9/27 Splendor Honeymoon to New England And Canada: a ridiculously long review

[FSRoberts]

I’m probably unusual around here in that most of the time I dislike a tropical beach and much prefer a rocky coast, brisk weather, and clouds. So when it came time for my honeymoon, and my new wife feeling much the same, we were excited at the prospect of an autumn cruise to New England and Canada. After considering several possibilities, we chose the Carnival Splendor out of New York, as I thought it would be fun to spend a few days before and after in the city.

 

This was my 3rd cruise (all Carnival), and my wife’s 1st.

 

If this is too long, I’ll summarize at the end. Also, no pictures yet (maybe I’ll post some later), but this review was the sailing of this itinerary before and has a ton: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=44338874

 

Day 1: Embarkation

Before the cruise, we stayed at a hotel near LaGuardia and took a car service to port. We got in around 11:30. We planned on just dropping off our bags and going out to get a few things. However, a Carnival employee advised us to go ahead and check in as lines were short, so we did. Security, check in, and we had out cards in less than 15 minutes. We turned around and walked out.

 

Our first stop was a drug store. Sadly, we both felt colds coming on, so we wanted to pick up some OTC medicine. We went to a CVS at 53rd and 10th Ave. Right across the street was a wine shop, so we picked up 2 bottles of bubbly. We then went back to the pier, and by then we were able to walk right on after going through security again.

 

When I hopped aboard, the first stop was the shore excursions desk to book the behind the fun tour (more on that later). Then we enjoyed a welcome aboard drink. By then we heard the announcement all rooms were ready, so we went there and dropped of our carryon. We were in 1461, the aft most cabin on deck 1, interior. We then went to the Mongolian Wok, my first time to this restaurant. I kind of thought it was overrated. Not enough choices, and too slow.

 

We took a little tour of the ship, and by then it was time for the muster drill. As soon as that was over, we went to the room to grab my camera for sail away. By the time I got to the front of the ship (we watched from deck 9 forward, the “hidden” deck), we were already out from the pier and sailing down the Hudson. We greatly enjoyed the sail away, and stayed out there well past the Verrazano Narrows bridge. We then retired to our cabin.

 

We had 8PM reservations in the Steakhouse. We arrived right on time, but it did not start out well. It took several minutes for someone to seat us, and we were taken to a table for 4 in the middle of the restaurant next to a piano (which would have been nice if someone was there to play it). I also thought it rather strange that it was built to overlook the 2nd level of the lido restaurant.

 

We spent a solid 20 minutes staring at the menu before a waiter decided to introduce themselves and give the presentation, as well as offered us the complementary wine (or 50% of better bottles; we stuck with complimentary). I don’t know that it was a useful presentation; everything seemed cooked “in its own juices.” We both decided on the New York Strip. I got the crab cake and onion soup, while my wife got the crab cake and lobster bisque. We both agreed the crab cake was delicious. She loved the lobster bisque. However, my onion soup was brought out unbelievably hot, but was tasty after it had cooled down (but not without some scorched taste buds). We both skipped the salads. Our entrees were also good, though hardly the best steak ever, either.

 

For dessert, we both went with the cheesecake. It looked delicious, but that stopped as soon as we tasted it. It was flavorless. Maybe we had been spoiled due to the Junior’s cheesecake from the day before, but it was not good. The only thing that was good was the hazelnut biscuit crust. Sadly, this was the start of a lot of dessert disappointment with this cruise.

 

After dinner we went to the packed welcome aboard show, which was well under way. We made our way to deck 3 and eventually found some seats. I personally was glad to miss the Stevie Wonder song I had already seen twice. They soon introduced the comics for the first half, Allyn Ball and Tony Espisito. We would see more of them later. After that, we headed for the front of deck 6, as it was a clear night, and we knew we could see the stars. Then we went to bed. Despite how low our cabin was, we had no issues with noise.

 

Day 2: Sea Day

Waking up, our colds were worse, so we lingered in bed. But after some medicine, we were feeling better and we went to brunch. I had steak and eggs and a banana cream pie, all of which was tasty. We then set off for a cooking demo in the steakhouse, but found it full, so we chilled in the cabin for a while. We then went back to the steakhouse for the wine paring class. I had previously done one on the Freedom. I found this one inferior. The sommelier didn't seem to have a good enough grasp of English to really explain much well. He also went into too much detail on where the grapes get their flavor (soil types and what not) rather than talking about the paring.

 

We headed to grab some lunch before the buffets closed. While in the restaurant, we were able to see a pod of what appeared to be short-beaked common dolphins swim beside us. Very cool.

 

We then took a quick nap, but having been in New York for a few days, we decided to do some laundry. There were only laundries on a few decks, so we lugged our stuff to deck 2. It was a but on an annoyance.

 

After laundry, it was time to get ready for dinner. It was formal night, so I donned a suit and we went for pictures. We made our way to the dining room. I, as usually, made my own surf and turf with lobster and prime rib, which was decent. But the melting cake was not very tasty, and the cherries jubilee was not the greatest, either. My wife had the prime rib, which she did not care much for, but did OK with the chile rellenos. She didn't like the cherries, either.

