Pride - Short Review - June 14-21

[Barbluvstocruz]

Here's short review our June 14th sailing of the Pride...I'm not doing a huge review because there are some really good, recent ones out there. This is just my experience. Feel free to ask any questions. I'll do my best to answer whatever I can.

 

We had a fabulous time! :D Our group consisted of 13 people. My husband, myself and our 2 sons (8 & 9). We also had 3 other 40-somethings. Two more young boy - 7 & 11yo and 3 young adults - 21, 20 & 19 and one grandma.

 

Embarkation day: A smooth day. We left our house (in the Philadelphia area at 11am. Arrived at the port just after 1pm. Waited a few minutes to get into the parking lot, but nothing major. Dropped our luggage, parked and walked into the terminal. Security was easy with the added lil hassle that they are now checking EVERY can/bottle of any drinks you bring on...even if it's a sealed 12 pack of soda. We carried on a couple bottles of wine. Make sure the carry them! A a few in our group didn't listen to me and put them in their bags. Of course they were confiscated. They got them back this morning. This was the first time we've ever gotten to the port later than 11am. I liked it...at least for this port. We had eaten a big breakfast at home so there was no rush for lunch, the cabins were ready and we were able to settle in quickly. I am one of those people that needs to be unpacked and organized before I can really start to enjoy.

 

I'm guessing we were on the ship and in our cabin by 2ish. Luggage arrived shortly after. We unpacked and just hung out until our 6pm dinner. This was my 10th cruise, hubby's 7th and the boys' 4th so we didn't feel the need to immediately run around the ship.

 

FOOD...

 

Dinners:

We were at tables 141 & 143. We loved the set up and location. Since we had 13 people we had two tables. We were in the corner by the window so we were able to chat and move around without being in anyone's way. Every night we mixed up where we all sat. The food was typical. Nothing fantastic, nothing awful. We were all full and happy! We liked ordering several starters and different entrees so we could share and try a variety of things. The chocolate melting cake is still my favorite. :)

 

Breakfasts:

Most of us preferred the sit down breakfasts in the dining room. We did that most of the days. My favorite thing to order is the eggs benedict. The secret is to order them with the hollandaise sauce on the side. Then you get fresh eggs and sauce. Otherwise you get a prepared plate that had dried up a bit. My husband is more of a buffet guy and seemed happy with the food and selections.

 

Guys Burgers was my favorite spot to eat! That was always my go-to lunch!! I think I had them 4 times. ;)

 

I also tried a taco from the Blue Iguana Cantina. Very good. Hubby said the burritos were good. One morning I had the huevos rancheros for breakfast and enjoyed it. We also had a few late night pizza trips. I really like the style pizza on this ship. I'm a fan of the thin crusts. Room service was a favorite of my kids. They liked PB&J sandwiches as their bedtime snack.

 

STATEROOM...

We were in 6227, a balcony. The other 3 staterooms in our group were nearby. We LOVED the location of this cabin. It was right off the atrium elevators. So convenient.

 

ACTIVITIES...

We went to several trivia sessions and had a good time. The kids were trying so hard to win a "Ship on a Stick". We never won one, but Rebecca (the comedy director) told them if they tried hard to win that they could find her on the last day to get one. She was wonderful!! We also did shuffleboard in the Red Frog Pub. We went to a couple of the family comedy shows which everyone enjoyed. The favorite evening activity with the kids was the Dive In movies. They loved swimming and being able to watch a movie from the pool. My boys went to Camp Carnival a couple times, but didn't spend much time there. They enjoyed it, just preferred to hang out with the group. We played mini golf a couple times. I'm sure there was more, but it's a blur right now. Oh...the water slides....my boys loved the new slides. The 9 yo went on the Green slide over and over again. The 8 yo preferred the yellow one and the water works area.

 

We spent most of our kid-free time in the Casino. My husband and I do enjoy our time at the Blackjack table. The casino staff was great and we met a lot of nice people.

 

PORTS...

We did no big excursions this trip. Nothing was pre-planned. Just played it by ear with the group.

 

Grand Turk - We went to the beach for a couple hours and then played in the pool at Margaritaville. It was nice, relaxing day.

 

Half Moon Cay - Another fun day. We took the trolley tour and then hung out at the beach near the kids area. I LOVED this beach and could have stayed there forever. It was beautiful. We opted to skip the island BBQ and go back to Guy's for lunch.

