Triumph Review July 23 - 28, 2016

[tgnorton]

5 Day Cruise out of NOLA - these are my opinions and impressions of our cruise.

 

Husband and I are in our 50’s, live in St. Louis and have cruised but never on Carnival.

Found a last minute deal on a cruising website for a balcony on Carnival Triumph out of NOLA. NOLA is a relatively easy 10 hour drive from STL, so decided to call. All the balcony cabins were gone, but for not too much more, we could get an ocean suite. Decided to try it out.

 

Drove down the day before and stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn CBD. Booked thru Hot Wire, thank you for your help, Saint Greg. I saw that their garage parking was $31 valet but also saw that their garage was part of the New Orleans Parking system. Went online and prepaid self-parking for $20. Arrived at the garage with my receipt in hand, they directed me to the any floor above 6. VERY steep garage and VERY small parking spaces. Finally found one but had to take the luggage out of the car before backing in. Decided we would not try to take the car anywhere except to Port the next day.

 

Registration was quick and easy and the staff was very nice and friendly. Room was nice and well appointed. We had a quick drink in the bar before heading out to dinner.

Decided to walk in the 100 degree/100% humidity weather to Muriel’s in Jackson Square for a 7 pm reservation. I was melting by the time we got there but the place was absolutely beautiful. Waiter promised to keep my water glass filled and he didn’t disappoint.

 

They offered a pre-fixe menu that included appetizer, entrée and dessert for $35, with many interesting options, so we both ordered from it. DH had turtle soup, Bayou-baisse (a NOLA seafood take on bouillabaisse) and crème broulee. I went on the waiter’s recommendation and had the shrimp and gorgonzola crepes, drum fish and bread pudding. (None of these would have been my choice, but he was absolutely RIGHT!). All of the food and service were top notch amazing!

 

We walked around Jackson Square a bit and then took a cab home. After 12 hours in the car, just wanted to take a nice long shower and get to bed for our 10 am check in!

Had the breakfast buffet at the hotel and it was a mix of buffet and made to order items. I didn’t want to spend a lot of time getting to or waiting for breakfast since we still needed to pack up, get out of that garage, drive to Fulton Street Garage and over to Port for our 10 am check in.

 

I had prepaid for covered parking at Fulton Street Garage and they were pretty organized. Dropped off DH and bags on level 2 and park above level 6. Waited quite some time for someone to come on level 2 and get our bags but then down to street level to catch the shuttle. Shuttle over to the port and we walked right into check in service as it was now 9:45 am.

Edited August 1, 2016 by tgnorton

[tgnorton]

Getting On Board - Because we were in a suite, there was no waiting at priority check in and then they directed us to the Captain’s lounge which had nice couches and some snacks/coffee/juices/water. Since this was our first Carnival cruise, I didn’t realize the check in process brought you to another waiting room, instead of to the ship, but it was a nice room in which to wait. We met a really nice family from Texas who happened to also be staying at the Hilton Garden Inn CBD next door to us!

 

At 11:30, they called for those with special needs to board and priority boarding was immediately following.

 

I had some Carnival gift cards, so I added them to our Sign and Sail accounts immediately upon boarding, added the soda package to DH card, and we headed to the Lido deck with our carry-on’s in tow.

 

I had the Blue Iguana steak burrito and DH headed to the buffet. He was unhappy with his first selections, so he went back for other things .The lines were very long so I was done eating when he finally returned. The burrito was very good but DH said other buffet food was just ok. As everyone boarded, the ship started to feel very crowded, so around 1pm, we decided to take our carry-on bags to our room so someone else could use our table.

 

We’ve never had a suite so were very pleasantly surprised by the size of the room, the robes and bath tub. Signed up for the medium internet package on my phone – very easy and very worth it. Loved having the Fun times, Restaurants and ship maps at my fingertips.

 

Dropped off the bags and walked around to familiarize ourselves with the ship. We went to the SkyBox Sports bar for a drink. Stayed a while and then went to the top deck aft to watch Sail Away. There was a sail away party with music and some of the entertainment staff – great way to start our trip.

Watched the Mississippi go by for a long time and finished our drink, then went down to quickly unpack.

 

We had Anytime Dining which was very convenient. Originally assigned to the Late Dining but had read here on CC to email the Maitre D and it was changed by the time we boarded.

