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January 3 Fascination Review

tropicaledrink

By tropicaledrink,
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tropicaledrink

tropicaledrink

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Quick Fascination Review!

 

Group: Me and DH (my 7th and DH's 6th cruise), and 13 first time Carnival Cruisers. 2 had previously sailed on Norwegian and 1 on Royal Caribbean. That's 10 first time cruisers!

 

WHY: We took this cruise because two people in our group were married on Half Moon Cay! The majority of our group works in Higher Education, so finding a time was tricky, but we were able to get everyone off and able to travel for the January 3 sailing.

 

Pre-Cruise: While I would have LOVED to have gone to the Taxslayer Bowl (GO VOLS!), I was the only one in the group who was an alum and couldn't convince the group to leave earlier or spring for another night in the hotel. BUT it was so much fun to be around the Big Orange Faithful, especially after our win! There were a ton of Tennessee fans that also boarded with us on the Fascination.

 

We stayed at the Jacksonville Plaza Hotel. It was $100 for a room for 4 people with parking included while we were on the cruise and the shuttle to port. I don't think I would stay here again. The hotel needs some work - it appears to be a former Microtel, and while the surfaces of the room were clean, the wallpaper (???) in the bathroom was peeling off the walls. Literally. The breakfast left a lot to be desired. The shuttle company was not reliable and tried to bump us to 1:30pm (we were scheduled for 12:15pm) after citing that the Fascination was delayed getting in to port. A quick search told me that wasn't true and after threatening to not use the shuttle and make our own arrangements, our 12:15 time was magically available (they would have refunded the shuttle portion). I will stay elsewhere next time. :/ Be aware that the Days Inn and Quality Inn at Exit 363 off of I-95 use the same shuttle service as Jacksonville Plaza.

 

JAXPORT: It was a BEAUTIFUL 80 degree sunny day when we boarded. SInce we arrived close to 12:30, it was crowded. We stood in line to go through security and then again to check in. Thankfully the lines moved quickly. Our wine bottles didn't get more than a cursory glance, but they did make a group in front of us open their suitcases and remove liquor that had been placed in another container. Water bottles and sodas were thoroughly checked. We made it through check in completely and took our on board photo by 1:35pm (which was amazing, considering how long the lines felt!). The staff at Jaxport was warm and friendly. My ONLY disappointment was that we boarded on Deck 3 instead of Deck 7 in the Atrium. With the first time cruisers, I missed that "Ahhhhhh" moment. Not a huge deal, I just didn't realize that was a thing in Jacksonville. :P

 

THE SHIP: We have sailed her sister ship, the Elation, and found the Fascination to be in MUCH better condition than the Elation. The Fascination is scheduled to go to dry dock soon for general updates, and honestly the only thing I saw that indicated that it was close to dry dock time was the carpet in the stairwells. It wasn't thin, but definitely was well used. ;) The Fascination is a lovely ship, and the Fantasy class is pretty easy to navigate.

 

CABIN: We booked U16 (porthole) to save some money and absolutely LOVED it. Standard ocean view cabins are pretty tight on this class of ship (in my opinion). We had a good 2 more feet of space in our cabin than standard ocean views. Only downfall was that our last night at sea we sailed in to a cold front and we were definitely MOVING and GROOVING! Haha. It didn't make us sick, but if you are motion sick prone, I do not recommend a port hole. We loved our cabin!

 

CABIN STEWARD: Our cabin steward was Larreston and he was FAN-FREAKING-TASTIC! He left all of our towel animals through out the cruise and was just amazing. Definitely one of the best we have had. We tipped him generously at the end of the cruise. He deserved it.

 

DINING ROOM: We were in the Imagination (aft) Dining Room at the 6pm Dining. We got to know the hostess staff and Maitre D' very well due to a couple of issues. One of our couples didn't call and confirm connecting his booking to mine, so he had been placed at another table. The Maitre D' realized we were a wedding party and held the table next to us "just in case". He officially became my favorite person that day! Our waiters were good, but not the most personable ones we have had. We had no complaints though. I have a tree nut allergy, so I pre-ordered my meals each night for the following night. Svetlana was the one who took my orders and she was awesome.

