Buckets o' Beer; Clothing Optional Bar and a BIG Win! - A Destiny Review

[wrighka]

DH and I just sailed the Destiny with stops in Key West and Cozumel. This was our first cruise with Carnival (ok, I was on the Ecstasy in 1994 but that doesn't count!). I'll break things down to categories as I saw it....this is only MY opinion and I don't think any of you have my home address so I'm safe! :D

 

FLIGHT: We drove down to Metro Airport in Detroit for our flight - about 1 1/2 hr drive, on Thursday morning, the day our cruise began. We flew NWA and our flight down was without incident. I froze to death on the plane and luckily was able to get a blanket from a flight attendant.

 

Arrived in Miami at noon. Waiting for luggage and were out the door and in a cab in minutes! YAY! Cab driver - 2 on the personality scale.

 

EMBARKATION: Easy! We were through the lines, at the desk, getting our Sign & Sail card and on the ship by 1:30! Amazing! Very painless. Although you have to fill out those H1N1 health forms and there are NO pencils or pens at the tables!!!! Luckily a nice lady loaned us her pen - thank you again nice lady! Nice lady - 10 on the personality scale.

 

THE DESTINY: I thought the ship was lovely! Not anywhere near as gaudy as I had "heard" it to be. The atrium was beautiful. All was nice and clean and shiney. Is that how you spell shiney??????? Oh well.....All the public rooms were clean and tidy. We had an inside cabin on Deck 2, cabin 2-158. We were in an end room near the elevators. I can honestly say we never heard loud noises or loud people. Our cabin was spotless. Our steward, Klinkert, was a warm and friendly man, although I think we saw him 3 times. I told him when we first met that there was no need for him to make us towel animals. He protested at first, but I insisted that he not waste his valuable time making towel animals for us when I knew how busy he was. (See what happens when you read Cruise Confidential?????)

 

DINING: I won't be able to comment on the dining room as DH and I didn't eat there. We ate all but one of our meals in the Sun and Sea Buffet and once at the grille. The food was good in the buffet, but IMO, there wasn't much of a choice. Salad, one pasta entree, one fish entree, two nights a beef carving station, a chicken selection and pork chops and beef ribs. Everything was almost the same every night. Alot of the "hot" food was cool to cold. The desserts were few in variety. We tried the chocolate melting cake the first night. I'm wondering if we caught it on a bad night because honestly, we didn't like it. It was like eating brownie batter. Was it supposed to taste like that? Breakfast offered usually the same food also. Scrambled eggs, sausage, grits, hash browns, bacon (sometimes crispy and sometimes soggy) served by the bacon police. DH said the fresh pineapple was AWESOME. Hmmmm....we never ate lunch there.

 

We got hamburgers from the grille one day for lunch and they were very, very good! DH tried the pizza once, didn't like it. He also had a hotdog and fries on our last day and said it was good.

 

We certainly didn't starve, but I was kind of disappointed with the food overall. I think because I had heard how much better Carnival food was than Royal Caribbean's, I expected too much. Personally, Royal's buffet wins hands down over Carnival with us.

 

Part II to come........

[aubreysmom]

Thanks for writing your review! I am looking forward to reading the rest of it. I do wonder why you didn't eat in the dining room at all though. I love the dining room best of all. Just wondering????:)

[wrighka]

My DH is not a "dining room" person....personally I love going there. I had him talked into going the first night, but then we got sidetracked and didn't make it. We did let them know we wouldn't be eating there so someone else could have our 8:15 pm dining time. Sometimes you have to give a little, to get a little! And no, that's NOT what I'm talking about! :eek:

[Nunu]

wrighka did you do the 7am flight out of dtw? how early did you get to the airport and was it busy? thanks.

[kerrytens]

Can't wait for the bucket of beer part! Thanks for the first part of your review.

 

Miriam

[falkcor]

hey there, welcome back :D

 

talk about an attention-getting title!!! miriam seems to be waiting for the bucket o beer part... i'm waiting for... clothing optional bar?! ;)

 

congrats on your big win (i assume in the casino), and glad to see that you seem to have enjoyed it (so far).

