Just off Triumph 7/21

:) Wow I can't believe it's over already. All that planning and anticipation and blip it's over. We had a great time.

 

Embarkation was a snap. We got there at 10:30 and we were sitting on the Lido deck with lunch by noon! Likewise we were off the ship in NY by 8:30 a.m.

 

Our weather wasn't great. It was very foggy and the fog horn blowing every few minutes was disconcerting at first but I got used to it. Because of the weather we took part in many ship board activities that we might not have otherwise. I have to agree with prior reviewers, the shows on this ship were quite good. I especially enjoyed the World show. The R rated comedian was also very funny.

 

The food at the South Beach Buffet left a lot to be desired. It was strictly cafeteria food. Also the lines were very long. I personally thought that this area especially was not clean enough. The dishes were often sticky and had cooked food on them. There were crumbs and food debris on the window sills. The ice cream area was most often a mess (due to messy guests-but it should have been given more attention). We liked the NY Deli and the Grill. We never tried the Hong Kong Noodle Factory. We ended up going to the dinning room for lunch the last day it was much better than the buffet. The same thing for breakfast. Also I don't know why but the coffee in the dinning room was actually good and the coffee in the buffet was just awful. Also the cappucino in the dinning room was very good.

 

I understand she is due drydock in October and she needs it. Like others have said the carpets are a mess. There are more than a few stains...it's pretty dirty.

 

We had a balcony cabin on the Verandah deck and it was wonderful. We never met our room steward but our room was kept clean and there was always plenty of ice. We only got two towel animals on our five day cruise so that part was disappointing but minor.

 

We were seated at the 6:15 seating in the London dinning room and it was fine. We were on the second floor which means we didn't really get to see the wait staff perform. Having cruised before that didn't bother me but if it was my first time I would have been disappointed. For those going if you want to see the action ask for a table downstairs or close to the stairs and balcony edge. The Paris dinning room has lovely sweeping views that the London does not have. Also we were originally given the 8:30 seating despite requesting early seating at booking. We had to wait on a pretty long line to change it. We were changed right then and there others had to wait for a note under their door to see if they could be changed. I'm not sure why that is. The food was much better than the buffet. I have to agree with other reviewers, when I say the desserts just weren't very good. I had the souffle the last night and that was very good but overall we took one bite and passed on the rest.

 

We visited St. John and Halifax. We opted not to book any excursions. We walked in both ports. There wasn't much to see or do in St. John so the excursions were probably the better way to go. Those who visited the reversing falls enjoyed it. We did enjoy walking around Halifax and had a lovely lunch at a restaurant near the water (the Warehouse). Our tablemates booked their own private tours in both ports and had a great time.

 

Our cruise director was Matt and while he was pleasant we felt he just didn't participate enough. We were never given a weather report or port time updates. He never announced activities and our deck party was cancelled (we found out later it was moved to the disco). No announcement was ever made to tell us about the change. We heard many remark that he liked to keep secrets.

 

We were invited to the past guest party, but unfortunately we missed it.

 

Cruising out of and into NY was just the best. We are local but seeing the Statute of Liberty, the skyline and crusing under the Veranzano Narrows was unbelievable. We enjoyed it so much we got up extra early to be on deck on the return.

 

Overall we had a great time. You really can make your own fun on a cruise and that is one of the reasons we enjoy it so much. I'm not sure I enjoy these superliner type ships there are just so many people. There were a good number of children but it wasn't overwhelming. The teens were roaming the halls at all hours but there weren't too many of them so it was okay. While it didn't always feel crowded there were times that it did (meal times), the casino, and the shops.

 

Can't wait for our next cruise, but for now I'm looking forward to Disney in August. ;)

Thanks for the review, we leave tomorrow.

Thanks for the review!!! I was wondering how it was to leave out of NY!!! Sounds Great!!!

JTM

 

That was a great review. I was off the sailing right before yours (7/16) and agree with just about everything you wrote. I would like to add a few items of my own.

 

Arrived by car at port a bit before noon and NO LINES AT ALL. This is our 3rd departure from NYC and by far the easiest on and off. We were in our car to drive home by 9:30, we did self disbarking and stayed in our cabins till they cleared the ship, we did not go to the public rooms and have heard it was a fiasco.

 

We hit the fog bank on the last day at sea, otherwise weather was clear and COLD. I wished I had booked an excursion in St. John to get to Bay of Fundy and chanced grabbing a cab or limo at pier. No go. We had 7 in our party and they would only take 6. Made the mistake in Halifax to book hop on hop off double decker bus, only to find 3 limos waiting for up to 9 people to tour. Go figure. Halifax is such a wonderful clean and friendly port...walking on your own on the waterfront and visiting the Titatic Museum is a great way to spend the day. We ate at a restaurant at the end of the boardwalk and it was nice to sit outside and watch the Kids Tugboat (not sure of it's name) pull in and out. There was a glass blower right across the street which held our attention for some time.