 

We also got to know two of the other hostesses, Yanja and Andrea, because, SURPRISE! Restaurant Hostesses are also the wedding coordinators! :) Yanja was our main coordinator (I was the MOH, so I also had a lot of interaction in the planning :) ). Yanja and Andrea did a GREAT job! Yanja is about to relocate to the Imagination for her next contract though - she is a huge asset to Carnival.

 

Speaking of weddings, there were FOUR weddings on board! One on embarkation day, one on the first sea day, one on the beach at HMC, and one on the ship at HMC. They definitely were busy!

 

LIDO DINING: I haven't eaten the standard buffet in quite some time. I tend to stick to the grill, deli, pizza, etc on cruises, so I can't speak for Taste of Nations at all. I did miss Blue Iguana and Guy's, but loved having the Carving station and chicken tenders again! The pizza was good. The deli was a HUGE miss this time. They guy working it was just not very good at his job. He was very slow and did things very oddly. I got one teeeeeeeny tomato slice on my turkey on a country roll and early in the cruise, my salmon and bagel had almost NO cream cheese, and at the end of the week, it literally had half of a brick of cream cheese (I just scrapped it off). Nothing tasted bad. We ate in the dining room each night, so I can't speak for dinner on Lido.

 

SEADAY BRUNCH: First sea day was excellent, service was well paced, we used our free drink coupons, and food was delicious. Last sea day was a big ole miss. Things just came out in a weird manner, the mac and cheese "sauce" was basically milk (??), and the steak in the steak and eggs was more like stew beef. Just kind of an odd experience.

 

 

I'll be back with more later! Time to brave the cold and take the puppy out for a walk!

Edited by tropicaledrink
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tropicaledrink

tropicaledrink

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Back with more:

 

ENTERTAINMENT:

 

Ok, this may be a little long.

 

The CD for our cruise was Jase (Jason Apps). He was personable, and friendly. We saw him around the ship a lot. We loved how he said Byyyy--eeeee! I did think he made way too many announcements on the sea days (3 between 10 am and 3 pm plus the captain's announcement at noon was just A LOT). I honestly have no idea who the rest of the entertainment staff was. We went to almost NO shows.

 

The two Playlist productions were Motor City and Divas. We received a schedule at the beginning of the cruise with all the entertainment in the main theater. They rotated shows and it would have been easy to catch one if you had wanted.

 

We attended the HASBRO game show on the last sea day and watched. It was a cute addition and I can see where it would be fun for the kids. :)

 

We went to no comedy shows either (this was a weird cruise for us!). One of our comedians was Spike Lee. I've seen him before. He's not bad. I don't remember who the other was.

 

We did karaoke 3 nights. It was fun, and had a pretty good group. I am sure people were sick of us the night though we did Bachelorette stuff. We kind of sang (and drank!) a lot. Superstar Live Karaoke seemed to be kind of miss - not well attended.

 

The hot tubs on the Serenity Deck were open until midnight and we found ourselves there a lot around 9:30 or 10pm, soaking in the warmth and the serenity deck on the Fascination was an awesome place to just look up at the sky. We were fortunate to have a fuller moon most of the cruise, which made for a pretty bright atmosphere.

 

The band at the Casino stage was pretty good! They did a lot of 80s music and I enjoyed them.

 

Day Activities -

 

The casino was kind to our group and every couple left with more than they spent.

 

Trivia was well done, and a couple of people in our group came home with trophies.

 

The top deck with the jogging track and putt putt was closed quite a bit due to high winds, although the water park stayed open.

