Conquest review Jan 24 - Feb 7, cabin aft 8457

[wickedhangover]

So we did B2B, first week 8 day southern and second week 6 day western, a repeat of the same cruise we did the year before on the Breeze. We always book the aft extended balconies, just turning diamond so my review is brief.

 

I'll update with a few things but I wanted to offer comments on this room as I read a lot of horror stories about the aft rooms directly under the lido deck.

 

The balcony was great, this is one of the rooms with the balcony that is 1.5 times the size of the others without paying the corner room price. We had three reclining chairs and one lounge. I wish the railing was a little lower like on the Miracle.

 

The balcony door is a little broken. You could open it and it would stick open. But it also did not close well so we had to jamb scissors into the lock to pull the door tighter to stop whistling at night. If you're not aware of the trick, I recommend having a flathead screwdriver handy, but you jamb it between the chrome slide lock and door which forces the door to stay closed better.

 

The room itself was the typical room, no smaller/larger than the other aft rooms. No freebies in the bathroom, the dish they normally put them in was put away near the extra tissues.

 

Regarding noise from Lido, I was afraid it would be horrible and it turned out now to be a big deal at all. We get up early, so if you are a light sleeper that likes to get up after 10, you might not like the noise in the morning. The staff seems to shift the chairs around 9:30am, 1:30pm and then around 8pm. During the two weeks we were on, they moved the chairs quietly and didn't drag them all around. But as for sleeping, sounds from the lido deck never woke us up and we are light sleepers.

 

First stop was Grand Turk, kind of tired of that place, just hung out on the quieter side of the beach for a while and headed back.

 

Second stop was La Romana. I hate this port if you plan to try to do anything on your own. The Taxi association does not help couples at all. So make sure you have a group of 6 or more if you're planning your own trip, otherwise you'll be standing around frustrated until some driver finally is willing to include you. Alternately, for $45 each, they will take you wherever you want. I never book excursions from Carnival, but this is one port I will reconsider going off on my own again. The previous year we came here we booked a beach excursion but the place was so crowded we didn't want to do that again. I've basically decided I just don't like this port and it is more likely that next time we go here, we'll just hang out on the ship that day.

 

We went to Dreams after finally getting a taxi. Seemed like a nice place, handed us champaign when we arrived, day pass included towels. But it turns out that if you want a chair, any chair, you need to arrive around 7am. Took about an hour to get chairs, several other day passes from cruises were around sitting on the ground or sharing a chair. Drinks were full of fruit flies. The lunch buffet was pretty incredible, must have been 100 feet long with everything from hot dogs to grilled filet mignon. Beer/wine/drinks all included and they were quick to refill. Avoid the hamburgers and you'll do well, I don't like all the filler they use. But overall, the day kind of sucked. Starting with us arguing with taxis and several other groups having very heated arguments with taxi drives changing prices, getting to the resort and paying like $80 each and not getting a chair, watered down drinks with fruit flies in them just kind of ruined the whole thing. On positive side, pool was nice, they had some flamingos which I never saw that close up and the property was nice. But it was way oversold. So bring your own chairs and stick to beverages without juice unless you like eating bugs. We also arranged a time for the taxi to return, didn't show up so we had to squeeze into another taxi that was already just about full. I would not recommend Dreams at all.

 

Third stop was Curacao, one of my favorite islands. Almost the same problem with taxis there. My recommendation is to walk into town, 5-10 minute walk, and get a taxi from there if you don't have a group. I'd also ask that if you follow my advice, please tell the taxi dispatcher that you are doing that. Islands including St Thomas used to be like this until enough people complained that the taxi drivers were forcing island tours or only taking people to a few different areas. In the case of Curacao, we wanted to go in the opposite direction than the taxis want to go, so again we end up frustrated trying to get to where we planned to go. We ended up at our favorite resort, had dinner at their beach BBQ and headed back after dark. Taxis are never a problem getting back to the ship.

 

Fourth stop, Aruba. We don't like aruba, we hung out on the ship. I prefer the itinerary when we're at Aruba at night and we go to the Hyatt for dinner.

 

Back to lauderdale and then out to Key West.

 

I've never been to Key West. Pretty much just a typical ugly american tourist trap. Key lime pie was good and there was a CVS for restocking our bottled water supply. No plans to return, I've no idea what people see in that place. There are apparently two docks, one you can walk off and go into town, the other requires a shuttle to get to town. We got lucky since we were in the better spot. Disney pulled into the other spot, quarter mile away and I could still hear kids screaming from that ship all day. The crew likes this stop because right off the ship there's a lot of free wi-fi.

