I<3toCruise

Is there a basketball court on the Pride? Does anyone have a picture? How many baskets?

Yes, there is. I'm sorry, no pics, but my husband said he saw it last week-- and recalls only one basket. Also thinks the mini-golf goes around the court.

I was on that same cruise, (tall skinny guy in a Kilt). In Roatan you can always take the nature trail that bypasses all the shops and makes for a nice walk to the beach, took me all of 15 minutes of "lazy" walking taking pics along the way.

There were a couple of you guys wearing kilts....Cool!

Would've been nice to know that about Roatan. We would've probably gone that route. Thanks for the heads up for next time!

We were also on the same sailing and have to agree with the above poster, you had to look, but there was always something open on the Lido. I agree the pizza is awful but the deli was open every night as well as at least one section of the buffet area. We never went hungry.:D

I suppose you guys are right.... they didn't look hard enough to find something open. In our past experiences, we'd had grills on the lido deck open- with hot dogs, hamburgers, chicken tenders, etc., at the same time normal dinner was going on in the dining room. Maybe they just didn't find the "one section" open... or even just didn't like what they had. No worries, no one went long without eating, we all survived. :)

One of the first replies asked what staterooms we've had to compare this one to.

Collectively, we've been on the Holiday (2005), Fascination (2007), Fantasy (2012 and 2013), and Freedom (2014).

This surprised me too. I have been on the Pride 4x already and never heard of the Lido buffet not being open during dinner time - not on the Pride or any other Carnival ship. OP, what time did you check and find it closed ??

Have heard more con than pro things about current cruise director. I really liked Kirk Benning, who was CD on all 4 of my previous Pride cruises, but CD doesn't make or break a cruise for me, so I'll be okay with whoever is my next CD.

I wish they'd put the Italian restaurant on Pride instead of sushi. I know lunch in Italian restaurant is free while dinner has a charge. Is sushi restaurant free at lunch time ? (Not that I care - I don't like sushi. I'm just curious ).

Can't wait for Pride to return home to Baltimore and for my cruise on her in April. Despite some problems, I'm glad you were able to enjoy your cruise.

I know... we were surprised too. Nothing was open, except pizza, from 6-9:30 in the Mermaid's grill. (Lido) It was strange. I can't confirm this happened all nights, but 3 I am certain of. My husband and son had to wait until 9:30 to eat at Good Eats (Lido Buffet) until 9:30, because they didn't eat in the Normandie.

The sushi restaurant is always for a charge. The only people we ever saw in there were the crew- they seemed to like it. I would have loved an italian restaurant too!

This was our family Christmas trip. Mom, Dad, two kids - 16 and 12.

We left on time. (I saw posts of habitual delays.)

The ship was beautifully decorated for Christmas, even had lighting of the Menorah for Hanukkah, and though we aren't Jewish, we thought was neat. The last night, it "snowed" in the atrium while staff passed out Santa hats and a group sang carols on stage. (It was soap.)

We had a pleasant time overall, but a few things were off-putting.

(This was my 3rd cruise, and our kids' 5th.)

1. Our waiters in the main dining room were not as good as others we've had. They didn't ask if we wanted anything other than water to drink (no tea or lemonade, or anything from the bar...) and we had to ask for refills 3 different nights.

2. During the times the Normandie (the dining room) was open, there was no other options for dinner. (Unless you wanted pizza. And the pizza was thin and greasy.) Other ships we've been on have had the option for more causal dining at the same time on the lido deck.

3. George, the cruise director, was a bit snarky. He was not approachable and sarcastic--thinking he was funny. He came off as arrogant.

4. Same with a couple of the other entertainment staff. (Jonesy was completely rude. However, Ross, Max, Erica and Venice were awesome.)

5. Our stateroom was hella small. Like ridiculously. Room #5279. It was an inner room. King bed, and the kids had bunks and came down over top of ours. I'm short and couldn't sit up straight on the bed. We learned we'll just have to upgrade to a balcony or suite next time.

6. Unless you get up WAY early on the Belize day and the Grand Cayman day to get a tender ticket, you have to wait for the "general call" - which doesn't happen until around noon. That cuts into your time in port. (So get up, or wait.)

7. O2 (for the older teenagers) was not supervised or nothing planned. (Which was fine...) but once when our daughter went up, she found a group of kids sitting around (just to be away from their parents) playing a game of "Never Have I Ever" or "Truth or Dare."

8. You have to walk through the casino to get to the Taj Mahal and The Butterfly Lounge (where they hold shows, etc.) One evening, apparently it was okay for a lady to be at the table playing roulette while her two kids slept in chairs nearby for about an hour. Another evening, my son (12) stopped behind me at a slot machine and was told by security to leave. (He wasn't rude- actually apologetic and very nice- but obviously there was no consistency.)

9. As far as cleanliness, it was fair. The ashtray on the third deck aft, one of the few places to smoke, was never emptied and overflowing. It became a game to see how long we'd see the same coffee cup or glass some passenger had left in an elevator or hallway. They weren't real quick.

10. I've seen a lot about the 2.0 upgrades. I would have liked to have seen it before. The Alchemy Bar was new and trendy. (But we didn't hang out there.) Bonsai (the sushi restaurant) looked nice, but there was never anyone in there. (It cost extra.) The rooms were not upgraded. (Old TV, taped-up remote control... but it didn't matter much because us adults couldn't see the TV anyway because the kids bunks were in the way.) Most of the other decor was a bit dated. The art on the walls was a little strange... lots of topless ladies and little boys.

11. Mahogany Bay was Mahogany Boring. If you don't book an excursion, you can walk around a bunch high-priced boutiques or get $15.00 nachos at Fat Tuesday. (For those that don't know, that's the only food they serve.) You can also take a 15 minute walk to a little strip of beach, or pay $12.00 for a chair lift to it. (We did neither.)

I know it sounds like I'm complaining... I'm really not. These were just the things "we made water" (like ducks- rolling off our backs). Like I said, overall we had a great time. Guys Burgers were great, the comedians were awesome, and we enjoyed the shows. We made some friends, won some trivia (Yeah for ships on a stick!) and watched a few movies. I broke even in the casino...without my 12 year old standing behind me! ;)

Yes, as someone stated, the two "formal" nights are the second night (first day at sea) and the day you're in Mahogany Bay. We noticed that the Pride didn't seem to care as much as other ships how "formal" you are.

Just wanted to tell you also, we didn't personally eat at the steakhouse, but we heard from fellow passengers that it was such a waste of money. The food is the SAME as it is in the Normandie for dinner... and ours was "free." Or, for $20.00 extra, you can order off the steakhouse menu in the regular dining room...which saves you $15.00.