Splendar- Mexico- April week diary

Will add more, once I am home. Will correct spelling, then, also. Sorry.

Getting there:

Flew into LAX then Super Shuttle to Long Beach to check into Best Western. $35 for two people to hotel. Best Western offers shuttle to port for free or for fee, depending upon method you use to book room. We booked at discount, so we paid $10 per person for shuttle to Carnival ship. Full fare, or AAA get free shuttle.

Boarding:

Fast and efficient.

Overall appearance and dining reservations:

The pink ship isn’t as bad as I thought. Yes, it has pink colorations, but not all that bad. We had 777 for anytime dining, which we had to wait in a long line to change to early assigned dining. We were assigned our table the second day. The gym is very large, but is reduced by 75% due to hot tub enclosure. Guest Services line very long, as we wanted our room key hole punched. Went later. Mob of people everywhere, try to not be in a hurry or notice, was really bad. Very loud, it seems, everywhere we walked. Library very small. Bring your own books and games if you plan to do either. Selection of games and books next to nothing. Card games were available after the third day, by asking Guest Services. Your folio review (money you have available/spent) info is available on kioskis throughout the ship, but easier to use in your room via their interactive TV. The dining menu on your TV is wrong, and never changes. There are lots of elevators, but be quick, as they seem to close before you can get to them. Dining, any location is very crowded by both people as well as furniture (assigned dining was the worst, very limited spaces and I can’t imagine how a wheelchair would be managed). If you are very tall, watch your clearance in several areas. I saw they removed some lighting features due to low clearance. Watch the stairs, all steps have a metal ledge. This was a tough cruise to start, as we were comparing to other cruise lines. Decided to shut up about the differences.

Food:

Main dining, Black Pearl/Golden Perold were at best ok. Very bland or very salty for the most part. Normal service is 2 hours. Breakfast omelets very good. The last dinner was good, to very good. Prime Rib or… Guess they want to be sure to give you the best last day experience. Quantities of food, too much, most of the time. I hate to waste food, but most times I either couldn’t eat it, or there was just too much. I would rate the Indian food station outside at the end of the ship deck 9 (Tandoor) as excellent. I would rate the deli hot sandwiches, the same, excellent. Try the corned beef and pastrami, I highly recommend it. The Mongolian Wok was also excellent, but don’t do it the first day, as the lines are long and it takes time to get to the front. The hot spicy sauce is very good. I heard some people say it is salty, but I think that might be because they had two sauces added to their cooking mixture. The pizza stand was very good, providing freshly ordered variety of foods. The burrito bar, I didn’t particularly like. Coldish, and the shrimp wasn’t cooked. Huge portions. Popcorn every night, free, after 8pm in the outside movie area. Don’t ask for a whole grapefruit, they won’t provide it. Only ones that are cut in half. Don’t ask for a side of vegetables, as they will say yes, then not bring it. Stick to the menu, only. Sushi was very good, and fresh. California Rolls, seem to only be available on Fridays. Formal Night on this ship is called Elegant Night. Thus, the requirement of dressing up is not as rigid. Actually nice, if you don’t like to dress up too much. The meal didn’t seem anymore special on these elegant nights. The dinner menu shown on your TV is wrong, just so you know. It never changes. They also have the standard hamburger, hot dogs, which I didn’t try. People seemed to like them though.

Entertainment:

Husband and several people we talked to, really enjoyed the shows in the showroom. I don’t do much after dinner, as I prefer watching TV. TV has (3) free channels of movies that recycle every few hours. Each day the selection changes. One day it was Mr. Popper, Planet of the Apes and kids something. TV channels are coming from Florida, thus what you normally watch is on their time. We are from Nevada, so we watched things 3 hours early. The have ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, Fox, TNT and other channels, off air. Also, they offer Video On Demand movies for $10.99 each. Their adult VOD is $14.99. You can request events to be added to your newsletter, if you want to organize a bridge game, etc. Just find a cruise member or two to request it. We did.

