SoCalKJ

The 8-day repositioner from New York to San Juan on the Splendor - balcony room for $130/person (obviously not counting the port fees/taxes) and $50 OBC.

Even having to fly from the West Coast where I live to NY and fly home from Puerto Rico...flight fares were more than fair, so all-in-all it was awesome!

Mom paid. BONUS! :D:D

...on the Splendor...

Actually, it was an 8-Day cruise charge, but technically, it's only for 7 days (hmmm....)...$189 for the week or $40/day...mathematically, it makes sense to get the week pass, but I felt like it wasn't worth it...I was always having to go at some time or another EVERY DAY to make sure I wasn't wasting money...LOL! I loved the Oriental and the Aroma steam rooms the best...the steamier and the hotter, the better...but again, it just didn't seem worth it.

Next time, I'll put ONE day aside and really enjoy the hell out of it...or, I'll pay for a Cloud 9 Spa room...that makes the MOST sense (although I'm not a fan of forward staterooms).

Anyway, just my .002. :rolleyes:

I've been on her a few times...actually, I have to check my own signature just to remember exactly how many...LOL!

With the exception of the Kickball Weekend from Hell, I've always had a tremendous time...and I'm grateful to be so close whenever I need a weekend away and have the time off to go away.

I DON'T drink...and even though it's considered a Booze Cruise, I've always been fairly surprised at how decently-behaved everyone is...FOR THE MOST PART! Lower your expectations and you'll have a BLAST! Unless you choose to nit-pick...then you're surely going to hate your experience. :eek: :D

SoCalKJ, Where are you out of? I own a Wedding DJ, Photobooth and Photography business in the IE! Loved your trip reviews!

I'm in Ventura County. :)

I could care LESS about decor...I'll be onboard! :)

I've been on Pride, Spirit, Paradise, Inspiration, Ecstasy and Miracle...I'm excited to add another one to my personal sailing repertoire! :p

This will be my 14th Carnival cruise and this is the first ship I've been on that has the Cloud 9 Spa...I'm so excited - - week pass, buh-ring it!

Also, I might try sleeping in...once. Maybe. Depends. :rolleyes:

It was great...not too noisy, not too far away. A little bit of a walk to the lunch buffet, but a decent distance from the noisier areas. At that time, they were still building the larger family cabanas near us, so I have no idea how that affects the "serenity" of those middle cabanas now.

Then again, as I think about it, I would take the crappiest, loudest cabana right here, right now instead of being at work!! I swear I wouldn't complain!! :D

66 days until we set sail on the Splendor!! :)

I've done the Ensenada itinerary so many times, I have to look at my signature to get an exact count...LOL!

Twice, though, I've gone to Las Canadas to zipline. It's not a Carnival-sponsored excursion, but when you take the bus to town, the bus-host does talk about a combo tour they offer that includes ziplining and the blowhole for around $50 bucks. I've done that tour once and another time a group of friends and I just negotiated a taxi for a great deal and went from there.

Highly recommend! www.lascanadas.com

I get nothing for endorsing this...LOL! It's just all kinds of fun! :)

I assure you the only CD's I bring with me are CD's I purchased and paid full price so no licensing offenses there. I have a personal collection of about 150 cdg's so a lot of songs for my personal home use and to take with me when I sing in bars so I can sing my version of tracks that I like. Nobody borrows them. They belong to me and I have the right to play them.

 

 

 

As for the comment that human being are almost unnecessary for karaoke is bogus. The KJ can make or break you. Most of the sit in KJ's on the ship don't even know how to change a key on their system. They are thrown into that job and that is all they do is push play. They don't adjust the volume, increase the mic when needed etc. Those are all things that a good KJ knows how to do. Carnival has had a couple KJ's that were good and knew how to do that but most were completely unfamiliar with the system.

 

 

 

Karaoke was usually popular from the middle to the end of the cruises I've been on. I understand that people want live entertainment by professionals. I personally like to do karaoke. It is fun for me. Much more fun than watching a stage performance of dancers. I'm not knocking those production shows, just not my thing. You have a ship with at least 3000 passengers with all different tastes. I don't see why a venue cannot be provided for 50 of those 3000+ people to have their fun.

My quote wasn't serious about not needing humans to run karaoke… LOL… I've been doing it successfully for 21 years, I would hate to see my field entirely replaced with a jukebox!

I was speaking hypothetically about how karaoke is advancing so much technologically, like everything else today, that actual human beings are starting to become unnecessary…but you are absolutely right: a good KJ absolutely makes a breaking show.

