Carnival GLory to Canada August 6-11: The Noro Cruise

[nybumpkin]

This is the part where I give my thoughts about the ship, the cruise, and the passengers.

 

 

 

Carnival Glory: I love Conquest-class ships. We just don’t have a problem navigating the decks. This was our fourth time aboard Glory, and we enjoyed sailing her again. She will be going into drydock in Freeport in November for the Funship 2.0 upgrades, and I’m looking forward to sailing her again.

 

 

Crew: I thought the crew went above and beyond when faced with Noro. Our cabin stewards didn’t blink an eye when we told them of the less-than-stellar conditions in sons’ cabin and they never lost their smile or their sense of humor. In the buffet area, I saw frequent cleaning of the buffet area – not to mention that they removed the catsup, mustard, salt and pepper from individual tables so that you had to go to a central location to request them. And the deck crew was constantly wiping down railings, elevator areas, etc. Understand as well that the Canada run is not the crew’s favorite run. The weather is often iffy and there aren’t beaches like you find in the Caribbean.

 

 

The dining room staff was good as well. This was only the second time we have had Your Time Dining, and while I missed having the same staff each night, we always had personable waiters who provided as personalized service as you can provide with Your Time Dining.

 

 

Entertainment: I missed having Josh as our Cruise Director. We sailed with him twice before, on Miracle in 2009 and on Glory last year. He’s a really nice guy and very entertaining. Having said that, Pete shows a lot of promise as a cruise director. We didn’t see any of the shows except the Welcome Aboard Show – we’ve seen all the shows before. Glory still had a Lido deck duo (the DJ stayed in the dance club except for the VIFP party) and still had one of the rock bands, Music Connection (way too loud for my taste). The big screen entertainment was pretty much limited to the Olympics for this cruise – not that I minded that, since it was fun to watch on the screen.

 

 

Passengers: Large numbers were from NY/NJ/CT/PA, although we met several folks who came from a distance – one family from Louisiana, another from Kentucky. As with any cruise, I found most people to be really nice (although NYers are more fast-paced than most). There were standouts, however. The one that particularly comes to mind is the guy at the Guest Services desk the morning of the first sea day, complaining that the bottle of alcohol he had packed in his checked bag had been confiscated. The assistant purser tried to explain the (at least to me) clear policy about alcohol in checked bags, even showing him the policy in writing. The passenger crumpled up the paper and threw it at the assistant purser and stalked off. I felt sorry for the poor crew member – there’s no excuse for behavior like that.

 

 

Food: No complaints on my part. However, being a five-day cruise there were all sorts of venues I never visited on this cruise, like the deli, the pizza, fish and chips, Mongolian wok, or the burrito bar. The steakhouse was excellent as usual, and I had no complaints about any of the dining room food.

 

 

 

VIFP program: This was our second cruise as VIFP Platinum. Boarding went well, the complimentary laundry worked like a charm (we only sent out two bags among the four of us), and the VIFP party was fun. We received the plate of chocolate strawberries/goodies the last night of the cruise. We used the coupon for the complimentary drink on the last day at lunch in the dining room; DH and I each had a Margarita. And disembarkation worked well.

[nybumpkin]

We had the best weather ever on a Canada cruise. Nice, warm weather in port, very little fog. Once again we loved visiting Saint John and Halifax, and we love the people there. Certainly Norovirus put a damper on the cruise; however, it didn’t ruin it. And the boys’ experience with Noro was nothing compared to their experience three years ago with swine flu (school was the culprit there, not a cruise) or the carsickness on the 2005 cruise. And again, I can’t say enough about the crew, especially our cabin stewards who truly rose to the occasion.

 

 

The next cruise is already booked. It’s going to be the “blowout” cruise, to celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary and oldest son’s college graduation. Carnival Legend, 12-day Baltic cruise out of Dover, England. Ports include Copenhagen, Berlin (Warnemunde), Helsinki, two days in St. Petersburg, Talinn, and Amsterdam. The boys are just disappointed that we have to wait so long to cruise again.:cool:

 

 

Any questions, please feel free to ask!

[nybumpkin]

I'll be going to Saint John on my NY cruise the end of this month. How is the shopping in Saint John? Just wanna bring a few cute things home , maybe like a Christmas ornament or key chains. Thank you!!