 

but i'd have a talk with dh if i were you... i can't imagine eating at the buffet all week! :eek:

 

looking forward to the rest :)

[ItsAllAboutTheSass]

CLothing optional bar = Garden of Eden in KW????

[David148]

Okay, i will admit that there were TWO things that drew me to this topic, NO. 1 Being about the Destiny and NO. 2 The clothing optional bar! Very interested to hear about that haha.

 

Anyways, i am glad it sounds like you had a good time thus far in the review! I am a little disappointed to hear the comments on the buffet. I will be on the Destiny in a few weeks, and i really enjoy eating the buffet for lunch. Did they have a Pasta Station around the buffet area? The Liberty had it 2 yrs ago, and i really enjoyed that.

 

Can't wait to read moree.. :p

 

-David.

[bobbyfk]

good review but next cruise go to the dining room..you opinion on the food will change

[WAcruisers]

Cant wait for the rest! We will be on her in September :cool:. Don't see too many reviews on her, so this is a treat!

[jimbo5544]

hey there, welcome back :D

 

talk about an attention-getting title!!! miriam seems to be waiting for the bucket o beer part... i'm waiting for... clothing optional bar?! ;)

 

congrats on your big win (i assume in the casino), and glad to see that you seem to have enjoyed it (so far).

 

but i'd have a talk with dh if i were you... i can't imagine eating at the buffet all week! :eek:

 

looking forward to the rest :)

 

Really in regards to the title, was def. the first open click of the day.

[wrighka]

Ok.....where was I?????? I think I left off with food.

 

Nunu - We flew out of DTW at 9:05 am on NWA.

 

CASINO: Destiny has a large and very nice casino. There are quite a few slots and happily for me, lot's of video poker. There are blackjack, roulette, Let It Ride tables......there's other stuff too but I didn't pay much attention. They did have a slot tournament on our sea day with a payoff of $500.

 

I'm not going to go in the whole use your Sail & Sign card thingie because truthfully, it is wayyyyyyyyyyyy too complicated for me to try and explain. I only have one thing to say about it right now - PEOPLE!!!!! Make double, triple sure that you have downloaded your credits back to your card when you cash out!!!! I cannot emphasize this enough. K, 'nuff of that - on to the good stuff!

 

I play Video Poker mostly....it has better odds of winning. I sat down at a machine and started playing. It was a progressive, with a jackpot of over $2000. The thing was, it took 10 quarters a spin to give you any chance of winning that jackpot. I got hot. I mean HOT, HOT, HOT! Straight flushes, full houses, four of a kinds, it all was happening! This is very unusual for me cuz I normally am not that lucky. Anyway, I had built my credits up to over $300...I think I had started with $20. It was 11 pm - I had been up and awake since 3:30 am....I was TIRED!!!!!! DH was passed out in the cabin. Since I was on such a lucky streak, I kept playing. And then.............................................................................................

I got dealt a ROYAL FLUSH in clubs!!!!!!!!! $2012!!!!!!!!!!! I was stunned. I sat there staring at the screen while it flashed " Call Attendant". Somehow the attendant found me, I hadn't screamed or made any noise. Next thing I know there are a million casino employees around me writing stuff down, asking me questions......I was escorted to the Casino Bank and given my $2012 in CASH and then was also paid for the credits I had remaining, which was over $300!!!!!!! It was like a dream. I've only hit the royal flush once before and that was at my local casino and paid $1000. I have been to Vegas ALOT and never won there. I seem to be lucky on cruises. I've had a $1250 win, a $650 win, and now this win!

 

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.....I can't even begin to tell you what it felt like......................to be continued..........:D

[Kurbanfan]

Ok.....where was I?????? I think I left off with food.

 

Nunu - We flew out of DTW at 9:05 am on NWA.

 

CASINO: Destiny has a large and very nice casino. There are quite a few slots and happily for me, lot's of video poker. There are blackjack, roulette, Let It Ride tables......there's other stuff too but I didn't pay much attention. They did have a slot tournament on our sea day with a payoff of $500.

 

I'm not going to go in the whole use your Sail & Sign card thingie because truthfully, it is wayyyyyyyyyyyy too complicated for me to try and explain. I only have one thing to say about it right now - PEOPLE!!!!! Make double, triple sure that you have downloaded your credits back to your card when you cash out!!!! I cannot emphasize this enough. K, 'nuff of that - on to the good stuff!

