Carnival Conquest 5 Night Review

[CruiseTeacher7]

Hello all,

 

My DW and I just returned from the Carnival Conquest. We went on a five night cruise (June 3-8) to Nassau, Half Moon Cay, and Grand Turk from Fort Lauderdale.

 

Day 1:

 

Our vacation begin early Saturday morning (6/3). We live in the Tampa area and it was an easy four hour drive to Port Everglades. We got to Port Everglades around a little after 11 and we were on the ship by 11:30. We had faster to the fun and we happened to get checked in just as they were calling VIP guests to board. We didn't have to sit in the waiting area.

 

We dropped our carry on bag in our room and headed across the lido deck for lunch. DW got Guy's burgers and I got a pastrami sandwich. My son was raving about them from the cruise he just got off of for his graduation so I humored him. Prior to eating we did check out all of the different offerings on the lido deck. What was new (at least to me) was the BBQ place on deck 10. Most of the conquest class ships (Valor, Liberty, Freedom, etc) have the fish-n-chips place on deck 10 but I think it was a smart move to offer BBQ. I didn't eat there since I had BBQ the previous night.

 

After lunch we headed to the Blue Iguana Cantina for some drinks. Unfortunately there was a lot of liquid sunshine so it dampened the vibe in the pool area on deck 9. That was okay as we were still able to enjoy ourselves. We were on a cruise after all.

 

After the muster drill we explored the ship a bit, went on deck for the sail away (the party had to be moved to the atrium since it was wet and the rain was ending). We got some late afternoon snacks from the Blue Iguana Cantina. We had all three of the tacos (fish, pork, chicken) and I would highly recommend the chicken tacos. Lots of flavor to them.

 

We had anytime seating for dinner. I can't quite remember what I had but DW got the Indian Vegetarian dish. I finished what she didn't eat and wow that dish has some flavor to it. I've gotten it before and I don't know why I didn't get it this time.

 

After dinner we hung out on the deck 5 promenade listening to a guitar duo and did some people watching. DW donated some money to the black jack table. We also listened to Midnight Groove in the atrium lobby. They were pretty good. I think they were playing more of a 60's/70's set. We caught the late night comedy show and the comedian was really good.

 

We had an inside cabin on the lido deck which is a nice location. Unfortunately we had some noisy neighbors, really a group that had several rooms around us and they would talk in the hallway to figure out what was going on and that would wake me up at night. Also for some reason the A/C wasn't as cold as normal.

 

Day 2: Nassau

 

With the inside cabins I'm not awoken by the rising sun. My normal rountine on previous cruises was to get up around 6 am and sip coffee on the lido deck (and sit in some prime pool side chairs to reserve them) until everyone else got up, usually around 9. I got up much later than normal on this cruise, typically around 7:30.

 

The lido buffet was a rugby scrum for breakfast. DW and I worked out and by the time we were ready for breakfast we just missed out on having breakfast in the MDR. I always recommend eating breakfast in the MDR. Same food as the lido buffet but you are served by a waiter and it is not crowded. The lines for the buffet were very long so we just had some pastries and fruit. No big deal.

 

Our plan for Nassau was to walk over to Junkanoo beach. The skies were mostly cloudy which was fine. Living in Florida we don't need the Sun. It was a nice change from last year when it was sunny and blazing hot in Nassau. We walked to Junkanoo beach from the port. Yes there were people hounding us to take cab rides, tours, horse and buggy rides, but after a block it subsided.

 

Junkanoo beach was a pleasant surprise. Its not the best beach we have ever been too and keep in mind its a beach in a harbor/port. It does the trick though and the water felt good. The beach itself has nice sand but there are rocks mixed in (somewhat like honeymoon island here in Tampa).

 

At Junkanoo beach you can rent a chair for $10 and an umbrella for $20. There are a lot of vendors selling drinks, food, and renting water stuff as well as selling tourist goods. We got a good drink deal from the Bikini Tiki Hut. We got the most amazing jerk chicken from one of the vendors. I can't recall the name but if you have your back to the water it is to the right of the Bikini Tiki Hut--a little yellow and green shack with a grill under a canopy on the side. The chef chops up the chicken quarters into pieces. They had a great flavor and they were sticky, kind of as if he mixed jerk marinade and seasoning with BBQ sauce. Anyways, I'm up for the challenge of duplicating it here at home.

