cousinIT
April 28th, 2004, 11:26 AM
Once again, Carnival exceeded our Expectations! http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif This was a GREAT vacation, and a much-needed one after having our basement flooded 36 hours prior to departure! http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_eek.gif This is a two part review, as it was too long for one post!
We flew from NYC LaGuardia on 4/15. Not my favorite airport, and we waited nearly 2 hours on the runway due to excessive are traffic. But that was by far the worst part of the trip. http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif Arrived in Orlando at about 10pm, got our rental car at Budget after collecting our luggage..pretty painless…and drove to our 2 night pre-stay at the Radisson at The Port in Cocoa Beach. Nice hotel. Received a complimentary upgrade to a suite (we had booked in Feb. online with Radisson for $89/night) which was very nice, except I forgot to request non-smoking and got a smoke stenched room…asked to be moved the next morning, but nothing was available, so road trip to Wal-Mart for Febreze…that worked! Spent Friday afternoon by the beautiful pool with the kids (2 boys 14 & 9) and had a relaxing blast just enjoying the warmth and the fact that we were on vacation as a family. http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_cool.gif Had dinner on the water front (can’t recall the name of the place but the hotel recommended it) but the food was great..fresh Mahi Mahi http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif, and my youngest son really enjoyed watching the pelicans wait for the fisherman to throw them some “tid bits” while they cleaned the fresh fish just brought off the charter boats in between things being brought to the table. Just hung in the room that night and rented a movie. The rest of our traveling party arrived that night (13 more) http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_eek.gif and we connected on Saturday morning for our shuttle to the pier…. NOTE: Radisson requires a reservation for the complimentary shuttle…we did this 3 weeks prior to arrival. We left at 11:30 for the pier, which is only 5 minutes away, and immediately were impressed by the size of Glory and her beauty as we got closer to her…… and then got stuck in traffic at the terminal. http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_mad.gif The terminal was packed with cars waiting to drop people off, but at that particular time only taxis and shuttles and busses have priority. Needless to say our shuttle was stuck and couldn’t maneuver around a car to drop us off, so the driver had a car move, and off we went. We deposited our luggage with the porter, tipped him as appropriate, and proceeded into the terminal. Port Canaveral is a very nice terminal, but you can’ get away from lines. But, the lines moved quickly and we were having our photo taken (yes as a HUGE group http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_eek.gif) and onto the ship by about 12:45. YIPPEE! http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif And let me tell you, Carnival outdid themselves with Glory. She is Beautiful! The décor is wonderful, subdued and pleasing. The Old Glory Lobby is very elegant with the hardwood floor, and grand piano (a player one to boot!) just waiting to be listened to.
We went right to our room, Spa Deck Cabin 1122. WONDERFUL cabins!! We had these last year on Destiny and it’s a great location, quiet, accessible, and roomy…these rooms have the pull down upper and floor to ceiling windows, with a sitting area with a table and chairs…VERY nice…the bathroom was much bigger than last year if that’s possible, with the body wash & shampoo dispenser right on the wall and ample room to adapt to our increasing size as a result of the GREAT food All week! http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_eek.gif LOTS of shelf space this year so there was plenty of room for our…”stuff”…and after fully checking out the room, we locked up the valuables in the safe, deposited our carry ons, changed into our bathing suits and made our way onto the Lido deck for our first “bucket of Beck’s” and rays of Carnival sun! http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif Met up with the last 4 members of our party, http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_eek.gif (that makes 22) and enjoyed ourselves till about 3:30…made our way back to get ready for the Muster drill, and to see us pull out of port. Our cabin steward came around and introduced himself and I have to say I liked him immediately, and he didn’t disappoint the whole week. He was by far THE best steward we have ever had. http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_cool.gif Jaime from Columbia, and he’s been with Carnival for 14 years. I mean this man went above and beyond, and we tipped him extra. An example of his quality, my youngest son wanted one of the conchs that a local had caught in Nassau, and when I picked it up for close inspection AFTER buying it, it STUNK to high heaven! http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_eek.gif I knew it needed bleaching. I explained this to Jaime on Sunday (I know I jumped here) and he took it back to his supply room on the other side of the floor, and soaked it and washed it till Thursday….and brought it back to the delight of my son in MUCH better condition. Let’s say, it’s still being cleaned now, but at least we didn’t stink up the plane on the way home..! Anyway, back to day 1, we Mustered, pulled out of port and went some place no doubt for a cocktail, and then back to the room to unpack and dress for dinner.