 

We then set off for the piano bar while waiting for the comedy. I usually love the piano par, but this guy, Dana, was more a karaoke act. He had backing tracks played off his ipod, with lyrics on his ipad. I guess he “played” as well, but several times I saw him reach to cue a song on his ipod while the song was still playing. It appears with Dana, he has found a way to get live music off the piano bar, too.

 

At the comedy club, we saw both adult acts. Allyn seemed like he was phoning it in. But Tony was very funny. After that, we headed for bed, after another stop at deck 6 forward on another clear night.

 

Day 3: Boston

We both woke up feeling pretty bad. We had purchased a groupon for a hop on hop off tour, so we decided to give it a go. It left from long wharf, and not seeing a shuttle, we took the Carnival shuttle for $19. After we signed up, we learned it was $19 a person, not for 2 as we had been lead to believe. We would have been better off in a cab.

 

The tour included a harbor cruise, and we quite enjoyed that. It even stopped at the USS Constitution, but we avoided getting off. We then got on the trolley, but by then, our colds were hitting us hard, so we never used the hop off portion. We just stayed, listening to the unusual guide that complained more about the traffic than gave a tour. We got off and headed back to the ship for a nap.

 

Feeling slightly better, we got ready for dinner. But first, we hit the photo gallery. We found 2 we liked, though one had a nasty scratch on the fake column that looked bad. But they offered to photoshop it out, so we brought them both on canvas, which came with the 8x10 and 4 wallets for $100.

 

At dinner, I had the onion soup (not as tasty as the steakhouse one, but at least cool enough to eat), the penne mariscos (good), and the meatloaf (not so good). Again, desert was a disappointment. The fig, date, and cinnamon cake had little flavor. The “rum raisin” ice cream looked like vanilla with 2 raisins on top.

 

We then headed for the comedy. We again saw Allyn and Tony. Tony was better. Then, to bed.

 

Day 4: Portland

We were both feeling much better in the morning. We set off from the ship early. Portland had a free golf cart shuttle, but it was not needed, as it only saved a couple hundred feet. We booked an independent tour company that was a bit of a walk called Portland Discovery Tours. We began with a trolley tour. The guide was great, pointing out historic sites and cool local homes. It included a 25 minute stop at Portland Head Light, which was fun but crowded. Immediately upon getting back, we headed on a boat portion of the tour, which was great fun. It went by several lighthouses, including Portland Head Light. I recommend sitting on the starboard side, as most sights are seen from that side.

 

When we got back, we went looking for a place for a lobster roll. We found the place right on the wharf too crowded, so we headed to another place I found on Yelp, the Evantide Oyster Bar. The roll was tiny but tasty. But a bit overpriced. We also stopped for a potato donut and some ice cream. We also did some souvenir shopping at one of the tables that set up on Commercial Street. The very nice lady, when she learned it was our honeymoon, gave us some freebies as well.

 

We then headed back to the ship. We headed out to deck 9 for sail away to get one last Maine coast view. We soon headed in.

 

As we got into the port part of the itinerary, the production shows switched to early shows for the late dining, which I did not care for. I have late dining to have more time; putting the show there makes that pointless. Still, I guess some people like it. We went to “The Beat” which was a strand mash up of various musical styles. I found it just OK, but my wife decidedly didn't care for it.

 

Oh well, off to dinner. I had the smoked duck (tasty), ceviche (tasty), and lamb shank (ok). My wife had the pork steak (also OK). For dessert, though, again, bad, as we got a tasteless bread pudding. I’m really thinking this ship needs to fire its pastry chef.

 

No comedy tonight, as the comics got off in Portland, and no one was getting on until Halifax. But we were tired anyway, so we went right to bed.

Day 5: Saint John

 

We had little planned for Saint John, but in retrospect wish we did. I would have much preferred an excursion to St. Martins. But as it was, we did not, so we made the walk to Market Square and went to the New Brunswick museum. But it was there Saint John tried to kill us. My wife got stung by a yellow jacket, and I got my finger slammed in a locker. A sign of the not-so-good day ahead.

 

The museum had an eclectic collection of stuff, from old clothes and furniture, to exhibits on history. The only parts I found really interesting was the whale exhibit (where they have several whale bones and skeletons) and the geology exhibit.

 

We left and grabbed some poutine for lunch. The people were welcoming, but the city just seemed boring and industrial. There were a couple of college students collecting surveys, and I’m afraid I could not give the city high marks. We went to the vendor tent, which we found to be mostly full of the worst touristy garbage. We went back aboard ship, grabbed some ice cream, and took a nap.

 

Dinner that night was the worst of the cruise. The only positive was they were fast, which was good as the “Game of Love” show was to start at 9:30, rather a rush for us late dining people. The mushroom soup was flavorless, as was my lasagna and my short rib. My wife was also disgusted by her turkey. I had the apple pie, which was not good, while my wife had the no better cream cake.

