Mitsugirly takes great PRIDE in bringing her Spring Break extreme review

[mitsugirly]

Thanks for the information on the type of snorkeling equipment you use. We want to go to Mexico on Carnival's Miracle this coming fall, so I will order the snorkeling stuff before we go.

 

I have never, ever been snorkeling. I have always wanted to do it. Any super tips for a first timer snorkeler??? I can just picture myself sputtering and choking ......... lol!!!!

 

 

You are very welcome. We ordered them online. If you shop around, you can usually get a decent price.

 

If you get a chance, practice before you go like at a pool or something. Just trying to get the breathing in the tube using your mouth can sometimes throw someone off, but once you get the hang of it, you'll do fine. With the snorkel set that I have (if you get the same) it will have a valve at the top of it. This valve allows you to dive under the water and the water won't get into the tube. It also has another valve at the bottom of it and if you did need to clear the tube at all, you simply just blow and the water comes out of it without even having to remove it from your mouth. :)

[Momma1980]

Your reviews are works of art! The pictures you post along with all of the information you share are much appreciated. Most of all, I value your port reviews. You are as useful as 'Trip Advisor' when it comes to helping me decide what to do in ports. I have made port plans three times already because of your recommendations. Thank You!!!

 

I am so glad that you liked your first CCL cruise enough to sail Carnival again. Seeing your pictures makes me regret not sailing on the Pride when she was based out of Florida. What a beautiful ship.

 

Can't wait to see your pics from Half Moon Cay.

 

Thanks again for sharing.

[PurdueChefAmber]

Are you guys considering sailing on the Vista?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[mitsugirly]

Your reviews are works of art! The pictures you post along with all of the information you share are much appreciated. Most of all, I value your port reviews. You are as useful as 'Trip Advisor' when it comes to helping me decide what to do in ports. I have made port plans three times already because of your recommendations. Thank You!!!

 

I am so glad that you liked your first CCL cruise enough to sail Carnival again. Seeing your pictures makes me regret not sailing on the Pride when she was based out of Florida. What a beautiful ship.

 

Can't wait to see your pics from Half Moon Cay.

 

Thanks again for sharing.

 

Awww, thank you SO MUCH for your kind words. It warms my heart to have someone say how helpful my reviews have been. I truly love doing them and if it helps, all the more reason to keep doing them. Thank you! :)

 

Are you guys considering sailing on the Vista?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

I would LOVE to sail the Vista, but will have to wait until prices come down probably. We'll see. :D

[PTAngel]

I'll bet Sakari is the most envied kid in her school with all of her travels & experiences! I'm glad she loves all this cruising. Just think of all the memories she'll have.

[all_aboard]

Hi Kim, good to see your review! I'll be on the 6/29 splendor to Grand Turk, HMC and Nassau. Hopefully, I will be able to use the underwater camera this time! Looking forward to the rest of your review.

[carolinagalcruise2011]

Another great review! I cannot wait for your Bermuda review when you cruise next month since I'm curious about Bermuda.

 

I was on the Sunshine the week before your Pride cruise and because of your past reviews we went to Nachi Cocum in Cozumel & Blue Kay in Costa Maya. We had so much fun in both places and I just wanted to say "thank you".:) The beaches were gorgeous and so relaxing. My friend & I loved the Sunshine so much that we are actually looking at a 10 days cruise on her next year in May from Charleston since that port is only a 3 hours drive for us. Hope you get to cruise on her someday.

[mitsugirly]

I'll bet Sakari is the most envied kid in her school with all of her travels & experiences! I'm glad she loves all this cruising. Just think of all the memories she'll have.

 

Well, at her age, I don't think the other kids quite understand what "out of the country" or even a "ship" is. LOL They just know she returns really dark and has been to a "beach" because I'm pretty sure that's all they get out of her conversations at this point. :p Of course I'm sure for some time to come (during elementary at least) they will all think she's quite weird for swimming with sharks and stingrays. :eek: :D

 

Hi Kim, good to see your review! I'll be on the 6/29 splendor to Grand Turk, HMC and Nassau. Hopefully, I will be able to use the underwater camera this time! Looking forward to the rest of your review.

 

Yippee! Hope you have a great cruise and get some great underwater pictures on your trip.

 

My review is finished already. :confused: Or maybe you just haven't finished it yourself yet. :o

[mitsugirly]

Another great review! I cannot wait for your Bermuda review when you cruise next month since I'm curious about Bermuda.

