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PARADISE Review - 5/30/05


SunDevil77

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We were on the 4-day Baja cruise and had a great time. Here are some of the highlights:

 

PRE-CRUISE. We stayed the night before at the Coast Long Beach hotel which is just a short walk from the Queen Mary and Carnival Terminal. We stayed there last year when we sailed the Pride and it is a wonderful hotel. After check-in, we walked over and watched the Pride sail away for the Mexican Riveria - kinda wished we were on it, but could only squeeze in a 4-day on the Paradise. Oh well, can't have everything. We took the Passport shuttle to downtown Long Beach and had a great dinner at King's - a great seafood restaurant that I highly recommend.

 

EMBARKATION. We were one of the first in line for boarding after doing the early check-in at the Queen Mary. It was a long wait in line, but the weather was perfect and so it wasn't too bad. We boarded about 12:15-12:30. After boarding, we explored the ship a little and then headed to the Lido deck for lunch. The usual buffet-type food which never really changed throughout the whole cruise, with the exception of a deli station on one day. We hung out by the pool having some drinks and waiting for the muster drill and then sail-away before dinner.

 

CABINS. There were 7 of us, so we had three cabins - two inside and one outside on the Upper Deck. Nothing remarkable about the cabins -- they were fairly roomy with plenty of storage space. I tipped the cabin steward an extra $10 and asked that he keep me well stocked with ice to cool down my "carry-on" beers. He did exactly that and brought in a bigger ice bucket and made sure that I had ice cold beer ready to go at all times!!

 

FOOD/DINING. Myabe it's just me, but the portions at dinner seem to be getting smaller. I know...you can order as many dishes as you like (which I sometimes did), but you really don't get a whole lot. Just an observation. The food was okay...but unremarkable. The service was fantastic and we had an excellent wait staff led by Alana from Romania. She was very pleasant and cheerful and probably one of the best we have ever had. The only negative about the dining experience is that I had requested an early sitting of 6:15 (there are two dining rooms on the Paradise with 2 early seatings at 5:45/6:15 and two late seatings). Well, they gave us the 5:45 seating which is way too early and when I tried to get it changed to 6:15, the Maitre 'd said that we could come at any time between 5:45 and 6:30. Sure, but everybody else has already ordered and then you have to wait for your wait staff to catch up. We found out quickly to get as close to 5:45 as possible. Lesson learned...no more early seating...you have to rush around too much to get ready after a long hard day at the pool (or port)!!!

 

ENTERTAINMENT. This cruise probably had some of the best show room entertainment that we have experienced and this is our 6th cruise. The las vegas productions were very good and the comedians were good as well. Late night comedy was excellent. Only downer was the CD, who was probably the weakest we have seen on any of our cruises. The rest of the stuff....horse races, game show trivia, newlywed game...were pretty much standard fare.

 

WEATHER. The weather was perfect in Long Beach and Catalina - sunny skies and mid-70s. The sea day was cloudy and cool and Ensenada was mostly cloudy and kinda cool. Bring a sweatshirt for nights and sea day...I forgot mine and had to tough it out !!

 

CATALINA. We took the hour-long golf cart tour of the Island for $45 (it's $30 for a four-cart and $45 for the 6-cart) and that is a great way to see most of Catalina. After that, we shopped for awhile and then headed back to the ship and the pool. Excellent weather and got a great tan.

 

ENSENADA. Because of some Mexican Military exercises, they took over the port on Wednesday, so we had to delay our docking until Thursday. That put us at sea on Wednesday, instead of the usual Thursday itinerary. What can you say about Ensenada? It is what it is. We just walked around town, shopped, drank some beers at an outdoor bar, and headed back to the ship around 1:00.

 

DEBARKATION. For the life of me, I just can't understand why it takes so long to get through customs. It's not like anybody could have boarded that ship illegally while we were gone and they already have your bags for the dogs to sniff, so why the big 5th degree? We travel extensively to Mexico via auto and when we come back through customs, it takes 10 seconds and they ask you 2 questions...how long were you in Mexico and are you U.S. citizens. That's it. Anyway, we got off the ship and on our way at 11:00.

 

Overall, we had a great time. We love to cruise. The Paradise is a nice ship, much nicer than one of it's sisters, the Ecstasy, that we cruised on a few years ago. More sophisticated and classier. It is easy to get around and very comfortable, although a little tattered here and there.

 

Let me know if I can answer any questions.

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I got back from the Paradise on May 13th myself. I was waiting for the "live" band to be playin when i boarded, it didn't. I waited ok after we sailed off, it didn't. It didn't the next day, or day after that... It was recordered music hip hop style which i think didn't needed to be played, i wanted cruise music. It wasn't until the last day there was a live band there playing, and yes the weather had been nice all the way thru. I did the self check out early, kept my bags, and headed to the gangway at 7:40, and was on my out the door at 8:10, really the best choice for me. Food was always hot and fresh, i especially enjoyed the hot and fresh pizza, very good. Overall a great trip for me too! :D

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Thanks for your review! We are going on the 3-day for the 4th of July weekend. I have heard the "formal night" is a little more relaxed on these short cruises and they would sit you with the men in just a shirt and pants rather than a suit/tux. Is that true? My son-in-law is wondering which night is the lobster.

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Hi--how is the Paradise since they did away with the no-smoking policy? It's the only ship I've been on, it was a few years ago, and we had a great time. I enjoyed the smoke free environment and was sorry to hear they changed it. (I have bad bad bad allergies). Is half the ship nonsmoking as far as the cabin area, and do they enforce that? Is the buffet dining area nonsmoking?

 

I wish cigarette and cigar smoke didn't totally kill my allergies...I get migraines from it and a stuffy nose and red dry eyes.....but I have heard from some others that also don't like smoke that they have never felt smoke was a problem on any cruise or ship they've been on. Any comments?

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There is no smoking in cabins, dining rooms, or showroom. The smoke is most notable, as you would expect, in the casino. Mostly, I smelled a musty-like odor in the public areas especially along Carnival Boulevard.

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PunkiePaws, I also have an allergy to smoke and get the red eyes, and worse a horrible cough if around it too long. I have only noticed a problem in the casino and in some bar areas. I avoid those areas but I try about 30 minutes in the casino (before I change clothes - so I can toss the smoke ones in a plastic bag) and then go outside. I have always had a great time and everyone I ran into that sat next to me at a public area such as the pool was always kind enough to ask. I thought it was nice since they have as much right to the space as I do. If it is an issue, I usually go somewhere else and there are plenty of great places to go on a ship. :D

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Overall, we had a great time. We love to cruise. The Paradise is a nice ship, much nicer than one of it's sisters, the Ecstasy, that we cruised on a few years ago. More sophisticated and classier. It is easy to get around and very comfortable, although a little tattered here and there.

 

Let me know if I can answer any questions.

 

Is it more easier to get around than the Ecstasy or about the same? I found the Ecstacy to be somewhat of a maze....

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As a non smoker myself, in the casino i didn't really notice any smoking in the place at all....ALTHO, I was not sitting at a card table where that probably would be a factor, i was at a slot machine. Also I agree with the earlier comment in the dining room, the main course dishes are big, the the food thats on them is small... BUT, due to the fact that your constantly eating and drinking anyway, that tiny food was actually ok since i NEVER arrived at the dining room hungry at all anyway ;)

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