 

First night’s dinner did not disappoint. We both had the brisket and I had the famous chocolate melting cake. Both delicious. I did miss having the table cloths on the table, especially when I saw the way the tables were “cleaned” between guests. Just a wash cloth that had been sitting in a bowl of dirty water wiped over half the table. Nothing even moved. This was a disappointment but there weren’t many thru out the cruise. Wait staff was very attentive and DH had no trouble getting a soda.

 

They were offering a 3 bottle wine package, and we decided to indulge. FYI I read here that they offered a wine tasting on board at the Fun Shops during boarding day so you could choose your 3 bottles of wine. This was not the case anywhere on board and the Fun Shops did not open until Day 2. They gave us 3 slips of paper to be used when we ordered the bottles. We used 2 slips to order a bottle of red and white. DH had a glass of red and I had a glass of white. Waiters said they would save the bottles for us and to let our waiters know when we wanted to have them on future nights.

 

We had a cute towel animal every night when we returned. Our cabin steward was always friendly and made our bed at 11 as requested. Slept well in the bed all week although the mattresses did really dip in the middle.

[tgnorton]

Day 2 – Sea Day

Carnival offers a Sea Day Brunch until noon or 1 and we took advantage of it in the Paris dining room. The wait staff was amazing and the food was good. It was so nice to have a leisurely brunch and not feel rushed at all. Enjoyed a number of trivia contests in the central World Bar. The cruise director was Jess from the US. It was only her 2nd Carnival Cruise but she did an amazing job. She was so present thru out the cruise and kept the attitude very light and friendly thru out. In past cruises, don’t remember ever seeing the CD except maybe announcing a show, but Jess was very friendly, helpful and really set the tone for the cruise.

 

Around 3, we headed to the Guy’s burgers. Small line, but that was nothing compared to usual. Burgers were good but the fries were cold. Still, we enjoyed them and had some ice cream after. It’s nice to have the ice cream in so many places, but it was constantly a long line, and no cones or spoons. Also found similar situations thru out the cruise with water/lemonade/ice stations. Long lines, broken equipment, no ice, etc.

 

For dinner, it was elegant night. Nearly everyone was dressed up and were having pictures taken. We ran into the family from Texas again. One of the nice things about a ship this size, is that you can get to know other people on board.

 

Enjoyed the first night show and wanted to try the Piano Bar. Had read some not great reviews about it and quickly found out why. The man behind the piano could not have been more depressing. Played every song slowly from a laminated list and wouldn’t play anything off list. When folks asked for something more upbeat, he said he didn’t have those songs but knew the notes. He kept commenting that he wanted people to make suggestions and that some $ would make them recommendations (as they were walking out) but every song was played slowly and very sadly. It was a big letdown and people were walking out the back door so they wouldn’t have to pass him.

 

The bar across the ship had karoke and it seemed to be a big party. Sounded like fun, but we headed to another trivia in Central World Bar. It was a lot of fun and there were sing a long parts at the end. Everyone had a great time.

Edited August 1, 2016 by tgnorton

[tgnorton]

Day 3 – Cozumel

We made the mistake of going up to the buffet for breakfast. We got there at 7 (it opened at 6:30). The lines were unbelievable. A lady told me she had gotten there at 6 am and the lines were already long. So we just decided to eat at the MDR. The food is brought to you in the same amount of time it would take to wait for it.

 

Went to Nachi Cocum. Quiet, beautiful place. Did the snorkeling – very good guide and only 4 of us on the boat tour. Had a wonderful lunch and massages. Wished this day would go on forever. There were only 25 people there the whole day. Food and service were very good.

 

That night, we decided to use our 3rd wine voucher for a bottle of champagne. Our food was excellent again, our only complaint was the rolls were always very hard. Service again, amazing.

 

We saw the family comedy show and it was good. Would have liked to stay up for the adult show, but we were tired after our beautiful day in Coz and knew we had Progresso the next day, so headed to bed.

[tgnorton]

Day 4 – Progresso. Had breakfast again in the MDR prior to disembarking. Service was quick and food was good.