 

There was a Mexican buffet at 11:30 (guess they knew people would need a snack after a bad dinner), but I fell asleep before going. Though as my wife can tell you, I don’t need Mexican anyway.

 

Day 6: Halifax

Again, we had not much planned, but wish I did. The ship was not to arrive until 10AM ship time, so we had a leisurely breakfast. We were late coming to port, with no one allowed off until 10:15 or so. Also, a tall ships sailing execution had been cancelled.

 

Sadly, the Royal Princess had taken up the good terminal, and we were docked in the industrial port, having to take a shuttle bus over. Interestingly, we disembarked from decks 1 and 2, the first time I had seen that. Didn’t even know there were doors on those decks.

 

We took a walk up the harbor walk to the maritime museum. Lots of cool Titanic artifacts. I enjoyed it. We then went out for some more poutine. We saw a duck-style cruise operator and decided to get on that. It was the 4:30 Halifax time departure, which was one hour ahead, so we had plenty of time. Interestingly, though, almost no cruisers took it although it had been packed before. It drove by some sights before plunging into the water. I found it fun.

 

We got back and walked back to the terminal. The harbor walk was oddly deserted at that time, even though there was around 1 hour until back aboard. We made it in plenty of time, then went for a nap before dinner. It was formal night again, so I got out another suit. We felt a little rushed. It seemed odd that the second formal night was the latest port stop of the trip. A day earlier in Saint John would have made more sense when we left at 4PM.

 

Anyway, we got some more photos (buying 1 the next day), went to dinner. Better food tonight, though nothing to write home about. The eggplant had little flavor, the escargot wasn’t very tasty, but the pasta and chicken was good.

 

There was supposed to be the Vroom show that night, but seas leaving Halifax were quite bad, so the shows were cancelled. The hastily put together a musical show, but we did not go. They indicated they would try and stage a matinee the next day, but I don’t believe it went on.

 

We picked up new comedians in Halifax, but sadly their names escape me. One was a woman whom we did not see, while the other guy was a bit of a hick from Georgia. I found him quite funny. After his show we went to bed.

 

Day 7: Sea Day

Having looked at the Fun Times, I noticed the last sea day was VERY sparse. Almost nothing going on. The cruise director seemed anxious for us to get packed. But we did have something to do: the behind the fun tour!

 

We met in the library on deck 4 at 8:30. They had a variety of continental breakfast stuff there, which was nice given the early start. The tour was led by an Indian fellow from training.

 

We began at the muster stations, where he discussed the lifeboats and crew emergency training. We continued forward to the bow, where we posed a photo and he answered some questions. We then went backstage of the show where the dance captain showed us a dressing room, and a stagehand showed us the stage.

 

We continued down where morgue and brig are, and then aft to the training center where we answered more questions. We then moved down to the laundry, where the laundry manager gave us a tour. We moved up and aft again to the crew bar (where there was more refreshments) the crew mess and galley (by the way, I’d love one of those water level portholes down on deck 0). We continued aft to the storage where we saw a beverage fridge, meat freezer, and other storage. We then hit the engine control room. The engineer talked to us at length (perhaps a little too much as we ran against another tour after us that rushed us through the remainder).

 

We then made our way up to the galley, were the chef walked us through. They began with a carving demo, where they showed some carved watermelons while the chef worked on soap (which they would later give each of us). We then walked though some other parts of the kitchen, before exiting and heading to the bridge.

 

We went up to find the captain not there. He went off duty at 11. So the second officer showed us around: the small wheel, the even smaller joystick they actually control the ship with, the radar display showing the Royal Princess that had been following us out. But as cool as it was, they rushed us into a picture and we left. The other tour was waiting.

 

We finished in the Steakhouse, where they had mimosas waiting. We sat through a talk from the chef (really just a pitch to try the steakhouse), and they gave us our hats, bags, and carved soap.

 

We then went down to brunch. I had the frosted flakes crusted French toast and the mac and cheese with bacon. The former was better than the latter. Also had a banana cream pie. Sad to say, but these 2 brunch pies were some of the best deserts I had all week.

 

After a break in our cabin, we went up to the chocolate buffet before it closed. Sadly, it stunk. The cakes tasted generally bad. They had a cool thing making ice cream swans. Too bad the ice cream was the only thing that tasted good. The only other acceptable item was the chocolate rice pudding.

 

We then went back to the cabin for a nap and started packing. We wanted to do something else, but frankly, the cruise director had very little scheduled.

 

Dinner time came and we went up. I had the crab cake (good), frog legs (bad), prime rib (ok), and bacon mac and cheese (better than the brunch version, but still not great). For desert, the grand marnier soufflé was the only really good desert I had with dinner the whole cruise.

 

We went to the comedy (the guy only, who had a great set), then out to the front of deck 6. We were treated to a great view of the Royal Princess, who was cruising very close off the port side.

 

Finally bed. I set the alarm for 6AM, hoping to catch the sail in.

 

Disembarking:

We got up and turned on the bow camera to discover we were already most of the way up the Hudson, so we stayed in. We were docked a little after 7 as they waited for a tug. It was raining quite badly as well.

