Conquest Superbowl cruise out of NOLA 2/3 - 2-10 review longish

[Carolin]

We just got back yesterday so I thought I would write this down while I have it fresh in my mind. This cruise was just my boyfriend and I.

We usually travel with another couple but they had other obligations this year. One of our favorite cities in the US is New Orleans and we

have a freind who lives near the french quarter who lets us stay with her. Who could resist that invitation right? The original intent of

this trip was to be in New Orleans for Marti Gras but when I saw there was a cruise as well, I could not resist. It wasn't until months

later that I found out we were leaving on Superbowl Sunday. YOWZAA!

 

I have been to the ports on this particular cruise before but my boyfriend had never been to Key West, Freeport and Nassau. I also wanted

this cruise to be very laid back. The ports were long days so that is a big plus for us. He got to sleep in every day and then we would

enjoy the ports at our own pace without the rush and fuss.

 

We drove down from Michigan over a two day span. Not as crazy as you would think. The weather was lovely and I love to drive and see new

places. We arrived in New Orleans on Friday Feb. 1st. We went out and about enjoying the Superbowl vibe around the quarter.

 

Embarkation

 

I took some great advice from some lovely people here on CC and caught the Riverside Streetcar down to the dock. $1.25 pp. Easy peasy.

The Superbowl crowd was everywhere. We arrived just before 11am and I thought it went very smooth. We stopped in on the lido deck for

some lunch and a beverage. We were let into our cabin at 12:30.

My bottle of rum from bon voyage was waiting for me as well as the bottomless bubbles for my boyfriend.

 

My cabin steward

 

We brought on some coke in a soft side cooler on board with us. Our cabin steward kept that full of ice the entire cruise. He was

awesome. I swear the guy was a genie. We would be gone for 15 minutes and our cabin was all set up again. I couldn't wait to get back

to the cabin after dinner to see the great towel animal he had left for me at the end of each day. Always a smile on his face and

a friendly.... Good morning Ms. Carolin. Enjoy your day. I tipped him extra at the end of the cruise for the fantastic service.

 

My cabin 7423

 

I've turned my boyfriend into a balcony snob... yes its all my fault. LOL I love standing on the balcony enjoying looking at the sea and

seeing if I can spot any sea creatures as well as other ships. I choose this cabin because of its location. Cabins above and below so

noise is at a minimum. If you go up two decks, your on the lido deck where food and drink are plenty. Two decks down and your on the

prominade where the action is. We slept extremely well in this clean well kept cabin and I highly recommend it.

 

The Conquest

 

We have been on this class of ship many times before so we knew the layout right away. I was excited to see the new upgrades. I was not

disappointed. Red Frog Rum pub on one side of the lido deck and Iguana pub on the other. My boyfriend LOVED Guy's burgers with a special

nod to the fries. Opposite Guy's burgers was the Iguana cantina where you could get burrito's and tacos. I really liked the machine that

made fresh flower tortillas. Nice touch. My boyfriend got the chicken tacos. I got a pork taco. He tried the habanero sauce stating...

This will probably not be as hot as you would think. WRONG.. The look on his face after first bite was priceless. He loved it but his

mouth was on fire for a bit. hahaha

 

We went to the Motor City review. Nice but being from Detroit, we know what's motown and was isn't. I'm not that picky. My boyfriend

was picked to participate in the Hasbro Game Show. It was fun and he enjoyed himself. He won a Hasbro card game and a $20 gift

certificate.

 

EA Sports bar is a great addition. Several people were in there enjoying the video games (not my thing but good for them). The

bartenders were very friendly and we got to know them well. If you go in there, say HI to Ahren and Vasyl. My boyfriend is a sports nut so he

could not resist the Sports Trivia contest every night at 5pm. He won a medal on the first day and was hooked. Competition was fierce

by the end of the cruise but it was a friendly.

 

Other thoughts..

 

Lounge chairs around the pools were very easy to get which made me wonder how full the ship was. I have always loved the tandori usually

located on the aft of the lido deck. This cruise it was never open. There were hardly any lines at the buffet. And I notice that the

dining rooms were not full. Hmm.. where is everyone?

 

Our table started full at the beginning of the cruise and only 6 of us showed up every day (for the most part)

after that. We soon found out that we were very compatible with our tablemates. Dining seemed to zoom by as we laughed and talked through

dinner. We exchanged emails on the last night to send out pictures and keep in touch. We often met up during the day and spent

time catching up or going to events. Our dining wait staff (Jose and Roland) could not have been better.

And Mariana (dining room bar staff) was always quick to stop by with my glass of wine.

 

I was surprised and quite happy to recieve my gold VIFP pin on this cruise as well as an invitation to the members party on the second to

last sea day. On this cruise, there was only one Diamond member on the ship and they did a special recognition for him.

 

We went to the piano bar pretty much every night. Mike is great. If he didn't know the song, he would go out of his way to learn it

for you the next time you came in. It was slow in there at the start of the cruise but quickly became popular as the cruise went on and

the word got out.

 

After visiting the piano bar we would go to the punchliner comedy club to catch the adult shows. There was not a bad one in the bunch. I

also went to the punchliners brunch but did not see any of the comedians there since I went at 9am. I sat at a large table and much to my

delight, I was sitting with another couple from my roll call. :)

And last but not least... Ports of Call Key West, Freeport and Nassau.

 

Key West

 

My boyfriend is crazy for architecture so we walked from one end to the other. My feet were killing me at the end of the day. hahaha

We stopped at the southern most bar/beach to give my feet a rest and stayed for a lovely glass of wine and a great view.

 

Freeport

 

I declared a beach day for this port and I am so glad I did. We caught a cab to the Junkanoo Beach club. ($14 pp round trip) It was a perfect day for this.

The band was filled with energy and very enjoyable.

I put my poor abused feet in the surf as we strolled along the beach

and it was sooo refreshing. The sand was like fine powder.

I snacked on conch fritters in the shade and we just chilled out.

Ahhhh Hello paradise.

 

Nassau

 

From CC, I learned about a walking architecture tour. This was perfect for us. At certain points, I thought I was the frog on the old

video game Frogger. Dodging traffic yikes but soon got use to how things worked. We walked up through parliment buildings and up to the

queens staircase. Wow it was amazing. We walked down and end up zig-zagging up and down the streets. I needed a break so we stopped in

at the pirate bar. A friendly wonderful little place and the bartender was fun to be around. Then it was time for a snack and head back

to the ship. I didn't make it to Fish fry this time but it will be on my list if I happen to visit this port again.

 

I am now sitting at my friend's house in New Orleans and its raining. I hope it stops so we can see the parade tonight. *fingers crossed*

If you have any questions, I will be more then happy to answer if I can.

[Carolin]

RODEL not Roland. MARINA not Mariana. Apologies, Carolin.

[gelo7]

Excellent review, thanks for sharing your thoughts.

[KirkNC]

Thanks for the report!

[cggurl]

Thank you for the positive review! Those really nitpicky reviews ugh. We're departing April 21st on the Conquest and truly can't wait!!

[LWiening]

Thank you for the review we are heading on her Sunday..

[novalab]

Thank you for your great review about Conquest! Have sailed on her twice before & will again in April. DH & I are really looking forward to it! We too have a balcony cabin on Empress deck reserved. It has always been my favorite deck.

 

Great to start my morning off with a positive Conquest review! Thanks again!