On the other hand, when you and I go on these cruises where the host clearly has no idea what he or she is doing with regard to sound, mixing, rotation, etc., if you think about it, how surprising is it when they either cut back on available karaoke or discontinue it altogether...? It's no fun participating in a show where they don't know what they are doing... Nothing sucks more than to be in the middle of singing a song and listening to all the sound issues: no efx, no volume balance, feedback...GAH!

Again a good KJ makes the show… but when I go to one where there's no personality, no experience and no idea how to put on an entire show from every angle, it's in those moments where I wouldn't be surprised if it was replaced with a jukebox.

Again, I've been doing this for a long time and it is disheartening to see the lack of experience onboard. I work really hard for a living in the karaoke/DJ world… Then I spend my hard-earned karaoke/DJ money on a cruise where I would love to see quality karaoke entertainment… More often than not it's a disappointment.

<sigh>

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Why Carnival KJ's use them or don't probably includes any number of reasons....

...those who don't play burned/copied CDG's have possibly done their legal/licensing homework (or not...who knows?)...

It's illegal (or it was when I did MY homework many years ago) to use a burned/copied CDG in a for-profit establishment (bar, restaurant, vacation establishment, etc....). Granted, when a person buys an original Karaoke CD+G, the law (back then) allowed them to make one protective back-up copy - but those were for personal use (singing at home/private parties/etc.) and if that person wanted to sing off of their own personal disk at a bar, etc., they needed to bring their original, so that the bar (for example) would not be in breach of the various ASCAP/BMI/KAPA (Karaoke Anti-Piracy Association)/etc. laws regarding piracy.

It's a long story...and now with the digital karaoke age in full-force where human beings are almost unnecessary for a karaoke night to happen...just the push of a button or a song code and BOOM! There ya go! (This also brings the highly sensitive topic of illegal karaoke file sharing where some Joe Blow has a new karaoke business claiming to have EVERY SONG IN THE FREE WORLD and he paid (maybe) $500 for an external hard drive full of illegal, pirated tracks that hurt people, like me, who have had a legitimate business for over 21 years and have spent upwards in the amount of six figures (that's NO JOKE) staying legitimate and playing by the legal rules all these years....it hurts. It really does. (Don't get me started on the hobbyist who comes in and undercuts the cost of his services because he brings in cheap gear, burned illegal tracks and has low overhead so why does he need to charge a bar what a legitimate company charges?) GAH!

But I digress: the chances of a bar getting caught employing/contracting a KJ that uses illegal burns or lets people bring in copied CDG's to sing off of (because that requires proof that these tracks were legally obtained) are next to none...however, penalties (if caught, pursued and prosecuted by ASCAP, etc.) can include fines, jail time and a loss of a liquor license.

Could you imagine a cruise without a cocktail?

I realize my input with this topic was extensive and extreme...it's not my intention to put a damper on the topic or the life of Karaoke as a whole. The truth is, many of these on-board KJ's probably have a variety of reasons why they do and/or don't accept personal disks...some may have a certain degree of plausibility...many may probably have no idea about the legalities around the issue, but for those who don't accept burned disks (unless the cruise passenger is bringing a receipt for the original purchase...sounds incredibly anal and lame, but not unheard of), they're doing the right thing legally, whether they know it or not.

I am bummed at how karaoke is becoming less available on certain itineraries. I LOVED Superstar Live, but that's becoming one of those, "Hey, who remembers when Carnival had THIS or THAT?!" historic discontinued things-o-the-past. Bummer.

Okay...thanks for letting me partake in this dialogue. xoxo

My only concern is the YTD...I've ALWAYS opted for it, but the more I sail and the more popular that option becomes, the greater the chances of getting one of those lighted, vibrating waitlist devices...sometimes the wait has been 10 minutes, while other times it's been 30. I'm wondering if it might be better to pick Late Dining instead (early is just...too...early!)...hmmm....

Quality problems, eh? :rolleyes:

...usually after your day in Ensenada....get all dolled up for "cruise elegant" dining and eat like nobody's business!! :p

As a matter of fact, order a second round for those of us still waiting for our next cruise! :rolleyes::)

...and surprisingly, people were REMARKABLY well-behaved for a 3-day booze cruise out of Long Beach! :D

I'm fairly certain it was because people were trying to be on their best behavior to honor Jesus. I'm not sure what Easter festivities they offered, but for whatever reason, it seemed like a nice, quiet time to enjoy a getaway.

