Back from Holiday ~ Clinically Depressed

[LeeNHCruiser]

Hi all,

 

Home sweet home......yah, right! I miss my cabin steward and my towel animals. I miss my daily cappuccino with dinner. I miss my wonderful waiter, Cyrus. I miss the midnight buffet and the chocolate......LOL

 

I will post a trip report hopefully tomorrow. If anyone has any questions at all, I'd be more than happy to help. I have all the capers too.

 

If anyone is hesitant about being aboard Holiday....don't be!! Clean, clean, clean and food is fabulous.

[phinfan63]

Glad you enjoyed your cruise. I took my first one last year on the HOliday and also loved it.

[LeeNHCruiser]

Glad you enjoyed your cruise. I took my first one last year on the HOliday and also loved it.

 

I see you went on the Sensation too ~ how did it compare to Holiday? DH and I are already planning our next cruise. I know we should try another ship, but I can't imagine the staff being better than what we had. I talked to a lot of crew and they all genuinely loved the Holiday and did not want to transfer to a bigger ship.....EVER. I guess the Holiday is more lax with staff rules, etc.

[alwaysAnewbie]

I wanna here everyting thing. We leave out on the 9th............less than a week away!!!

 

Thanks for the info!

[phinfan63]

Well actually, the Sensation cruise hasn't happened yet. We leave on September 5th and I can't wait. I find it hard to believe that everything will be as nice as it was on the Holiday. We couldn't have chosen a nice "starter" cruise ship.

 

I am going to try to keep a journal like I did last year so that I can post a review (need notes or I wouldn't remember a thing). So stick around these boards until mid September and look for my review :)

 

Prices aren't bad that week - ya'll should join us !

[divadiverfl]

I am still depressed we got back from the Holiday April 16th. I sing Woo MEE all the time. That is why I am looking to book the Valor in Feb 06 instead of the Coral Princess. I forgot how much I loved Carnival.I am sure there are a lot of cruise doctors here on the board that can get you through you depression.:D :D

[shecat]

I am also suffering from PCD. They are making me work. I have no time to write my review! Lee did you particpate in one of the contest on stage earlier in the week? I was a judge for the harry chest contest and my husband did the talent show. He was the one that went last and sang Margaritaville with the extra verse. We have been on 3 previous Carnival cruises and the service was the best yet on the Holiday.

[LeeNHCruiser]

I am still depressed we got back from the Holiday April 16th. I sing Woo MEE all the time. That is why I am looking to book the Valor in Feb 06 instead of the Coral Princess. I forgot how much I loved Carnival.I am sure there are a lot of cruise doctors here on the board that can get you through you depression.:D :D

 

LOL Honestly, this is the worst I have ever felt after a vacation. I never knew a cruise could be so great. I am hooked! I think the only cure is another cruise. I just signed up for a Carnival credit card to start saving points towards my next cruise. I still keep running through my mind where the boat would be right now.....what they're doing right now IN MY CABIN! LOL I got it bad.

 

I will try and post a trip report for you (leaving in six days).

Some key points I remember right now:

- After embarkation, go to the Lido deck and get in line for the buffet. Remember, there are two sides and two lines; if one is crowded, hop over to the other side.

- We bought one fountain card at the suggestion of the Carnival rep. upon check-in. We shared it amongst our family and had no problems. They don't look at it ~ you just flash it to the waiter/waitress/bartender. We're not huge soda drinkers, but between the 5 of us, it was worth it.

- Read your capers at night when you get them and plan out your activities for the next day.

- Room service is free and 24 hours a day!!!!!!

- Order as many entrees, appetizers, desserts as you like at dinner ~ REALLY!!

- Go see the comedians ~ the second one especially on Holiday.

- Go see "Shout" ~ very good show.

- Definitely see the "Talent Show" and "Newlywed Game".

- Gala Buffet is quite impressive and yummy lol

- Each midnight buffet is different, so check your capers.