 

We had a great time at Junkanoo beach and I would recommend it as an inexpensive thing to do in Nassau. We didn't make it down to the fish fry at Arawak Cay just down the road. Also we were at the part of the beach closest to the cruise ships. The beach looks nicer further down (and less crowded).

 

After Junkanoo beach we took a nap for a little while. I got up before my wife and hung out on the lido deck for sail away. I enjoyed my first Guy's burger of the cruise--a ringer with fries. Always very delicious.

 

Dinner was in the MDR again. I had the salmon it was good. We caught the show in the main theater. It was based on 80's hard rock songs. It was really good, a nice change of pace from Jazz Hot. Before the show the guitarist from Midnight Groove played a medley of rock guitar songs--the main riffs from songs by Van Halen, Led Zeppelin, etc. I think that was one of the highlights from the cruise for me!

 

Day 3: Half Moon Cay

 

We learned our lesson from the previous day and made it to the MDR for breakfast on time. Well worth it.

 

Since we had FTTF we were able to board an early tender to HMC. Again well worth it.

 

We walked way down the beach at HMC. Well past all of the cabanas down close to where they have weddings. There were actually two weddings that day. We pulled up two chairs under the shade trees and had a nice day. The weather started out as a mix of sun and clouds but got sunnier as the day went on. The beach and water at HMC are the best in the Caribbean, hands down. We had a wonderful time at HMC. Lunch was the standard grilled burgers but the jerk chicken they served was pretty good.

 

I will say that we waited in line for a tender for almost an hour in the sun. If you have little kids I would recommend trying to head back to the ship earlier rather than later.

 

After HMC we relaxed for the rest of the afternoon before the steakhouse. For dinner we at the Point Steakhouse. This was our fourth time going to the steakhouse and it is worth every penny. It is $35 per person and it beats out Bern's steakhouse here in Tampa in terms of service, ambience, and quality of food all for a very reasonable price. We were waited on hand and foot. If I took a sip of water it was refilled.

 

For starters I had the Ceasar salad and DW had the onion soup. I ordered the ribeye steak (18 oz, I think it is the third one down) and DW had the 14 oz NY strip. Oh my goodness this was one of the best steaks that I have ever had. It was so tender and juicy. Each bite was like eating butter. I also had the wasabi mashed potatoes, very good as well. For dessert we got the ice cream of the day (it was honey based with candy in it--very good) and a chocolate sampler to split--also very good. Overall another good experience and a very friendly waitstaff. Our waiter was young man named Maksim from Russia and our asst. watier, I can't recall her name, but both of them were very friendly and welcoming.

 

After the steakhouse we listened to Midnight Groove in the atrium but I don't think we were up very late that night.

 

Day 4: Grand Turk

 

We had a later arrival in Grand Turk, I think around 11. We worked out in the morning and had breakfast on the lido. I think with the later arrival people weren't in a rush for breakfast. I had a breakfast burrito and the huervos rancheros from the Blue Iguana Cantina. Wow the huervos rancheros were awesome. The breakfast burrito was pretty tasty too.

 

Before arriving in GT we sat outside on deck 3 in the shade and read for a while. Very nice and quiet out there. That is one advantage of the Breeze is that they put a lot attention to the outside areas on deck 5.

 

In Grand Turk we made our way through the chaos of Margaritaville down the beach to Jack's Shack. I haven't been to GT in two years but it seems like the beach chairs have expanded further down the beach from the main cruise port.

 

If you haven't been to GT the main attraction is the beach/Margaritaville at the cruise terminal. Really that's pretty much all the island has to offer. For a newbie Margaritaville is an exciting place. You can use the pool and beach area for free--you don't have to rent chairs although there are cabanas for rent by the pool. But like everything else at a cruise terminal, whether it is GT, Roatan, Cozumel, etc, it has its corporate packaging.

