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Triumph 8-31-13 (Part 1)

bluedevil72

By bluedevil72,
in Carnival Cruise Lines

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bluedevil72

bluedevil72

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I'll have to do this in parts, but I'll try to get it done as quickly as possible. We got the email on 8/30 that the crew was having their quarterly immigration inspection and not to show until 1:30. We decided to take our chances and it worked out fine. We left from NE Texas for the 5.5 hour drive to our hotel in Seabrook, down the road from NASA. We stayed at the LQ in Seabrook, where we had stayed before our Princess cruise in April, and everything was fine. Typical LQ breakfast the next morning, but they worked hard keeping everything stocked. We left around 9:30 for the 30 min trip to Galveston. We got there around 10:00 and there was still a lot of congestion with people getting off the ship so we decided to drive down by the beach and the sea wall. We got back to the ship a little before 11:00 and I dropped my wife and luggage off at the pier and I went across the street to park at ParkNCruise and walked back across the street. It's the second time we've used them and will continue to. We've also parked at Lighthouse, and they're good too, but PNC is just so convenient and no tipping, since they don't have a shuttle. We didn't do FTTF. IMHO it's money that I don't think is well spent. And before you call me cheap, we've done luggage express twice, and I think that's the best $20 pp that I've spent on a cruise. We walked right in the front door, up the escalator and right up to an agent. We've always gotten to Galveston early, and never had any lines to speak of. We were in group 2, and I think we sat until about 11:45. There were two big wedding parties and quite a number of Platinum cruisers. We were less than five mins behind the FTTF group. We had booked ES so I dropped by the service desk to make sure that our price drops had been applied, and I also had a $100 Carnival email gift card that I had received for opening up a credit card and I had that taken care of as well. So we were $180 to the good before we even got started. We walked around a little and were eating a burger at Guy's by 12:30. When we had first walked in, the big doors to the rooms were closed, but after eating, they were opened. We walked down to our room, and even though it wasn't ready, we were able to drop off our carryons and go do some more exploring. Gotta go. More later.

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bluedevil72

bluedevil72

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We were in interior room 7311. It's mid-ship and we like the deck 7 room. It's in the middle of everything. It's a quiet, cool room. So cool, in fact, that I turned off the AC vent several times, since there is no thermostat. Using something that I saw on CC, I tuned the TV to the bridge cam, muted it and left it on at night. It was completely dark at night and we could tell when it was daylight outside. The TV was an old one, not an HD.

We ate in the MDR every night. I thought the food was good. I didn't notice any difference from our other CCL cruises. The food was always the temperature that it should have been. We did any time dining this time and there is a big difference there. I liked the fact that we didn't have to be tied down by a certain time, but there is a difference in the service. I have always enjoyed the relationships that are formed with the wait staff on our other cruises. It's not that way with any time. In my opinion they have way too many tables and are having to work too hard to get everybody in and out. They were polite and took very good care of us, but there's not enough time to just visit a little.

My favorite new thing on the ship are all the options for lunch. We NEVER ate in the buffet line....not for any meal. We ate at Guy's Burgers twice, and it's as good as advertised. The Blue Iguana is very good and we ate sandwiches from the NY Deli a couple of times. We also got a couple of items from the Asian Wok. There is a station set up in the middle of the room for desserts, so you don't have to go through the line. I think the best kept secret on the ship is the second level of seating. I guess maybe most people don't want to climb the stairs, but it can be bustling downstairs and almost totally vacant upstairs.

There's also many options for breakfast. The Blue Iguana has good breakfast burritos. There are three omelet stations that are not part of the buffet. The two inside by the buffet line can be kinda crowded, but there's one outside by the aft pool that was uncrowded most of the time. You can also get milk, cereal, and yogurt at the outside station so you don't have to get it in the main buffet line. There are also your basic breakfast items in the station in the middle that serves the desserts at lunch. You can get eggs, bacon, hash browns etc. at this station. Fruit is also served in one of the lines at the Blue Iguana.

There were some problems in the beverage stations at times. One day at lunch, there was no ice to be found. Another day, the pressure was down on the water lines, and nothing was mixing correctly. Other times, the stations were out of certain drink items. These problems were all ones that I had experienced on other cruises and other cruise lines, but I thought at times it was because the staff was spread too thin and couldn't get to everything. There is a station on the second level so you don't have to go downstairs to get refills.

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bluedevil72

bluedevil72

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The big shows were very good. We saw "Wonderful World", "New Wave Magic" with Anders and the dancers, and "The Big Easy". There were thirteen dancers, two singers, and most importantly, a ten piece show band, so it was like the old Carnival we were used to. There was also a show in which cruisers performed.

 

The other entertainment was not as good. One comedian's flight didn't make it, and we also saw Paul Lyons and Caroline Picard. They were OK, and we don't go to the R rated shows. The show band played in several spots but we always seemed to be doing something else. There was a Filipino band, which we always enjoy, but they were always playing in the hallway by the casino. There was really no place to sit and listen without the smoke from the casino. The DJ on the Lido is not my favorite. The music was fine, just too loud, and we don't spend much time there anyway. Always liked the live acts there. Our biggest disappointment was the lack of entertainment in then Atrium. We normally spend a lot of time there, listening to the music and people watching. This time when there was an act there, it was a C & W singer, which I like, but he was more interested in flirting with the girls. That all sounds kinda negative....and it wasn't terrible, just not what we've experienced on past cruises.

