Carnival Triumph Review - Jan 22-27 2011

[*Cassie*]

Day 6, January 26 – Day at Sea

 

This morning we decided to try out the Paris Dining Room for breakfast. I forgot to get a pic, but it seemed like the same thing that was in the Lido buffet. I got the Belgian waffles with strawberry topping, and I didn’t see any difference than the buffet waffles. Still just okay. We actually ended up going up to the Lido after and grabbing just a little bit more.

 

Then we sat and enjoyed the view of the ocean!

 

 

 

On our way back to our room, we saw we had a celebrity on board with us. Santa!

 

 

 

We used up our last bit on OBC at the casino. I find slot machines very confusing, so it took us a little while to figure it out. And it was vey smoky in there, so we tried finding one away from that. We won a little bit at first, but before long our $20 was gone, so we stopped there.

 

We walked around the ship some more and the hubby checked out the arcade.

 

They were having the chocolate buffet over lunch today. I don’t know, I guess I was expecting more. I was thinking I had seen pics before of a big chocolate fountain and fruit you could dip in chocolate. I wasn’t too impressed with what they had.

 

 

 

I did get a good piece of chocolate cheesecake. And I got some kind of chocolate sushi. Not exactly sure what it was, but it was pretty good!

 

 

Andrew came back with this ice cream swan(?)! I didn’t see them. I guess they had workers there that would put it together for you. Looks cute though!

 

[*Cassie*]

At 2:45 they had the Love & Marriage show. This was hilarious! The older guy was just too funny. He got some good zingers in there! He even had Tex dying laughing.

 

 

 

I had seen some people walking around with these cute whale tail souvenir cups and decided I had to have one! So we went back up to the Lido deck and I asked how I could get one. It was the drink of the day. The drink was “Ultimate Suntan”. I can’t remember what was all in it, but was pretty sure I wouldn’t like it. She said they could make any of the week’s DOD though. So I went with what she said was basically a Bahama Mama. I wasn’t a big fan of it, but I got the cup, so I was happy! haha

 

 

 

It was just too cold to sit out on the deck though. That was really the only thing I was disappointed in with the cruise, which obviously couldn’t be helped. I had been hoping we could lay out on the deck and watch a movie one night, but that never happened. If we do another cruise, which I’m pretty sure we will eventually, we’ll go in a warmer month.

 

We just went back to our cabin and watched a tv movie until dinner time.

 

For dinner tonight I started with the fresh broccoli with cheddar. For some reason I was thinking I was just getting fresh raw broccoli covered in some cheddar cheese and didn’t realize it was a soup. It didn’t call it a soup on the menu though. I’m not a huge soup fan, so it was just okay. I didn’t eat much of it.

 

 

 

Then there wasn’t anything too appealing to me that night so I decided to go with the flat iron steak again, since I liked it so much the first night. But like Andrew’s was a different night, it wasn’t the same. Still good though, but different somehow. It came with veggies and red potatoes. I asked for a baked potato instead, but they gave me both.

 

 

 

For dessert we both went with the baked Alaska. Andrew was torn because he wanted to get the WCMC one more time, but also had been looking forward to the baked Alaska. It was pretty good, nothing super special.

 

 

 

Tonight’s show was The Big Easy. We were hoping to make it to the early seating at 7:00, but our waiters were super slow tonight for some reason, so we had to wait for the 9:00 show. They did a great job though. The female singer has a really great voice and the dancers did a great job as always. We really enjoyed all the shows a lot.

 

And our towel heart!

 

[*Cassie*]

Day 7, January 27 – Debarkation & New Orleans

 

The night before they gave us the instructions on if we wanted to self debark or go by zones. We went the easy way and set our luggage out the night before. Our room was on the 8th floor and we were set to debark at 9:00am. So we got up early and got ready and ran up to the Lido deck for our last Carnival breakfast. I was confused why so many people had their bags already with them. After breakfast we went back to our room to wait for our zone to be called. Then a little before 9:00 they announced that anyone still in their room needed to move to another area. So I guess that’s why everyone had their bags with them. Since we thought our zone would be called shortly after, we just went down to level 5, I think, and watched the people leaving.

