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12 hours ago, sprint180 said:

following, can't wait to read more.  Enjoying so far!

Thank you!

14 hours ago, grandmarnnurse said:

Following. The Ecstasy was my first Carnival ship in 2000. Perhaps we will try it again. 

Thanks for following!

14 hours ago, Jamman54 said:

Following along. We will be on the Ecstasy next month. We cruise from Jax frequently and are glad to hear that they are finally boarding onto Empress Deck. 😎

It was a nice surprise, however it was funny because several of the outside staff tried to get us to check our luggage saying how steep it was.  We didn't have any problems, but I would think that folks with mobility issues might be happier checking luggage.  This is a sturdy concrete structure, which led us to assume that any talk of moving the port has been suspended for a good while, which in turn means Fantasy class (ie: fits under the bridge ships) in JAX future.  We're cool with that!

EMBARKATION:

We parked and carried on all our luggage – a rolling bag and small shoulder bag for DD and me, rolling bag only for DH.  We are Platinum, so walked in the VIP lane, scanned us in and moved on to the lounge.  One weird thing happened at this point.  DH was first – they took his photo with the little camera and waved him on.  DD was next – they scanned her passport, grabbed her picture from that and moved on.  I brought up the rear and she swiped my passport but didn’t get my picture either from me or the passport.  So when were called in a few minutes later (after the small wedding party) I had no picture.  That person got some assistance and then I was ready to go. Had not had this issue before.

Since the Ecstasy has moved to Jacksonville, they have changed the embarkation platform.  There is now a steep concrete ramp that you must zigzag up to enter on Empress.  Some people had a little difficulty with this, however we were fine.  Then the next weird thing happened.  We headed to our room, which was supposed to be ready.  Several crew asked if we were ok.  When we said we were Platinum and heading to our room, half of them said "OK, great" and the other half said “Rooms ready at 11:45.”  Hmm, ok, well, we’re going to check anyway. 

Sure enough, our room was ready, keys in an envelope outside.  We were in by 11:06!  Now later that day, we saw on the TV that it did say rooms for Platinum/Diamond ready at 11:45.  We hadn’t gotten any communication prior to this, so we did as we have always done and it worked this time, but if they are going to change to a set time, they need to communicate.  It may be that they were only ready because of the very small number for Platinum/Diamond cruisers on this sailing.  

No pictures of the port.  I will continue with the cabin, rest of cruise and pictures later on.

Here's happy hour stuff and the robot!

The Ecstasy was the ship that my husband and I took on our honeymoon in 1994.  It was the first cruise for both of us and we quickly became hooked.  24 years and 45 cruises later, we booked this one from a bounce back offer that he got from our May Elation cruise.  This was with our daughter who is 15.  I will give opinions from all 3 of our perspectives in this short review.

GETTING THERE:

We live in Virginia and cruise out of Jacksonville frequently.  It’s an easy (for us) drive down I-95 and normally we can do the drive with one stop within 8 ½ hours, give or take 10 minutes or so.  This trip, we left just after 8 on Wednesday in good weather/normal traffic.  We stopped in Dillon, SC at exit 193 for our normal gas/potty/food stop at the Mobil gas station, then cross the street to the Wendy’s and back on the road.  We had been checking the weather frequently and the consensus was that Jacksonville would be experiencing severe thunderstorms from around 5 (our ETA) until well after 9.  Based on that, we made the good decision to skip our normal Hilton Garden by the Airport stay and stop at the Embassy Suites in Brunswick, GA. 

This hotel is ~ 3 miles off the interstate and is connected to a mall.  This was definitely the right choice as the weather was beautiful here and DD had her own room.  We took advantage of the 5 to 7 happy hour (house liquor well drinks and Bud Light are free) and enjoyed snacks and a very good BBQ chicken flatbread (there was a charge for this).  Did I mention that this Embassy Suites has a robot? 😎 He will deliver items to your room when requested.  Supposedly he will approach and ask if you want to hear a robot joke, but sadly, he did not stop at our table. After that DD and I walked around the mall and bought a few things from Belk which was having a clearance sale! (Shocker!  - If you are near a Belk, you know they are always having a sale.)😉

In the morning, I got up and found the gym. It’s located awkwardly in a room behind the breakfast area, so you have to walk around breakfast patrons in your gym attire to and from the gym.  Strange.  After my morning walk, I headed back to the room to shower and get the rest of the family for breakfast.  Cook-to-order breakfast is also included in your stay and everything was very good.  We were packed up and into the car by 9:30 and got to the port ~ 10:35!  Easy, peasy!

Here are a couple of views of our room:

40 minutes ago, jmcathome said:

Carnival has biscuits?Since when?

I've only see them in the dining room.  

Just off the Ecstasy on 7/15.  We were Riveria deck aft.  Did not notice any smell although the ship is definitely ready for her drydock.  Trying to finish my short review this week.

37 minutes ago, Butterbean1000 said:

I've haven't had them yet. I am from the south and we really love our biscuits and gravy.  I will try it on my next cruise, but I am not setting my expectations high.

Do yourself a favor and don't.  Carnival cannot make biscuits or cornbread that a southerner should ever have to suffer to eat.

6 hours ago, lottiegreen56 said:

Is drinks on us 5 or 15 minutes between drinks?

 

It used to be 15 minutes, but last 4 cruises we've been told 5 minutes.  15 limit per 24 hours, no change.

3 minutes ago, Essiesmom said:

 

No, that's a shot from Ecstasy's webcam.  EM

Gotcha!   We were excited to see Vista pulling in, but she just parked in the spot that the Pride had just vacated.  We left before they started the move to dry dock.

