Carnival Fascination 4/23-28: A Long Review With Lots Of Photos

[AmberTeka]

My family will be doing the same itinery on May 21. I was wondering how many formal nights there are and when they occur.

 

I think only one. I hope only one. I am taking on "elegant" outfit. My Husband..for the first time..not packing a suit. He will wear short sleeve button down shirt and a pair of nice khakis. Long pants.

 

We have the early seating and it is supposed to be at six. I hope so and not at five thirty.

[rnvattes]

I like your idea of staying onboard while in port. Do they have the pool and slides open while in port? I think i see some people on the slides in one of your pics?

 

We had done that one other time when we sailed on Princess and we just loved having the ship "to ourselves". Since we did not love Nassau the first time, we thought this would be a perfect way to spend the day. This vacation was all about relaxing, anyway!

 

The pools and hot tubs are open for sure. I *think* I saw some people on the slides in port. Per the Fun Times for that day Water Works was open from 10a-6p

[rnvattes]

My family will be doing the same itinery on May 21. I was wondering how many formal nights there are and when they occur.

 

One Cruise Elegant night, Tuesday (first sea day).

 

I know we read a lot on here about how dressed up or not people are, and people passing all manner of judgement on both. But I will tell you that we did not notice how people were dressed one way or the other. We enjoyed being "fancy" since we almost never get to do that here at home. We were going to have our own second cruise elegant night on Thursday, but we were too lazy to get fancy that day ;)

[rnvattes]

Thanks for the great review! Looks like I need to book a cruise to Key West.:)

 

I just loved it there, this trip and my last cruise. So beautiful and relaxed. It was my favorite day of this trip!

[rnvattes]

I think only one. I hope only one. I am taking on "elegant" outfit. My Husband..for the first time..not packing a suit. He will wear short sleeve button down shirt and a pair of nice khakis. Long pants.

 

We have the early seating and it is supposed to be at six. I hope so and not at five thirty.

 

Dress how you want -- as I said, I did not notice one way or the other. I think if people do (in order to pass judgement, that iis), they have entirely too much time on their hands ;)

 

On our 5 year anniversary trip, we opted to forgo cruise elegant night altogether. While everyone else was busy being fancy, we enjoyed a quiet evening getting a couples' spa treatment. Then we ate cheeseburgers on our balcony :D That was a lot of fun too. It's your vacation -- do what you want with it that will make it fun for you!

[LiveLAUGHLove21]

excellent review, thanks!

[Cruising240]

EXCELLENT review! Brought back memories of my cruise on the fascination!

[rnvattes]

Friday, April 27: Sea Day and Last Day Of Our Cruise :(

 

It is always kind of sad to wake up on that last day of your trip. There is disembarkation information everywhere you go, and it’s in the back of your mind that you want to squeeze every last bit of vacation out of your vacation. We were glad to be spending today at sea, continuing to rest and relax before we had to head home the next day.

 

I woke early, as usual. I had not ordered room service, as I knew I’d be up early and decided I would just get some coffee in the Coconut Grove before I took a walk around. It seemed most people were sleeping in as Coconut Grove was pretty empty. I got myself some coffee and toast and found a seat outside on the starboard side of the ship, facing the sun. As I sat enjoying the beautiful view, I just kept thinking over and over again how blessed we were to have been able to take this trip, and how I wished it could last forever.

 

 

 

 

I took another walk around the ship “on my way back” to our cabin. I snapped a few more photos along the way.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For those who are wondering, they DO have the self-service kiosks on Fascination for you to manage your on-board account. We used that on the first day to put cash on ours since the line at Guest Services was pretty sizeable. Just make sure to save your receipt!!!

