Review of Carnival Conquest 3/5/06

[denisey]

We had such a great cruise on the Conquest. It was really pretty low key! The weather was perfect!

 

Galveston is a cute little town. There wasn’t much going on, but we were there right after Mardi Gras! The Tremont Hotel was great. It was very old fashioned and elegant, but all the stuff (bedding, towels, beds, bathrooms…) were new. The port was 3 blocks away, so we walked with all our luggage! We were on board by noon! They had a shuttle, but it filled up fast.

 

We didn’t do many of the ship activities. We had a great wrap around balcony (9A – #8455) and used it thoroughly! It was nice and sunny and private. We did have some noise from the chairs on the Lido deck, but it wasn’t that bad.

 

They changed the carpets in the halls on deck 8 during the week. That was strange, but really didn’t bother us.

 

In Jamaica we went on the Mountain River Rafting trip. It was a short bus ride with a great guide. Then we got on a bamboo raft. There was just the two of us and our captain. He was a really sweet kid. We took 2 hours to drift down the river. We probably could have done it in 20 minutes! The captain stopped and explained the area, picked flowers and fruit for us, gave us a “pedicure” and foot massage with limestone. He also climbed a coconut tree and picked a fresh one for us, he made us bamboo straws and we sipped coconut juice. It was really great! We then stopped at the end and saw a guy pick coconuts. Another guy made us fresh pina colada’s with real coconut and pineapple! Yum! It was one of the best excursions we have ever been on. We went to the shopping area in town, but didn’t see anything we wanted to buy. The vendors and taxi drivers were pretty aggressive.

 

On Grand Cayman, I chartered a boat for just our group to go to the stingrays. It was great fun! I enjoyed having the boat to ourselves! We did a little shopping. We got to meet Lord Wedgewood in one of the shops. We bought a piece of porcelain and he signed it for us.

 

Cozumel was fine. The shopping area is back up and running. There are no trees left on the island at all. I guess you could see more damage as you left town. Tendering was a pain. They use big ferries, and it takes forever to load and unload. They did drop us right in town, so that was convenient. We did lots of shopping. Some friends went to Paradise Beach and said it was great!

 

We splurged and got a private towncar to and from the airport (Emerald Limousine.) It was the best money we spent. The driver was great and it went very smoothly! We had an early flight, got off the ship at 8:30 and had plenty of time for our flight.

 

We didn’t go to any of the shows, never met the Cruise Director. We did go to the shopping talk. OMG, it was mind numbing! She went on for 2 hours! I would advise to either skip it, or watch it on TV. If you have a specific question, you can go to the Shoppers Desk.

 

The food was great. We enjoyed several of the new items on the menu. We went to the chocolate buffet, but it wasn’t anything all that special. Save the calories for dessert in the dinning room!

 

Let me know if you have any questions!

 

Denise

[MelBCroozer]

Denise

 

Do you know if the Conquest is changing their itinerary soon? My in-laws are booked on the 4/30 sailing and they told my husband they were going to Progreso, Cozumel, Belize??? I'm not sure what is up. They originally booked out of New Orleans, but that changed due to Katrina. Just thought you might know.

[wanman]

Denise

 

Do you know if the Conquest is changing their itinerary soon? My in-laws are booked on the 4/30 sailing and they told my husband they were going to Progreso, Cozumel, Belize??? I'm not sure what is up. They originally booked out of New Orleans, but that changed due to Katrina. Just thought you might know.

 

Rumor I am sure.

[meanestmom]

Well hello fellow washingtonian, Were going on our 1st cruise on the conquest in Dec. What do you think about the kids in Jamaica?(5+7) Should we do a guided thing or wing- it on our own? I would love to see more of the culture and leave the kids on the ship but I know they would love to go.??? Were people dressy on formal night? I want to deck-out but dont want to feel out of place. Thank you ! great review_ Judy Still love our Hawks ( who got the shaft)

[MERVYN BREMMER]

Denise

 

Do you know if the Conquest is changing their itinerary soon? My in-laws are booked on the 4/30 sailing and they told my husband they were going to Progreso, Cozumel, Belize??? I'm not sure what is up. They originally booked out of New Orleans, but that changed due to Katrina. Just thought you might know.

Just checked and the itenerary still shows Mobay, Grand Cayman, and Coz for that sail date.

[jw4jg1mg2eg1]

Progresso,Cozumel & Belize were Elation's itinerary last year.I'm not sure which ship will take that itinerary over when Elation moves to Florida. Maybe they meant a different ship?

[jw4jg1mg2eg1]

Denise...Thanks for that wonderful review. I'm glad you enjoyed your cruise.