- Visit the soft serve ice cream/frozen yogurt machine at the back of the Lido deck.

 

Plan to gain about 5 pounds. I never once stepped foot on an elevator, took the stairs to help and I still gained 6 pounds. It was all worth it.

[LeeNHCruiser]

I am also suffering from PCD. They are making me work. I have no time to write my review! Lee did you particpate in one of the contest on stage earlier in the week? I was a judge for the harry chest contest and my husband did the talent show. He was the one that went last and sang Margaritaville with the extra verse. We have been on 3 previous Carnival cruises and the service was the best yet on the Holiday.

 

Yes ~ we "spooned". That was a hoot. I did see your husband ~ Margaritaville was GREAT!!! My son did the bass guitar solo. I saw the hairy chest contest LOL Too funny. I have to work too ~ soooo sad.

[divadiverfl]

I am also suffering from PCD. They are making me work. I have no time to write my review! Lee did you particpate in one of the contest on stage earlier in the week? I was a judge for the harry chest contest and my husband did the talent show. He was the one that went last and sang Margaritaville with the extra verse. We have been on 3 previous Carnival cruises and the service was the best yet on the Holiday.

 

I was a judge for the hairy chest contest also. What a hoot. I will do it again in a heart beat.

 

I also think about where the boat would be that day what we were doing that day.

[Cotton]

Lee - SO glad to see that y'all had a great cruise on the Holiday - my favorite ship! And....all the other happy Holiday cruisers.:)

 

You asked about the difference between the Holiday and Sensation. Although I thoroughly enjoyed my Sensation cruise, the ship was very different from the Holiday. 'Way too much neon-glitzy-purple to suit me, and the carpeting in the public areas has a wavy pattern...not so great on a moving ship!:D The Sensation has an atrium, but I didn't think it was anything special, and there weren't many folks sitting at the bar any time I passed through. (I was on that deck - Empress.)

 

Lots of other things I preferred on the Holiday. BUT, like I said, I enjoyed my cruise very much; however, next time, I'll be back on the Holiday!:)

 

Oh, the two production shows on the Sensation are almost identical to the ones on the Holiday....just have different names for the shows. On the Holiday, I loved Shout! and Fuego del Caribe equally.....I've seen them four times each, but still enjoy them. "Feel good" music.:D

 

One more thing - on Lido Deck by the pool, instead of having just the guy playing steel drums, the Sensation has three guys playing Bob Marley and other Caribbean-type music...and they're very good. I guess that's the only thing I liked better on the Sensation.

[LeeNHCruiser]

One more thing - on Lido Deck by the pool, instead of having just the guy playing steel drums, the Sensation has three guys playing Bob Marley and other Caribbean-type music...and they're very good. I guess that's the only thing I liked better on the Sensation.

 

I wasn't impressed by the steel drum guy either. Did you see "Music Manilla" or something like that? They were 4 guys and they were great. I was impressed by their variety of music. My favorite was the cruise director, Steve, and the Holiday band when they did "Devil Went Down to Georgia" during the talent show. All I can say is WOW!

[shecat]

I like the fact on the Holiday you can see out both sides of the dining room windows from the middle. On the other ships if you were stuck in the middle you could not see didley. I was totally surprised about the Steve the cruise directors talent. We enjoyed your sons bass guitar playing. My husband being a musician really understood and appreciated it. Diva I had sooo much fun judging the contest. I had two seventy something ladies next to me and they were a hoot. They would not give extra credit for tattoos and took off points if they shaved their back hair. I made the mistake of saying one of the guys had man boobs, well his wife was one of the judges, she really should not have been up there. Talk at yall later, got to get back to work.

[divadiverfl]

Steve was on the Imagination in 1999 when I was there. Still the same sense of humor. I like the band also that played in Doc Holidays. The steel drum guy was fine but I do like live music out on the lido deck. We had one guy during Karoke that was really great. To good to be up there.