Questions-Ecstasy-Christmas-Formal Night-Help please!

[Woodywoman]

Hi,

I have a few questions regarding the Ecstasy. My friend is cruising on the Ecstasy with her family on December 23, 2004 for 5 days.

 

1) When is formal night? Will it be on Christmas night?

2) Do they do anything special for Christmas?

3) Do they have theme nights - like western night? etc...?

 

Any help will be very much appreciated!

Thank you!!

Woodywoman

[litig8rij]

Hi,

I have a few questions regarding the Ecstasy. My friend is cruising on the Ecstasy with her family on December 23, 2004 for 5 days.

 

1) When is formal night? Will it be on Christmas night?

2) Do they do anything special for Christmas?

3) Do they have theme nights - like western night? etc...?

 

Any help will be very much appreciated!

Thank you!!

Woodywoman

...however, we're sailing for 4 days on the ecstacy starting 23 dec. anywho, formal night is christmas night, the 3rd night of the cruise. the ship is supposed to be all decked out with bee-utiful decorations. i heard a rumor that santa was supposed to touch down as well. oh yeah, they will serve champagne, GRATIS, upon embarkation in order to celebrate the holiday (!). because of the short duration of the cruise, i don't think they have any theme nights, but i may be wrong. :rolleyes:

[Woodywoman]

Thank you. I thought my friend said 5 nights, but I'm sure you are right. This is her & hubby's second cruise, but they are going with the entire family (a first for everyone else-including their 8 year old daughter). We are about to go on our 18th next week, but we've only been on 2 Carnival ships and never during a holiday sailing so I couldn't help her too much.

 

Does anyone else know about theme nights?

Again, thank you!!

[dlbaqua]

Hey Woodywoman, I think we cruised together in April on the Splendour? We're going on the Ecstasy on the 9th, can't wait

[bobstack]

Dear Woodywoman and litig,

 

Donna and I will see you on board for the 12-23-04 Ecstasy Cruise out of Galveston. Where will you be driving from? We'll be coming out of Dallas. Can't wait the 4 more weeks! Write when you can.

 

Bob from Dallas / Ft. Worth

[litig8rij]

Dear Woodywoman and litig,

 

Donna and I will see you on board for the 12-23-04 Ecstasy Cruise out of Galveston. Where will you be driving from? We'll be coming out of Dallas. Can't wait the 4 more weeks! Write when you can.

 

Bob from Dallas / Ft. Worth

we're driving down from san antonio. we're going to stay at the moody gardens in galveston post-cruise; thus, we're parking our car there & they'll transport to and from the pier. maybe we can meet somewhere for a foo-foo drink! :p

[swells2345]

We (kids and I) will also be on the 12-23 Ecstasy cruise. We are first time cruisers so any pointers will be appreciated!

[bobstack]

Dear Ileta, Woodywoman and Swells,

 

Glad to hear you're on the 12-23-04 cruise (well, your friends are, Woodywoman). We are trying to get some work done here in Dallas before we head to Galveston, maybe heading out the morning of the cruise. I have an estate planning and probate practice, and people want their documents before they head out for Christmas! Got to serve them before they scoot for the holidays.

 

Ileta and all, I think we can meet on board, after the life boat drill, at a convenient place. I see you are the counsel for a battered woman's shelter. That's a whole lot to deal with, and thank you for doing it.

 

Swells, you will have a great time regardless of what happens. First cruises do that. If you plan to drop luggage off first, always enter the cruise terminal area from 22nd Street, not Harborside. You'll avoid the Harborside backups (worth 15 minutes in savings alone). Bring something to read while you are in line at the cruise ship terminal, because it's like flying the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. You must be self-entertaining. I plan to park in the Port of Galveston lots.

 

Once on board, get the map of the decks of the ship, and get your bearings. There usually are just 3-4 floors where the action is, and given the holiday cruise, get to the entertainment venues early. You will not be alone. And don't judge all cruises based on the Christmas experience. We cruise in the fall and spring, and it's peaceful and satisfying. Hope you plan well and that it's everything you want.

 

Back to work, write when you can.

[litig8rij]

i would love to meet somewhere after the drill, but where? this is my first time on carnival & have no clue as to which bars/venues could be somewhat empty at that time. any suggestions? somewhere where i can get a "miami vice," a double preferably! :p

[swells2345]

Thanks for the tips Bob! I have two kids so MY entertainment while waiting won't be the issue. :p I am actually in East Texas so you will probably be hot on my heels to Galveston. Someone else suggested using E-Z Cruise parking. Do you have any experience with that? I'm concerned about having to drop off luggage, then park since I am the only adult in our party.

 

Look forward to cruising with you guys!

 

Swells

[bobstack]

Dear Ileta and Swells:

 

We could meet after the life boat drill in the Piano bar, Atlantic Deck, Port Side, toward the left rear of the atrium. When you get there is fine, no rushing. We can have a pop together, and then move on and enjoy exploring the ship. If your plans change once you're on ship, not to worry--the pops will still be good.

