Carnival Splendor Spring Break Review & Report with PICS! (3/25-4/1)

[cdamion]

After the sun went down we grabbed a taxi and headed back to the ship. The taxi driver was kind enough to stop at a local liquor store where I didn’t buy a couple bottles of Havana Club rum from Cuba.

 

Once on board, we passed through security and the guy said to stop at the table to turn the liquor in. I had selective hearing and walked to the elevator instead. In the past this has worked. Not this time. The security guy came running over to the elevator and had me go back to the table and stood there while I checked it in. I had no intention of drinking it on board, I just didn’t want to wait until late on the last night for them to bring it so I could pack earlier. No such luck. We actually missed the last family comedy show waiting for them to deliver the bottles that I didn’t buy.

 

As the kids rested a bit, I headed back off of the ship to the bars at the port for a relaxing drink. I got back on in time to clean up and head to dinner. I don’t really recall what we ate tonight. I was still pretty full from the appetizers. Nothing jumped out at me on the menu. This would have been a good day for the steakhouse, but I was nowhere near hungry enough. After dinner we headed up to the Lido for the big Mardi Gras deck party that Cruise Director Todd Whitmer has been touting all week long. He was nowhere to be seen. I forced my 12yo to do the Conga line, which he did, but he ran away when I tried to get him to dance. When I went back to the cabin he was asleep. I was exhausted too from a very long day. We left the ship around 8:30am and got back on board about 7pm. Very long day.

 

Here is a pic from the deck party:

 

 

After a little bit of time in the casino I called it a night.

[hannahsmomtoo]

This is the best review EVER.. your pictures are incredible. Bookmarking to show the teenager at home tonight!

[cdamion]

After a very long day in Puerto Vallarta, we slept in. As usual, the 13yo disappeared with his friends and the 12yo and I hung out. We headed to the MDR for lunch which was very good, as well as tea time. He is being such a sport hanging out with me for tea – but he really likes the pastries, so he is happy.

 

As we approached Cabo on the return trip, it got a bit chilly and the seas got rough. They closed the main pool because of all of the splashing. I went out to take pictures of Cabo and the Disney Wonder which was anchored there as we passed, but it was hazy so the pics didn’t come out that well.

 

 

 

As we passed by the water got choppier and there were a lot of white caps. Out of the corner of my eye I saw some splashes that were too large for white caps, so I kept scanning the sea and realized that a couple of whales were breaching. I didn’t capture photos, but here are screen captures from a video where I got a couple:

 

The whale is on the left and there is a boat on the right.

 

 

[cdamion]

I didn’t even realize I captured this video until I got home. I had the camera running, but I was watching the whale, not what was on the camera:

 

 

 

 

 

I wish the pictures could capture what it looked like in person. I have never seen a whale breach before. It is quite a sight to see something that large jumping out of the water – and there were two of them!

[cdamion]

At some point the 13yo came back to the cabin because he wasn’t feeling that great (although he wouldn’t admit it). He sat out on the balcony which helped a lot. The ship wasn’t rocking at all, but it was going up and down, so there would be times when the floor would just drop out from under us. This was amplified by the fact that we were so far forward. Our cabin was about the 7th from the front of the ship.

 

I headed back to the spa to relax for a while before dinner which was very nice. I had the thelasso pool all to myself, which was good because I was sliding back and forth as the ship went up and down.

 

Dinner tonight was good once again. We were supposed to have escargot, but it got pulled from the menu for some reason. For my appetizer I had bing cherry soup and the seafood platter which has tiger shrimp, ahi tartare, and smoked salmon. For the main course I had the martini braised basa fillet. It was all very good, but I also hit my wall for seafood. Let me explain, this was now my 11th day in California and on the cruise, including my business trip. I had eaten seafood at least once (usually twice) per day since I arrived. With this meal I officially got my fill of seafood – although I did eat more Saturday and Sunday. Now I am taking a break (which is fine because the seafood here in Chicago really doesn’t compare).

 

Both my 13yo and a couple of the table mates were a bit woozy from the motion. I did bring bonine just in case, so I offered it to them and finally the 13yo admitted he was a little sea sick, so he took some. All 3 reported that it worked perfectly.

 

TO BE CONTINUED (still to come – final sea day, debarkation, and top to bottom photo tour - I'll try for tonight, but it may not be until tomorrow)…

[jmwg49]

Thanks for the information on the Ocean Riders...have sent off an email! Reading this very well written review makes me very anxious for September to roll around! It will be a busy, funfilled few days!

