Just off Victory....any questions???

[ray98]

Just off the Victory on 2/24 out of Miami. We visited San Juan, St. Thomas and St. Martin.

[dgm9610]

hey, so did I. great weather. Were you on deck when they turned off the lights for the eclipse? That was an awsome sight

[habby]

Names of bands playing on board, please...

 

What style of music did the band on the Lido Deck play?

 

Do you remember the names of any of the bar servers, or waitstaff?

 

 

Thanks!!!!

[Elaine515]

what movies, concerts, etc are they showing on the big screen tv out on the lido deck?

 

how was the cruise director?

 

 

 

 

 

All I can think of right now!!!

 

 

 

Elaine :)

[ray98]

hey, so did I. great weather. Were you on deck when they turned off the lights for the eclipse? That was an awsome sight

 

Yes...loved it. The amount of stars that are not visible from my house is amazing.

[millerboy88]

will you be writing a full review of your trip, we are taking the Victory to the same ports in April

thanks

[ray98]

Names of bands playing on board, please...

 

What style of music did the band on the Lido Deck play?

 

Do you remember the names of any of the bar servers, or waitstaff?

 

 

Thanks!!!!

 

All live music I saw on the Lido was island type reggae music. They did have a live act in the Casino in the evening who was awesome. His name was Flashy and I believe he was from Jamaica. He sang and played the guitar. He played a variety of music....soul...rock...R&B. I really enjoyed him.

 

My favorite server was Martin in the casino area. He provided great service and would remember from day to day my name and our drinks of choice. He would also offer to go to the pool decks to get the bucket of beer on special to save me money.

[ray98]

what movies, concerts, etc are they showing on the big screen tv out on the lido deck?

 

how was the cruise director?

 

Well...they always showed CNN in the mornings and then a concert after that. I remember Johnny Cash and Earth Wind and Fire.

 

In the evening they showed Evan Almighty and Ratatouille. Other times they were playing clips from the "fun crew" who walked around filming passengers with a camera in little contests.

[crash3x]

Just off the Victory on 2/24 out of Miami. We visited San Juan, St. Thomas and St. Martin.

 

Mongollian BBQ - some say yes it is on the ship and some say no it is on other ships. You have been there which is it? I am hoping you say yes and tell me where to find it.:)

[ray98]

 

how was the cruise director?

 

 

The CD was Malcolm Burns. He was awesome.

[ray98]

Mongollian BBQ - some say yes it is on the ship and some say no it is on other ships. You have been there which is it? I am hoping you say yes and tell me where to find it.:)

 

Not that I found. They do have a section of the buffet on the Lido that did a "Taste of the Nations" which had a different style food each day. It may have been on there one day and I missed it.

[Carnival Game]

What did you do in San Juan?

 

Did they have a galley tour?

 

How were the evening shows?

[ray98]

What did you do in San Juan?

 

Did they have a galley tour?

 

How were the evening shows?

 

Did a walking tour of downtown. Spent a lot of time at the fort. Beautiful views and lots of picture taking.

 

 

Yes...it was pointless. A brief 5 minute talk about how many meals they serve and quantity of food followed by a walk through and empty galley from the Atlantic dining room to the Pacific. No explanations, no cooking going on....nothing. One guy baking bread. Our tour last 4 minutes from the time the speech was over.

 

 

Some of the comedy skits were pretty funny. I did not do the revue type shows but my dinner mates were not impressed. It was the dancers last week so maybe they slacked off.

[Cudster]

Thanks for the post. Heading out this Sat 3/1 to spend the night in Miami and then onto the Victory this coming Sunday. I've heard good and bad about Malcom due to his woo hoo so hopefully I will find him as fun as you did. Can't wait to get there and just plant myself in a pool chair and grab my buckets of beers. Thanks and I can't wait......

[Sneezykevina]

Are you going to do a review and do you have pictures????????

[ray98]

Are you going to do a review and do you have pictures????????

 

Yes...I will do a review hopefully in a little while. I have plenty of pics....anything you want to see??????

[Sneezykevina]

the pool with the sliding roof and the irish bar :D

[c85f9]

Some of the comedy skits were pretty funny. I did not do the revue type shows but my dinner mates were not impressed. It was the dancers last week so maybe they slacked off.

It was the dancers last week?! What does this mean? Will there still be shows when I board next week??

[davesgirl]

Yes...I will do a review hopefully in a little while. I have plenty of pics....anything you want to see??????

I like to see any cabin pics (oceanview), if you have them...sailing in May, our first "Victory" sailing...we are also stopping @San Juan, St Thomas, St Marteen...if you do a review it would be great!!! :) Thanks.