 

Swells, when we dropped off luggage at the pier, the porter took our bags, and he made sure we had our claims check. Then we went off to the Port of Galveston parking lot that we were directed to. Once we parked, the shuttle bus came and found us, and waited for us to get on board the bus. We had room on the shuttle bus for a few carry-on things. The bus picked up more passengers on the bus, and the driver then drove us back to the pier. We got off the bus, and went into the passenger pier, where we waited probably 40 minutes to get through to the check-in desk where we gave our credit card slip, and were permitted to walk onto the ship.

 

I understand that if you went with another parking lot, such as Dolphin, you park at the Dolphin lot, and place your luggage onto their shuttle bus. And you and the family take the shuttle with your luggage to the pier. The price I understood back in May of this year was about $10/day at any lot. It might have changed since May.

 

I have no experience with EZ Cruise or Dolphin Parking.

 

Hope you can finish your packing list, and enjoy the expectations for these last 2+ weeks.

 

Ileta and Swells, have a good time planning and preparing!

[swells2345]

Thanks Bob!

 

I am incredibly excited and wondering how I will get everything done and still go to work everyday. Think they would understand at work if I took off for 'cruise fever' days? :D

 

Probably not since this is a peak time but it might be worth a try. Appreciate the tips. Since I have rugrats in tow, we may not cross paths unless they enjoy Camp Carnival as much as I hope they do :p so I'll wish you happy crusing now. Thanks again for the tips.

 

Sherry

[litig8rij]

sherry -- we'll probably see you @ camp carnival. my kids plan on trying it out, at least for a little while (long enough for momma to get her drink on a lil bit, one hopes :p )

bob -- i'll stop by the piano bar after the drill. i tried to start a roll-call ages ago, but i'm the only one who's posted (oh yeah -- and some guy named msdouglas, complaining about EZ parking, who's posted a gazillion times on every thread that merely mentions galveston. delightful he's not:o ).

anywho -- i look forward to meeting you both. have you started packing yet?

[bobstack]

Ileta and Sherry,

 

We just started packing today, and we're trying to remember what to bring. But with a 4 day cruise, you can almost carry everything you'll need in a backpack! So our habit is to create a pile in the middle of the living room (much to our housekeeper's dismay--she comes again tomorrow). If we forget something, we can usually get it on board.

 

See if you can swing by the piano bar sometime after the muster station drill, so we can say hello, and remember the moment. Sherry, your kids should have a blast with the kids' program, we hear.

 

Good luck in all your precruise plans!

 

Bob

[cruzinsteve]

Hi to all on the Christmas cruise. We too will be sailing on the Estacy 0n the 23rd and it will be our 23rd cruise (23rd cruise on the 23rd) and would like to stop by the Piano bar and meet our fellow CCer's. My name is Steve nad my wife is Kathy and we have no kids with us, just going to get away for a few days. Look forward to meeting all of you.

[litig8rij]

look forward to meeting you & kathy at the piano bar! :)

[swells2345]

Packing Bob??!!! I haven't even finished SHOPPING! :o I have a feeling I will pack WAY too much stuff but I'm gonna try to be good.

 

Ileta, I'm glad to hear you have kids in tow also - now I know I'm in good company! How old are yours? Mine are 9 (dd) and 5 (ds). I am also hoping my kids will enjoy Camp Carnival long enough for me to have a relaxing drink. If it is all I've heard it is, they may not want to leave!

 

Steve, glad to hear another friendly voice cruising on the same ship. 23 cruises! Wow, I am so jealous of you guys.

 

I get more and more excited everyday. Can't wait to see you all there!

 

Sherry

[bobstack]

Hi Ileta, Sherry, Steve, and other Dec. 23rd cruisers:

 

Donna (dw) and I will be happy to meet you and your children (or hear about them, after you leave them off at Camp Carnival!). We all are taking some special time off to be with family and friends. It is just a short time to be on the ship, have a wide variety of activities to select from, and for a few days, just about everything seems to go right.

 

Steve, welcome to the party. Ileta and Sherry and I were talking about meeting after the muster station drill. We were going to meet at the Piano Bar, on the Atlantic Deck. If it's a little too noisy, we'll relocate to another venue (after we are all together). We have about 2 weeks of excitement and plans to discuss. Share what you can, when you can. Although we have no children, we will enjoy a cruise with lots of families, just enjoying the chance to be together.

 

I read a post on another thread that the Cruisemates show is back on cable tv (the Spike network, apparently at 1:30 am). I hope my recorder will be awake for it. They feature a dating couple on a Carnival ship, is the word.

 

Please keep sharing your plans! 2 weeks and counting...

