Pride...

[crazidude1400]

How is this ship? Good condition? Good itinerary? Food, activities, the general good/bad?

 

Also, is the waterslide open??

 

I may book this soon...

 

Thanks

[CAPTAIN TEW]

I'll let you know on the 12th of March.;)

[MrPete]

....In the Name of Love

[boaterette]

....In the Name of Love

 

hunh???????

[tef43]

....In the Name of Love

A much more PC of saying what I was thinking. :rolleyes:

[LHP]

Waterslide will not be open until after an extensive drydock. Seems they have a physics problem...not enough room to stop a speeding body.

 

Do a search and read the reviews. When researching a ship, I read the worst reviews and then evaluate whether I feel their complaints are valid, applicable to me and if so, can I live with it.

 

We are sailing her on March 12th. We were on the Spirit (same layout) last July and really liked the floor plan.

 

I have heard some complaints (from reliable sources) that they have some issues with getting the food served hot enough. I have also heard the beef was not up to par. Since this is all I eat, I will let you know when I get back.

 

From everything I have read, I would not hesitate to book this ship, if you are familiar with the "Carnival product" and that works for you...I believe that is what you will get from this cruise.

[LHP]

See tef...it wasn't that hard now was it???

[crazidude1400]

See tef...it wasn't that hard now was it???

 

When is the scheduled dry dock?

[Smasher]

Just got off the Pride last Sunday.

 

Having sailed on RCCL and Celebrity in the past, I can tell you that I was pleasantly suprised by Carnival.

 

The ship was immaculately maintained. Very nice cabins and bedding (although the matress, like that of every cruise ship I've been on, is really rather crappy). Clean. The decor was a little strange, but not unpleasant. Just not my personal taste.

 

I'm not a picky eater. But, I do know a good meal from a bad one. And being a gourmet cook, I have high standards. I wasn't disappointed.

 

I thought the food in the dining room was excellent. And it was served hot, or at least warm enough. I thought the beef was excellent. The nightly off-menu steak available was a filet mignon, which was pretty good. RCCL offers a sirloin and Celebrity a NY strip. And the fish dishes were surprisingly good (most mass prepared fish comes up overcooked and dry). Complimentary espresso/cappucino after dinner in the dinning room was a nice touch.

 

Buffet food was no better or worse than RCCL, which is to say, it's OK, but not great. Pretty easy to find something to like. Room service provides only cold food (as in sandwiches, fruit, pastries, cereal), while RCCL will deliver bacon and eggs, burgers, pizza and dinner from the dining room if you wish. The 24-hour pizza on the ship was excellent -- much, much better than RCCL. And the hamburgers weren't bad either. RCCL served up some real lame burgers and cold fries on my last cruise.

 

Carnival's wine policy is excellent. They allow you to bring on as much as you wish. And charge a bargain $10 corkage fee in the dinning room should you wish to bring your own bottle to dinner.

 

Ports are OK. I really enjoyed Cabo. I booked a Marlin fishing trip and wished I had gone fishing in Mazatlan instead. It's the shortest stop on the trip, so I didn't leave myself enough time to enjoy one of the nicest ports I've ever been to.

 

The ship docks at industrial ports in Mazatlan and Puerto Vallarta, so you need to take a cab to where you want to go. Both cities are older and run down and have a real third-world feel to them. But there's plenty of things to do in both places. We went to a resort in PV and spent the day around the pool and beach and got a 75 minute massage for $35. Mazatlan: went to Stone Island and now wish I hadn't. Should have gone fishing there instead of Cabo.

 

All-in-all, a great ship, great value and a good time.

[LHP]

Thanks Smasher for a "peek" into our world in about 12 days. We love the Spirit lay out but have never been on the Pride (or cruised out of Long Beach). I was glad to hear about the beef. I only eat beef and have read reviews some liked it, some did not. If it is hit and miss, maybe I will luck out and have it be a hit while I am on board.

[LHP]

When is the scheduled dry dock?

 

 

I don't know. But the slide has been closed for some time, so hopefully soon.

[Casshew]

The decor is certainly different. I have been checking out pics on the net because I have just made a booking.

 

I notice in some of the photos the pool area is closed with a glass ceiling and in others it is open. I assume this is retractable and they close it in bad weather?

[LHP]

The decor is certainly different. I have been checking out pics on the net because I have just made a booking.

 

I notice in some of the photos the pool area is closed with a glass ceiling and in others it is open. I assume this is retractable and they close it in bad weather?

 

I believe that is the way it is suppose to work, but if I am not mistaken, I thought I had read where they were having trouble opening and closing it.

But if you saw pictures with it both ways on the same cruise...they must have gotten it mixed.

 

The more I think about that slide situation....I bet us Moms could get together and find a solution or rig a way where they don't get hurt when they "land".

[Casshew]

The pics were from different cruises... some with the roof open, some closed. The thing is, with the roof open I couldn't really see where the retracted roof was? almost like they had removed it for good.

 

As for the slide, strange how it was not a thoroughly tested design prior to installation. duh!