 

DW discovered Jack's Shack by word of mouth, probably from Cruise Critic. It's a little tiki hut bar and grill about 10 minutes down the beach. It is a great place to go to avoid the crowds and long waits at Margaritaville. They have awesome jerk chicken. Jack's Shack has grown some over the years--more chairs on the beach, more wait staff, etc but it is still a good place to go. In addition the beach at Margaritaville is built on a coral reef so when you go in the water you are walking on sand covered rock and your only view is the cruise ship. The beach down at Jack's Shack is almost on par with HMC. Crystal clear water, sugar sand, and a great view.

 

Word of caution--don't go on those banana boat sofa seat death traps towed by those boats. I had a very serious accident there a few years ago when I took my daughter for a ride on one. Always use caution when doing anything like that on a cruise. You are a long way from home if you get in a jam.

 

For dinner we headed up to the lido buffet, we just didn't have the energy to make it to the MDR that night.

 

Day 5--Fun Day at Sea

 

This cruise was kind of different in that our sea day was at the end. It started with three ports in a row and with cloudy weather. I really never got my deck groove/vibe going.

 

I got up a little early to enjoy coffee and sunrise on the deck. We had breakfast on the lido again it was pretty quiet.

 

We spent the day in the shade, either on deck 3 or on deck 10 reading. We had enough sun from the previous days so we didn't want to hang by the pool.

 

We had sea day brunch in the MDR. I normally don't complain about cruises but I will have to say that service was slow. DW had the mac and cheese and I had the steak and eggs. I would have to say that was one of the most poorly presented plates I've ever seen on any cruise I have been on. I've been to many sea day brunches and I can't say that this one was up there with the others. I'll talk more about some issues in a bit.

 

After brunch we went to the chocolate extravaganza on the lido. It wasn't crowded but for some reason I'm never really impressed by what they offer. Its okay.

 

We spent the afternoon relaxing in the shade on the sofas on deck 10. This was as close to a serenity deck that the ship had and it was a nice relaxing afternoon.

 

We had dinner again in the MDR. I got the caribbean pepper pot soup and the jerk pork for dinner. Wow that was another tasty dinner!

 

That night we watched the Flick show. Kind of a weird show. They have this sort of zombie, dumb looking frankenstein dude (Flick) who is in very number but I couldn't figure out his purpose. They did songs from movies like "My heart will go on", "Eye of the tiger", etc.

Here is the deal. For many of the numbers the costumes and seats didn't quite match the song or movie. For example for "My heart will go on" from Titanic the seat and costumes sort of looked like the evil witch from snow white. The singers and dancers were good it was just sort of a weird show with the Flick dude and some of the costumes. After the show we caught the Ant Man comedian. He was okay.

 

Overall thoughts and impressions. First my apologies to my FIL because he gets upset when people complain about cruises. I don't like to complain about cruises, I've always had a good time and I have to keep things in perspective--I was on a cruise. But I can't let a few of these things go. Overall I had a great time but there were a few things that kind of bugged me.

 

First--my cabin wasn't that cold and on two occasions I had brownish water coming out of the sink. Uh oh.

 

Second--the service for the sea day brunch was sub par along with the food and presentation. Sea day brunch should be a hit not a miss. It's been a hit in the past but it was a miss this time.

 

Third--have they cut back on the bar wait staff? Normally you have to shoo them away but this cruise they didn't seem to have much. For example on the last night we watched Midnight Groove in the atrium but there was no one coming around to take your drink order. Same in the loungue for karoke. In the main theater I had to flag someone down to take my order.

 

Fourth--they didn't seem to do a great job picking up people's drinks when they were done.

 

All of my carnival cruises have been an A or an A+. This one maybe I will go with a B in terms of the service and appearance of the ship. My room for sure needed some new carpet it was worn out. Again, overall a great cruise but I've started to notice some of the cutbacks in staff Carnival is making.

[CruiseTeacher7]

I want to add that Jack's Shack had some very tasty jerk chicken too.