We had the 8:00 pm seating in the Platinum dining room, upper level tables 522 (6 adults) and 524 (6 kids), by the stern windows…we had requested by the window..what were we thinking?.IT WAS DARK OUT!! The rest of our group had a table for 10 not far away. Our waiter was Juan from Ecuador, a very nice man who has been with Carnival fro 18 years, and the kids’ waitress was Daniella from Slovenia (I think???). Juan was very nice, and enjoyed serving us MULTIPLE starters and entrees all week….we said he must go into the kitchen with a pig face mask commenting on us, because quite frankly, I WOULD! Actually, I would be surprised at that, because he was extremely polite and professional. I can’t say enough about Daniella…she made things VERY special for our kids, especially my youngest son who is shy when it comes to talking to people he doesn’t know. By the end of the week, she had ALL the kids laughing and talking to her. And whenever the “younger ones” ordered something like pizza or hamburgers for dinner, she came to our table to make sure it was OK with the parents. Kudos to Daniella! At the end we gave her some extra $$ and she was truly touched by this, as her eyes welled……the assistant for both tables ( I still don’t understand this team waiter bit) was Joseneil and he was very nice and funny. Our bar water was Octaviious ( “OT” ) from the Philippines, and he was a HOOT!
Dinner here EVERY night was an event to look forward to. EVERY selection was top notch, cold food cold, hot food hot…a testament to perfection. Just to name a few, the Prime Rib was like butter, the lobster tender and delicious, Escargot’s….well let’s just say that all 3 of mine (yes 3!) were great, Lamb, Long Island Breast of Duck, Coquille St. Jacques, Tiger shrimps, salads, all were out of this world…..and the desserts…..OH MY!
And the 8:00 PM seating was new to us, as we usually had done the earlier sittings. But this made dinner VERY relaxed from both OUR perspective, as well as the dining room staff...we didn't feel rushed at all...it was wonderful...only downfall was that by showtime we were exhausted with full bellies, and weren't hungry for the midnight buffett! http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_frown.gif So we only made 1 the whole trip...the Grand Buffett...but it was worth the wait! http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif
Our cruise director was Mark Price, and he was quite good. Having sailed with Corey Schmidt twice before kind of spoiled us, but Mark was VERY informative and quite funny, especially at the debarkation talk….it’s tough to make a sad situation, funny but he did a good job!
