The World's Longest and Most Picture Laden Miracle Review Ever! May 24-June 1

[Payd]

Wow - incredible review and pictures!!

[FabFourLover]

Wow Nicole. I just love reading your reviews. They are so full of information. I was on Miracle last summer and going back in November. You're getting me through the wait. Keep it up. You do a great job.

[Summer Breeze]

Hi Nicole, I've just read Part 3...I love your detailed reviews and photos.....We have a lot in common, even though I am a decade older than you ! I love Pretty in Pink and The Breakfast Club too, not to mention travelling, cruising and all things Tiffany :D

I love Chicago, even more than New York. My cousin used to live in Aurora, until she moved to Orlando for work. If you ever get to London (where I live) you have to add The Ritz hotel to your list of places to have afternoon tea !! It was amazing, and not as expensive as I initially thought it would be. You have inspired me to try and write my first review on my upcoming Victory cruise in Sept. Keep up the good work....Jo

[TauruSmith]

I have only read your NYC portions of the review and as (displaced) New Yorker, it was so nice to see my old stomping grounds!

 

4 bucks for a Snapple is nothing, try $8 for a beer at Yankee stadium.http://boards.cruisecritic.com/images/smilies/rolleyes.gif

 

 

 

P.s. NY pizza > Chicago pizza

[Weeziblu]

I looooooved your last review!! And I'm really enjoying this one, too! I'm actually not far from NYC and have been many times so I am loving your NYC review! So much fun! Can't wait to hear (and see) all of the cruise details next! Keep it coming!

[brnsnbrws]

I am reading your blog from your January cruise and I have a question. You ordered a cake for Stephanie for a special occassion and had it delivered to your table at dinner. How do you order a cake? Did you contact Carnival before your cruise or after you were on the ship? My sister will be celebrating her birthday on our cruise and I would like to do this for her.

Thanks

Diane

[bragstarr]

I TOLD you the Junior's cheesecake was the best! Incidentally, the Manhattan store is more expensively priced that the original one in Brooklyn, which has more of a fun atmosphere...but not in the best neighborhood. That being said, $10 for a decent corned beef sandwich in NY is pretty common.

 

The NY Pizza you had, from a food court, was probably not a true representation of the stuff. Why didn't you have Nathan's hot dogs--and better yet, their french fries? Yum!

 

You can really see the differences in the camera quality, but your pictures were still a lot of fun. If you ever go to NY again, or for anyone else reading, you can get really great prices by going to a website called Broadway Box. This lists every discount available for every show--not that all shows ever have a discount, I am still waiting to see Jersey Boys!

 

My friend who lives by me and isn't even on CC is getting forwarded your links. She's getting a kick out of seeing NYC out of a non New Yorker's eyes too. Keep up the good work!

[Nicole721]

Can't wait to hear about your first step onto the beautiful Miracle, in N.Y.

 

Should be up tomorrow morning :) Thanks for your kind replies, Sharon!

 

Nicole Ive really enjoyed the review so far. Can't wait to get on the ship!!! My wife and I will be going to New York in July and I'm giving her a shopping trip for our anniversary present. Can you give me any advice on what stores to take her to?

 

ps, you really should be a travel writer.

 

Thanks so much! You're quite the hubby taking the wife on a shopping trip! As per the shopping, I only really hit 5th Avenue, where all the high-end stores are, so I don't have much advice on that :( I think Tiffany's is always a popular choice (saw lots of couples there) just because of the prestige of the brand and the history of the store. My friends tell me there are a lot of hip boutiques in SoHo and TriBeCa.

 

But if you and your wife are looking for a nice afternoon meal, I really can't recommend Alice's Tea Cup enough for afternoon tea. It was probably the best experience we had in NYC.

 

Wow - incredible review and pictures!!

 

Thank you!

[NYGirl1002]

Hey Nicole..I enjoyed Part 3. I wish you would have gotten to see Times Square at night..your eyes would have popped out of your head. It's amazing.