[Sixtytwo]

We have been on Conquest several times and always had a great cruise. I am sorry you had some less than expected things, but it sounds like an overall good time! Jack's Shack is our favorite place in the Caribbean! We head there every time we port in Gr Turk. Their jerk chicken is the best we have had. Thanks for the review! I still look forward to our next Conquest cruise.

[bury me at sea]

Thanks for your thorough and thoughtful review.

 

I know what you mean about hit or miss at brunch. It took me until the third try, with a smile, to get a rare steak, a poached egg with a runny yolk, and warm Hollandaise on the side.

 

I appreciate your taking the time to post your experiences.

[riclop]

Thanks for the review.

[momonthego17]

Great review! Making me hungry and ready to go on our Tday cruise on Conquest[emoji16]!

[easyboy]

Thanks for your objective review.

Glad you didn't let the negatives adversely affect your overall impression.

 

Sent from my SGH-M919 using Forums mobile app

[deemmarie+2]

I want to add that Jack's Shack had some very tasty jerk chicken too.

Would you happen to know if Jack's Shack offer any seafood?

[CruiseTeacher7]

The good news is that Conquest is going into dry dock in September so it will be all nice and shiny for future cruises.

[CruiseTeacher7]

Would you happen to know if Jack's Shack offer any seafood?

Here is their menu https://www.jacksshack.tc/menu/

 

There is also the local village bar and restaurant which is just outside the main port/beach area. This is their menu https://cdn.cruiseradio.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/21155916/023.jpg

 

I'm not 100% sure they are still there, the signs didn't jump out at me.

[kollarism]

Thanks for the review. We are going on the same 5 day cruise July 15th, first time cruisers!

[Lionesss]

Thanks for the review.

 

We had friends from Canton Ohio area that sailed on this cruise.

Extended family of 9, posted great pics on facebook.

 

Waiting to hear how it went for them.

 

Thanks for sharing.

[CruiseTeacher7]

Thanks for the review. We are going on the same 5 day cruise July 15th, first time cruisers!

 

 

 

We met several groups are first-time cruisers. You will have a great time cruises are always a lot of fun. Let me know if you have any questions or want any tips for your cruise.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[CruiseTeacher7]

Thanks for your thorough and thoughtful review.

 

 

 

I know what you mean about hit or miss at brunch. It took me until the third try, with a smile, to get a rare steak, a poached egg with a runny yolk, and warm Hollandaise on the side.

 

 

 

I appreciate your taking the time to post your experiences.

 

 

 

Yeah brunch is normally a great experience. Maybe since it was on the last day they sort of phoned it in. I didn't get any hollandaise sauce either.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[tandemcruzr]

Thanks for the review.

 

I liked your report on Junkanoo Beach and know exactly where the jerk chicken is. We have been there the last 4 or 5 times we've been to Nassau. The cook's name is Richard and he remembers us each time we have been lately.

 

I don't think the Local Village was there the last couple of times we've been there. Looks like Margaritaville has taken away lots of the business from the small local shops.

[rkacruiser]

Not sure about the other Conquest Class ships, but Carnival Liberty's Fish n' Chips have been replaced by a BBQ venue as well. I thought it was good, not great, and not worth another visit during my cruise on Liberty.

 

I appreciated your review. Thank you!

[CourtNicole620]

We are doing the same itinerary on June 17! Are there boats such as catamarans or anything to rent in Half Moon Cay ?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[bluejay555]

Great review! I was on your same cruise so I enjoyed reading your perspective on things. I'm getting ready to do a review so maybe you'll find yourself in some of my pictures ;)

 

I agree about the wait staff being cut. I didn't see anyone walking around the lido deck taking drink orders, and used to, you could get a drink from the pool.

 

I was at guest services and the person in front of me was complaining that their room was too hot and that maintenance had told them the a/c was working fine. They were not happy and demanding something to be done. I'm so glad our room was comfortable! It got a little stuffy at night, but no big deal.

 

We actually had great food at the seaday brunch, except for the pancake syrup being disgusting. My kid wouldn't eat it and so we all tried it and agreed it had a nasty twang to it. Sorry you had a bad experience!