 

Cozumel is one of my favorite stops, too bad it rained almost the entire day. Taxis are never a problem here and they are insanely cheap. Second at this port, they water the liquor down so much at the all inclusives that if you ask for a shot of dark rum it barely has color. I suggest sticking to bottled beer since you can't really mess with that.

 

Last stop was Cayman. I think there were 6 ships there that day. We stayed on the ship again. Priority for tenders is great but in general they unload that ship pretty fast. Even if you're last in line you'll be on the beach by 10.

 

 

The ship itself is a little tired and in need of repairs. Nothing crazy, just could use some new carpets, fix the condensation leaking on your head in the lido deck and other minor things. Nothing to ruin a cruise, but enough to wish they would just give it an overhaul.

 

I guess I'm in the minority and really dislike Guy's burger joint. I think it's a shame they are not doing anything with the old burger grill and they also don't have the Chinese food usually on the opposite side of the ship as the deli. But in any event, there was plenty of food to pick from. Some of the buffet selections I wish they would do away with, like the Caribbean theme day is one of the worst and when they slice ham at lunch, there's not enough water in the world to quench my thirst, though it was pretty good ham.

 

Dining room still had the old menus with the addition of being able to order steaks from the steak house for $20. Bear with me on this, I'm picky about steak. So for those that put serious time into preparing steak on your grill and take time selecting the cuts you cook, hear me out. If you order the filet from the steak house menu, it is prepared on a grill that is definitely set to a lower temp than if you order the same steak in the steak house. So to me, it was not worth the $20. To go further, they claim that the filet served in the MDR is the exact same as the filet in the steak house. That's not possible. Neither is overly marinated but they taste entirely different.

 

A new dish I had to try was ox tongue, one those Didja appetizers. If you like the braised beef or short ribs, you should definitely get this. I would say it's a cross between Foi Gras and short ribs.

 

Bars were nice, alchemy bar is the best. Caribbean Manhattan was an incredible drink but in general, that drink menu was incredible and creative.

 

Overall it was a good cruise. I like the conquest class ships and wish they would stop building Dream class and pull out some smaller ships. Next year we do 21 days on the Pride b2b from Baltimore.

[modernscarlett]

Thanks for the info on the cabin. Booked in one of those cabins, and this helps allay my concerns.

[l2f]

Wickedhangover.

 

Did you my chance keep the FunTimes for the 6 day itinerary. If so could/would you post them.

 

Thanks

[love my grandkids]

We were on the first half of this cruise.

 

Took two taxi's in Curacao and no problem at all. First was to beach and did exactly what we expected.

 

We like Aruba and took city bus to beach.

 

DR is a waste of time. Hopefully it will be better when Carnival finishes its building project.

 

Mike Pack is an awesome CD.

 

We do enjoy Guys but wish they would have mongolian bbq.

 

Overall was an awesome cruise.

[carolinaviking71208]

Doing the exact same B2B on Conquest 11/28-12/12 in one of the bowling alley balconies. Only difference is that they've cancelled the stop in LaRomanna. I honestly can't say I was heartbroken about that.

[wickedhangover]

Wickedhangover.

 

Did you my chance keep the FunTimes for the 6 day itinerary. If so could/would you post them.

 

Thanks

 

Sorry, I didn't. I've kind of reached the point where I no longer read them.

[wickedhangover]

Doing the exact same B2B on Conquest 11/28-12/12 in one of the bowling alley balconies. Only difference is that they've cancelled the stop in LaRomanna. I honestly can't say I was heartbroken about that.

 

yeah, been there twice and was not impressed either time. I preferred when they docked at the island where Costa always docks. I don't plan on getting off the ship next time we go there.

[cruiseclues]

Thanks for the review & the info on the Aft room 8457... :):):):)

Edited July 5, 2015 by cruiseclues

[momdaughterondestiny]

Doing the exact same B2B on Conquest 11/28-12/12 in one of the bowling alley balconies. Only difference is that they've cancelled the stop in LaRomanna. I honestly can't say I was heartbroken about that.

 

 

Hello Carolinaviking could you please post a few pics of your cabin as I have one booked in June of 16 and would like to see the room. Pretty excited as my sister has the aft wrap next to me . Thanks in advance we have 349 days left.

[levon10]

Thanks for the great review. We are on the Conquest in Jan. 2016 and will be in Cabin 8457.