DarthGrady Posted October 2, 2013 #1 Share Posted October 2, 2013 We rolled out of town at around 10ish Thursday morning, ambling northward toward Jacksonville. The terminal was fairly crowded when we arrived, although they seemed to be doing a good job of moving folks through. My roommate and I checked in at the VIP lounge which was nearly empty at the time. The ladies were kind enough to check in the other four guys in our party since there were no other VIP guests waiting. We were onboard the ship in less than a half hour. Having never embarked at JaxPort before, I was surprised to find that they were loading the ship from the gangway on the pier. Approaching the ship The JaxPort cruise terminal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falkcor Posted October 2, 2013 #2 Share Posted October 2, 2013 welcome back grady, will keep an eye out for this one... always a fun booze cruise :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dare2Believe Posted October 2, 2013 #3 Share Posted October 2, 2013 Can't wait to read more, and to see more pics!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarthGrady Posted October 2, 2013 Author #4 Share Posted October 2, 2013 I didn't do a pictorial review for my last trip on Fascination back in 2006, but there is a text review here if anyone wants to check it out: http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=22822 14 of my 19 Carnival cruises have been on Fantasy Class ships, so I can safely say that they are my favorites in the fleet. Very easy to get around, and small enough that finding friends isn't a chore. I love the promenade on this class for its great ocean views and convenient meeting spots. The open air porches at the aft end of the lido deck buffets are my favorite (casual) dining venues on any ship I've been on. After we boarded the ship we dropped our luggage off in the cabins. We then stopped by the pool bar to get our open bar cards from our TA. Fortunately we are in a group that has the old bar program and not the neutered "Cheers" program which is limited to 15 drinks per day. We then had lunch in the Coconut Grove buffet, and got our first drinks of the weekend. The keys to the kingdom The Coconut Grove buffet and it's excellent deli Not a great view, but at least we had drinks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dare2Believe Posted October 2, 2013 #5 Share Posted October 2, 2013 Wow - didn't realize there was a previous drink program through Carnival..good for you! Lucky! Looks like the Jacksonville port is just in the middle of nowhere, eh? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarthGrady Posted October 2, 2013 Author #6 Share Posted October 2, 2013 We had an interior room on Upper Deck, which had a connecting door to our friend's room. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alreadypacked Posted October 2, 2013 #7 Share Posted October 2, 2013 Great start, Grady! I always like your reviews--can't wait for the rest!:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarthGrady Posted October 2, 2013 Author #8 Share Posted October 2, 2013 Wow - didn't realize there was a previous drink program through Carnival..good for you! Lucky! Looks like the Jacksonville port is just in the middle of nowhere, eh? It wasn't available to everyone, only to large or corporate groups. CCL had to approve it first, and everyone had to buy in, so it was hard to get. IMO, Cheers being open to everyone would have been a great thing if they hadn't put a blanket cap on the number of drinks per day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greysea74 Posted October 2, 2013 #9 Share Posted October 2, 2013 Awesome, can not wait to see more. Sailing out of Jax on Fascination in December!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dare2Believe Posted October 2, 2013 #10 Share Posted October 2, 2013 It wasn't available to everyone, only to large or corporate groups. CCL had to approve it first, and everyone had to buy in, so it was hard to get. IMO, Cheers being open to everyone would have been a great thing if they hadn't put a blanket cap on the number of drinks per day. Interesting! Yes, the 15 drinks a day is a little frustrating, but I'm thinking my liver will thank me for not going higher than 15!! ;):o Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarthGrady Posted October 2, 2013 Author #11 Share Posted October 2, 2013 We spent the afternoon occupying various bars and lounges. We all went up to the top deck to watch the ship sail from JaxPort. Seeing the stack clear the bridge was impressive, similar to the Sunshine Skyway passing in Tampa Bay. A bunch of Humvees near the port At some point we stopped by the "Taste Bar" on the promenade. This a new food sampler counter that replaced the sushi bar that had been a long time Carnival institution. I was very disappointed that they sushi bar was taken away. Sushi on the promenade before dinner was one of my favorite things that Carnival offered. The food at the taste bar was good, but it was very obvious that it is not as popular a place as the old sushi bar. I never saw