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Our Marvelous Mardi Gras B2B (with pics!) - April 23rd, 2022

Jamman54

By Jamman54,
in Carnival Cruise Lines

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Jamman54 Great Review Rare

Jamman54

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3 hours ago, Saint Greg said:


I thought that was the hot tub at first.

 

1 hour ago, Joe817 said:

I've never seen a hot tub that large. Do they make them that big? :classic_unsure:

 

1 hour ago, Saint Greg said:


I think the shape or the angle or both  makes it look smaller at first glance. To me at least. There are some pretty good sized hot tubs in Cancun though. 

 

1 hour ago, Joe817 said:

With a 5 foot depth? Wow. Learn something every day. To me, that looks like a small swimming pool. The give away, is a ladder with hand rails going down. No biggie. 

 

It's just a small hotel pool. 😁😁😁

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Jamman54 Great Review Rare

Jamman54

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5 hours ago, Hogladyrider said:

@Jamman54....thanks Jeff & Patti for another fabulous review and vacation!

 

Isn't retirement wonderful!  Vacation can be as long or as brief as you like!

 

Looking forward to following along on future adventures with you both.

 

Happy Father's Day Jeff!

 

Thanks for hanging out with us again, and for the Father's Day wishes. We'll be back in September with another review! :classic_cool:

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jedi bobs Great Review Rare

jedi bobs

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I don't know what Jeff and Patty's final thoughts are about the Mardi Gras, but, here are mine since I was on it with them on the second leg, these are my views and may or may not be your views there views or anybody elses.  

The Good: New freindships, Loves the space of the ocean view room(same as Jeff except no balcony) New free dining choices, Guys Burger changing fries. Soda fountians on deck 8 and lido. Lee Masion the Cruise Directoe was one of the best we have ever had just behind Josh Waitzman as best I have ever had. 

 

The Bad and Ugly: This ship was just to big for one week, and they had to much going on at one time, for example, one night they had 2 comedians going at the same time in both the punch liner and the Limelight lounge, Family Feud in the main lounge, and Play List in the Central area. Food in MDR was sub par, it wasn't bad but lacking, something seemed off a little, and I will chock that up to short staffing.  Design Flaws on the ship. I realise that this is the first of the class in carnival, but There is a walkway right though Guest Services, The public Bathrooms were horably designed and not enough public bathrooms.  Odd placement for Guys Burgers. 

 

Over all not a bad cruise. would I cruise on Mardi Gras again.....for the right Itenary I would otherwise no.  I am a cheep cruiser, I don't do Specialty Restrants, Don't Drink, don't spend money in the casino and only get the bubbles just for convenance, but on my next cruise will be taking my soda onboard.

 

Where would I place Mardi Gras cruise on my list of cruises, Probly towards the bottom half, I have not really had a bad cruise.

 

Thank you

 

 

 

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blarko

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52 minutes ago, jedi bobs said:

I don't know what Jeff and Patty's final thoughts are about the Mardi Gras, but, here are mine since I was on it with them on the second leg, these are my views and may or may not be your views there views or anybody elses.  

The Good: New freindships, Loves the space of the ocean view room(same as Jeff except no balcony) New free dining choices, Guys Burger changing fries. Soda fountians on deck 8 and lido. Lee Masion the Cruise Directoe was one of the best we have ever had just behind Josh Waitzman as best I have ever had. 

 

The Bad and Ugly: This ship was just to big for one week, and they had to much going on at one time, for example, one night they had 2 comedians going at the same time in both the punch liner and the Limelight lounge, Family Feud in the main lounge, and Play List in the Central area. Food in MDR was sub par, it wasn't bad but lacking, something seemed off a little, and I will chock that up to short staffing.  Design Flaws on the ship. I realise that this is the first of the class in carnival, but There is a walkway right though Guest Services, The public Bathrooms were horably designed and not enough public bathrooms.  Odd placement for Guys Burgers. 

 

Over all not a bad cruise. would I cruise on Mardi Gras again.....for the right Itenary I would otherwise no.  I am a cheep cruiser, I don't do Specialty Restrants, Don't Drink, don't spend money in the casino and only get the bubbles just for convenance, but on my next cruise will be taking my soda onboard.

 

Where would I place Mardi Gras cruise on my list of cruises, Probly towards the bottom half, I have not really had a bad cruise.

 

Thank you

 

 

 

I appreciate your honest opinion 

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Jamman54 Great Review Rare

Jamman54

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8 hours ago, jedi bobs said:

I don't know what Jeff and Patty's final thoughts are about the Mardi Gras, but, here are mine since I was on it with them on the second leg, these are my views and may or may not be your views there views or anybody elses.  

The Good: New freindships, Loves the space of the ocean view room(same as Jeff except no balcony) New free dining choices, Guys Burger changing fries. Soda fountians on deck 8 and lido. Lee Masion the Cruise Directoe was one of the best we have ever had just behind Josh Waitzman as best I have ever had. 