 

 

[rnvattes]

When I got back to the cabin, Shane was just waking up. We took in the news, reviewed the Fun Times, and got ourselves ready for a day on deck. After a breakfast in Coconut Grove we made our way to “our” loungers on Veranda-Overlooking-Lido-Stage. Some yahoos had the nerve to take “ours”, so we had to bump over one spot. :rolleyes ;)

 

The morning was passed playing 70s Music Trivia (we didn’t do so great at that – we knew the songs, but not the titles or artists) and watching the Bean Bag Toss. A little after noon was Groove For St Jude. Shane was going for a little walk, getting restless in his lounger, so I asked him to grab me a tee shirt. They are only $10, and 100% of the proceeds go to St Jude’s Hospitals for Children. I’m not sure why they call it “Groove For St. Jude”; that name brings to mind a dance party, but not only was there not a dance party, there wasn’t even any music and they cleared the stuff off the stage within a very few minutes.

 

We were starting to get hungry, so we left our stuff on our loungers (GASP!) and went to find some lunch. We were gone under 30 minutes, so I don’t think we qualify as Chair Hogs ;) When we got back they were just bringing out the ice block for the Ice Carving Demonstration. No matter how many times I see these, I’m always amazed to watch that huge block of ice be transformed into a thing of beauty, a piece of art.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[rnvattes]

It was really hot that day – the hottest day, by far, of the whole trip – and I had to keep going down to the pool to cool off. The pool was pretty packed, and lots of kids were there, but everyone seemed to be respectful and there was no craziness going on. We did see an impromptu “Beer Pong” game break out at one point; it was a group of adults, and they were just having fun. It was fun for us to watch!

 

 

Shane was done with the sun before me. I wanted to stay out a while longer – to keep squeezing the vacation out of the vacation, and to finish another chapter of Fifty Shades of Grey ;) Christian Grey travels well!

 

 

 

 

;)

 

 

 

 

I finished my chapter, gathered up my things, and went for one last soak in the pool before making my way back to the cabin.

 

It was time to pack :( We had reservations for a bike tour in Jacksonville after we disembarked, and we were concerned about making it there in time. So, we opted for Self-Assist disembarkation. We only had the one large suitcase and each a carry-on piece of luggage, so we figured it would be easy enough to do it ourselves, and would take away the stress of not knowing if we were going to make it on time. Thus, we did not have to put our suitcase outside of our room. We packed up most of our things, though, keeping out only what we needed for getting ready in the morning. I always hate packing up. It’s that nasty “vacation is ending” feeling that gets me down. I try not to let it creep in – after all we had the whole night ahead of us – but it’s so hard. After all the planning and anticipation, the trip has come and (almost) gone.

 

We got showered and dressed and left for our last “night on the town” so to speak. Our first stop was at the photo gallery. We found our photos, which we had compiled the day before, and sifted through them again. We decided on the ones we wanted to purchase, and picked out a photo album as well. I can’t believe we spent nearly $70! I know people spend a lot more, but we almost never buy any ships’ photos so this was a lot for us. It was a special trip, and we were happy with the ones we chose to buy as souvenirs. It sure would be nice (I say again) if they would go digital, though. We were worried about getting the photos home safely; note to self to bring an envelope with hard cardboard next time. They got home just fine, but I was kind of a wreck over them.

[rnvattes]

By the time we were done in the photo gallery, it was nearly 5:00, the time of the quietly mentioned and poorly (on purpose) advertised “Fun Farewell Celebration” (free drinks!!). We made a quick stop in our cabin to drop off the photos and then made our way to the Puttin’ On The Ritz Lounge. I felt a little bad for the bartender at the bar just outside: no way was she selling any drinks when those of us gathered knew that we were going to get free ones when the doors opened! ;) Once we were inside, we chose the same seats we were in for the comedy show. Within a moment, a cocktail waitress came by with a tray of drinks. We made our selection and sat enjoying the band. Music Mix was playing again – they really are awfully good.

 

 

 

 

 

I never had an empty glass for long, for as long as we were there. I think I had 6 or 7 melon balls. And let me promise you, those drinks have booze in them! You might think they make these free drinks a little on the weak side, but they definitely were not! There were some people who got up dancing, but mainly people were just sitting and conversing while enjoying the music and drinks.

 

When we had had our fill we decided to head to dinner. The dining room wasn’t quite open yet, so we had to wait a few minutes. While strolling around we found Club 88. Apparently THIS is where the piano bar is. DUH! We had tried to find “Rockin’ Piano Music With Michael” twice, but whenever we went to the piano, he was not there. Well, we were looking for him on Promenade and that is NOT where he plays. We decided we would wrap up our cruise spending some time in there later in the evening, now that we knew where it was. We felt so silly!

