Carnival newbie back from the Glory!!!!!!!!!!!!

[bakechef]

I am now NOT a carnival virgin!

 

As you can see from my signature I am not a newbie at cruising, and have had the chance to try a few different lines. I always adjust my expectations to what I will expect based on reasearch.

 

My expectations for Carnival were pretty high, based on reseach, and what I enjoy doing. Let me tell you the Carnival glory did not disappoint!!!

 

Here is the rundown!

 

We opted to drive to Port Canaveral from Raleigh NC, and easy 8-9 hour drive, we hit some weather that slowed us down and construction, but still made it in a reasonable amount of time. We arrived at the Residence Inn by Marriott, 6 of us were sharing a 2 bedroom 2 bath suite with full kitchen and living room. I highly recommend this property, just minutes from the port. The Residence Inn is very new and beautiful, with a nice tropical pool area with a pool bar, and cool tropical music. We arranged transportation through Cocoa Beach Shuttle, very nice prompt shuttles and a driver with a great personality. When we were dropped off at the ship our luggage was unloaded to the porters someone in our party assured me that my large suitcase was unloaded, guess what it wasn't! I called Cocoa Beach Shuttle and gave the lady the driver's name, she radioed him and he made sure that my bag was brought back to the Glory and loaded, great customer service. Here are pics of the hotel.

 

Helpful hint, if using Cocoa beach shuttle through your hotel, you must make reservations the evening before!

 

[cathyoo]

more please

[bakechef]

Embarkation was effortless, we were picked up from the hotel at 11 am sharp, and brought to the ship. We immediately went through security, and then filled out our bahamas immigration form (I wish a .pdf file had been included with e-docs, would have eliminated this step huddled around a table with no pens). We were greeted by a really upbeat lady, she processed our paperwork, and we went to stand in line, we were group 2. We entered the ship and immediately made our supper club reservations, more on that later. We took the elevator to our upgraded stateroom, we had booked a inside guarentee, and got a 6e, for those of you unfamiliar with this cabin, it comes in around 220 to 230 sq. ft. and has floor to ceiling windows the whole width of the cabin, these are on spa deck 11 on Conquest Class ships. I have never enjoyed a cabin so much, there was so much space and the windows gave a spectacular view. The Carnival comfort bed is really nice, I usually have a hard time sleeping in a strange bed, but these were wonderful. Our room attendent Pat from Thailand was the best, we never once caught her in the room, it was magically cleaned and fluffed, she always greeted us with a smile in the hallways. Carnival, you are off to a great start!

 

We didn't get our requested 6:15 dining time, but got the 5:45 instead(but my PVP got the two reservations linked so we were all together), we decided it was fine and wouldn't try to get it changed, this was a great decision because we got the coolest tablemates ever, three very fun ladies from Missouri, we kept each other laughing all week! We got to meet our waitstaff, Ian from Jamaica and Valdazar from Montenegro, they were great servers, and fun to interact with! Throughout the week we found the food in the dining room to be quite good, and didn't find anything not to my liking. The main dining room offered beef filet three times during the week (fillet mignon, beef wellington, and Chateaubriand) something that my last two cruises on other lines did not offer, I was impressed. I loved the fact that you could order the pasta course as a starter because I really love pasta, but also steak, so I could have both without wasting half a plate of entree pasta.

 

 

more to come

 

MAC

[bakechef]

The Lido buffet was better than expected, we ate breakfast there every morning, because it was a short jaunt from our cabin. Breakfast was OK with the infamous powdered scrambled eggs, and the usual fare. There was an omlette station and my traveling companions said that the omlettes were great. I was a bit dissapointed with the buffet croissants, they aren't great, but I got over it. Lunch had a great amount of variety, regular buffet lines, international buffet lines (french, caribbean, mexican, italian, etc..) oriental station (quite good) deli (also very good) grill, and the famous pizza (I found it pretty good)!!!! Also 24 hour beverages including lemonade, fruit punch, iced tea, apple juice, coffee, tea, and hot chocolate were a nice touch, along with the 24 hour ice cream, which I found very good for soft serve, very creamy!

 

The decor of the ship is less than subtle, actually I liked it, it has a very overdone Vegas feel to it. The main show lounge, the Amber Palace looked like a 1920's bordello, it was fabulous! All of the bars have a cool theme, the Ultraviolet looks like a big monopoly board, more details than you could really take in. We ate in the Platinum Dining room which looked like a Asian decorated space ship! The other public areas had cool themes as well, there was always something to look at. The Atrium was very colorful with a cool kaleidescope ceiling.

 

WEE JIMMY was really quite entertaining, one of the best CD's I have seen, the other social hosts were great as well. We watched a few production shows, one was a bit cheezy, and the other quite good(Rockin' broadway) also there was an illusionist called Justin Illusion (get it?) he was very good.