I have to state at this point, that the only negative…and that really isn’t the right word because it has to do with weather not Carnival, is that the first 36 hours of the cruise was VERY rough…I mean that ship was ROCKING! http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_eek.gif My wife left the dinner table the first night queasy before the salad, and wasn’t able to return, but due more to exhaustion given her working the prior 8 days straight and our flood, http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_eek.gif but several other members of our party, including my youngest son, were well tuned to the ships movement. http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif There was quite a stiff northeast wind blowing, seas were considered moderate at 6 – 10 feet, and add that to crossing the Gulf Stream and I think even an aircraft carrier would have rocked and rolled! So just be warned, that if you are sensitive to motion sickness, the first 2 days would be better if you take precautions like Bonine or Dramamine when sailing Eastern…can’t comment on Western…but would CERTAINLY love to some day!! http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif
Debarkation was lengthy, and contrary to what I heard on the cruisecritic board. We later heard reports that some guests didn't get off till after 1:00 and missed their flight. Mark was EXPLICIT in his instructions that you were not to leave the ship until your tag color AND deck were called. http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_mad.gif This was because if you left before being called, your luggage won’t be ready, and US Customs will not allow people to just “hang around” the area….I have to admit, there was a GREAT deal of security around the baggage claim area, to a point where our kids were asked NOT to sit on the ground while we gathered our luggage….so who knows what would have happened had we arrived prior to our being called. In any event, we were called at 8:15 just after breakfast, and off the ship by 9:30 and at the curb with our luggage waiting for the Budget shuttle to take ALL of us to get our rental cars…we had flights after 7:00 PM so we were going to Kennedy Space Center for the day. We opted to do this on our own, because the $79/person Carnival tour which included the transportation had you off the ship at 7:30 am, and at Orlando at 2:30…I don’t think so…kids sitting in an airport for 6 hours is not a good thing…anyway, be advised that Budget at least, only has vans to handle up to about 6 people max…with SOME luggage…and there aren’t a LOT of these shuttles to begin with. So we had to do it in 2. But we managed, and had kids sit on kids, and wives sit on husbands laps http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_eek.gif ..no freshness here…just being pragmatic! http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif One thing though people, we’re ALL in a hurry…we waited at the curb from 9:30 ro 10:15 in the hot sun for the Budget shuttle and one guy and his family walked off the ship with his stuff to where we were waiting, the shuttle pulled up, and he PUSHED his way using his kids mind you, to the shuttle and got on… http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_mad.gif..now we all have kids..we’ve all been there..but this guy was a jerk about it…and not for nothing, but all you have to do is ASK!
I’ll spare the details of the Space Center…suffice it to say it was great and we would love to do it again…personally the MAX pass wasn’t worth it, the Astronaut Museum has some interesting exhibits, but the simulators aren’t worth it. My kids didn’t want to do it…got to the airport at 5:45..flight was delayed 15 minutes but gave us more time to get to the gate…the airlines REALLY do have to get their stories straight though..we flew American, brought our luggage up to checkin, put it on the scale and the limit per bag is now 50 pounds/bag…well two bags were at 55 and 56 pounds..so here we are like trash, opening our dirty laundry bag taking stuff out, moving it to other STUFFED bags only to find out we had to do it again to another bag, just moving clothes from one bag to another…stupid….but we didn’t have to pay the $25 overage fee….at that point we just wanted to get HOME! Who cares who saw or SMELLED what!! http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif Terrible flight home… http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_frown.gif turbulence from North Carolina to Jersey…back to LaGuardia and what a mess at baggage claim…never again from LGA..never again on a 757…..give me JFK and the wide body planes!
Other miscellaneous details..don’t miss the fish & chips station in the second floor of the Red Sail, the fish and oysters are to die for. http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_cool.gif Sushi bar was wonderful, and they only had it 5pm – 8pm each night. Chocolate buffet was Friday afternoon noon to 2:30…THIS WAS GREAT! http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif Lots of different things to pick from. Grand Buffett was very good..not as much pomp and ceremony as in years past, but many different and new choices. The shows were fantastic especially Living in America! http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_cool.gif Rock down Broadway was OK, but the cast wasn’t all together. http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_rolleyes.gif Illusionist should have disappeared. http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_razz.gif Didn’t go to the comedy shows. Room service was great, but be advised they will only deliver 8 plates at a time…no folks we’re not pigs http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_eek.gif but we did have happy hour one night! And ALL of the things we ordered were wonderful..BLT’s, Shrimp Sandwich, Focccia, and don’t forget the pizza and Ceasar salads…the best! This staff and crew was VERY friendly and VERY happy…no soar pusses here. They all seemed to be happy with what they were doing.