 

Had booked Technotel thru AutoProgresso. One complaint is that they told us to be at the bus at 9 am, so we hustled off the ship and ran down the long pier to the bus. Bus took us to another central location where they spent the next 1 hour and 45 minutes selling packages to other customers. The bus to Technotel didn’t leave until 10:45. So we just sat there with vendors pushing their wares, and Auto Progresso pushing their packages. Pretty disappointed in that. However, at 10:45 we made it on to the 2nd bus which took us to Technotel beach break. Food was ok and drinks were ok. There were 2 pools and both were pretty crowded. Beach was nice and spent some time in the water. Had a short 20 minute massage. The day was worth $35 we paid, but probably not more.

 

Back on board, we changed for dinner and arrived to find there was a wait. We received a buzzer to notify us when our table was ready and went to the Central World Bar to wait. My husband got a soda – again had no problems getting sodas anytime from bar or wait staff. Sometimes took a little while, as they served customers before us, but never much of a wait and always friendly.

 

Our buzzer indicated our table was ready so we headed off to the dining room. We placed our food orders and asked for our bottles of red & white wine. Then we waited a really long time. It seems they lost our wine and didn’t want to serve our food until they could find it. They were running all over the place trying to find our wine and eventually came back with 2 bottles that had both been in the refrigerator. White should be chilled, but DH merlot is not supposed to be chilled. Then, we noticed it wasn’t actually either of our bottles. So more running around and finally they found our 2 bottles. Mine was chilled and DH was not, as it should be.

 

By then, our food had been sitting at the waiter station for a long time and wasn’t warn anymore but it still tasted good and was nicely presented.

 

There was a magic and production show that night. It was fun and really good. We wanted to go to the later show that was for adults, but we were too tired and went to bed.

Edited August 1, 2016 by tgnorton
add another picture

[tgnorton]

Day 5 – Sea Day.

Enjoyed another Sea Day Brunch with great food and service. Wait staff was always nice. We found head waiters to be very good and assistants to be in training most of the week. We enjoyed more trivia and had plans to go to some other activities but I started to get a nasty cold and spent most of my afternoon in the cabin, sleeping. DH woke me in time for dinner and we enjoyed the last of our red and white bottles of wine and our last night on Carnival.

 

They had a Big Easy production show and it was really good. After, we went back to the cabin to pack.

 

Disembarkation – We were supposed to have priority disembarkation but not sure how it was supposed to work. I asked but got snarky response from the crew member so just decided to forget about the priority. We did self-disembarkation and were shuffled into the Rome theater. The staff who handled this were quite rude to nearly everyone who entered and told us all we were lucky to even have the chance to do self-disembark because it isn’t on all ships. Left a bad taste in my mouth after what was a really good cruise, but I left their negativity behind.

 

They allowed those with FTTF (and probably other priority folks) to leave the ship first, then those in Rome Theater. We were off and to the Fulton Street Garage shuttle quickly. Made it out of downtown NOLA before any serious traffic and made it home safely.

 

OVERALL–

• MDR Food and service were just as good as I have had on other lines

• Entertainment was good as other lines I’ve sailed out of NOLA

• Room was large because we had a suite, but it did show some wear, never used the robes or tub

• Public Bathrooms need to have more soap dispensers – only 1 for 6 sinks – not enough

• Public areas on Lido deck were crowded all the time

• Pizza and Burgers were nice additions to the buffet but always long lines

• Wish the Blue Iguana had been open for dinner or late night

• Never got a chance to try Chinese or Deli as the lines were too long

• 2 small swimming pools for entire ship – crowded all the time – not enough for full capacity ship

• Wish there were more activities during the Sea Days that did not require paying extra (such as casino, bingo, shopping, etc)

• Water/Ice/Lemonade dispensers were broken a lot

• Ice cream area was out of spoons or cones a lot

• Pretty good value for the money

[NightOne]

The long lido lines is something I hear about the Carnival Dream out of NOLA too. Seems to be a Carnival wide thing.

 

Are the long lines a result of their only being one long station and not separate islands?

 

How were the lines/wait time getting on and off the ship at port stops?

[tgnorton]

Long lines at food stations were because they only had 1 person working it. So same person takes the order, makes the food and gives to guest. Then next person and so on. Getting on and off at port stops did not seem bad at all

[lovebears]

Had booked Technotel thru AutoProgresso. One complaint is that they told us to be at the bus at 9 am, so we hustled off the ship and ran down the long pier to the bus. Bus took us to another central location where they spent the next 1 hour and 45 minutes selling packages to other customers. The bus to Technotel didn’t leave until 10:45. So we just sat there with vendors pushing their wares, and Auto Progresso pushing their packages. Pretty disappointed in that. However, at 10:45 we made it on to the 2nd bus which took us to Technotel beach break. Food was ok and drinks were ok. There were 2 pools and both were pretty crowded. Beach was nice and spent some time in the water. Had a short 20 minute massage. The day was worth $35 we paid, but probably not more.

