declansdad

Glad to see the OP returned to add some more to the thread. Perhaps you didn't intend to bash but that is how your written response comes across in the forum. Posts such as yours seem to be a magnet for poster who seem to have fun commenting on a cruise line they don't use because they feel it is beneath them.

As for our own experience, we've cruised 6 times in a about 7.5 years, 4 times with Carnival, 1 time with Disney and 1 time with Norwegian. We have enjoyed all the cruises but the company with the worst overall service and food was NCL. Disney was fantastic but the price is much more than any of the others.

We have noticed changes over the 4 cruises but we don't think they have reduced the quality or the value of the cruise. Carnival has served us well and we will continue to go back to them in the future. Will we look at others, most likely. We would be interested in RCL and possibly Princess is the itinerary and prices are good and comparable. NCL we tried to cruise with them again a few weeks ago and they refused to honour something they told us so we probably won't go with them again.

The rest of the day.

We made our way back to the ship in the early afternoon.

Back on board, the Boys and I hit up Guy's while my wife decided to sit and read on the balcony for a bit. After eating we decided to try out the water slides and then lounged around for a bit. Here are a couple of water slide videos.

https://gopro.com/v/W4wEpWkrPR2n

You move along pretty good on the Twister but the Kaleid-o-slide was fun but pretty tame.

After getting some sun I decided to change and try to ride the Sky Ride. I stood in line for about 15 minutes and got to a point where it said it would be another 45. The Boys showed up and said it took them about an hour from that point in the sea day so I opted to get out of line because we would be pushing our dinner reservation time. We did decided to do the rope course though. Now I'm not big on this type of thing but it didn't look all that difficult so away we went. My son loves this stuff and pretty much ran through it. His buddy Colby wasn't as fast as Declan but stayed ahead of me. It was fun but I'm not sure I would want to do it on a windy sea day.

Tonight was the first night we actually ate at our assigned table in the Horizon Dining Room. We were on the upper level on the outside. Our waitstaff were Jaya, Aubrey and Katut and they were fantastic. They did wonder why it was the third night and this was the first time we had been to the table.

After dinner we made our way to the Hasbro Game Show. On our last cruise Declan was chosen to play and we tried to get him and Colby to go for it in the first round. They did try but weren't picked. When they started the second round my wife jumped up before Declan could and Matt the Cruise Director picked here to come up and play. They ended up playing Simon and won the game. I have video evidence but I was threatened that it should never be made public. I did find someone else's video of the game on YouTube though. She didn't win the big prize though, I think it had something to do with here being a Manchester United fan and the CD wasn't. ;) I know there are people who don't like this entertainment but we think it is a lot of fun and great for the kids.

After the show we split up. The Boys ended up at a movie while Tanya and I headed for the Red Frog Pub for our free beer. They had a steel drum player that night and she was really good. Even the drunk guy who wouldn't shut up and kept requesting Drake.

We were then off to watch the Love and Marriage show. This was the first time we actually went to watch this show live and I don't think we will miss it again. Hilariously entertaining but there is no way I would want to be on the stage. We finished off the night at the White Party which is held in the Atrium on this ship. It made for a pretty intimate venue but people were having a great time.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/kMk9X6niBJlTctbB2

So that was it for the first port day of the cruise. Next up is one or our favourite places, Grand Cayman.

Following :)

Welcome.

Leaving on this same cruise in 67 days!

You will have a great time.

yep all sounds very familiar (my review in my signature)

Read your review and enjoyed it. It was partly your experience with the taxi that made up our minds to stay close to the ship.

Did you feel it was safe at the pier in Ocho Rios? We are thinking of staying on the ship! We have the same itinerary in July we have also been on the Glory!

 

 

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We did. The shopping area is outside the security gate for the pier but it was all good there. Inside the security checkpoint there were lots of vendors selling the same thing. Looked like this:

We liked the Glory and the ports on that cruise - Amber Cove, San Juan, St Thomas and Grand Turk.

Tuesday - Ocho Rios

Today was the first stop and it was the only port we have never visited and to be perfectly honest with you we've never cared. I have never had a desire to visit Jamaica and my wife was on the fence. I know there are people that love Jamaica but it just never held any appeal for us.

During our planning we did look at various excursions - Dunn's River Falls, the Blue Hole, the Jamaican Bobsleigh excursion or maybe just a beach visit. In the end we had decided on a beach but them some bad reviews,mostly about cabs taking you places you didn't ask to go, and the fact that we weren't all that enthused in the first place we simply decided to look around the port area for a bit and then get back on board and see what the ship offered.

