Our 25th Anniversary Adventure - Baja Mexico & Hawaii on the Inspiration & Splendor

[Jamman54]

Patti makes her way to the Monte Carlo Casino Promenade Deck 9 mid ship…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is the Casino Bar……

 

 

This afternoon Grant is playing the guitar at the Casino Bar…..

 

 

Looking aft down Inspiration Boulevard…..

 

 

Bonsai Sushi Express is located on Promenade Deck 9, just off the Atrium…..

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

Right across the way is Cherry on Top…..

 

 

 

This is the Avant-Garde Lounge, Promenade Deck 9 mid ship…..

 

 

The Café Des Artistes Coffee Bar, Promenade Deck 9 mid ship…..

 

 

 

 

 

The Rock and Roll Night Club, Promenade Deck 9 aft…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

The Carnival Inspiration trophy cases…..

 

 

 

The Alchemy Bar, Promenade Deck 9 aft…..

 

 

 

 

The Candlelight Lounge all the way aft on Promenade Deck 9. This venue is used for the Comedy Club each evening. It also happens to be our muster station…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued…….

[Jamman54]

The Warehouse Video Arcade is located on Promenade Deck 9 aft port side…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Patti heads back up to Lido Deck 10, and checks out some more desserts…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

If you like wine you can “Cruise the Vineyards”…..

 

 

 

 

There is a PYOB station in the Lido Buffet…..

 

 

The Pizza Pirate and bar are all the way aft in the Lido Buffet…..

 

 

 

Patti makes it back to me at the Red Frog Rum Bar…..

 

 

 

We head back to the cabin to relax and get ready for the muster drill. Our luggage has arrived. We only take out the clothes we’ll need for the next four days and leave the rest of our clothes in the luggage under the bed.

 

The alarm for the muster drill sounds at 4:45 pm, so we head up three flights of stairs to the Candlelight Lounge. The muster drill is over in a timely fashion and we never had to go outside at all.

 

We decide to go to Serenity and hang out for sail away…..

 

 

 

To be continued……

[Jamman54]

We were supposed to sail at 6:30, but for some reason we didn’t sail until 8:30. No big deal since Catalina Island is only twenty three miles away. We decided that we would not be eating dinner in the dining room this cruise, so there will be no food porn while on the Inspiration. Don’t worry, we’ll make it up to you once we get on the Splendor. Here is the menu for the Lido Buffet dinner…..

 

 

Here is the Entertainment Schedule for this four day cruise…..

 

 

We both attended the first bingo session of the cruise, but we didn’t have any luck…..

 

 

 

We stayed to watch the Welcome Aboard Show hosted by the cruise director Ryan Rose…..

 

 

 

 

Ryan said that 72% of the guests on board this cruise were first time Carnival cruisers, or blue card holders. Patti and I refer to them as “bluebees”.  It is a term of endearment, as we love to watch the “blubees” take in their first Carnival experience. Then they had the usual fun and games…..

 

 

 

After the show we went back to the cabin where we found tonight’s turn down service…..

 

 

We also received a letter explaining the priority water shuttle service o Catalina Island tomorrow……

 

 

Coming up next: Our first visit to Catalina Island.

[BigNance]

Thanks so much for your review!  Your pictures are terrific!  Patti did a lot of walking to get all that in!!

[Cairns Cruisers]

Enjoying all your pic's Jeff.

Talk about an identity crisis! What is a Lasagna Bolognese?

[DukeASUGirl]

Amazing photos and such a comprehensive review!

 

We were on the Inspiration in October, so this is a fun trip down memory lane. We did the 3-day, so we didn't get to Catalina Island, but we'll be on the Imagination (her sister ship) next month and it's a 4-day so I'm really looking forward to your review of Catalina!

 

We're scheduled to do the kayak tour in Catalina, and the ATV and wine tour in Ensenada. We're leaving the kids at my parents' for a belated anniversary trip. First vacation sans kids in more than 9 years!

[JaniceB]

Great ship tour photos and what were you doing when Patty was taking all the pictures?  I bet I can guess, just not sure which one!

[Oldgoat61]

Happy Anniversary, and thanks for another great review.

[Jamman54]

18 hours ago, BigNance said:

Thanks so much for your review!  Your pictures are terrific!  Patti did a lot of walking to get all that in!!

 

Thanks for reading!  Patti likes to get the ship tour pictures done quickly before the crowds arrive.

 

17 hours ago, Cairns Cruisers said:

Enjoying all your pic's Jeff.

Talk about an identity crisis! What is a Lasagna Bolognese?

 

Thanks! Patti takes almost all of the pictures, I just decide which ones to use.(for the most part!)  As for the Lasagna Bolognese, I never ate it.

 

16 hours ago, DukeASUGirl said:

Amazing photos and such a comprehensive review!

 

We were on the Inspiration in October, so this is a fun trip down memory lane. We did the 3-day, so we didn't get to Catalina Island, but we'll be on the Imagination (her sister ship) next month and it's a 4-day so I'm really looking forward to your review of Catalina!

 

We're scheduled to do the kayak tour in Catalina, and the ATV and wine tour in Ensenada. We're leaving the kids at my parents' for a belated anniversary trip. First vacation sans kids in more than 9 years!

Thanks so much for following along! We really loved Catalina Island and that part of the review is coming up next. Enjoy your cruise on the Imagination!

 

16 hours ago, fyree39 said:

My husband and I are talking about how much we miss sailing on the little ships.  I'd do an Inspiration B2B in a heartbeat!

 

Go for it Cindy!

