Irishlinny

Thanks so much for your help! We will try walking all the way down the beach and see what t looks like! Very excited to be going to HMC-looks beautiful! Thank you for your help.

Always happy to help if I can! Hope you love HMC as much as we do. We love snorkeling, but HMC's beach is so beautiful (once you get past the crowds) that we are happy just to have a nice beach day. I was thinking about it after, and you may want to ask about snorkeling when you get to the island. When we were taking the truck back to the tender area, I saw a few places on the other side of the island that I never knew were there (one appeared to be for water sports). Not sure if any of them are swimming areas, but if they are, they might be better for snorkeling since they're not in the sandy beach area.

Have a great time!:)

Thanks so much Irishlinny-I know...nothing can compare to Roatan :) We have done some fabulous snorkeling right off shore each time we visit. So beautiful! Then when you try to snorkel somewhere else, you automatically compare it to Roatan... thanks for your help. Just wondering if we walked down to the end of HMC and swam out a little if it would be a little rocky or some reefs to attract some fish...???

I think you'll find HMC snorkeling to be better than Roatan. DH has walked to the far end of the beach and found it be somewhat clearer.

I think if you went all the way down there you might be ok...I've never been down that far. But I can almost guarantee that you won't see the variety that you do in Roatan.;) The water is very clear on HMC because there aren't a lot of waves generally. But there also aren't all the coral formations to support the large populations of fish Roatan has.

We want to know if we should bring our own snorkeling gear? We like to swim out from the beach and snorkel if it is worth it....we have been spoiled by Roatan :) love the snorkeling from the beach..best ever!

Because it is a very sandy bottom area, there aren't a lot of fish that I have ever seen, but there are a few. I have seen some poeple post that they've seen good fish while snorkeling there, but I don't think they could have been in the main beach area. It won't be ANYTHING like Roatan, trust me!;)

Marty Gast is by far one of the best!

 

 

I agree! So much fun!!!

Thinking of renting a Cabana for our Carnival Cruise in July - can i call up Carnival to do this?

 

Also, what happens if its raining that day - can u cancel or no?

 

Which cabana would u recommend if traveling with kids ?

You go into Carnival's site...Manage My Cruise and then you go into Book Shore Excursions. I believe you can cancel if you do it more than 24 hours ahead (as far as I know that's the practice with all shore excursions, and cabanas are considered an excursion). We rented one and it poured torrentially that day (shortly after we got to the island)...I was very happy we had it!;) You can't pick a cabana until you board...go directly to the shore excursion desk. The lower numbered ones are closer to the kids' area.

Great job, you guys, as usual! So glad we got to sail with you finally, and glad you liked the group cruise experience.:) I'm trying to do a mini-review myself, but work is not cooperating:rolleyes:

Can't wait for October!:D

Alicia, so glad to see you posting your review! I know it will be worth any waiting. Very happy we got to sail with you & Latanya...it was truly a pleasure!:) Can't wait to see more of your pics...you were snapping a whole lot of photos!

Great Review. Love the detail. This is why I read reviews ~ to learn that it is okay to sail on a new ship ~ my DH was worried there might not be any smoking areas on a newer ship. This is good to know and seems like a fair compromise. Thank you! :)

I will interject, as I was on this cruise with my new friends, Chris and Cass. Yes, you can smoke on the port side of deck 5 (which is where the Red Frog Pub is)...they have different sets of seating areas as you walk up that Promenade deck...it's quite nice. You can also smoke on the port side of deck 11...they have a nice comfy seating area in the aft, then loungers, and then another area with tables and chairs, along with some comfy chairs and ottomans which overlook main Lido. The only places you can smoke inside are the Liquid Nightclub (when it is open for business) and at half of the casino bar. Hope that helps!:)

Chris & Cass, so enjoying your review (as always!) and very happy we finally got to sail with you guys! Really looking forward to see what you do with Aruba...gonna be hard to keep that one G-rated for sure!:eek::p Hope you found that you liked cruising with a big group...it definitely adds a whole new dimension to the cruise experience!:D Just think, we can do this whole crazy thing again in October!

I've been following your review and thoroughly enjoying it. We did the same itinerary in February on the Freedom with large group also and had a great time. I recognize a few faces in your photos of people that we've cruised with before (Floatie, Dave and Linda) and some others from Facebook since we are also on the Victory B2B cruise with you in October 2013. Based on your review, I think you'll fit in just fine with everyone. :D Looking forward to meeting both of you!

Hiya, Rick! Yes, Chris and Cass will fit in just fine:) Looking forward to finally sailing with you and Laurie and everyone else again in October!:D

Tom Riccio or Marty Gast? Could someone tell me a little about these 2? Looking to book, but want a good PB player :)

I can't speak for Tom, but Marty is beyond FUN! If you're just looking for a traditional piano bar, he won't be it. But if you're looking for a crazy fun time, go with Marty! He is fantastic! We were in the PB every nite with him on the Freedom last year:D

does Jack's or local Village sell T-shirts with their logo's and in 2 or 3 x sizes?Think we will go to both places and stay at local village( cheaper drinks) then back to the ship.....1pm to 7pm.:)

Yes, Jack's has a little shop there with a number of items. We have a shirt (he has larger sizes, hat and shot glass:) Don't forget your camera to take pics of their awesome dog, Topher (and maybe Cooper if he's behaving)...Topher digs in the sand hunting crabs for hours. If you're lucky he may even take a swim with you!:)

Thanks Laura! That is good news, the wife and I love a good piano bar and Martin's reviews had us concerned. We would have made the most of it, but a fun party type of PB is our style. Good to hear.

