Carnival Triumph 12/2-7/13 with pics--in a 4J cabin

[lisaland15]

We just got off of the 5-day Triumph cruise from Galveston on Saturday. It was my 12th Carnival cruise, DH’s 10th (made Platinum), and DD’s 8th. DH and I are in our late forties and DD is 10. We live about 30 minutes from the port, so we just drove down on Monday morning. We first dropped our luggage off with the porters, then parked our car at the lot across the street from the terminal and walked over with a carry-on. It was nice not having to wait for a shuttle. We really never had to wait for anything! (We were in a separate waiting area than the FTTF folks.) We were walking on the ship by 11:40!

 

We had cabin 1003 (deck 10—Panorama) which is a 4J category cabin. I was a bit concerned about having the picture window with the public deck area right outside, but we never saw more than handful of people a day. Great spot for stargazing at night. We would definitely get the cabin again.

 

Here are some pictures:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We moved the roll away next to our king bed. All of us were able to watch TV if we wanted. We also put the little coffee table in the corner by the roll away (not in this pic yet).

 

Talking to the room steward, Renato (he was great!), he mentioned that they usually move the couch into the corner by the bed and put the roll away where the couch was (between the wall and pole).

 

 

 

 

The cabin had 2 electrical outlets along the mirrored-counter area and there was a 3-sided outlet adapter on the outlet where the flat-screen TV was plugged in. We kept a tablet plugged in there. I had no problem bringing a power strip or a small electrical 6” fan in my carry-on (both were very new, still in original packaging). All of our luggage arrived by 2:30.

 

Here’s a picture of DH standing in front of the window (You can barely see him with the tinted windows.):

 

 

 

 

More to come...our Cheers experience...

[traylynn]

Can't wait to read the rest of your review. We are on this cruise 1/9

[Jenny in TX]

Just did this same cruise in November and loved every minute of it! Looking forward to your review.

[kcwingwalker]

Thanks for sharing your review and photos:)

[Crazymasons]

Subbing...cruising Triumph for the first time in March! :)

[PC Cruisin]

Did the rollaway cost extra?

[Star24K]

Cabin 1003 (deck 10—Panorama) is under the Fitness Center, did you have any noise issues?

[lisaland15]

Did the rollaway cost extra?

 

Nope, the couch in the cabin was more of a loveseat, not one of the convertible couch/beds. The cabin had a max of three passengers.

[dane225]

We will be on the Triumph for the week of Christmas! How was the weather for you guys? Was the ship rocking a lot? We were on the Sunshine for Thanksgiving and we had some pretty rough days. They had a lot of people sea sick.

[lisaland15]

Cabin 1003 (deck 10—Panorama) is under the Fitness Center, did you have any noise issues?

 

No, no noise at all. The Fitness Center has slanted floor-to-ceiling glass windows. The treadmills start at about 8-10 ft. from the bottom of those windows. Maybe the cabins behind ours may hear the noise?

[lisaland15]

We will be on the Triumph for the week of Christmas! How was the weather for you guys? Was the ship rocking a lot? We were on the Sunshine for Thanksgiving and we had some pretty rough days. They had a lot of people sea sick.

 

The weather was beautiful! The water was initially a little cold in Progreso, but got better as you stayed in it. The water was comfortable in Cozumel.

 

The Gulf was pretty calm, maybe a tad of rocking on Friday night when the cold front was moving through. Nothing to the point where we saw people getting sick, though.

[lisaland15]

So, we decided to do the Cheers programs. We’re glad we tried it, but never made it to the 15 drinks a day. With getting the Cheers program, we didn’t want to have the usual bar/nightclub drinks like gin and tonic, vodka and cranberry, etc. We did get some of the “Classic Cocktails” like Long Island Iced Tea, Mai Tai, etc. at the Casino Bar so we could get the match play coupons to use in the casino, though.

 

We spent most of our time in the Alchemy Bar. They had a wonderful menu of cocktails that we had never tried before. Here’s Carnival’s link to the menu:

 

http://www.carnival.com/onboard/bars-lounges/~/media/CCLUS/Images/pdf/Alchemymenupdf.ashx

 

We purchased the program early Tuesday morning at the Red Frog Rum Bar (not all the bars are open in the morning). You can’t start the program until the following day when leaving from Galveston.

 

Our first drinks were (left-to-right):

 

Mango Magic and Ting Mojito (from the Red Frog Rum Bar)

 

 

All the rest of these drinks were from the Alchemy Bar:

 

 

The Antioxidant and The Dealer Closer

 

 

Cucumber Sunrise (it’s actually a little pinker than in the photo). Like hubby said, "The menu is like a refrigerator—it lights up when you open it!"

 

 

Revved Up Mojito Martini and Fiery Tropical Passion Martini

 

 

Ioachim (“the Alchemist”) is lighting the cinnamon flakes on fire in The Perfect Storm (he already fired up the rosemary in the start of the drink).

 

 

 

Next, Progreso and the Jaguar Truck Mayan Adventure Expedition...

[Keith1010]

Thank you for your review and photos and look forward to reading more.

 

Keith

[dane225]

The weather was beautiful! The water was initially a little cold in Progreso, but got better as you stayed in it. The water was comfortable in Cozumel.

 

The Gulf was pretty calm, maybe a tad of rocking on Friday night when the cold front was moving through. Nothing to the point where we saw people getting sick, though.

 

That's great!! Hopefully, we have good weather as well. Thank you for posting your review and pics. We have been on the Triumph a few times,but not since her upgrades!!