 

We were zone 32, but staying the night, we were not in a hurry. We went up to breakfast and waited it out. Still, it was not until 9:30 they began zone debarkation, and a little after 10 when we got off.

 

They we ran into the biggest problem. Being a rainy day, cabs were in HUGE demand. Also, we didn't want to walk to the subway and get soaked. And Uber had surge pricing in effect. So we waited. 2 hours until we finally got a taxi.

 

Summary:

The Ship:

I liked it for the most part. Very similar to the Conquest class. The glass dome is helpful in bad weather. I love the little hidden decks up front for some late night stargazing. The only negatives were (1) the deck 5 issue it shares with most Carnival ships, only being able to get through on deck 5 (and having to go past the smoky casino), and (2) the décor, with too much pink, zebra stripe, and ugly hallway carpet.

 

The Service:

Good, but not as good as in the past. Staff was, as always, friendly. We asked our steward to clear the minibar and he instead just dumped into one of our drawers. He once walked in on my nearly naked wife as he knocked very lightly. The waiters were good, but I found it odd that they tended to deliver a few plates simultaneously when I ordered more than one appetizer or entrée, both at dinner and brunch. Past cruises the waiter delivered everything one plate at a time.

The Food:

Occasionally brilliant, mostly mediocre, sometimes awful, especially dessert. The appetizers were usually better than the entrees and the pastas were usually decent. Everything else was meh.

 

The Entertainment:

The production shows were decent from what I saw, but we did not go much. The Love and Marriage show was good, thanks to, as usually, a hilarious older couple. I also skipped the legends show, as after even just 2 cruises, the concept is tired.

 

The comedy was generally good. We quite enjoyed those shows.

 

As I mentioned, the piano bar player was awful. It’s a piano bar, not an ipod bar.

 

My biggest problem with the entertainment was the scheduling. Several times they did the “late dinner seating to an early show” thing, which I dislike. The Marriage show was so early (9:30) we were quite rushed to get through dinner. Some comedy shows started at 9:15 and we could not make it (and these were, by our understanding, not the same shows at 11:15). As I mentioned, the last sea day was very sparse as far as activities, with most days dominated by spa events and art auctions with little else to do.

 

All in all it was an enjoyable cruise, although a few things were not up to snuff with past cruises on the Valor and Freedom.

[sunshine3215]

I was also on this cruise.....so I agree with your comments....here are my comments below:

 

Food: To me the food was below average, I mostly ate the grilled sandwiches, salads and hot dogs/hamburgers. The food on the lido deck buffet was below average, my husband had a steak one night that was good but otherwise...not good.

 

Shows: the shows was okay, we also did not go to the comedy shows. We did go to the musical show.

 

Purpose of Trip: TO me, the purpose was for me to see the scenery so I did see that but the leaves had not changed much. The cruise is okay but I would not recommend this as an "exciting" cruise. I saw a show years ago that talked about how all of the US now looks the same and it is really true. Some things looked unique like Peggy's Cove, and the Hailifax out of town scenery but all and I was not overly impressed. I had not been to Portland/Kenn. so it was nice to see the Pres. Bush's home, and the little town but I mainly loved the flower boxes on the homes in that part of the country.

 

TOURS: I did a tour at each port, for me, I don't go to the same place 2 times so I wanted to see all of the town scenery. Some people just walked around outside the boat but I wanted to see more than the port.

 

In Boston we did the on/off trolley (which is your spouse is a taller man) the seats are cramped in the leg area.

 

In St. John we did the pink tour bus which was a trip. The tour was not bad it was the boarding process. When you exit the boat you go to the pink bus, you have to walk to join the line. But this is the key, the line is for ALL THE CRUISE SHIPS IN PORT....so can you imagine the line for 2 cruise ships.....when we joined the line, we had to wait 1 hour for Tour B on the first bus. Then after tour B we took tour A bus which was an 1 hour wait OUTSIDE in the element. And then after we did each tour we went to the tent (set up next to the pier) for shopping which is a nice selection of souvenirs. Honestly, unless you are looking for something specific, we did not need to walk up the street to the local stores, a good selection is in the tent. But I will tell anyone if you plan to do the pink on/off tour please dress for standing outside, I'm so thankful I had on a scarf/ trench and hat.

 

COATS: Please plan to take a warm jacket, the weather was windy in some ports.

 

ROUGH Waters: The Atlantic waters are rough, it was not rough in Boston but as we moved up the coast the water was rough. I took motion sickness pills starting 24 hours before the departure of the cruise and took a pill each night whether the water was rough or NOT. That really helped me because I spoke to several people who were sick.

 

NEW YORK Departure: What a MESS. The comments about waiting long periods for a cruise is TRUE, I recommend everyone to make arrangements for a DRIVER through CarMax or one of the services. Also find out what level they will meet you on PRIOR to arriving in New York (level top or bottom). The top level has the cabs but my driving service picks up people on the lower level (Supposedly). Also make sure you give the driver service your cell phone number so he can reach you...OR THE DRIVER will leave you which happened to US.

