Carnival Splendor 6/10/13 ... a ramble

[jimbo5544]

Yea with that price we decided to drive :eek:

Same here, maybe I am in the wrong business.

[jimbo5544]

I'm leaving from NYC next April (two-hundred eighty-something long days away!), and we're planning on taking the train and the bus. Will be a bit of a pain with luggage, but we're cheap! I may see if my lovely SIL will drive us, she has a huge van, but she may not have the same school break we have. I guess I could check if CT Limo has a ride to the pier, but they take so long because they have to stop all over the place to pick up customers.

Confused with the train and the bus, is it not either or?

[Cyber Kat]

Were going on the splendor on Aug 5th my request is I want Kath to come and show us everything she just wrote about !!!;)

Great reviews !!

 

LOL - are you buying?

[maurinsky2]

Confused with the train and the bus, is it not either or?

 

Train to Grand Central, bus to the pier. It's kind of a long walk - an interesting one, up 42nd street, but a little bit longer than I'd like to do while lugging my luggage.

[foilman2002]

Train to Grand Central, bus to the pier. It's kind of a long walk - an interesting one, up 42nd street, but a little bit longer than I'd like to do while lugging my luggage.

 

Not just Park Ave to 12th Avenue, but also 42nd St to the pier. Hint, subtract 40 from the Pier number and that is usually the closest cross street, so, pier 88 is 48th Street and Pier 90 is 50th Street.

[foilman2002]

We were on the May 9th cruise and we didn't have this. Kat had mentioned it once before and I said I knew nothing about it, then someone from the cruise we were on said yes, we DID have it. I saved my Fun Times. Just looked thru them all for the 100th time and see no mention of it. It's a mystery to me :eek::rolleyes::D:p

 

It seems to be very elusive, those that know about it get there at the start, but if you don't know about it, you miss it. It seems that by the time you get to even look at the Fun Times you've missed the start of it.

 

Anybody know anything about it?

[bjinouno]

http://http://i39.tinypic.com/2myp6d5.jpg[/img lets see if this works, Kat it's you leaving!

[lovelearnteach]

Loving your review, it's getting me so excited for my cruise on the Splendor. Excitedly awaiting the rest of your review :).

[murr202]

Never had anyone give such a great review!!!

 

Loving this!!

[Cyber Kat]

So I shot a couple of pics of the aft pool before we headed back to the room

 

 

This is the adults only pool and there were always a lot of people in it, but you could often find a chair, surprisingly.

 

 

I think we probably wandered by the Sushi Bar on our way back to the room. It was always nice and cool in the comfy chairs (don't sit in the purple velvet ones - they are dangerous!) along the Promenade and since I love sushi, I always managed to head us in that direction.

 

 

We spent a little time hanging out on the balcony, then got ready for another MDR dinner.

 

We sat at our usually empty table for ten, but as we were perusing our menus, two ladies sat opposite us. Almost simultaneously we all said - company! - or something to that effect. We were surprised to see them and they were surprised to see us.

 

They were originally assigned to another table. I forget why they asked to be moved, but they had been moved to our table the night before. We, however, had been up in the Steak House. So now we had table mates. They were two lovely women from Queens who were neighbors.

 

They were sitting on the opposite side of the big table, so they moved next to us so we could carry on a conversation without shouting or saying "what?" every five minutes.

 

So we were 5 at a table for 10 for the rest of the cruise and it was quite nice! We got lots of attention and lots of great service!

 

I was feeling adventurous so ordered the Shark and Langoustino Firecracker Roll. It was okay - tasty, but nothing really exciting. I also had the Wilted Spinach and Portabello mushroom salad - which was quite good. It has bacon - what's not to like! It's one of my favorites! :D

 

I decided to try the Salmon off the Every Day menu. I really liked it, but I love salmon - could have used a bit more sauce but it was nicely done.

 

My sister had the Turkey with the Farfalle and she said it was very good. DH had the pork steak - which he said was okay, but remember he's a fussy eater!

 

For dessert, I had the Tiramisu - sorry Bitter and Blanc fans - I was NOT passing up the Tiramisu and I didn't think to ask for that as well so we could try it. Silly me!