[AnnieB925]

We just returned from the same cruise on the Victory. We flew down the night before and spent the night at the airport Holiday Inn. We then took our time getting to the port and embarkation was flawless.....so very easy!

 

We really enjoyed everything about the Victory. This was the largest ship we have been on, yet it really didn't seem crowded (and it was full.) We spent plenty of time on the spa level deck, aft. It was a wonderful spot and was rarely crowded.

 

In San Juan (only there from 5-11pm) we walked and did some shopping. We'd been there before and had seen more of the island.

 

In St. Thomas we booked through Air Force One Tours and went to Coki Beach for wonderful snorkeling and an overall fabulous beach day. I'd highly recommend Coki over Megan's Bay if you want to snorkle. Again, we have been to St. Thomas on other occasions so we didn't need/want a tour of the island (but it IS beautiful!)

 

In St. Marten we took a cab to Orient Beach and spent several hours. It's a beautiful beach with crystal clear, blue water. There are plenty of beach bars to pick up a cool drink. Again, we had been there before so just wanted to hang by the beach.

 

We really enjoyed Bob in the Piano Bar every night. We were at the 8pm dinner seating in the Pacific Dining Room and had great service from Juan, our waiter. After that we hit the disco, the piano bar and/or the shows. We met a techical member of the stage crew who explained that the stage lighting was undergoing some renovations. We didn't feel that the shows were as good as those on other cruises. There weren't that many shows that had the Carnival dancers and all the glitz and glamor.

 

We really enjoyed Malcom, the cruise director. Yeah, his "woo hoo" could get old, but he's a funny guy. He did a nod to silent stage/movie era with his show taking members of the audience.

 

The "talent show" where guests try out and perform was just ok. It was not the most talented group we have seen but it was fine.

We enjoyed the first comedian, who was sick but did his regular show one night and then the late night R-rated show the next night. I met him in line at the deli (yes, I was the "nice woman from Boston"........wow...I'm glad that's all he said about me during his R-rated show!)

 

I can't speak to the buffets or the Lido dining room. My lunch consisted of deli sandwiches, a pass through one of the lido lines and Caesar salad w/ chicken from the pizza place. I don't cruise to eat (room service for b-fast w/ Raisin Bran and skim milk........) We don't gamble so I can't speak to the casino life. We did pass though it and it was always lively.

 

Do take in the tea when it's offered. It was lovely with music provided by a 3 piece group: piano, cello and violin. The food was typical tea food: small sandwiches and petit fours.

 

We stayed one extra day in Miami at the Deauville Hotel on Miami Beach and had another great beach day. We flew back to Boston today.

 

Back to work tomorrow. Then we start thinking about the next cruise!

[ray98]

It was the dancers last week?! What does this mean? Will there still be shows when I board next week??

 

Yup...you will have all new dancers and a new Captain. Their first cruise left yesterday.

[becky48417]

Ok....I swear...there is NO Mongolian BBQ onboard the Victory. Those who say there is, have never been to the real deal! The Mississippi BBQ is located on the lido deck, at the rear of the ship. They serve burgers, hot dogs and french fries. I've said this already in other threads, but it keeps coming up. I've been on this ship twice and to the "real" Mongolian BBQ more times than I can count and I GUARANTEE there is not one on this ship.

[Firsttimescaredcruiser!]

Does anyone know who the new Captain will be?

[ray98]

I like to see any cabin pics (oceanview), if you have them...sailing in May, our first "Victory" sailing...we are also stopping @San Juan, St Thomas, St Marteen...if you do a review it would be great!!! :) Thanks.

 

Here ya go.....2401....starboard OV.

 

 

 

[ray98]

I tried to cover everything but there is so much...I am sure I left out some. It is submitted and should post soon.

 

-------------------------------------

 

My wife and myself and in the 30yo range with an 11yo son. We live in GA and this will be our 2nd cruise. We live close enough so we can drive to the port and take advantage of last minute deals since we can avoid air fare. This is our 1st on CCL and the prior cruise was last spring on the RCCL Explorer of the Seas. I booked a OV 6A guarantee on the Victory for a Eastern Caribbean cruise. Approximately 40 days prior to embarkation I was assigned 2401 which was a starboard aft 6b. We drove down from GA the night before the cruise. I chose to park our vehicle away from the port because the $20 per day fee is outrageous. I ended up reserving a spot at CBM on 25th street where I parked for $87 for the week including taxes. We arrived there the morning of the cruise and checked in. The offer a free shuttle to and from the port which we had to wait about 30 minutes for because their vans only run on the hour. The ride to the port was about 10 minutes and we were dropped off in front of the terminal a few minutes after 11am. The porters took our luggage and we were off to the terminal.