 

CAB: To be on the safe side, when we exited the ship, we got a cab number then we found out the driver picks you up on the lower level....when he did not come....we went back upstairs in the cab line. Thank GOD I had gotten a cab number, when we went upstairs the cab line was like 4 hours longs.

 

LEAVING THE SHIP: I recommend that you do self service or leave the ship as soon as possible. Also do not make a flight or Amtrak reservation for prior to 1:45 pm to ensure that you make it. I went to the service desk on the boat and requested an early departure number, my number was 3 and I still did not get to Penn station until like 12:45pm and this is leaving the boat by 9:30 am.

 

New York is a mess at departure time, I will not cruise travel out of new York ever again.

Edited October 7, 2014 by sunshine3215

[FSRoberts]

I was also on this cruise.....so I agree with your comments....here are my comments below:

 

Food: To me the food was below average, I mostly ate the grilled sandwiches, salads and hot dogs/hamburgers. The food on the lido deck buffet was below average, my husband had a steak one night that was good but otherwise...not good.

 

I'm glad we were not alone noting that the food was not good. I don't know what was wrong this cruise.

 

Purpose of Trip: TO me, the purpose was for me to see the scenery so I did see that but the leaves had not changed much. The cruise is okay but I would not recommend this as an "exciting" cruise. I saw a show years ago that talked about how all of the US now looks the same and it is really true. Some things looked unique like Peggy's Cove, and the Hailifax out of town scenery but all and I was not overly impressed. I had not been to Portland/Kenn. so it was nice to see the Pres. Bush's home, and the little town but I mainly loved the flower boxes on the homes in that part of the country.

 

Yeah, this is too early for great fall scenery. I might take a similar itinerary in the future, but I'll look for an early to mid October departure.

 

ROUGH Waters: The Atlantic waters are rough, it was not rough in Boston but as we moved up the coast the water was rough. I took motion sickness pills starting 24 hours before the departure of the cruise and took a pill each night whether the water was rough or NOT. That really helped me because I spoke to several people who were sick.

 

The North Atlantic is rougher than other destinations. But I only thought leaving Halifax was really bad and didn't notice that many sick people. Then again, we had a table for 2, so we talked to fewer people. My wife and I had no issues even without pills.

 

NEW YORK Departure: What a MESS. The comments about waiting long periods for a cruise is TRUE, I recommend everyone to make arrangements for a DRIVER through CarMax or one of the services. Also find out what level they will meet you on PRIOR to arriving in New York (level top or bottom). The top level has the cabs but my driving service picks up people on the lower level (Supposedly). Also make sure you give the driver service your cell phone number so he can reach you...OR THE DRIVER will leave you which happened to US.

 

CAB: To be on the safe side, when we exited the ship, we got a cab number then we found out the driver picks you up on the lower level....when he did not come....we went back upstairs in the cab line. Thank GOD I had gotten a cab number, when we went upstairs the cab line was like 4 hours longs.

 

LEAVING THE SHIP: I recommend that you do self service or leave the ship as soon as possible. Also do not make a flight or Amtrak reservation for prior to 1:45 pm to ensure that you make it. I went to the service desk on the boat and requested an early departure number, my number was 3 and I still did not get to Penn station until like 12:45pm and this is leaving the boat by 9:30 am.

 

New York is a mess at departure time, I will not cruise travel out of new York ever again.

 

I agree it was a mess. But in fairness, I think there were 2 big issues. First, was the heavy rain. With that much rain, a lot of New Yorkers that would walk to the subway take cabs instead, so there was heavy demand in Manhattan, and thus fewer cabs headed to the pier for airport-bound guests.

 

Second, it was Yom Kippur and the Sabbath, so even not so observant Jews were avoiding driving and taking the cab.

 

I would not hesitate to book out of Manhattan again, but I would just wither, as you said, arranged a car service, perhaps use self assist to get in line early, or use a Carnival transfer.

[092306]

Thanks for the review and glad there were some positives to your honeymoon cruise. We'll be on the Splendor next week and so disappointing to hear about the sub-par food. Last year on the Splendor the desserts were the best part. Hoping for better next week.

[cruiserider444]

hope the food is better for our cruise Saturday! did u eat at the mongolion wok or sandwich place? best food during lunch

[FSRoberts]

hope the food is better for our cruise Saturday! did u eat at the mongolion wok or sandwich place? best food during lunch

 

I hope it is for you, too!

 

I at at the deli for lunch once. It was good. The Mongolian Wok, I thought, was overrated. Maybe I'm just used to the one here in Cleveland where there are a lot more choices and I can load up on the meat. But I'd rather hit the deli or rotisserie than wait in line for the Wok.

[sgttami]

WOW...part of the lure of my sailing on Splendor for the 5th time this year is that the NY debarkation and embarkation has been the easiest of any port I've sailed from or returned to...and that includes a February blizzard, March snow and the rain all the other times!

