Carnival Triumph 1st time review 04/09/12 - 5 day Galveston, Progresso, Cozumel

[ILove2go2Cozumel]

We get back to our room to find our last towel animal!

 

Stingay with my sunglasses!

(In this video I thought I was taking a picture.....I am laughing cause I thought it looked like "something else".



 

Comedy show

11:00 Adults only comedy show with JR McCollom

 

Hilarious, I highly recomend. If you sit up front you should not heckle, he will call you out!

 

 

 

12:36AM Checked our balance at the Pursers desk.

 

Bar tab........... . $190 (3 nights nightclub & various bars)

PrePaid Tips...... $115 (we left it as it was)

2 Bingo cards .. . $ 40 (O 63)

Scrapbook stuff . $ 37 (Book and decorations)

2 cartons cigs.. . $ 57

Band Aids........ . $ 6

Bottled H2O ...... $ 5

----------------------------------------------------------------

Total charges $450

 

 

 

 

We had planned on @$500 so we were UNDER budget! Ya!

 

 

Our bill shows 2 credits for $7.23 at 11:36 AM on embarkation day!

 

I guessing that is when we put our sail and sign card in the machine for the first time but what is the credit for? Why $7.23?

Is that like first drink is on us kinda thing?

Early embark credit?

Any ideas?

 

We packed up our bags and left them outside the door, making sure we still had our important documents! Filled out our customs forms and watched some of the shows we had missed on the TV. The talent show was good. There was a couples challenge show that was hilarious. The guys had to describe what thier women were wearing (with backs turned) and I was impressed that most of them could do it to a T.

I saw Tex doing some crazy awesome dance moves!

I fell asleep before midnight!

[ILove2go2Cozumel]

Saturday April 14th - Debarkation (Kick us off the Boat) Day

 

 

 

Our last night and we finally both slept well.

 

 

I didn't know we could order room service breakfast the night before and we hadn't been to the Paris dining room for breakfast the whole trip so we decided to try it.

As we were leaving I saw all the room service trays in the hallway (btw in case you didn't know....that's where you put them when you're done.... housekeeping comes and gets them)

I asked a room service delivery person what's the latest we could order room service and he gave me a blank look and said "Yes, room service"

 

Our room steward Maynard noticed this interaction and came over and asked me what I wanted to know. I asked him if I could've and he said yes. I could order by door tag and by calling in all the way until they wanted everyone out of the rooms.

 

If I had known that I would've ordered everything I had not yet tried.

 

My goal was to sample everything so I could give a good review (ya, that's why....LOL keep telling yourself that)

 

 

 

I would have been just as happy in the room so I feel we didn't miss much by missing it all week.

I am not a morning person and it was work for me to be socially acceptable that early in the morning.

 

We sat at a big table as we were pulling into port. There is alot of rumbling and shaking involved.

All the dinnerware and glassware was rattling.

 

I had croissant and cream cheese starter, omlette and hashbrowns and apple juice.

I don't remember what he had.

 

 

We went back to our room to double check we got everything, poured out the rest of my booty, watched the dolphins in the port from the balcony until it was time to go to the Lido deck to wait for our zone number to be called (18).

We said goodbye to our room !

 

 

Theres only 2 areas to wait to be called. The Lido deck and some other place I can't recall that you can't smoke at.

 

We quickly found a lounge chair near the pool and bar and waited to be called.

 

 

I had a leftover soda but it wasn't cold so I went to get a glass of ice and thats when I saw a tropical fruit juice being dispensed at the beverage station!

 

DOH!

 

I just poured out the rest of my cheap rum so I wasn't scared going through customs.

 

They call many zones at a time so it only took 30 minutes laying in the sun to get to go down to be called to Level 3

 

The Capitol Atrium Bar (aka The Hub)

 

Then we stood in line for what seemed like forever..... it was not moving! We could see the doors we were supposed to go out of but they weren't letting people go.

Many were wondering why they would call us if it wasn't time to go.

I figure its a way of staggering the amount of people in the areas.

I would've rather waited those extra 20 minutes on the Lido deck but I guess they have a reason for that, or was this unusual?

 

Finally, they let us through and we punched our sail and sign cards for the last time.

We made our way down to the luggage claim area and it is alot bigger and brighter and more organized than I was expecting. It is not hard to find your luggage at all! On the big concrete columns were the zone numbers and the bags were all still neatly arranged so I found my big black bag very quickly and the bright pink ribbon wasn't neccesary although it does add flair.

 

My other bag was accidentaly closer to the 17 section but that wasn't too hard to find either.

 

The line for customs looked unbelievably long and we had allready decided to use a porter since my big bag weighed alot.

 

A porter is the way to go !!!!!!!

 

I went to the "line" to get a porter and there was no one in line. Some lady asked me if I need a porter and she fetched one in 1 minute.

He followed me back to 18 and loaded up our bags.

He asked us what kind of documentation we brought and we told him birth certificate and Drivers License.

He guided us to line 4 - Passports.