 

I avoid the main pool like the plague, but on Serenity, chair hogging wasn't too bad. If you were patient, you could grab a lounger. :)

 

PORTS

 

Nassau -

 

We happened to be in port the day there were over 20,000 passengers scheduled to be there. Grrr. The day before and after us only had about 10,000 passengers. Sigh. Our original plan had been to go to Atlantis, but we quickly abandoned that idea when we saw how crowded it was going to be. (thanks cruise tt!) In port with us was the Allure of the Seas, the Freedom of the Seas, the Costa Luminosa, and the Carnival Conquest.

 

We decided to book the day pass at the British Colonial Hilton. If booked in advance, it was $60.00 per person and included a $40.00 food drink/credit. Be aware that the prices on the menu are plus a tax and an automatic 15% gratuity. We walked to BCH around 9am, paid our balance, and spent the day in the sun and water. It was not crowded at all, and we were all THRILLED with our decision to spend the day there. 4 of us were on a tab together, and we got 3 orders of Nachos, 1 Hamburger, 7 Daiquiris, and a giant bottle of water, and I think we may have still had a little left at the end on our tab. The resort included use of the beach, chairs, umbrellas, pool, towels, etc. It was a wonderfully relaxing day and I would go there again in a heartbeat. We left around 2:45 and ducked in the Straw Market and headed back to the ship at about 3pm. All on board was 4:30, and 3 ended up being perfect. We walked right on with no line.

 

Half Moon Cay was wedding day! The wedding was at 10 am. The Groom and the rest of our party met at the main lobby bar at 9:45 am and were escorted straight to a tender. (They were still calling tickets at this point). We (the Bride and I) were escorted down to the next tender, and were the first ones on. It amazed me how rude some people were. They were trying to get us off quickly, and people had to be asked multiple times by staff to move out of the way when we both boarded and disembarked the tender. After disembarking the tender, we were shuttled to the wedding site (about half way between the Pirate Bar and the Horse Stables), and the wedding happened. Security was on the beach to prevent people from crossing our wedding party during the ceremony and to redirect people during picture. It was a short and sweet ceremony, with a champagne toast and then we headed back to the ship at about noon. Since we were going back to change anyway, we elected to eat on a very empty Lido instead of on the island. We went back to HMC around 1:20 and spent about an hour and a half on shore (last tender was at 3). It was a WONDERFUL day, but I am so glad that I have another stop scheduled there on the Pride, because I am looking forward to a full beach day there! :D

 

 

We came back to 30 degree weather in Jacksonville, and back to the mountains of Tennessee, which were even colder!

 

Overall, great trip, lots of memories, and 140 days until we are on the Pride!

 

If you have questions, please feel free to ask!

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tropicaledrink

tropicaledrink

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Hey there!

 

The water temperature at both places was slightly cool, but you got used to it very quickly. I was able to handle being in the water for over 20 minutes at a time. It does take a minute to get used to though.

 

Alcohol - there's is a rum runner stuffed in a tennis shoe. In carry on luggage. I'm not sure what luck people had with checked luggage. ;)

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sahm2alexis

sahm2alexis

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Hey there!

 

The water temperature at both places was slightly cool, but you got used to it very quickly. I was able to handle being in the water for over 20 minutes at a time. It does take a minute to get used to though.

 

Alcohol - there's is a rum runner stuffed in a tennis shoe. In carry on luggage. I'm not sure what luck people had with checked luggage. ;)

 

Good to know! We planned on sight seeing in Nassau, but Half Moon Cay doesn't have much else to do if you aren't going to a wedding ;)

 

People don't talk much about getting CAUGHT with rum runners... checked luggage- got it!

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hrforrest

hrforrest

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I have a reservation at the Jacksonville Plaza in 23 short days and you have me worried :(.

 

With the shuttle do you schedule when you check in? Do you remember what the earliest time was?

 

Would you suggest me looking somewhere else to book since I do have some time left?

 

This will be my 3rd time on the Fascination so I am not worried about that part at all, just can't wait!! :D

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tropicaledrink

tropicaledrink

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I have a reservation at the Jacksonville Plaza in 23 short days and you have me worried :(.

 

With the shuttle do you schedule when you check in? Do you remember what the earliest time was?