 

I'm glad you discovered Juniors. The cheesecake is fabulous. We go to the one in Brooklyn which is the original. We also buy cheesecakes for the holidays. Last Thanksgiving my brother bought a very large strawberry cheese and I think he paid over $100. but boy was it delicious. I had 30 people here so it really went over big.

 

I cannot wait to read about the Miracle. I see the Cubs game was postponed so you should be working diligently on the next installment.

[Nicole721]

Wow Nicole. I just love reading your reviews. They are so full of information. I was on Miracle last summer and going back in November. You're getting me through the wait. Keep it up. You do a great job.

 

Thank you! Isn't the Miracle a great ship? Something about her seems to bring everyone back to her. I don't know that any other ship could make me want to come back JUST for the ship, if nothing else. I'm hoping to sail her again if not this January, the January after to make it to St. Lucia (we missed it when the Miracle had a broken azipod). Right now, we're starting to focus on our annual May trip, and it's looking like it's going to be the Dream for us. It'll be kind of weird being on a ship that ISN'T the Miracle.

 

Hi Nicole, I've just read Part 3...I love your detailed reviews and photos.....We have a lot in common, even though I am a decade older than you ! I love Pretty in Pink and The Breakfast Club too, not to mention travelling, cruising and all things Tiffany :D

I love Chicago, even more than New York. My cousin used to live in Aurora, until she moved to Orlando for work. If you ever get to London (where I live) you have to add The Ritz hotel to your list of places to have afternoon tea !! It was amazing, and not as expensive as I initially thought it would be. You have inspired me to try and write my first review on my upcoming Victory cruise in Sept. Keep up the good work....Jo

 

Ohhh thanks for the tip! We're big afternoon tea people (you'll see when I get to the day at sea reviews...I kind of, maybe, sort of missed our CC meet up because it clashed with afternoon tea :o ) so I'll definitely keep that in mind. I really do hope to do a Europe cruise one day, if not visit London on it's own.

 

I can't wait to read your Victory review! I hope you have an absolutely fantastic cruise!

 

And btw? Aurora has FANTASTIC outlet stores. They have Coach, Kate Spade and Juicy Couture all in one outlet mall!

 

I have only read your NYC portions of the review and as (displaced) New Yorker, it was so nice to see my old stomping grounds!

 

4 bucks for a Snapple is nothing, try $8 for a beer at Yankee stadium.http://boards.cruisecritic.com/images/smilies/rolleyes.gif

 

 

 

P.s. NY pizza > Chicago pizza

 

You know, I always thought Wrigley Field and Cubs tickets were bad until the thought entered my mind to go to a Yankees game. Cubs tickets are horribly overpriced for the condition of Wrigley Field (which I adore, but is in horrible need of some upgrades), but nothing compared to Yankee Stadium. The only seats available were $900/each! Ouch! The BEST seats at Wrigley go for less than $200! And beers are around $6.25 (I think). They're always a quarter over the dollar so the vendors can assume they can keep the rest as a tip (which I let them because I'd normally tip, but I hate how they assume it's theirs).

 

But the vendor food was so cheap that I was a bit surprised at how inflated the drinks were. Then again, given the weather, I'm sure it doesn't really matter because people will buy them anyways. We did LOL.

 

Thanks again for reading and commenting :) I'll refrain from commenting on your last comment :p

[Nicole721]

I looooooved your last review!! And I'm really enjoying this one, too! I'm actually not far from NYC and have been many times so I am loving your NYC review! So much fun! Can't wait to hear (and see) all of the cruise details next! Keep it coming!

 

Thanks so much! I'm afraid at how long the cruise portion will get after seeing how long the NYC portion is...especially since the cruise was four times as long as my stay in NYC was :eek:

 

I am reading your blog from your January cruise and I have a question. You ordered a cake for Stephanie for a special occassion and had it delivered to your table at dinner. How do you order a cake? Did you contact Carnival before your cruise or after you were on the ship? My sister will be celebrating her birthday on our cruise and I would like to do this for her.

Thanks

Diane

 

A few ways you can go about this...

