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Four Nights of Open Bar Ecstasy! A Pictorial Review.


DarthGrady

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Carnival Ecstasy: September 6, 2012

Open bar. One of the greatest phrases in the American lexicon. With two simple words it precisely conveys what the spirit of the event will be. The atmosphere will be festive and the beverages will flow in endless succession. Possible boredom will be replaced with boozy camaraderie. Interesting things will be made doubly so by gallon upon gallon of devil alcohol. This was the way of my third annual open bar cruise with the fellas.

Our ride down to the pier was uneventful, as was getting parked at the Radisson. There was an unfortunate event on the tram involving a lost cell phone. It was eventually recovered and we set about the embarkation process. Thankfully Carnival has a VIP line for the security check as well as the check-in. Royal Caribbean should really follow suit, it’s one of my favorite VIP perks. After a fast check-in process we were across the gangway and at the Lobby Bar. Beers would be the first round, no sense in rushing things.

Our first glimpse of the ship

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The Sensation, my first Carnival ship, was parked next door

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The keys to the kingdom

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I immediately felt right at home on Ecstasy after many, many cruises on Carnival’s Fantasy Class ships. Her years spent in Texas were apparently kind. Her cabins were all recently renovated and looked excellent. Carnival’s generously sized interior cabins were a welcome change after several recent cruises on Monarch of the Seas. My only quibble with the room was how hard the mattress was. It’s been a year since I’ve cruised with Carnival, but I recall the bed’s being softer.

Our Cabin, U31

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Notice the new toilet seats. More like what you'd find in a house. Much better IMO than the old cheap plastic ones.

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fantastic, i love your reviews... and you always luck into these open bar cruises! can't wait to see what sort of trouble you got into this time :D

 

Ditto!

 

Please tell me you heard the band MELLOW TOUCH and what you think of them compared to other Manilla bands...We're on board in 12 days!

 

Looking forward to the rest of your review:)

 

Thanks much!

Mike

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I immediately felt right at home on Ecstasy after many, many cruises on Carnival’s Fantasy Class ships. Her years spent in Texas were apparently kind. Her cabins were all recently renovated and looked excellent. Carnival’s generously sized interior cabins were a welcome change after several recent cruises on Monarch of the Seas. My only quibble with the room was how hard the mattress was. It’s been a year since I’ve cruised with Carnival, but I recall the bed’s being softer.

Our Cabin, U31

232323232%7Ffp433%3C%3B%3Enu%3D323%3B%3E8%3B7%3E682%3EWSNRCG%3D36%3B8%3C4%3B5%3C8326nu0mrj

232323232%7Ffp437%3B%3B%3Enu%3D323%3B%3E8%3B7%3E682%3EWSNRCG%3D36%3B8%3C4%3B5%3C9326nu0mrj

232323232%7Ffp437%3C%3B%3Enu%3D323%3B%3E8%3B7%3E682%3EWSNRCG%3D36%3B8%3C4%3B5%3C%3A326nu0mrj

Notice the new toilet seats. More like what you'd find in a house. Much better IMO than the old cheap plastic ones.

232323232%7Ffp43436%3Enu%3D323%3B%3E8%3B7%3E682%3EWSNRCG%3D36%3B8%3C4%3B5%3C%3B326nu0mrj

 

Is this a standard interior cabin or a small one if there is such a thing? I feel like I would be claustrophobic in the bathroom.

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Ditto!

 

Please tell me you heard the band MELLOW TOUCH and what you think of them compared to other Manilla bands...We're on board in 12 days!

 

Looking forward to the rest of your review:)

 

Thanks much!

Mike

 

I touch on that briefly later on. I was in Chinatown one night, but my memory of the band is pretty hazy. Sorry, but I won't be much help there.

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Is this a standard interior cabin or a small one if there is such a thing? I feel like I would be claustrophobic in the bathroom.

 

Yes, that's a standard room. You'll find those dimensions similar throughout the fleet.

 

I actually like the interior cabins on the Fantasy Class ships the best. The layout is better than on the newer ships. The shower is bigger than on other ships, although it comes at the expense of a full counter around the sink.

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Looks like the Sensation was docked at the new terminal #6 and not Ecstasy?

 

I thought it was the other way around?

 

I thought so too.

 

Even stranger is that we pulled up to the new one on Monday when we got back. Probably confused some folks that were parked in the lot.

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I thought so too.

 

Even stranger is that we pulled up to the new one on Monday when we got back. Probably confused some folks that were parked in the lot.

 

Very odd!

 

I do know that the folks sailing on the 10th were advised not to show up until 1:30pm due to delayed boarding. And they were notified on the 9th.

 

 

AH! It just hit me. JH posted a picture of new stage equipment being loaded, maybe that was your sailing?

 

I wonder if there is no room for a crane to come alongside at the new terminal?

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