If you love a fun party piano bar, you will LOVE Marty! We had him on the Freedom last November and had a blast! We spent every nite in there. His nite off happened to be the nite of the deck party and it was nothing compared to the piano bar! Enjoy!:D

Okay I am just going to admit that I'm too lazy to search over 61 pages for my answer so I will just post my question (probably again).

 

My mom and I will be sailing next September on the Carnival Victory and one of our stops is HMC. This will be the first time there for either of us and since there will only be us two, I'm not wanting to spend $230 for a cabana. How easy is it to get lounge chairs on the beach? Can we rent umbrellas for shade? Thanks!:D

There are more than enough chairs for everyone...no worries. They don't have umbrellas, but they rent clam shells if you want one. But there are a line of trees all the way up the beach which you can use for shade for free;) The part of the beach closest to the little port area will be the most crowded...gets less crowded as you move further up.:)

Wrong path for Carnival. Those that already have a bar bill that exceeds $700 a week are already in trouble.

That's a little judgemental on your part...explains your screen name, I guess....

Thanks for the great review so far! Although I won't be doing the Med cruise, I am truly enjoying all the photos.

In the spirit of sharing information, I will offer my one hint to you...as a fellow lover of Eggs Bennedict, if you order the Hollandaise sauce on the side, they make the eggs fresh and it is MUCH better;)

Looking forward to the rest!:)

HERE YOU GO LIDO POOL, DECK 12 & AFT POOL etc,

Hubby actually commented 24 hour Pizza & it was shut lol! its opens for lunch till the early hours

 

 

Thanks so much! LOL, I guess it should be called 18 hour pizza!;):p

I'll have a little look for you :) she is a beautiful ship really loved my time on her

Thanks so much!:)

Thanks so much for the videos! Did you get any of Lido and the deck above? We'll be on the US inaugural...very excited! She is a beautiful ship!:)

OK - is it necesssary to rent a cabana to enjoy the island? All the info has been talking about cabanas. Is there anything else to do?

The beach is gorgeous! They have plenty of loungers on the beach (free). Closest to the tender area is the most crowded, and that's where they have the kids' water play area. Further up the beach it's more quiet. There are a couple of bars. They provide a BBQ lunch from 11:30 - 2 in an area behind the beach. As was also mentioned, if you want to book an activity, look at the Shore Excursions on the cruiseline's website. There are no independent excursions here as it is a private island.

Ok Cabana is reserved. Now the question is do I pick out my cabana # as soon as I board the ship in NYC or do I wait till I get to the Island??? Also does anyone know where the new Capt Morgan Pirate Ship bar is located as far as @which cabana? I like the music but don't think we wanna be right on top of the BAR scene. :)

 

So EXCITED

I see your question was answered, but the music at the bar isn't ALWAYS loud...it was fine the day we were there, but I have heard stories of times it was really loud, so you would be smart to pick maybe # 8 or so. The closer you get to #1, the more crowded the beach is near you.

You pick your cabana as soon as you board the ship. Otherwise you will get whatever is leftover after everyone picks theirs as they board.

 

If you did any reading, you would see pics of the Bar, and see that it is between #5 and #6.

That's a bit rude...some people don't have time to read through a thread that is 13 pages long....play nice!:rolleyes:

I have been trying to see the local village place. Is there a beach with it or is it just a bar type of structure? Thanks.

It's a bar on the beach...to the left of the cruise port area (as you're facing the land from the ship). It's on the way to Jack's Shack. I believe it's a blue building. The music is so loud you can usually hear it from the ship:eek:

This should help...just choose your deck on the left. Shows which balconies can connect...:)

https://www.goccl.com/irman/bookccl/the_fleet/Breeze/Breeze.html

Gosh, in the past we have always walked. We didn't know there was the option to take a cab. That would be great! Where do you go to catch the cab?

I know! We have walked it in the past, and it was a long walk to Jack's in the sand and the heat. This year I had injured my knee and knew I wouldn't be able to do it, so I discovered the taxi;) You walk thru the port area and veer a little to the left...you will see taxis there (it's on the other side of Margaritaville). It was SO much better than doing that walk...even our able-bodied friends agreed!:D

How do you get to both of these bars Jack's and Local? Do you have to go out side the cruise center to get there?

Head to the left to the beach area...you then walk up the beach. Local Bar will be first...Jack's is past it (you will see a flag out front). You can also take a cab if you are unable to do the beach walk...cost is $3 pp

I need a boo-hoo Icon, 'cause you're all making me cry. Linda was right... the 24 Nov cruise is all booked out. Boooooo-Hooooooo

 

I have gotten with my PVP for anything that opens up.

 

Bob

Memory of Naked Fanny

 

Awww, Bob....here you go...

But I'm sure something will open up...we're not even to final payment yet. Then you can be doing this!

My PVP took my deposit and I'm on the "wait list". I told them I would take any cabin category so it's likely I'll be spending more of my kids inheritance.

 

Carnival better not change their mind on having Ron Pass or there will be a big BOO HOO... from a lot of people I suspect.

 

Bob

Memories of Naked Fanny

I'm sure they will leave Ron on the inaugural...they want to be able to hype it up all they can, ya know! If you're a roll call kinda guy, go post in the regular roll call and the Official Group roll call (we welcome everyone in there) and get a head start getting to know everyone...it's a huge group! Between the 2, there are probably over 150!:eek::D