 

I was on the Sunshine the week before your Pride cruise and because of your past reviews we went to Nachi Cocum in Cozumel & Blue Kay in Costa Maya. We had so much fun in both places and I just wanted to say "thank you".:) The beaches were gorgeous and so relaxing. My friend & I loved the Sunshine so much that we are actually looking at a 10 days cruise on her next year in May from Charleston since that port is only a 3 hours drive for us. Hope you get to cruise on her someday.

 

 

Glad to hear that you had a great time in Nachi and Blue Kay. Glad I could help and you are very welcome.

 

I really want to try the Sunshine. I was looking at a few itineraries for the Sunshine but it's just so darn expensive compared to the other cruises I was looking at. Cheaper is better for us so that we can cruise multiple times during the year. The Sunshine is going to be going out of Charleston next year? Hmmm. I haven't cruised out of there yet. That would be neat. My mom use to live in Charleston for years and we would go down there to visit every year. That would be cool. :)

[all_aboard]

Well, at her age, I don't think the other kids quite understand what "out of the country" or even a "ship" is. LOL They just know she returns really dark and has been to a "beach" because I'm pretty sure that's all they get out of her conversations at this point. :p Of course I'm sure for some time to come (during elementary at least) they will all think she's quite weird for swimming with sharks and stingrays. :eek: :D

 

 

 

Yippee! Hope you have a great cruise and get some great underwater pictures on your trip.

 

My review is finished already. :confused: Or maybe you just haven't finished it yourself yet. :o

 

No I'm only on page 7! Thanks again

[destaw7182]

I am a fellow NCL cruiser as well, but I've been thinking of trying other cruise lines for different itineraries.

 

As always, your review was informative and the pictures were amazing. Thanks so much for sharing!

[carolinagalcruise2011]

I really want to try the Sunshine. I was looking at a few itineraries for the Sunshine but it's just so darn expensive compared to the other cruises I was looking at. Cheaper is better for us so that we can cruise multiple times during the year. The Sunshine is going to be going out of Charleston next year? Hmmm. I haven't cruised out of there yet. That would be neat. My mom use to live in Charleston for years and we would go down there to visit every year. That would be cool. :)

 

The Sunshine is going to a few different ports next year. She will be cruising out of Charleston in May & November. She is also going to New York & I think Norfolk, Virginia. I think they are letting other ports sample her. ;)

[mickev99]

MERMAID'S GRILLE LIDO DECK BUFFET AREA

 

Sakari squealed with excitement when she seen this area. (Everyone knows she's a mermaid of course). For her birthday she begged and begged for a mermaid tail. While I wasn't able to get her the mermaid tail (didn't have enough time to do the research to see where you order them online because of the cruise), she did manage to get a mermaid dress up dress and a Barbie mermaid doll that goes from wearing a long evening gown dress to a mermaid by pulling the fabric. It's pretty darn neat if I say so myself and she loves it. She has been watching Mermaid shows on youtube and Netflix for months now leading up to the cruise. So obviously this was her favorite part of the ship.

 

Started reading this late, but in case no one has given you this info, you can find the tails at finfunmermaiddotcom. You have to get the tail AND the monofin as well to make it work. I have 3 girls that were begging for them, and they are very expensive (in my opinion anyway), so they were Christmas gifts from my parents to them, no way could I have justified the cost for 3. Maybe one, but not three! My kids absolutely LOVE them, and they are 10, 10, and 12, so Sakari would get a lot of use out of it. One of my friends found the tail for cheaper on Ebay.

[scrinchy]

Mitsugirly, I loved your review and I appreciate all the hard work you put into it.

 

I know you are getting ready for Bermuda and like me you research everything in advance. I also know you are a beach person from your reviews. Just a tip you may have already read, make sure to keep walking to the left on Horseshoe Bay beach. It looks like it ends but there are several coves beyond the rocks. It is my favorite beach. As for snorkeling, I have always had luck at Tabbaco Bay and the snorkle park. Tabbaco Bay is small and gets very crowded, but is is a beautiful little beach.

 

Looking forward to your next review and thanks again.

[jolyroger]

Glad to hear that you had a great time in Nachi and Blue Kay. Glad I could help and you are very welcome.

 

I really want to try the Sunshine. I was looking at a few itineraries for the Sunshine but it's just so darn expensive compared to the other cruises I was looking at. Cheaper is better for us so that we can cruise multiple times during the year. The Sunshine is going to be going out of Charleston next year? Hmmm. I haven't cruised out of there yet. That would be neat. My mom use to live in Charleston for years and we would go down there to visit every year. That would be cool. :)

 

We really enjoyed the Sunshine. We really weren't sure what to expect considering terrible reviews. Like anything we take it with a grain of salt, its what you make of it! We didn't find it overly crowded,could always find a lounge chair and didn't find there to be terribly long long at the buffets or different food stations..Loved our cabin , which last minute we moved up to a spa balcony on deck 11..all in all we had a great time..Now on to book the next one....toss up between pride and the glory....and your review isn't making the decision any easier! lol....great great review!