Anyway, on to the stops and Fun Days at Sea! See you at Part II!
ciao
RCI Nordic Empress 8/91
Disney Wonder 6/00
Carnival Victory 4/01
Carnival Triumph 4/02
Carnival Destiny 4/03
Carnival Glory 4/04
We flew from NYC LaGuardia on 4/15. Not my favorite airport, and we waited nearly 2 hours on the runway due to excessive are traffic. But that was by far the worst part of the trip. http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif Arrived in Orlando at about 10pm, got our rental car at Budget after collecting our luggage..pretty painless…and drove to our 2 night pre-stay at the Radisson at The Port in Cocoa Beach. Nice hotel. Received a complimentary upgrade to a suite (we had booked in Feb. online with Radisson for $89/night) which was very nice, except I forgot to request non-smoking and got a smoke stenched room…asked to be moved the next morning, but nothing was available, so road trip to Wal-Mart for Febreze…that worked! Spent Friday afternoon by the beautiful pool with the kids (2 boys 14 & 9) and had a relaxing blast just enjoying the warmth and the fact that we were on vacation as a family. http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_cool.gif Had dinner on the water front (can’t recall the name of the place but the hotel recommended it) but the food was great..fresh Mahi Mahi http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif, and my youngest son really enjoyed watching the pelicans wait for the fisherman to throw them some “tid bits” while they cleaned the fresh fish just brought off the charter boats in between things being brought to the table. Just hung in the room that night and rented a movie. The rest of our traveling party arrived that night (13 more) http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_eek.gif and we connected on Saturday morning for our shuttle to the pier…. NOTE: Radisson requires a reservation for the complimentary shuttle…we did this 3 weeks prior to arrival. We left at 11:30 for the pier, which is only 5 minutes away, and immediately were impressed by the size of Glory and her beauty as we got closer to her…… and then got stuck in traffic at the terminal. http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_mad.gif The terminal was packed with cars waiting to drop people off, but at that particular time only taxis and shuttles and busses have priority. Needless to say our shuttle was stuck and couldn’t maneuver around a car to drop us off, so the driver had a car move, and off we went. We deposited our luggage with the porter, tipped him as appropriate, and proceeded into the terminal. Port Canaveral is a very nice terminal, but you can’ get away from lines. But, the lines moved quickly and we were having our photo taken (yes as a HUGE group http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_eek.gif) and onto the ship by about 12:45. YIPPEE! http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif And let me tell you, Carnival outdid themselves with Glory. She is Beautiful! The décor is wonderful, subdued and pleasing. The Old Glory Lobby is very elegant with the hardwood floor, and grand piano (a player one to boot!) just waiting to be listened to.
We went right to our room, Spa Deck Cabin 1122. WONDERFUL cabins!! We had these last year on Destiny and it’s a great location, quiet, accessible, and roomy…these rooms have the pull down upper and floor to ceiling windows, with a sitting area with a table and chairs…VERY nice…the bathroom was much bigger than last year if that’s possible, with the body wash & shampoo dispenser right on the wall and ample room to adapt to our increasing size as a result of the GREAT food All week! http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_eek.gif LOTS of shelf space this year so there was plenty of room for our…”stuff”…and after fully checking out the room, we locked up the valuables in the safe, deposited our carry ons, changed into our bathing suits and made our way onto the Lido deck for our first “bucket of Beck’s” and rays of Carnival sun! http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif Met up with the last 4 members of our party, http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_eek.gif (that makes 22) and enjoyed ourselves till about 3:30…made our way back to get ready for the Muster drill, and to see us pull out of port. Our cabin steward came around and introduced himself and I have to say I liked him immediately, and he didn’t disappoint the whole week. He was by far THE best steward we have ever had. http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_cool.gif Jaime from Columbia, and he’s been with Carnival for 14 years. I mean this man went above and beyond, and we tipped him extra. An example of his quality, my youngest son wanted one of the conchs that a local had caught in Nassau, and when I picked it up for close inspection AFTER buying it, it STUNK to high heaven! http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_eek.gif I knew it needed bleaching. I explained this to Jaime on Sunday (I know I jumped here) and he took it back to his supply room on the other side of the floor, and soaked it and washed it till Thursday….and brought it back to the delight of my son in MUCH better condition. Let’s say, it’s still being cleaned now, but at least we didn’t stink up the plane on the way home..! Anyway, back to day 1, we Mustered, pulled out of port and went some place no doubt for a cocktail, and then back to the room to unpack and dress for dinner.