I like shopping in Saint John. Right next to the cruise terminal is a tent with a number of vendors with nice offerings. There are also nice items at Market Square and City Market, both an easy walk from the pier.

[nybumpkin]

Great review, can't wait to read more! We will be sailing on the Glory in Sept on a 7 day out of NYC.

Thanks - I've always wanted to do the 7-day, but we can't sail in September given DH's teaching schedule and sons' school schedule. Next summer they're offering 7-day summer cruises out of Boston - but we've already decided on something a little different, as you'll see at the end of my review.:D

[nybumpkin]

http://inlinethumb22.webshots.com/49...500x500Q85.jpg

George's Island, next to the pier.

 

there is tunnel going from citadel hill to the Island under water.. not sure if they told you that part... did you get a chance to taste any of the local fish and lobster..nothing like it fresh out of a pot

I never heard about the tunnel! They just said the island usually isn't opened to the public. We didn't have lunch in Halifax this time, much to my dismay, because I do love the seafood. And I missed having an Alexander Keith's India Ale.:(

[scperk]

We had the best weather ever on a Canada cruise. Nice, warm weather in port, very little fog. Once again we loved visiting Saint John and Halifax, and we love the people there. Certainly Norovirus put a damper on the cruise; however, it didn’t ruin it. And the boys’ experience with Noro was nothing compared to their experience three years ago with swine flu (school was the culprit there, not a cruise) or the carsickness on the 2005 cruise. And again, I can’t say enough about the crew, especially our cabin stewards who truly rose to the occasion.

 

 

The next cruise is already booked. It’s going to be the “blowout” cruise, to celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary and oldest son’s college graduation. Carnival Legend, 12-day Baltic cruise out of Dover, England. Ports include Copenhagen, Berlin (Warnemunde), Helsinki, two days in St. Petersburg, Talinn, and Amsterdam. The boys are just disappointed that we have to wait so long to cruise again.:cool:

 

 

Any questions, please feel free to ask!

WE are going to miss yall again Kathy..We are booked on the Legend 8/1, 8/13 & 8/25....Dennis...:).

[nybumpkin]

WE are going to miss yall again Kathy..We are booked on the Legend 8/1, 8/13 & 8/25....Dennis...:).

Sounds like a wonderful cruise! We booked the 7/3 Baltic cruise because we don't know what Dan's schedule is going to look like after he graduates - since he doesn't know what he'll be doing after he graduates.:o We just figure he'll have several weeks between graduation on 6/17 and when he reports. He's going to apply for a Navy commission as a Surface Warfare Officer, but we don't know how many slots will be available for that. Applications are due in three weeks...keep your fingers crossed.:)

[oo ee oo ee baby]

 

The next cruise is already booked. It’s going to be the “blowout” cruise, to celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary and oldest son’s college graduation. Carnival Legend, 12-day Baltic cruise out of Dover, England. Ports include Copenhagen, Berlin (Warnemunde), Helsinki, two days in St. Petersburg, Talinn, and Amsterdam.

Sounds wonderful, I will look forward to your review!

[jackdis]

Love your review!! We will be on the Glory soon, also for our 4th Canada run, but the 4 day. Cannot wait!!! Thank you.

[kathy884]

Enjoyed seeing your pictures and am so glad you enjoyed the cruise.

 

We were on the same cruise DH (58), me (52), DS (16), and my mom, an active 75 year old senior and were staying in two midship balcony cabins. We picked the side to watch the Statue of Liberty on the way out too and really liked watching the ship go in and out of ports. We visit relatives who live in NJ (40 minutes away from Penn Station by train) every year, so decided to do this little cruise up to Canada after our annual three night visit to see them and really enjoyed it.

 

DS got that virus for about 24 hrs, but was fine after that, and the last 12 hours didn't feel that bad -- just wasn't 100%. For those first 12 hours he really just stayed in our cabin to be close to the bathroom and he and I watched Olympic events. Lol -- I just thought he was seasick until I heard the morning announcements. You can tell I don't cruise a great deal. I walked down to the medical area after hearing the announcements thinking I'd just get some more information/advice and decided we'd just stay away as DS was doing pretty good by then and oh my gosh -- the teens and kids down there look so much worse than DS was at his worst and medical staff looked overwhelmed. Others in our party weren't affected.