 

Bob from Dallas/Ft. Worth

[litig8rij]

my older boy, josh, is 6 & my baby boy, jayson, is 3, so our kids' paths may cross at camp carnival. they are SO excited! i bought them inflatable carnival ships a few months ago & our bathtubs haven't been the same since. we just took a train trip from texas to illinois for thanksgiving; now, the boys are just too psyched about getting the chance to travel on water as well.

i have finished my clothes shopping (at least that's what i tell myself); still, i need to get some other cruisin' stuff, like my bungee cord for my balcony door, some lanyards for the kidlets, a collapsible cooler with wheels (for all my alcoholic contraband) & some bonine for me, just in case. i found some liquid nausea meds for the kids -- that and some green apples & they should be fine ;)

since i have to work up until the day before the cruise, i need to start packing a little each day so as not to forget anything...but of course, the minute i walk in my cabin, despite my MONTHS of careful planning, i'll remember the one thing that i've forgotten :p

[swells2345]

Ileta,

It just crossed my mind today about the possibility of motion sickness!:( Someone on another board was suggesting ginger pills from the health food store. Says it works like a charm. None of us get carsick so I'm hopeful that we won't get sea sick - please Lord! I've got to start at least making a packing list. If I didn't have to work I might have time for these things! :p Of course, if I didn't work, I couldn't afford these things either.:D

My dd will probably be in an older group but my ds (Hudson) should be in the group with at least one of your kids. Hudson is all boy but typically pretty friendly so maybe they will end up doing fun stuff together. You guys are going to get tired of me before this is all over.

 

Take a type A personality, mix in a desperate need for a vacation and not enough hours in a day and you get.... ME!

Happy packing! I'm counting down the days...

 

Sherry

[cruzinsteve]

Looks like a good time for all. Kathy and I would love to meet all of you after muster in the Piano bar. We are in our mid fifties and no kids. Love to cruise and like meeting wonderful new friends. A suggestion to our first time cruiser bring a electrical 5 plug power strip as there is only a single 110V outlet in the cabin, also to save on clutter we always bring one of those cheap clear plastic shoe bags to hang on the closet door. They sell them at Wallmart for about $4.00 and you can fold them up and reuses them over and over. We put razors,toiletries,combs,brushes and all the clutter that gets piled on the vanity and bathroom shelf. Believe me the bathroom cabinet and shelf are very small. We usually bring along some kind of door decoration and some scotch tape to hang it with (makes finding your cabin easier, especially after to many Bahama Mommas). A portable steamer or small iron comes in handy also as well as a six foot extension cord in case you want to put up a string of minature lights for Christmas. Don't forget the lights.

[bobstack]

Dear Steve, Sherry and Ileta:

 

We have evolved (as William Hurt would say on The Big Chill), we have evloved with our packing. We started with a list, then went to an impromptu performance, and finally have declared eminent domain over the living room. We are just piling and giant-zip lock bagging stuff and into the living room it goes. We think at night about some we need---wham! It goe onto the living room floor. And if we forget something, hello ship stores. We soon realize that the daily luxuries have spoiled us. We could go a month with half of this stuff, and still have a great cruise.

 

We are grateful to hear your kids might be able to hookup. That means when you get your nightly de-briefings, you can compare stories the next day. What a hoot! And glad to hear we'll have a tidy group in the piano bar after muster. Keep those plans a'comin.

 

Incidentally, I have been posting and reading a thread about a Carnival Ship TV show (Shipmates) that has started to run on SpikeTV at 12:30 am in the evenings. Look for the show and the thread. Romance died on last night's show, but there appears to be more boys and girls headed for high romance on the high seas. See if you like it. Keep on planning. 2 weeks. WOW!

 

Bob

[swells2345]

Bob - I'm still not packing. As much as I gripe at my kids about leaving things in the middle of the living room floor, they would probably faint if I started throwing stuff down!

 

Steve - Thanks for the tips. My nod to Christmas is a 14" fiber optic tree that runs on batteries that I intend to bring along. The door decoration sounds like a good idea too.

 

I'm going by the health food store today to see about ginger pills that were suggested on these boards. I would hate for us to be sick the whole time!

 

See you guys in TWO WEEKS~ :eek: :D

 

Sherry

[litig8rij]

well, i've got my lanyards, my extension cord, but for the life of me, i can't find an over-the-door shoe holder for all of my bath stuff. and 2 gallon ziploc bags? weren't at walmart! but i did get a HUGE collapsible cooler on wheels -- can you say "martini & rossi asti spumanti?" i knew you could! throw in some heinikens & apricot beers (hey, don't ask me, my hubby's the brew lover) & the party's on!

i hope the weather is ok while we're down there. my older boy loves airplanes; so, we have a 6 foot airplane kite w/a 5 foot tail. it's pretty amazing. i'm dying to go to paradise beach with some 'ritas & watchin' it sail.

okay, i'm sounding like a major alky here, with talk of asti, beer, 'ritas. i'm more of a tea-totaler by day -- just want to relax while on vacation, ya know?

anywho, i've got some kidlets to bathe, so i'm off. we'll chat soon -- and be sailing pretty soon too!!!! ;)

[swells2345]

Ileta,

 

I found the plastic over the door shoe holder at my wal-mart today for $5.88. It was right next to the plastic clothes hangers. Hope that helps.

I feel you on those 'ritas. I don't get the opportunity to drink in my everyday life. However, on vacation I love margaritas!

 

In two weeks we'll be cruising! Whoo Hoo!

 

Sherry