CasualCruisers406

I never tried, shots aren't really our thing. But I'm sure they would have. As long as you only wanted one. :rolleyes:

Just wanted to write a quick review of our experience on the Triumph this weekend! We are a very different demographic than most on this ship, and that really colored our experience. We are both in our 40's in professional career fields, but we also are heavily tattooed and really enjoy meeting new people and drinking great cocktails. We are from Colorado as well, for what it's worth.

We purchased FTTF and Cheers, for lots of reasons. Very glad for FTTF to avoid the lines when boarding. The whole check in process, while fairly quick for us, was not well organized compared to our experiences with Norwegian. We arrived at the the pier at about noon, btw. We were onboard and in our room by about 1, I think. We went to find our first drink, and had to wait about 20 minutes for service, despite very few people being at the bar. We then went for a quick tour of the ship to get ourselves oriented. We then grabbed some tacos from Blueiguana, which were decent. Nothing to write home about, but edible. Best thing there is the shrimp, btw...had to wait another 20 minutes for another drink to enjoy with lunch.

Triumph is showing her age, but people were clearly working constantly to keep her in the best condition they could. We were in cabin 6461, an aft wrap cabin. It was spacious, and well laid out. We thoroughly enjoyed the views from both the windows and the deck itself! The deck was amazing, and quite private. We didn't see our steward until the evening. We requested once a day service, but asked to have ice. Only got ice once, so we just drank our bubbly warm...We were never able to reach him on his provided phone number. None of this was really a problem, just another minor annoyance that contributed to the big experience. On another note, we tried 3 separate times to get room service, to no avail. Nobody ever answered the phone...

The dining room was good, again, nothing spectacular, but certainly edible. Only tried the buffet once, and was very underwhelmed. The choices were limited, but hot and fresh. The seaday brunch was great the first time. The food was hot and fresh. But drink service was again, very poor. We ordered a mimosa and bloody Mary, and didn't get them until the meal was over. I then got smart and ordered an OJ to go, and made my own mimosas with the warm bubbly in our room! We spent most of that day in the casino, which was fine. Lost some, won some. Drink service improved when I found a consistent bartender. The entertainment was a bit cheesy, but we did enjoy the CD, Adam.

It was very hard to talk to people for some reason. We are normally very easy to talk to and usually make friends easily in any situation. People didn't seem eager to chat with us, and we often felt like we were being stared at for our tattoos...most people wouldn't even make eye contact or laugh at our silly chit-chat...but again, I realize that we are a very different demographic than most on this cruise, and probably stood out more because of that. We ended up spending most of our time at the Alchemy bar, and found some similar-minded people there after awhile.

All in all, it was an OK experience. After cruising Norwegian twice, and soon to be cruising RCI in March, we probably will not be bringing our business back to Carnival. There was nothing really bad to say, but nothing that really stood out either.

HIGHLIGHTS: First to the Fun, staff were always pleasant and helpful when you could find them, Alchemy Bar, aft-wrap cabin, taco bar, late night hot tubs, very few kids on this cruise, cruising the Mississippi was incredible!!!

LOW POINTS: EXTREMELY slow bar service. We are pretty heavy drinkers normally, and there was no way we could get close to our daily Cheers limit with as long as it took to get a drink. We were also super frustrated with the inability to get a floater in a specialty drink, for example. Or to be able to order doubles.

Food was a bit below average, even in the dining room. Not being able to get room service. The constant marketing to spend more money at every turn. Lackluster entertainment.

I think that young families would enjoy this cruise as would larger family groups. I don't think it's a good fit for our demographic who enjoy great service, great food/cocktails and great conversation. Maybe we are looking for a more targeted, eclectic experience. If anyone has any tips for future voyages, please let me know!

How late are the hot tubs open on the Triumph? And which are better for avoiding kids? We are sailing on the 26th and love to do some soaking, but don't feel like fighting off wild monkeys, if we can help it!

Find another drink to love?