On 7/12/2019 at 4:57 PM, Baddabing said:

Just booked a last minute cruise,  I was hopeful that food would be better than ok. Going out in 2 weeks. 

Just got back yesterday from the 7/11 sailing.  We enjoyed Blue Iguana and the deli.  Pizza wasn't great.  The MDR food was hit or miss.  First night in MDR was amazing. 2nd night was closer to average.  Last night we got filet mignon from steakhouse selections and it was tender and cooked perfectly but under seasoned.  We had better food overall on the Elation in May.  I hope to post a full review this week, so will have some input before your cruise.  Let me know if any other questions.

On 7/12/2019 at 6:14 PM, Essiesmom said:

From Ecstasy:

 

Were you on this cruise?  I was just about to post a picture from the other side of the ship! 😎

You mentioned that you have been on smaller water crafts and been fine.  You will probably be fine on the ship.  Ginger is good to have and it won't hurt to buy a pack of sea bands.  Sometimes DH and DD will each wear one and will be fine.   Sounds like you are going in with a great attitude and that counts for a lot!!  Enjoy your cruise!!

11 hours ago, ginarbo said:

Can I purchase drinks outside of the casino? I understand regardless it is a 15 drink minimum but wondering if I can purchase a drink somewhere else on the ship? 

Yes. At every bar they will run your folio # on the sail and sign card.  In the casino, during operational hours, the charge will be $0.   

Just means no one has created one.  It happens especially with the smaller ships.

11 minutes ago, Elaine5715 said:

Not misleading, if you have both, you are still maxed at 15 drinks.  

You stated "Do one or the other" and implied by having both you are limited to 15 drinks.  I was attempting to clear up that you are limited to 15 drinks if you have DOU, if you have Cheers or yes, if you have both.  

We always carry on and off.  No issues.  One thing I will say is that occasionally we have had aggressive porters telling us that our suitcases won't fit through the scanner and that we must drop off.  We just tell them that they have fit the last (insert # here) cruises, thanks!   😎  Enjoy your cruise!

On 7/6/2019 at 8:36 PM, Elaine5715 said:

Do one or the other.  You would be limited to 15 alcohol drinks per drink  in total if you have both.

  This is misleading.  You will be limited to 15 alcohol drinks with EITHER Drinks on Us in the casino or the Cheers package.  Paying as you go is not limited in any way.

To the OP - yes, you can go to the casino, order, get your drink and leave.  If you are a beer drinker you can order one, then order another 15 minutes later and take them to the room fridge and come back up and do it again.   They don't care, just will limit you to 15 per day.  Once you hit 10 there will be a number at the bottom of your receipt indicating what # you are on for the day.  The day runs from 6am to 6am.  Enjoy your cruise!

Hubby and I were just talking about the duvets!  We recently got a weighted blanket for sleeping and love it.  We did not miss it on the last cruise because of the wonderfully heavy coverings!!😎

The insulated coffee thermos and blue Carnival bags that were some of the first Platinum items are awesome.  I still use both and gave away several to family as gifts and they still use them.  Truly nice quality.  We also love the beach bag/cooler zip bottom and use it often. Someone else mentioned the black toiletries bag.  Use that every time we travel anywhere. Tervis cups are great and still used.  Nice metal frames, ditto.  Packing cubes, night light, blankets, all fine.  

The absolute worst gift, hands down, worse than the lame lanyards that we could at least give away... 

those round balsa wood boxes with the tiny square of paper inside.😖

This just popped up on my news feed.   Prayers for the injured and all affected.

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/four-carnival-passengers-airlifted-to-us-after-bahamas-bus-crash/ar-AADnUrt?ocid=ientp

12 hours ago, herb said:

Hi Jeff...

Nice to "see" you again after a long time. Still keep in touch with a whole bunch of past C@ posters on FB. I'm leaving on the Sunrise in August and of course all this nonsense in the DR has garnered my attention. I'll be sailing with a group of approx. 40 people; friends and family.

I originally did not want to go since my wife JoAnn passed away suddenly last August and this will be my first vacation in 38 years without her. Everyone talked me into going so I'll try to make the best of it. Hope all is well with you...

Condolences for the loss of your wife.  May the cruise with friends and family make it easier to deal with this sad anniversary. 

1 hour ago, mommag3boys said:

We just booked a cruise in October on the Magic under Premier. We actually had a different one booked but switched because this offered more. We each have $500 funplay, $500 off rates and Free Drinks while in the casino. I've never seen the free drinks anywhere offered, that would be nice. However we usually hit free drinks in the casino so never purchase them. If we want drinks while walking around we just pop in the casino and flag a server down and get a drink and walk out.

 

The only downside is as we were booking they sold out of Ocean View. We've never sailed without a porthole or something but overall we're saving $800 more on the other cruise we booked. I'll admit I'm nervous about no window or porthole but I'm always told you don't really feel a difference but going to miss the sun.

While I don't prefer insides, some of the best sleep we've had on a cruise (and latest sleep) has been in an inside room.  No way for the sun to peek in!  However, if you do like that sort of thing, you can leave the TV on the Bow cam to get the sunrise that way!  Enjoy!

3 hours ago, Don Kehote said:

even the lowlights have been perfectly cromulent,

This made my day!!  😎

Fantasy class ships are our preference.  I have sailed on the larger ships and enjoy them but keep going back to the Fantasy class.   The layout is actually one of the least confusing.  Do your research and have a wonderful "inexpensive getaway"!