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Carnival Pride Review - February 18-25, 2007

cathyz

By cathyz,
in Carnival Cruise Lines

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cathyz

cathyz

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We sailed on the Pride the week of February 18, 2007, with 31 of our closest friends to celebrate my husband's 50th birthday. We had a wonderful time as did everyone in our group! :D



We were in an aft wrap-around balcony cabin so had happy hour in our cabin every day before our late dinner. Everyone in our group had either smuggled alcohol or ordered from the Bon Voyage department ahead of time and contributed to the community bar.

 

We started with a stay at the Coast Long Beach Hotel which was very nice (our 2nd time there). The weather was so nice (88 degrees!) that we were able to sit outside the restaurant/bar during the evening to properly get our vacation started.

 

We all arrived early at the port to do the early check-in which went uneventfully, except that the weather had changed drastically and it was very cold and windy. There was a Scottish Festival at the Queen Mary so there were lots of kilts and bagpipes around and we were asked to leave the QM area about 11:00 which was OK, it was time to start lining up to enter the dome. Several of us were in suites so were in the VIP line, but most of our group were at the head of the 'Zone 1' line so didn't have any delays boarding. There were some delays getting the cruisers from the week before off the ship so we weren't able to board until about 12:30. They let the VIPs into the dome, but then we had to sit on the benches inside for a while before we could board. Our cabins weren't ready until about 1:30, but we all went up to the Mermaid's Grill to have lunch while we waited. Muster drill was very quick and we started to pull away from the dock as we were all returning to our cabins with our life vests. Since everyone in our group was in the same area (veranda deck aft), we all

went to our cabin and watched sail-away form our wrap-around deck, plenty of room for 33 people! Our cabin was great and always kept very very clean even though we left quite a mess every evening before dinner for our steward, Nestor.

 

We had 4 adjacent tables on the upper level of the dining room all the way at the aft and almost all of us ate there every night. A couple of smaller groups ate in David's Supper Club one night though. We had a great wait staff, Erol from ("What's bigger than a chicken?") - Turkey, and Natalia from Russia. The lobster for the first formal night was excellent, several in our group ordered 2 or 3. Everyone in our group loved everything they ordered every night and I'd have to agree, the food was excellent and presented beautifully. Everyone loved the Warm Chocolate Melting Cake and a few had it every single night. We have some picky eaters in our group and they were very happy with the alternative menu and the more simple selections that it provides. Several of us brought wine to dinner every night and were charged the $10 corkage fee every time. The only complaint in the dining room was the slowness of the cocktail waitress.

 

Every day we had breakfast in the Mermaid's Grill. My choice was mostly cereal, yogurt and fruit. But most everyone else in the group had eggs, bacon, sausage, etc, etc, and all said they were quite good. All sea days and some port days we had lunch in Mermaid's Grill, but not really the buffet, mostly the salad bar (lots of choices), pizza (excellent!), the deli (great sandwiches), or the grill (burgers and hotdogs). A few in our group tried the dining room for lunch on the sea days, they liked the food, but didn't particularly like sitting with strangers, they weren't able to get tables alone. Personally we don't like the dining room during the day because you can't sit outside, we like the fresh air whenever possible.

 

We didn't personally attend any of the shows, but several in our group did and said some of the 'big' shows were good, but also that some of the comedy shows weren't that good, especially the midnight comedy show. Several played Bingo and we had some big winners in our group, one $100, one $500, and one $1000 winner! Some also did well in the casino even though my husband and I didn't do particularly well.