 

In January, we sent Stephanie a "Congratulations" cake. When you look at your reservation on Carnival's Web site, there's a section to order gifts and services. There, you can order a birthday cake and select what night you'd like it delivered (keep in mind, night one is embarkation night...we sometimes forget to count embarkation day as Day 1). We did this for Mom's birthday last year and Stephanie's graduation cake this year.

 

On this past cruise, we were really lacksidasical with our planning. I tried to order drink tickets and some other stuff three days before we left and was informed that all orders must be placed at least four days before embarkation, so we were SOL. You can also order a cake onboard at either the patisserie (where they sell espresso drinks, specialty cakes and pastries for a nominal fee) or the Formalities shop. They will deliver it to either the stateroom (at a time specified by you) or dinner (on a night you specify). We ordered Mom's cake to our room to enjoy on the balcony.

 

Hope that helps!

 

The cakes are really inexpensive, too. I believe they're less than $8 and feed at least 6-8.

 

I TOLD you the Junior's cheesecake was the best! Incidentally, the Manhattan store is more expensively priced that the original one in Brooklyn, which has more of a fun atmosphere...but not in the best neighborhood. That being said, $10 for a decent corned beef sandwich in NY is pretty common.

 

The NY Pizza you had, from a food court, was probably not a true representation of the stuff. Why didn't you have Nathan's hot dogs--and better yet, their french fries? Yum!

 

You can really see the differences in the camera quality, but your pictures were still a lot of fun. If you ever go to NY again, or for anyone else reading, you can get really great prices by going to a website called Broadway Box. This lists every discount available for every show--not that all shows ever have a discount, I am still waiting to see Jersey Boys!

 

My friend who lives by me and isn't even on CC is getting forwarded your links. She's getting a kick out of seeing NYC out of a non New Yorker's eyes too. Keep up the good work!

 

I wanted to go to the one in Brooklyn and no one would go with me! They wanted to go to the one in Grand Central Station! :eek: I figured, given the location, it was probably marked up and it's not like we fainted at the prices (it was still less than we budgeted for dinners in NYC), but compared to Chicago deli's and portions, it was a bit exorbitant. I'd still go back, though LOL. If for nothing else, the cheesecake, but those blintzes were PHENOMENAL!

 

The pizza in the food court was the closest we got to NYC pizza because all the hotel would give us was numbers for Dominos and Unos (which originates in Chicago...we've been to the original countless times). I was SO frustrated that we ended up with DOMINOS pizza when we were in NYC. But it was good pizza from the food court. They literally had like 30 different kinds, and were willing to make any kind you wanted (except for goat cheese, apparently...I had to wait to get on the boat for that!).

 

We probably should have opted for a hot dog at Nathan's, but I think we have that in Chicago. I wanted a Gray's Papaya hot dog, but add that to the things we didn't get to try in NYC along with street vendor food and my trip to the Dakota Building, Strawberry Fields and most of Central Park LOL. More added to the list for the next time we visit.

 

The difference in camera quality is astounding (you'll really see it in some of the portraits I took onboard), but I was so scared they'd confiscate my SLR or want to hold it and never give it back or something that I didn't even want to risk it. And it's big and bulky and heavy and the theater was tiny and cramped so it's just as well. I was so happy with my P&S when I first got it (I go through P&S cameras like water...I average two vacations for each before I get frustrated with it or it breaks and I get a new one), but ever since I got my SLR in March, the P&S frustrates me. I actually ran out of battery early in our visit to HMC and had to switch to the P&S because I stupidly forgot the extra battery in my cabin and I was trying to take macro pictures of some flowers and I really realized how much control you lack with a P&S camera.

 

Thanks for sharing my review! I'm so glad you are enjoying it :)

 

BTW? Jersey Boys is currently in Chicago. I hear good things about it!

[Nicole721]

Hey Nicole..I enjoyed Part 3. I wish you would have gotten to see Times Square at night..your eyes would have popped out of your head. It's amazing.