 

Looking forward to more pictures!!! PS...How lucky are you!!! Seeing those whales breaching! Definite bucket list for me!

[re-re]

Great review! You Have Very Handsome Young Men.

[TheTravelista]

Excellent review :)

 

Your sons are too cute!

[evilelf]

Great review. Thanks, we sail on the Splendor later this month (April 22). Question on the parasailing. My wife is disabled (has had multiple hip replacements). We know she can't do parasailing from shore, because it would put too much strain on her. But how is the parasailing from a boat? Are you sitting in a harness, or on a bench, or...? Does it put any strain on your body, or does the harness absorb it all? Any info would be GREATLY be appreciated.

[westview1]

Great review! The pictures are wonderful. I can't wait to see the interior of the Splendor.

 

Thanks!! :)

[PathfinderEss]

Thanks for your review.

[mamaty]

This is by far the BEST review I've read on any ship!!!!!!!!!:)

[mooshell92374]

I really have enjoyed your review it is only making me more excited for this next week to hurry up and be over with. I sure hope I can get a day pass for the spa for one day since I sacraficed our spa interior to upgrade to a balcony because that T pool is calling my name. I love all your pictures you have done a fabulous job, thank you

[tonit964]

Your review is wonderful, your son's are very handsom and your pictures beautiful!

[maritaysa]

Very nice review. I've sailed on the Splendor a few times, and your review is making me miss her. I don't think I'll have a chance to sail on her before she leaves.

[crazycath]

Great review! Will be on her May 6th so enjoying the pics and the story!

[cdamion]

Great review. Thanks, we sail on the Splendor later this month (April 22). Question on the parasailing. My wife is disabled (has had multiple hip replacements). We know she can't do parasailing from shore, because it would put too much strain on her. But how is the parasailing from a boat? Are you sitting in a harness, or on a bench, or...? Does it put any strain on your body, or does the harness absorb it all? Any info would be GREATLY be appreciated.

 

First you step into a harness, then they have you sit on the back deck of the boat with your feet out in front of you. The parasail is slowly let out like a kite and you are gently lifted from the back. When you land, they reel you back in and you put your legs out in front of you. The landing is slow and soft too.

 

The bigger issue was transferring from the water taxi to the parasailing boat in choppy water. I would find a company where you can directly on the parasailing boat directly from the dock.

 

Also, from what I could see, the parasailing in Cabo was mostly off of boats, while in Puerto Vallarta it was only off of the shore.

[cdamion]

THANK YOU EVERYONE for the compliments on the review and my kids! I appreciate it.

 

Also, thanks for sticking through the review and reading it!

[cdamion]

Well, sadly this is the last full day on the ship. Pretty chilly out, so not too many people outside. The seas are a still a bit bumpy – not side to side, but up and down.

 

I forgot to mention, I did go see the third and final production show “Vroom” last night. It was well done. The crowd really enjoyed it. Im still not a fan of the lead singers, but the dancers and staging is excellent. Several set changes for this show, and it showcases the capabilities of the theater.

 

Back to the final day. Just too tired to get up for breakfast in the MDR, so I missed out. We did make it to lunch and tea time in the MDR, both of which were nice. For lunch, I had yet more seafood, so I swore off of it for dinner tonight. Really got to meet some nice people at the lunches and tea times in the MDR, not to mention our great table mates at dinner!

 

Today was another entry (and loss) for the slot tournament. I was close earlier in the week and this time, but didn’t make the finals. I tried the blackjack tournament also, but was out after the 4th hand.

 

Today was just a day of lounging around. I can say all of the kids on board were collectively restless. I don’t know if it was just too many sea days, the fact the cruise was ending, or the fact that it was really too cold outside to be by the pools & waterslide, but for the first time the entire cruise, the kids were really noticeable – running around, pillow fights in the hallways, screaming, etc.

 

We just basically hung out in various venues listening to the different music. After tea, I headed up to the spa for one last time for almost 2 hours. Did I mention the $149 was really worth it?

 

Tonight for dinner was Cream of Mango soup, frog legs, and grilled chicken breast over fettucine. Dessert was grand marnier soufflé and orange sherbet. The 13yo took off for the farewell party with his Circle C friends and the 12yo had a long, sad goodbye with his warm chocolate melting cake.

 

After dinner it was time to pack – wanted to pack before dinner, but the bottles of rum didn’t arrive in time. I bought the 12yo a towel animal book so he could make them at home too and he relaxed in the cabin watching movies and making towel animals. I wandered around the ship a bit and headed to the casino to give back all of the money I previously won (borrowed really) – seriously, I gave back every single penny, plus some.

