We struck gold on Fascination!

[APDMOM]

After about 2 years of taking pictures from the shore in Mayport, we finally got to board Carnival Fascination for the first time on July 21! we were quite surprised to find that we were 'Gold', even though we were 1 night short. Contrary to my understanding, we did not have to complete this cruise to become gold...

 

Here is what we received when we arrived:

 

 

 

 

Note, you could only redeem these in the MDR during breakfast or lunch. Lunch is only served on sea days in the MDR.

 

We also received the coveted invitation to the past guest party, but more about that later. This will mostly be a picture review with some comments and tips. Hope you enjoy it, but most of all find it helpful in planning your own adventures!

[APDMOM]

On May 22,2010 I started this thread after heading down to the river to take pictures of Carnival Fascination leaving port...

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1205811

 

Little did I know it would turn out to become a popular request for me to take pics of different CC members sailing off. I have made many great friends doing this and truly enjoy taking the pictures. However, I always dreamed of sailing away on this ship too! The prices were always a bit too high, compared to 7-day deals. We are bound to school schedules, and terefore have difficulty finding a great deal. We finally did! In May, the prices dropped enough for us to book...

 

So, in stead of taking pics from our beach on the shore.....

 

 

...we got to take pics of our beach from the ship.....

 

[APDMOM]

We left home around 10:10 and enjoyed driving over the Dames Point Bridge, as we always do. However, this time it was not to go to work... Can I hear a, "Yahoo!"? :D

 

 

 

By this time I was thinking, "I still can't believe I am following the signs to the Cruise Terminal!"

 

 

 

 

[APDMOM]

We arrived at the port at 10:30 and decided to drop our luggage off, then return to the parking lot just outside of the port. We preferred this, as it gives us a better idea of the port and we were early. We dropped the luggage and went to the $8 per day parking lot just outside the port. I can highly recommend this. You will have to take quite a walk from the cruise terminal parking, and it is more expensive. If you park at the lot just outside, you pay less and ride a shuttle that drops you off at the terminal.

 

I will have to quickly dig for those pictures. Will be back in a few...

[gail811]

OMG the Dames Point Bridge! I live in VA and we have friends that live just beyond the bridge off of Merrill. I have a terrible fear of high bridges, and the first time I drove down and decided to visit I was alone and totally unaware of the bridge! The only thing that saved me was seeing a Carnival ship in port; it made me gasp and resume my breathing....LOL! Since then I have been lucky enough to be crossing as a ship is passing under....really cool perspective! Looking forward to the rest of your review!

[APDMOM]

Found them...

 

Here is one that shows the cruise parking... The one we chose is on the corner of Heckscher and the entrance to the port. You cannot miss it, since you have to drive right past it to enter the port. I read here that cruise terminal parking is $15 per day. I did not confirm this, so take it from CC :D

 

 

This is the street to the port...

 

 

Forgot to mention...

 

The parking lot has its own peacock

 

 

 

[APDMOM]

OMG the Dames Point Bridge! I live in VA and we have friends that live just beyond the bridge off of Merrill. I have a terrible fear of high bridges, and the first time I drove down and decided to visit I was alone and totally unaware of the bridge! The only thing that saved me was seeing a Carnival ship in port; it made me gasp and resume my breathing....LOL! Since then I have been lucky enough to be crossing as a ship is passing under....really cool perspective! Looking forward to the rest of your review!

 

LOL! You should probably stay away when we have a tropical storm! I once feared my car would be blown right off the bridge :eek: I still love it though!

[maxandmolly]

OMG the Dames Point Bridge! I live in VA and we have friends that live just beyond the bridge off of Merrill. I have a terrible fear of high bridges, and the first time I drove down and decided to visit I was alone and totally unaware of the bridge! The only thing that saved me was seeing a Carnival ship in port; it made me gasp and resume my breathing....LOL! Since then I have been lucky enough to be crossing as a ship is passing under....really cool perspective! Looking forward to the rest of your review!

 

I was o the Fascination a couple years ago with a friend who hates bridges and had near panic attacks everytime she had to drive over that bridge. I thought she was going to pass out when we went under it-it really looked like there were only a few inches to spare!

Looking forward to your review, I'll be back on her in November.

[APDMOM]

We got into the shuttle at 10:45. We were through security about 11:10 and on the Lido deck by 11:30. We did not have to wait for a zone to be called. After checking in they just guided us straight to the boarding line. Security was more tight than I ever saw. We had to show our passports 4 times! It was still pretty efficient though.

 

Sail off was delayed without explanation (which did not bother me, because I was on the ship!). We usually get to "our beach" by 5:20, but were 30 minutes late this time. We therefore missed sailing into the ocean due to early dinner.

 

Here are some sail off pics:

 

Downtown JAX

 

Approaching the bridge: One girl was panicked that we were going to hit the bridge! There was an impressive collective "Aaahh!", followed by spontaneous applause when we made it through!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[APDMOM]

This was the first time I noticed the white thing on the funnel. I have never seen it on other ships. Could it be a sort of sensor for the bridge? Maybe it is on other ships and I just never paid attention.... I will have to look back at my photos...

 

[APDMOM]

Past the bridge... It was quite stormy at the airport, but beautiful from our spot on the Lido deck!

 

 

Some downed trees - possibly from one of the 2 tropical storms we had this year...

 

 

We really love Jacksonville!

