Just off Valor 4/17 - Any Questions?

[TwoSue]

Hi,

My dh, two kids age 10 and 13 just got off the Valor today. I'll post a whole trip review later when we get home (have another week here in Florida), but if anyone has any questions, I'll be happy to help! This was our first cruise and my kids are already asking if we can go again. Loved it!

Susan

[Peaceful]

I also just got off the Valor. Do you know anything about the family that was left behind in Cozumel? Part of our party witnessed them and their distress as we pulled away from the dock.

 

I too will get a review done sometime this week. We had a great time.

[LBumb]

glad to hear you had a great time. look forward to review.

[TwoSue]

I didn't hear anything about that. When we got off at Grand Cayman, I did see a couple with luggage that looked like they were going to get on. I wondered if they had missed the ship in Miami.

Even though this was our first cruise, I booked all of our excursions independent of Carnival. We were always back to the ship way ahead of time! The closest was 20 minutes before the last tender in Belize because my daughter was getting her hair braided at the dock.

[Miracletobehold]

Hi,

My dh, two kids age 10 and 13 just got off the Valor today. I'll post a whole trip review later when we get home (have another week here in Florida), but if anyone has any questions, I'll be happy to help! This was our first cruise and my kids are already asking if we can go again. Loved it!

Susan

 

Hey TwoSue, I am going to be on the Valor May 29th. I am looking forward to your review and pics. Please be sure to notate "EVERYTHING" from embarkation to debarkation, don't leave anything out, even if you think that it isn't that important to mention. Many of us want to know every little thing you encountered, good/bad.

 

Thanks so much!

[New2Cruising24]

Hey TwoSue, I am going to be on the Valor May 29th. I am looking forward to your review and pics. Please be sure to notate "EVERYTHING" from embarkation to debarkation, don't leave anything out, even if you think that it isn't that important to mention. Many of us want to know every little thing you encountered, good/bad.

 

Thanks so much!

 

I second that, Miracletobehold!! Looking forward to your review TwoSue :) DH and I are on the Valor in Oct, our first with Carnival.

 

a couple of questions...but i'm sure i'll have more

 

1) Fish & Chips - did you try it? was it yummy? is it least crowded of Lido dining venues?

 

2) Scarlett's Steakhouse (I think that's what it's called) - did you try it? worth the $30pp upcharge? Any announcements about the free bottle of wine first night?

 

Thanks so much and really looking forward to your review and yours Peaceful

[kculater]

I leave Sunday April 24th on the Valor so any information is greatly appreciated. I wanted to know about embarkation. How long are the lines? We should be arriving to the ship around 12 pm and wondered how long it will take to get on board.

[hoop4321]

mexico is one hour behind ship time right?

[TwoSue]

Fish and Chips - I had that one day for lunch and it was delicious. That was always a good place to find a seat too, because it's kind of out of the way. The menu up there has an assortment of interesting things... besides fish and chips there is octopus salad, bouillabaise, etc.

 

Embarkation - We didn't get there until about 1:45. I had wanted to get there earlier, but since we arrived at our hotel (La Quinta East) at 1 am, we got the latest shuttle they had to offer. So, there was pretty much no line. We hopped off the bus, handed our luggage over to the porters, walked in and filled out the paper, walked right up to a kiosk to scan the passports. Then we waited about 5 minutes to get our S & S cards, and then we were on the ship!

 

Time Zones - The only place that even mentioned the difference between ship time and island time was Grand Cayman. They were two hours behind. Roatan was also two hours behind, but they just adjusted to us. Our guide told us he would have us back to the ship by 5:45, and told his wife on the phone he would be home by 4:00. I think Belize and Mexico were one hour behind, but I'm not really sure. I just kept my watch on ship time and everything worked out fine.

[oncruisecontrol]

What's your opinion of the food in the main diningroom on the Valor?

[moran4carnival]

Who was your cruise director?

[bagelmom6]

I'm looking forward to reading your review. My family and I will be sailing on the Valor on May 29th and are very excited.

 

Did your kids go to Camp Carnival? My DD is only four so would be doing different activities than your kids but I'm curious about your general impressions.

[David7621]

I was on this cruise and it was a great cruise. The staff are top notch!. The food in the MDR was very good. Alot of different selections each night. Soups were very good for the appetizer.

 

As for the cruise director it was "Big Sexy" Josh Weitzman. Very good along with the staff. You will love this boat and all that goes with it.

 

Will maybe try to do a review if I can find some time....we will see

[TwoSue]

The cruise director was Josh (Big Sexy). This was our first cruise, so I don't have anything to compare him to. I got tired of hearing his voice after a while, but it was fine.

The food in the main dining room was great. We had anytime dining and were seated upstairs in the Lincoln Dining Room. My only complaint is that two nights it took a really long time... more than 1 1/2 hours and we missed the next activity we wanted to do. After watching more experienced cruisers, we started ordering more than one appetizer or entree if we couldn't decide. We ate well!