We were the only cruise ship in port in this day and I think that is pretty normal. The port area is pretty disappointing compared to all the other ports we visited and I think having 2 ships here would really push the limits. We did arrive to a bit of rain we did get a bit wet a couple of times during our stroll through the port area. It was a colourful area but it did seem to be in need of a bit of work.

After walking around a bit we came across a contortionist just outside Margaritaville.

You can also see him in action at near the end of this video that shows a bit of the port area.

Our only real activity in the port other than walking around was stopping at Margaritaville for some refreshments. It is quite small and it was fairly busy with just the Vista in port. If there was another ship it would be packed. While we were there we went down to their small beach and there were a few people swimming but there was what appeared to be fish guts floating in the water. And that is exactly what it was! Just around the corner, fishermen were cleaning their catch and letting everything float back out into the bay. While this certainly is a good idea environmentally, it didn't do much for the beach.

I'll post the rest of the day later tonight.

Following. Great pics.

Thanks

Thanks for the review going to be on the Vista in Nov.

No problem, I'm sure you will enjoy the ship.

Should have more posted later today, the real world has got in the way over the last few days.

Enjoying your review!

Thanks

Looking forward to see CD Matt, heard many great reviews about him!:D

We've never paid much attention to the CD in the past but he was very good. I would definitely look for another cruise where he was the CD.

To each their own I guess.

I got off a week ago and overall I liked the decor of the ship. I thought it was much more modern than some of the colourful decor the other Carnival ships we have sailed. The only place I thought was congested was the upper decks in the atrium when they had the sales tables out.

I agree with you about Matt and Cheeky Charlie, I thought Richie Rich was OK but he tried too hard to be like Matt and it didn't work. Also the sight lines in the Liquid Lounge could be bad if you didn't really pay attention to where you were seated.

The food we had in the MDR was pretty good, along with the service - no complaints there.

I also thought the ship was very easy to navigate. We had two adults and two 17 year old boys in our balcony cabin and it didn't seem any different than the other Carnival cabins we have had.

Glad to hear you enjoyed the cruise.

hello from a fellow Canadian! I'll be on this ship with same itinerary in July. Enjoying it and the pics! looking forward to reading more!

Thanks for following along. What part of Canada are you from?

Yes, it does happen in Florida. As they were leading us from the Captain's Lounge in Miami to the ship, a few FTTF stood up & joined our line. Nobody was stopping them.

Again speaking from my experience and I have witnessed the terminal workers stop people who shouldn't have been boarding in Miami, Everglades and Canaveral.

Depending on the number of D's and P's sitting in the area, D's, P's, and FTTF's may be called at the same time. No sense making 3 different calls if there are only a minimum number of people in these boarding ground.

Only basing my comment on my own personal experience and with how Carnival explains the process.

Great Review and pics!! We will be sailing on the Vista next year, trying a Havana Balcony on Deck 7. Thanks for posting your review!

Thanks for following along.

I think something like the Havana Deck will be on tap for my wife and I in a couple of years. Our son will be off to university and we are hoping to get some travel in.

Yes, that was it. There really was no employee of the month award. It was a set up to get my niece on deck so her fiancée could propose. She had no idea it was going to happen.

That is very cool. Congrats to your niece and her fiancee.

Thanks for the review.

No problem, thanks for following along.

Us too! Looking forward to the Vista in Galveston—it can’t compare to that beautiful Miami sailaway though!

We've never been to Galveston. We have sailed out of Miami, Tampa, Port Everglades and Port Canaveral. Miami is definitely the most scenic followed by Tampa in my opinion.

After dinner we headed to the Theatre for the Studio VIP show. We were a bit late getting there so the main floor was pretty full so we opted for the balcony. We found seats on the side of the stage in the front row. They were good seats but the glass partition was a bit annoying. The show itself was entertaining but we were to realize that it wasn't the best of the shows this group of entertainers would perform in this cruise.

This video shows how the glass can be annoying (in my opinion) if you are sitting in the balcony.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/uNmH0ISrXj7UXFIO2

As I said, we enjoyed the show and overall we found this to be a pretty good group of singers and dancers. We were looking forward to the seeing the rest of the shows throughout the week.

The four of us headed to the sports deck to try our hand at 4 person ping pong, mini putt and the foot pool. I have to tell you that the foot pool is a bit more challenging than you would think.