 

It does sound though, for the most part that you enjoyed the cruise...

[FSRoberts]

WOW...part of the lure of my sailing on Splendor for the 5th time this year is that the NY debarkation and embarkation has been the easiest of any port I've sailed from or returned to...and that includes a February blizzard, March snow and the rain all the other times!

 

It does sound though, for the most part that you enjoyed the cruise...

 

Embarkation was easy. Debarkation was good aside from a bit of a line at passport control and the out of control taxi line. Perhaps our cruise was just a freak thing.

[timmy1958]

Thank you for the detailed review, excellent. I didn't realize muster was before sailaway. Good to know.

[Maraprince]

One of our party was delayed getting to the port and that pushed us back further time wise. But check in and boarding were quick.

 

The good part was our cabin was ready and we went directly there and dropped off our hand luggage.

 

By the time we returned from the life boat drill one piece of luggage was already waiting. The other 2 came a little slower.

 

We managed to get over to the Taste Bar for the first night of goodies before dinner.

 

While we were not estatic over our table location (#303) the wait staff was good and quick and we did get a table for 8 off to the left side of the Gold Pearl restaurant (no steps, quick entry). We could not really see what was going on in the center of the dining room.

 

Every night the meals seemed to get better and better. Only drawbacks, sugar free ice cream had just one flavor...vanilla. Soup was always served very hot but was not just thin broth.

 

During the whole voyage there were only 2 selections that I did not like...key lime pie and rice pudding. Otherwise no complaints about the food at all. We wanted to know the secret to how they manage to make the meat choices so tender and juicy. Portions were more than generous. If we ordered 2 main courses, we shared one with the entire table and still had left overs.

 

The Lido had a great selection of different fish dishes at lunch. We avoided the Mongolian Wok due to the long lines. I live in an Asian area of NYC and can get the same type of food anytime I want it. Potato salad was very good and every style of potato served was delicious (I do not like french fries and do not order them.) Everyone at our table for 8 really enjoyed their food choices every night.

 

The 2 production shows were great. The singer who substituted for the 3rd production show was equally talented. We were among the hordes who could not fit in the small venue in she performed in the night before. Good move on the CD's part putting her in the main show room. We caught the Italian comedian's adult show but did not like the other comedian.

 

Our ship's tour to the Hopewell Rocks was fantastic! Guide was a retired school teacher who passed a lot of photos and information during the trip going. We went directly to the Rocks. Our naturaist guide was surprised to have 21 people out of 25 join him on a further walk along the beach. He pointed out earlier rock falls. The Visitor Center had a minature of the Rocks and other interesting items. He showed us 2 short videos...one of the rock fall and one with the Northern Lights taken in September. Both were amazing. Then we had a very short time to shop. Managed to get some magnets, post card, a sew on patch and a light weight jacket (on sale),

 

Box lunch was not too bad either.

 

We rose earlier and ordered sandwiches from Room Service. Good thing because the buffet was not really fully ready for the early tours. Some machines were out of hot chocolate, etc. So between what we ate in the cabin and the Lido we were good until lunch time.

 

7 days is not enough time. Sailings need to be at least 8 or 9 days. We enjoyed the deck party and picked up fruits from the Mexican buffet ( I am not a fan of Mexican food). There was a good selection of fresh fruits. The last day the chocolate buffet was held in the back section of the Lido, the future cruise talk was held, the second afternoon tea, the Green Eggs and Ham breakfast, the Dr. Seuss parade -- too many things going on on the last sea day when you want to be packing. We did catch the Legends show, went back and changed to our departure clothes, put our luggage out and went up and had our last pizza on board.

 

Not really sure why the complaints about the food. Now, the coffee in Lido was horrible and I brought my own instant coffee at breakfast. However, coffee in the main dining room was very good.

 

Ship's shuttle in Halifax worked very will for us both on arrival and departure. Virtually no wait at all. NYC departure was very organized compared to RCCL. No overcrowding or pushing and we were able to walk off the ship as easily as we walked on it.

 

We certainly lucked out with the weather in all the ports. But some very cold spots on board...main show lounge, our table in the dining room (started out okay but progressively got colder), ladies room right near the pizza place, sometimes the automatic doors created a wind tunnel effect on deck 9, certain areas of the Lido. . Cabin temperature was able to be adjusted to our desired warmth.

 

My doggie was happy to see me. Picked her up enroute back from the port since my vet where she was staying closed at 1PM. Traffic was horrible with the rain. So luggage and doggie all arrived at my apartment at the same time. A little crazy but a good crazy.

 

MARAPRINCE

[FSRoberts]

The last day the chocolate buffet was held in the back section of the Lido, the future cruise talk was held, the second afternoon tea, the Green Eggs and Ham breakfast, the Dr. Seuss parade -- too many things going on on the last sea day when you want to be packing. We did catch the Legends show, went back and changed to our departure clothes, put our luggage out and went up and had our last pizza on board.

 

Not really sure why the complaints about the food. Now, the coffee in Lido was horrible and I brought my own instant coffee at breakfast. However, coffee in the main dining room was very good.

