Another Pride Review from a Different Perspective

[flag fan]

Glad you got to see a little of D.C. Your pictures make it look particularly good. Walking around the mall can be exhausting, particularly in the summer heat. Looking forward to hear your take on the Carnival Pride, which I sailed on early this year and really enjoyed.

[ChampionCruiser]

"I didn’t take any pictures of the hotel but it was nice with a nice pool (with a lifeguard on duty)"

 

Something interesting I learned on my trip to DC last year was all public- use pools in Virginia must have a lifeguard on duty. The guy at our hotel pool said it was the easiest (but rather boring) job you could have.

 

That is interesting. That was (I think) the first hotel i've stayed at that had a lifeguard.

[ChampionCruiser]

Wow this whole detailed review thing takes longer than I thought!! But it's worth it since I get to relive my cruise :)

 

Here I go again...

 

SUNDAY, JUNE 20: BALTIMORE

 

We slept in as long as we possibly could Sunday morning before excitement overtook us and we had to get out of bed. Our planned “leisurely” morning turned out to be a sprint to get to the ship ASAP! We ended up leaving the hotel around 10:00 and stopped only for breakfast at McDonalds. After that, we were on the road again, but for a quick hour long ride this time (we were glad we drove nearly the whole way on Friday). We were worried about finding the ship in Baltimore (even though I go to school in New Orleans, we are definitely NOT city people – we like two lane roads with only a few cars!) but it was extremely easy. Just get on I-95 and follow the cruise terminal signs to exit 55.

 

Though we all had our eyes peeled, it was my sister who had the honor of spotting the whale tail first:

 

 

And this is where we really began to get excited! A few minutes and $115.00 later we were parked and ready to board our home for the next seven days.

 

[ChampionCruiser]

Even though I kinda knew what to expect as far as embarkation, we were all pleasantly surprised by how smooth the process was! We were directed to a short line to go through security and another short line to get our sail and sign cards. After that, we were given zone 14 tickets and were seated by 11:45. This was the first time I was issued a zone number and seating area for embarkation and I much preferred it to standing in a long line. It was about 12:40 when the boarding process began and it didn’t take long for our zone to be called (I was too excited to look at the time though).

 

After climbing the gangway, you enter on deck 2 in the atrium. My first reaction was “wow”. No, it wasn’t as big as the Mariner of the Seas’ or as glitzy as the Glory’s, but I could tell that the Pride was a beautiful ship the second I stepped on board. I actually told my aunt that it didn’t look like a Carnival ship (which our cruise director Kirk later mentioned as well). I know some people find the ship too dark and the décor unfortunate but I thought the entire ship was amazing. I’m sure I’ll post more ship pictures later…

 

 

We made our way up to the lido buffet restaurant (Mermaid’s Grill) and to our surprise easily found a table for the four of us. We ate a quick lunch and then my sister and I went to explore the ship (while the other two waited with our bags) though we didn’t see much before the announcement was made early that we could go to our staterooms.

 

Our cabin was 5214, port side, and was just your average Carnival balcony cabin (which works for us). I chose this cabin because it was part of the “jut out”, meaning you didn’t see a lifeboat when you looked down from your balcony. We were really glad we chose a port cabin for this cruise since it offered better views of both Grand Turk and Freeport. I have absolutely nothing to complain about in regards to our cabin!

 

 

[ChampionCruiser]

When we got down to our room, we were surprised to see ALL of our luggage waiting for us outside of the door (another first) so we spent the time before the muster drill or “safety briefing” organizing the room. We had no problem fitting all of our clothes into the storage spaces and our suitcases fit perfectly under the bed.

 

At 4:00 the ship’s horn blew telling everyone to go down to their lifeboat station. Like others have said, you don’t have to wear a lifejacket anymore but you still have to stand on deck shoulder to shoulder in the hot weather. This really isn’t a big deal as the drill doesn’t take a long time, but I do prefer the way Princess handles it, where everyone is assigned to a public lounge instead of the promenade.

 

After ripping the safety briefing off like a band aid we were ready for our vacation to officially begin. We headed up to the lido deck to wait for sail away. After 4:30 rolled around the sail away party started so we danced and goofed off a bit but wanted to know why we hadn’t left yet! We kept looking over the ship to see if luggage was still being loaded and I took some more pictures while waiting.

 

 

I see our car!

 

 

Waiting on the last bit of luggage to make it on board.

 

[ChampionCruiser]

Well i'll keep uploading pictures and start back tomorrow.

 

Thanks for reading :D

[Sunny Mom]

We leave on our first cruise in 17 days with two teenage girls. I look forward to reading the rest of your review as we have the same itinerary and will share with my girls.

[snydermann]

.

 

After ripping the safety briefing off like a band aid

 

 

 

 

 

LOL . . . I like that expression.

 

Thanks for taking the time to post your review, looking forward to the rest.