 

Would you suggest me looking somewhere else to book since I do have some time left?

 

This will be my 3rd time on the Fascination so I am not worried about that part at all, just can't wait!! :D

 

It was okay....I really didn't like how the shuttle issue was handled at all. The room wasn't bad and our car was fine while we were away.

 

You sign up for the shuttle when you check in. The earliest they book the shuttles is for 11:30am. We checked in about 5:00 and the 11:30 shuttle time was gone. If you're okay getting to port a little later, you'll be fine. My general preference is to get to port before the rush.

 

I would stay somewhere else next time. It wasn't a terrible experience, just not awesome enough for me to not try anyone else. ;)

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scooterpopsnana

scooterpopsnana

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[quote=

 

We also got to know two of the other hostesses, Yanja and Andrea, because, SURPRISE! Restaurant Hostesses are also the wedding coordinators! :) Yanja was our main coordinator (I was the MOH, so I also had a lot of interaction in the planning :) ). Yanja and Andrea did a GREAT job! Yanja is about to relocate to the Imagination for her next contract though -

 

I love your review. The Fascination is our favorite ship (we like the intimacy of the Fantasy Class ships).

 

But, I am so sad to see Yanja is leaving :( She is so special to us. We carried our DGD on her second cruise after she lost her mother to a brain aneurysm. She was 7 years old. One of my friends gave her a tiara to wear on elegant night. Well, she got dubbed "The Princess". The Captain heard she had lost her mom and invited us to the bridge, as his guest. And, at dinner, all he hostesses made her feel like a princess. On our last day Yanja gave her an ankle bracelet and the captain gave her a model of the ship that he signed.

 

Later, that year, DH and I returned for our 20th wedding anniversary (without DGD) Yanja saw us in the dinner line and came to hug us. She asked "Where is the Princess?" The captain found out we were onboard and invited us to dine with him. His first question "Where is the Princess?" When we left the ship, we had gifts from both Yanja and Captain Marino for "the princess" Yanja is such a sweet person. We left our camera with her, she said she did not have one. This year, we received a "Merry Christmas" greeting from the Fascination dining room staff. We know she sent it.

 

Getting to the Fascination is so easy for us, I hope we can see our friend on the Imagination, but with it in LA, that is doubtful. Sadly, Captain Marino moved to the Sunshine two weeks before our last cruise. Maybe someday will see him again.

 

Thank you for your post. I am glad to hear she is well and moving on.

Edited by scooterpopsnana
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tropicaledrink

tropicaledrink

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[quote name=

 

We also got to know two of the other hostesses, Yanja and Andrea, because, SURPRISE! Restaurant Hostesses are also the wedding coordinators! :) Yanja was our main coordinator (I was the MOH, so I also had a lot of interaction in the planning :) ). Yanja and Andrea did a GREAT job! Yanja is about to relocate to the Imagination for her next contract though -

 

I love your review. The Fascination is our favorite ship (we like the intimacy of the Fantasy Class ships).

 

But, I am so sad to see Yanja is leaving :( She is so special to us. We carried our DGD on her second cruise after she lost her mother to a brain aneurysm. She was 7 years old. One of my friends gave her a tiara to wear on elegant night. Well, she got dubbed "The Princess". The Captain heard she had lost her mom and invited us to the bridge, as his guest. And, at dinner, all he hostesses made her feel like a princess. On our last day Yanja gave her an ankle bracelet and the captain gave her a model of the ship that he signed.

 

Later, that year, DH and I returned for our 20th wedding anniversary (without DGD) Yanja saw us in the dinner line and came to hug us. She asked "Where is the Princess?" The captain found out we were onboard and invited us to dine with him. His first question "Where is the Princess?" When we left the ship, we had gifts from both Yanja and Captain Marino for "the princess" Yanja is such a sweet person. We left our camera with her, she said she did not have one. This year, we received a "Merry Christmas" greeting from the Fascination dining room staff. We know she sent it.

