Loyal Royal tries Carnival Valor

[megnsamsgracie]

I was soo looking foward to this cruise, something new for us
I am not sure how to put pics in each thing so I uploaded them all to flickr. I have food and menu pics..I did miss some nights, just forgot! But there are a bunch there!

Day 1:
Up at 5:30 we had a 7:35 flight out the day before our cruise. I treated DH to a 3 hr limo ride as a surprise. Booked a regular 10 passenger limo and when I was called for pick up, the driver told me to look for a Cadillac Escalade limo... what a nice treat! We ran to the store for some last minute items (booze) and then had him show us around for the rest of the time. It was a great treat for both of us! I had booked the Hilton Downtown Miami for $69.95 for a king bayview room and this did NOT disappoint! GORGEOUS view of the ships in port (2 Carnival, 1 RCI). Very nice hotel but not much around. We cabbed it to Bayside for dinner and DH hated it. He is a country boy at heart so downtown Miami is out of his comfort zone! He loved the view from the hotel but not sure he would want to stay again in November when we are with the kids. I am thinking he would like Coral Gables better. But a nice day to relax as both of us had less than 5 hrs of sleep the previous 2 nights. I am so excited for tomorrow, our first Carnival cruise!


Here is my link to my flickr pics http://www.flickr.com/photos/40868656@N03/

[Megnolia]

Looking forward to the rest of your review!

[megnsamsgracie]

Day 2:
We were up early and got to see the ship pull into port, that was nice to see! We got a cab around 10:30 and ran into Walgreens for last minute items. Cab to Walgreens and then to the pier was $14.90. We were at the port by 10:45 and no wait to get upstairs. I had 2 bottles of wine in my carry on and wasnt even asked to show it! I learned for next time to grab the Zone ticket! There was no one (that we saw) handing them out and we went straight up to the counter, no wait. She asked about my Zone # and I said we didnt get one (I thought we got it from the person at the counter). We got Zone 15 and was told boarding would begin around noon. I was not too happy to see others check in like 15-20minutes AFTER us get Zone 15 too. But whatever, live and learn. There were still a LOT of people coming off the ship at 11am.. not sure if this is why the late boarding. Boarding began by 12 and went pretty quick. No real lines. We were on the ship having lunch by 12:30. I am glad we got there early as we had a relaxing seat instead of the horrible lines at noonish! First impressions of the ship were nice, we liked the Americana theme. I headed for the fish and chips (fried oysters) and DH went for his salad. We liked the layout of the buffet better on Carnival than on RCI. The lines were not as bad as we encountered in the past. Food was just as good if not better than RCI. I liked the different stations that RCI doesnt have. After lunch we wandered the ship to get a feel for the layout. I do like the layout of the center Promenade on most RCI ships... straight in one line. But its not a make or break for us. We took a quick nap before muster. For dinner, we had late seating in Washington, deck 3. Table for 4 with a nice couple. Dinner was good, DH complained that he missed the awesome ceasar salad that RCI does but dinner did not disappoint... hated the cappucino though! The show was awesome tonight! Quick couple of songs, Big Tex was a pretty good CD but we LOVED the comedian Al. He was a riot. DH went walking for his nightly walk and I hit up the casino... up $40 so far! Up tomorrow a nice relaxing sea day! Oh yeah, and for those wondering, our 12pk of beer and cosmo drinks ended up just fine coming to our room! Our room steward even cleared out the fridge and put some in there and put more ice into our small cooler of beer And the ship does stay on ship time the whole time.

[trini_ras]

Great review, keep it coming

[MrPete]

Looking forward to the rest!

[BlushableAngel]

Hi there:

It seems we were on the same trip. I did a review as well under the review section. I received a note back from Cruise Critic that it would be reviewed by them before it is posted.

I had a fantastic time and wish I was still on the ship!

[cjkumbaya]

Really nice review so far - thanks for sharing. Looking forward to more!

[megnsamsgracie]

Day 3 Day at Sea:
We did breakfast in the dining room and it was delicious, DH said the omelet was small but I told him then he could have ordered another! Off we went to some trivia (Win Lose or Draw,Super Trivia, Twisted Scattergories). They were fun! We didnt win but they were still fun. Lunch was in the dining room and again, great! We did ribs and a chicken cesar salad. We went up to work out for awhile (Packed at 3:30pm??). We tanned up on deck. Lots of chair hogs on the sea day at all pools so we just went up top, plenty of chairs there. Tonight was formal (aka cruise elegant) and there was a WIDE spectrum from tuxes and full gowns to khakis and sundresses. We did lots of pictures which I found the choices of backgrounds better than RCI. There were MANY to choose from. We had about 15 minutes before dinner so we went into the aft lounge and listened to some jazz music. Dinner was great (lobster is BIGGER than RCI) and the wait staff sang Thats Amore to us. After dinner we ran to get changed quickly and went to get a seat in the theater for the singers and dancers show. Show as Nightclub Express and boy, you could see the dancers enjoyed their job. The smiles were great and they really got the crowd into it. Great performance. After the show we ran to the aft lounge to catch the comedian Al Ernst in his "adult" show. He was HILARIOUS! Finally crashed around 1am knowing Grand Cayman was an early port!