It's a cold. Despite how awful you feel and sound, you are only contagious for about 2 days after the onset of symptoms. Antibiotics will NOT hasten healing, they will simply increase the incidence of antibiotic resistant bacteria. And seriously? Missing your vacation for a cold? Wash your hands frequently and rest. You, and the rest of the passengers will be fine. I'm a nurse, I deal with this every day.

Maybe I am cheap but why order water if you purchased Cheers?

So as to stay hydrated in between alcoholic drinks!

Edited....

It's really a no-brainer for me, but everyone is different. My first cruise, we signed a tab for $1600, which was mostly alcohol. Granted, much of it was shared with friends. We also come from altitude, and drinking at sea level is a different experience. We love to drink nice scotches and nice wines. The break-even point for us happens in the first two hours on board. And honestly, most people wouldn't even know we had been drinking. All that aside, I think 5-6 drinks in 24 hours is easy, especially if you have a bottle or two of water or a latte during the day. I feel like $800 over 7 days is a steal, and certainly a relief, not having to be concerned about the bill at the end. Enjoy your cruise!

So where DO properly trained service dogs relieve themselves on the ship? There must be some sort of accommodations.

It is perfectly legal to check a weapon in your checked bags. When people want to hurt others, they will.

Does anyone know approx how many calories are they, per plate, including ice cream?

 

We usually don't calories while on vacation, but I plan on having 3 per dinner & 2 for wife....

So is that like 2 lbs for me & 1 lb for her after 7 nights?

or how many miles on jogging track to budget for that?

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/food/calories/15499720

Or, 460 calories per serving, not including ice cream. But figure that most 1/2c servings of ice cream are around 200 calories. So, let's see...that's about 660 calories per desert X3=1980cals...X7 nights=13,860 calories or approximately 3.96 pounds for you...lol

Great! That's what I was thinking as well, but wanted to know other people's experiences!

So I just completed our online check-in and don't see a record of our Cheers purchase. I do of course have the emailed receipt, just wondering if I should be seeing it somewhere else as well? I will, of course, call Carnival if need be. I just really hate making phone calls!

I see no reason to lock my bags, personally. But if I did, I would use TSA locks. I have nothing to hide, and if someone so desperately feels the need to steal my underwear, I'm ok with them taking it. Anything I truly care about is on my person. If the cruise line wants to further inspect your bags, they will pull you aside and have you open them.

and you call yourself a Squid. Boats are Submarines. not surface vessels.

 

and carriers aren't even that, they are hazards to safe seamanship.( according my CRUDES spouse)

LOL...It's all good! I noticed your screen name, and have to mention that I was also married to a spook for the better part of 14 years. :D

And, FWIW, I WAS airwing, so perhaps not much of a squid at all (other than over 2 years sea time)

For those correcting ship vs boat...I served in the Navy on two different aircraft carriers. Both of which we referred to as a boat. ;)

It's really just semantics! In any case, I agree with what others have said about comparing the value to that of a similar length land-based vacation and you will likely find that cruising is a very reasonable (albeit, not "cheap") vacation.

Does anyone have a list or schedule of Triumph's offered fitness classes? I am starting a fitness challenge in the week before my cruise in January and would like an idea of what I can do to keep myself challenged. I know I can always just use the equipment, but classes generally make me work harder!:D

Where does one buy bottled water and energy drinks?

Helpful, but not giving the future dates beyond this week...it's not a big deal, purely curious.

How do I figure out which ships will be in port on the day we are in Cozumel? Jan 28th, btw. Also, how to know which pier our ship will dock at?

Zika is only a problem for pregnant women, and at that, the risk is VERY low. However, the CDC recommends that pregnant women avoid areas that Zika is endemic to, which also includes most of the American south.

I'm getting queasy just thinking about it! Even after 2.5 years at sea in the Navy, I still get motion sick, even while sitting docked at the pier. I use the patches with great success. Won't even think about boarding a ship without them.