 

Ship's shuttle in Halifax worked very will for us both on arrival and departure. Virtually no wait at all. NYC departure was very organized compared to RCCL. No overcrowding or pushing and we were able to walk off the ship as easily as we walked on it.

 

We certainly lucked out with the weather in all the ports. But some very cold spots on board...main show lounge, our table in the dining room (started out okay but progressively got colder), ladies room right near the pizza place, sometimes the automatic doors created a wind tunnel effect on deck 9, certain areas of the Lido. . Cabin temperature was able to be adjusted to our desired warmth.

 

Wow, this is where I ask if we were on the same cruise.:)

 

I don't drink coffee, but my wife liked the lido coffee. The dining room coffee, too. Though she mostly got coffee from a insulated container as the coffee machine on the aft port side was broken most of the time.

 

Food is subjective, of course, but I found everything lacking in flavor. I was looking forward to the chocolate buffet but found most offerings quite bland, aside from the ice cream and rice pudding. I found the dinner I got leaving Saint John the worst meal I have ever had on a cruise ship.

 

And I don't know if you got picked up or what, but departure at New York was a disaster, with massive lines for taxis. And it was sure overcrowded, as when I first got my ticket there were over 200 parties, mostly with 2-4 people, in front of us.

 

Unlike you, I found there to be very little to do the last sea day. Though in fairness I could not go to the Seuss breakfast or future cruise talk as I was on the behind the fun tour. Activities really seemed to lack in the afternoon there.

 

And I was never cold when inside. Of course, I like it cold. :)

 

Guess everyone really does experience things differently.

[Maraprince]

Wow, this is where I ask if we were on the same cruise.:)

 

I don't drink coffee, but my wife liked the lido coffee. The dining room coffee, too. Though she mostly got coffee from a insulated container as the coffee machine on the aft port side was broken most of the time.

 

Food is subjective, of course, but I found everything lacking in flavor. I was looking forward to the chocolate buffet but found most offerings quite bland, aside from the ice cream and rice pudding. I found the dinner I got leaving Saint John the worst meal I have ever had on a cruise ship.

 

And I don't know if you got picked up or what, but departure at New York was a disaster, with massive lines for taxis. And it was sure overcrowded, as when I first got my ticket there were over 200 parties, mostly with 2-4 people, in front of us.

 

Unlike you, I found there to be very little to do the last sea day. Though in fairness I could not go to the Seuss breakfast or future cruise talk as I was on the behind the fun tour. Activities really seemed to lack in the afternoon there.

 

And I was never cold when inside. Of course, I like it cold. :)

 

Guess everyone really does experience things differently.

 

 

When I have a cold or I am sick, nothing tastes right, nothing has any flavor and everything is bland. My sense of smell also goes astray. This could have played a small part in what you experienced.

 

MARAPRINCE

[dreweyj]

I posted a first time cruiser review myself. Of all the things we experienced, I concur the food was not acceptable. It was the worst buffet and "resort" food I've ever eaten. Basically, everything on the buffet I tried was limp, mushy, not up to temp or had no flavor. Nothing was seasoned. Not even steamed vegetables. I gorged myself in every port because I dreaded going back to the ship's food. Oh well :confused:

[cruisetrail]

When I have a cold or I am sick, nothing tastes right, nothing has any flavor and everything is bland. My sense of smell also goes astray. This could have played a small (not so small - cruisetrail) part in what you experienced.

 

MARAPRINCE

 

Oh, yes!!

 

On the Splendor - your OTC meds and .... steam rooms!

Steam rooms!

Steam rooms right away.

And plenty of hot drinks - tea & lemon - no pay - just drinks and drinks and drinks and.... steam room!

Get ready next day!

 

Remember: the Splendor is a resort ship.

[FSRoberts]

When I have a cold or I am sick, nothing tastes right, nothing has any flavor and everything is bland. My sense of smell also goes astray. This could have played a small part in what you experienced.

 

MARAPRINCE

 

I have thought about that, but the thing is, there were several things I thought were pretty good. The appetizers in the steakhouse were awesome. Next time I might see if I can just make my own 7 course menu of appetizers and dessert up there and skip the steak. A few other things were great, including several MDR apps and pasta entrees. Also, my cold was worst the night before Boston and the night after Boston, yet these were not the worst meals I had.

 

I just think the chefs were not the best at cooking the kind of food I like. Perhaps other entree choices were better, but just don't appeal to me. Also, I like my desserts sweet and rich, whereas I often here people complain about desserts being to sweet or rich. I just have different tastes.

[FSRoberts]

Oh, yes!!

 

On the Splendor - your OTC meds and .... steam rooms!

Steam rooms!

Steam rooms right away.

And plenty of hot drinks - tea & lemon - no pay - just drinks and drinks and drinks and.... steam room!

Get ready next day!

 

Remember: the Splendor is a resort ship.