 

The Bad and Ugly: This ship was just to big for one week, and they had to much going on at one time, for example, one night they had 2 comedians going at the same time in both the punch liner and the Limelight lounge, Family Feud in the main lounge, and Play List in the Central area. Food in MDR was sub par, it wasn't bad but lacking, something seemed off a little, and I will chock that up to short staffing.  Design Flaws on the ship. I realise that this is the first of the class in carnival, but There is a walkway right though Guest Services, The public Bathrooms were horably designed and not enough public bathrooms.  Odd placement for Guys Burgers. 

 

Over all not a bad cruise. would I cruise on Mardi Gras again.....for the right Itenary I would otherwise no.  I am a cheep cruiser, I don't do Specialty Restrants, Don't Drink, don't spend money in the casino and only get the bubbles just for convenance, but on my next cruise will be taking my soda onboard.

 

Where would I place Mardi Gras cruise on my list of cruises, Probly towards the bottom half, I have not really had a bad cruise.

 

Thank you

 

 

 

Thanks for sharing your thoughts and views. It was a pleasure to meet you,  Ann, and the rest of your family on board. Hope we get to sail with you again sometime in the near future. 😎

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Megan_Strick

Megan_Strick

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On 6/18/2022 at 5:28 PM, Jamman54 said:

Once we got settled we drove to a nearby Chili’s to have some dinner. These drinks tasted so good after a long day on the road…..

 

JSCF6935-X2.jpg

 

I had some boneless wings and fries, while Patti had soup and a salad…..

 

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When we got back to the hotel we saw a beautiful rainbow…..

 

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Patti then went around the hotel checking out some of the venues. Here’s the pool…..

 

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This is the Fitness Center…..

 

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Here is the Laundry Room….

 

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This is the Breakfast Room…..

 

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Afterwards, we were pretty tired so we crashed for the night.

 

The next morning we were up at 7am. We showered, dressed, and then partook of the free hotel breakfast. After checking out, Patti wanted to check out the Cracker Barrel across the street. I dropped her off and went to gas up the car. I went back to pick her up and we were back on the road heading north on I-95 at 9am.

 

We had an easy drive until we hit northern Virginia where we ran into some traffic. We made back to Somerset, New Jersey at 4:30pm, but before heading home we stopped at 20/20 Taphouse for dinner. Ryan came and joined us there. We finally pulled into our driveway at 6pm, unloaded the car, and unpacked, another two cruises completed. THE END.

I want me and my husband to be like You and Patti when we grow up 🙂

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Megan_Strick

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On 6/18/2022 at 5:51 PM, Jamman54 said:

Here is our updated cruise review list. Unfortunately, we had to delete all of our reviews prior to 2017 because we changed photo hosting sites and now the pictures no longer show in the older reviews. We have also included a link to our cruise and vacation albums where you can see all the photos Patti took on every cruise:

 

*** Carnival Pride Repo Journeys Cruise -  2/26/17 - Tampa to Baltimore

 

 

What's up next?

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Jamman54 Great Review Rare

Jamman54

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2 hours ago, Florings said:

What a great review!  I have enjoyed reading your adventures and seeing all the photos.  Thank you for sharing it all.

You're quite welcome. Thanks for reading! 😀

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Jamman54

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Epilouge – Final Thoughts and Future Plans. 

 

The Mardi Gras ….. she’s BIG, ….. she’s Beautiful, ….. she’s Crowded!!! At the end of our first day aboard her, we were wondering what we had gotten ourselves into. As always, on embarkation day everyone gravitates to the Lido Deck and the Marketplace, The Red Frog Tiki Bar was almost impossible to get near, and we had to wait 40 minutes to get a table at Pig & Anchor. I’m happy to say that by the next morning everyone had found their groove, and the masses were more dispersed.

 

We envy those who sailed on this beautiful ship when they sailed below capacity. It had to be simply wonderful. During our first week on board, we were amongst 5,800+ passengers. That’s 109% capacity based on double occupancy. The second week was a bit better with “only” 5,400+ passengers, or 102% of capacity based on double occupancy.

 

So let’s cut to the chase. Would we sail on the Mardi Gras or her sisters again? Absolutely, in fact we are doing a B2B on the Celebration next April. But we would never book during peak times when the numbers are sure to break 6,000. I know that some of you have no choice, and I understand, because when our boys were growing up, and Patti being a teacher, we were locked into peak times. We sympathize.

 

So, if you are someone who doesn’t like crowds, or waiting in line, this ship isn’t for you. Patti and I are not fans of the above either, who is, but we have learned over our many cruises how to maneuver around these obstacles. So our biggest piece of advice is to pack your patience. Lines for the comedy shows start forming an hour before show time, and if you get in the end of a long line, you still may not get in. Look at it this way, you’ll be in the front of the line for the next show!

 

Lines for the Mardi Gras Theater would start forming a half hour before the doors were even opened. When Patti and I wanted to see a show at Center Stage, in order to get a good seat low and in front, we would arrive an hour before show time, have some drinks, and people watch. Some nights we would spend our whole evening there.