And I just added the last of my pics... more food and more of the ship AND Cozumel

[megnsamsgracie]

Day 4 Grand Cayman:
I had been wanting to do this port since we got hooked on cruising (only 2 years I have really wanted to swim with the stingrays. I booked with Captain Marvins for only $35 for the stingray/coral gardens tour. I heard that most of the ships tours are early so the sandbar is packed. I opted for the 11:15 getting in at 1:30. I THOUGHT that was ship time, nope local time. We got up early, had a quick breakfast in the buffet and then took the tender into port. We got some souvenious and some booze we were bringing back for gifts. We took the tender back to the ship and dropped off our goodies in the room... and no, they did NOT take any of the liquor I had bought, even though it didnt matter since it was gifts. We caught the tender back and headed off to Captain Marvins. There were only 6 of us on the tour, all from the Valor. It was a quick boat ride to the dock. Then a nice relaxing boat ride to the sandbar. By the time we got there, there were only a couple other boats. I jumped right in... DH took some time. This was a once in a lifetime experience kissing and touching a stingray. DH touched one and then got right out in about 5minutes. He didnt enjoy them swimming all around him. I enjoyed the whole thing. After we took a quick 2min ride to Coral Gardens. This was fun! Lots of neat snorkeling with some cool fish...got to meet Frisbee, the tail-less stingray! We got back around 2:40 to the pier and the line was wicked long. They said the last tender was 3:15... yeah right. More like 4!! We were back on board around 3:30. It was HOT. Definitely take the CD's guide telling you to take a tender before 2:30! We didnt do much this evening.. I played slots for their slot prize giveaways (won nothing) and DH listened to the piano player. Up next, Roatan, another first!

[megnsamsgracie]

Day 5 Roatan Honduras:
I booked Fins and Flippers after recommendations here. We docked 45minutes early (due 12-7). We took our time getting up and a late breakfast. We headed off about 12:30 and quickly found the booth for F+F. (they are through the stairs in a little tent on the right). The guy lead us through the crowds to the pier. We only had a 5min wait for the ferry. A nice guy answered all the questions we had about the island (turns out, he is the driver for the pilot boat). The ferry boat is about a 3min ride across. Cindy came on board and explained about their place, where to pay, where stuff was and that the vet would do tours at 3pm. We headed for the beach, oh how relaxing! Not much good sand in the water.. lots of seaweed. So DH laid out to tan and I went and visited the animals. The maccaws took cheerios right out of my hand!! I headed back to get DH to go up the pool. This we enjoyed! It was so relaxing and quiet. I think less than 30ppl there the whole day! DH got a cheeseburger for lunch (he ate it but it definitely wasn beef!) and I had the calamari (AWESOME!). He had one of each of the local beers and he liked each one. We took one more tour around the place and picked up some shells. We headed back to the boat around 5. On the way walking back, I had gotten a $2 bottle of soda (1.25L of Fresca). FIrst we were approached by the boy asking for $1 for school books. I had heard if you give to 1, 100 will come out of nowhere. SO we said we didnt have any cash. Then another boy (about 8) came up and asked for our soda, even though we already had drank out of it! DH handed it right off and the kid looked like we gave him $100!! He ran off to his friends and about 8-10 of them all started drinking it! The appreciation for a bottle of soda! Back on board we relaxed for abit, then played a couple games. We did some pics and then had dinner. Great as always!! After dinner we just listened to music to stall some times for the late night comic. It was Jim Brick and he was racy! Funny though! We were back to the room around 1:30.

[lazydayz]

Wonderful review. Can't wait for the next segment and your wrap up!

[megnsamsgracie]

Day 6 Belize:
I booked the 20/20/20 massage special for $99 for today because we have been to Belize before and didnt care for it. The massage was nice (I did foot/ankle, scalp/neck/shoulders and the milk wrap. I was supposed to do the stones but I got too much sun so they did the milk wrap instead. I never did one of these before and enjoyed it tremendously, but I hated the sell at the end! We relaxed around the ship for most of the day. Dinner was great as usual! The show as a comedian named Percy Crews 2 and we didnt enjoy it at all. Tonight was the mexican buffet and deck party. We took part in the blue team vs red team (odd vs even cabins). They had us in the casino bar first playing a scavenger hunt game with musical guys (the guys were the chairs). DH and I actually played which is out of character for him. When done went and did karoake and then led the red team up to the lido deck. This was a HOOT and we are glad we did it. Again, another after 1 night!