 

 

MAC

[bakechef]

Our first stop was Nassau, not a favorite port of mine. We did the Adastra Gardens excursion offered through Carnival. This was a very budget friendly excursion. Adastra Gardens is not a big impressive zoo, but a fun trip anyway. We watched the flamingos march, I thought this would be really lame, but found it really funny. The feeding of the Lory Parrots is not to be missed, you are in huge cage, where you can feed the birds apple slices while they sit on your hand. These birds are beautiful. The rest of the time there you can see the animals in cages, all while walking among flamingos. The transportation for this excursion was very nice clean buses, with great air conditioning.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

MAC

[bakechef]

more from Adastra Zoo.

 

 

MAC

[JMP1973]

Thanks for taking the time to give us your review. Can't wait for more!

 

Jackie

[bakechef]

Our second stop was St. Thomas. We had to go through immigration here, but it was very painless. Once our cabin was called we proceeded to deck 5 and from the moment we stepped off the elevator to the time we were done was around 10 minutes, they have this procedure down cold! We first went shopping in Havensight Mall, and I purchased a pair of earrings for my grandmother (I always buy her earrings in St. Thomas, it's a tradition) and mailed them from the USPS right in havensight. We returned to the ship for lunch and went on our excursion, Coral Land and Coral Sea. After a scenic bus ride in an open air bus, we arrive at the coral park for the semi submersible boat, the visibility was not great due to the recent spawning of the coral reefs. The second part was a self guided tour of coral world, there is some really cool stuff here. The ride back to the pier was gridlocked with traffic, but some shortcuts by our driver got us back to the ship just in time for dinner.

 

The Miracle, Triumph, and the Glory

 

MAC

[bakechef]

darned double post!

[Snoozeman]

darned double post!

 

Congratulations on the great upgrade. Fantastic photos

[bakechef]

Our third stop was St. Maarten, my favorite of the three. We took a cab to Divi Beach, where I did a little snorkeling, and took a quick nap under a big coconut palm umbrella that we rented along with chairs. The people on the ship's excursion were clumped together in a segregated area. If you go it alone like we did, you get bigger chairs and better umbrellas for shade and less crowded. This is a beautiful beach within eye shot of the ship. The cab was $4 each way per person plus tip, good vans were used with good air conditioning. We returned to the pier where there was a small vendor selling local rum, and $5 got me the best Pina Colada that I have ever had. Then back to the ship.

 

You can see from this pic, the excursion paople are clumped together with the green and yellow umbrellas, we had the nicer lounges under the coconut palm loungers.

 

MAC

[*Mach*]

Awesome photos!!

 

I'm glad Carnival didn't disappoint you. The only other line that I've sailed on was NCL and Carnival is a far better fit for me.

 

BRING IT ON!!! MORE PICS!!!

 

:D

[krystalkruzer]

Thanks for the review,that is the same ship/itinerary I am going on next year.Happy Carnival did not disappoint,they VERY RARELY do.It will be my third Carnival cruise.

[bakechef]

The last two days were sea days, I found this a perfect scenario for us, the fist sea day was doing anything we hadn't done yet, and the second was pure relaxation.

 

Our last dinner was in the Emerald Room supper club. One word to sum up this dinner was AMAZING! Everything was presented so beautiful, and tasted amazing. We had the huge Porterhouse steak, and the others in our party had the filet mignon, we all said that it was the best steak we had ever had, and the yukon gold potatoes with wasabi were to die for! The service was wonderful, each course was served in unison with all plates served at the same time by different waitstaff.

 

All in all I cannot find anything about this cruise that would be worth complaining about. I approached the staff with a smile, and it was always returned. The ship was very very clean and in wonderful condition. At first I thought that the layout of the ship would make me crazy, but by day 2 I had it figured out, like the dining room was down to deck 5 walk to all the way back to the aft elevators and walk down 2 decks and you are there.

 

Carnival does not advertise itself as the refined, snooty, elegant cruise line. They advertise as the fun ships and they deliver this in spades, with a little bit of glam. This suited me perfectly. I loved the fun atmosphere. This was also the most diverse crowd I have ever cruised with, I really liked the mix. The singing and dancing in the dining room put a smile on many peoples faces, I think you would have to be a sour puss to absolutely hate it. Our wait staff seemed to love the attention.

 

Carnival will be at the top of my list for future cruises. Between the great value and the fun atmosphere, they have won me over.

 

 

MAC

[TortieGal]

Thank you for your review! We are going to sail her next October and I am already looking forward to it!

 

Beautiful pictures as well! May I ask what kind of camera you have? As a photography buff....and zoo volunteer....I'm always looking for great cameras!

 

Thanks!

Colleen

[PR Cruisers]

Nice pictures!

 

We are planning to go on the Glory next December. We have never been on Carnival. Royal Caribbean has been our cruise line on our 5 cruise vacations. So we are having high expectations with Carnival now.