[seacats]

Great review:D We leave on the 18th and are so excited. I wish I had known that the port side had the better view in Grand Turk. I picked starboard because I thought the trip down the Chesapeake Bay would be interesting. Thanks for taking the time to write your review:)

[heymonkey89]

Wow you're right. I've never been on the Pride or looked at pics but the few pics you posted spawned my interested so I searched for more pics of the ship and it is beautiful! I think i might be doing my next cruise on this ship.

[ChampionCruiser]

Woo for the weekend! Now I should be able to go at a much faster pace :)

 

So I’ll pick up where I left off…

 

It was just after 5:00 (if my camera's time is correct) when the ship began pulling away from the pier. We stayed on deck long enough for me to take a few pics before we went back to our stateroom to start getting ready for dinner.

 

 

 

 

On our way we ran into our room steward (Novi) who introduced herself and asked us our names. I was a little surprised because of recent reviews that said the stewards were impersonal now. I don’t know if we were just lucky but Novi was far and away the best (and sweetest) we’ve ever had. She always greeted us by name and was VERY prompt the two times we called her. Again, no complaints whatsoever :)

 

While everyone was getting ready, I stayed out on the balcony to say goodbye to Baltimore.

 

[ChampionCruiser]

Even though I was a little bummed that we were at dinner when we passed under the bridges, I still got to see a few cool things, like Fort McHenry:

 

 

And my favorite, this cute little lighthouse. It reminds me of my favorite children’s book, The Little Red Lighthouse :D

 

 

At 6:00 on the dot we made our way down to the Normandie Restaurant (which, again, is beautiful) for the early seating. We always choose early dining when possible and we prefer traditional dining over “freestyle” variations based on our past cruises.

 

After reading other Pride reviews I thought the first night would be open seating for all but we were all pleased to find out that this wasn’t the case. We were directed to our table (177) just like every other night. Our waiters were Larry and Moulten (sp.?) and both were terrific, especially Larry. We all agreed that service in the dining room was on par with nearly all of our cruises; only RCCL was better in our opinion.

 

Before I go any farther, I’ll go ahead and apologize here: I have no food porn :( Even though I thought about bringing my camera, I was much more interested in eating my food than admiring it :rolleyes: Oh well….but I will say that I never ordered a dish that I didn’t enjoy. This night I had the appetizer portion of the Chicken a la Grecque (good), the Flat Iron Steak (very good), and the Crème Brulee (very good). I also tried my aunt’s Warm Chocolate Melting Cake and I thought it was HORRIBLE! I’m not a big fan of chocolate to begin with, so I wasn’t expecting much but it was WAY too rich for me. This was actually the only night anyone ordered it on the entire cruise so I guess it wasn’t only me...

[lillian marie]

Great revue and I agree, the melting cake can be overpowering but the vanilla ice cream is great.

[ChampionCruiser]

After a great dinner we basically killed time until the Welcome Aboard Show at 10:30 (one show only). I went back to the cabin to get my camera and snapped a few pictures before sunset:

 

 

I took a ton of pictures like this throughout the week…

 

 

My sister and I then went to take pictures of the sunset. We did this every single night and this was (unfortunately) the best. I thought the Caribbean sunsets would be better. Oh well!!

 

 

[ChampionCruiser]

Well sunset was at 8:32 and I honestly don’t remember what we did for the next two hours besides look through the Fun Shops. But we got to the theater (Taj Mahal) early to get a decent seat. The show was pretty good but it definitely wasn’t a must-see. It featured Kirk our cruise director (who we loved) and two comedians: Tommy Drake (hilarious) and Peter Fogel (not so much). The Pride’s singers and dancers also performed a little.

And that pretty much wraps up my first day on the Carnival Pride. After the show we all went back to our cabin (lame I know) where we found our first towel friend and my sister and I read on the balcony for a while (this was a great way to end every day).

After day one I could tell it was going to be a great cruise!

 

[eas2225]

You make me feel like I'm right there with you. Great writing. Can't wait for more.

 

Eileen

[dogbert's mom]

I'm loving the review. Your doing a great job.

The Pride is my favorite Carnival ship. I sailed on the new ships but like the Spirit class best!

[Molly BPOE]

Thanks! I was referring more to my age and not being a "seasoned" enough cruiser but i'm glad that doesn't matter :)

You may be young, but honey, you are a seasoned enough cruiser! You have 7 cruises under your belt and are doing a fantasic job of posting a review. Heck I don't even intend to sail on Pride as Baltimore is not convienent for us, but I am reading it because I like your perspective.:)

[jbhcw]

ChampionCruiser..great job so far..although I am disappointed..no food pictures;)

 

Love your pictures..I also love to take ocean and sunset pics...the best I've ever gotten was when we did a Southern Caribbean on HAL a few years back. We did Barbados, Martinique..etc. We also did Hawaii this April and never got a good sunset picture:eek:

 

Please keep the review and pictures coming:)

[ChampionCruiser]

MONDAY, JUNE 21: DAY AT SEA

 

There really is no feeling like waking up, going out on your balcony, and looking at nothing but ocean :). We all woke up around 9:00 and were ready for a fun and relaxing day at sea. After getting ready, we headed up to the Mermaid’s Grill for breakfast. Except for our last breakfast in the Normandie Restaurant, we ate here every day for both breakfast and lunch. I know some like to be waited on for every meal, but we would rather have a faster one that is still good. All of the breakfast food was fine, but my favorite thing was the croissants! I seriously ate at least one every single day. Ahhh….