 

And we had the Dinner Show!

 

See all the empty seats - there was no one at some of the tables for the whole cruise. I guess people don't like late dining or they were wait-listed for their choice and went to the buffet.

 

I find early dining at 6pm - too early and late dining at 8:15 a bit too late. I'd prefer 7-7:30. I'd have tried ATD/YTD but I got outvoted. If I have to pick between 6:00 and 8:15, I'll take 8:15 - no question.

 

Also people on are always writing to John Heald (Head CD for Carnival and their Brand Ambassador) that they don't like the Dancing Waiters. I don't know why - it's FUN. These are the FUN Ships! Why would you cruise on a FUN ship if you don't want to be in contact with FUN?? I don't get it!

 

Anyway, after dinner we wandered around a bit and then headed back to the cabin. This is always a mistake - we should just stay out and do something, but we want to change or we need to drop something off. DH has to take his meds. And we don't get our butts out again. Happens every cruise. Every cruise, I say I'm going to the deck party or a show and we don't make it.

 

So sorry - I don't have any show reviews for you. I heard that the Comedy shows were great and that VROOM was a good show in the theater.

 

We did get to hear some of the live music (I don't know why people are complaining about no live music - there was always plenty on the Splendor) and they were all very good,

 

So I'll leave you here for a bit ... but the next stop is Half Moon Cay - LOVE IT!

[cathyoo]

So looking forward to the HMC review. Thanks so much.

[Jamman54]

Hey Kath!! Really enjoying your ramble!!! I have a VERY important question from my 16 yr. old son. Did you notice if they are doing the Laser Tag on the Splendor? It's one of the things he likes to do onboard. :D

[jimbo5544]

So I shot a couple of pics of the aft pool before we headed back to the room

 

 

This is the adults only pool and there were always a lot of people in it, but you could often find a chair, surprisingly.

 

 

I think we probably wandered by the Sushi Bar on our way back to the room. It was always nice and cool in the comfy chairs (don't sit in the purple velvet ones - they are dangerous!) along the Promenade and since I love sushi, I always managed to head us in that direction.

 

 

We spent a little time hanging out on the balcony, then got ready for another MDR dinner.

 

We sat at our usually empty table for ten, but as we were perusing our menus, two ladies sat opposite us. Almost simultaneously we all said - company! - or something to that effect. We were surprised to see them and they were surprised to see us.

 

They were originally assigned to another table. I forget why they asked to be moved, but they had been moved to our table the night before. We, however, had been up in the Steak House. So now we had table mates. They were two lovely women from Queens who were neighbors.

 

They were sitting on the opposite side of the big table, so they moved next to us so we could carry on a conversation without shouting or saying "what?" every five minutes.

 

So we were 5 at a table for 10 for the rest of the cruise and it was quite nice! We got lots of attention and lots of great service!

 

I was feeling adventurous so ordered the Shark and Langoustino Firecracker Roll. It was okay - tasty, but nothing really exciting. I also had the Wilted Spinach and Portabello mushroom salad - which was quite good. It has bacon - what's not to like! It's one of my favorites! :D

 

I decided to try the Salmon off the Every Day menu. I really liked it, but I love salmon - could have used a bit more sauce but it was nicely done.

 

My sister had the Turkey with the Farfalle and she said it was very good. DH had the pork steak - which he said was okay, but remember he's a fussy eater!

 

For dessert, I had the Tiramisu - sorry Bitter and Blanc fans - I was NOT passing up the Tiramisu and I didn't think to ask for that as well so we could try it. Silly me!

 

And we had the Dinner Show!

 

See all the empty seats - there was no one at some of the tables for the whole cruise. I guess people don't like late dining or they were wait-listed for their choice and went to the buffet.

 

I find early dining at 6pm - too early and late dining at 8:15 a bit too late. I'd prefer 7-7:30. I'd have tried ATD/YTD but I got outvoted. If I have to pick between 6:00 and 8:15, I'll take 8:15 - no question.