 

A few people in our group did the zip lines in P.V. and really enjoyed themselves. Some others took the Mismaloya bus tour that they liked. My husband and I just relaxed that day and only went as far as the flea market right at the port. The dining room was quite empty that day. In Mazatlan, most of the group either golfed or went 'power shopping'. In Cabo we tendered in (earlier than planned, general debark was called at about 9:30) and just walked around and shopped and ate/drank. We visited the Hard Rock Cafe, the Giggling Marlin (I had done the 'hang upside down thing' there about 15 years ago), but the place just wasn't the same. It's been really cleaned up and the old funky bathrooms remodeled. It now has a jewelery store right inside the bar and new tables (not the old funky ones they had before). It was kind of quiet, but it was the middle of the day. We also went to Cabo Wabo across the street, which was also very quiet. It was quite warm, so we rode back in a 'bicycle taxi' which was a fun event, there were 4 of us in 2 taxis, the drivers were friends so were 'racing' back (as fast as they could with our fat butts in their taxis!). The return tender was so rough that I thought we were going to tip over in the water. The driver had to stop a couple of times to let the rocking subside, but then it was just as bad when he started again. He also had to wait a couple of minutes at the ship before we could pull up to the gangway, I was really glad to get back to the ship!

 

The weather was good the whole time though kind of cool the first sea day and last sea day returning home. That last day was also very rough. The captain said we had 30 knot winds and 9 foot seas and since he has to go at almost max speed, 21-22 knots, it was quite rough. Our aft cabin was vibrating quite a bit that day and night also. On the sea days we played ping pong (the only ping pong table is in a bad location, on the hallway to the gym), relaxed by the adult pool, went to the casino, sat on our deck, etc.

 

Because we were a large group we had a group party arranged by carnival, an hour of open bar and some dry snacks, in the Ivory Piano Bar which was quite fun. And because this was our 3rd Carnival cruise we then went right to the Past Guest Party in the Taj Mahal with a few others in our group. On the last evening (my husband's birthday) we all met in the atrium and had arranged for a photographer to take a picture of our group of 33 on the stairs up to the next deck. I took a few minutes to get us all set, but the picture came out great and we were able to get enough copies for everyone that night. Also the last sea day, a few of us were out on our deck in the late afternoon and a few whales jumped there right in front of us, it was exciting!

 

Many in our group had never cruised before and they are now hooked and wanting us to arrange another group cruise!

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cathyz

cathyz

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Great review... Only two weeks to go!!! Last fall we were on the Valor and we had a girl named Natalia and she was from Russia, maybe she's on the Pride now.:cool:

It sure could be the same person, ours said she was fairly new on the Pride, but I didn't ask her where she came from. Erol, on the other hand, had been on for a while and his 'day job' was Lido deck supervisor, he was a busy guy, but then they all are I guess!

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cathyz

cathyz

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Sounds like you had a wonderful time! We go in May...can't wait. I also loved your pictures. We've never been on the Pride before and it looks beautiful. Thanks for sharing!

Yes, she's a beautiful ship and so clean! There were people cleaning and cleaning and cleaning all the time! I want to bring one of them home with me!

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cathyz

cathyz

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Thanks for taking the time to write a review. Our trip on the Pride still seems so very far away.:(

It'll be here before you know it! Because we were the 'planners' for a group of 33, we started our planning and making reservations way back in October 2005 and all of a sudden it was here!!

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crittermum

crittermum

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Hi Cathyz.

 

Thanks so much for your review! I am so excited about our Pride cruise in 14 days!!!

 

Did anyone in your group do the Dolphin Swim in Cabo? Cabo is the only Port that I have nothing planned for. My DD has said she would really like to do this but it is so spendy for an excursion that is 1 1/2 hours long. (They only way to book it is through the ship, I tried on my own and the ship has it chartered for the entire day!)

 

It would be worth it if it turns out to be one of those things where we are saying, "Wow, that was awesome, I am so glad we did that"! Did you hear anything about it?

 

Thanks so:) much!

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bleuseas

bleuseas

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Hi crittermum,

If you don't get a response here about the dolphin swim. I'll contact my Cruise Critic friend from our last trip on the Pride and have her post to our roll call. She and her family did it and I'm sure she would love to pop onto these boards again and answer your questions about it.

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crittermum

crittermum

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Thank You Blueseas.

I was going to post over in port/excursions but our roll call would be so much easier. I will wait it out a little while before I book it. It is so expensive I am really hesitant .Although I want this trip to be really special because in a way it is my DD' senior trip.

I'll be looking in our roll call for it.

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