 

Inside I saw a long line for the security screening. It was pleased to find it moved quickly and within 10 minutes we were through security and off to the reservation desk. There we found numerous short lines with around a 5 minute wait. The nice lady checked our identification documents, set up the CC for purchases and issued our Sign and Sail cards. She told us the cabins would not be ready until at least 1:30 and suggested we have lunch prior. We were off to the ship where we walked right on. We went to the Lido deck for lunch and found it was packed which was expected. We grabbed a sandwich from the deli and had a couple drinks.

 

We noticed the rooms were open around 1pm so we went to drop our luggage off. We stored our carry ons and wandered around the ship for a bit. I found the layout odd because many floors were divided and you could not travel the length of the ship. I picked up a pocket map from the Purser desk and quickly found deck 5 was the main artery. We mingled around the ship until finally around 3:30 it was announced the Muster drill would be in 15 minutes. We headed back to our cabin and retrieved our life jackets. The drill was short and too the point which was pleasant. We dropped our jackets off and made our way to one of the open decks for sail off. The views out of the harbor were gorgeous. We watched until land was a speck on the horizon.

 

We headed back to the state room to get ready for dinner(early 5:45). We found only 2 suitcases had arrived which luckily had what we needed. We were assigned table 328 on the lower level of the Pacific dining room. I was excited when I found it was on the port side all the way in the back next to the glass. We had a beautiful view and could watch the sunset every night at dinner.

 

Cabin:

I found the room to be very clean and surprisingly spacious with lots of closet room. It was our first time in a OV and I really liked the large window and the pullout couch the inside cabins do not have. The beds were already together and the stateroom attendant made the pullout couch into a bed for our son. Even with 3 of us in the room we had plenty of room for all our things. I found the bedding to be very comfortable and the AC was plenty to keep the room cool. I really liked the aft location near the elevators. I could walk up one flight of stairs to the dining room or take the elevator straight up to the Lido restaurants. It was a very convenient location for a lower cabin.

 

Food:

Dinner in the dining room was wonderful. The food was excellent and our wait staff was prompt and polite. My favorites of the week were the prime rib, NY strip and of course the Lobster tail and Tiger shrimp on the 1st formal. My wife was pleasantly surprised to find many healthy choices on the menu noted as "Spa selections".

 

The Lido buffet left a little to be desired for me. I guess I was used to RCCL where the buffet was one big line which served non stop from breakfast until late night. Here I found the opening and closing times of the different buffets odd because they did not overlap. Many times I was left with the 24hr pizza or the deli unless you I ate at the predetermined meal times and the predetermined course. The food quality was generally good but I also found the selection off for my taste. It seemed to me the buffet would have 3 or 4 main course type dishes and not enough side items to go along. They also seemed to repeat, the side items I noticed daily were cold pasta salad, potato salad and slaw. I know one day I ended up with a piece of chicken, slice of ham, pasta with tomato sauce and a salad. If I am eating a piece of chicken give me some mashed potatoes, mac and cheese or something along those lines to go with it. I know all do not feel that way but that was my personal observation. Also...the sandwiches from the deli were awesome. Now...when I have a sandwich I usually accompany it with chips or fries. Neither were to be found. The 24hr pizza had some terrific creations and would even make specialty pizzas and calzones to order. The 24hr self serve ice cream was also a big hit.

 

I really was looking forward to the "sushi bar". I found out it was not real sushi bar and it was only open from 5:30 - 8:30s. It was a small station which had 4 different selection each night that were premade. None were what I would call traditional sushi and more of their own creations. My dreams of dining there were smashed but I did have a few after dinner snacks there.

Ports:

San Juan: 5pm to midnight

I enjoyed the few hours we had there. I put together a walking tour that ended up at For Cristobal. The admission was $3 each(cash only, exact change). The fort itself and the view of the island from the top was beautiful. I did not find much interest in many of the shops but I am not a big jewelry purchaser. We mingled around downtown and made our way back to the port where I found a small bar with outside tables right near the ships. They had the local beers for $1...that made me happy because I was tired and thirsty!!!!

