No longer a cruising virgin! My thoughts on the Carnival Pride

[riclop]

Hi everybody!

 

I just returned from my very first cruise on Sunday, and I gotta tell you, I'm grieving. I miss being on that beautiful ship! And it's total crap that I am now expected to take care of myself, and do actual WORK. :mad:

 

The experience was overwhelmingly good on the Carnival Pride. The ship was in good repair, and the service was outstanding. Only a few negatives, and they were quite minor.

 

Here are my thoughts, in no particular order:

• FTTF is so worth it. We didn't have any tender ports, but it paid for itself at least three times. When we arrived on embarkation day, around 1:00 p.m., there was a LONG line, which we were able to skip. On that first day, we needed to go down to Guest Services to have our balcony divider opened, and again we were able to walk right past a very long line to receive immediate service. Finally, on debarkation morning we were able to relax in the Captain's Lounge, and then got off the ship long before most everyone else.
   
  
• I am officially a devotee of the Main Dining Room. We had an amazing service team, and I don't know what all the fuss is about with American Table. Most days there were too many good choices, and I simply didn't have room in my stomach to try everything I wanted to try. With a very few exceptions, everything was the right temperature, and delicious. Also, I actually preferred the nights when we did not have tablecloths (casual nights), because the tablecloths tended to get in the way. Just my opinion.
   
  
• I know you can't bring plastic bottles of water on board. I know that. BUT-- in both Nassau and Freeport, we didn't use all the water we brought off the ship, and "forgot" them in our backpack. We had no trouble getting them back on board. Your mileage may vary, of course.
  
• I was really excited to try the steakhouse, and the food was pretty good, but honestly I think I preferred the MDR. The food wasn't THAT much better, the service was not as good as what I received from my MDR team, and the atmosphere was just off. I think it's a fault with the design of the Spirit-class steakhouses in the funnel. There was no physical barrier, such as a door, between the steakhouse space and the atrium, so while the steakhouse was playing subdued music, and the atrium was playing louder, more bass-driven pop, we weren't able to actually hear either one. It just felt like a cacophony of sound.
   
  
• As someone who had been really excited to start cruising for the last year, no one was more shocked than I when I woke up the first morning super disoriented at the fact that HOLY CRAP WE WERE MOVING. I took a meclizine and my body eventually adjusted. My husband, on the other hand, had a rougher time and we will be getting him a prescription patch before our next cruise. I wish I had taken the prospect of motion sickness more seriously.
   
  
• Guy's burgers are good, but Blue Iguana burritos are great! However, I was a little underwhelmed at their breakfast burritos.
   
  
• Bonsai Sushi is incredible. I went to the sushi demonstration the first day, and then went there for one dine-in meal, and got take out sushi a different day. Absolutely outstanding. Also, they have free pickled ginger if anyone wants it for motion sickness.
   
  
• Nassau didn't feel dangerous and crime-ridden like everyone says, but it also didn't feel very relaxing. It had a very frenetic pace, and it felt like a big city, which it is. Freeport, on the other hand, was much more relaxing. We got the My Bahamian House excursion and it was incredible. I would recommend that highly to anyone going to Freeport.
   
  
• I brought my own tea bags and was glad that I did. Most other cruisers at tea time seemed surprised at the upcharge for specialty tea. I didn't see anyone who actually bought it.
   
  
• Dive-In Movies are fun, but the lido lounge chairs were a bit uncomfortable. Maybe it's because my husband and I are both a bit fluffy, but we both got really uncomfortable after about an hour of sitting in those chairs.
  

 

That's all I can think of at the moment. I'm happy to answer any questions, though!

Glad you lost your virginity and now you are hooked like the rest of us.

[beachycowgirl]

First time Cruiser here.

Can I ask you about the excursions. Do you book from Carnival or book your own. Wanting a beach day at a nice resort and maybe some snorkeling one day. We will be in Nassau and Freeport. Whats your opinion?

Thank U

[kgb46]

I usually start taking Bonine a couple of days before and every day of the cruise. So far, so good. I have heard that once the seasick feeling starts, it is hard to stop. I tried the patch but it made me sleepy and I had a very dry mouth.

[JaniceB]

Thanks for sharing your first cruise with us.

[almendrada]

Yes, I'm fine. It was my brother and he is fine now too. Just one of those useless body parts that seem to expire at inconvenient times!

I have that same excursion booked for my next Pride cruise in August. I'm really glad everyone enjoyed it because the last time I was in Freeport we hung around the port and it was boring. Was it enough time? That was my main concern.

 

Thanks

That was the one thing. We were really crunched for time at the end, partly because we had some stragglers who didn't want to leave, but also because we stopped and pick some people up at Port Lucaya on the way back. But it was a Carnival sponsored excursion, so they wouldn't have left us. The only thing is that there was no time for shopping or anything.

[almendrada]

First time Cruiser here.

Can I ask you about the excursions. Do you book from Carnival or book your own. Wanting a beach day at a nice resort and maybe some snorkeling one day. We will be in Nassau and Freeport. Whats your opinion?

Thank U

 

For Port Canaveral, we rented a car and bought our own tickets to the Kennedy Space Center. For Nassau and Freeport, we had heard enough sketchy things about the Bahamas that we decided to buy Carnival excursions, and we did that through the website. It turns out it was a good decision. I can tell you that My Bahamian House included snorkeling and some beach time, but there are also beach clubs at both ports where you can just sit at the beach or pool and have drinks. There's probably more about that in the Bahamas forum.

[Foxinspace]

So glad you enjoyed your first cruise!!

 

We sailed Pride recently and loved it. I found Baltimore an ideal port for us, since we have to fly in from Canada, it's a short (therefore much cheaper) flight for us.

 

Enjoy your follow up trips.