[Jamman54]

Time to do some exploring.

 

Some of the colorful houses there for rent.

 

 

 

 

Kim, you caught Patti (in the pink cover up) in this shot!!

[Smaklp]

Hi! I want to thank you for your great review. I will be taking this cruise on June 21st and your review was perfect for getting me ready! I have been on the Pride before, but not since the renovations. The stateroom doors are metal, correct? (I was thinking of bringing magnets for the door if they are). I'm wondering, even though I've cruised before, I don't feel I am experienced with "must haves" to bring on the ship; things that make cruising easier...cruising "hacks" if you will. Would you mind listing some things you have learned that it's nice to bring from home, to make your room more organized or your experience on the ship better? (I saw you had something hanging in your bathroom in one of your pictures). Thanks in advance...have fun in Bermuda...it's beautiful...I sailed there 2 years ago on Royal Caribbean out of NJ.

:)

Michelle

[hlb76]

Well another great review. I have read and read many of your reviews. Always a great job!!

 

The door turned out amazing! So glad you found us on the other site for door decorators. I always do something but I'm not like some of them do going ALLLLL out!

 

Glad you loved HMC its still my favorite beach day. I cant compare it to other private islands as I have never been to any other.

 

Grand Turk is not what it used to be. I had been twice before and really liked it. In Oct 2014 we returned and it was not the same. May of had to do with the TS we where out running and creating some not so nice weather, large waves and stirred up seas. I was saddened to see vendor now on the beach. Though we still had a great day. My son likes to do the surfing thing and use the pool vs sit at the beach. I like that its a cheap to free day depending, so I try not to complain too much.

 

The Pride looked so lovely. We sailed Spirit once which was in the same class and really enjoyed the ship and layout. I agree that wrap around hall in the front is kinda weird but fun to walk as it is decorated so well.

 

Thrilled to hear Camp was a better experience. I dont ever recall having to run and find my kids when we picked up but its been years since we had to check them out so maybe I just forgot?? Or maybe it was just this ship or sailing?

 

 

I agree with you on the bathroom and no paper towels. I'm not a fan of blowers more for the pain of using vs the hygiene issue. I'm way to impatient to sit and wait. Did you happen to notice the little towels by the door to grab and open the door with? I'm assuming Pride had them as all ships I have been on do. I have been known to grab one before washing to turn the sink off and using another to open the door.

 

I wont lie and say I did miss some of the funny Kendra stuff in the review. I always enjoy your "side bar" moments. It almost felt like she was not on the trip with you or maybe your paths did not cross as much this time? Great review all the same and totally understand why you posted as you did.

 

Think I have rambled enough now... Enjoy your next cruise I will be waiting and searching for the review.

 

I hope to branch out to other cruise lines soon but CCL always wins. Maybe its that I feel comfortable with them. Maybe I understand the website some other lines I have a devil of a time with. I do have a hard time finding sailings during our available time on other lines. Then pricing always plays the biggest factor!

[carnival03]

Do you remember what the back on board time was for Freeport?

[notsodesperatehousewife]

Thanks for another great review. I appreciate the high quality and composition of your photos. You and your family always seem to be having such a great time. And Sakari is getting so big! She seems like a fantastic kid - full of life and energy with the tiniest bit of goofy mischief to round it all out. Have a great time in Bermuda!

[mitsugirly]

No I'm only on page 7! Thanks again

 

Oh that explains it. hehe :D

 

I am a fellow NCL cruiser as well, but I've been thinking of trying other cruise lines for different itineraries.

 

As always, your review was informative and the pictures were amazing. Thanks so much for sharing!

 

Thanks for the compliments. I'm glad your enjoyed them. :)

[mitsugirly]

 

The Sunshine is going to a few different ports next year. She will be cruising out of Charleston in May & November. She is also going to New York & I think Norfolk, Virginia. I think they are letting other ports sample her. ;)

 

The one I was considering is going out of Port Canaveral and heading down to Aruba, Bonaire and Grand Turk. But, it's a little more expensive than some of the others I have been looking at. So, we'll see. I have cruised out of Port Canaveral once before and liked it.