 

Also people on are always writing to John Heald (Head CD for Carnival and their Brand Ambassador) that they don't like the Dancing Waiters. I don't know why - it's FUN. These are the FUN Ships! Why would you cruise on a FUN ship if you don't want to be in contact with FUN?? I don't get it!

 

Anyway, after dinner we wandered around a bit and then headed back to the cabin. This is always a mistake - we should just stay out and do something, but we want to change or we need to drop something off. DH has to take his meds. And we don't get our butts out again. Happens every cruise. Every cruise, I say I'm going to the deck party or a show and we don't make it.

 

So sorry - I don't have any show reviews for you. I heard that the Comedy shows were great and that VROOM was a good show in the theater.

 

We did get to hear some of the live music (I don't know why people are complaining about no live music - there was always plenty on the Splendor) and they were all very good,

 

So I'll leave you here for a bit ... but the next stop is Half Moon Cay - LOVE IT!

I love the aft on the Splendor. Kind of reminds me of the Fantasy class

[xplnusa]

Hey Kath!! Really enjoying your ramble!!! I have a VERY important question from my 16 yr. old son. Did you notice if they are doing the Laser Tag on the Splendor? It's one of the things he likes to do onboard. :D

 

When I was on the Splendor back in November I didn't hear anything about it.

[Cyber Kat]

Hey Kath!! Really enjoying your ramble!!! I have a VERY important question from my 16 yr. old son. Did you notice if they are doing the Laser Tag on the Splendor? It's one of the things he likes to do onboard. :D

 

Good news! Yes - Laser Tag was at 10:30 after Nassau (for us) Day 6 of the cruise. It was a featured activity in the Fun Times so be sure to look for it. Socks required - I have no idea why :D

[Cyber Kat]

June 14th - Flag Day

 

This is what the Atrium looked like!

 

 

As I mentioned before, I had put my name on the waiting list for a cabana and was lucky enough to have someone cancel (why - I have no idea and I didn't care!)

 

So once again I was up early - to get ready, to find out what we had to do, where we had to go for the tender. I was very excited for this!

 

We had been to HMC once before in June, so I knew it would be HOT. DH is not much of a beach person, so he didn't last very long sitting in the regular loungers on the beach. I had heard that the clam shells were hot, so we didn't get one and I didn't think about going further down the beach where we might have found some shade.

 

If you are not getting a cabana and you don't have kids (the water park is near the dock end of the island) - head on down the beach further. They have chairs and it's less crowded. There are also hammocks - you can use them. They don't belong to the cabanas or the villas. Further down the beach, you will also be closer to the BBQ/food area - this is a good thing!

 

Oh ... and the new clam shells have vented panels now, so they should be better. I think they are about $20 and it accomodates 2 lounge chairs.

 

This is what the beach looks like near the dock area ...

 

This is further down ...

 

So I didn't make to the gym this morning. We were to arrive at 9am, but we did grab a quick breakfast. We could see the approach as we ate up in the rotisserie area - so nice.

 

These are the instructions that were in the Fun Times for the tendering:

Guests on a Carnival Shore Excursion

Departing before 12 Noon:

- Tours will meet in the El Morocco, 5 aft

- The meeting time is printed on your ticket.

- When your tour is ready to go, staff will escourt you to the Tender Gangway 0 Fwd (deck 0 is where you always leave the ship in the ports)

 

Departing after 12 Noon:

- Tours will meet on the pier

- The meeting time is printed on your ticket

- Please proceed to the Tender Gangway, 0 Fwd 45 minutes before your tour is scheduled to depart

 

Guests NOT on a Carnival Shore Excursion:

- You will need a tender ticket to go ashore.

- Tender tickets are available in the Spectacular Theatre, 3 Fwd (Port side) starting at 8:30am.

- Please come to the Spectacular Theatre ONLY when you and your party are ready to proceed ashore.

- When your tender is read, staff will escort you to the Tender Gangway, 0 Fwd.

- Tender Tickets will be given out until the General Clearance Announcement is made, approximately 12 Noon.

 

After we ate, I went down to the El Morocco - right below our cabin, to find out if we had to be there at the time listed on the ticket for the cabana. My sister is platinum, so we would have priority boarding anyway.