 

We did a Bay of Fundy tour in St. John. In Halifax (DS is really into Titanic history), so we visited the Maritime museum that even has a big section dedicated to the Titanic and also did a Grayline 1 1/2 hour tour of the Titanic cemetary. You are so right about the weather. The two days we were in the Canadian port were absolutely beautiful. We also on the last day at sea did the "Behind the Fun" tour on the ship, a real hit with my whole family. It gave me an even greater appreciated for how this ship is run and how hard working and dedicated the staff is.

 

DS hardly ever gets sick, and I was surprised that the virus outbreak and his being under the weather for a day didn't seem to dampen his enthusiam for cruising. He wants to do another cruise for sure. DH and I enjoyed ourselves too, so I'm sure there will be another cruise in our future.

[mabkcruisers]

I'll be going to Saint John on my NY cruise the end of this month. How is the shopping in Saint John? Just wanna bring a few cute things home , maybe like a Christmas ornament or key chains. Thank you!!

 

We were on the same cruise. The people of Saint John are wonderful- full of helpful advice and very welcoming. We felt the shopping was just "eh". I didn't buy anything, nor did my mom who loves to shop! The white tent that is set up just as you disembark has a lot of trinkets, but most of it I could do without.

[nybumpkin]

Lol -- I just thought he was seasick until I heard the morning announcements. You can tell I don't cruise a great deal.

 

We had no idea it was norovirus until we heard the announcements the morning we ported in Halifax. I just figured son overdid all the different food he was eating. And that's on our 17th cruise....

We also on the last day at sea did the "Behind the Fun" tour on the ship, a real hit with my whole family. It gave me an even greater appreciated for how this ship is run and how hard working and dedicated the staff is.

Behind the Fun is a great tour and I recommend it to anyone who wants to see how a ship works.

 

DS hardly ever gets sick, and I was surprised that the virus outbreak and his being under the weather for a day didn't seem to dampen his enthusiam for cruising. He wants to do another cruise for sure. DH and I enjoyed ourselves too, so I'm sure there will be another cruise in our future.

Our kids can't wait for our next cruise!

So glad you had a good time and had a chance to visit the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic.:cool:

[LRene]

We're on the 7-day to New England and Canada in 3 weeks. We did this cruise back in 2008 and I remember the shopping area at Halifax port being pretty decent. I got several hand dyed silk scarves in there and some other unusual items. Unfortunately, that's our shortest port stop and we hope to go as far as Lunenburg by car so won't have a lot of shopping time. Is Halifax still the best place to pick up a few things?

 

I agree with the poster that said the people in Halifax and Saint John are some of the nicest we've ever encountered on cruises! :)

[MrFunInTheSun]

Great review and pictures. Thank you for sharing your experience.

[Dave0311]

Thanks for the review! :) We were supposed to go on this cruise again, the day you guys were getting off the ship. Unfortunately we had to cancel. :( Even though it's shorter I've always enjoyed this cruise!

 

Crew: I thought the crew went above and beyond when faced with Noro. Our cabin stewards didn’t blink an eye when we told them of the less-than-stellar conditions in sons’ cabin and they never lost their smile or their sense of humor. In the buffet area, I saw frequent cleaning of the buffet area – not to mention that they removed the catsup, mustard, salt and pepper from individual tables so that you had to go to a central location to request them. And the deck crew was constantly wiping down railings, elevator areas, etc. Understand as well that the Canada run is not the crew’s favorite run. The weather is often iffy and there aren’t beaches like you find in the Caribbean.

It's good to hear you had to request condiments and salt/pepper from a central location. I'm guessing they were sanitized before being handed out? To be honest, I wish they always did this. The germaphobe that I am, I hate touching those bottles sitting on the tables.

 

Entertainment: I missed having Josh as our Cruise Director. We sailed with him twice before, on Miracle in 2009 and on Glory last year. He’s a really nice guy and very entertaining. Having said that, Pete shows a lot of promise as a cruise director. We didn’t see any of the shows except the Welcome Aboard Show – we’ve seen all the shows before. Glory still had a Lido deck duo (the DJ stayed in the dance club except for the VIFP party) and still had one of the rock bands, Music Connection (way too loud for my taste). The big screen entertainment was pretty much limited to the Olympics for this cruise – not that I minded that, since it was fun to watch on the screen.