TV:

Regular TV, use the channel up or down key.

Menu key for interactive services.

Menu-

Messages

Movies

Parental Control

Shore Excursions

Onboard Fun

General Info

Room Services

Wine Ordering

Sail & Sign Review

Dining Menu

Movies $10.99 selection:

A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas, Albert Nobbs, All Things Fall Apart, Anonymous, Beneath The Darkness, Blackthorn, Born To Be Wild (2011), Contraband, Dirty Girl, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close, Fireflies in the Garden, Fright Night (2011), Happy Feet 2, Happy Happy/ Skykt Lykkelig (ST), Have A Little Faith, I Melt with You, In The Land of Blood and Honey, J. Edgar, Jack and Jill, Jonny English Reborn, Joyful Noise, Like Crazy, London Bouldevard, Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol, New Years Eve, Pariah, Project Nim, Resurrect Dead: The Mystery of the.., Sherlock Holmes 2: Game of Shadows, The Adventure of TinTin, The Artist, The Darkest Hour, The Girl with a Dragon Tattoo, The Ides of March, The Immortals, The Muppets (2011), The Other F Word, The Rum Diaries, The Scorpin King 3, The 3 Musketeers (2011), The Twilight Saga- Breaking Dawn, Tinker Tinker Soldier Spy, Tower Heist, War Horse, Young Adult

Adult PPV is $12.99 with 5 titles.

There was two radio channels, that can be used for white noise… helpful if you have trouble sleeping. We use the bathroom light, with the door closed, as well as outside lighting for night light. NO time clock in room. If you like, bring your own. The phone has a LED type display over on desk. Bring a watch, finding a clock on board, kinda difficult.

Faculties:

YES, they have self-service laundry. Port days 7am-10pm. Sea days 8am-10pm. Last wash is 9:30pm and doors locked at 10:30pm.

Muster:

Was performed the first day, before we left port. We all stood outside on the deck, below huge fans. We could not hear anything being said. Those around us, also couldn’t hear. Didn’t need to bring life vests though. Check out the adults only areas, they are pretty nice. Pool or lounging for when you want it quieter. Bring comfortable shoes that do well on tile. Ton’s of tile on this ship. Didn’t seem slippery, but with a spilled drink all bets are off. The crew seemed to always be cleaning. Didn’t see much trash, even with the number of people and kids that were on board. The spa service prices drop a lot after the 4th day and even more on the last full day on your cruise. Hold out, or go ashore.

Ports:

Cabo San Lucas, the ship had several recommendations for tours. The Arc & Lovers Beach Snorkel – 3 hours $69.99. The 4 X 4 Desert Safari is 3.5 hours, to see Baja Culture is $99.99 each. Very fast tender at Cabo. Large local ships, transport you. Massages were only $20 for 60 minutes. Easy to find. We were in Cabo two days, and received two massages. Ship moves out to sea over night, then returns in the morning. Security in Cabo wasn’t a problem for us, as we stayed within the port area. Puerta Viarda you walk off the ship. No much at port to see. Massages were more expensive, thus didn’t do the third one. Internet pretty cheap if you need to do that. There was a medical emergency on our return to Long Beach, so the ship did a fast stop, again, at Cabo.

Rooms/Cabins:

Cabins available after 2pm. We booked a inside cabin. Very good storage cabinets, shelves and desk drawers. Has flat screen TV (not HD), plenty of walking space if you have your bed divided to twins. We stored our luggage under the beds, which worked out very well. Has large desk with 4 drawers. Also chair, padded, and ottoman. Has small oval table also. Room Service A+. We bought our own wine and when we ordered the glasses, they asked us if we wanted red or white glasses. Stateroom bathrooms, watch your step. You step up about 4 inches to go in. Curtain for shower. Layout inside excellent, with shelves for your needs. The electrical outlet, look above the mirror on the right side. We didn’t see it until we were packing to leave. Also a outlet above the desk. NO DVD player in the room. Some cruise lines do have it. Beds very comfortable, with duvet and two thick pillows. Plenty of mirrors throughout room. Yes, they have towel animals. Cabin steward actually threw my clothes on the floor, so he could put the towel animal on the small oval table. Ugh. So, that night I put his towel animal on the floor. The next day, he put it on the ottoman. I guess he got the point. The last night of the cruise, I was talking a shower before going to bed. This same stewart, apparently knocked on the door and came in (or at least his head). When I turned the shower off, I heard talking (I left the TV on, and the bathroom door open). Seemed strange as the conversation had a direction….to me. I actually talked to him, while naked in the shower, telling him to leave the booze we bought on board outside. He told me no, someone would take it, that he would leave it in the room. This guy, wasn’t getting a tip from us. He was good about knocking on the door, until we would leave so he could clean it. Hint: Leave the SNOOZING sign on your door, if you want left alone. Temp and water pressure, never a problem in our room. NO hand lotion, bring your own. Keep your money, etc., locked up in your safe. I heard someone did get their purse taken on board. Temperature control in your room you can control, but you have no idea what the temp is. The gauge is simply red or blues…

Smoking:

Prohibited in all guest staterooms. Balcony cabins ok to smoke on balcony. Ok to smoke on open deck starboard right side of ship. Casino ok to smoke while playing (you will get blasted with the smell when you walk by). All Spa staterooms and suites NO smoking including balconies.

FREE Drinks:

For those that have cruised on Carnival 2 or more times, are invited to an event with horsedrives and drinks. Decent selection of pre-made drinks. Of course you can order a drink and pay…

Gratuity:

Here is the information provided to our cabin on the 2nd day of the cruise.

Stateroom service is $3.70 per day per person

Dining room is $5.80 per day per person

Alt. (no details) is $2.00 per day per person

There was 4450 people on board, I would assume some were crew.

Comment Card:

Waiting for it, was told it would be mailed/emailed to us.

"Beauty Massage" in Cabos:

Emiliano Zapata St. (next to Salvatores Restaurant)

Hotel Wyndham (behind the money exchange)

Hotel Wyndham (behind the right joint restaurant)

Boulevard Marina (behind Cabo Blue Bar)

(624) 128-11-64

Valet Services, cleaning:

Bras $2.00

Format Shirts/Blouses $5.00

Polo shirts/tee shirts $2.00

Socks $2.00

Pants $5.00

Buying beach towel, bathrobe $65

Buying Beach towel, towel book $32

Buying Towel book and bathrobe $58

Couples package: 2 robes, 2 beach towels, and towel book $127

Future Carnival Vacations:

If you book your next cruise, onboard, you'll get up to $200 in on board credits, plus two vouchers for your family. Not ready to book yet, but sill want in on the deal, it's ok.

Hours:

Fitness Center 6am-8pm deck 11 forward

The Coffee Shop 7am-12am, deck 5 mid

Pools & whirlpools 8am-11:45pm deck 9,10,11

Cloud 9 spa 8am-10pm, deck 11 forward

Casino Slots 7am until late, deck 5 mid. NOT OPEN when at ports.

The Fun Shops 9am-11:30pm deck 5 forward

Carnival Twister Slide 9am-5pm, deck 12 forward

Formalities (buying nice things) 9am-10:30pm deck 5 forward

Library 9:30am-10:30am deck 4 forward

Loyalty & Cruise desk 12pm-8pm deck 5 mid.

Shore Excursions 12pm-1:30pm deck 3 forward

Photo Gallery 10am-11pm deck 4 forward

Spray Park 10am-5pm deck 11 mid.

Airbrush Artist 10am-6pm, deck 9 mid.

