obx_fintoo Posted March 15, 2010 #26 Share Posted March 15, 2010 DH and I had 9 wonderful cruises on the Celebration between April 2005 and her final voyage in April 2008. It was truly a small town and we got to know all of the staff (waiters, bar, casino) well since we saw many of them every 4-6 months. :cool: The final cruise was a bit disappointing in that they didn't make a huge deal out of it, however Captain Tuminello, who had been the captain for the majority of our cruises, did get a bit emotional about her during the Past Guest party. As someone else has mentioned, service and friendliness was exceptional. All cruises since have been judged by Celebration standards and often are lacking. :sigh: Thanks for the bit of nostalgia! Happy cruising! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RICKnVICK Posted March 15, 2010 #27 Share Posted March 15, 2010 Our first cruise was on the Celebration in 2000!! We had such a great time. It was a spring break cruise and we took both of our girls who were 10 and 7 at the time. Well, this cruise definitely started our obsession with cruising! We thought she was a huge ship and couldn't imagine how much bigger ships have gotten through the years! My favorite memories of this ship are many, but I thought the kids programs were incredibly creative and well run. Our girls had a terrific time when they participated. We also really enjoyed our dining room experience and the pool deck. Staff was incredibly efficient and friendly and made the experience that much more enjoyable! Also, that was back in the day when there were steel drums being played on pool deck! I sure miss those!!! Thanks for this thread. Brings back some great memories! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lizzyloulou Posted March 15, 2010 #28 Share Posted March 15, 2010 The Celebration ushered in my first cruise. Thanksgiving week of 1996 I boarded the ship with my best friend from college as we enjoyed our graduation trip. The ship left out of New Orleans. What a fun time. My best friend is Philapino and I so remember her being hawked by all of the Pacific Islander crew members. They thought she was a celebrity...one even asked if she would take a picture with him. The ship did feel huge although it also felt imitimate. Folks back then really dressed to the nines and the energy was exciting in the evening. In a week and a half I leave on my platinum cruise (Dream-3/27). Looking forward to seeing the new ship and spending more great times on board. Cheeers to the Celebration! Cindy :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimjamxx Posted March 15, 2010 #29 Share Posted March 15, 2010 The Celebration ushered in my first cruise. Thanksgiving week of 1996 I boarded the ship with my best friend from college as we enjoyed our graduation trip. The ship left out of New Orleans. What a fun time. My best friend is Philapino and I so remember her being hawked by all of the Pacific Islander crew members. They thought she was a celebrity...one even asked if she would take a picture with him. The ship did feel huge although it also felt imitimate. Folks back then really dressed to the nines and the energy was exciting in the evening. In a week and a half I leave on my platinum cruise (Dream-3/27). Looking forward to seeing the new ship and spending more great times on board. Cheeers to the Celebration! Cindy :) Ok, Miss Cindy here is a pic just for you: Celebration at New Orleans pier August 1997: JimmyJames Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimjamxx Posted March 15, 2010 #30 Share Posted March 15, 2010 Here are some more of crew, waiters etc: (Also August 1997) JimmyJames Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
douglinc@msn.com Posted March 15, 2010 #31 Share Posted March 15, 2010 The Celebration was out 1st. cruise in 97 also, it was even better because my wife won it and the cruise and airfare to New Orleans was free!! We sailed her when she was in New Orleans doing 7 day and when she moved to Galveston doing 5 days. We really enjoyed our time on the Celebration, met lots of really nice people & really loved the ship. The piano man in the piano bar was really good. (Jim something) I really hated to see her go, she is still my favorite ship. Enjoying the pictures, keep them coming. Doug Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimjamxx Posted March 15, 2010 #32 Share Posted March 15, 2010 The Celebration was out 1st. cruise in 97 also, it was even better because my wife won it and the cruise and airfare to New Orleans was free!! We sailed her when she was in New Orleans doing 7 day and when she moved to Galveston doing 5 days. We really enjoyed our time on the Celebration, met lots of really nice people & really loved the ship. The piano man in the piano bar was really good. (Jim something) I really hated to see her go, she is still my favorite ship. Enjoying the pictures, keep them coming. Doug Here you go Mister Doug, a few more: Muster Drill. Check out the people in the pool and the upper deck, before Carnival made everybody attend. I know a few in our group did not attend: More Lido Deck shots: JimmyJames Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimjamxx Posted March 15, 2010 #33 Share Posted March 15, 2010 Hairy chest contest: Ice carving: JimmyJames Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnowWhiteNYC Posted March 15, 2010 #34 Share Posted March 15, 2010 The Celebration was my first cruise too! One year out of college in 1987! Sailed her again on a 5 day out of Jacksonville near the end of her run with Carnival.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