 

The very helpful Carnival staff member there told me that we could come down to the El Morocco at our convenience. There were maybe 50-75 people already there.

 

So I went back to the cabin, we gathered our stuff and headed down.

 

We showed our ticket and took a seat - where we sat for all of 2 minutes. The Carnival staff people said, "everyone come this way - and so we did!

 

I can't remember if we all took the elevator or the stairs - I think we just walked down the stairs to deck 0 and out on to the waiting tender. I think we were the first boat off.

 

Here's the tender at the side of the ship loading passengers. There are more than one and another was waiting for us to depart.

 

 

This tender is empty because I took it when we came back to the ship, but this is what they look like ...

 

It's about a 5 minute ride from the ship to the island dock. The tender goes through a narrow cut, so only one can go through at a time. If you want to enjoy your day - get down to get your tender tickets as early as you can.

 

It paid off on this day, because one of the tenders broke down. All of the people who waited - waited a lot longer. They finally resorted to ferrying people in a life boat.

 

We saw them doing this from shore. We had no clue what had happened and were wondering what they were doing with the life boat. Apparently they got it fixed before we went back, because it didn't seem to be an issue.

 

When we landed, we did the usual welcome to the port photo - which came out surprisingly well. I ended spending more on this cruise for photos than I ever did before. Then we headed for the shore excursion kiosk. They checked my ticket for the cabana and told us to meet the driver where the little jitney runs to the BBQ. The driver greeted us cheerfully. We were the only ones on the jitney, but off we went - door to door service - gotta love it.

 

I'll leave you with a photo of #13 Terra Cotta, because you can only put 6 photos in a post.

 

And yes - that's DH in the Devils Jersey!

[Jamman54]

Good news! Yes - Laser Tag was at 10:30 after Nassau (for us) Day 6 of the cruise. It was a featured activity in the Fun Times so be sure to look for it. Socks required - I have no idea why :D

 

Thanks Kath!! We'll watch for it. Ryan has put it on his to do list!!! :D

[Jamman54]

 

 

And yes - that's DH in the Devils Jersey!

 

Your DH is OK in my book!!! I am a big Devils fan. Was a season ticket holder for years, and I have never missed a Home Devils Playoff Game!!

[absolutely brilliant]

June 14th - Flag Day

 

This is what the Atrium looked like!

 

 

As I mentioned before, I had put my name on the waiting list for a cabana and was lucky enough to have someone cancel (why - I have no idea and I didn't care!)

 

So once again I was up early - to get ready, to find out what we had to do, where we had to go for the tender. I was very excited for this!

 

We had been to HMC once before in June, so I knew it would be HOT. DH is not much of a beach person, so he didn't last very long sitting in the regular loungers on the beach. I had heard that the clam shells were hot, so we didn't get one and I didn't think about going further down the beach where we might have found some shade.

 

If you are not getting a cabana and you don't have kids (the water park is near the dock end of the island) - head on down the beach further. They have chairs and it's less crowded. There are also hammocks - you can use them. They don't belong to the cabanas or the villas. Further down the beach, you will also be closer to the BBQ/food area - this is a good thing!

 

Oh ... and the new clam shells have vented panels now, so they should be better. I think they are about $20 and it accomodates 2 lounge chairs.

 

This is what the beach looks like near the dock area ...

 

This is further down ...

 

So I didn't make to the gym this morning. We were to arrive at 9am, but we did grab a quick breakfast. We could see the approach as we ate up in the rotisserie area - so nice.

 

These are the instructions that were in the Fun Times for the tendering:

 

Guests on a Carnival Shore Excursion

Departing before 12 Noon:

- Tours will meet in the El Morocco, 5 aft

- The meeting time is printed on your ticket.

- When your tour is ready to go, staff will escourt you to the Tender Gangway 0 Fwd (deck 0 is where you always leave the ship in the ports)

 

Departing after 12 Noon:

- Tours will meet on the pier

- The meeting time is printed on your ticket

- Please proceed to the Tender Gangway, 0 Fwd 45 minutes before your tour is scheduled to depart

 

Guests NOT on a Carnival Shore Excursion:

- You will need a tender ticket to go ashore.