 

Dinner was again delicious and the service from Gilbert and Friends was impeccable.

 

 

 

 

I tried only to enjoy what I was having, and not think about the fact that I was going to have to cook for myself again soon ;) After dinner we kind of wandered around aimlessly. We didn’t want to go back to the cabin, we had seen all there was to see in the shops, and there wasn’t a whole lot else going on.

 

After wandering around for a while, we made our way to the Palace Theater. The last show of the cruise, “Far From Over” was showing at 7:00. It being 80s themed, and we being children of the 80s, we did not want to miss it. We found some great seats and settled in to enjoy the show. If you cruise on Fascination and you have to see only one show, PLEASE do not miss this one! It was phenomenal!! Everyone was singing along to the music and having SUCH a great time. The costumes were fantastic, and the dancing totally incredible. They definitely put a lot of work into this show, and it shows! We loved it; heck, I even considered seeing it again when it showed at 8:45! Do not miss this one!

 

It was still early (even for us old fogeys) so we consulted the Fun Times and saw that the Family Friendly Comedy was at 8; we decided we would check that out. We joined a bunch of families (read: LOTS of kids!) in the Puttin’ On The Ritz lounge, and the show was already underway. Dylan Mandlsohn was up first. He was funny, but definitely seemed to have a hard time being “family friendly” and funny at the same time. The Cowboy Comedian did a much better show; he seems to easily switch between family-funny and grown-up funny. He has a website and if you sign up there he will send an email when he is going to be in your area. No idea when he’ll be touring as his website indicates he will be on Fascination for quite a while. But if he came near us, I would love to see his show.

[rnvattes]

We returned to Club 88 after the comedy was done. It was a little early, and nobody was there yet, but since we had nothing else to do we sat ourselves down and waited. We looked over the pictures in our camera while waiting – it was clear we had had a great time! At 9:30 our fellow Roll Call members Cindy and Marty, and Robert and Mandy, strolled in; I thought it was so cool that we began and ended our trip in their company. Full circle :)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Michael began playing soon, and he was as good as we had heard! The club was slowly filling up as people passed by and heard the fun we were having. We enjoyed one last drink as we sang along. We got a couple of photos of our new friends, and we exchanged contact information. Soon it was getting “late” (for us old fogeys), and we didn’t want to close out the trip being tired and hung over. So we returned to our cabin and settled in for our final sleep at sea.

 

 

[WAHMto5]

 

 

 

;)

 

 

Just downloaded the same book myself a couple nights ago for my "read" on the ship as well;)

[rnvattes]

Saturday, April 28: Disembarkation

 

And so the vacation drew to its close. We woke early the next morning as we pulled into port. We heard the thrusters as we were maneuvered this way and that, and the noise of the anchor dropping and lines being let out to tie up. Boo. Hiss.

 

The first thing I saw was our Sail and Sign account statement which had been slipped under our door. We had a good idea of what our spending had been, so we knew what to expect for a bottom line. When I checked it, however, it was off by nearly $100. This required some close inspection! I noticed that we had been charged for a Wine Package that we never bought. Realizing the line at Guest Services was going to grow very soon, I threw on some clothes and headed right on up. There were only a few people ahead of me, and I only waited about 10 minutes before I reached the counter.

 

I explained why I was there to the woman who was waiting on me. I showed her the statement. She indicated it was for a Wine Package and proceeded to ask me, three times, if I was SURE I didn’t buy a wine package. I was sure. We had bought only the one bottle of wine that lasted us almost all week. Furthermore, I knew that we were not in the dining room at the (very late) time indicated on the transaction; we were almost always back in our cabin by then LOL (because we are old fogeys). She had to make a few calls, and there was a bit of a wait involved. In the end, she was able to remove the charge. She apologized for the inconvenience and printed off a new on-board account summary, showing the refund. I have not received my statement for the month for the card it would be billed to, and I am holding on to BOTH statements until I am certain the charge went through for the appropriate amount.