My wife and I finished up the night at the late night comedy show (in the lounge/theatre not the comedy club) and the Boys watched Wonder Woman at the Dive In movie.

Next up Ocho Rios.

Monday March 5 - Sea Day

I love sea days, especially at the start of a cruise. There is no better way to just start relaxing on vacation and today was no different.

The day started out with my wife heading up to the sports deck for a run. After thinking about how much I ate the day before, I thought it might be a good idea for me to do the same. So I headed up to get in what I thought would be the first of two or three runs on the cruise. It was about 8 am and it was relatively busy on the track with a lot of walkers and a few runners. I got in about 2 miles before I passed a guy that looked familiar, turned out to be someone from home, the manager of the soccer team our son used to play for. I stopped and walked with him for a few laps before we both decided it was time for breakfast.

Back at the cabin everyone was about ready for breakfast, The Boys headed for the Market Place and my wife and I decided to get a breakfast burrito. After that we all seem to go our own ways for a bit. There was an 18+ volleyball tournament scheduled so the boys, who both play volleyball, decided to see if they could play. They were both told no because they haven't hit 18 yet. I headed up a bit later to see if I could possibly get in but it had started and there didn't seem to be an opportunity to join in.

The Sky Ride was open and it was fairly busy. While sitting watching the volleyball I noticed a father and daughter come into sight on the ride. The daughter looked to be about 10 or 11 and was struggling. She ended up stopping right by the court and went into panic mode. Eventually one of the attendants rode out and helped her get going by giving her a small push.

Next up for me was trying to find a place just to chill for a bit. Tried the serenity deck but it was packed, the only thing available was a small table with no shade. I sat there for abit and read but the sun was pretty strong. Next I tried Deck 5 Port side, just below our cabin and there was no one there (maybe because there was no sun either). I eventually headed back to the pool area and found the Boys exiting the Sky Ride. They waited about an hour and enjoyed the ride. I sat with them while they grabbed one of their many Guy's burgers before we decided to head to one of the lounges for Trivial Pursuit. It had started by the time we got there so we just watched. I have to tell you some people are pretty serious about winning these games. It was fun to watch a couple of families get right into it. After that we went into the Red Frog Pub and played some Foosball and shuffleboard.

My wife and I had signed up for the 2:30 brewery tour so we met up for that and headed to the pub. This is a nice way to spend about 90 minutes if you like beer. Sign up when you get on board on Day 1, the cost is $25 per person. You get plenty of samples, a souvenir glass and certificate that gets you a free beer. The space is limited to about 16 and they do 3 sessions on a sea day. The brew master was entertaining and informative and as I mentioned, you will not go thirsty.

Before:

After:

The brew master at work:

After the tour ended we met the Boys in the lounge next door for Sports Trivia. They had an been joined by Denny from Michigan who was instrumental in helping us win the game. The prize was the much coveted 24k gold plastic ship on a stick. We all agreed to give it to Colby, our son's buddy, because this was his first cruise and we had all won them before. Unfortunately we went back to play some games in the Pub before dinner and he forgot it there.

Dinner tonight was in the Steakhouse.

Our reservation was for 6:30 and it wasn't very crowded. The service and the food was very good. The servers were very formal at the start but become more friendly as the meal progressed. There was a young girl seated at the table next to us and at one point the Captain came in and she wanted to know who was driving the ship.

For dessert we opted for Art at the Table. If you have the opportunity to try this, do it. If for no other reason for the creation of the dessert. It was very cool to watch. Here is a link to a video if you are interested. If the link doesn't work for you, let me know and I will move the video to Youtube.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/Lt3pnXHALmNLvsD82

And a couple of pictures of the evening

Continued in the next post

You must not have ever sailed out of Long Beach as that is not true.

Doesn't happen in Florida and I highly doubt Carnival would call FTTF to board before P & D in Long Beach.

It's called greed because people keep buying it and they will squeeze you.

That's not the definition of greed.

Can you point out where Carnival has stated it will reduce the number of 'paid line cutters'. Not sure I understand how raising the price would reduce the FTTF slots. If true that is great news for those that earned the perks.

 

I frankly don't care that they sell it, just was annoying and wrong when FTTF people go ahead of P&D. Long Beach was known for this but hopefully that has changed with the renovation.

FTTF holders do not board ahead of P&D.

Great pics! Looking forward to the rest of your review.

Thanks, hope to get some more done later today.