 

Getting to the Fascination is so easy for us, I hope we can see our friend on the Imagination, but with it in LA, that is doubtful. Sadly, Captain Marino moved to the Sunshine two weeks before our last cruise. Maybe someday will see him again.

 

Thank you for your post. I am glad to hear she is well and moving on.[/quote]

 

You are so welcome! She was wonderful!

 

It kind of sounded like the next contract may be her last one :( Carnival is going to be losing someone awesome when she leaves.

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BARBARA J.W.

BARBARA J.W.

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[quote name=

 

We also got to know two of the other hostesses, Yanja and Andrea, because, SURPRISE! Restaurant Hostesses are also the wedding coordinators! :) Yanja was our main coordinator (I was the MOH, so I also had a lot of interaction in the planning :) ). Yanja and Andrea did a GREAT job! Yanja is about to relocate to the Imagination for her next contract though -

 

I love your review. The Fascination is our favorite ship (we like the intimacy of the Fantasy Class ships).

 

But, I am so sad to see Yanja is leaving :( She is so special to us. We carried our DGD on her second cruise after she lost her mother to a brain aneurysm. She was 7 years old. One of my friends gave her a tiara to wear on elegant night. Well, she got dubbed "The Princess". The Captain heard she had lost her mom and invited us to the bridge, as his guest. And, at dinner, all he hostesses made her feel like a princess. On our last day Yanja gave her an ankle bracelet and the captain gave her a model of the ship that he signed.

 

Later, that year, DH and I returned for our 20th wedding anniversary (without DGD) Yanja saw us in the dinner line and came to hug us. She asked "Where is the Princess?" The captain found out we were onboard and invited us to dine with him. His first question "Where is the Princess?" When we left the ship, we had gifts from both Yanja and Captain Marino for "the princess" Yanja is such a sweet person. We left our camera with her, she said she did not have one. This year, we received a "Merry Christmas" greeting from the Fascination dining room staff. We know she sent it.

 

 

 

Thank you for your post. I am glad to hear she is well and moving on.[/quote]

 

 

 

You are talking about Vanja.....Head Hostess..........Wedding Planner..

She is sooooooooo sweet............

I have been on the Fascination many Cruises..........

I have talked with her many times..............

 

My last two Cruises was 12/1 & 12/6/2014.........BTB

She told me she is going to the Fantasy.............

Fantasy is in Charleston SC....

She left the Fascination-Jan-12/2015.......

She was going home for two months.........

So March/April she will be back to work.......

 

As you all can see the Fascination has

been my favorite Ship.....

 

I have made friends with the Staff and Crew.........

Vanja and afew others are going to the Fantasy.........

Fantasy was my first Cruise many Cruises ago.......

I have been wanting to go on the Fantasy........

I am looking at dates now for booking a Cruise on the Fantasy........

Edited by BARBARA J.W.
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BARBARA J.W.

BARBARA J.W.

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Good to know! We planned on sight seeing in Nassau, but Half Moon Cay doesn't have much else to do if you aren't going to a wedding ;)

 

!

 

 

HMC=Half Moon Cay.......

It's very pretty Island.........

The Ship will have a Big cook-out............

If you choose not to eat on the Island you can go back to

the Ship to eat..............

HMC is your Beach day...................

If the water is too cool/cold.......

You can walk around the Island........

Happy Cruising...................

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BARBARA J.W.

BARBARA J.W.

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Where do you book the hotel. Carnivals website?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

 

 

No go to the Hotels website..........

If you will do a search for Jacksonville hotels/motels

on Airport RD............There is a lot of them

and most offers a Cruise package.............

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BARBARA J.W.

BARBARA J.W.

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What if I'm not staying at one of hotels? I just want to go to the Hilton british colonial for the day package.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

 

 

Sorry............

I though you were asking about Hotels in JAX...............

Sorry..........

 

Look for their website.. Hilton British Colonial in Nassau Bahamas...

Edited by BARBARA J.W.
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