The Miracle - 7/10/04 - The Good The Bad and the Ugly

The GOOD:

Embarkation:

I was quite concerned hearing and previously experiencing our beloved NY port, but it worked out good for us. We arrived at 11:15 at the terminal exit FROM THE NORTH. My car was parked by 11:30. I looked down at the West Side highway and it had already become a nightmare. Arrival from the south looked bad, and those I spoke to said it took an hour to come up four blocks.

MY SUGGESTION – Stay in the LEFT lane as you go up the ramp. The Limo driver to the right of us in the right lane said it took him an HOUR to get up to the top. Go figure. In any case, get there between 11 and 11:30

We ended up leaving late, around 7 PM, which was perfect for watching the sun go down behind Lady Liberty –after dinner no less.

MORE GOOD

– They had FRUIT PUNCH all week. I was getting frustrated the past bunch of cruises where they only had it the first day, and then it disappeared.

– The weather. It couldn’t have been better. The only time we saw rain was Friday 8:30 AM, and lasted a half an hour.

– The daily dolphin shows. They were leaping out of the water everywhere.

– Thursday night we were treated to a fabulous lightning storm that went on for hours in the distance at night. It was fabulous.

– As other have said over and again, the Beatles “shoe”, TICKET TO RIDE.

– There are ample deck chairs. Just don’t expect to sit on the 50 yard line.

– Don’t miss the daily 3:30 ice cream with all the fixin’s. It’s only available at the rear pool starboard side.

– The seas. They were calm the whole trip. I thought I was in the Caribbean.

– We got invited to a VIP cocktail party with the captain, the officers, and the cruise director. Nice affair in the piano bar. Very upscale Hors Doeuvres and drinks. Only about 6 or seven parties were there, and I didn’t know why we were asked. It was nice to have non measured drinks.

– We booked an 8A guarantee, and ended up on deck 8, right under the Lido. Very convenient to EVERYTHING. Noise was minimal, occurring maybe 5 times.

– Saw the Cruise Critic log book. Saw some sigs I recognized (WMEDA, ARI and Jacqui, others), and signed myself. Almost got tempted to the internet café, but let it pass.

- The crew was great! Very pleasant and professional. If you see Michele (with a different spelling) at the coffee bar next to the pizza, tell her Kristen (my daughter) says hello. She was our assistant table waiter as well.

The BAD:

THE CRUISE DIRECTOR! He was HORRIBLE. I have never seen someone in that position that had absolutely no personality (Let me reiterate these are IMHOs). Mark something or other. I can’t even remember his name, nor do I want to.

They have raised the minimum height requirement on the slide to 48”, so my daughter who previously lived on the slide could not go on it, and it was reinforced.

The main pools were closed at 8, where they had previously closed at 10 ish. The adults only pool and spa in the back was the only one that stayed open later.

The teens on the ship. I must have missed something somewhere, but they have gotten awfully rude. In addition, it seems that mischief goes on in the wee hours, so in the early morning, you find food, litter, and all kinds of imaginable stuff all over the ship, elevators, halls. The crew does a pretty good job of getting it cleaned up, but for the early risers, it’s quite disgusting. Too bad there’s not a skeleton crew over night either policing, or at least cleaning. The last night seems to be the night that they all stay up overnight, cause I found them everywhere the last morning at my usual 5 O’clock rise.

Ken Byrne was on vacation this week, so we didn’t get who I think is the best Maitre d’ out there. We had Omur instead. HELLLLLLLLLLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Speaking of which….. THAT DINING ROOM! It IS as gaudy as it looked in those early pictures. Sorry…it really needs to go.

The UGLY.

The bruise on my butt from the waterslide. WATCH OUT. It’s the same old slide, but somehow I must have gone too fast laying on my back, because I went butt first into the stairs at the bottom of my slide. All I can still say is OUCH.

The SO SO

The hypnotist wasn’t bad, but it takes a while to get things rolling. It was quite funny as things progressed.

If there is any night that you are looking to do the supper club, it’s Tuesday night. The dining room menu is weak. Too bad I didn’t know earlier.

The ship itself was nice, but didn’t live up to my expectations. I still like the décor of the Legend the best of all the Spirit class ships (although I’ve yet to sail the Spirit itself). The only room that lived up to my epecstaions of how the whole ship would be was the Mad Hatter. All the other rooms simply had names, but nothing to support it. And there was no sign of Superman in Metropolis!