I've been on the Inspiration a few times (ok...my signature remembers more than I do...LOL!) and I've done the ziplining activity twice. It's NOT offered through Carnival, but if you take the bus into town, you can sign up for it where you get off....or negotiate a cab for your own private getaway. They have a relatively inexpensive combo that includes the Blowhole tour, if that interests you at all. I highly recommend it. Feel free to check out the website of the area where the tour is....http://www.lascanadas.com for info. (They have an English version of the website.)

Interesting photos and review. Now I have to see my doctor about my neck because I kept having to twist it sideways to see some of the photos.

I know...I'm sorry! I have NO CLUE why they uploaded sideways! LOL!

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Granted, the photo quality ain't for sh*t compared to the earlier poster's, (man...super quality!), but if you want reviews, you got 'em! :)

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2030572

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1914273

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1916928

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1948887

There. Enjoy. :)

Both times, I've asked to be seated at a 2-top alone. I don't mind chatting with neighbors who are friendly, but when I'm sailing sans my best friend, DH, I really enjoy my own company. :)

Point is, unless you wanna let them randomly seat you with anyone, you can ask to be seated alone. :)

I'm not anti-social, I just prefer to avoid the potentially awkward! :D

*I wish they'd bring the passenger talent shows back...with or without the live show band.

*I wish they'd offer poolside or serenity deck foot massages - something in the range of $1/minute + appropriate gratuity.

There are more, but I'm sure they've been covered. :)

Inspiration will always hold a special place for me, since it took 4 sailings on her in 2013 ALONE to make Platinum...LOL!

Loved the sleeping couple in the Paris lounge...hilarious!

Nice review...will look for your review of the Splendor later on...I'll be on her in May from NY to SJ....cannot wait! :)

I've been out of Long Beach to Ensenada on the 3-day more times than I can count (I have to look at my signature for an actual count! LOL!) and it's awesome to follow along. I've never done the 2-day, because I'd be disgusted at how fast it would go. I've not been on the Imagination, but it's identical to the Inspiration, so it's like being onboard right there with you.

If you do another Ensenada trip, check into the zipline/canopy tour. It's not offered through Carnival, but it IS worth it...I've done it twice and it's a blast (and cheap!)! I was reading your recent Splendor review and saw that you're into physical excursions (loved that extreme challenge you did) and am actually inspired to finally get the courage to do a 5K myself sometime soon! Anyway, google Las Canadas in Ensenada and check it out for next time. :)

Anyway, I read yours and Jamman's (I think that's his name) Splendor reviews for some good info for my next trip from New York to San Juan in May...very fun and informative. Thanks again!

And....YES...it's chilly in So Cal in December...shouldn't be, but it is...and overcast more than necessary, too! :rolleyes:

Thank you for an amazing review! I'm taking my Mom on this exact same itinerary in May and CANNOT wait! Splendor looks like she is a lovely ship and it will be the largest one I'll experience! Thanks!!

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We've gotten tons of offers, but they're always from a port that we have to fly to and on sailings that we can't take time off for, so it's always a lose for us.

Finally, though, I got an offer Monday that I coudn't refuse - and the last cruise I was on I didn't spend a dime in the casino, so it can't be based on that (although we have spent tons in the casino on past cruises....and DH and I usually get the same offers - although I'm Platinum and he's Gold).

Ever go to Bingo and see the same person scream "BINGO!!" more than once? Yeah, it sucks, but they just got lucky - and the right balls just seemed to come out more often for them than for others. That's how I feel about these offers.

Anyway, I couldn't resist the 8-day from New York to San Juan in May - for $130/person for a balcony room and $50 onboard credit, it was something I couldn't pass up. I'm taking my Mom (DH has a fishing excursion in MO with his Uncle so we're taking separate vacations this year) - AND - airfare is less than 5 bills a person, as well, so I just couldn't resist! I'm so excited.

I have a PVP - she's wonderful, beyond words. She calls me when stuff comes up, but I don't think there's anything special about why I get offers. I think any chance they can take to fill rooms on sailings that aren't filled during a peak season - well, maybe I get my chance. And this is that time.

Cute picture! Also the current gift on Fascination.:)

Thank you...I should also note...those are Carnival logo'd flip-flops....LOL!

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Is that a hanger on the bottom of it ? My nephew got one last week on the Conquest and actually (without opening it up) thought it was a lunch box !!! I had to tell him no, I think its a toiletry bag :)

Yes! LOL! It's got a hanger...is a toiletry bag. :-)

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