 

I thought you needed a spa pass for the steam rooms. (Also, it is deck 10 forward, I was in 1 aft). I tried to steam up the bathroom, but that was another problem I had that I did not mention. Did anyone else find the showers cold? I kept mine turned up to 50c+ most of the time, but it rarely seemed to get very hot.

 

Our colds were pretty much on the way out by Portland and gone by Halifax. For that and the reasons I gave above, I don't think my cold played the largest part in the issue.

[Maraprince]

Our shower was always very, very hot as well as the water in our sink! Just ask your cabin steward to adjust it. The water pressure in both the sink and shower were great.

 

MARAPRINCE

[cruisetrail]

I thought you needed a spa pass for the steam rooms. (Also, it is deck 10 forward, I was in 1 aft). I tried to steam up the bathroom, but that was another problem I had that I did not mention. Did anyone else find the showers cold? I kept mine turned up to 50c+ most of the time, but it rarely seemed to get very hot.

 

Our colds were pretty much on the way out by Portland and gone by Halifax. For that and the reasons I gave above, I don't think my cold played the largest part in the issue.

 

 

Yes, you need a pass to Hydropool & Thermal Suite. We book it for duration of the cruise and it's worth every penny. This luxury is not available on "more upscale" lines like Celebrity, Princess (except the two new ships), RCI and Carnival direct competitor MSC.

 

Also there is a free sauna on the Splendor.

[cruiserider444]

I hope it is for you, too!

 

I at at the deli for lunch once. It was good. The Mongolian Wok, I thought, was overrated. Maybe I'm just used to the one here in Cleveland where there are a lot more choices and I can load up on the meat. But I'd rather hit the deli or rotisserie than wait in line for the Wok.

 

you were right about the food. not everything was terrible, but since the last time we went on the Splendor, the food had declined.

in general, we had a great time on the cruise, but the food and service in the dining room lacked the exceptional experience we had back in May 2013

[FSRoberts]

you were right about the food. not everything was terrible, but since the last time we went on the Splendor, the food had declined.

in general, we had a great time on the cruise, but the food and service in the dining room lacked the exceptional experience we had back in May 2013

 

I'm glad it wasn't just my imagination. As you said, it mostly was not terrible, it just was not great. I hope it was just bad cooking on 1 ship and not Carnival making the recipes worse.

[TwoMisfits]

Having done Splendor in early September...

 

I agree on Lido food and coffee - it is awful. Stick to the "specialty" sites on Lido, especially the Deli - it has the best employees who will make you anything they have the ingredients for (so if you want your veggie and cheese panini grilled with some of the red pepper offered on another sandwich - no problem...the only place that always told me no problem on a request and fulfilled it). And I agree that the 1st night and Mexican night dining room menus are subpar. And I agree that desserts in dining (but especially Lido) are not great - the best chocolate I had all cruise was the room service chocolate cake. I actually ordered it after the disappointing chocolate buffet (wasn't even impressed by the appearance of the buffet, so I had a swan and one bite of something else and thought "it's Lido, forget it - go get the roast beef sandwich and chocolate cake people have raved about") and it was the best dessert (and roast beef) of the week.

 

And there are not enough activities on board, especially when some get scrubbed for no reason (happened 3 times on my cruise at events I showed for - probably happened more than that)...

 

But, that being said, you can eat well and have fun. Book the spa pass, enjoy it every day (and get their citrus water - I'd do glasses of it). See all the comedy. And do all the Seuss stuff - that is done well:). And have a 2nd app in lieu of a dining room dessert - the apps are good - OR get the kids cookies - those were actually pretty good, especially to go during a show:). And make sure to hit the dining room in the morning for coffee and juice - don't get those 2 items anywhere else (you'll just be sad at what you're missing:)...

Edited October 18, 2014 by TwoMisfits

[CookieShip]

Yes, you need a pass to Hydropool & Thermal Suite. We book it for duration of the cruise and it's worth every penny. This luxury is not available on "more upscale" lines like Celebrity, Princess (except the two new ships), RCI and Carnival direct competitor MSC.

 

Also there is a free sauna on the Splendor.

Where is the free sauna on the splendor? Thought they only had them in the thermal suites area.

[GRANNYOFSIX]

I tried to read this entire review. I was looking for opinions on the lido pizza. Sorry if I didn't see it in any of the posts. Can someone confirm if the pizza on the Splendor is the new menu with the quattro pizza? We really enjoyed that pizza on our last Pride cruise in September. Thank you!

[dreweyj]

I tried to read this entire review. I was looking for opinions on the lido pizza. Sorry if I didn't see it in any of the posts. Can someone confirm if the pizza on the Splendor is the new menu with the quattro pizza? We really enjoyed that pizza on our last Pride cruise in September. Thank you!

 

The Splendor does have the updated pizza options, including the Quattro. The gentleman who works third shift at the Pizza station is phenomenal. He makes outstanding pizza. He made me his own creation pepperoni with some spices on it and it was killer. He's Indian and he's working the ship until he has enough money to open his own restaurant that is his dream. That guy is awesome at making pie! The rest of the crew - not so much. Try to hit it up late (I think he starts around 7 or 8).