For those that asked, there are A/V inputs on the TV for games, cameras, etc.

TOURS:

For Port Canaveral, we went to Seaworld. I could have done without. The rest in my party did the FUN IN THE SUN, and loved it. Said it was a nice resort with all the amenities, including a lazy river. It was SO hot in Florida.

In Nassau, we took the recommendation of going to the Blue Lagoon. It was nice, but not what I expected. I thought it was going to be a beach. It turned out to be just a lagoon, deepest about waist high. And it was WARM. Like taking a bath. Other in my group did the Dolphin Encounter, and they loved it. Sill others did the Stingray snorkel there, and loved that as well.

In Freeport, where my expectations were low, we went to China Beach over by Port Lucaya by the Sheraton. It was heaven. Great beach, practically empty, great sand and great water. It was an easy cab ride to get to. Sad to see the Big Red Boat II moored rotting.

THE ODD:

Second full day at sea, an announcement came over the loudspeakers that they were going to “do something” and not to be alarmed. Ten minutes later we were dead in the water floating in the middle of the ocean. Very strange.

Debarkation:

We did the self assist. We were lucky when they called deck 8 first. Ran off, got the car, and was home in half an hour. An all time record!

SURMATION:

Great cruise, good time, nice weather, but I plan to sail at times other than the summer. Next up…..a return to the Legend!

Thanks for the review. Your comments and what I experienced on the Triumph in March will keep me off of ships when they are full of kids.

i saw on the ny pier website that miracle did leave very late - was there a reason why it left so late? usually if queen mary is in that everyone is late - we are going on miracle 8/21 - going to get to pier by 11:30 - do u think we should get there earlier - we are on verandah deck balcony - we wanted to upgrade to a suite but only had cat. 11 suite available and did not accommodate 3 people - this is our first cruise - are there refrigerators in room? heard people bring a case of water - as water is $2 on ship - is it true dining rooms can be a little chilly? maybe i should bring sweater - was the pool filled when u got on board? some say no - did u feel boat rock at all? did u ever find out what happened when u were just lying inthe water and not moving? sorry for the questions - any pictures would be nice too

was there a reason why it left so late?

going to get to pier by 11:30 - do u think we should get there earlier - are there refrigerators in room? is it true dining rooms can be a little chilly? was the pool filled when u got on board? did u feel boat rock at all? did u ever find out what happened when u were just lying inthe water and not moving?

"They" said we left late due to refueling.

Of course every week can't be the same, but try to be there earlier, even if it's just a little bit. At 11:30 exactly, the chaos had already begun.

The are small refridgeators, locked with all kinds of goodies. You will have to get the key from your cabin steward.

The dining rooms were comfortable.

The pool was filled with water AND people.

Rarely did I feel any motion.

And no, never heard the full announcement, so I know not what the reason was.

There were many other CCr's on board. Maybe one of them will know.

We did leave late due to refueling. Our cabin was 8165 and as soon as the refueling vessel left the ship departed, which was 730. I guess since there were the 4 ships in port the same day it took time to refuel?

too bad about the new cruise director. We sailed in April and Todd was the CD. He is absolutely fantastic. Were Karl with a K and Tex still there?

Were Karl with a K and Tex still there?

Yup! We had Tex on our Bermuda cruise last year as well. ;)

It was funny to see Karl with a K on the ship because when we sailed the Paradise last August he was there. The cruise director was Mark Hawkins, my comment on him is that he had a some what annoying personality.

I also just returned from the 7/10 Miracle cruise. The announcement was made around 5 in the afternoon. The Cruise director Mark, said that the ship was going to come to a complete stop in a few minutes to do an engine check. He said we were required to do this prior to entering a US port. Seemed a little odd, since we were over 12 hours from entering Pt. Canaveral. Didn't remember this from my previous cruises. Needless to say we sat adrift for about 15-20 minutes. Then engines then started one at a time, and we continued on our way. Not sure if they just said this so as not to alarm us that there was indeed engine problems, or if this is really just routine.

....

Needless to say we sat adrift for about 15-20 minutes.

Did you get a chance to go down to deck 3? It was SO eerily quite at sea in the middle of nowhere on such a big thing! I was waiting for a shark head to pop up. We had the bigger boat!

In Freeport, where my expectations were low, we went to China Beach over by Port Lucaya by the Sheraton. It was heaven. Great beach, practically empty, great sand and great water. It was an easy cab ride to get to. Sad to see the Big Red Boat II moored rotting.

