Carnival Elation Review - Post Dry Dock October 13

Good morning! It's my first review and I want to start by saying the only other cruise to compare it to is the Carnival Fascination we took this past March.

That being said, I will start with the "Dry Dock" everyone has been wondering about. We searched, and searched, and the only thing we could "visibly" notice was new carpet in the hallways by the elevator. We also noticed in places, especially the Lido buffet area, new tiles that did not match the existing tiles. When docked in Cozumel, we noticed that the ship had been "spot" painted on the outside - most notably the bottom which did not really match the rest of the ship. You could also see "touch ups" all over the boat. We also asked our wait staff during dinner one night (I love talking to the crew) if they enjoyed their "2 week dry dock vacation." Much to our surprise, they did not receive a 2 week dry dock vacation but rather were part of the "dry dock crew." Apparently they worked the entire time, said new lights and ceilings were put into place, and it was crazy.

Now onto my family's cruise the week of October 13 which included me, my husband, my son, my daughter, my father-in-law, and my mother-in-law. I was so excited to bring my inlaws along with us because we had such a fabulous time on the Fascination. I was quite disappointed in the Elation as it was very noticeably worn out and rusted. It also had odd smells throughout the ship. The entertainment paled in comparison to the Fascination, two hot tubs were not working, the crew seemed very tired (I would be too if I worked a 2 week dry dock with no down time), and the food was just so-so. In my humble opinion, the Elation needs a lot of TLC.

All that being said, we had a wonderful time. While the Progresso port was not a place I'd visit again, we walked around the town and at no time did I ever feel "unsafe." We actually stood on the beach for 10 minutes before anyone ever came up and asked us to buy something. The water was clearer than I had read on other reviews so that was a big surprise. We talked with locals and experienced a different way of life.

Cozumel was just awesome and a port we will most definetely visit again, and again, and again. We took a taxi to Nachi and went snorkeling for the first time. I'm still in awe of how beautiful it was and the fact that you just floated on the water. It was an experience that none of us will ever forget (especially me burping through my mouthpiece after "trying" to dive down). My family, and probably the family with us, is still laughing about that! We saw a huge turtle, loads of fish, two small jellyfish, and everyone BUT me saw a shark (I may have been taking in water then and preparing for my burp!LOL).

Sorry I have no pictures to share but I must say that our wait staff was great. The first night they seemed "off" and it was just weird. After learning the second night of their 2 week dry dock fun (because as I said I LOVE to talk to the crew), they became more relaxed with us. They entertained my kids, made us laugh, and made up for the lack of entertainment elsewhere. Needless to say, we tipped all three extra for making our dinning experience so much fun and memorable (which caught them by total surprise -- we prepaid our tips already). I also gave them a glowing review when I received the email from Carnival as they so justly deserved.

One final note, while waiting for my father-in-law at the Guest Services desk one night, I struck up a conversation with another Guest Services lady from Jamacia. We spoke for about 10 minutes about anything and everything. As I said, I enjoy speaking with the crew and Sashe was a hoot! :D

Evolutions of fun / flat screen TV's?

No waterworks or such. There is the Punchliner Comedy Club. Our OV cabin, E198, actually had a flat screen in the box but my inlaws' OV cabin, E207, had a regular box TV inside the box.

No waterworks or such. There is the Punchliner Comedy Club. Our OV cabin, E198, actually had a flat screen in the box but my inlaws' OV cabin, E207, had a regular box TV inside the box.

How about "the box" in the corner where the keep the life vests?

Unfortunately the "box" in the corner is still there.

Oh, I forgot to mention that they did install (I'm assuming) new digital thermometers in the cabins. You can no longer "regulate" the temperatures in your cabin. You can only turn it down so far and you have no idea what the actual temperature of your room is. I'd say our room temperature was around 76 because we were hot at night sleeping and we brought 2 fans. I'm generally a very cold person but the room was warm.

Thanks for your review. Sounds like you had a good time despite the uninspiring results of the dry dock. I was hoping that, at least, they'd figure out a way to remove the corner boxes.