 

I'm glad you discovered Juniors. The cheesecake is fabulous. We go to the one in Brooklyn which is the original. We also buy cheesecakes for the holidays. Last Thanksgiving my brother bought a very large strawberry cheese and I think he paid over $100. but boy was it delicious. I had 30 people here so it really went over big.

 

I cannot wait to read about the Miracle. I see the Cubs game was postponed so you should be working diligently on the next installment.

 

I really, really wanted to go to Times Square at night. We almost made it but we were just too tired. If we had realized how easy the transit from our hotel in Jersey to Times Square was, we probably would have bit the bullet and just gone.

 

I've never had cheesecake as good as Juniors. We have Eli's in Chicago and it's pretty darn good, but it's something you buy in grocery stores. The next best thing around here is Cheesecake Factory, but I thought Juniors was better than CF, too :)

 

Cubs should be playing around 10, but the Lakers are playing now ;) Did I mention that I started a baseball discussion that took over the supper club on Mom's birthday? I'll have to remember to write about that. Me, the gentleman next to us, and the gentleman across from us spent about an hour discussing baseball in the supper club. Mom and Stephanie were not very excited LOL. They get embarrassed when I start talking sports. But it's what I do...when I was in college, I interned in the sports department of a TV station. I'm the biggest girly girl and the biggest sports fan at the same time.

 

I've got to resize the pictures so they don't get cut off on all screens but MacBooks (because the pics show up fine on my screen, but not on my sister's Dell laptop) and format a few of them, so I'm working on that now. If the review isn't up late tonight, it'll be up tomorrow morning :) But I'm finally on the ship part!

 

Thanks for reading :)

Edited June 5, 2009 by Nicole721

[frazzledrazzle16]

Thought I'd add in my 2 cents...

 

A few ways you can go about this...

 

In January, we sent Stephanie a "Congratulations" cake. When you look at your reservation on Carnival's Web site, there's a section to order gifts and services. There, you can order a birthday cake and select what night you'd like it delivered (keep in mind, night one is embarkation night...we sometimes forget to count embarkation day as Day 1). We did this for Mom's birthday last year and Stephanie's graduation cake this year.

 

On this past cruise, we were really lacksidasical with our planning. I tried to order drink tickets and some other stuff three days before we left and was informed that all orders must be placed at least four days before embarkation, so we were SOL. You can also order a cake onboard at either the patisserie (where they sell espresso drinks, specialty cakes and pastries for a nominal fee) or the Formalities shop. They will deliver it to either the stateroom (at a time specified by you) or dinner (on a night you specify). We ordered Mom's cake to our room to enjoy on the balcony.

 

Hope that helps!

 

The cakes are really inexpensive, too. I believe they're less than $8 and feed at least 6-8.

 

I would say wait to order it on the ship. Through the online formalities you can only order a generic cake, but on the boat you can specify if you want a round or heart shape cake and what you want written on it. Plus (as Nicole mentioned), you can have it delivered to the stateroom, which came in handy for us because we unexpectedly made a last minute reservation at the Supper Club.

 

 

 

We probably should have opted for a hot dog at Nathan's, but I think we have that in Chicago. I wanted a Gray's Papaya hot dog, but add that to the things we didn't get to try in NYC along with street vendor food and my trip to the Dakota Building, Strawberry Fields and most of Central Park LOL. More added to the list for the next time we visit.

 

I'm pretty sure I am the reason we didn't get NY style hot dogs... I can't imagine a hot dog being decent without neon green relish and the rest of the garden :D

 

Anyways, good job with your epic ginormous blog Nikki.. It's about the only thing that's keeping me from going into full blown post-cruise depression (although it will NOT satisfy my need to be constantly entertained ;))

[BABSIER]

Wow Nicole, I have just started reading the CC boards and I must say I am very impressed with your review. I have been mulling over booking a cruise on the Miracle for 2010 out of NY and you have convinced me.I am really looking forward to the rest of the review.

