Legend 5/30 to 6/6 Review

[SpaceCoast]

This is my first review. I apologize in advance if it is too long.

Carnival Legend: Day 1

We arrived at the Port in Tampa around noon: a little busy but no problems. I do think that Port Canaveral was a bit less congested, at least at the time that we went.

Our Cabin: 6232

We live just thirty minutes from Port Canaveral, but I wanted to have the BIG balcony. Four of us shared the room. Honestly, I wanted family time and preferred that we all be together.

 

I am just learning how to add the pictures, so let me know how to make them smaller!

 

 

 

[SpaceCoast]

Day 2: Sea Day and Formal Night

We spend the day by the pool and at the water slide. A lot of people, myself included, have wondered about bringing beach towels. There is no need. You are provided with a large Carnival towel for each guest to be used during the cruise, and you can take them on excursions.

I know that I am in the minority, but I was not a fan of the Unicorn Café. I found it to be too dark, too spread out, and too crowded. We ordered room service most mornings for breakfast, rarely ate lunch because we were on excursions, and went to Truffles for a nice dinner. There is no charge for room service; however, we did tip the person who delivered our breakfast.

[cjkumbaya]

Please come back soon with more - really looking forward to your cruise experience.

[SpaceCoast]

Formal Night

Since we had early dining and I wanted to avoid the lines for pictures, we were ready around 4:30. This gave us time for formal pictures and then to walk around the ship taking pictures. There are two formal nights on the Legend, Monday and Friday.

You can avoid Formal Night all together by ordering room service or going to the Unicorn Cafe.

The Enchanted Forest

 

Walking around the deck

[SpaceCoast]

I'm sorry the pictures are so big. I also want to add that this was really a family trip, so I cannot say much about the bars and partying, but everyone seemed to be having a good time.

 

Other reflections and things that I had wondered about before I went:

Camp Carnival

My son spent some time at Camp Carnival, but he didn’t go every day. Once he started meeting kids on the ship, they would just do their own thing with one of the parents or my daughter as a chaperone. They do have a good program, and my son had fun while he was there.

My daughter chose not to do any of the teen activities and preferred to stay with us.

Money

Your Sail Card is like a blank check, so be careful. I lost mine and panicked, but when I went to the desk, they canceled the old one and gave me a new one with no problems.

I do not know if it was a savings, but I purchased soda and drink certificates in advance of my cruise. This way I could prepay many of my expenses. Also, my kids could have soda but not “unlimited” soda with a hefty price tag. I was able to get the Drink of the Day from a waiter on the deck with no additional cost.

We spent most of our money on pictures. I bought three or four of our favorite poses ($30 a sheet, ouch) and then paid an extra $10 to get additional sheets of the same pose.

The best part was that our Sign and Sail balance was ZERO when we left the ship. Turns out my husband had raided the change jar in the back of our closet. He brought a bag of quarters, visited deck 2, and came back with a paid off balance. J

[SpaceCoast]

Day 3: Grand Cayman

We chose Moby Dick tours for their Stingray and Snorkle Excursion. This was the only nonCarnival tour that we did, and I highly recommend them. They promptly responded to all of my emails and even called me to make sure that I had received the emails.

For me, I think I felt comfortable going with them because I had seen a picture of them at the port, so I knew what to look for. So here is my picture of the port:

 

Even if you do not go with Moby Dick, you can find almost any excursion here. They have most excursions (Carnival and nonCarnival) labeled under the tents. Also, as soon as you walk through the gate from the ship, you will find the office to get your passport stamped. This was the only place that we managed to get to our passports stamped.

Seven years of good luck for both kids! We actually went snorkeling first because the area around the stingrays was too crowded. The excursion was great, and there was plenty of interaction with the stingrays. If some members of your family do not want to interact, they can stay on the boat. Our son got tired while snorkeling and the crew sat with him and talked to him about the sea life. I will also note that the bus to the excursion was air conditioned, always a plus. J

Before we got back on the ship, we stopped at a Tortuga Rum factory across the street and purchased a package of mini rumcakes with some mini bottles. Since the package came with mini “bottles,” they delivered the package to our ship, and we received it on the last night.

[EdmondDantes]

Absolutely beautiful sunset in that last picture! Great review - any things to miss / not to miss?

 

That balcony is bigger than my first apartment!