We had the 8:00 pm seating in the Platinum dining room, upper level tables 522 (6 adults) and 524 (6 kids), by the stern windows…we had requested by the window..what were we thinking?.IT WAS DARK OUT!! The rest of our group had a table for 10 not far away. Our waiter was Juan from Ecuador, a very nice man who has been with Carnival fro 18 years, and the kids’ waitress was Daniella from Slovenia (I think???). Juan was very nice, and enjoyed serving us MULTIPLE starters and entrees all week….we said he must go into the kitchen with a pig face mask commenting on us, because quite frankly, I WOULD! Actually, I would be surprised at that, because he was extremely polite and professional. I can’t say enough about Daniella…she made things VERY special for our kids, especially my youngest son who is shy when it comes to talking to people he doesn’t know. By the end of the week, she had ALL the kids laughing and talking to her. And whenever the “younger ones” ordered something like pizza or hamburgers for dinner, she came to our table to make sure it was OK with the parents. Kudos to Daniella! At the end we gave her some extra $$ and she was truly touched by this, as her eyes welled……the assistant for both tables ( I still don’t understand this team waiter bit) was Joseneil and he was very nice and funny. Our bar water was Octaviious ( “OT” ) from the Philippines, and he was a HOOT!
Dinner here EVERY night was an event to look forward to. EVERY selection was top notch, cold food cold, hot food hot…a testament to perfection. Just to name a few, the Prime Rib was like butter, the lobster tender and delicious, Escargot’s….well let’s just say that all 3 of mine (yes 3!) were great, Lamb, Long Island Breast of Duck, Coquille St. Jacques, Tiger shrimps, salads, all were out of this world…..and the desserts…..OH MY!
And the 8:00 PM seating was new to us, as we usually had done the earlier sittings. But this made dinner VERY relaxed from both OUR perspective, as well as the dining room staff...we didn't feel rushed at all...it was wonderful...only downfall was that by showtime we were exhausted with full bellies, and weren't hungry for the midnight buffett! http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_frown.gif So we only made 1 the whole trip...the Grand Buffett...but it was worth the wait! http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif
Our cruise director was Mark Price, and he was quite good. Having sailed with Corey Schmidt twice before kind of spoiled us, but Mark was VERY informative and quite funny, especially at the debarkation talk….it’s tough to make a sad situation, funny but he did a good job!
