Elation Review...The Good...The Bad...And the Ugly!!

My DH, 2 DD (10 and 8) and myself cruised the Elation on Aug. 14 -- we flew into Houston on Fri. We rented a car from Hertz (because you can return it in Galveston) and stayed in Seabrook -- we had a great time.

On Sunday, we drove to Galveston and dropped off the car at Hertz - they shuttled us to the ship -- very easy! We got to the ship at 11:00 -- the embarkation was easy but very slow - we got into our room at 1:00.

Our cabin E50 (we were upgraded to this one) was great - it was such a terrific location that my DH - later in the week remarked that we should always get this type of location. I was concerned because we booked a quad and got a triple. It was no problem at all!! They bought in a cot and set it up - my daughter had no problem with it. It as always made up like a bed -- it was no big deal.

Progresso! We loved Progresso and had a great time. We like to do things ourselves and we do not sign up for excursions ahead of time. We went to the market and our girls got their hair braided. It was a great deal...they both have long, thick hair -- and it only cost $40.00 and then because it took her over 2 hours - we gave her a $10. tip. I think we made her day -- the girls hair looked beautiful and the braids are still in great shape. The shopping at the market was OK - there were a lot of people who wouldn't take no for an answer - but there was also some fun items to purchase -- I would recommend buying stuff at the market -- the prices were great compared to Cozumel and Belize (really high). We then took the double decker bus for a short tour. It was $2.00 a person and well worth it. We felt comfortable enought to walk down to the beach and check out a few stores along the way. We then stopped in a local pub for a couple of beers/sodas and some nachos (yes, we ate in Mexico - we were worried BUT we were fine!!) The locals were really great to us --- there were others from our cruise in this pub and everyone looked like they were having a good time.

We were so hot by the end of the day - they we took a taxi back to the boat instead of the shuttle -- $6.00 very well spent!

Cozumel!! What can I say -- it is always our favorite. This time we did Paradise Beach!! It was so great!! We even met Paradise Tom - he was such a nice guy!! We stayed much longer than we expected - which left very little time for shopping. However (and I hope I do not offend anyone because it is a touchy subject) we took a horse a buggy ride on a short tour of downtown.

Belize!! This was OK. I know that I was warned to make sure I book an excursion - but we didn't. Instead when we got to the dock (which is beautiful) we took a tour from a company - a tour of the city. It was suppose to take 1 1/2 hours - but it took over 2 hours because our guide just kept talking away. I was a really good tour - but our 2 daughters were getting alittle bored. It is a very poor city. When we got back from the tour we still wanted to walk around the streets to get a feel of the city. We left the gated area and walked to a small market -- many obnoxious people approached us to sell us stuff, drive us places etc. But the market was fine, talked to some nice locals and did wind up enjoying ourselves. We bought a beer and a couple of sodas from a vendor -- but I would not eat anything there - it really did not look desirable.

Dining! We always enjoy eating dinner by ourselves - however, we were assinged to eat with 2 other people. We asked to be moved (early in the day)to a table for 4 - at first they said that they were not sure they could so at our assigned time we ate at our assigned table. They were great people and it would have been fine to do so all week. During the night we got a note under our cabin door telling us that they moved our table. Apparently, there was a large family reunion and many people had to be changed -- so we did not offend anyone!! And we were very happy!!!! Our new table staff was awesome. Fredrick and Eldrin were just fantastic -- they pulled up our girls to dance and sing -- we all had a great time at dinner every night. The food was great in the dining room. For breakfast and lunch we ate at Tiffany's -- we never experienced long lines and there were always tables available.

Room Steward!! Calvert kept our room great all week -- we could not ask for more!!! Also, the $15.00 laundry bag is great - if you roll the clothes you can fit a bunch of stuff in that bag -- and that is a good thing because the laundry rooms were dirty.

Camp Carnival!!! I was not please with CC this week!! I felt that the counselors were more interested in socializing with each other than with the kids. We missed the Captains Party -- because in took us 30 to sign our daughter into her coketail party - and we had to pick her up 10 minutes later for dinner. Parents who did not previously sign up for the camp were doing so as we waited on line to sign our children into the camp. Instead of pulling the people off to the side to fill our the paper work -- they just let the line get longer and longer. Missing the Captain party wasn't a big deal it was just one of many things that bothered me --but I won't go on and on.

Entertainment!! The CD was new - David Holt - he was pretty good -- just needs a litttle more experience. This is the first time that we saw every show. Except for one comedian -- the shows were very good. Now, we are not talking Broadway here -- but they were very enjoyable.

Debarkation -- was so BAD!! We waited 2 hours before we could leave the "holding area" we had orange tags - so I believe it was the first color off after the self-debarkation --I can not even describe it -- it was BAD!!

I tried to give a little bit of info on everything -- if you have any questions just let me know.

Sorry about the typos....I tried to fix them but the 20 minutes were up.

When you say that the CC problem was just one of the "many things that bothered you," do you mean things that bothered you with CC or things that bothered you with the Ship?

How dirty were the laundry rooms?

We're going to be on the Elation in a couple of months and I'm interested in hearing more about your actual cruising expeience, if you don't mind.

I was only talking about problems with Camp Carnival. For example, one afternoon the 9-11 yo were scheduled to paint. When my daughter got back -- she told me that they did not paint - instead they decorated precut frames with ripped pieces of magazines. IMO -- from being a Mom and teacher - that is not even an age appropriate activity. Honestly, the cruise was great and I would go back in a minute. But because we always had such great CC experiences this one was let down. As for the laundry rooms - the drainage pipe kept backing up onto the floor. They always cleaned it up - but I thought it was gross. If you have any more questions...just let me know.