[marci4tony]

Besides - Size is relevant, right?! ;)

 

We are on Legend 8/1 and we have #6259 - not the LARGE balcony, Bummer - I even asked if it was Available... BUT I have never seen a room with the "Upper" in it, so that was a great photo for me! Thank you. We are traveling as a family also (9yr son, 15yr dtr)

 

Appreciate your details!! ;)

[SpaceCoast]

Dinner at Truffles

You can see one of our waiters in the background doing the YMCA, and you can see the other here (also doing the YMCA).

These gentlemen kept our cups filled and our bellies full. My son is picky eater, so our waiter would bring him a double serving of chicken nuggets and French fries each night.

[LBumb]

great start. awesome photos.

[SpaceCoast]

Day four: Cozumel

We chose Xcaret as our excursion, so we didn’t have any time to shop or wander through Cozumel. However, I would do it again! We boarded a ferry to the mainland, and our guide Carlos greeted us and took us to an air-conditioned and comfortable bus. My son is a big fan of Slugbug/Punchbuggy, and I think he was at 32 by the time we hit the park. You do drive through the city and see more than the “tourist” vision.

I also have to add that you are not allowed to bring sunscreen into the park unless it is a special ecosafe type. You might want to purchase some in advance of your trip or buy it as soon as you enter.

 

Carlos gave visitors the option of a guided tour with him or seeing the park alone. Only my family and another couple chose to stay with him, so we enjoyed a personal tour of the park. He took us through butterfly gardens, Mayan ruins, and animal areas (turtles, jaguars, alligators, birds, monkeys, etc.). When we had about two hours left and had worked up a nice sweat, he took us to the underground caves where we could swim through the water for about an hour… a “refreshing” 74 degrees.

 

 

After we finished swimming through the caves, Carlos left us to relax by the lagoons for about an hour. There were free tubes to swim on, and you could swim right up to the dolphin cage. My son was splashing around with a dolphin on the other side of the fence.

 

 

 

Xcaret had a buffet and nice bar. We bought some water, but with a ship full of free food, we figured that we would wait for dinner. My husband likes to collect coins, so he actually wanted to get some change in the local currency, which is why we bought the water. I will add that we also tipped Carlos. He did a great job. Some people worry that you will not get the personal touch when booking with the cruise ship, but we did.

We arrived back at the cruise ship late, but it was a Carnival excursion, so no worries.

After dinner, my son and I watched the stars and danced around our balcony. It was a sweet moment, and he said, “This is just like the brochure!”

[SpaceCoast]

Day 5: Roatan

This is a picture of our balcony as we were leaving the ship and heading into Roatan. Our balcony included the three open slots above the two boats and below and to the right of the couple above.

I do not think you can go wrong with a beach excursion in Roatan. All Carnival excursion meet off of the ship. You take the walkway through a store and into the open marketplace. If you want an excursion that is booked outside of Carnival, I believe you have to leave the marketplace and walk up a hill. We did not do this, but we did pass many people patiently waiting with signs for passengers to arrive.

Tabayana Beach

We went to Tabayana Beach, which is a longer drive (in air-conditioned vans). I liked the drive through the area, definitely a contrast to the tourist area, but my son was getting a little impatient.

When you arrive, someone comes and tells you about the extra services they have: kayaking, snuba, etc., and then another person takes you to the beach. They ask if you want shade or sun and introduce you to the bartender. Welcome to Paradise… I mean, Tabayana Beach. J

The beach was beautiful. You could get free drinks or purchase a buffet. People were there to help you. There were also people offering hair braiding, massages, make up, jewelry, etc. Our purpose was just to relax.

One of the reasons that I chose Tabayana was because I had read that the snorkeling was good right from the beach, and my son does not like to snorkel. This gave us a chance to snorkel while he played.

 

I am showing my belly for your research purposes only! I could not believe how close the fish were. One actually came and gave me a little “kiss” on the stomach while I was taking a picture.

This stingray and its flounder friend swam right by us. These are pictures with my ABOVE water camera!

 

A van runs back and forth every half of an hour, so when you are ready to leave, just head to the front.

 

Night Show in the Follies

We enjoyed all of the shows in the Follies Lounge: two or three nights of singing, a balance act, comedian, hypnotist, and karaoke. If you are ever onboard the night that Tim the Hypnotist is there, the show is not be missed. I applaud all of the volunteers as well, great show.

 

[smd1234]

Enjoyed the review and pictures...it was like a little lunchtime vacation! Thanks for sharing

[maggieworkman]

Thanks. We leave this Sunday and this makes me really excited!