I have to state at this point, that the only negative…and that really isn’t the right word because it has to do with weather not Carnival, is that the first 36 hours of the cruise was VERY rough…I mean that ship was ROCKING! http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_eek.gif My wife left the dinner table the first night queasy before the salad, and wasn’t able to return, but due more to exhaustion given her working the prior 8 days straight and our flood, http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_eek.gif but several other members of our party, including my youngest son, were well tuned to the ships movement. http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif There was quite a stiff northeast wind blowing, seas were considered moderate at 6 – 10 feet, and add that to crossing the Gulf Stream and I think even an aircraft carrier would have rocked and rolled! So just be warned, that if you are sensitive to motion sickness, the first 2 days would be better if you take precautions like Bonine or Dramamine when sailing Eastern…can’t comment on Western…but would CERTAINLY love to some day!! http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif
Debarkation was lengthy, and contrary to what I heard on the cruisecritic board. We later heard reports that some guests didn't get off till after 1:00 and missed their flight. Mark was EXPLICIT in his instructions that you were not to leave the ship until your tag color AND deck were called. http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_mad.gif This was because if you left before being called, your luggage won’t be ready, and US Customs will not allow people to just “hang around” the area….I have to admit, there was a GREAT deal of security around the baggage claim area, to a point where our kids were asked NOT to sit on the ground while we gathered our luggage….so who knows what would have happened had we arrived prior to our being called. In any event, we were called at 8:15 just after breakfast, and off the ship by 9:30 and at the curb with our luggage waiting for the Budget shuttle to take ALL of us to get our rental cars…we had flights after 7:00 PM so we were going to Kennedy Space Center for the day. We opted to do this on our own, because the $79/person Carnival tour which included the transportation had you off the ship at 7:30 am, and at Orlando at 2:30…I don’t think so…kids sitting in an airport for 6 hours is not a good thing…anyway, be advised that Budget at least, only has vans to handle up to about 6 people max…with SOME luggage…and there aren’t a LOT of these shuttles to begin with. So we had to do it in 2. But we managed, and had kids sit on kids, and wives sit on husbands laps http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_eek.gif ..no freshness here…just being pragmatic! http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif One thing though people, we’re ALL in a hurry…we waited at the curb from 9:30 ro 10:15 in the hot sun for the Budget shuttle and one guy and his family walked off the ship with his stuff to where we were waiting, the shuttle pulled up, and he PUSHED his way using his kids mind you, to the shuttle and got on… http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_mad.gif..now we all have kids..we’ve all been there..but this guy was a jerk about it…and not for nothing, but all you have to do is ASK!
I’ll spare the details of the Space Center…suffice it to say it was great and we would love to do it again…personally the MAX pass wasn’t worth it, the Astronaut Museum has some interesting exhibits, but the simulators aren’t worth it. My kids didn’t want to do it…got to the airport at 5:45..flight was delayed 15 minutes but gave us more time to get to the gate…the airlines REALLY do have to get their stories straight though..we flew American, brought our luggage up to checkin, put it on the scale and the limit per bag is now 50 pounds/bag…well two bags were at 55 and 56 pounds..so here we are like trash, opening our dirty laundry bag taking stuff out, moving it to other STUFFED bags only to find out we had to do it again to another bag, just moving clothes from one bag to another…stupid….but we didn’t have to pay the $25 overage fee….at that point we just wanted to get HOME! Who cares who saw or SMELLED what!! http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif Terrible flight home… http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_frown.gif turbulence from North Carolina to Jersey…back to LaGuardia and what a mess at baggage claim…never again from LGA..never again on a 757…..give me JFK and the wide body planes!
Other miscellaneous details..don’t miss the fish & chips station in the second floor of the Red Sail, the fish and oysters are to die for. http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_cool.gif Sushi bar was wonderful, and they only had it 5pm – 8pm each night. Chocolate buffet was Friday afternoon noon to 2:30…THIS WAS GREAT! http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif Lots of different things to pick from. Grand Buffett was very good..not as much pomp and ceremony as in years past, but many different and new choices. The shows were fantastic especially Living in America! http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_cool.gif Rock down Broadway was OK, but the cast wasn’t all together. http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_rolleyes.gif Illusionist should have disappeared. http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_razz.gif Didn’t go to the comedy shows. Room service was great, but be advised they will only deliver 8 plates at a time…no folks we’re not pigs http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_eek.gif but we did have happy hour one night! And ALL of the things we ordered were wonderful..BLT’s, Shrimp Sandwich, Focccia, and don’t forget the pizza and Ceasar salads…the best! This staff and crew was VERY friendly and VERY happy…no soar pusses here. They all seemed to be happy with what they were doing.
Anyway, on to the stops and Fun Days at Sea! See you at Part II!
ciao
RCI Nordic Empress 8/91
Disney Wonder 6/00
Carnival Victory 4/01
Carnival Triumph 4/02
Carnival Destiny 4/03
Carnival Glory 4/04