 

 

Started reading this late, but in case no one has given you this info, you can find the tails at finfunmermaiddotcom. You have to get the tail AND the monofin as well to make it work. I have 3 girls that were begging for them, and they are very expensive (in my opinion anyway), so they were Christmas gifts from my parents to them, no way could I have justified the cost for 3. Maybe one, but not three! My kids absolutely LOVE them, and they are 10, 10, and 12, so Sakari would get a lot of use out of it. One of my friends found the tail for cheaper on Ebay.

 

Thanks so much for the information. I did not get it from anyone else and I appreciate it. I don't envy you having to get 3 of them. I can only imagine. I will check them out. :)

[mitsugirly]

Mitsugirly, I loved your review and I appreciate all the hard work you put into it.

 

I know you are getting ready for Bermuda and like me you research everything in advance. I also know you are a beach person from your reviews. Just a tip you may have already read, make sure to keep walking to the left on Horseshoe Bay beach. It looks like it ends but there are several coves beyond the rocks. It is my favorite beach. As for snorkeling, I have always had luck at Tabbaco Bay and the snorkle park. Tabbaco Bay is small and gets very crowded, but is is a beautiful little beach.

 

Looking forward to your next review and thanks again.

 

Aww, thanks so much. I'm glad you loved the review.

 

Yes, we plan on going to Horseshoe Bay and the other beaches beside there (Chaplin Bay, Stonehole Bay, Jobsons Cove and Warwick Bay) but we plan on starting at Warwick and working our way to Horseshoe since I know that Horseshoe has facilities, including showers and food. :D

 

We also plan on going to Tobacco Bay as well. I had mixed feelings about going to snorkel park, but it looks like that will be the perfect way to finished out our 1/2 day there on the last day in port. So, looks like everything you mentioned is exactly what we will be doing. :p :D

 

We really enjoyed the Sunshine. We really weren't sure what to expect considering terrible reviews. Like anything we take it with a grain of salt, its what you make of it! We didn't find it overly crowded,could always find a lounge chair and didn't find there to be terribly long long at the buffets or different food stations..Loved our cabin , which last minute we moved up to a spa balcony on deck 11..all in all we had a great time..Now on to book the next one....toss up between pride and the glory....and your review isn't making the decision any easier! lol....great great review!

 

I completely agree. I pretty much read all the reviews, but make my own decision based on the ship and where it's going instead of someone else's experience because we are all different. The only thing that did concern me is all of the reviews seem to have one thing in common and that's that everyone complains about it being too crowded. So, when you get a lot of complaints about the same exact thing, it kinda makes you wonder. But I still think I will have to try her no matter what. :D

[mitsugirly]

Kim, you caught Patti (in the pink cover up) in this shot!!

 

I see that now that you have posted pictures of what she was wearing there that day. hehe :)

 

Hi! I want to thank you for your great review. I will be taking this cruise on June 21st and your review was perfect for getting me ready! I have been on the Pride before, but not since the renovations. The stateroom doors are metal, correct? (I was thinking of bringing magnets for the door if they are). I'm wondering, even though I've cruised before, I don't feel I am experienced with "must haves" to bring on the ship; things that make cruising easier...cruising "hacks" if you will. Would you mind listing some things you have learned that it's nice to bring from home, to make your room more organized or your experience on the ship better? (I saw you had something hanging in your bathroom in one of your pictures). Thanks in advance...have fun in Bermuda...it's beautiful...I sailed there 2 years ago on Royal Caribbean out of NJ.

 

Michelle

 

Thanks for your comments Michelle and glad it helped you get ready for your cruise. :)

 

I'm honestly not sure if the stateroom is metal or not. I did not try putting any magnets on it to see. There's a group online that is dedicated to decorating your Carnival door and they say that most are not. (This group goes into great depth about the sizes of the door and what you can and can't use on the doors to put things up). There's even a group for what side the door handle is on. :eek: :)

 

I honestly don't have any hacks on what to bring. I have never brought anything with me other than just the normal things you pack...until this cruise. The thing that you see hanging on the door I purchased at Walmart. I was actually there looking for a smaller make-up bag than what I currently have at home and ran across it. I thought it was pretty neat and bought it. It worked out great. The one thing I do do when cruising is take trial sized things...like fabreeze with wrinkle release, hair spray, mouse, baby oil, toothpaste, mouthwash and things like that. This thing I bought was perfect for those trial sized containers and fit exactly. It just helped organize things a little better. It all folds up and has velcro at the end of it to keep it together. I didn't even realize that it had the door hanger on it until after I got home and was packing it. :D But that's the only thing I have taken with me as far as packing/sorting.

 

This cruise is the cruise that I did decide to take my insulated fold up bag and take our own pop (soda) with us into the ports and it worked perfect. I will definitely do this on every cruise now. It really saved money for drinks while on the islands. :)

[mitsugirly]

Well another great review. I have read and read many of your reviews. Always a great job!!