I was concerned we were in the wrong line.... I did not want to get up to the front only to have to go to the end of another line.

I said something to him and he said "I like this line" (winking at Joe where I couldn't see)

 

 

I said "But"

 

 

He said "I really like this line" smile

 

 

I thought OK

He knows what he's doing.

 

 

He says "After 20 yrs doing this, I know what I'm doing"

 

Heheheh .....read my mind

Anyway, he then explained that this was a porter line and it didn't matter what ID you had they would accept it. These lines are way shorter too. It moved fast. Less than 10 minutes later we are standing in front of the customs officer showing our forms and ID.

 

He asked Joe his name and what state he was born.

 

Then he asked "Is this your girlfriend"

 

Joe said yes

 

He asked Joe "What is her name"

 

I laughed!

 

It reminded me of the couples game where the guys had to describe what thier SO's were wearing with thier backs turned.

 

I took it as him joking with him..... testing him.

 

 

Ohh yeah..... NOT joking.

 

 

 

 

Definitely Testing!!!!

 

 

 

The porter looked at me funny.

 

OOps not a good time to laugh out loud!

 

People are something people smuggle too!

 

He asked if we bought alcohol-

 

NO

 

 

Let us go!

 

 

 

Time finding luggage and going through customs was less than 30 minutes! Quicker than getting on!

 

Our porter hailed a cab to take us back to LQ where the car was parked for free.

 

5 days of salty grimy air had covered the car.

Ohhh well, just a little dirt.

 

We stopped by a car wash to give it a rinse.

 

Time to drive 3 hrs home.

 

This time we took the lesser highways and skipped going through Houston going through countless small town after small town.

 

Just to let you down easy , here are a few more non cruise related pictures I randomly took on the way home.

 

That's a BIG PIG!

 

 

Horses

 

Another Harley

 

 

[ILove2go2Cozumel]

That's all for now. Thanks for sharing my journey with me.

 

Any questions, advice, comments, inside information you would like to share........

 

ARE ALL WELCOME.

 

 

 

Tips I learned the hard way:

 

 

Don't tie down everything so good it can't be quickly disassembled.

 

The shops don't open till 6:30pm on embarkation day.

 

Anytime dining is in a different level

(3 not 5)

of London dining room.

 

It's anytime

 

not

 

anywhere.....

 

Cameras are allowed at Dolphinaris.

 

Take your camera everywhere even if you don't plan on using it.

 

 

There is good mixer for your booty in the morning on the Lido deck.

 

Don't laugh at any question the customs officer asks.

 

 

 

 

[cruiser fanatic]

Hi i cannot see your photos on Photobucket and on the front of your review.

[ILove2go2Cozumel]

Do you still have the Fun Times & by any chance are you able to scan & post them??

 

 

I found this site in someones signature on a different review. It has TONS of Triumph info (and lots of other ships)

It has funtimes posted in pdf format.

 

http://cruiseclues.com/shipstips/carnivaltriumph.htm#carnivaltriumphcarnivalfuntimes

[ILove2go2Cozumel]

Hi i cannot see your photos on Photobucket and on the front of your review.

I knew that was gonna happen

 

I got a warning email from them.

I am putting all the dolphin pictures on a new photbucket account. I'm not sure how it works but I am also making the future uploads 800x 600 instead!

Here are the links to the albums, maybe you can view it on the photobucket site.

 

 

http://s1167.photobucket.com/albums/q631/ILove2go2Cozumel/

 

 

http://s1167.photobucket.com/albums/q631/ILove2go2Cozumel/04-09-12%20Embarkation%20Day/

 

 

Sorry bout the pics not working. I put in my signature that they will be working again on the 18th (since I can't go back and change posts)

and that all pics work after page 4.

 

I realized this MID review so I was able to get the "important=DOLPHIN" pictures on another account so it wouldn't be ALL the photos

[PSkinner]

just noticed you are form Del Valle... I graduated High School from there! Go Cardinals!

[brazosfarmwife]

Thanks for the review and pics. We were on the Triumph in January and it brought back great memories. I graduated from DV also. (I'm close to Joe's age) We lived there until 2008.

[ILove2go2Cozumel]

The photo links are working again !!! Yay!

[Aramis1932]

Thank you, very much for taking the time to post such a fabulous review with all the photos!

I'm scheduled to sail on the Triumph in July. Your review was very helpful.

 

PS - I've been to Galveston many times, and never knew about (or saw) the tree sculptures either!

[shoppingfan]

THANK YOU! THANK YOU!! THANK YOU!!!

 

Your post/review was spot on and so much what I needed. We sail in July and I have been uneasy about it after hearing such horror stories. Your passion and details made this so much fun to read. Thanks again and so happy you had a great vacation. I'm from Austin (live in the Houston area now) & know exactly where Del Valle is located.

 

I am so looking forward to using this site to get more info & tips for my upcoming trip.

This will be our 2nd with our kids but our 4th overall so we are trying to think of everything in advance.

Thanks again!

[Cruise Cat]

Thanks for the review! We are looking to go on Triumph at the end of August.