- Tender tickets are available in the Spectacular Theatre, 3 Fwd (Port side) starting at 8:30am.

- Please come to the Spectacular Theatre ONLY when you and your party are ready to proceed ashore.

- When your tender is read, staff will escort you to the Tender Gangway, 0 Fwd.

- Tender Tickets will be given out until the General Clearance Announcement is made, approximately 12 Noon.

 

After we ate, I went down to the El Morocco - right below our cabin, to find out if we had to be there at the time listed on the ticket for the cabana. My sister is platinum, so we would have priority boarding anyway.

 

The very helpful Carnival staff member there told me that we could come down to the El Morocco at our convenience. There were maybe 50-75 people already there.

 

So I went back to the cabin, we gathered our stuff and headed down.

 

We showed our ticket and took a seat - where we sat for all of 2 minutes. The Carnival staff people said, "everyone come this way - and so we did!

 

I can't remember if we all took the elevator or the stairs - I think we just walked down the stairs to deck 0 and out on to the waiting tender. I think we were the first boat off.

 

Here's the tender at the side of the ship loading passengers. There are more than one and another was waiting for us to depart.

 

 

This tender is empty because I took it when we came back to the ship, but this is what they look like ...

 

It's about a 5 minute ride from the ship to the island dock. The tender goes through a narrow cut, so only one can go through at a time. If you want to enjoy your day - get down to get your tender tickets as early as you can.

 

It paid off on this day, because one of the tenders broke down. All of the people who waited - waited a lot longer. They finally resorted to ferrying people in a life boat.

 

We saw them doing this from shore. We had no clue what had happened and were wondering what they were doing with the life boat. Apparently they got it fixed before we went back, because it didn't seem to be an issue.

 

When we landed, we did the usual welcome to the port photo - which came out surprisingly well. I ended spending more on this cruise for photos than I ever did before. Then we headed for the shore excursion kiosk. They checked my ticket for the cabana and told us to meet the driver where the little jitney runs to the BBQ. The driver greeted us cheerfully. We were the only ones on the jitney, but off we went - door to door service - gotta love it.

 

I'll leave you with a photo of #13 Terra Cotta, because you can only put 6 photos in a post.

 

And yes - that's DH in the Devils Jersey![/quote

Do they also pick you up & provide door to door service at the end of the day? It was so hot the day we were at HMC that we will definitely get a cabana next time. And there WILL be a next time as we absolutely LOVED the Splendor. We don't need all of the bells & whistles of the bigger newer ships as we wouldn't be interested in rock climbing walls, zip lines, & such. However, we LOVED all of the live music options all around the ship. We were very pleasantly surprised!

[caro1998]

Hi,

Where do you go to rent one of those "clamshells" are there areas spread through out the beach? I am wondering the same thing about towels?

 

Thanks!

Caro

[jimbo5544]

Hi,

Where do you go to rent one of those "clamshells" are there areas spread through out the beach? I am wondering the same thing about towels?

 

Thanks!

Caro

It is an excursion through Carnival. They book up fast. They are in a row along the beach.

[jimbo5544]

Here is a link to someone's review which shows them on a diagram. This somewhat dated buts gives you the genereal idea. Half Moon Cay is really a HAL owned island.

 

http://users.elite.net/thehalls/cabana.html

[Jamman54]

Hi,

Where do you go to rent one of those "clamshells" are there areas spread through out the beach? I am wondering the same thing about towels?

 

Thanks!

Caro

 

If you are referring to the clamshell as pictured below, the can be rented at the rental hut on the beach, which is not far from the tender landing. I've also included a price list, though prices might have gone up a bit since I scanned this, but you get the idea...

 

 

[jimbo5544]

If you are referring to the clamshell as pictured below, the can be rented at the rental hut on the beach, which is not far from the tender landing. I've also included a price list, though prices might have gone up a bit since I scanned this, but you get the idea...

 

 

 

LOL, you read the request much better than I.:cool: My bad.

[Jamman54]

LOL, you read the request much better than I.:cool: My bad.

 

No worries, I almost did the same thing! Guess we have cabanas on the brain!! :D