[h20cruzer]

If you dont mind me asking how did you get your hotel for only 69.95. I have checked their website nothing close to that price.
Thanks

[gaylebd]

Love your photo's! Your husband seems like a fun guy - not a goof! hehe

Just the type of people I LOVE to cruise with ...

Glad you seem to have a wonderful time ....

I'm at 37 days!!! CAN'T WAIT - and am getting by reading all of these reviews!

[jdbmga]

I am enjoying your review as we are thinking about sailing on the Valor next summer. We were on the July 11 sailing of the Glory and enjoyed it.

[treber02]

"Oh yeah, and for those wondering, our 12pk of beer and cosmo drinks ended up just fine coming to our room! "

How does this work? Did you order the stuff from Carnival?

[giftcard]

Thanks for the review and pics!!!

[BlushableAngel]

Before my husband and I left for our Carnival Valor cruise on July 19th, I perused these boards to get some input on our then upcoming trip. I am therefore taking the liberty of returning the favor and writing some notes about the ship and the ports we visited during our one week tour of the Western Carribean.

This was my second cruise and my husband's first for pleasure (he is a Vietnam era Navy vet). We had a fantastic time and it was very hard to come back to work and real life. We are both ready for our next cruise this weekend, (Alas, we need to wait for a bit!)

We flew down from Newark Airport to Miami early last week. We chose to let Carnival make the flight arrangements and also set up the transfers. Even though we were encouraged to do that so that Carnival was responsible for getting us on the ship, I do not think I would do that in the future. Carnival had us on a 6am flight getting into Miami at 9am. There was another flight with my preferred airline leaving at 10am. I suspect we still could have walked over to the Carnival counter and picked up transfers or taken a cab to the port.

In any event, embarkment was easy, quick and well organized. Make sure you have your tip ready for the porters taking things from the bus to the ship, They are not shy about asking for them. My husband kept a bunch of silver dollars with him for tips. They made good conversation pieces and were appreciated.

We were one of the first group of passengers on the ship and were directed to Rosies for some lunch. The food was good and plentiful. We met a lovely young lady who works as an assistant waitress. She was a professor in her Bosnian homeland. Like many of the Valor crew, she was a pleasure to speak with and a reminder that there are many talented people doing what they can to make it in life.

We were permitted to visit our stateroom at 1:30pm, We were both glad that we chose a balcony room and found that we were in a good location. We did not experience a great deal of noise and were convenient to most parts of the ship. Our bags were delivered to the room in less than two hours and we did an easy unpack before we headed to the pool. I have a confession. I basically lived in bathing suits and sundresses. At dinner, I brought elegant clothes for two evenings and wore casual dresses for the other nights. Although I brought shorts and tops for each day, I did not wear them. In other words, I overpacked for this trip. (Shhh...don't tell my husband I admitted it!)

There are a couple of pools on the Lido deck, but we quickly found our way to the Adult one. There were over 1200 people of the 3300 passengers onboard. Wow!! Not only are our own children grown, but we took this trip to spend some time alone. I enjoyed admiring many of the youngsters from afar, but was grateful that they were not my responsibility. We also favored the Adult Pool after one of the Valor's comedians made a somewhat crude, but potentially accurate joke about the bathroom habits of children in pools. We also had no idea that the pool would be filled with salf water and enjoyed its warmth.

We had the later dinner in the Washington Room. Carnival did a great job of matching us up with another couple from a neighboring state. We were about the same age and the conversation never stopped at our table. We sat in one of the side booths and were pleased with the dining room service.

Rather than continue as a daily journal of our trip, I have decided to categorize the balance of this review:

ENTERTAINMENT

We did not have the opportunity to attend all of the shows, but did enjoy the comedian. I believe his name was Percy Crews. We saw the G-rated version of his show and had many good laughs. We were disappointed that we were too tired to stay up for his adult encore. We also enjoyed the 80s revue and the ship's version of the Newlywed Game.

My husband was ready to use his virtual clicker on Rudy the shopping expert. Rudy does give out a great deal of information about shopping in the island ports, but definitely sounds like an infomercial. We were slightly annoyed, yet amused at his advice in Grand Cayman. He told the audience to make sure they took the first tender out to the island to get to the stores early. The first tender gets you out there earlier than the stores open!

We loved our time in the casino and were surprised that we did well. After all, we expected the odds to be bad on a cruise ship and were surprised when I had a $700 win on a slot machine where I played $.90 a spin. I also played cards for the first time and was happy that the dealers were kind and patient. I especially liked Jelena when she was the dealer at the 3 card poker tables. I did find there were card games I did not care for at all. I also found that Bingo on the ship is not worth the expense. You pay $20 for three cards and they only play one game at that price.