 

We only got off the ship in Progresso to go shopping at the shops on the pier. Yes, I know that's not really shopping, but my wife found perfume $15 cheaper than on the ship and we found some neat necklaces for the grand kids. One piece of advice. If you get off the ship on your own, you might want to get back one hour before the suggested time. I've never seen lines like that to get back on the ship. I guess all the ship's excursions got back about the same time.

 

In Cozumel we went to Nachi Cocum. It was our second time and it was just as good as the first time. The cost is $55 pp and the taxi is $16 each way for two people. The price includes a great three course meal...we've never made it to the desert, and unlimited drinks. We don't drink, but we love virgin piña coladas and strawberry daiquiris. We've also been to Passion Island twice, and even though we like it too, their all you can drink doesn't include those two drinks.

 

They limit the crowd to 100 people per day and there were about 40-50 there that day, with just one ship in port. They have a great pool and a hot tub. There are talapas with four chairs under each one and everybody there that day had their own. For an extra charge there is a banana boat, wave runners and they will also take you out on a glass bottom snorkeling boat. We did that on our first trip and it was excellent. We rented a float for $7 for the day. When you get ready to leave they will call a cab for you.

 

One thing that really impresses me about NC is they talk to you when you first arrive about the extra things available and that's it. You're not badgered all day long. Juan was our waiter for the day and he was the only person we tipped. Other places we've been seems like you're expected to tip everytime you turn around.

 

Chair hogs seem to be a hot topic on the boards and we didn't see any of that. As I said, we don't spend much time around the main pool, but on the first sea day we did spend a couple of hours in the sun and chairs were no problem. It was in the morning and the DJ wasn't there yet. They were showing old TV shows on the big screen. We spent more of our poolside time at the aft pool, which is obviously a lot more sedate. They do play piped in music, but most of it was from the 70's and 80's.

 

There are also deck chairs outside on deck 3 and that's where we spent much of our time. There are also chairs on the lido deck between the main pool and the aft pool, and it's pretty quiet there too.

 

I mentioned earlier that we didn't do FTTF. We boarded 5-10 mins after they did anyway and there is no tendering on this trip. I also keep a close eye on our bill so there are no surprises which might cause a trip to the service desk. The bill can be accessed by using the interactive TV and there are also kiosks where you can check your folio and get large bills exchanged for smaller ones. That was always worth a trip to the desk on other cruises to get smaller bills for extra on board tips.

 

Debarkation was a breeze. We weren't in a hurry so we didn't do self-assist but evidently a bunch of folks do. It took about 45 mins for the self-assist to get off. Once they started calling numbers, we were 8, it doesn't take anytime at all. Another thing too about all the self-assist, finding your luggage now is no problem. I can remember when it looked like a sea of black suitcases, like ours. We got a porter, as we always do, and breezed through the customs line. As I mentioned earlier, we parked at ParkNCruise, and I walked across the street and was back to pick up my wife and the luggage in five mins. It was a little congested at the curb, but really not too bad.

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tgunn1978

tgunn1978

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How much is the Cheers Package on a Triumph 5-day? Thanks!!!:)

 

The price on Triumph and Magic is $49.95 per person/per day PLUS 15%

gratuity. Total $57.45 per person/per day.

Everyone 21 and over in the cabin must purchase, and remember that

due to Texas Alcohol laws, you cannot purchase the Cheers Program on Triumph and Magic until the second day.:p

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bluedevil72

bluedevil72

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I really like Jen. When we saw and heard her the first day, I thought she sure looked and sounded familiar. When we got back home, I looked at some of my old material and sure enough, she was our CD on the Conquest in '09. I think she is genuinely funny and seems very personable even though we never saw or talked to her anywhere else on the ship.

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bluedevil72

bluedevil72

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Yes, I'm from Celeste, hence the Blue Devil. It was typical Mexico weather... A lot like Texas. High 80's to low 90's , pretty high humidity. It sprinkled a little in Coz, but not much. There was rain the last sea day. Enough that the cover on the aft deck was closed and it was very crowded back there. Later in the day, it cleared up and the main pool was busy again. Didn't hear what the platinum gift was. We are gold.

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TxStacey

TxStacey

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Would you happen to know what the platinum gift was on our trip?

 

 

Hey Flounder..I just saw that you are sailing on a girl's get away next Thursday. I will be on a girl's cruise also..there are 23 of us. We are called "The Shipfaced Girls". We will be wearing neon orange t-shirts on Thursday:p. Can't wait! Just praying for good weather and no rain!!

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zdcatc12

zdcatc12

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We were on this sailing and the Platinum gift was a Nike baseball cap with Carnival embroidered on the front of the cap.

 

Same with the cruise on the ninth. Came in handy at the ruins in Progreso.

 

Sent from my SPH-L300 using Forums mobile app

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