Internet on board:

24 hours a day

Don't forget to log out LOGOUT.COM type this in your browers address bar

480 minutes $159

240 minutes $89

120 minutes $59

45 minutes $29

or pay as you go for .75 cents a minute. A one-time activation fee for all users. Once your minutes are exceeded, you are then charged per minute. Wireless access available throughout ship, or use the WEB room computers. Can't send a email? but can receive? You may need to change the mail client users outgoing SMTP to 172.31.0.2. All this info is available in the WEB room.

7 day Mexican Rivieria April 22-29, 2012

Long Beach, CA. depart 4:30pm

Fun Day At sea

Cabo San Lucas, Mexico 9:30am- 6pm

Cabo San Lucas, Mexico 7am-4pm

Puerto Vallarta, Mexico 9am-9pm

at sea

at sea

Long Beach, CA.

Thank you for the review. We will be sailing on her in July and daughter wants to do massages in Cabo. What was the name of where you had them done? Did you eat in port anywhere? Any advice for things to do in PV?

I was wondering if you knew what some of the names of authors were in the library? Did they have, James Patterson, John Grisham etc etc??

Cabo, the name is posted on the second post along with addresses and even phone number.

The library was only open about one hour a day. There were maybe 50 books total in the locked cabinets. Bring your own books, as what I saw wasn't much of a selection.

If you drink, I think this is a good cruise. If you are young, also. I heard one lady got drunk out of her mind, ran a little bit in a part of the ship without clothes. I didn't go out of my cabin after 9pm. Husband did the shows and he really liked them.

If I do this cruise again, on this ship, I will consider bringing seasoning... yes, it was that bad.

Thanks for taking the time to write your review!:)

My DH and I where also on this cruise. We had no problems with the MDR menus on the interactive TV in our room. It updated daily. We checked it every afternoon to determine if we wanted to do the dining room =} it also had the breakfast and steakhouse menus.

Thank you for the review. We will be sailing on her in July and daughter wants to do massages in Cabo. What was the name of where you had them done? Did you eat in port anywhere? Any advice for things to do in PV?

We almost never eat off the ship, unless we are doing a tour that includes it. Be sure to watch out for UNSEALED water bottles, and ICE CUBES. It is common practice at some places to reuse water bottles... or so I have heard. If someone serves you with the water bottle open, tell them you don't want it opened, you will do it yourself.

 

Cabins available after 2pm. We booked a inside cabin. Very good storage cabinets, shelves and desk drawers. Has flat screen TV (not HD), plenty of walking space if you have your bed divided to twins.

Great detail on the review, thanks...the tv you describe above ...is it an LCD(thin) or Tube(big) flat screen ?

Thanks in advance

We almost never eat off the ship, unless we are doing a tour that includes it. Be sure to watch out for UNSEALED water bottles, and ICE CUBES. It is common practice at some places to reuse water bottles... or so I have heard. If someone serves you with the water bottle open, tell them you don't want it opened, you will do it yourself.

Not sure where you have heard this but I have been to Cabo so many times I have lost track. I have nvever once received an a;ready opened bottle of water and purchase this a lot. So I wouldn't worry about it but it is always good to be caustious.

Great detail on the review, thanks...the tv you describe above ...is it an LCD(thin) or Tube(big) flat screen ?

 

Thanks in advance

thin and rather small. fits well in the room, and you can't adjust the angle. Angle is good for twins as well as seeing from the desk. <Smile> can't see from bathroom (could on one of the other ships we were on).

I noticed all the pictures (2) in the room are also fixed. Rather nice, as it can get bumping on the ship and don't want to see it up close in the middle of the night.

Not sure where you have heard this but I have been to Cabo so many times I have lost track. I have nvever once received an a;ready opened bottle of water and purchase this a lot. So I wouldn't worry about it but it is always good to be caustious.