 

The thing that really blew my mind was this. On the afternoon of the first sea day, they were having the Build-a-Bear in the Punchliner Comedy Club. The line to get into that was insanely long, and there weren’t even that many children on board! I think you get the picture.

 

The Mardi Gras has a multitude of things to do, places to eat, and bars to drink at. One week is simply not enough time to even scratch the surface. We were on for two weeks and we didn’t even come close to sampling it all. We never ate dinner or had the Sea Day Brunch in the MDR. In fact, the only time we were in the MDR was for the two Diamond Luncheons. We never ate at Bonsai Sushi, Emeril’s, Seafood Shack, or tried Street Eats. Chibang was a one and done for us. Bonsai Teppanyaki, Cucina del Capitano, Rudi’s Sea Grill, and the Steakhouse were all excellent, the latter three we experienced two times. We had some service issues one night at Cucina, and one night at Rudi’s, but we chalked it up to being short staffed. Hopefully, that will be rectified soon.

 

Now for the bars. There are so many of them that getting a seat at them wasn’t that big of an issue, and at worst you would have to wait a few minutes before seats would open up. When I looked back at the bars I didn’t have a drink at, I was astounded. Next time I will make a point of hitting them all. Believe it or not, I didn’t have a drink at the Havana Bar, Casino Bar, Brass Magnolia, Fortune Teller, Piano Bar, Bar Della Rosa, and The Watering Hole. What was I thinking?

 

As for the shows, we enjoyed most everything we saw. I’m not going to list them here as we mentioned them during the review. The only thing I want to mention is that we never made it to any comedy shows. Patti, being hearing impaired, needs to be able to sit fairly close in order to be able to read lips, and there was no way we were going to stand an hour in line waiting to get in.

 

We really liked our extended "hump" balcony. Yes, the cabin did seem narrower, and the bathroom smaller, but was plenty big for us. There was plenty of storage space, and plugs and USB ports were plentiful. The balcony was nice and deep and had a lounger. Also, these are the only balconies on the ship that allow you to look straight down to the water.

 

As for the ports of call, we’ve been to all of them many times. We are basically cabana, all-inclusives, and walk around the port area people now, and that is exactly what we did.

 

My mind has gone blank, so if you have any questions at all we’ll be more than happy to answer them for you. If I think of anything else, I’ll be sure to post it.

 

We have six cruises booked in the next 12 months. On August 28th we will be boarding the Carnival Legend in Baltimore for B2B cruises to Bermuda and New England / Canada. In January we will be doing a S2S on two ships that we haven’t yet been on. First we will be boarding the Carnival Freedom in Port Canaveral to the Eastern Caribbean, and then we will be boarding the Carnival Spirit in Miami to the Southern Caribbean. Then, as I mentioned above, next April we will be doing a B2B on the Carnival Celebration. Will any of you be sailing with us? If not, we’ll be bringing the cruise to you!

 

Before I end this I have to thank my wife Patti. I couldn’t do these adventures, or these reviews, without her. She is my best friend, my rock, and a heck of a photographer!

 

Speaking of photography, the photos you see on these reviews are only a small portion of all the photos Patti takes during our cruises. If you would like to see the whole package, there is a link in my signature for our Cruise and Vacation albums. Feel free to check them out if you are so inclined.

 

So until next time, may you have blue skies and calm seas!!!

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KmomChicago "Live from...." Rare

KmomChicago

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8 hours ago, nhilding10 said:

Mainer here as well!

I like Maine, have been there, LL Bean store, West Quoddy Head, and old Scotia Prince ferry cruise to Yarmouth. It's nice and cool there, even in the summertime. Very beautiful ocean views for miles. Plenty of ways to enter Canada. 

 

The problem with Maine is, of course, the evil otherworldly inhabitants. Pennywise, Leland Gaunt, Kurt Barlow, and so, so, so many others. Good luck!

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KmomChicago "Live from...." Rare

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Thanks so much @Jamman54. We were of course among those fortunate few you mention; our sailing August 7, 2021 had "only" 3900 people aboard. Of course this was because no one quite knew what was going on as the industry was ramping up and a lot of passengers didn't want to mask or get vaccinated, or get their teens vaccinated, or couldn't get their 11's and under vaccinated yet.  Hard to imagine that was almost a year ago now! I loved the ship but I did get the sense that it would feel as you describe when full - plus, too crowded.  Many other passengers said the same, wouldn't want to be here when she's full.

 

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Jamman54 Great Review Rare

Jamman54

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31 minutes ago, TennesseeTater said:

Hey Jeff!  I'm late to the review but what a fantastic review. Until next time. 

Hey there! Better late than never. 😁  When is your next cruise? 😎

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TennesseeTater

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10 hours ago, Jamman54 said:

Hey there! Better late than never. 😁  When is your next cruise? 😎

We just did the Legend last month, Glory next month and Mardi Gras for the second time in October. Really appreciated all those pictures of the Mardi Gras. Can’t wait to go back!  

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