 

I play Video Poker mostly....it has better odds of winning. I sat down at a machine and started playing. It was a progressive, with a jackpot of over $2000. The thing was, it took 10 quarters a spin to give you any chance of winning that jackpot. I got hot. I mean HOT, HOT, HOT! Straight flushes, full houses, four of a kinds, it all was happening! This is very unusual for me cuz I normally am not that lucky. Anyway, I had built my credits up to over $300...I think I had started with $20. It was 11 pm - I had been up and awake since 3:30 am....I was TIRED!!!!!! DH was passed out in the cabin. Since I was on such a lucky streak, I kept playing. And then.............................................................................................

I got dealt a ROYAL FLUSH in clubs!!!!!!!!! $2012!!!!!!!!!!! I was stunned. I sat there staring at the screen while it flashed " Call Attendant". Somehow the attendant found me, I hadn't screamed or made any noise. Next thing I know there are a million casino employees around me writing stuff down, asking me questions......I was escorted to the Casino Bank and given my $2012 in CASH and then was also paid for the credits I had remaining, which was over $300!!!!!!! It was like a dream. I've only hit the royal flush once before and that was at my local casino and paid $1000. I have been to Vegas ALOT and never won there. I seem to be lucky on cruises. I've had a $1250 win, a $650 win, and now this win!

 

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.....I can't even begin to tell you what it felt like......................to be continued..........:D

 

LOL! Congrats!!! But $2.50 a pull...... on a quarter machine .....yikes.........

It paid off for you!!!!

[gail811]

Congrats on your big win! :d

[johngcruisin]

I enjoy the buffet, but, I wouldn't be happy about the Carnival food if all I had was buffet either. The dining room food is a huge highlight of the trip for our whole family.

 

Congrats on the big win! Can't wait to hear more

[flatman]

DH and I just sailed the Destiny with stops in Key West and Cozumel. This was our first cruise with Carnival (ok, I was on the Ecstasy in 1994 but that doesn't count!). I'll break things down to categories as I saw it....this is only MY opinion and I don't think any of you have my home address so I'm safe! :D

 

FLIGHT: We drove down to Metro Airport in Detroit for our flight - about 1 1/2 hr drive, on Thursday morning, the day our cruise began. We flew NWA and our flight down was without incident. I froze to death on the plane and luckily was able to get a blanket from a flight attendant.

 

Arrived in Miami at noon. Waiting for luggage and were out the door and in a cab in minutes! YAY! Cab driver - 2 on the personality scale.

 

EMBARKATION: Easy! We were through the lines, at the desk, getting our Sign & Sail card and on the ship by 1:30! Amazing! Very painless. Although you have to fill out those H1N1 health forms and there are NO pencils or pens at the tables!!!! Luckily a nice lady loaned us her pen - thank you again nice lady! Nice lady - 10 on the personality scale.

 

THE DESTINY: I thought the ship was lovely! Not anywhere near as gaudy as I had "heard" it to be. The atrium was beautiful. All was nice and clean and shiney. Is that how you spell shiney??????? Oh well.....All the public rooms were clean and tidy. We had an inside cabin on Deck 2, cabin 2-158. We were in an end room near the elevators. I can honestly say we never heard loud noises or loud people. Our cabin was spotless. Our steward, Klinkert, was a warm and friendly man, although I think we saw him 3 times. I told him when we first met that there was no need for him to make us towel animals. He protested at first, but I insisted that he not waste his valuable time making towel animals for us when I knew how busy he was. (See what happens when you read Cruise Confidential?????)

 

DINING: I won't be able to comment on the dining room as DH and I didn't eat there. We ate all but one of our meals in the Sun and Sea Buffet and once at the grille. The food was good in the buffet, but IMO, there wasn't much of a choice. Salad, one pasta entree, one fish entree, two nights a beef carving station, a chicken selection and pork chops and beef ribs. Everything was almost the same every night. Alot of the "hot" food was cool to cold. The desserts were few in variety. We tried the chocolate melting cake the first night. I'm wondering if we caught it on a bad night because honestly, we didn't like it. It was like eating brownie batter. Was it supposed to taste like that? Breakfast offered usually the same food also. Scrambled eggs, sausage, grits, hash browns, bacon (sometimes crispy and sometimes soggy) served by the bacon police. DH said the fresh pineapple was AWESOME. Hmmmm....we never ate lunch there.

