4/9 Glory review

[Sportkim]

It is now payback time. After enjoying everyone else's reviews I thought that it was only fair that I post one of my own.

 

We sailed the Carnival Glory out of Port Canaveral on Saturday April 9. We arrived in Orlando on Friday and rented a car from Thrifty. A great deal and would recommend renting a car anytime you are going from Orlando to Port Canaveral. We stayed in Orlando and drove to Port Canaveral at our leisure on Saturday morning. It only took us about 40 minutes to get to the rental car return and then they shuttled us to the port. We arrived at the port about 10:30.

 

Embarkation: The usual lines. We were on the ship by about 12:30.

 

Stateroom: We had an inside cabin, 6245 on the Upper deck. Nice size room for an inside cabin. The only drawback was that we were directly over the Amber Palace Theater which made turning in early a problem due to show noise. We stayed out late most nighs so this was not a problem for us.

 

Food: Good - I figure if I am not cooking anything is ok :) . We ate in the Platinum dining room at the 5:45 seating. Tanya and Beatrix were our servers and they were great. Some requests could not be met, but all in all we enjoyed our meals in the dining room.

We at our breakfast everyday at the Red Sail Buffet. Good, but the same selection everyday. Fresh fruit was very plentyful and enough selections to satisfy us. Lunch was either at the Grill or Deli or Pizzaria. All were good.

 

Ports: Key West - We had been there before and I only wanted to get off to go to Kino's for sandles, which we did and were not disappointed. One of the most comfortable pair of sandles I have ever had. We docked at the Navy base and took the conch train into town. The driver on the way in was a bit cranky, but the driver on the way back to the ship made up for him. Very informative and funny, too.

Belize - Because we did not take a ship tour, I got in line at about 8:15 for tender tickets that were to be given out at 9:00. Very large crowd and not very orderly. I ended up getting on the 2nd tender and had no problem hooking up with our Cave tubing tour that we booked with Reg Tours thru the internet before the cruise. Had a great time cave tubing. Long ride and very hot.

Cozumel - Again we did not book a tour thru the ship or on our own. We got off the ship and took a taxi into downtown. Not impressed. Walked back to the ship and on the way we stopped at a small beach accross the street from the Hotel Cozumel. Very nice. Rented snorkel equipment and had a very good time. There were beach chairs and a pool. After our snorkel we continued our walk back to the ship with some stops for shopping along the way. The walk was long and would not recommend for everyone.

Progeso - Once again no tour booked. There were some nice shops as you exit the ship, before you get on buses for the ride into town. The town is not much to see. A market with several vendors. I thought that their prices were good, better than Cozumel. As for the beach, a three or four block walk from where you are dropped off, was not impressive the day we were there. The water is murky and not very clean. The beach is also not very clean and I saw no one in the water. I feel that if you do not go to the Mayan ruins, there is not too much to see in Progeso.

 

All in all we enjoyed our cruise on the Glory. We had no problem finding deck chairs on any day, at port or at sea. We always went to the Azure pool in the back of the ship first and then moved on to the main pool later on in the day. Lots of people but also we always found 2 chairs at either pool.

 

We did not go in with any expectations and consequently we were not disappointed with anything.

[OCruisers]

Sportkim .... Thanks for taking the time to do this review! Very helpful!

 

Do you suggest getting to the ship for embarkation at 10:30?

 

Thanks again for the review. Happy Sailing! OCruisers :)

[mnsawyer]

We were on the Glory 4/9 cruise as well and we loved it! Wasn't the ship rocking on Friday night? Other than that night, I thought it was very very smooth. I would agree with you about Progresso. We were very disappointed and wished we had have taken a tour but went back to the ship around 11:00 a.m. or so and had a great day on the ship...not many people around and it was a really relaxing afternoon for us. Thought the area right at the pier was fine in Progresso but where the shuttle busses dropped you off I thought was pretty rough and so was the beach area but again, know others on the same trip would disagree. We loved Port Canaveral and wished we had have stayed in Cococa Beach instead of Orlando but will know next time. We dropped our car at Budget and had no problems - no wait and a great driver. Glad you enjoyed your cruise...how about John Heald...loved that bedtime story and welcome aboard show!

[Sportkim]

I think that arriving earlier is better than later. We have done both and earlier seems to work better for us.

 

ms- we loved John Heald. Very entertaining and very funny.

[OCruisers]

Thanks Sportkim! We'll get there EARLY!

 

Also, thanks to you and mnsawyer both for the hint not to miss John Heard ... just hope he'll be the CD when we sail!

 

Happy Sailing! OCruisers :)

[disneysteve]

Thought the area right at the pier was fine in Progresso but where the shuttle busses dropped you off I thought was pretty rough

We sailed Glory 3/26. I thought the open air market right near where the buses dropped you off was wonderful. Very nice merchandise and excellent prices. We also walked though town and the area is very poor and undeveloped but I never felt unsafe. The locals we encountered all seemed friendly. Quite a culture lesson, especially for the kids, to see how people live there.

[kbatschke]

Thanks for the review Sportkim. We are on the Glory 10/8/05 sailing and looking forward to the Western Itinerary.

 

Karl & Jamie

[mnsawyer]

disneysteve - I guess I'm not that adventurous - The area where the shuttle busses dropped you off wasn't good and once we started walking towards the beach I really became uncomfortable - as we've said a million times - everyone has a different opinion of ships, ports, etc.

[disneysteve]

disneysteve - I guess I'm not that adventurous - The area where the shuttle busses dropped you off wasn't good and once we started walking towards the beach I really became uncomfortable - as we've said a million times - everyone has a different opinion of ships, ports, etc.