[crusiegirl99]

Thanks...but it hasn't even begun to get long yet :eek:

 

 

 

Thanks, Sharon! And thanks for the well wishes before the cruise, too :)

 

 

 

Aww, thanks!

 

Wow :eek:

[FabFourLover]

Thank you! Isn't the Miracle a great ship? Something about her seems to bring everyone back to her. I don't know that any other ship could make me want to come back JUST for the ship, if nothing else. I'm hoping to sail her again if not this January, the January after to make it to St. Lucia (we missed it when the Miracle had a broken azipod). Right now, we're starting to focus on our annual May trip, and it's looking like it's going to be the Dream for us. It'll be kind of weird being on a ship that ISN'T the Miracle.

 

Yes, I really love Miracle. November will only be my 3rd cruise. Besides Miracle last July we were on Princess 10 years ago for our 15th anniversary. When we decided on a cruise for our 25th we were looking at RCL just to try something different.

 

But when we saw the itinerary for this Nov cruise with 3 islands we've never been to we decided to do Carnival again. It was a very pleasant surprise that it happened to be Miracle. We really didn't plan it that way but I was very pleased.

[FabFourLover]

You know, I always thought Wrigley Field and Cubs tickets were bad until the thought entered my mind to go to a Yankees game. Cubs tickets are horribly overpriced for the condition of Wrigley Field (which I adore, but is in horrible need of some upgrades), but nothing compared to Yankee Stadium. The only seats available were $900/each! Ouch! The BEST seats at Wrigley go for less than $200!

 

Jeez...the best available tix at Citizen's Bank Park here in Philly are around 60 bucks! I think I'm glad to be a baseball fan here, not to mention we're WORLD CHAMPS!!! and 4 games up on the NY Mets....AGAIN.!!!!

 

Sorry, couldn't help myself:D:D

Edited June 5, 2009 by FabFourLover

[Nicole721]

Thought I'd add in my 2 cents...

 

 

 

I would say wait to order it on the ship. Through the online formalities you can only order a generic cake, but on the boat you can specify if you want a round or heart shape cake and what you want written on it. Plus (as Nicole mentioned), you can have it delivered to the stateroom, which came in handy for us because we unexpectedly made a last minute reservation at the Supper Club.

 

 

 

 

 

I'm pretty sure I am the reason we didn't get NY style hot dogs... I can't imagine a hot dog being decent without neon green relish and the rest of the garden :D

 

Anyways, good job with your epic ginormous blog Nikki.. It's about the only thing that's keeping me from going into full blown post-cruise depression (although it will NOT satisfy my need to be constantly entertained ;))

 

Dork. If you need me to run into your room singing "Let Me Entertain You" again, I'll do it.

 

Wow Nicole, I have just started reading the CC boards and I must say I am very impressed with your review. I have been mulling over booking a cruise on the Miracle for 2010 out of NY and you have convinced me.I am really looking forward to the rest of the review.

 

Thanks! :) The Miracle offers some great itineraries year round- Southern Caribbean out of Fort Lauderdale (St. Maarten, St. Lucia, St. Kitts) in the colder months and out of NYC (Grand Turk, Half Moon Cay, Nassau) in the warmer months.

 

Wow :eek:

 

Oh I know it :p

[Nicole721]

Yes, I really love Miracle. November will only be my 3rd cruise. Besides Miracle last July we were on Princess 10 years ago for our 15th anniversary. When we decided on a cruise for our 25th we were looking at RCL just to try something different.

 

But when we saw the itinerary for this Nov cruise with 3 islands we've never been to we decided to do Carnival again. It was a very pleasant surprise that it happened to be Miracle. We really didn't plan it that way but I was very pleased.

 

Well, I'm not a big fan of Nassau (been there four times now, never really cared for it), but Grand Turk and Half Moon Cay are PHENOMENAL ports :) Have a fantastic cruise!

 

Jeez...the best available tix at Citizen's Bank Park here in Philly are around 60 bucks! I think I'm glad to be a baseball fan here, not to mention we're WORLD CHAMPS!!! and 4 games up on the NY Mets....AGAIN.!!!!

