like we have seen on other ships. A shame because it would help with the lines. I guess I am one of the rude people who just walked up to the oatmeal pot at the end of the line, then reached to between people to grab a yogurt and a croissant. I am not waiting 25 minutes in a line for two items.

- LOTS of Latin music. They could have adjusted the percentage of Latin music down 20%. I am sure they use some metric to decide what to play and it must skew Latin. My surprise and delight was the 80's punk alternative music I would hear in the afternoon - The Ramones, Clash, Buzzcocks, Talking Heads and so on ... I was in my 80's glory !! The DJ made an attempt at being inclusive. We were moved by the Bollywood dance music he play "for the hot tub people". A large family of Indian people were all fired-up and showed their appreciation for his song choice. It was very nice to see.

- The entertainment was very very good. The last night in the main theater, VROOM was so good. Damn. The performers worked their butts off. The dancing shined more so than the vocals. So impressive. This isn't amateur hour. Bravo. We were wondering if this was a new show and maybe it would be implemented on other ships but I read here in this thread that VROOM is an older show. I am shocked. Also, the live band was a great touch.

- The punchliner was a lot of fun. We had the chance to see two of the comedians. No trouble getting into the lounge. Good crowd control.

- This was the first time we sailed a four day cruise. It was different. Seemed to pack a lot into a short time. For example, the funny "Love and Marriage" show that would normally be an evening show - happened at 2:30pm - it was just odd for us.

- We did not mind the lack of tablecloths. On formal night the table had a cloth. Although I will say we witnessed a glass of orange juice knocked over during Brunch and it spilled all over this poor women. If the table cloth had been on the table, it would have absorbed the spill and spared her from a lap-full of juice.

- Met nice people. There was a group of 20 people and another group of 80 people on board celebrating a birthday.

- Thrilled the sauna and steam room were part of the separate lockers and were free. I was NOT thrilled the steam room temp was set at 55 Celsius (130 Fahrenheit) which is NOT a safe temperature. It should be between 110 and 116 Fahrenheit. After complaining to the desk they reported to the engineer but I was told that is the temp it was set to. It is my opinion that 130 Fahrenheit is a safety hazard. No one was able to use it and kept running out. Please fix this !!!

Well - I should stop babbling now .... all in all - great cruise, great people and we had a blast.

Thank you Carnival !

I believe the Epic was the last ship in the NCL fleet which was designed with separate men's and women's steam and saunas. All the newer ships I have been on have coed facilities.

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Thank you for the info. I truly wish the breakaway followed the Epic's layout.

We loved the breakaway other than the spa setup.

It would be great to sail EPIC for my husband's big birthday next year :) plus we get to see Priscilla Queen of The Desert.