Never experienced it personally, but thought it was worth mentioning. I heard it a few times during story telling on the ship, this time though. Never got sick in Mexico, yet, (knocking on wood....to keep my luck)

My DH and I where also on this cruise. We had no problems with the MDR menus on the interactive TV in our room. It updated daily. We checked it every afternoon to determine if we wanted to do the dining room =} it also had the breakfast and steakhouse menus.

I checked the screen three times, over the course of the cruise, and it was never updated. Ummmm... the system should all be connected, so don't know how what I saw was different from what you saw.

I checked the screen three times, over the course of the cruise, and it was never updated. Ummmm... the system should all be connected, so don't know how what I saw was different from what you saw.

That's really odd. The couple we sat with at dinner was also able to view it. You would think it would be all the same. Ours definitely changed at midnight every night.

Sent from my Kindle Fire using Tapatalk 2

Thank you for the review. We will be sailing on her in July and daughter wants to do massages in Cabo. What was the name of where you had them done? Did you eat in port anywhere? Any advice for things to do in PV?

Ton's of things to do. I already threw out the brochure with all the things to do. Sorry. When I typed this all up, I had just checked in the hotel for the night, and wanted to get the review out of the way, so when I got home the next day I could concentrate on other things. I think if you go to Carnival website and check, it should have shore excursions info there.

The reviews I write are so I can remember the trip and cruise, in case I want to do it again next year. Splendar we will be on for 48 days next year, so I am preparing myself for it. Seemed limited info on the ship itself, online. We couldn't find out if it had self service laundry for one thing. If you check the floor plan, it might be there, but we didn't see it. Was told it is on deck 2 and one other deck. Could be others. Also, was told on the longer cruises, that the on board services, food etc., will most likely change. The crew, I was told was hand picked for the S. America cruise, not just anybody that is currently on the ship as crew. I was told there will be organized Bridge and other events for the long days at sea.

I checked the screen three times, over the course of the cruise, and it was never updated. Ummmm... the system should all be connected, so don't know how what I saw was different from what you saw.

Same cruise, had no problems with the menus updating daily on the TV. Occasionally there was something slightly different, but mostly it was accurate.

I was wondering if you knew what some of the names of authors were in the library? Did they have, James Patterson, John Grisham etc etc??

Go to your local library and check out the books you want to bring. Selection on ship and access is very limited.

Cabo, the name is posted on the second post along with addresses and even phone number.

 

The library was only open about one hour a day. There were maybe 50 books total in the locked cabinets. Bring your own books, as what I saw wasn't much of a selection.

 

If you drink, I think this is a good cruise. If you are young, also. I heard one lady got drunk out of her mind, ran a little bit in a part of the ship without clothes. I didn't go out of my cabin after 9pm. Husband did the shows and he really liked them.

 

If I do this cruise again, on this ship, I will consider bringing seasoning... yes, it was that bad.

Please don't review things you "heard", only things you actually did or saw yourself. That's how inaccurate rumors are spread.

Please don't review things you "heard", only things you actually did or saw yourself. That's how inaccurate rumors are spread.

What? have you just decided to make a new CC rule that you think people writing a review should abide by?

Plenty of reviews have "I heard" in them and plenty have been confirmed.

Den

 

Splendar we will be on for 48 days next year, so I am preparing myself for it. Seemed limited info on the ship itself, online. We couldn't find out if it had self service laundry for one thing. If you check the floor plan, it might be there, but we didn't see it. Was told it is on deck 2 and one other deck. Could be others.

Hi Linda,

Here are the self service laundry facility locations on the Splendor for your next voyage..

Riviera Deck 1: Across from stateroom: 1425

Main Deck 2: Across from stateroom: 2367

Upper Deck 6: Across from stateroom: 6391

Empress Deck 7: Across from stateroom: 7339

Verandah Deck 8: Across from stateroom: 8381

Lido Deck 9: Across from stateroom: 9270

What? have you just decided to make a new CC rule that you think people writing a review should abide by?