 

Here’s Tex and Gary helping direct people. They did a great job all week!

 

 

 

They were a little behind for calling our zone. I think it was about 9:45 by the time they finally called us, but we got right through and found our luggage and made it through the lines. I was thinking I’d have to get our birth certificates back out, but he said only driver’s license was needed. Easy enough!

 

 

Now, I’m going to include the rest of our day in New Orleans for those interested.

 

After getting back to our car, we drove back to our hotel to park our car. Then we walked down to the French Quarter.

 

 

 

Here’s Jackson Square. The St Louis Cathedral.

 

 

 

 

 

There were tons of tarot card and palm readers out along here.

 

[*Cassie*]

Here’s The Cabildo

 

 

 

 

Café du Monde. Yum!

 

 

 

Beignets and hot chocolate. That hit the spot. Mmm!

 

 

 

The French Market

 

 

[*Cassie*]

There were lots of different people out playing music

 

 

 

 

Bourbon Street

 

 

 

 

[nytonowhere]

mmmm Beignets i really want to go back! Flights from CT to NO are always so expensive. :(

[*Cassie*]

We had lunch at a little café, I didn’t get a pic of it though, but it was pretty good. Then we walked back and checked into our hotel. We were pretty exhausted, so we took a quick nap. Then we walked down to the river walk and saw The Triumph was still there, along with another ship.

 

 

 

Then we got to see them take off again. Wish we could have jumped back on!

 

 

 

After grabbing some food there, we ended the night with what I had been waiting for all week! Pinkberry! I discovered Pinkberry out in LA last summer and so wish we had one near where I live. So good!

 

 

 

 

And that was it. We had a long drive back the next day, but luckily had no issues this time. We really enjoyed the cruise. Can’t wait for the next one!

 

If anyone has any questions, just ask!

[cadoocrazy]

Great review! We're on the Triumph next month for Spring Break. It's cool to see all the food and other views of the ship. Thanks!

[txgolfergrl]

I'd have a bunch of questions but since you don't drink or gamble...well..then I got nuthin'. LOL..just kidding. I've been on a couple of cruises so I don't have any questions I just wanted to rib you about two of my favorite activities. Oh..and I was in NOLA a couple of weekends ago...had a BLAST.

[slybear]

Nice review & pictures. New Orleans always looks so pretty in photos that it reminds me why I moved here 8+ years ago.

 

Great review. I LOVE the pictures! April 30 will be our 1st time on the Triumph, and looking so forward to it! Your review/pics makes me feel like we are already there. Thanks.

 

dustyblue-we'll be on the April 30th Triumph cruise as well, if you'd like to join our rollcall its at : http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1308091

[PopeSailin]

First thank you for the GREAT review! My girlfriend and I are sailing on the Triumph in mid April to the Bahamas. I was wondering about the MDR. Did they give you the "steakhouse" options of paying for the higher end food choises? Just wondering, because as of now, I am actually planning on paying for the upgrade atleast one night. Thanks again for the review!

[americanmama]

great review! really enjoyed it!:)

[*Cassie*]

First thank you for the GREAT review! My girlfriend and I are sailing on the Triumph in mid April to the Bahamas. I was wondering about the MDR. Did they give you the "steakhouse" options of paying for the higher end food choises? Just wondering, because as of now, I am actually planning on paying for the upgrade atleast one night. Thanks again for the review!

 

Yes, the steakhouse options were always at the bottom of the menu in a separate box. I'm thinking they were $18, but I could be wrong on that. Enjoy!

