Just returned from Carnival Elation

Just got back last night from the Carnival Elation. I am not sure I will have time to post a full review but I will answer any questions you may have.

There were nine of us ladies that went and overall we had a good time. On Tuesday we received a phone call that my husbands grandmother had passed away. My mother in law had to fly out of Cabo to return home.

Things kind of went down hill after that, but we tried to make the most of it.

I was dissapointed in not having the Grand midnight buffet, but oh well. They said people came to take pictures but never returned to eat the food. So the cruise before ours was the last one.

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask.

Just got back last night from the Carnival Elation. I am not sure I will have time to post a full review but I will answer any questions you may have.

 

There were nine of us ladies that went and overall we had a good time. On Tuesday we received a phone call that my husbands grandmother had passed away. My mother in law had to fly out of Cabo to return home.

 

Things kind of went down hill after that, but we tried to make the most of it.

 

I was dissapointed in not having the Grand midnight buffet, but oh well. They said people came to take pictures but never returned to eat the food. So the cruise before ours was the last one.

 

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask.

Sorry to hear of grandma's passing.

We flew to San Diego on Saturday before the cruise on Monday. I won a bid on priceline for the Westin hotel Gaslamp Quarter. This is a great hotel. Such a good location. It is attached to the Horton plaza shopping mall.

Since we had no transportation, we took the old town trolley tour. It was a great way to see the sights of San Diego.

Boarding the Elation was super easy. Debarkation was the same. Quick and painless.

The food was extremely dissapointing. We ate every night in the dining room. Buffet was not good at all. The chocolate melting cake was good every night tho! We ordered room service for breakfast since it was just easier than dealing with the crowds.

We had a ball in Cabo. We went to Medano beach and ate at the Mango I think? We took a banana boat ride which was the highlite of the day. He took us around the arches which were just beautiful.

Then he threw us all off into the ocean. So much fun!!! Beware of all the beach vendors. If your looking for a peaceful beach day, it won't happen here.

Ensenada was terrible. We ended up taking a bus tour for $15 to La Bufadora. While that was pretty neat, once again the vendors were everywhere. I think all these ports are getting worse and worse. They just shove things in your face. Pretty annoying.

Overall the trip was good. I must say that Carnival and Omar, the gentlemen that helped get my mother in law off the ship, were very helpful. Unfortunately, she had to buy a $30 mexican visa to fly out of Cabo. Her cab ride to the airport was $70. :eek: But she made it home alright. You just never know what can happen when you go on vacation.

First - sorry to hear about your husbands grandmother.

But, since you asked - I do have some questions for you.

I have booked my first cruise for January on the Elation and cannot wait for my trip. I am going with a friend and neither of us have cruised before.I will type my questions below - thanks!

1. What time did you get to the terminal to board? Did you have to wait a long time?

2. What time did you get off the ship?

3. What did you not like about the food? anything specific?

4. How much space did you have in the cabin for clothes? Was it really small?

5. Did you hear about any excursions that would be worthwhile to go on?

6. What kind of activities are there to participate in during the day? anything really fun?

Thanks so much!! I would love to hear more!

First - sorry to hear about your husbands grandmother.

 

But, since you asked - I do have some questions for you.

 

I have booked my first cruise for January on the Elation and cannot wait for my trip. I am going with a friend and neither of us have cruised before.I will type my questions below - thanks!

 

1. What time did you get to the terminal to board? Did you have to wait a long time?

2. What time did you get off the ship?

3. What did you not like about the food? anything specific?

4. How much space did you have in the cabin for clothes? Was it really small?

5. Did you hear about any excursions that would be worthwhile to go on?

6. What kind of activities are there to participate in during the day? anything really fun?

 

Thanks so much!! I would love to hear more!

We got to the terminal at about 11:30am. We had to wait only about 30-45 minutes after we checked in to board. There was a wedding party before us, so they got to board first.

We got off the ship pretty early. It was pretty painless. However we did acquire too much alcohol so had to go to the customs office to pay duty.

We loved the food. Every part of it. order one of everything...haha!! We got a little sick the night before the last day. Not sure what it was from. Something from Cabo that we ate.