 

We have this booked through AutoProgresso in September and I am wondering if others have had this same experience with timing and having to wait an hour and 45 minutes before you were taken to Technotel. Wondering if I should be looking for an alternative plan? The price is right Thanks in advance for any input

[tgnorton]

Had booked Technotel thru AutoProgresso. One complaint is that they told us to be at the bus at 9 am, so we hustled off the ship and ran down the long pier to the bus. Bus took us to another central location where they spent the next 1 hour and 45 minutes selling packages to other customers. The bus to Technotel didn’t leave until 10:45. So we just sat there with vendors pushing their wares, and Auto Progresso pushing their packages. Pretty disappointed in that. However, at 10:45 we made it on to the 2nd bus which took us to Technotel beach break. Food was ok and drinks were ok. There were 2 pools and both were pretty crowded. Beach was nice and spent some time in the water. Had a short 20 minute massage. The day was worth $35 we paid, but probably not more.

 

We have this booked through AutoProgresso in September and I am wondering if others have had this same experience with timing and having to wait an hour and 45 minutes before you were taken to Technotel. Wondering if I should be looking for an alternative plan? The price is right Thanks in

advance for any input

 

First, you do not need to book in advance and can book the day of - as the family from Texas did. They do not limit the number of people that go to the resort, so if I had to do it over, I wouldn't book in advance, just bring cash for the fee. As well as some extra in case you want to buy some souveniers, get a henna tattoo, braids, massage, etc. As long as you are off the boat and down the pier by 9:45, you should be fine.

[lovebears]

We didn't have to pay anything in advance, she just put our names on the list and told to bring cash to pay day of. We will be down by 9:45. Thanks

[Clarea]

Thanks for the review.

Edited August 2, 2016 by clarea

[riclop]

Thanks for the review.

[mom2cuties]

We were on the same cruise. Seems like we visited the piano bar at the same time and we were also in Nachi Cocom. I agree with your cruise review (especially the Nachi review- that day was Heaven). I only wish to add that I hope one day Carnival will enforce their dress code. On our way to dinner the first night, there was a guy walking around the ship with no shirt or shoes on. We also had unsavory balcony neighbors who smoked constantly and spit (yes, spit) off the balcony quite frequently. I agree also with your food review. I don't think we had a bad meal the entire trip! I don't regret our vacation as we spent some wonderful family time together. In fact, the one day we spent at Nachi (our 3rd visit there) made the trip entirely worth it. This was our first and will be our last Carnival Cruise, though.

[Cruisinpharmgal]

How do you email the maitre d so I can change to anytime also? Got bumped from early seating to late seating because it was wait listed. Now just want to do anytime dining.

[RC Dancers]

Thank you for your review. There have been quite a few about the four day cruise, but few on the five day.

[tgnorton]

We were on the same cruise. Seems like we visited the piano bar at the same time and we were also in Nachi Cocom. I agree with your cruise review (especially the Nachi review- that day was Heaven). I only wish to add that I hope one day Carnival will enforce their dress code. On our way to dinner the first night, there was a guy walking around the ship with no shirt or shoes on. We also had unsavory balcony neighbors who smoked constantly and spit (yes, spit) off the balcony quite frequently. I agree also with your food review. I don't think we had a bad meal the entire trip! I don't regret our vacation as we spent some wonderful family time together. In fact, the one day we spent at Nachi (our 3rd visit there) made the trip entirely worth it. This was our first and will be our last Carnival Cruise, though.

 

I was definitely surprised by the very laid back "dress code" on all the other nights (but most folks did dress appropriately for elegant night in the dining room where I was). I was surprised to see so many men with baseball hats on with their sun glasses on top at dinner. No sun in the night time on the ship in the dining room.

 

Really shocked about the balcony issue - that is awful! Would have ruined my time on the balcony. Did you call anyone or report to Guest Services. They said they were concerned about smoking on balcony during the muster drill - wondered if they were serious about enforcing it.