 

[ToriB]

I sailed on the Fascination in May and absolutely loved it! I'm so glad you were finally able to be on board rather that just take pictures from the beach. You took pics of our sailing but my group and I disappeared to the martini tasting after we went under the bridge. haha.

I can't wait to read more of your review!

[APDMOM]

Since we did not splurge on a balcony this time, this aft area on the lido deck became my favorite spot for the week. It was usually quiet when I got there around 6:30 in the morning to enjoy the sunrise with a cup of English Breakfast Tea...

 

 

 

 

 

So, I started and ended my cruise there... Here is the last morning with a picture of the Dames point bridge in the background.

 

 

 

 

[APDMOM]

I sailed on the Fascination in May and absolutely loved it! I'm so glad you were finally able to be on board rather that just take pictures from the beach. You took pics of our sailing but my group and I disappeared to the martini tasting after we went under the bridge. haha.

I can't wait to read more of your review!

 

LOL! I'm sure a martini tasting makes for good memories too!

[kittycrusin08]

Great pictures and good to hear that you got to sail on the Fascination. I remember you talking about wanting to go on this ship when we were together on the Dawn last December. Will look forward to the rest of your report and pictures. I'm kinda jealous since we do not get to cruise until October on the Dream. lol ;)

[APDMOM]

We were able to go to our cabins at 1:30 p.m. They did not make an announcement at the time, but we were told upon boarding. We were in M147. I forgot how small the cabins are on the Fantasy class ships! It was cozy though. I noticed the hallways are MUCH wider than on the newer ships, thus sacrificing cabin space.

 

So, DH, DS and I shared this space:

 

 

 

 

The bathroom was also significantly smaller with much less shelf space for goodies. This is one time an over-the-door shoe hanger would come in handy...

 

 

 

[APDMOM]

Great pictures and good to hear that you got to sail on the Fascination. I remember you talking about wanting to go on this ship when we were together on the Dawn last December. Will look forward to the rest of your report and pictures. I'm kinda jealous since we do not get to cruise until October on the Dream. lol ;)

 

If it is any consolation... Dream is worth waiting for! I liked it a lot more than Fascination. But a cruise is a treat either way! :)

[APDMOM]

The lido buffet, Coconut Grove, is my favorite of all ships as far as decorations are concerned... We ate in the MDR every chance we got, but you could always enjoy some great soup here - my weakness!

 

As mentioned in some other reviews, there were indeed some smells in areas of the lido and all over the ship that naturally come with the age of the ship. Our cabin also had the old carpet smell from time to time. It was nothing strong - just 'there' for those of us with a stronger olfactory sense :D Our cabin steward and all the crew members worked VERY hard to keep the ship clean and fingerprint free though!

 

 

 

 

 

[kr8z]

Fascination has been our favorite Carnival ship. Small OV cabins, but everything else made up for it :)

[APDMOM]

The MDR never disappoints us! We had excellent service again - this time with Alixander (not a typo...that is how he spells it :) )and Alit. It did seem like they were much more busy than we experienced with our waiters on Liberty. We did not have much social time with them, but they worked hard and entertained even harder with the dances and songs!

 

 

We dined in Sensation. It took me a while to realize these ship models are purposely NOT Fascination... They represent the names of the dining rooms :D

 

 

 

Imagination dining room...

 

 

As far as food, we are not picky eaters & easy to please. We enjoyed all the meals... Especially the lobster, chateau briand, and all those delicious soups!!! Some days I just wanted to order 3 appetizers! Our DS was happy just eating grilled chicken and russet potatoes every night. My favorite item is the FREE post dinner cappuccino! Yum!

 

The deli Reuben was a favorite for lunch or a late night snack. We always ask for extra sauce...

 

[APDMOM]

We liked spending time at the Waterworks before 10 a.m. on sea days. That was before the 'rush', and we got seats close to the slides. I got a nice bum bruise on the big yellow slide, but enjoyed sliding just as well. It was a good excuse to double up on the free ice cream in order to put more "meat" (or similar cushioning matter) on the bones!:D

 

 

 

 

 

 

[rotting_hell]

Very nice review/pics! We sail her in Feb. we love the Fantasy class ships! Thanks for posting! Not many reviews/comments of the older ships! :D

[APDMOM]

Our first stop was Half Moon Cay (Pronounced "key", for those who do not know). What a beautiful Development! If it were not for the tendering process, it would be my favorite. Right now, Mahogany Bay, Roatan has the upper hand. :)

 

The ship from the tender:

 

 

 

 

 

The tendering out was not too bad. Just be prepared to wait. We opted to wait for general clearance, which was about 1 p.m. We therefore did not get to the island until about 1:30. However, tendering back was gruesome... We decided to return around 3 p.m. to miss the rush. We ended up waiting 25 minutes in the sun for the tender, then spent another 35 minutes on the tender - something was wrong because we sat and waited inside the hot, full tender for 20 minutes before it even left. I hope this was a one-time, unusual experience. I keep a good attitude during these kinds of "unforeseeables", but it was not fun listening to people talking about how this NEVER happens on RCCL or Princess or Disney, ...you name it. I just smiled and vigorously waved my hat in front of my face to stay cool (mentally and physically LOL!).

[APDMOM]

Very nice review/pics! We sail her in Feb. we love the Fantasy class ships! Thanks for posting! Not many reviews/comments of the older ships! :D

 

Thank you. You should have a great experience in February... I would venture to guess that the ship will not be crowded and who does not want to escape the winter a bit?! Enjoy planning!

[APDMOM]

To end HMC on a positive note, here are a few more pics :)