Spring Break on the Miracle

[PattiPB]

For Spring Break, we didn’t want to commit our entire 10-day break to a vacation, so we opted for the 6-day, double dose of Cabo cruise on the Miracle from Long Beach. What a fabulous decision! One of my kids decided to join my husband and I, so we had three people in an extended balcony (8223). Here are my thoughts and experiences:

 

Transportation:

We had flights for the day of the cruise (Tuesday), but I got a little nervous about flights being cancelled, so we got our SWA points back, used Best Western points instead, and left Monday morning. We stayed at the Best Western in San Pedro (our usual hotel) and it was as good as ever. If you need a hotel I can recommend this one.

 

Embarkation:

Very smooth and quick! Arrived at the port at 9:50 with a 10 am arrival time. Walked straight into the building and started check in. Showed negative Covid test and Vax card along with Boarding Pass and passport. Through metal detector, and on to line for photo ID. Waited to board until they started at 11 am. We were A-1, and boarded effortlessly by 11:05. We were through muster station and at Guy’s Burgers (ALONE!!!) at exactly 11:11. That effortless (and I made a wish!). 

 

Cabins:

Available at 1:30 exactly pm exactly, and we went down straight away. OUR LUGGAGE WAS ALREADY WAITING FOR US!!! That’s a first for us. Eighth floor aft extended balcony (8223) was a great cabin in a great location. We were a little anxious being directly below the Lido deck, but did not hear anything from above or below during the day or night. The Aft elevators were never crowded going to/from Bacchus Dining Room, and even on disembarkation we had no wait to head down.  I don’t remember ever having an extended balcony, and really like the extra 18 inches or so jutting outward, especially since we had a third adult in the cabin. Cabin steward was a ghost—almost never saw him, but he was quite efficient (and of course we tipped accordingly).

 

Food:

We enjoyed lunch at Guy’s Burgers and Iguana Cantina, as well as the deli, the days we were on the ship. I did miss a few locations that were on the Radiance, but we still ate well. We don’t really do buffets, but they were busy every day. We did do desserts, salads and sides at the buffet, and it was more than adequate. Really, though, during the lunch hours, you can’t beat the FREE specialty locations!!!

 

We had anytime dining, and enjoyed the meals in the MDR. Service was so spectacular, that we requested Aleksander’s section every night. We strongly suggest you give him a try. Clearly, he is popular, because two nights we had to sit elsewhere. That service was fine. The food in this MDR was far superior to the Radiance—don’t ask me why!?!?!? Everything we ordered—and my husband and son can EAT—was awesome. Breakfast (and sea day brunch) were in the MDR each day, and they were AWESOME!!! Love the 12-hour french toast, avocado toast, steak and eggs, and the parfait is FABULOUS!!! Thrilled with dining on this cruise, which doesn’t always happen. 

 

Activities:

1. LOVE the comedians! Make sure you take in a show early on to see if they are to your liking. Particularly like the location on the Miracle—deck 1 - kind of an “underground club” feel.

2. Water slides were never crowded, and my boys loved the one that drops you into the chute. Looked like a coffin to me!!! I used the kids splash zone to cool off, and it was perfect for me. Pools were just a bit too crowded.

3. Bingo is way overpriced, but my son has fond memories of playing Bingo on past cruises with his Grandma, so we played. Come to Vegas and play better Bingo if you’re a fan.

4. We didn’t do the production shows this trip, so I can’t comment. I will say they had two shows per night, so you should be able to find a good time.

5. Had some great photos taken. HOWEVER, unlike the Radiance, they do not do the digital download instead of printing pictures. So, I had to buy printed pictures. When I asked about digital download, they told me it was an extra $10. Seriously??? Get up to date, Miracle!!!

6. Really boring mini golf course, but, really, you make your own fun!!!

7. Serenity was empty on embarkation day, and we enjoyed it. It was packed on sea day, but the deck 10 loungers were empty, and were alone facing the water for a long time in a quiet area outside the steakhouse. We were right above Blue Iguana and Guy’s Burgers, so a quick one flight to get great food. Highly recommend this lounging area if you like it quiet but convenient. Fantastic day!

 

Cabo: 

Day one: Pulled in around 11 am. Got our water shuttle tickets the day before, and we had zone 2 (FYI: I lined up at 11:30 for a noon distribution of water shuttle tickets. They started at 11:45 and I was done by 11:50. Totally worth my time!). We got off quickly, and headed to get a water taxi to Medano Beach. Due to holiday week, they couldn’t drop off at the beach itself, but brought us across the marina. I kinda felt like it was a ripoff, until we started walking back to the ship—man is that a long walk! Rented an umbrella and three plastic chairs ($20 total) for the day, and set up camp in front of The Shark restaurant. They had no problem with us using their restroom several times (important fact!!!). Got lunch to go from The Sandbar, and it was expensive but awesome food. Ate on the beach sipping beer from The Shark. Lounged on the beach until 4 pm. Yes, we had to say “No, thank you” a couple of hundred times, but nobody was aggressive. Water was beautiful, and we had a fabulous view of the ship. Back onboard by about 5:30, tanned and relaxed.

 

Day two: No tender ticket necessary, and we were off the ship by 9 am after a leisurely breakfast in the dining room. Walked a good 15000 steps this day wandering the streets of downtown, and going in and out of shops. Bought a few things. Very disappointed with the quality of shirts, but purchased some handcrafted items that were good and reasonable. Bought some beers from a liquor store for $1 each iced cold, so it made the walking a little easier!!! Back onboard around 1 pm for a 3 pm departure from Cabo. 

 

Crowds and sea days: 

Our ship was full at approximately 2300 people. We rarely felt crowded at all, including the first sea day. Embarkation and sea day 1 were fabulous weather, and we really just wanted to unplug and relax. Weread, napped, snacked our way through these two days.

 

To reiterate the lack of crowds, our wait times for every breakfast and every dinner were “less than 10 minute wait” on the HUB App. We did wait in a short line at Guys and Blue Iguana, but nothing too long. Bars had walk-up availability every time we looked, too. Ping pong and the library and games room were busy every time we looked in, though. 

 

Second sea day was cool and very windy, which made everything much more crowded indoors. Nobody was lounging on deck 10 (open deck) at all, it was that cool. Due to that, the hallways, promenade, Bingo, coffee cafe, were all hopping on that last day. 

 

Debarkation:

Smoothest I’ve ever had. Breakfast at 7:00 am. Out of the room by 8:15 and went down to deck 3 to wait for the all clear. Walked off the ship with self-assist luggage people at 8:35. Through immigration within 5 minutes using only facial recognition (which was weird). On our way out of the parking garage by 9 am. It really helped that we were waiting on deck 3 mid-ship. The announcement said to go to deck 2, but the gangway was obvious out the windows on deck 3, so we went there. We certainly weren’t alone in noticing this.   

 

Overall:

We got a great deal on this cruise about six months ago, and we are really happy with how everything went. We have been on Spirit class ships before, but forgot how compact and small they are compared to some of the larger ships I’ve been on over the years. I will say, compared to my Radiance cruise two months ago, I prefer the restaurants and amenities on that ship. I missed some of the lunch options and the ropes course, to be honest. That said, I absolutely would recommend the Miracle and sail on her again.

[samanthaj1018]

Thanks for the review! I'll be on the Miracle for the first time in 11 days in cabin 8275, glad to hear deck 8 was wasn't too loud!