[tgnorton]

How do you email the maitre d so I can change to anytime also? Got bumped from early seating to late seating because it was wait listed. Now just want to do anytime dining.

 

I read about it here on CC - believe the address is ___ maitred@carnival.com

 

In the ___ blanks, put the ship's code. So, for Triumph, I emailed timaitred@carnival.com.

 

Folks have reported hearing back but I didn't, the change was just made for me and we noticed it when we received our sign and sail cards. I emailed them 5 days before our cruise, because had read you should email within a week from your cruise.

Edited August 3, 2016 by tgnorton

[ItalianGirl777]

Had booked Technotel thru AutoProgresso. One complaint is that they told us to be at the bus at 9 am, so we hustled off the ship and ran down the long pier to the bus. Bus took us to another central location where they spent the next 1 hour and 45 minutes selling packages to other customers. The bus to Technotel didn’t leave until 10:45. So we just sat there with vendors pushing their wares, and Auto Progresso pushing their packages. Pretty disappointed in that. However, at 10:45 we made it on to the 2nd bus which took us to Technotel beach break. Food was ok and drinks were ok. There were 2 pools and both were pretty crowded. Beach was nice and spent some time in the water. Had a short 20 minute massage. The day was worth $35 we paid, but probably not more.

 

Thanks for the awesome and very thorough review. I am going on the five day cruise out of NOLA on the Triumph in a couple of weeks and have booked a tour through Autoprogreso. I read that my tour does not leave until around 11:00 and had planned on doing some shopping while I waited. Was there anything to do while you waited for your Technotel beach break bus? I had read on some reviews there were some good shopping areas where you waited. Are they correct? I am just wondering...I hate waiting, but do not mind, as much, when I can shop! :)

 

Thanks again!!

Edited August 3, 2016 by ItalianGirl777

[cdamion]

We were on the same cruise. Seems like we visited the piano bar at the same time and we were also in Nachi Cocom. I agree with your cruise review (especially the Nachi review- that day was Heaven). I only wish to add that I hope one day Carnival will enforce their dress code. On our way to dinner the first night, there was a guy walking around the ship with no shirt or shoes on. We also had unsavory balcony neighbors who smoked constantly and spit (yes, spit) off the balcony quite frequently. I agree also with your food review. I don't think we had a bad meal the entire trip! I don't regret our vacation as we spent some wonderful family time together. In fact, the one day we spent at Nachi (our 3rd visit there) made the trip entirely worth it. This was our first and will be our last Carnival Cruise, though.

 

I don't know that I would judge the entire cruise line based on a short cruise on one of the older and least-upgraded ships in the fleet. You would have had a different experience on the Vista, Breeze, or even one of the Spirit Class ships.

[tgnorton]

Had booked Technotel thru AutoProgresso. One complaint is that they told us to be at the bus at 9 am, so we hustled off the ship and ran down the long pier to the bus. Bus took us to another central location where they spent the next 1 hour and 45 minutes selling packages to other customers. The bus to Technotel didn’t leave until 10:45. So we just sat there with vendors pushing their wares, and Auto Progresso pushing their packages. Pretty disappointed in that. However, at 10:45 we made it on to the 2nd bus which took us to Technotel beach break. Food was ok and drinks were ok. There were 2 pools and both were pretty crowded. Beach was nice and spent some time in the water. Had a short 20 minute massage. The day was worth $35 we paid, but probably not more.

 

Thanks for the awesome and very thorough review. I am going on the five day cruise out of NOLA on the Triumph in a couple of weeks and have booked a tour through Autoprogreso. I read that my tour does not leave until around 11:00 and had planned on doing some shopping while I waited. Was there anything to do while you waited for your Technotel beach break bus? I had read on some reviews there were some good shopping areas where you waited. Are they correct? I am just wondering...I hate waiting, but do not mind, as much, when I can shop! :)

 

Thanks again!!

 

 

There is a small shopping area where you wait and some outside of it. I'm sorry but I'm not a shopper so can't say if it was good or not. It would probably keep you busy for 15-20 minutes. I saw some people buying purses.

[CruiseCrazedQT]

Thank you for your review. I'm going on the same cruise in 15 days but my goal is R&R. So while everyone is on excursions I'll be relaxing on the ship. I can't wait [emoji3][emoji3][emoji3]

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[JaniceB]

Enjoyed reading about your cruise, thank you.