We will be going on 8/14 and I wasn't sure what to do in Freeport since we were only going to be there for a short period of time. This sounds perfect since my son loves the beach and after the Dolphin Encounter I'm not sure we will have enough time for a beach. Anyway, my question is - when you get the cab to you just ask to be taken to China Beach? How much was the cab fare? When did you leave to get the cab back to the ship and was it hard to get one for the return trip?

I live on Long Island also....how did you come into the city that day. Our Legend cruise was a nightmare with all the traffic. Last time a friend dropped us off and we took a limo home...this time we are bring in our car. Cost about the same anway.

Thanks for your responses :D Appreciate it.

Diane

Anyway, my question is - when you get the cab to you just ask to be taken to China Beach? How much was the cab fare? When did you leave to get the cab back to the ship and was it hard to get one for the return trip?

 

I live on Long Island also....how did you come into the city that day.

Diane....

Just ask to be taken to the beach at the SHERATON in Lucaya and if you want to be specific, on Royal Palm Way.

Our driver simply asked what time we wished to return to the ship and he'd come back. But, there are more than enough cabs right across the main street, in this little boutique village.

The cost was $5PP each way. We left at 11:30 and got back to the pier before 12. I think it was a 20 minute ride.

I no longer live on the Island, but i would reccomend you take the LIE to the Cross Island, to either the Whitestone or the Throggs Neck, the Cross Bronx, take the lower access to the GW Bridge, and get off on the Henry Hudson Pkwy(9A) south, and head down to the pier on the West Side. DO NOT CROSS THE GW BRIDGE.

I took the Midtown Tunnel once, and it was a nightmare coming cross town but I do think it was a weekday.

Good luck! :)

We did leave late due to refueling. Our cabin was 8165 and as soon as the refueling vessel left the ship departed, which was 730. I guess since there were the 4 ships in port the same day it took time to refuel?

Yes

Sometimes refueling takes a bit

MrPeteLI-

We were able to make it down to Deck 3 aft. It was very quiet, kinda eerie. We were able to hear some banging coming from down below. When they finally started the engines again, one engine started followed by the other several minutes later. Hope you enjoyed your cruise.

I have a question about the slide. You said that they raised the height requirement and enforced it. May I ask how much was your child off? I have a child that will be a few inches off and also was on the slide all last year. I also called carnival before booking(I did hear thru the boards that the height was changed) and told me 42 inches(I also printed it out). I hate to make a stink but i am going in less than 3 weeks and now 3 out of the 4 childrens will be able to go on the slide!!!

She was off by 3".

She was 42" last year, and just made it. Now she's 45", and I tell her she may not be able to go on it. I'm glad I did. They sent her back down. I'm just glad I warned her.

Broke my heart :( , but she was fine.

Thank you for the review. We are going on the Miracle on Sept. 19th and we are getting more excited about it with every review.

Thanks for the info LIPete....I appreciate it!!!

regarding the ship stopping for 1/2 hour on the second day, they did the same "drill" on our Miracle sailing 6/26, so it sounds like it is a routine thing rather than a problem. We noticed on the location monitor that although we were 12 hours from docking at PC, we were nearly there, and the ship slowed down considerably after this drill, and its path was almost circular just offshore, as though it was hanging out till it was time to dock.

and its path was almost circular just offshore, as though it was hanging out till it was time to dock.

I forgot about that. We did this also. I started looking when I noticed we were going over someone elses wake, and realized it was ours!

My dh and I were on the Miracle on June 12 and we didn't stop 1/2 in the middle of the ocean. I heard they are going to dry dock her the end of August, due to a problem and that caused the cancellation of the last cruise out of NY. We left on time for our cruise, but for the next cruise they left late, due to people on our cruise who didn't clear customs and people who didn't clear up their accounts.

I was on the sailing after Linda...the week of 6/19. We didn't stop either.

And yes....we boarded the ship late due to passengers not settling up!! A bit frustrating, but it wasn't that bad for us because we were getting ON the ship...had I been disembarking, it would have been far worse to have to wait. You're cranky enough when you have to get off the ship!! :D

From Miracle Cruise 7/10 thru 7/17/04

http://community.webshots.com/album/166173663lzsjru?880

MrPeteLI-

We enjoyed looking at your pictures of the 7/10 Miracle cruise. We realized you were the family that was behind us in line to go through security on the 10th. It's such a small world. :)