[Ryancoke]

Thanks for that review. You mentioned it was cooler than ideal. But that varies from person to person. What was the temp range? Was it average for January or less than expected? I would go in a cooler month because I couldn't handle over 80. About 70 + or -10 would be ideal.

[*Cassie*]

Thanks for that review. You mentioned it was cooler than ideal. But that varies from person to person. What was the temp range? Was it average for January or less than expected? I would go in a cooler month because I couldn't handle over 80. About 70 + or -10 would be ideal.

 

I can't remember the exact temps, but I think it was mid 50's before we left in New Orleans. Then the days at sea it was generally in the 60's. And of course standing up on the deck with the wind was even cooler. The first sea day was warmer than on the way back. The days in Mexico was in the 80's. And then our day back in New Orleans was in the 60's.

[*Cassie*]

Cassie great reveiw and photos we will be sailing on her in April, and your reveiw just gets me more excited about our upcoming trip. Any chance you could post a couple of the Capers to get an idea of whats happening onboard the ship.

 

Thanks Paul

 

Well, I tried taking a pic of them and it wasn't turning out. And I don't have a scanner. Were you looking for anything in particular? Just ask and I'll check.

[Ryancoke]

Thanks. I've used pools in the mid '60s and enjoy the smaller crowds. :)

[gapearl]

Great review and great pictures!

[disneyden]

Great review. I LOVE the pictures! April 30 will be our 1st time on the Triumph, and looking so forward to it! Your review/pics makes me feel like we are already there. Thanks.

 

We'll be on the Triumph with ya!! There is a roll call for our cruise if you would like to check it out.

The link is listed below:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1308091

:D

[jjonesing]

Great job on your review and thank you for sharing your vacation with us!

[trk3]

Loved the review and great pictures! We go on our first cruise on the 12th! I so excited to spend the night in New Orleans. I am from Louisiana but never been!

[lovermonkey]

Thank you for the review. I am living in the Chicago area right now, but I am originally from the Rock Falls/Sterling area. So I am kind of in the same area. But we are going to fly down to New Orleans.

We are going on the Triumph on April 16th. So I am very excited. But we are going to Keywest, Nassau and Freeport, Bahamas. It didn’t seem like you enjoyed the meals on-board. What did you like and what didn’t you like. What would you do differently?

[*Cassie*]

Thank you for the review. I am living in the Chicago area right now, but I am originally from the Rock Falls/Sterling area. So I am kind of in the same area. But we are going to fly down to New Orleans.

 

We are going on the Triumph on April 16th. So I am very excited. But we are going to Keywest, Nassau and Freeport, Bahamas. It didn’t seem like you enjoyed the meals on-board. What did you like and what didn’t you like. What would you do differently?

 

Hmm, I don't know, I think it was just I was really looking forward to all the food and was maybe a little disappointed. But I really enjoyed the dining room dinners for the most part. The first night flat iron steak and the short ribs were both really, really good. I would definitely get those again. For the starters, the fresh fruit was really good. I would skip that soup next time, but I'm not big on soups. The desserts, other than that apple puff thingy, were all pretty good. Nothing like blew me away, but it was good.

 

I think the lunch buffets was the biggest let down for me. I wish we would have tried the dining room for one lunch to see how that was. I never checked what selections they had. I also always meant to try the deli, but never got over there. Most things on the lunch buffet were just okay, nothing really stood out to me.

 

And nothing bad to say about the breakfast buffet. They had plenty of selections. More so than your typical hotel breakfast. I think both my husband and I preferred the breakfast buffet over going to the dining room that one morning. It was pretty much the same exact thing and we could get more on the buffet.

 

But don't get me wrong, the food was definitely not terrible. I would definitely go on another Carnival cruise for all the food you get! And the unlimited ice cream machine is the best! haha

[crashgod]

Great job on the review! Our family is heading down from Chicago for the March 19th cruise so it was definitely great to read your review!

[deltahog]

Nice reviews.

 

Beef every single night.....not much of a seafood gal, eh?