 

St. Thomas: 8am to 6pm

We booked a island tour with Godfrey online for $25 each. He was to take us shopping, sightseeing and to one of the beaches. We were supposed to meet in front of the ship at 10am and he was not there. At 10:20 I was just about to look for alternatives when he pulled up. He apologized and explained why he was late and we were off. I am glad I stuck with him because this was the highlight of the vacation. He is so friendly and his knowledge of the island is amazing. We first stopped for 2 hours of shopping where I headed off to AH Rise to buy my liquor. I found some amazing deals and sent my allotted 12 liters back to the ship for free. We left there and he took us to so many beautiful places overlooking the many bays which all had picturesque views. We ended up on the Mountain Top(where I had the most amazing banana daiquiri) and one of the prettiest views I have ever seen. I took loads of photos on the trip. We then took off to Coki beach but found it packed so he suggested Sapphire. We went there and found it was a beautiful cove and was not as crowded. We had lunch at a beach side restaurant and sat under the shade trees and enjoyed the view until it was time to go back to the ship.

 

St. Maarten: 8am to 5pm

This was going to be our "beach day". I did research and decided I wanted to take pictures of the planes landing by Maho beach while the family did the beach thing. I was always amazed by those pictures from when I was little. We went to the taxi stand and found some RCCL employees going to the same place. We hooked up with them and took a van which saved a few dollars. The driver also said he would come back and get us if we wanted. We all agreed on a time and he dropped us off by the Sunset Beach Bar. We started with lunch at the restaurant and I had a pretty good hamburger. A few small planes landed but when the first jumbo jet landed I must say it was something to see. Outside the bar they had a board with all the arrivals of the big planes on it. I got some amazing pictures and the family enjoyed a nice day at the beach. The taxi driver showed up early and was waiting. We loaded up and he drove us pack to the port where we picked up a few small souvenirs in the local shops.

 

Camp Carnival:

It was wonderful. I was afraid our 11yo boy would not be interested but he tried it and made many friends. He wanted to go all the time and even asked to eat dinner with the group instead of in the dining room. That left us some time to do our own things on the boat and play around in the casino where children are not allowed. My only complaint was the earliest you could drop them off in the evenings was 5:45...the same time as our dinner seating. We were always 5 or 10 minutes late seating ourself. They kept the activities going to 10pm every night...later if you wanted to pay a fee.

 

The drinks:

All the drinks I purchased were very good. If it was a liquor drink it was always strong enough...they should be though considering the price. When drinking beer it is better to buy the buckets. They had a few specials throughout the week.....4 12oz domestic cans for $13.50....4 12oz Corona for $15 and 4 16oz bottles for $19. You have to add the gratuity to that. By themselves most were around $4.75 for a 16oz.

 

The cruise director was Malcolm Burns. He is a very funny man and did a good job keeping things lively. The pool area gets very crowded during the day as expected. The big outdoor screen on the Lido was great. They played CNN in the morning and live concerts and music during the day. At night they showed movies but I feel they repeated the movies too many times instead of increasing the variety. We were lucky and had a lunar eclipse one night. They did a special event on the Lido deck including turning all the deck lights off for around 20 minutes. It was beautiful. They also did a karaoke one evening on deck

 

The live entertainment was good. They had a classical band in the Atrium and a live performer each night in the casino area. His name was Flashy and he sang and played the guitar to a variety of classic tunes. I think he was from Jamaica and he could sing everything from rock to soul. I really enjoyed him and spent many evenings in that area. The comedy shows in the theater we funny. I did not see any of the shows the dancers did so I cannot comment on those.

 

The Gala buffet was a sight to see. I took lots of pics of the amazing creations. I was going to stay to get a snack but the line quickly backed up into the pool area. I didn't want to wait so I left.

 

We did room service a few times for AM coffee and cold breakfasts. The service was always prompt but I felt the menu was lacking. I will again compare it to RCCL who had a full menu...even dining room courses. Room service on CCL was only good for snacks.

 

We did the miniature golf twice and found it to be a small cramped area on deck 12. It was not that impressive but it did offer a little fun. The gym was pretty nice and the steam room/sauna was positioned to give breath taking views with floor to ceiling windows.

 

It came time to disembark and they now deliver you tags with numbers on them to you state room instead of colors. They called it zones. When we got 26 I felt that was a bad sign. Our number was finally called at 10:30....we were one of the last groups off the ship. It was painless after that. Our luggage was waiting on the carousel and the customs line took around 15 minutes. We called CBM and they sent someone to get us in around 20 minutes. They took us back to the car which they had waiting out front. We loaded up and got on the road by 11:30 which was a few hours later than I hoped for considered we had a 11 hour drive ahead.

 

All in all we had a great time...especially for the price. I still enjoyed the RCCL cruise better but I don't feel it is fair to directly compare the two. The boats are different ages and sizes. For food...RCCL still gets the nod but Carnival's was still very good. It was fun and I would gladly do it again.