We had an inside stateroom with a king size bed and two bunk beds, it was rather crowded, but we were really only in the room to sleep. Thats it. The other rooms are a tad bit bigger. My mother inlaw had the penthouse suite, it was awesome. and pretty big.

There are different things do to do on the ship daily. Just read your capers. I might have these, i sure can take pics of them and send them to you if you would like. It tells ya all the activities every day. You get one in your room daily. They are also avalable at the pursers desk.

We didnt do any excursions this time. We just went and did some touring on our own and went shopping. Everyone liked Cabo the best but me. I really liked Ensenada. You just have to go to these places with an open mind. It is a totally different place then here. At times the Vendors do get a lil annoying. Its rather funny to get them riled up though. You can always get the items for cheaper, never give them the amount of money they ask for.

If you have any other questions let me know. YOu can email me also @ jessanddawn@msn.com

Overall the trip was good. I must say that Carnival and Omar, the gentlemen that helped get my mother in law off the ship, were very helpful. Unfortunately, she had to buy a $30 mexican visa to fly out of Cabo. Her cab ride to the airport was $70. :eek: But she made it home alright. You just never know what can happen when you go on vacation.

First of all, sorry about grandma:(

You mentioned your mother in law had to buy a mexican visa? Did she not have a passport?

I supsect the Mexican Visa is to show that she was actually in the country, in order to fly out of Mexico. The reason I know this is my husband of 19 years, prior to our marriage, when we were just dating, went on a cruise to Mexico. Since he drove down to catch the ship from San Jose, he parked his car in my driveway while gone. He had asked me to go along (long story), but I had to work. While on this cruise he decided that he was to lonely without me, so cut his cruise short, actually when the ship docked in Mazatlan. He asked at the front desk if there was any way he could "jump ship" and fly back to San Diego to be with me and they told him yes he could, but had to fill out paperwork to show that he actually was in Mexico and leaving via the airport. And actually one of ship's personell escorted him to the airport so there would be no question. And yes he did have a passport. Needless to say, after 19 years of marriage, I think it was the best surprise I have ever gotten, having him show up at my house, just after he had left, on the cruise, 4 days prior.:)

The dinning room food was great when we sailed the exception was in the buffet. The buffet food was terrible and a big dissapointment. The buffet name is Tiffanys and we ended up calling it digust-a-ny's. The selection was bad, the food over seasoned or not seasoned enough. This is not coming from food snobs we love buffets just like the rest of America; but make no mistake this is not good. I hope Carnival will address this because I would think to cruise another line for this reason alone.

Food to me is so much a part of the cruise experience.

Condolences to you and your family on your loss.

Thank you for sharing some info with us on your Elation cruise. We are very excited to cruise here in a little over a week. I have heard good things about Mango's in Cabo and, since we have already done the cabo wabo thing, maybe we will try Mangos.

Sorry to hear about Grannie....

Just curious as to who the Cruise Director is on Elation.

First - sorry to hear about your husbands grandmother.

 

But, since you asked - I do have some questions for you.

 

I have booked my first cruise for January on the Elation and cannot wait for my trip. I am going with a friend and neither of us have cruised before.I will type my questions below - thanks!

 

1. What time did you get to the terminal to board? Did you have to wait a long time? We got to the terminal around noon. We dropped off our luggage and went right on board. Very quick. No waiting.

2. What time did you get off the ship? We got off around 9:30 I think??

3. What did you not like about the food? anything specific? I would get my steaks very well done no matter how I asked for them. Way over cooked. I am also very picky, so you may like the food just fine. the appetizers were good, but the main entree in the dining room was just alright. Buffets were awful. Just my opinion, please judge for yourself.

4. How much space did you have in the cabin for clothes? Was it really small? We were in U164 in a oceanview. Clothing space was fine, don't worry about it too much. Your not really in there that much.

5. Did you hear about any excursions that would be worthwhile to go on? We did not do any excursions this time. I do have all my capers if you want to see them.

6. What kind of activities are there to participate in during the day? anything really fun? There was trivia games, dance classes, golf putting contests, ship orientations and tours, bingo, slot tournaments, black jack tournaments, wine tasting seminars, scavenger hunts, bars, big screen movies, tea time, I had a hot stone massage one morning, I have one every time I cruise, plenty of things to do or not to do

 

Thanks so much!! I would love to hear more!