My birthday was the last sea day of the cruise and my husband treated me to a facial and massage. I found Justine to be professional and quite strong. My only disappointment was that my massage room was located directly under Camp Carnival. Remember those 1200 kids I mentioned earlier? As I tried to enjoy the peacefulness of my massage, I think all of them were running above my head!! Nevertheless, the treatment itself was marvelous!

While I had my spa treatments, my husband took advantage of a tour of the ship. There are only 16 spaces available for this tour and my husband enjoyed it immensely. He learned a great deal of the ship's operations and saw everything from the brig, the kitchen to the morgue and more.

We did not book our excursions through Carnival, but rather researched them ahead of time and set them up accordingly. In Grand Cayman, we basically walked in out of shops and had lunch. We did just about the same in Cozimel, but I wanted to add one tidbit. As early as 8am, many of the shop owners offered us shots of tequila. Needless to say, it made my husband a bit more inclined to enjoy his shopping excurisions!

In Roatan, I set up a private tour with Victor Bodden. Our guide's name was Julio and we enjoyed seeing beautiful sites and places. I was glad that we got to stop at a small Catholic church (we also saw one in Cozimel). Roatan is a beautiful poor place with gorgeous beaches. I snorkled for the first time and loved it. My only concern is that my husband and I did not do this as part of a structured tour. We swam out to the middle of the reef without anyone looking out for us. Even the strongest of swimmers knows better. Neverthless it was an amazing experience.

Cavetubing in Belize was a definite highlight of the trip. We went with Major Tom's group and found them to be both professional and educational. One caution. Even if they tell you that you don't need bug spray, please wear it. I must be awfully sweet, because I was eaten alive. We walked through the jungle and then tubed down through the caves. It is amazing how the rocks have formed and made clear figures. Our guide was Edgar and of Mayan descent. He was able to tell us a great deal about the history and culture of the Mayans. I recommend that you order the lunch and bring a change of clothes for this trip.

DINING

Meals in Rosies offered a great many selections and there was something for everyone. The Deli offered good corn beef and pastrami sandwiches. Surprisingly, the pizza was as good as we have here in the NJ/NY area. I do not know why anyone would opt for soda when iced tea and lemonade are offered at no extra cost. I also found it interesting and smart that the ship did its best to control waste. For example, you could not serve yourself bacon. One of the kitchen crew put it on your plate.

Dinner in the main dining room had a nice share of selections. Frankly, it was not bad, but it was not anything exceptional. The really best fare on the ship is at Scarletts. It is well worth the extra money to eat up there. I had lamb chops and loved everything from the bread to dessert!

PHOTOGRAPHS

I must admit that I came home with a bunch of beautiful portraits of my husband and I. My children were amazed when they heard the price of $22 each. However, I found them to be a bargain as they captured us both looking relaxed and happy. My favorite photographers were a Polish lady named Kateruz (I think) and some guy named Shah who made weird noises to get you to laugh!

ACCOMODATIONS

We were quite pleased with our balcony room and enjoyed sitting there at many different parts of the day and night. We were also impressed by the efficiency of our steward, Jose. He seemed to magically make our bed and tidy up when we left the room for even just a minute. I hated the hairdryer and was glad that we brought our own outlet power strip, At my husband's request, Jose also decorated my room for my birthday. I was confused when I walked in I thought it was 4th of July or Mardi Grais in there!

DISEMBARKMENT

Frankly, this was the most frustrating part of the trip. I suspect it is in part due to the fact that people do not follow directions and there was no one around telling them they had to do so. The most common disebarkment seemed to be the self assist. Although we were called down by decks, some just went when they were ready to leave. I think they could have organized this better by gathering flight and departure information and disembarking accordingly.


All in all, this was a great trip. We both enjoyed it tremendously and loved meeting the many people that our journey brought to us. Please feel free to ask if you have any questions.

[megnsamsgracie]

Originally Posted by h20cruzer

If you dont mind me asking how did you get your hotel for only 69.95. I have checked their website nothing close to that price.
Thanks

It was July, so cheaper than some times.. 2nd, it must have been a special anyway because several other websites had it for that price, I went with the big "O" to book it

[megnsamsgracie]

Originally Posted by gaylebd

Love your photo's! Your husband seems like a fun guy - not a goof! hehe

Just the type of people I LOVE to cruise with ...

Glad you seem to have a wonderful time ....

I'm at 37 days!!! CAN'T WAIT - and am getting by reading all of these reviews!

My DH is a fun guy, fun to take pics of.. esp after a few drinks!