 

My son and my friend booked the Kayacing the Caves/Lobster excursion for $96 each....they had fun (lobster roll, not boiled lobster as we thought) but didn't get to go into the caves and hiked up to waterfall that they both enjoyed but not worth the $96. They both said they should have done the Kayaciing in St. John.

 

South Beach Buffet. I can not agree with your comments any more. We avoided this area the whole cruise...long lines, the wasted amounts of food on peoples plates, just walking thru this area to get to the aft pool area was enough for me.

 

Hong Kong Noodle, NY Deli, Pizza were all GREAT alternatives to the Paris Dining Room in a pinch. Don't miss trying the Hong Kong Noodle soups of the day!!! If you want grilled sandwich at NY Deli, just ask, otherwise they will serve on plain bread if you don't. I did not try the grill, but my friend swore by the cheeseburgers at midnight and she made that a ritual for the whole cruise.

 

I ate just about every meal in the dining room. Eggs benedict for breakfast varied every morning (from perfect to greasy). It is so nice to eat at a table with new passengers for those 2 meals. You learn a lot from a meal conversation (luckly no obnioux dinner mates!!).

 

We also had a balcony on the Veranda deck which was perfect, especially arriving in Halifax for the bagpipers show. We did hear them setting out the deck chairs about 8 every morning. One night about 12:30 it sounded like the ceiling was about to come down on us and it did not stop. I went up and found 2 security guards standing by the door to the Lido Deck. I looked over to where our cabin was located and found 15 to 20 girls Stomp Dancing in a huge circle. They were doing nothing really wrong, it was just over our cabin. I asked Security how long this would be going on and they said as long as they wanted to, was there a problem? I explained how loud it was in my cabin and that they were entitled to their fun also; Security shuffled them off to a different part of the Deck and we were all happy.

 

We also only got 2 towel animals on our 5 night cruise, I was more dissappointed because this was our friends first cruise and they were soooo thrillled with the first towel animal on the first night, they would get to their cabin expecting one every night as I had told them. I have never not gotten a towel animal every night on all our cruises. Oh well, I had her look at the towel animal book they were selling to see what she had missed!!

 

Chair hogging ran rapid at the aft pool where I spent most of my time. It was less noisy than the Lido pool area (though they could vary the music a bit more) I witnessed two larger sized women place thier towels over oviously "hogged" chairs, when the man arrived hours later explaining that those chairs were his, he had saved them with his $22 towels and just gone to hear CD expain the excursions, and get a bit to eat, both woman showed him the sign RIGHT BEHIND HIM on the hot tubs saying "NO CHAIR SAVING". He asked for his towels and the one woman says "It would be difficult for me to get out of this chair more than once, so when I am done, your towels will be sitting right here in this chair!" I laughed my butt off!!!! Way too funny. I also took a chair that was hogged, though I gave him back his towel. It is amazing the gall of some of these people.

 

We were traveling with 16, 14 and 13 year old boys. The 16 year old found quite a few nice friends and was OK with the cruise. There was not much for the 14 and 13 year old to do. Camp Carnival was a bit lame for that age group (and granted I must admit this age group is hard to entertain mostly because they are young males). There was no basket ball court or other activity to keep them amused, shuffleboard was always crowded and an older group of passengers used them most of the time, ping pong was impossible with the weather. The arcade got old after the first day. I did see tons of female teens enjoying themselves in the disco and other dance venues (Lido Deck Stomp parties) ;) . I guess the male teens just have not gotten into the dance scene yet.

 

Water slide was open every day. I won $500 in slot machine on the last night in casino, otherwise, it was not a money maker for anyone in our party. I did see cleaning of the carpets and stairwells each and every day. Elevators on last night are Non-Existing due to being used to haul luggage. They will lock out all but one elevator bank, so I you have walking issues, plan ahead.

 

All in all it was an fun cruise. Like JTM, blip it is over. :mad: But, start planning for the next cruise :)

Thank you for your descriptions. My wife and I are sailing on 28/07.

We are arriving in New York from Toronto on Thursday to spend a couple of days before the cruise.

Mart & Fran:)

Thank you for your descriptions. My wife and I are sailing on 28/07.

We are arriving in New York from Toronto on Thursday to spend a couple of days before the cruise.

Mart & Fran:)

I sure hope you're not planning on sailing on July 28th... We're not planning to bring her back until July 30th after we leave tomorrow... :)

I was just pushing it. Thanks for the reminder. We'll be in NYC on the 28th and then the cruise on the 30th