 

3 hours ago, JaniceB said:

Great ship tour photos and what were you doing when Patty was taking all the pictures?  I bet I can guess, just not sure which one!

 

Thanks! I was at the Red Frog Rum Bar guarding her drink!

 

2 hours ago, Oldgoat61 said:

Happy Anniversary, and thanks for another great review.

 

Thank you very much! Glad to have you along again

[Rockypoint]

You have inspired me to book this 4 day cruise before our 7 day cruise on the Panorama next April.  Carnival should start paying you commission because your reviews are amazing.

 

Thank you!

[Jenny in TX]

Looking forward to your review as always!  We are sailing on the Panorama for a Mexican Riviera cruise in November 2020 and are really looking forward to it as we have only done Caribbean cruises.

 

Happy Anniversary to you and your wife!  We flew to Maui for our 25th anniversary....we love Hawaii!!

[Jamman54]

1 hour ago, Rockypoint said:

You have inspired me to book this 4 day cruise before our 7 day cruise on the Panorama next April.  Carnival should start paying you commission because your reviews are amazing.

 

Thank you!

 

Thanks! That is a great plan! 😀

 

25 minutes ago, Jenny in TX said:

Looking forward to your review as always!  We are sailing on the Panorama for a Mexican Riviera cruise in November 2020 and are really looking forward to it as we have only done Caribbean cruises.

 

Happy Anniversary to you and your wife!  We flew to Maui for our 25th anniversary....we love Hawaii!!

 

Glad to have you along again. Thanks for the Anniversary wishes. We love Hawaii too! 😀

[Jamman54]

Day # 6  (April 23^rd)  -  Catalina Island  (7:30 am to 4:30 pm).

 

We awoke at 7 am to a beautiful day. The Carnival Inspiration was already anchored off the coast of Avalon, Catalina Island. Here are today’s Fun Times…..

 

 

 

 

We went up to the Lido for breakfast. Here is the tour we are doing today.

Avalon Scenic Tour

Starting At:

$27.99 / Adult (ages 13 and over)

$19.99 /  Child (ages 4 - 12)

*Prices may vary by sailing

 

EXCURSION DETAILS

Enjoy a scenic tour of Avalon and take in the majestic sights of the Avalon Theatre foyer. You will ride along the island's only coastline road to an elevation of 400 feet, passing the Wrigley estate and setting the stage for amazing photo opportunities. We continue through the quaint and colorful bungalow grid and pass along the oldest golf course west of the Mississippi. Your friendly guides will entertain you with fun facts, and the characters and characteristics of the lovely town of Avalon.

 Make a 15 minute stop at the historical Catalina Casino Building. Casino, defined as "Meeting Place" holds a working 1,200 seat theater filled with art deco period paintings, frescos, and detail. After your stop at the theater, we will return to the Tour Plaza, in the heart of town where you'll have the rest of the town to explore on your own.

 

NOTES:

•Guests are required to climb up and down 20 steps to and from the bus for the Casino portion of the tour.

 

Our tour meets at the water shuttle landing area in Avalon at 9:30 am. Around 8:30 am we made our way to the Piano Bar which is the meeting place to get the priority water shuttles. We immediately boarded a loading water shuttle and were soon heading over to the Island. On our way over, Patti spotted some dolphins jumping out of the water……

 

 

It is only a ten minute ride to the island, and once we stepped on land our picture was taken……

 

 

We have some time to kill before our tour starts so Patti heads off to take some pictures…..

 

 

 

 

This is where the water shuttles docked…..

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

The Carnival Inspiration is anchored off Catalina Island…..

 

 

Patti took these random shots around the water shuttle landing area…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is the tour operators meeting area…..

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

I’m just hanging out waiting for our tour to start…..

 

 

Ever wonder who’s inside the shark suit?

 

 

There he is. Taking a break between water shuttles…..

 

 

The tour starts right on time. We are in a large van with big, clean windows. We begin by driving through the streets of Avalon. You will notice a lot of golf carts, the preferred way of traveling around town…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

With gas prices so high you need a golf cart to get around!

 

 

We are now going to head up to the top of the hills…..

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

We continue to climb to the top of the hill. When we get to the top we will be about 400 feet or about 40 stories above sea level…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

The Carnival Inspiration is anchored off the coast of Catalina Island…..

 

 

Patti got some close ups of her…….

 

 

 

 

 

 

Looking over at the Catalina Casino building…..

 

 

 

 

We are now heading down the other side of the hill……

 

 

 

To be continued……

[Jamman54]

We are passing the gates of the Wrigley Mansion…..

 

 

The Wrigley Mansion…..

 

 

From up here you get some amazing views of Avalon…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

We are now off the hill and heading to the Catalina Casino…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We have arrived at the Catalina Casino……

 

 

We will be touring the Avalon Theatre……

 

 

The outside vestibule by the ticket windows…..

 

 

 

 

To be continued……

[Jamman54]

The lobby inside the theatre…..

 

 

 

Our Avalon Theatre tour guide……

 

 

Inside the Avalon Theatre…..

 

 

 

 

 

We are back outside of the Catalina Casino…..

 

 

Here’s Patti with the Avalon Harbor in the background…..

 

 

Patti took some long range shots of the Wrigley Mansion from here…..

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[BigNance]

Beautiful photos! Thanks for sharing!

[vacationlover16]

I’ve been on the boards for a few years now but don’t post often. However, I’ve always enjoyed reading your reviews and was super excited when I saw this one. Thanks so much for taking time to do these & Happy Anniversary to both you & Mrs. Patti!!!