 

Which cabin number do you were?

 

 

 

 

I am now NOT a carnival virgin!

 

As you can see from my signature I am not a newbie at cruising, and have had the chance to try a few different lines. I always adjust my expectations to what I will expect based on reasearch.

 

My expectations for Carnival were pretty high, based on reseach, and what I enjoy doing. Let me tell you the Carnival glory did not disappoint!!!

 

Here is the rundown!

 

We opted to drive to Port Canaveral from Raleigh NC, and easy 8-9 hour drive, we hit some weather that slowed us down and construction, but still made it in a reasonable amount of time. We arrived at the Residence Inn by Marriott, 6 of us were sharing a 2 bedroom 2 bath suite with full kitchen and living room. I highly recommend this property, just minutes from the port. The Residence Inn is very new and beautiful, with a nice tropical pool area with a pool bar, and cool tropical music. We arranged transportation through Cocoa Beach Shuttle, very nice prompt shuttles and a driver with a great personality. When we were dropped off at the ship our luggage was unloaded to the porters someone in our party assured me that my large suitcase was unloaded, guess what it wasn't! I called Cocoa Beach Shuttle and gave the lady the driver's name, she radioed him and he made sure that my bag was brought back to the Glory and loaded, great customer service. Here are pics of the hotel.

 

Helpful hint, if using Cocoa beach shuttle through your hotel, you must make reservations the evening before!

 

[bakechef]

Some Gala Buffet pictures. There was also a chocolate buffet on the last sea day, didn't get pictures, but indulged, it was really good!

 

 

Hope that you enjoyed the review, I still have a ton of pictures to sort through, and a good nights sleep to get before work tomorrow.

 

MAC

[kanigeta]

I thought your pictures were really really good. Thanks for sharing them and your review.

[chitown cruisers]

Congratulations on a great cruise...........Carnival puts out a good product for the $$. I haven't done any other lines yet because I'm happy with what I get. My Glory is still a long ways away, but I enjoyed your review. Thanks for taking the time and have a great day at work.

[bakechef]

Thank you for your review! We are going to sail her next October and I am already looking forward to it!

 

Beautiful pictures as well! May I ask what kind of camera you have? As a photography buff....and zoo volunteer....I'm always looking for great cameras!

 

Thanks!

Colleen

 

I recently purchased a Canon S3 IS, it is by far the best camera that I have ever owned. The first camera that I could get to focus on the animal, and not the cage. All but the lory parrots and the flamingos were taken through cages, even though you can hardly see the cage, in most of them.

 

MAC

[smashley]

Thanks so so much for the pictures! It really gives a special touch to a review.

[bakechef]

Nice pictures!

 

We are planning to go on the Glory next December. We have never been on Carnival. Royal Caribbean has been our cruise line on our 5 cruise vacations. So we are having high expectations with Carnival now.

 

Which cabin number do you were?

 

We were in cabin 1107 the spa deck is pretty quiet, although this room was the door facing the stairs and the elevators, so you could hear the bing bong of the elevators, and a couple of times we would hear the heard from camp carnival going down the stairs. We were not bothered by the little bit of noise, because the majority of time it was very quiet.

 

MAC

[Payd]

Mac/Bakechef

 

Thanks for a terrific review. I loved the pictures, especially the animals (including the towel animals). Thanks so much for taking the time to post. The Glory sounds like a ship we might enjoy! Your cabin looked awesome too!

 

Payd:)

 

By the way would you care to make any comparisons to RCCL (we are curious and considering trying something new).

[bakechef]

Mac/Bakechef

 

Thanks for a terrific review. I loved the pictures, especially the animals (including the towel animals). Thanks so much for taking the time to post. The Glory sounds like a ship we might enjoy! Your cabin looked awesome too!

 

Payd:)

 

By the way would you care to make any comparisons to RCCL (we are curious and considering trying something new).

 

Well the ships are not comparable, Carnival has very Vegas like ships(I liked the gaudy decor), RCCL has very beautiful ships, but the main decor doesn't very too much from ship to ship.

 

I found the Carnival food to be far and away better than my RCCL cruises, my last RCCL did not offer beef fillet any night, Carnival offered it 3 times Chateaubriand, Fillet Mignon, and Beef Wellington (RCCL offered pork wellington).

 

Both offer great products, and you will see the difference mostly in the ships themselves, RCCL has an edge here, especially on Voyager and Freedom class ships. The staffs are pretty comparable.

 

I say give them a try, just do your research and set your expectations accordingly. RCCL has a very strong and stubborn fan base and you cannot often get an unbiased review on that board (there is some history about that).

 

I would repeat any cruise line that I have taken, I will just research it and set expectations accordingly.

 

MAC

[HereIam]

Thank you for the review and the pictures. We did the Western itinerary in June and loved the Glory. I can't wait to do the Eastern. The pictures are all so beautiful.