Was the Mountain River Rafting trip booked through Carnival? ummm....didja happen to see any rather large people on these rafts? My hubby & I aren't little folks...:o

[badduck1974]

Denise

 

Do you know if the Conquest is changing their itinerary soon? My in-laws are booked on the 4/30 sailing and they told my husband they were going to Progreso, Cozumel, Belize??? I'm not sure what is up. They originally booked out of New Orleans, but that changed due to Katrina. Just thought you might know.

Hello MelBCroozer,

I am also going on the conquest on April 30th. Tell them to join our roll call. We have alot of people joined up.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=6110911#post6110911

[MelBCroozer]

My DH talked to his mom again last night and she said she had read something in our local newspaper, but we told her that the itinerary hadn't changed. I'm sure she just misunderstood the article. Thanks for the input.

 

I'll tell my father-in-law about the thread. He likes to try new things with the computer.

[Jerry101]

Hey Denisy,

I am at work but wanted to send a quick reply. It IS a wonderful room isn’t it. I thoroughly enjoyed myself with that itinerary. Thanks for the great review and am soooo happy you had a wonderful time. Was Rodrigo still the steward??

[cruisetexas]

Denise...Thanks for that wonderful review. I'm glad you enjoyed your cruise.

Was the Mountain River Rafting trip booked through Carnival? ummm....didja happen to see any rather large people on these rafts? My hubby & I aren't little folks...:o

Hi, we just got off the Conquest last Sunday and did the bamboo raft trip. We booked the day through A-Z vacation planners, and would suggest that if you want a good day, you do that also. They will tailor your day to your requests. We did the Rocklands Bird Sancutary, which was amazing...read my review if you can find it! As far as larger people on the rafts, I'm on the chunky side myself, and I went with my daughter, who is also not petite....if you want to post your e-mail address I'll send you a picture of the rafts...Susan

[jw4jg1mg2eg1]

Thanks Susan....I would love to see your pics!!:D

jwwaldrops@yahoo.com

[denisey]

Hey Denisy,

 

Was Rodrigo still the steward??

 

Yup! We had Rodrigo! He was the best! This is his last week however, before his 2 month vacation. He comes back to the Miracle at that time!

 

We loved the room so much, we are trying to get it for our upcoming Liberty cruise! They are not showing as available right now, but I am hoping!

 

Denise

[denisey]

We went on the Mountain Rafting trip through Carnival. This was really a low key vacation for us, so that was the easiest. We tried to get information from Barrett tours twice, but they never answered my emails. It was a small group (one mini bus, not all the way full) and so it felt personal. My hubby and I weigh about 325 combined and had no trouble on the trip. There was another couple we saw that probably outweighed us by 50 lbs, and they seemed fine.

 

I don't have children, so I am always a little cautious on what to tell others to do with their children. If it were me I'd probably take them on a tour, rather than on my own. Jamaicans are rather agressive, which could be scary for little ones. By the same token, Jamaicans LOVE children, so over all I think they will be fine. Our first cruise went to Ocho Rios. We went with my best friend's family with their 9 and 11 year old. We took an island tour and the kids loved it.

 

On Formal night we saw everthing from beaded dresses and tuxes to cocktail dresses and suits to jeans in the dining room. I wouldn't worry about being overdressed! We chuckled about this. I was asked to leave the dance floor in the disco by security because I was barefooted, but apparantly jeans in the dining room on formal night are fine! LOL! I suspect it was a safety issue, but it was humorous!

 

Denise

[Jerry101]

Hello Denise again…

 

I am home now so I have a little more time. Yes, Rodrigo was wonderful. I really miss him and you probably are too. I knew he was leaving soon, just wasn’t sure when. He did an excellent job on everything and had a great sense of humor. The aft wrap is the way to go, but I have noticed they are getting harder and harder to find. That's part our fault, you know. We keep giving these rooms great reviews and now you can’t find them anymore. I am with a rather large group (grope for those in the group :rolleyes: ) waiting on the new Carnival Freedom and there could be some serious wrestling matches for the 9A’s. We are not sure where it will depart from or where it’s going, but we DO know we want the Aft Wraps. Please post pictures when you can and again thanks for your review. :D

[denisey]

Hello Denise again…

 

The aft wrap is the way to go, but I have noticed they are getting harder and harder to find. That's part our fault, you know.

 

LOL! My DH keeps telling me to stop saying how nice the rooms are! We also noticed the price keeps going up!

 

At this point there are none available for my Liberty cruise next year. I'm deciding whether to pay the extra for an 11 or suck it up and settle for an 8!

 

I think I would take a 12, but I know what the accountant would say to that!!! :O