 

Headed to sleep very late after one last room service order.

 

Here are the sunset pics from today (really too cloudy for a good one).

 

 

 

[cdamion]

Well, this is the day that we are being forced off of the ship. After a late night for all of us, we slept in until about 8 leaving about 30 minutes for us to get out of the cabin. At 8:30 we headed up to the Lido deck for breakfast and to kill time as we were meeting family at 11 for an early lunch over at Gladstones (14 straight days of seafood – I’ll certainly have eaten enough to tide me over until I am near the coast again).

 

I much prefer other lines’ silent embarkation to Carnival’s, but I do have to say that Carnival has improved things since last time. Where before people were bunched in areas all over the ship, this time we all located up on Lido or else the promenade deck to wait, which made things a bit less chaotic than my previous experience with Carnival. Still I prefer the silent embarkation of other lines.

 

We hung out up on deck 10 above the buffet which people still didn’t seem to know about. Even though they got way past our debark number, we waited so we at least had somewhere to sit while waiting for our family to meet us for lunch.

 

Eventually we made our way down. It took about 45 minutes from the time we lined up to get out of the dome. Maybe it’s just me, but customs in Long Beach just doesn’t seem as efficient as Florida. We got through though.

 

Once off the ship, we headed over to the Queen Mary and left our luggage with the bell desk and went over to Gladstone’s on the water in downtown Long Beach. My last seafood meal for a while. After lunch we headed back to the Queen Mary to get the luggage and met a shuttle to a hotel by LAX for the flight back the next day.

 

One non-cruise word – the flight back to Chicago was on Virgin America, which is definitely a nicer way to fly than the other airlines and at a very competitive price.

 

One last look at the Splendor & Queen Mary before heading home:

 

 

 

 

[cdamion]

As promised here are the pics from top to bottom. As I mentioned, I forgot to take some basic pics, like good pics of the lobby or the buffet. I do believe there are other pics of these areas floating around though, so between this review and others out there, you can get a complete picture of Splendor.

 

The top deck on Splendor is Deck 14 – the Sky deck. It is where you will find mini-golf and the top of the waterslide. The boys did play mini-golf, but I didn’t, so I can’t comment on the course. There seems to be a good wind guard on this ship, which is good. Last time I tried playing mini golf on a Carnival ship, the wind was too strong and just blew the ball backwards.

 

 

 

Here you can see how minigolf is situated above Serenity one deck below.

 

[cdamion]

The forward part of the Sun Deck is where you will find Serenity on both sides. Inside is the upper level of the Cloud Nine spa, which is where the mud treatment, floatation, and massage rooms are.

 

Port side Serenity:

 

 

Starboard Serenity:

 

 

Deck 12 - Sun Deck Aft

 

The aft part of the Sun Deck is where the basketball court and jogging track are.

 

 

 

There is also a spot that overlooks the splash park.

 

[cdamion]

The Spa Deck is where you will find… the Cloud 9 Spa. On the starboard side of the ship is the VIP area with the various saunas and steam rooms while on the port side is the gym and the thalassotherapy pool.

 

The Laconium overlooking the bow of the ship. This room is kept at about 70 degrees and the seats are heated. Personally, I found the seats felt too warm after a while, so I didn’t really spend much time in here.

 

 

 

 

This is the hallway to the various saunas, the tepid room, and the laconium.

 

[cdamion]

After the laconium, there is an Oriental Steam bath. I didn’t get a picture because there was just too much steam inside. Next is the Tepidarium, which is kept at a temp of around 80-85 degrees. It was very relaxing in here and I actually ended up falling asleep in here a couple of times (as did others). In the center is a fountain you can turn on.

 

 

 

The next room (and connected to the tepidarium) is the aroma steam bath, which I was in daily. Very very hot in there.

 

Beyond the aroma steam bath on the starboard side are the salon and the reception area for the spa.

 

On the port side, is the thalassotherapy pool, which really does take the ache out of muscles. It is light salt water with minerals added to it. You can see some of the cardio machines in the gym through the window. The pool is a couple feet higher than the gym.

 

 

 

As somebody noticed, there are three or four giant lion creatures perched around the sides of the pool looking down at you.

[cdamion]

Behind the spa and elevator lobby are a few balcony cabins. Beyond those is the waterslide, the Thunderball pool, and a spa (just a part of it is visible in the second pic).

 

 

 

The Spa Deck Midship is where you will find the dome over the pool. When it is open, there is deck area that looks down towards the pool 2 decks below.