Did you have set dining, if so who was your waiter? If you do Cozumel again with your family (depending on the age of your children) you might consider the Amazing Race excursion, it's a scavenger hunt that takes you all through downtown Cozumel, our family (Me 42, DW 38 and DSs 15 and 10) had a blast.

Thanks for sharing your experiences with us. I enjoyed reading your review.

Thanks for doing your review. You and I have cruises on the same ships-I love the Fantasy class-I would recommend that in Progresso, you get away from the town, the Mayan ruins are reachable thru excursions, and worth every penny paid.

DH and I were debating going back to Progresso to see Chichen Itza next year, or going back to HMC, his choice, and HMC won. I'm getting old, those ruins are going to be on my list forever.!

I loved the Elations public rooms, but those boxes in the cabin, what a waste of space!

We went to Nachi too! I have to say it was a lot better than Mr. Sancho's.

I have to agree with your review... Uninspired is a very accurate word. I thoroughly enjoyed my cruise, but the ship itself needs an overhaul bad. The Paradise was delivered in the same year, but I don't remember it seeming as bad.

The only smell I noticed was in the hallway near our room on deck M... it consistently smelled of cigarettes.

Are you referring to the hot tubs on Lido at the back of ship? That was kind of disappointing.

Thanks for your review. Sounds like you had a good time despite the uninspiring results of the dry dock. I was hoping that, at least, they'd figure out a way to remove the corner boxes.

 

Did you have set dining, if so who was your waiter? If you do Cozumel again with your family (depending on the age of your children) you might consider the Amazing Race excursion, it's a scavenger hunt that takes you all through downtown Cozumel, our family (Me 42, DW 38 and DSs 15 and 10) had a blast.

You're very welcome! We had early dinning and had Renato, from Peru, John, from Peru, and Ianyoman. John was beyond outstanding!!

We will return to Cozumel. It was amazingly beautiful!

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Thanks for sharing your experiences with us. I enjoyed reading your review.

Thanks! :)

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Thanks for doing your review. You and I have cruises on the same ships-I love the Fantasy class-I would recommend that in Progresso, you get away from the town, the Mayan ruins are reachable thru excursions, and worth every penny paid.

 

DH and I were debating going back to Progresso to see Chichen Itza next year, or going back to HMC, his choice, and HMC won. I'm getting old, those ruins are going to be on my list forever.!

 

I loved the Elations public rooms, but those boxes in the cabin, what a waste of space!

I really wanted to do an excursion to the ruins but the kids would have made it miserable complaing about it being hot, or too much walking. It's on my list!lol

Good luck with HMC. It was cancelled for us this past March and it was so disappointing. We'll try again one day!

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We went to Nachi too! I have to say it was a lot better than Mr. Sancho's.

 

I have to agree with your review... Uninspired is a very accurate word. I thoroughly enjoyed my cruise, but the ship itself needs an overhaul bad. The Paradise was delivered in the same year, but I don't remember it seeming as bad.

 

The only smell I noticed was in the hallway near our room on deck M... it consistently smelled of cigarettes.

 

Are you referring to the hot tubs on Lido at the back of ship? That was kind of disappointing.

Umm, well, sure hope you weren't the dude being pulled out of the pool at Naci, then pushed head first into a trash can by a woman so you could puke. . . yikes!

We didn't smell cigs on our port side hallways on Empress deck but man it smelled in the hallways on the other side. Horribly so.

Yep, hot tubs aft on lido. But I had two drinks of the day that were superb! :)

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I really wanted to do an excursion to the ruins but the kids would have made it miserable complaing about it being hot, or too much walking. It's on my list!lol

 

Good luck with HMC. It was cancelled for us this past March and it was so disappointing. We'll try again one day!

 

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The ruins are a pretty good way from Cozumel plus you have to take a ferry to the mainland, we're going to Uxmal from progresso in December, but that's just me and my wife.