Camp Carnival - I think the experience really depends on the age. My daughter who is 10 went to Camp Carnival. We gave her sign-in/out privileges and she loved it. She would check her schedule each day and head out. We tried to arrange times to meet up later, or we would leave post-it notes for each other on the mirror. After the second day, she made a good friend and they spent a lot of quality time together. They would meet up, go to classes, then go play mini-golf. One night my daughter went to dinner with the other girl's family and one night she came with us. We did some shows together too, and a couple of nights my daughter went to her room to watch a movie on her DVD player. She loved the whole camp experience and making a friend. She loved being able to say, "I'm going to a movie. I'll be back at 10."

My son, on the other hand, was in Circle C (ages 12 - 14). He had a totally different experience. He went to the welcome party and a couple of activities the first night, but didn't meet anyone interesting. Their activities were more spread out throughout the afternoons/evenings. The first night he and my husband went up to something that was supposed to start at 11:00 and no Camp person ever showed up. The second night my son went up to "make your own pizza" and again no camp person showed up. Some of the other kids started harassing my son and he ended up back in the cabin crying. He said it was just like school, where the kids all grouped up right away. We were irritated that there was no supervision, but urged him to try again the next day. We accompanied him the next evening to make sure someone was actually there, and made him try it again. He hung around with them for a couple of hours, mostly stayed on the outskirts. The rest of the cruise he hung out with us.

 

Susan

[Colorado Kat]

I'm sorry your son had a tough time of it. I've always felt that kid's clubs/teens/etc vary tremendously, depending on the particular staff working the clubs, and the kids who happen to be on the ship that week.

 

I hope things worked out for him later in the week.

 

How was the piano bar? And were there comedians on board?

[TwoSue]

We didn't ever make it to the piano bar, although there were definitely people in there most nights.

 

We had four comedians on board. There were two for the first couple of days and then they switched in one of the ports and we got two new ones. I caught the family-friendly shows of three of them and enjoyed them all. My 13-year-old really loved them! I saw one adult show (Just June) and thought she was funnier without all the four-letter words.

 

And best of all, we did win a ship-on-a-stick at one of the trivia contests!:D

[workn2cruise]

I second that, Miracletobehold!! Looking forward to your review TwoSue :) DH and I are on the Valor in Oct, our first with Carnival.

 

a couple of questions...but i'm sure i'll have more

 

1) Fish & Chips - did you try it? was it yummy? is it least crowded of Lido dining venues?

 

2) Scarlett's Steakhouse (I think that's what it's called) - did you try it? worth the $30pp upcharge? Any announcements about the free bottle of wine first night?

 

Thanks so much and really looking forward to your review and yours Peaceful

 

We were on the Valor on 4/10/11, with only 2 sea days its hard to choose between favorites and getting to the fish & chips. I did the Mongolian Wok for embarkation day and the burrito bar on the first sea day. the last sea day was a burger and salad. All Lido deck food was yummy!

 

Scarlett's is definitely worth the upcharge! I remember hearing the CD announce a free bottle of wine there for the first night only.

 

There was a full Health Department inspection the morning we got off the ship, this apparently happens every 6 months on every ship. I was wondering if embarkation was delayed for those folks getting on 4/17?

[1of5G]

I'm planning a honeymoon shower for my brother and his fiancee. They are booked on the Valor in September. I'm trying to compose a gift registry of all the things they can do while on the ship. I'd like to include some of the items available from the spa. If you happen to have a menu, that would be great! I have things such as drink coupons, photo coupons, funship dollars, specialty restraunt dinners, and some excursions. Anything you have would be helpful.

Thanks in Advance,

Cathy

[williamson_ja]

Did they have laser tag? I noticed that some of the ships that used to have it, now don't. I'm hoping they still have it on the Liberty when we go in December! Anyway, trying to see a pattern here. Are they just doing away with laser tag altogether, or is it a ship by ship thing...

[moran4carnival]

Did they have laser tag? I noticed that some of the ships that used to have it, now don't. I'm hoping they still have it on the Liberty when we go in December! Anyway, trying to see a pattern here. Are they just doing away with laser tag altogether, or is it a ship by ship thing...

They had laser tag when I sailed on her two years ago. I would imagine they still do.

[Weezerwoo]

Just completed our second cruise on the Valor, this one on 4/17 week.

Fantastic! The best vacation ever with the whole family. Travelled with hubby, 3 kids (17,20 & 24) and DD's BF. Boys in one balcony room, girls in the other.

Nothing negative to say! Was on the ship quickly, most of us with Birth Certificates. At lunch on Lido deck by noon!

The first two comedians, Frank del Pizzo & Just June, were hilarious! We went to all their late shows and laughed until our sides ached!

The best new addition to the ship is the adult Serenity retreat on the forward top decks. Comfy lounge chairs, 2 awesome hot tubs with a great view, hammocks, and these large round wicker sofas with pillows and privacy. A little retreat from the noisier families with small kids (no kids allowed up there!)

We dined each evening at 8:15p with awesome waiters Gener and Joy. Food was delicious!

We did independent trips at each stop....lots of beach time!

Looking forward to our next trip & ship....

[TwoSue]

I didn't see or hear of any Laser Tag. I'm sure my son would have mentioned it if they talked about it in the camps at all.

[williamson_ja]

I didn't see or hear of any Laser Tag. I'm sure my son would have mentioned it if they talked about it in the camps at all.

Bummer. Looks more and more like they just got rid of it altogether.

[2boys2girls]

We were on the Valor last month and although my kids didn't do it, I did see laser tag as one of the activities.