 

While I was waiting for her to finish her calls, I was thinking about the fact that she kind of pressed me to be sure I hadn’t bought a wine package. It was a little offensive, but I tried to see it from her side – what is to prevent ANY passenger from making the same claim, only falsely? Carnival really ought to step it up in the technology department and get those hand scanners with the signature pads similar to what UPS carries. I’m sure the initial start-up cost would be tremendous to them, but I would be willing to bet it would save them in the long run by preventing erroneous entries caused by crew copying down incorrect folio numbers or by bad handwriting. If they had the scanners, they could swipe the passenger’s card, have them sign it, and have the transaction uploaded to a main hard drive; the transaction and the signature could then be called up quite easily if it were ever in question, saving time and frustration for the passenger and crew member(s) involved. Just a thought.

[rnvattes]

Satisfied with the resolution of our very small problem, I returned to our cabin. We got ourselves dressed, packed the final bits of our belongings, and did a thorough check of the room to make sure we weren’t leaving anything behind. We still needed to have breakfast and it was already 8:00. We put our “Snoozin” (do not disturb) sign out so that our steward would not start breaking down our room in prep for the next lucky bastards to occupy the cabin, and we went up to Coconut Grove for one last hearty breakfast.

 

In the past I have found disembarkation morning a horrible overcrowded stressful experience to wrap up the cruise with. This morning was SO different from that. There was no line at the buffet, and we found a table quite easily. There was not a ton of luggage being dragged around, and people still seemed to be in good spirits despite the fact that Carnival was so rudely kicking us off their ship ;) While eating we overheard that they had already called many of the decks for self-assist disembarkation and were nearly ready to start zone disembarkation. This was a surprise to us, as the information we had received the day before indicated that no disembarkation would begin until 8:30. Now, rather than being late for our bike tour, we were going to be early. Though if I had to make a choice, early is always better than late ;)

 

We went back to the cabin one last time, gathered up our luggage, and made our way to the gangway. The line was short and moved swiftly. They dinged us out one final time, and we made our way to customs – which was a joke. We handed our slip to the customs agent who barely looked at that and did NOT look at our IDs or citizenship documentation, and we were officially done our cruise. We got a taxi very easily at the taxi stand outside of the cruise terminal, and bid au revoir to Carnival Fascination.

[rnvattes]

I will post pictures tomorrow of all the Fun Times. I wanted to get the last day and disembarkation documented for CruzGirl who is sailing tomorrow; I hope she was able to read this before she left, and I hope she has a wonderful cruise!!

[flatpik6]

Excellent review that kept me interested and entertained. You have a nice style of expressing yourself and your sporadic inuendo was quite humorous. Nice job Nurse.

[nobody137]

I miss everyone :(

 

I'm slowly getting my review together. Just been busy since we've been back.

 

We're in the pre-planning phases of our next cruise, this time bringing the whole family with us.

 

We can't wait!

[iwannacruz]

I am looking forward to you posting the Fun Times. We leave on Monday for the same cruise.

[rnvattes]

Oh sorry! I totally forgot! No action in this thread so it dropped off my radar.

 

I will do that tonight or early tomorrow, pinky promise!

[maggiemouse]

Loved your review

[brwnIgir1]

in prep for the next lucky bastards to occupy the cabin

 

This was so funny... unexpected which made it so funny!

Happy Anniversary!

I enjoyed your review. I am trying to talk my DH of 26 years to book this cruise. He wants to go to Key West and I want to cruise... best of both worlds, right?

[slduck]

Thanks for the great review. We leave next week, and I have really enjoyed reading.

[reerun25]

Oh sorry! I totally forgot! No action in this thread so it dropped off my radar.

 

I will do that tonight or early tomorrow, pinky promise!

 

Thanks..looking forward to seeing the Fun Times!!

[rnvattes]

The following several posts are pictures of the Fun Times for this trip. For each day I have taken a shot of the front cover, inside cover, close ups (one of top, one of bottom) of each side of the tear-off section, and the back cover. The typeset was so small on the tear off that doing close-up was the only way to make it worth posting.

 

I hope you enjoy these and find them helpful!