 

Freeport - We met a tour guy at the port and negotiated a private bus tour for the 3 of us. He drove us around the island, gave us a lot of history and information. It was facsinating. We made several stops in local areas, also the perfume factory and Port Lucuya. We avoided the beach this day. We were all a bit sunburned.

 

THE SHIP...

I loved this ship! The layout was nice. It's not too big. It never felt crowded. We rarely waited for an elevator. The staff was fantastic. I would absolutely sail on the Pride again!

 

LEAVING...

Sadly they made us get off this morning. We did the self-assist debarkation. That started about 9:15. If we would have left our bags outside the door our tags wouldn't have been called until about 11am. We were nearly home by then. It was the easiest debarkation I've ever had. No crowds at the elevators. Right through. We were in our car pulling out at 9:38am. I loved sailing out of Baltimore! We picked up the dog at the kennel and were home by 12:00. Everything is unpacked and the laundry is going.

 

I'm ready to plan the next cruise!

:)

[PollyNJ]

So glad you all had a fabulous time and thanks for reporting back to us all. You are right Love Love Love sailing out of Baltimore. So easy and painless. We also love the Pride and will be doing a B2B on her in January. I found the staff so friendly and the ship so easy to find our way around when we sailed her this past April. :)

[jfried8]

No complaints about vibrations I see! Good to hear! We sail on August 9th in a Vista Suite so we were concerned

[Gailerina]

Barb and Jeff, someone made a comment about a photo package. Do you have any information on it, such as the price and all?

[1maggie1]

We were on this cruise too. Absolutely wonderful! We had FTTF and were in our car at 8:45 this morning heading home. OP what did you think about the girl that sang with her guitar? She was the only one I couldn't listen to.

[jfried8]

How was boarding? We have a suite and have FTTF...what time do you suggest parking in Baltimore at the port?

[1maggie1]

How was boarding? We have a suite and have FTTF...what time do you suggest parking in Baltimore at the port?

 

 

jfried - we got to the port around 10:30. We sat for a while. People were still getting off after 11:00. We went in a different door with FTTF. When you go in there is a person standing at the first door and you tell them you have it. They put you in the door to right that puts you right to the security then up to a counter past the lines. It didn't take long at all. We waited there for a while. Wedding parties went first, then platinum and diamond. Then FTTF. We went right to our cabin and dropped off our things. The kids changed into their bathing suits and we went up and had a guys burger or a burrito. I think this was around noon. I know you have asked about vibration., We were in 4204 and 4206 and there was some annoying vibrations. Nothing major but for a while I would have sworn there was a ten year old kid under the bed kicking it. It was weird.

[jfried8]

Ahh as long as we are able to sleep! Thx for the info! So you sat in your car for a half hour?

[pcvtmom]

Thanks for taking the time to post this review. It gets me more excited for our upcoming Pride cruise in August!

[1maggie1]

Ahh as long as we are able to sleep! Thx for the info! So you sat in your car for a half hour?

 

Yes I think it was around that long.

[landlady1952]

Leave Sunday on the Pride. Can't wait

[Barbluvstocruz]

No complaints about vibrations I see! Good to hear! We sail on August 9th in a Vista Suite so we were concerned

 

On the first day we noticed a little vibration. We joked that it reminded us of the old hotel rooms with the quarter machine (if you are old enough to remember those) ;)

 

After that we never really noticed anything. I slept well. :)

[Barbluvstocruz]

Barb and Jeff, someone made a comment about a photo package. Do you have any information on it, such as the price and all?

 

Hi! I didn't notice anything on the ship about the photo package, but then saw someone here mention it. I bought 11 photos and got the USB ship with them loaded. I spend about $175. I might have done better with the package, not sure. If I can find the thread again I'll link it.

 

:)

[Barbluvstocruz]

We were on this cruise too. Absolutely wonderful! We had FTTF and were in our car at 8:45 this morning heading home. OP what did you think about the girl that sang with her guitar? She was the only one I couldn't listen to.

 

Happy to hear you had a great cruise too!!! I am ready to go back! :D

 

I didn't see the girl with the guitar. Was it in the atrium lobby? We didn't hang out there much.

[SurferJoe57]

Super, I'm glad you had a great time. I think I read this right; you had a Vista Suite, the aft-end wrap around? We've had those on a few prior PRIDE sailings and absolutely loved it. (Spouse likes it as I don't go wandering off to sunbathe if we have a Vista balcony).