 

Thank you so much and happy to hear you have read some of my other reviews. I appreciate it.

 

The door turned out amazing! So glad you found us on the other site for door decorators. I always do something but I'm not like some of them do going ALLLLL out!

 

I am so glad I found the group too. It's a fun group and so many awesome ideas over there. I had no intention of going all out either...but got a little carried away this time around because I was having so much fun with it.

 

Glad you loved HMC its still my favorite beach day. I cant compare it to other private islands as I have never been to any other.

 

It was very beautiful and I definitely want to go back for sure!

 

Grand Turk is not what it used to be. I had been twice before and really liked it. In Oct 2014 we returned and it was not the same. May of had to do with the TS we where out running and creating some not so nice weather, large waves and stirred up seas. I was saddened to see vendor now on the beach. Though we still had a great day. My son likes to do the surfing thing and use the pool vs sit at the beach. I like that its a cheap to free day depending, so I try not to complain too much.

 

I did like that it was a free day. That definitely helped offset the cost of this cruise. Hopefully if I ever go back (which I'm sure I will), I will get off the compound area and try some place new. Hopefully that will help. I would really love to go to Bohio beach and see what it's like there.

 

The Pride looked so lovely. We sailed Spirit once which was in the same class and really enjoyed the ship and layout. I agree that wrap around hall in the front is kinda weird but fun to walk as it is decorated so well.

 

I am definitely going to check out the other ships in the same class. We really enjoyed this ship and if the others are anything like this, I'm all in (although I realized they might not have the 2.0 upgrades, I was more or less talking about the layout itself). It flowed nicely and I liked where things were located on the ship. I also liked that even though we were sailing at full capacity, it never felt crowded most of the time.

 

Thrilled to hear Camp was a better experience. I dont ever recall having to run and find my kids when we picked up but its been years since we had to check them out so maybe I just forgot?? Or maybe it was just this ship or sailing?

 

I know we didn't have this problem last time on the Dream, however, she was also in a different age group so that could have been it too. I'm really not sure.

 

I agree with you on the bathroom and no paper towels. I'm not a fan of blowers more for the pain of using vs the hygiene issue. I'm way to impatient to sit and wait. Did you happen to notice the little towels by the door to grab and open the door with? I'm assuming Pride had them as all ships I have been on do. I have been known to grab one before washing to turn the sink off and using another to open the door.

 

Yes, they did have the little towels by the doors to use to open them. I guess I didn't think about grabbing one of them to turn the sink off with. I know I did actually grab A BUNCH once to see if I could dry my hands off with them. But it didn't work out too great since they are so small and thin.

 

I wont lie and say I did miss some of the funny Kendra stuff in the review. I always enjoy your "side bar" moments. It almost felt like she was not on the trip with you or maybe your paths did not cross as much this time? Great review all the same and totally understand why you posted as you did.

 

Honestly, the last few cruises Kendra has been on time for things and I think she learned her lesson last time with causing us to miss our flight, and even the time that she fell behind when we were in Roatan and she missed out on going to Little French Key and stated at the cruise compound at Mahogany Bay. She has gotten so much better now. But yes, you are correct in saying that our paths didn't cross as much as they normally do when cruising. We also usually have rooms beside each other or down the hall and this time she was on an entirely different floor. My phone in my room stopped working the last few days so she was unable to call me. But we usually ran into each other in the evenings and usually in the casino...go figure. :p But there was an entire day that we didn't see her and it was weird. :o My next review should be a little more entertaining...she will have her extended family with her as well (her bf's sister and daughter who have never cruised before...well the daughter has back in November last year Kendra took her on our short 5 day cruise, but the sister hasn't cruised yet)...so...I'm sure this will get interesting. :D

 

Think I have rambled enough now... Enjoy your next cruise I will be waiting and searching for the review.

 

I hope to branch out to other cruise lines soon but CCL always wins. Maybe its that I feel comfortable with them. Maybe I understand the website some other lines I have a devil of a time with. I do have a hard time finding sailings during our available time on other lines. Then pricing always plays the biggest factor!

 

I know exactly how you feel about feeling "comfortable" with a cruise line and the unknown about other lines when trying to make a decision. I've been there for years trust me. However, I'm so glad I over came that fear and branched out and tried Carnival. I now have 2 brands that I feel totally comfortable with and would book with at any time. :D

 

Do you remember what the back on board time was for Freeport?

 

Back on board was 1pm. Sailaway was (supposed to be) 1:30pm but ship tours were still coming back way after that time. :)