 

We got hamburgers from the grille one day for lunch and they were very, very good! DH tried the pizza once, didn't like it. He also had a hotdog and fries on our last day and said it was good.

 

We certainly didn't starve, but I was kind of disappointed with the food overall. I think because I had heard how much better Carnival food was than Royal Caribbean's, I expected too much. Personally, Royal's buffet wins hands down over Carnival with us.

 

Part II to come........

 

 

Everything you just said about the food, we experienced the very same thing. We decided after this last cruise on the Triumph that we would just skip the dinning rooms and eat all of our meals on the buffet. We liked the breakfasts, but the hamburgers were the best. Funny, so much to choose from but we ended up choosing hamburgers, french fries, and a hot dog with chilli most of the time. The room service was not that good. I couldn't get a HOT ham and cheese, and the dinning room just wasn't my style. I don't need a new fork everytime they bring a plate. Don't really care to be on display while I'm eating either.

I'm enjoying your review so far, keep it coming!

[wrighka]

I know alot of you really enjoy the dining room....some people would rather not dine there......it's just a matter of choice really.....and the buffet food was ok, just not a very big selection to choose from. We also don't like to HAVE to be somewhere at a certain time, so that played into it too....you know what they say - "To Each His Own"! :)

[dobiemom]

Congrats on your big win! And to be DEALT the hand! What are the odds?

 

I have a question about the video poker machine. Most that I have played on the maximum number of coins you can play is 5 credits. I don't think I've ever seen a 10 coin max poker machine. Do you remember the name of the machine? What kind of poker were you playing? I would have been screaming if I got a royal flush, I don't care how tired I was! :D

[Texarribean Chick]

You go Chica! How fun! I always play video poker myself and usually come out ahead; but not that much ahead!

 

Chick.

[wrighka]

dobiemom - It just says Video Poker - there are a bank of 6 of them. They are tall and have a digital screen on top which tells you what the jackpot is.

 

I almost always play Bonus Poker and that is what I was playing. There are 6 or 7 different games you can choose from on the machine. Bonus Poker offers the best odds I think. You can play only 5 quarters at a time, but that only takes you to the 4th column; the 5th column is the payout for betting 10. There is a place at the bottom of the screen where you can "double up", which I never used. If I got below 120 credits, I'd play 5 until I had built up enough to start betting 10 again.

 

There are also other VP machines (slant tops) on the other side of the casino. These too are progressive and when I left, that jackpot was at $3300.

 

Someone told me that the machine area where I was playing was at $4200 when we got on the ship. A guy hit that almost right away.....

 

I was up over $500 my last night, but as you know.......no, I didn't give it all back, but just about!!!! ;)

[kerrytens]

Sweet win!!!!! Congrats! So, did you book another cruise right away? :D

 

Miriam

ps. I see we are going backwards so next should be the clothing optional part!

[jbroons]

hey there, welcome back :D

 

talk about an attention-getting title!!! miriam seems to be waiting for the bucket o beer part... i'm waiting for... clothing optional bar?! ;)

 

congrats on your big win (i assume in the casino), and glad to see that you seem to have enjoyed it (so far).

 

but i'd have a talk with dh if i were you... i can't imagine eating at the buffet all week! :eek:

 

looking forward to the rest :)

 

Why wouldn't your (OP) past Carnival cruise count? Buffet over dining room...every night?:confused: Dining Room food is excellent, paid for and romantic as well. Well, to each her own I suppose.