The only thing that annoyed (and is a continual issue for us) me with the PRIDE is the entertainer (or CD's dance classes or whatever) wafting up through the atrium to David's Steakhouse. It's just a ship design thing, and usually they knock it off by about 7:30 pm; but the hint is, don't make dinner reservations until later unless you want to have that ambient noise interfering with your dinner....

Edited June 22, 2015 by SurferJoe57

[biebz]

Any comments on the adult pool....must you get up at early to snag a spot because cruisers save chairs for the day....does the staff monitor the saved chairs and remove things after a period of time at any of the pools

[SurferJoe57]

Any comments on the adult pool....must you get up at early to snag a spot because cruisers save chairs for the day....does the staff monitor the saved chairs and remove things after a period of time at any of the pools

Noting that crews and ship's officers rotate every 6-12 months or so...

THIS particular PRIDE Serenity deck crew was good, attentive. I can't recall his name, but there was a nice man (Indian, and about 5' tall) who ran the towel desk and did general busboy work on Serenity (as of June 7). He remembered me by name every time, and I saw no evidence of lounger-squatting. That is, loungers were occupied or available for us, with the exception of short bathroom breaks or whatever. Nobody tried that "I"m saving all the loungers for my entire extended family, many of whom aren't even on this cruise!" stuff that irks legitimate sun worshippers like myself so much.

I normally do rush through breakfast to get a lounger but found if I missed the 0800 first wave, I could probably find one about 1030 or so as people wandered away to do something else. Wasn't bad.

[Barbluvstocruz]

Any comments on the adult pool....must you get up at early to snag a spot because cruisers save chairs for the day....does the staff monitor the saved chairs and remove things after a period of time at any of the pools

 

I had my two kids glued to my side most of the cruise (and if they weren't with me I was in the casino) so I never had a chance to even check out the Serenity deck. It looked nice from a distance. :)

[Barbluvstocruz]

Super, I'm glad you had a great time. I think I read this right; you had a Vista Suite, the aft-end wrap around? We've had those on a few prior PRIDE sailings and absolutely loved it. (Spouse likes it as I don't go wandering off to sunbathe if we have a Vista balcony).

The only thing that annoyed (and is a continual issue for us) me with the PRIDE is the entertainer (or CD's dance classes or whatever) wafting up through the atrium to David's Steakhouse. It's just a ship design thing, and usually they knock it off by about 7:30 pm; but the hint is, don't make dinner reservations until later unless you want to have that ambient noise interfering with your dinner....

 

We had a standard balcony cabin on deck 6. We were right off the Atrium elevator lobby. I loved the location. If you opened the door in the evening you could always hear whatever was going on in the Atrium bar, but we couldn't hear anything in our cabin. We didn't have a chance to go to David's, but I'll remember it next time if we make reservations.

 

:D

[volfan22701]

we were on this same cruise and agree the embarkation and debarkation were the easiest ever. this was our third time on the Pride out of Baltimore and is our favorite ship. this was our ninth cruise overall and we enjoyed it very much. food was fine. we ate most meals in the dining room and went to the steak house once. that was an amazing meal and we highly recommend it. also spent time in the casino and left them a good donation. enjoyed the beach at Grand Turk and HMC. did not do much at Freeport but still enjoyed the day.

 

Doug

[kids1stcruise]

love reading everything about the PRIDE....LEAVIVNG IN A FEW WEEKS:)

[jfried8]

I leave 7 weeks from yesterday!!!

[Weeziblu]

Thanks for sharing.. I'm getting more excited about our upcoming Pride voyage!!

 

 

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[Lsmith52]

I was not a Carnival fan after sailing on an ill fated Triumph cruise out of Galveston. I reluctantly allowed myself to get talked into sailing on the Pride for a family reunion. Wow - what a change of heart I have had. After sailing on her twice and having a great cruise both times we have once again booked another for October 2016! This ship has become one of my favorite ships to be on and we usually cruise Princess. We will be in cabin 6329 - our first vista suite. Thanks for all the rave reviews of the vista suites.

[kids1stcruise]

Hahaaa that's great you had a wonderful time on the Pride. We were on the pride 2 years ago...great time BUT looking forward to the upgrades. Just a couple more weeks⚓️

Edited June 27, 2015 by kids1stcruise