disneybride96 Posted March 15, 2010 #35 Share Posted March 15, 2010 My first cruise on a "big" ship. (my first was on the long lost Dolphin Line). My college friend an myself went in '93 & '94. Amazing that we didn't kill each other. I thought it was great, but I won't even cruise without a balcony now! lol! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
new2florida Posted March 16, 2010 #36 Share Posted March 16, 2010 Celebration was our first cruise, 5 night out of Jax in 2006. Apparently that ship liked stormy weather. Our family did fine, out friends spent too much time in their cabin and all became sick. We loved the size of the ship, it was always easy to find the kids and each other. The Celebration did it's job well...leaving us wanting more. Forgot about the cable car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PoofyTheCat Posted March 16, 2010 #37 Share Posted March 16, 2010 I appreciate the fact that this Celebration thread started because I was just wondering the following question recently... (thank you to the OP for this thread!) I was on the Celebration in '98 and boarded in Tampa. I faintly recall that people boarded in New Orleans during our trip. Was it true that you could start your trip in Tampa OR New Orleans? And... Of course I can research the statistics about how much larger today's ships are vs. Celebration, but, I ask because I just want a human answer. I have not been on a ship since. How much smaller does the Celebration ship seem compared to today's "newer" (5yrs old or younger) ships? Thanks for the thread! And thank you for the pictures. They bring back such fond memories. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
douglinc@msn.com Posted March 16, 2010 #38 Share Posted March 16, 2010 The cruise actually originated in Tampa, but we boarded in New Orleans. This was the only ship we have been on that passengers get on and off in more than one port. Doug Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tootsiebit Posted March 16, 2010 #39 Share Posted March 16, 2010 Ahhh..the Celebration....she was our 2nd cruise in July 2001...our first being the Destiny in 1996....and we definitely enjoyed the Celebration more than the Destiny...if she was still sailing Carnival I would so be on her....when we sailed, our Captain was Orazio D'Aita and our Cruise Director was Dave Armour ( we had John Heald on our 1st cruise on Destiny) and we thought he would not even come close to John, but let me tell you we loved him...he kept us laughing throughout the whole cruise and was so personable... Man NOW I really miss the Celebration!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arush5268d Posted March 16, 2010 Author #40 Share Posted March 16, 2010 I appreciate the fact that this Celebration thread started because I was just wondering the following question recently... (thank you to the OP for this thread!) I was on the Celebration in '98 and boarded in Tampa. I faintly recall that people boarded in New Orleans during our trip. Was it true that you could start your trip in Tampa OR New Orleans? And... Of course I can research the statistics about how much larger today's ships are vs. Celebration, but, I ask because I just want a human answer. I have not been on a ship since. How much smaller does the Celebration ship seem compared to today's "newer" (5yrs old or younger) ships? Thanks for the thread! And thank you for the pictures. They bring back such fond memories. :) Here's one way to compare sizes Carnival Celebration ~1500 passengers Carnival Dream ~ 3700 passengers So well over double the passenger cabins, plus much more public room and fun stuff on board. The dream has about 3 times the gross tonnage of the Celebration. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tisabee Posted March 16, 2010 #41 Share Posted March 16, 2010 The Celebration was our first cruise, 4 day out of Galveston. We had so much fun we booked her again for a 5 day, 6 months later. Definately the start of something beautiful! My DH and I were just mentioning her the other day when we made our final payment for our "Dream" cruise with our kids for the summer (their first cruise.) He said, remember how big we thought the ship was? We laughed and told the kids how many Celebrations would fit inside a Dream. Looking forward to sharing our love of cruising with the kids, but, will never forget our first! Happy sailing everyone! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonneville02 Posted March 16, 2010 #42 Share Posted March 16, 2010 ...Of course I can research the statistics about how much larger today's ships are vs. Celebration, but, I ask because I just want a human answer. I have not been on a ship since. How much smaller does the Celebration ship seem compared to today's "newer" (5yrs old or younger) ships? I've only sailed on Celebration once, her last New Year's cruise. It was my 2nd cruise, the first being on Elation. At the time, Celebration didn't seem that much smaller than Elation. However, Celebration lacked Elation's atrium. In Nassau, we were docked next to the Sensation (another Fantasy Class ship like Elation). I was able to compare the two side by side. I studied them closely. Very similar, but Celebration was shorter. The next year after sailing on Celebration, I did a 7 day on Valor. When I stepped aboard, it was clear that this modern Conquest Class ship was much bigger than Celebration. Huge atrium, taller, wider and a lot more passengers. More balcony rooms bars and restaurants. In St Thomas and St Maarten, we were docked next to or near Freedom of the Seas. At the time it was (arguably) one of the the largest cruise ships sailing. The Valor seemed big, but it was clearly smaller. People have commented that the old Holiday Class ships were more intimate, and I have to agree. The newer ships, especially anything Royal Caribbean has launched over the last 10 years easily dwarf the old Holiday Class ships. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spencercoop Posted March 16, 2010 #43 Share Posted March 16, 2010 I never got a chance to sail on the Holiday class ships. I wish I would have been able to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spencercoop Posted March 16, 2010 #44 Share Posted March 16, 2010 The cruise actually originated in Tampa, but we boarded in New Orleans. This was the only ship we have been on that passengers get on and off in more than one port. Doug Now you can board the Victory in San Juan or Barbados. This is the only cruise I am aware of right now that you can board in two ports. On the Elation Panama Canal cruise you can get off in Tampa or Mobile. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arush5268d Posted March 16, 2010 Author #45 Share Posted March 16, 2010 I never got a chance to sail on the Holiday class ships. I wish I would have been able to. They definately had a certain charm to them, much like the Fantasy class does now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spencercoop Posted March 16, 2010 #46 Share Posted March 16, 2010 They definately had a certain charm to them, much like the Fantasy class does now. I think it is weird that the Fantasy class feels less crowed to me, then the Spirit class. Even though the Fantasy space ratio is 34:1 and the Spirit is 41:1. The Spirit only has about 200 more people but is a lot bigger. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
k2excursion Posted March 16, 2010 #47 Share Posted March 16, 2010 I was on the Celebration for my first 2 cruises, and I loved that ship! I was on the Holiday too, and the Celebration was definitely my favorite of the 2. Ship problems put a damper on my first cruise, then Hurricane Ivan put a damper on the 2nd. But I definitely loved the ship, and it got me addicted. I was clueless on my first cruise, but I started figuring things out. The staff was so friendly. The shows were always entertaining. My female friend kept dragging me up to the top-optional tanning deck, which Carnival eventually did away with, for whatever reason. I liked being able to get to know more people, since you see the same people more often. Getting around was easier, which meant I used the stairs more, helping to work off all that food. Of course I can research the statistics about how much larger today's ships are vs. Celebration, but, I ask because I just want a human answer. I have not been on a ship since. How much smaller does the Celebration ship seem compared to today's "newer" (5yrs old or younger) ships? The Fantasy class ships do feel a little bigger. There's more room out on the Lido deck around and above the pool. The atrium definitely makes the Fantasy ships feel a lot bigger. The theater feels only slightly bigger. Those and Spirit class ships are the best ones to go on if you like the smaller ships. Also, that was back in the day when there were steel drums being played on pool deck! I sure miss those!!! That was Clive playing that steel drum around the pool. He was on my 1st 2 cruises on the Celebration, and he was also on the Holiday last November. I really enjoyed the atmosphere that Clive brought. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
navybaby1113 Posted March 16, 2010 #48 Share Posted March 16, 2010 The Celebration was our very first cruise. We went in 2008. Had a great time. Now our second cruise will be on the Carnival Dream and it's going to be a culture shock. Interior stateroom with the wonderful fake window Funnel shot Beanbag toss contest. We lost. :-( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
navybaby1113 Posted March 16, 2010 #49 Share Posted March 16, 2010 Eating some warm chocolate melting cake. Sailway in Jacksonville. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeBeCruiser Posted March 16, 2010 #50 Share Posted March 16, 2010 The Celebration was our first cruise, too. We did the 5 day out of Jacksonville to Key West and Nassau. We had a great time and love cruising. Hoping to go on another one last this year or early next year! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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