Stuart Dunn is the cruise director.

Yes, my mother in law does have a passport. I am not sure why she had to have the mexican visa. She didn't ask, she was too distraught.

First - sorry to hear about your husbands grandmother.

 

But, since you asked - I do have some questions for you.

 

I have booked my first cruise for January on the Elation and cannot wait for my trip. I am going with a friend and neither of us have cruised before.I will type my questions below - thanks!

 

1. What time did you get to the terminal to board? Did you have to wait a long time?

 

We got to the port at 1030 was in group 1 to board was on the ship by 1115

 

2. What time did you get off the ship?

i didnt have any tickets, so i had a high debarkation number (24) but was off the ship by 930-945

 

3. What did you not like about the food? anything specific?

 

i ate the steaks every night very good i dont eat seafood so my options was small some nights. My wife did not like the breakfasts though. We both loved the danishes though!

 

4. How much space did you have in the cabin for clothes? Was it really small?

 

you have 2 closets with 10 hangers each. and about 4-5 shelves.

 

5. Did you hear about any excursions that would be worthwhile to go on?

 

in cabo i went diving was one of the best dives i been on

in Ensenada we took the $3 round trip to town on the way they said they had a bus for 15 to the blow hole and shops blow hole was ok thats about it. So if you see the excursion for La Bufadora(blow hole), dont book it through Carnival.

 

6. What kind of activities are there to participate in during the day?

anything really fun?

 

i have all the capers(itinerary) i can scan them in if you want all so

 

Thanks so much!! I would love to hear more!

It was fun!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Is Stuart Dunn any good ?

mmm this was my first go around

we was good when he was around full energy, weezie was the asst and she was ok but kind of bland but you will see her alot.

on the last night they dressed him up in a dress it was funny for the last show.

Is Stuart Dunn any good ?

I was on the Elation in April, and I really enjoyed him. LOTS of energy. He is Australian, very funny, and very visable during the cruise. I was on the Elation Sept 06, and I can't tell you who the CD was on that one, but I do remember the hosts. LOL Stich was great.

I also offer my sincere sympathy for the loss in your family. My question is who did you book your banana boat ride through? Thanks so much

I also offer my sincere sympathy for the loss in your family. My question is who did you book your banana boat ride through? Thanks so much

We were on Medano beach, right in front of Mango's. The gentlemens name was Edgar. I never asked for a company name. The ride was twelve dollars a person. It was so worth it. We had the best time of the whole trip doing this.

Stuart Dunn is a blast. He is so much fun.

You can check out all my pics on myspace.

http://www.myspace.com/cameron_sierra

Sarah... thank you for sharing your pictures. I stopped by you myspace page.... They are really great.

Thanks!!

.

 

Yes, my mother in law does have a passport. I am not sure why she had to have the mexican visa. She didn't ask, she was too distraught.

The Mexican visa is a Tourist Card...but is only needed if the person is in Mexico for more than 72 hours. Apparently the cruise qualifies for this.

Your mother-in-law was very smart to have a passport. Had she only had a birth certificate, it would've been much more complicated to get her out of Mexico on a flight back to the US. I believe the US Consulate has to get involved now (since the new law), and it can take a few days. That's why cruiselines keep asking passengers to get passports.

thanks for sharing...........I loved the "blackmail pictures" They actually made me laugh out loud! :D

I do have a question........Can you tell me for sure if Cabo is a tender port or not?

Thanks in advance

So sorry for the loss your family is mourning.........

I'm very sorry for your loss. We are concerned because my DH's dad is not well and we are very worried that something could go wrong and we would be thousands of miles away. Very comforting to hear that Carnival was helpful.

thanks for taking the time to share your experience

Yes Cabo is a tender port. It went very smoothly for us.

Thanks for all your kind words. I had organized this trip for all of us nine women and I made every one of them get a passport just in case. I have been thanked over and over again about this. I can't stress enough about getting one before you cruise. You never know what could happen, don't take the chance.

Great pictures Sarah! Thanks for sharing.

Sorry for you loss. Thanks for the info though. Much appreciated.

I always have fun taking the pictures. Still learning to work the new camera. Seems that my pictures always turn out blurry:confused: Guess Im too shaky, lol.