I believe Josh is out with an injury currently, which is why he wasn't on the ship. We sailed with him when he was an ACD on the Miracle in 2008, and we thought he was great. I was looking forward to sailing with him as CD.

 

 

Passengers: Large numbers were from NY/NJ/CT/PA, although we met several folks who came from a distance – one family from Louisiana, another from Kentucky.

One of the neat things about this cruise for those of us who live in the Northeast is meeting so many people who are from the area. We met one family back in 2010 who were from the next town over from us. That was pretty cool.

 

Thanks again for the review! :)

[bigbny1]

great detailed review.......might you have a copy of the fun times........thanks

[BEACHPAD04]

Great review and picture, Thanks for the inf. on the Fun Tour, I cannot wait to go on it.

 

I have been on 12 cruises and Glory is my favorite ship, been on her twice.

Love the rocking chairs at the pool.

 

:p

[allentownahoy]

Thanks for the great review. Can you give more details on the Bay of Fundy tour. What was it called, where did it go, how much time on the bus, how much time at the different stops? Thanks

[nybumpkin]

great detailed review.......might you have a copy of the fun times........thanks

I do have the Fun Times - have to figure out how to post them. If nothing else, though, if you can give me an e-mail address I'll scan and send them.:)

 

Thanks for the great review. Can you give more details on the Bay of Fundy tour. What was it called, where did it go, how much time on the bus, how much time at the different stops? Thanks

We did the "Fundy's Hidden Coast" tour last year. If I remember correctly, it was about three hours, which worked out well for us since we wanted to go to Grannan's for lunch afterward. There were three stops - Lepreau Falls for about a half hour, followed by Dipper Harbour for about 1/2 hour, then a coastal beach - about another half hour. All told, half your time is spent on the bus, half at the various stops.

 

This year we just opted for a DIY walking tour. Someday we'll do the St. Andrews or St. Martins tours.

[092306]

Had 2 friends on that cruise who really enjoyed it and luckily no contraction of noro. Loved the Glory!

[nybumpkin]

We're on the 7-day to New England and Canada in 3 weeks. We did this cruise back in 2008 and I remember the shopping area at Halifax port being pretty decent. I got several hand dyed silk scarves in there and some other unusual items. Unfortunately, that's our shortest port stop and we hope to go as far as Lunenburg by car so won't have a lot of shopping time. Is Halifax still the best place to pick up a few things?

 

I agree with the poster that said the people in Halifax and Saint John are some of the nicest we've ever encountered on cruises! :)

There are some good vendors right at the pier in Halifax - some unusual items, some regular touristy items (I collect shot glasses, so no lack of those:p). Certainly there's a larger number of vendors than in Saint John. There's a number of Celtic heritage vendors in Halifax.

 

My own favorite purchase, as I mentioned before, is Nova Scotian Crystal. They have some truly beautiful patterns. One is called "Titanic" and was inspired by one of the light fixtures on the ship. It's a little busy for my taste, but it's really a work of art. You do have to walk down to the Cable Wharf, though, and that may not fit your schedule.

 

I love the people in both ports. It occurs to me how many times people smiled and said "Good Morning" to us in Saint John, even if they were just going about their daily business and not at all associated with the tourist trade. And no one is "in your face" trying to sell you a tour, although tours are certainly available.

[tlvsnjunkie]

My husband and I sale on 9/8 to New England and are excited to visit the Canadian Atlantic ports.

[nybumpkin]

My husband and I sale on 9/8 to New England and are excited to visit the Canadian Atlantic ports.

Hope you have a wonderful cruise! I'd love to do a 7-day.

[Ours91]

I like shopping in Saint John. Right next to the cruise terminal is a tent with a number of vendors with nice offerings. There are also nice items at Market Square and City Market, both an easy walk from the pier.

 

Thanks!!

[Radio]

We didn’t have any real plans other than doing a walking tour, so we set out along the Harbour Passage to get some nice views of the ships and the harbor area. >SNIP<

 

 

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Great Pics ! I am loving your review :)

 

Thanks for posting. . . Sorry about the kids getting Noro. . . I had it once on a Cruise. Not fun. :(

 

 

Radio

;);)

 

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