 

After breakfast, we walked forward to one of my favorite spots on the ship, the open deck area right above the bridge. Like others have said, this is the closest thing to the larger Carnival ship’s “secret door” areas, even though it’s not secret at all. Still, the place was almost always nearly empty except when sailing away from the ports. Unlike the decks above, there is no full screen of glass, meaning you can REALLY feel the wind in your face. Anyway, we stayed here for a while and we saw flying fish and DOLPHINS. This was the first time we’ve ever seen any, and we’ve looked for them on every cruise! Too bad they wouldn’t stay still for a picture :rolleyes:

 

 

 

 

[Shelli]

I'd like to join the others who complimented your writing. You're a terrific writer-- both in style and in content! You might want to consider a career in writing. Have you ever thought about it?

 

Keep up the good work!

[shellann]

Great review so far! I forgot how much I loved the Pride and your review is really getting me excited for our next trip onboard in October!

 

Love the pix too!

[ChampionCruiser]

Thanks again for all the great comments! This is why I love this site so much!

 

After our dolphin encounter my sister and I decided to lie out and read for a while (one of our favorite activities). I can see why people complain about chair hogs – they were definitely there – but only if you HAD to have a chair near the pool. We bypassed the pool areas and found another of my favorite spots onboard. Right in front of the funnel is a lounging area that was always nearly empty, even on sea days. It was the perfect place to read without too many people or loud music.

 

 

 

If you can’t tell yet, I’m not really the crazy party type. I do love having a great time and meeting new people, but I also love doing as little as possible and relaxing, and that is pretty much what we did for most of the day.

 

At 1:00 my sister and I did go down to Raphael’s for the Digital Scavenger Hunt in an attempt to win our very own ship on a stick. My aunt gave me hers from the Glory and I wanted my own mini collection. It actually turned out to be a lot of fun. Basically, you have 20 minutes to run around the ship and take pictures of 20 very random things. Exploring the ship the day before definitely helped! We were the first ones back and got extra points but it was still only good enough for second place. Oh well! Fortunatly, the first place team only got medals, so we weren’t too bummed out. Apparantly they only gave out ships on sticks at the more important contests.

 

The rest of the afternoon was spent just like before. We lounged, swam in the pools (remembering why Princess’ freshwater pools are so amazing), played ping pong, etc. until about 4:30, when we went back to get ready for formal, umm I mean elegant, night :rolleyes: It does take a while for four people to get ready in one cabin!

 

Here’s a few more pictures from the afternoon:

 

 

[ChampionCruiser]

Okay, so now for a little humor. On every cruise my sister and I like to play a few harmless practical jokes on my aunt. Our favorite from the Glory was barricading her in the bathroom and since the staterooms on the Pride are identical we decided to do it again. It really is quite easy if you have an upper bed and it provided quite a few laughs :D

 

 

Pretty soon we HAD to let her out to finish getting ready but it was worth it!

 

A note about elegant night: we (along with many of our fellow passengers) treated it just like the old formal nights. Yes, there were some people who were less dressy but we certainly didn’t feel out of place. We were all ready early to get our pictures taken far too many times in order to buy one single picture at the end of the cruise, like always :)

 

 

 

Dinner this night was, of course, very good. I ordered the strawberry bisque (one of my favorite appetizers), the spaghetti carbonara (good), and the caramelized apple puff pastry (amazing). The waiters also entertained us for the first time, which is always a lot of fun.

[Molly BPOE]

Okay, so now for a little humor. On every cruise my sister and I like to play a few harmless practical jokes on my aunt. Our favorite from the Glory was barricading her in the bathroom and since the staterooms on the Pride are identical we decided to do it again. It really is quite easy if you have an upper bed and it provided quite a few laughs :D

 

 

Pretty soon we HAD to let her out to finish getting ready but it was worth it!

 

A note about elegant night: we (along with many of our fellow passengers) treated it just like the old formal nights. Yes, there were some people who were less dressy but we certainly didn’t feel out of place. We were all ready early to get our pictures taken far too many times in order to buy one single picture at the end of the cruise, like always :)

 

 

 

Dinner this night was, of course, very good. I ordered the strawberry bisque (one of my favorite appetizers), the spaghetti carbonara (good), and the caramelized apple puff pastry (amazing). The waiters also entertained us for the first time, which is always a lot of fun.

Thanks for the pics! You and your family look very nice and I am enjoying your review.