 

Sorry, couldn't help myself:D:D

 

Yeah, when you have a team like the Yankees or Cubs, price gouging is INSANE. Limited parking near Wrigley Field will set you back nearly $40. Parking a few blocks away will cost you $30. The tickets go from $17 to under $200. Bleacher seats go for $40something. And the food and drink...OY! But I love my Cubs so I close my eyes and try to ignore it LOL.

 

But I never knew it was quite so bad with the Yankees. How in the world do you sell out a ball park when you have sections that cost $900+ (I think I saw one section at $1300/ticket :eek: ) PER ticket?

[TheDMan]

Hey Nicole, thanks for the tips on shopping and tea. I am looking forward to your pictures of the balcony that y'all had. I had asked Stephanie when y'all were headed home if y'all had 6281 because thats our cabin on our Thanksgiving cruise. When she told me which cabin that y'all did have I checked it on Carnivals deck plan, I couldn't believe how huge it was.

[Valley Twin]

That is SO not a Philly cheesesteak.:eek: Erase that completely from your memory!

[templed]

Ya... Midtown is not the best place for NY Pizza.

 

I work across from Grand Cetral Station (Chrysler Building)... and you really have to either go into the Village, Alphabet City, Soho...etc. for decent pizza... That is unless you go to Brooklyn... My fav... L&B's Spumoni Gardens... (well... at least for Sicilian Style)

 

http://www.spumonigardens.com/

 

I've not really tried any round in Broolyn though.... (Staten Island has it's own gems for Round Pies).

 

Great review.... great pictures...

[Nicole721]

Hey Nicole, thanks for the tips on shopping and tea. I am looking forward to your pictures of the balcony that y'all had. I had asked Stephanie when y'all were headed home if y'all had 6281 because thats our cabin on our Thanksgiving cruise. When she told me which cabin that y'all did have I checked it on Carnivals deck plan, I couldn't believe how huge it was.

 

A few of them are up now (just finished part 4), but wait until you see the two cabins connected! We counted 45 paces from one side to the other :eek:

 

That is SO not a Philly cheesesteak.:eek: Erase that completely from your memory!

 

Will do :D

 

Ya... Midtown is not the best place for NY Pizza.

 

I work across from Grand Cetral Station (Chrysler Building)... and you really have to either go into the Village, Alphabet City, Soho...etc. for decent pizza... That is unless you go to Brooklyn... My fav... L&B's Spumoni Gardens... (well... at least for Sicilian Style)

 

http://www.spumonigardens.com/

 

I've not really tried any round in Broolyn though.... (Staten Island has it's own gems for Round Pies).

 

Great review.... great pictures...

 

Thanks! And thanks for the suggestions! I'll put them on our list for our next visit...along with another thing I didn't get to do and forgot to write about: walk across the Brooklyn bridge (or, at least, see it from closer than I did on the boat). We're seriously going to need a good three or four days in NYC to finish everything we never got to do!

[Nicole721]

Part 4 is up!

 

The pics don't really start until half-way through, but there's a ton of food pics up for all you foodies.

 

Also, last time I posted all the lido menus at the end in one lump post. I'll post them as we go this time (unless anyone objects).

 

And sorry if it's too long or if it doesn't make much sense in parts. Our A/C is out again and I feel like dung.

 

Part 4: http://sunglassesandumbrelladrinks.blogspot.com/2009/06/worlds-longest-miracle-review-part-4.html

 

Part 3: http://sunglassesandumbrelladrinks.blogspot.com/2009/06/worlds-longest-miracle-review-part-3.html

 

Part 2: http://sunglassesandumbrelladrinks.blogspot.com/2009/06/worlds-longest-miracle-review-part-2.html

 

Part 1: http://sunglassesandumbrelladrinks.blogspot.com/2009/06/worlds-longest-miracle-review-part-1.html

[NYGirl1002]

Thanks Nicole. Loved Part 4. I am so looking forward to Tuesday after reading it!

 

I can't wait for Part 5