 

Plenty of reviews have "I heard" in them and plenty have been confirmed.

 

 

Den

Sorry, it seems common sense would tell you that a "review" of a cruise would be your feelings about the ship, destinations, etc. Not that you "heard" someone was running around the ship naked after too much drinking. I was on the same cruise, out of my cabin MUCH later than 9:00 p.m., and never saw or "heard" about someone running around the ship naked. Again, post the facts as you see them, and let others make up their own minds on the cruise. We had a great time on this same cruise, and I will be posting a lengthy review soon.

Sorry, it seems common sense would tell you that a "review" of a cruise would be your feelings about the ship, destinations, etc. Not that you "heard" someone was running around the ship naked after too much drinking. I was on the same cruise, out of my cabin MUCH later than 9:00 p.m., and never saw or "heard" about someone running around the ship naked. Again, post the facts as you see them, and let others make up their own minds on the cruise. We had a great time on this same cruise, and I will be posting a lengthy review soon.

Maybe just read the bits you want to read and allow the poster to say as they please,then write your review to your own standards.

Den

Self laundry is available also on lido deck port side.

Does anybody know what time you put in to P.V.? looking to do a zip line? Ned to know ship time and P.V. time? thank you all.

"Beauty Massage" in Cabos:

Emiliano Zapata St. (next to Salvatores Restaurant)

Hotel Wyndham (behind the money exchange)

Hotel Wyndham (behind the right joint restaurant)

Boulevard Marina (behind Cabo Blue Bar)

(624) 128-11-64

 

Valet Services, cleaning:

Bras $2.00

Format Shirts/Blouses $5.00

Polo shirts/tee shirts $2.00

Socks $2.00

Pants $5.00

 

Buying beach towel, bathrobe $65

Buying Beach towel, towel book $32

Buying Towel book and bathrobe $58

Couples package: 2 robes, 2 beach towels, and towel book $127

 

Future Carnival Vacations:

If you book your next cruise, onboard, you'll get up to $200 in on board credits, plus two vouchers for your family. Not ready to book yet, but sill want in on the deal, it's ok.

 

Hours:

Fitness Center 6am-8pm deck 11 forward

The Coffee Shop 7am-12am, deck 5 mid

Pools & whirlpools 8am-11:45pm deck 9,10,11

Cloud 9 spa 8am-10pm, deck 11 forward

Casino Slots 7am until late, deck 5 mid. NOT OPEN when at ports.

The Fun Shops 9am-11:30pm deck 5 forward

Carnival Twister Slide 9am-5pm, deck 12 forward

Formalities (buying nice things) 9am-10:30pm deck 5 forward

Library 9:30am-10:30am deck 4 forward

Loyalty & Cruise desk 12pm-8pm deck 5 mid.

Shore Excursions 12pm-1:30pm deck 3 forward

Photo Gallery 10am-11pm deck 4 forward

Spray Park 10am-5pm deck 11 mid.

Airbrush Artist 10am-6pm, deck 9 mid.

 

Internet on board:

24 hours a day

Don't forget to log out LOGOUT.COM type this in your browers address bar

480 minutes $159

240 minutes $89

120 minutes $59

45 minutes $29

or pay as you go for .75 cents a minute. A one-time activation fee for all users. Once your minutes are exceeded, you are then charged per minute. Wireless access available throughout ship, or use the WEB room computers. Can't send a email? but can receive? You may need to change the mail client users outgoing SMTP to 172.31.0.2. All this info is available in the WEB room.

 

7 day Mexican Rivieria April 22-29, 2012

Long Beach, CA. depart 4:30pm

Fun Day At sea

Cabo San Lucas, Mexico 9:30am- 6pm

Cabo San Lucas, Mexico 7am-4pm

Puerto Vallarta, Mexico 9am-9pm

at sea

at sea

Long Beach, CA.

Can you tell me the name of the massage place can't find it on the internet?