[wrighka]

Part III

 

PORTS:

 

Key West: DH and I had never been to KW before and were really looking forward to it! The weather was beautiful and very HOT! We just took our time touring around; went to Hog's Breath, Margaritaville, Hard Rock and lot's of little shops. Everyone we met were so friendly! I saw "Help Wanted" signs in alot of places; wish I could have applied! We also stopped at "the smallest bar" in KW....it's just a little cubby hole inbetween 2 buildings. We got a beer and a margarita, the bartender was very nice and accommodating. Soon we were walking by Nick's. A nice older woman was sitting outside offering us coupons for drink discounts.....then she offered us coupons to enter the "Clothing Optional" bar which sits atop Nick's. :eek: Although we would have taken her up on her offer, (with our clothes on!), the bar didn't open until noon and we had other places to go. So, all of you that were waiting for us to get nekkid - YOU ARE PERVS!!!!!! LMAO! :D

 

We really enjoyed KW, but wish that the ship stayed there longer. I'd prefer to stay there longer than Cozumel. Anyway, we had a great time there (did alot of shopping!) and will be going back for an extended vacation in the future.

 

COZUMEL:

 

We had planned on going to Chakanaab to do some snorkling, but DH cut his hand wide open on his last day of work before we left and thus, we were unable to go. We took a cab to Margaritaville (see a pattern here? DH is a shopaholic!) for $7. We left there and walked (yep, walked - in the sun and million degree heat!) all the way to Carlos and Charlie's!

 

For those of you that have been to C & C, you know how fun it is!!!!! Shortly after arriving we were wearing balloons on our heads, had worn sombreros and had our picture taken, were waited on by at least 4 servers, and ordered our drinks and food. DH got a 40 ounce Sol beer which he had never had before, I had Coke. We ordered food, ate and sat finishing our drinks and watching the fun. Our bill ended up being only $24!!!!!!! I HIGHLY recommend Carlos and Charlie's for those visiting Cozumel. I had been there about 5 years ago and there were some noticeable changes. First, there is NO SMOKING ANYWHERE INSIDE! Also, the stage that was at the back of the bar is no longer there. I had done my fair share of dancing on that stage and was sad it was gone....but, it's still a fun place to go, have a drink and some lunch and enjoy!

 

After we left there we caught a cab back to the port and did some shopping in the port area. We were even able to dicker on some prices.

 

We had another great day, even tho we really hadn't done much. I wish we had been able to go to Paradise Beach, but it wasn't to be this time.

 

To be continued.......

[jbroons]

Everything you just said about the food, we experienced the very same thing. We decided after this last cruise on the Triumph that we would just skip the dinning rooms and eat all of our meals on the buffet. We liked the breakfasts, but the hamburgers were the best. Funny, so much to choose from but we ended up choosing hamburgers, french fries, and a hot dog with chilli most of the time. The room service was not that good. I couldn't get a HOT ham and cheese, and the dinning room just wasn't my style. I don't need a new fork everytime they bring a plate. Don't really care to be on display while I'm eating either.

I'm enjoying your review so far, keep it coming!

 

What do you mean by "be on display"....just curious.

[wrighka]

Carnival said they couldn't locate my information from 1994, so.......I just let it go.

 

ALCOHOL: First off, I'm not much of a drinker....can't do the hangovers anymore....That said, my first drink on the ship was the "Fun Ship Special". I didn't like it at first sip, it kinda tasted like baby aspirin?:confused: But I ended up finishing it off - Cost - $7.50!!! I didn't know I could keep the glass.

 

DH is strictly a beer drinker. He was hoping for Bud Lite Lime, but alas, he was to be denied. So he got his first beer, a Bud Lite - cost - $6 something! WOW! Drinks have gone up since the last time I cruised!! :eek:

DH figured in his pretty little head that he would be better off ordering "a bucket of beer" which was 4 beers for $24.00 This saved him a WHOPPING $2!!!!!!! I think he had 3 buckets before 7:30 that night. I think Mary drank one tho....didn't you drink one Mary????? Anyway, this was to be his drinking theme....buckets and buckets of beer! Ok, maybe I stretch the truth a bit...but it looked like a whole bunch of buckets to me! I also had a "Blue Margarita" at some point; don't remember the cost. You could get Corona, but they had to pour it in a glass for you, since the bottle was glass.

 

That's the alcohol report....nothing exciting.....I got my soda card for $24 I think......don't know really, haven't found my brain since I've been back....if anyone finds it will you return it to me please?????? :p