[lisaland15]

This has been our 4th or 5th visit to Progreso. We wanted to do something different, so we went on Carnival’s Jaguar Truck Mayan Adventure Expedition. The truck met us right outside the port shopping area. Benjamin and Eduardo were our tour guides and Jorge was the driver. There were 17 of us (max. 24) with DD being the youngest and several folks looking to be in their fifties.

 

 

 

The first part of our tour was bike riding. We took the truck through Merida and stopped about 1 1/2 miles from Xcambo, a small Mayan ruin. When we stopped, we put on sunscreen, bug spray, and our helmets. There were 3 in our little group—so DH and DD rode the tandem bike and I had a regular bike. The bikes were in good condition. The truck followed behind us, so we were able to keep our belongings on the truck and not have to deal with them while biking.

 

 

 

 

We stopped at a parking lot area at Xcambo, and left the bikes there. We then hiked to a little sitting area where Benjamin gave some history on Xcambo. After the talk, we had about 30 minutes to explore the ruin. You were able to climb on everything, except a little area where the king and queen had their throne.

 

 

 

 

 

Cont'd...

[lisaland15]

Next, we headed to the beach for paddle boarding on a private coconut farm. Benjamin gave us a quick lesson and off we went. I didn’t try it, but neither DH or DD had any problems. DD really loved being out on the water. No one on the tour really had problems standing up on the paddle boards. There were tons of shells along the beach and every time a wave came in, you heard what sounded like shell chimes all hitting each other along the shoreline.

 

 

 

 

After paddle boarding, we walked to an area that had coconut huts and hammocks. There, we had lunch. Lunch consisted of iced tea, chips, cheese quesadillas, chicken fajitas, and fresh pineapple. All very tasty.

 

 

 

DD was fascinated with the coconuts. Jorge was kind enough to cut one open for her and we shared the milk and meat with everyone.

 

 

 

 

 

On the way back to the ship, we saw several pink flamingos. The truck pulled over for a photo op.

 

 

The tour guides were great—very helpful and knowledgeable.

 

This was a fun excursion—something for everyone.

[dawn.phythian]

Wow! Thanks for posting your pics and all the information! We are going on our 1st cruise on the Triumph 5 day to Progresso & Cozumel as well on Jan 18th! Our room is 1051 (balcony) on the 10th deck as well, I was concerned after reading other reviews that I might have picked the wrong deck but looks like it's a great one after all!

I noticed your room has the * on the deck plans, and so does mine, I'm not sure what that means, but I guess it's nothing to worry about!

We live north of Houston so won't take us long to get to the port, we are going just DH and I, depending on how much we enjoy it, maybe we can bring our sons next time!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[lisaland15]

Now, to Cozumel. I ask DD if she wanted to swim with the dolphins or swim with the manatees and she choose the manatees. She said everyone swims with the dolphins. lol

 

We swam with the manatees at Chankanaab National Park. We probably hadn’t been there in over 10 years—it’s really nice.

 

We had 7 in our group. We were fitted with life vests and goggles. We walked down the pier and to the stairs and got into the water. The water was warmer here in Cozumel than in Progreso. They broke our group into smaller groups of 3 and 4. Our family was the first to interact with their big, 900 lbs. manatee, Angel. We touched, held, kissed him. No cameras were allowed—their photographers took the pictures. The other 4 in our group were given heads of romaine lettuce to feed the other 2 manatees. Then, we switched. It was about 45-60 minute adventure. The manatees were very friendly and loved being fed the lettuce. There were even little, colorful fish swimming near you that loved chomping on that lettuce, too! The manatees are truly big sea cows!

 

 

 

The rest of the day—we explored Chankanaab. We walked over to their beach area. We went into the water for a bit, then laid in some hammocks for a little rest. DD got a hair wrap.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We also went into their fresh water in-ground pool that had a nice swim-up bar and toddler-safe area.

 

 

 

Another great day!

[kwbound]

Thanks for posting your review. We are on this cruise next month. How long was the Jaguar excursion? When it was over, did you have time to explore town some before heading back to the ship?

[LWiening]

Thank you for the picture of the room. We are going to be on Liberty with the same room on deck 6 in February...Needed this picture today to handle the cold in Chicago..

[lisaland15]

Thanks for posting your review. We are on this cruise next month. How long was the Jaguar excursion? When it was over, did you have time to explore town some before heading back to the ship?

 

We were dropped back off where we started--at the pier. You had plenty of time to shop at the pier if you wanted.

 

We were done around 2:30-2:45. Carnival wanted you on the ship by 3:30. You probably wouldn't have enough time to take the shuttle both ways and shop, but maybe?

 

We do go right through the town--maybe they (the tour) could drop you off?

[trvlgrl422]

Were there movies on the desk at night? On my last cruise they provided blankets and popcorn. It was very relaxing.

[lisaland15]

Were there movies on the desk at night? On my last cruise they provided blankets and popcorn. It was very relaxing.

 

Yes, every night (except Deck Party night before arriving in Cozumel).

 

The movies were:

 

Zookeeper, Big Miracle, Real Steel, The Bourne Legacy, Pitch Perfect, The Lucky One, and Playing for Keeps

 

We didn't go to see any, so not sure about the blankets and popcorn.

[michelle1836]

thanks for posting. we are doing a 4J on the Freedom this coming summer so it was nice to see pictures of the cabin and the window

[lisaland15]

Here's some miscellaneous pictures:

 

Leaving Galveston

 

 

A mosaic on the ship

 

 

Pool area

 

 

 

 

Slide--unfortunately it wasn't open at that moment

 

 

View from "our balcony" (deck area outside our window)