Two New Experiences on Carnival Liberty

[samiam0403]

DH and I just sailed on Carnival Liberty over the weekend (3-night sailing) and after 21 Carnival cruises, we had 2 new experiences that impressed us - I thought I would share them here and see if anyone has experienced the same.

 

Upon boarding, we had a letter in our cabin inviting us to meet by one of the dining rooms at 1100 if we wanted to experience sailing in to Nassau at the bow of the ship. We did, and along with approximately 20 other people, were escorted through crew areas to the crew-only area of the bow. We were surprised to see a complimentary drink station set up (mimosas, bloody marys, water, soda etc), a ship's photographer, and a few senior staff to chat with guests and provide narration as we sailed in to Nassau. We spent a good 45 minutes to an hour out there, and were never rushed off. We got some great pictures, and really just had a great time. We have no idea why we got invited, but it was quite an experience!

 

Upon our return from Nassau at about 4:30 or 5:00pm, we stopped at the lobby bar to get a frosty beverage and listen to the 3 violinists as we cooled off. We were again surprised to have the maitre d' approach us out of the blue and ask if we would like a tour of the galley and to sample the evening's (elegant night) dinner offerings. We (of course!) said yes, and were led through the dining room, into the main galley, and given a brief tour. We then were handed off to the sous chef, who proceeded to explain various dishes and how they were prepared, and had us taste appetizers (chilled strawberry soup, creamed asparagus soup, stuffed mushrooms, and minestrone), main courses (roasted duck, grilled jumbo shrimp, and sea bass) and desserts (malted chocolate hazelnut cake and coffee cream cake). Everything was delicious - particularly the duck - and it was a lot of fun to chat with the sous chef.

 

Overall, we had an amazing time on Liberty. Crew was friendly, casino was good, chef's table was incredible, steak house was probably the best I've experienced yet (the 50% off a bottle of Far Niente cabernet the first night probably helped ;p - ~$75 for the best wine I have ever tasted), and the weather and company were unbeatable. I couldn't have asked for a better 'cancer-free for 5 years' celebration cruise. I hope future Liberty guests have as great a time as we did! And hint: if you ever get selected to go to the bow, bring a pony tail holder if you have long hair. I didn't, and it gets a weeeeeeee bit breezy out there! :D

[Defender1791]

I'm pretty sure that the most probable answer to your question as to "why" you were afforded those opportunities can be found in the first line of this entire post...

 

"...after 21 Carnival cruises..." :-)

 

Sent from my Moto Z Droid.

[samiam0403]

I'd say probably not? We saw quite a few diamond-level cards around the ship. I've still got to spend almost 100 more days at sea to be at that level! :o We actually tried to figure out a common denominator while we waited in a group - we had folks on their first cruise, 6th cruise, a diamond, and everything in between. Great guess though! :)

[Alabaster Cruiser]

We did experience the galley tour with the tastings on the Triumph. We were told it was something new that they were trying and/or cruise was the first time that they had done it. I think this was in April. BTW it was our 25th milestone.

 

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[evandbob]

We did experience the galley tour with the tastings on the Triumph. We were told it was something new that they were trying and/or cruise was the first time that they had done it. I think this was in April. BTW it was our 25th milestone.

 

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The 125 Diamond cruisers on the Vista's Journeys cruise over last Thanksgiving were given invitations to cruise the galley and do some of the behind the scenes tour. This was after the Captain's luncheon for us that had a Wagyu beef entree.

 

But that was a group invite. The OP remarks sound like they were individually chosen. I've been on 32 Carnival cruises and have gotten picked to go from an inside cabin on a 10 day Journeys cruise to a balcony for the 11 days following on the Glory B2B.

 

Most cruises go by for me without any additional or out of the ordinary perks.

 

But it is certainly nice when Carnival goes above and beyond to recognize and reward loyal cruisers.

[Micahs Grandad]

I suspect it was an experiment and would love to get picked for this.

 

BTW we are diamond and never heard of them doing this

[kicia]

We are going on the Liberty next weekend for the 3 night cruise and it will be number 55 on Carnival. We have never had any type of upgrade or even upsell so being chosen for this would be great.

 

Who is the Maitre d'?

 

Glad you had a great time!

[2Shoes2Go]

Congratulations on your 5 year cancer free celebration! It was wonderful to have these nice surprises.

The tasting, in the galley, has been done on a few ships. We have enjoyed it on two cruises. It is a unique experience getting to talk to the chef or a sous chef about the menu items. We did try a few items we hadn't had before; this was fun.

The sail away on the bow is something Royal has been doing for quite a while, for some upper level guests. It's great to hear Carnival may do this too! Appetizers and drinks make it a party.:D

Thanks for sharing your good fun with us. Best wishes for your continued good health. :D

[lazydayz]

We sailed the Liberty in late June and were invited to do the sail in to Nassau. Our invitation said a select number of suite guests were invited. We went and enjoyed it. Nice to meet some of the officers and enjoy free drinks.

[jewliana]

We have an ocean suite on the Liberty this Sunday to celebrate our anniversary. Hope we get to do the sail in. We have done it on Celebrity and it is quite special.

[USNUZULOOSE]

I would have loved the bow ride. So glad you got to enjoy that.

[tw67]

Congratulations on 5 years Cancer Free!!!! I always love when I can hear that from someone!!!

[FLSteve11]

I'd say probably not? We saw quite a few diamond-level cards around the ship. I've still got to spend almost 100 more days at sea to be at that level! :o We actually tried to figure out a common denominator while we waited in a group - we had folks on their first cruise, 6th cruise, a diamond, and everything in between. Great guess though! :)

 

It still might be it. On Oasis of the Seas, we got a similar letter, for Diamonds and up. We got to go out on the helipad in front while sailing out of Nassau. Others might have gotten the letter and just not gone.

[FLSteve11]

We did experience the galley tour with the tastings on the Triumph. We were told it was something new that they were trying and/or cruise was the first time that they had done it. I think this was in April. BTW it was our 25th milestone.

 

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I've been seeing quite a few galley tour offers on ships in the past few years. We had one on Princess last month for example. Seemed like they were offering it up to just about everyone. It might be a low-cost way to make an impression on people (it just costs the time for someone to guide you through).