I think it says something that there was only one recommended shop on the Carnival map. We decided to check it out. It was about 6 or 8 blocks from where they dropped you off. My wife wasn't thrilled but I enjoyed seeing the local houses, shops and restaurants, not that any of them were places you would actually want to enter or risk eating at. The recommended shop was really not worth seeing as it was small and didn't have much merchandise but it was beachfront and along the beach there were some bars/restaurants that looked safer than the ones we saw on the other streets.

 

We also walked through a "mall" on the ground floor of a newer building. Only about half the shops were occupied and there were some display cases in the lobby area. Some new merchandise and some stuff that was more like flea market goods.

 

There was one indoor market but we didn't venture in there.

 

The best part of the trip was I got a beautiful photo of a produce market on the street. It is very colorful and is now the desktop picture on my laptop. I'm constantly getting comments about it. You can see it on my webshots page:

http://community.webshots.com/user/disneysteve

[WellesleyIslander]

I have to agree with you mnsawyer-I wasn't too comfortable walking the 4 or so blocks to the beach in Progresso either. In fact, I wasn't that impressed with the beach once we got there! (Of course it was kind of rough that day.) We actually were chased down the road by some of the locals selling their merchandise almost begging us to buy from them-not my idea of a good time.

[Devo1459]

Thanks for the great review. My family and I are sailing on the Glory 6/11/05.

So help me clarify this. You rented your car in Orlando, stayed in Orlando then drove to Cape C and then you turned the car in? How did you get back to Orlando after the cruise?

thanks for responding

 

DEVO

[PMARSHALL]

Thanks for the review Sportkim. We will be sailing the Glory on 8/6/05. How was the entertainment, shows etc. Who is the band out by the main pool and were they good?

[mnsawyer]

WesleyIslander - we too, thought the beach was disappointing in Progresso but it was pretty windy and cool that day.

 

We rented a car from Budget in Orlando and dropped it off at the Budget location in Cocoa Beach. The Budget shuttle dropped us at the port. The driver did ask if we would need a pick up the following week. We did not but some people did. He said he would be right by the Mears busses. We decided to purchase a Carnival transfer for $25 per person. When we got off the ship with our luggage, we just looked for the yellow Mears busses and confirmed they were Mears and going to Orlando airport. We dropped our luggage and then got on the bus. Only waited about 5-10 minutes and we were on our way. It takes about 50 minutes from the port to MCO. The driver drops off at both A & B terminals. It was a smooth experience and would recommend it to anyone. We had a later flight so getting there early was not an issue. The ship was late in getting into Port Canaveral and the self-assist not called until 9:00 a.m. We were on deck 6 and called at 9:45 a.m. It was exactly 2 hours from the time our deck was called until we were at the airport.

[mnsawyer]

Oops..forgot about the deck entertainment. It seems as though that recorded music is becoming the big thing. The calypso band did play throughout the week but only for 2 or so hours at a time. I went up on Lido one morning at 3:30 a.m. to get some water and the recorded music was playing so assume it was basically on all of the time with the exception of when the band plays. I actually enjoyed the recorded music which could also be heard in the Red Sail Dining Room which was on all of the time. Nothing heavy, just pop stuff and for the younger crowd, they probably thought it was old! There is a fabulous group called Simple Friends that plays in the Ebony Cabaret - lounge on deck 5 aft. The lounge is beautiful - kind of an African theme and the group plays lots of 60 & 70's stuff - Beatles, Eagles, etc. Lots of good dance music and plenty of slow ones too which is great with your hubby! I was disappointed in that the piano bar didn't seem that exciting. On the Triumph two years ago it was the HOT spot every night and the guy playing was fabulous! Lots of nights we sang so much we were hoarse! We're not singers either!

[Intrudr]

We loved the beach in Progresso on 3/31. We posted up with 4 families in front of the Le Saint Bonnet and had fantastic food and service. Lounged under thatched umbrellas, played in the water and enjoyed cold and ever-present buckets of Coronas. The pico de gallo, fish tacos and ceviches were great.

 

It's not Paradise Beach in Cozumel, which is private and protected. This is a public beach where you will see the local life. Sure, they are constantly hawking all sorts of goods to sell, but they would leave as soon as they were politely dismissed. We never felt threatened or unsafe. I would certainly return and repeat the same self-excursion again!

[Sportkim]

We rented a car from Thrifty at the Orlando airport and drove to Port Canaveral and dropped it off. Then when we got back Thrifty picked us up at the terminal, within 2 minutes I might add, and we got a car and drove back to Orlando airport. Very easy and only $30.00 each way. Not $100.00 the cruise line charged and we could take our time and not be hearded into a bus. We have had problems with cruise line shuttles before and would rather do it ourselves if we have the chance.

[maja]

Could you please tell me where the Glory is docked in Cozumel? There have been so many new terminals added since my last visit & I might want to rent a car and need to know where I will be! Thanks!

[kbatschke]

PMarshall: Regarding the deck live music. The 'band' consisted of a guy on steel drums and a guy on guitar. Called themselved the 'Island Boys'. They seemed to spend more time tuning up and playing with their background music track equipment, than playing. Lots of heavy duty static when they were playing. The Lido-deck pool area band was one of the highlights of our last cruise, these guys were awful in our opinion. I noted this our our comment card to Carnival. I really appreciate live music, of all kinds, but it was more enjoyable to listen to the taped music than these guys. Maybe they were just having a bad week, but not anywhere near what we hoped for.