 

Maggie

[SpaceCoast]

Thanks for all of the positive replies. I hope you are prepared for more; I'm almost done. I promise!

 

Day 6: Belize

 

Early morning: The ship does not actually dock in Belize, so if you have an excursion planned, you meet in the Follies Lounge. We had day of Cavetubing planned, so we had to be there by 8 A.M.

We took a tender to main land, and then we took an air-conditioned bus to the site. Our guide told us this mountain was Abraham Lincoln. See the nose?

We were placed in groups of 6, 8, or 12, and given a guide, a helmet with a light, a tube, and vests. The guide carried the tubes for my son and other young girl.

The walk up hill was about 35 minutes. Use bug spray before you go. We did not get any bug bites, but the others in the group did. I hate to touch people’s feet, so I was worried the whole time about having to hold someone’s feet. He bundled us in two rows and gave us a rope to hold on to; holding feet was optional. We did pass a group that were not being pulled, and most said that they would have preferred being together than free floating. I’m sure the opinion varies by individual and experience.

I decided to risk it and take my camera in a plastic bag. Fortunately, the only part that got wet was my bottom, but another lady on the bus said that she did fall in.

At the end, you could buy sodas, pictures, or snacks. Again we chose to tip the guide but wait to eat until we got on the ship.

When we got back on the bus, our original bus guide told us some more stories about Belize and dropped us at the same place. We went through a maze of vendors selling wood carvings for $20. My husband offered $10, and one guy said he would get him a carving. Turns out we only had $7 left but he gave us the carving anyway.

Last Formal Night

Be prepared. You get back late. We had an early dinner, so it was a rush to get cleaned up in time.

[goldenk]

Great photos!!!

 

Need to put that on my list to watch the Tim The Hypnotist in 2 weeks :)

[SpaceCoast]

A Few Last Thoughts:

Do not miss Tea Time during the two days at sea. My daughter and I had tea and desserts, and it was really nice.

You can still get a free deck of cards if you go to the main desk on level two. My son could not stop playing after we got him a deck. We played Slap Jack and Go Fish a million times. J

Ok, I'll stop now... unless you have any questions...

[More to go]

Realy nice. Every one together in the water was priceless. Great pics thank you.

[marym933]

I must agree with everyone!! No apology needed for the length of your review or size of your pictures!! They are awesome!! I absolutely love the Western Caribbean and the Legend!!

[Michigandergrl]

Great review, it was nice to go back for a while. We did all the same things you did on ours except for Cozumel. We were with all adults so we bar hopped and shopped. We also went with Moby Dick in GC on our trip this year and those guys are so nice, cute and very informative. (Went to Grand Cayman 2 years in a row) Looks like your family had a great trip. I wish I could book another one but I have a graduation party to plan for next spring.

[Cruisin'BusyBee]

Great Pics! :D Just a couple questions if you could ans. please:

1. which ports are you tendered at (Belize & Grand Cayman??)

2. what time is "tea time"?

 

thanks so much.........................C/B/B:)

[Biffer1997]

Thanks for the awesome review and pictures! I am so excited--leave on the "jet plane" on Sat--set sail on Legend this Sun!!!

I would also be interested in what time tea time is? Also, did you happen to remember when any of the special buffets (Mexican and the chocolate one) were (days and times if possible.)

Thanks!

[teacherbee]

Great review! This is Bridie! Were there any other boats in the ports with you? We didn't see one other boat the whole cruise. Glad you and the family had fun!

[grandcayman10]

Thanks for the review! I love the pics being big, can see detail better

[SpaceCoast]

Great Pics! :D Just a couple questions if you could ans. please:

1. which ports are you tendered at (Belize & Grand Cayman??)

I am not sure of the answer to that question. For both ports, you have to take a boat to get to the dock. However, the lines were not too long.

2. what time is "tea time"?

Tea time is in the Atlantis. At 3:30 on sea days, the tables are set up for tea service. You choose your tea bag, cucumber sandwiches, and desserts. Yummy! A nice quiet and cool getaway from the pool atmosphere.

Buffets: We did not eat in the Unicorn Cafe much, but I think the Mexican buffet was the same day that we were at Cozumel, so maybe the 4th day. We definitely had a chocolate fountain on the last day because I had dessert before I had lunch. :)

Bridie! We had a small group from the Valor with us in Grand Cayman. My daughter actually ran into a friend there! There were two other ships in Cozumel, but no other ships in Roatan or Belize. :) I will be watching for your Dream review.