Enjoyed reading your review. Did you snorkel from shore or from a boat when you visited Nachi?

Nice review, thanks for posting it.

The ruins are a pretty good way from Cozumel plus you have to take a ferry to the mainland, we're going to Uxmal from progresso in December, but that's just me and my wife.

If you are going to Uxmal look at using Autoprogresso for the tour. A great outfit and much cheaper than going through Carnival. We have used them twice and had a great time.

We just returned from the Oct 18th sailing. Yeppers, hard to see what was updated and the most noticable thing was the thermostats in the staterooms which were too warm at night.

The crew did seems tired (using nice words).

Enjoyed reading your review. Did you snorkel from shore or from a boat when you visited Nachi?

We were approached by a "rep" for the snorkeling and a another "rep" for the wave runners when we got settled in our loungers. When I reserved our day at Nachi I considered the snorkeling package but was unsure whether the inlaws could do it. My father in law knew that was the only thing my son wanted to do so he paid for all of us to go, and even "negotiated" a deal that was way better than what is quoted on the website.

They took us out in a boat (which I thought 'oh dear, wonder who will get sick' but it was great. It seemed like we went forever and a day away from Nachi. They took us first where the water was about 10 feet deep and it seemed like we were there forever but it gave us time to really figure it all out since we have never done it. (OH, btw, we bought our own snorkel gear and took it with us - glad we did and it worked beautifully BUT they did have gear for you.)

Then they loaded us up and said they were taking us to another spot. We all just stared at each other like, "OMG - really?" This time the water was 20 feet and at the end it was around 35 to 40 feet deep. The guides were great and at the end we were really close to Nachi. He explained that the current was really pulling us north, which made it much easier for us to swim. I think we left around 11:00 and returned near 1:00. It was beyond worth it!

It was the most fabulous time we have ever had and I totally recommend it!!!

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We just returned from the Oct 18th sailing. Yeppers, hard to see what was updated and the most noticable thing was the thermostats in the staterooms which were too warm at night.

 

The crew did seems tired (using nice words).

I imagine the thermostats are going to be the biggest complaint CCL receives from guests in weeks to come. Oddly enough though, it was "always" freezer cold in the dinning rooms, theatre, and atrium. Not sure how having those areas frigidly cold, and the staterooms warmer is a cost savings?

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Nice review, thanks for posting it.

You're welcome, and thanks for the kind words.

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Umm, well, sure hope you weren't the dude being pulled out of the pool at Naci, then pushed head first into a trash can by a woman so you could puke. . . yikes!

Thankfully, that was not me - but I did see that. He seemed like a fairly big guy, so he probably either had WAY too much, or he just can't hold his own...

Thankfully, that was not me - but I did see that. He seemed like a fairly big guy, so he probably either had WAY too much, or he just can't hold his own...

Oh good! Unfortunately there were a couple of men at the swim up bar that day who had one too many. Just stayed away, had a great time.

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If you are going to Uxmal look at using Autoprogresso for the tour. A great outfit and much cheaper than going through Carnival. We have used them twice and had a great time.

I've seen that, actually I tried to submit the Autoprogresso tour for the 110% lowest price guarantee, but as the Autoprogresso tour is an hour shorter, Carnival denied my claim.

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Great review! Thanks for the info! We were on the last sailing before dry dock and am looking at returning early next year. I was hoping they would add additional electrical outlets in the cabins, but you didn't mention it, so I guess I'll pack my handy-dandy power strip again. It was a necessity for us, between cameras, hair dryers, phones, etc!! Having only one plug is absurd!! And it looks like I'll be packing a little fan as well!

Did they by chance change the access to the room safes? When we were on the ship, rather than our sail & sign card, we had to use a credit card to operate the safe. That was really inconvenient and I was traveling with my husband!

Another necessity that I had seen elsewhere is febreeze/air freshner...and the hint was correct!

I, too, was hoping they had done away with the lifejacket box. If you have a 'kingsized" bed vs twins, it makes no sense!!