more than a few people there at any given time. The lines for the sushi bar used to stretch down the promenade. This is certainly on purpose as a cost cutting measure. The Taste Bar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarthGrady Posted October 2, 2013 Author #12 Share Posted October 2, 2013 welcome back grady, will keep an eye out for this one... always a fun booze cruise :) Thanks Mark, yes, it was a great time! :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarthGrady Posted October 2, 2013 Author #13 Share Posted October 2, 2013 That's all I have time for tonight, I'll try to get back on tomorrow with more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daniella1279 Posted October 2, 2013 #14 Share Posted October 2, 2013 We sail in November....I'm looking forward to your review! Danielle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crusinpsychRN Posted October 2, 2013 #15 Share Posted October 2, 2013 Great to see a new review from you! I agree about the sushi bar. I haven't had a Taste I liked yet and I've seen a lot of plates which indicated others didn't like it either... Looking forward to the next installation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrFunInTheSun Posted October 2, 2013 #16 Share Posted October 2, 2013 Welcome back Grady. Thanks for bringing us along the annual booze cruise. The sushi bars being removed is a shame, noticed that on my past Carnival cruises and it was nice to get some sushi before heading off to the dining room. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Georgiagolfer Posted October 2, 2013 #17 Share Posted October 2, 2013 Looking forward to the rest of your review, sounds like a great trip and time. DW and I also like the Fantasy class ships best. Fascination is our favorite (4 cruises.) Jacksonville is also the easiest embark port we have done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SPKEMO Posted October 2, 2013 #18 Share Posted October 2, 2013 The ever so popular 'BOOZE CRUISE'. I will be on one in 2 days!! Looking forward to your review. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarthGrady Posted October 3, 2013 Author #19 Share Posted October 3, 2013 After sail away we eventually made it to dinner in the MDR. The food and service were good. Our wait staff seemed very overworked though. Constantly hurrying from place to place and never having much time to talk. Ship model outside the dining room One of the main dining rooms Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ATL2LAS Posted October 3, 2013 #20 Share Posted October 3, 2013 Looking forward to the rest of review. Going on the Fascination again in November:D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iloverags2 Posted October 3, 2013 #21 Share Posted October 3, 2013 Enjoying your report! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oncruisecontrol Posted October 3, 2013 #22 Share Posted October 3, 2013 Looking forward to the rest of your review, Grady. Your reviews are always very enjoyable to read. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmandmm Posted October 3, 2013 #23 Share Posted October 3, 2013 Subscribing! Thank you! :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarthGrady Posted October 3, 2013 Author #24 Share Posted October 3, 2013 After dinner we wound up having drinks at the lobby bar in the atrium before stopping into the piano bar. Usually the piano bar is my jam. I enjoy the sing-alongs, and having fun with the other patrons. Unfortunately the environment in Fascination's piano bar has turned fairly hostile. Bob, the piano player, doesn't seem to take kindly to boisterous merry-makers and boozy revelers. Any time we would sing along too loudly he would either give condescending looks or stop playing altogether and make snarky comments. It seemed that he considered the lounge his personal nightly recital; not the fun filled musical extension of the comedy club that I've loved on other ships. Our time in there was brief each night. Maybe next year we'll have Brad or Milby again. The rest of the night was spent in the Diamonds are Forever night club. The DJ was playing a good mix of top 40 and Caribbean dance music. We were in there until it shut down around 3:30. We then hit the buffet for pizza and had a post club party on the back deck. Sleep finally came at around 6 am, just as the crew was setting up for breakfast. The piano bar The atrium The lobby bar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DGP1111 Posted October 3, 2013 #25 Share Posted October 3, 2013 Unfortunately the environment in Fascination's piano bar has turned fairly hostile. Bob, the piano player, doesn't seem to take kindly to boisterous merry-makers and boozy revelers. Any time we would sing along too loudly he would either give condescending looks or stop playing altogether and make snarky comments. It seemed that he considered the lounge his personal nightly recital . . . Oh, dear . . . Perhaps not the best fit for the role assigned. :( . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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