12/16 Carnival Miracle LIVE!!! My first live update thread!

[nyonefivetwo]

Gooooood morning from the Long Beach Cruise Terminal in California! My mom and I are about to board Carnival Miracle for a 5-night Mexican Riviera cruise (and we’re SO ready to leave dry land!). This is her Christmas present, so I’m excited to make it as magical as I can for her (and any ideas would be greatly appreciated! 🙂). It’s my 6th cruise (third on Carnival) and her second (first on Carnival). 

 

 

We stayed at the Hotel Maya in Long Beach last night (after a hellish journey from a delay-riddled Salt Lake City International Airport thanks to our first big snow storm of the year). The hotel was gorgeous, and a quick walk to the terminal at the Port of Long Beach this morning. 
 

Our arrival time was 10:30 a.m., and we were through security, health checks, and check-in by 10:35. So easy. We’re waiting to board right now, and they just opened the doors preparing for suite guests to be called. When they’re done and they call A01, we’ll head on board!

 

 

I’ll try to make this as live an update as possible, and please feel free to ask any questions! Here we go!

[Joe817]

What a GREAT Christmas present for your Mom! 👍 I am excited  for you both. Look forward to reading your review! 

[nyonefivetwo]

I love the holidays on a cruise ship! Here are a couple random pics of the decorations…

 

Also, it may just be the eons of time it’s been since my last cruise, but I think Blue Iguana is even better in 2021!

Its a cloudy day in Long Beach, but that isn’t stopping us from hanging out at Serenity and reading a book with a blanket!

[famof4togo]

You guys look so happy!!!  We are taking the same cruise in a few months so I will be following along faithfully.  Have a great time!

[CruisinMama2003]

Have a fabulous time! Cheers 🍹🏖🏝

[Linsuesue]

I love the Hotel Maya and the Miracle. You picked a couple of winners. Have a blast!🎄

[Cscomedygrl]

Have a great cruise! What a great gift for your mom. 

[DeanDeeDee]

I'm following along.  Hopefully, I will be on the Miracle in January, and you are providing a preview!

[nyonefivetwo]

Day Two - Fun Day at Sea

 

Wow. I’m not the best at this whole live thing…sorry! I also didn’t get many pictures because I was too busy being lazy on deck. 

Last night we tried Nick and Norah’s Steakhouse and OH MY GOODNESS it was good. Our table neighbors suggested the Art at the Table for dessert, and it was fun - if not super tasty.

 

 

Today has been an amazing day at sea - we started with a nibble on the Lido deck (the bacon was abundant, delicious, and crispy), followed by a soak in the hot tub. From there, we went to “guess that Christmas song” trivia, but the ship on the stick remained elusive to us. Probably because I just put Air Supply for every artist I didn’t know…

 

I gave a nice donation to the Carnival Players’ Club with hopes of coming home to a good offer to cruise again, and then we had sea day brunch. Word of warning: the Pancetta Scramble is literally just regular scrambled eggs with a couple tiny shreds of bacon served with dry toast and some undressed lettuce. But the griddle cake was delish!

 

We spent the rest of the day lounging and reading on the Serenity deck (I love serenity decks that take over aft pools!), took some pics around deck, and then watched the sunset.

 

Tonight is elegant night, so heading to the MDR in a few. I shall report on the quality of the “prime rib,” but am honestly mostly excited for my first chocolate melting cake in ages!

[nyonefivetwo]

2 hours ago, Linsuesue said:

I love the Hotel Maya and the Miracle. You picked a couple of winners. Have a blast!🎄

Thank you! And I’m officially in love with both myself. I’ll be back for sure!

[nyonefivetwo]

On 12/16/2021 at 2:35 PM, famof4togo said:

You guys look so happy!!!  We are taking the same cruise in a few months so I will be following along faithfully.  Have a great time!

Judging by days one and two only…I think you’ll love it! I’ll be sure to report on Cabo tomorrow!

[nyonefivetwo]

Oh! And we waved to Carnival Panorama and Ruby Princess today as we crossed paths. MarineTraffic.com was so fun to geek out to!

[JMKreno]

Definitely following! Will be on the Miracle in 2 weeks! Was in her before all the renovations so will be nice to compare with our last trip!!! Do you have the daily fun times you can post (I know they are in the app now not sure you can easily grab).

 

Thanks!

[nyonefivetwo]

43 minutes ago, JMKreno said:

Definitely following! Will be on the Miracle in 2 weeks! Was in her before all the renovations so will be nice to compare with our last trip!!! Do you have the daily fun times you can post (I know they are in the app now not sure you can easily grab).

 

Thanks!

I’ll see if I can track some down! I can always screen shot the app 🙂

[rn4t5]

54 minutes ago, JMKreno said:

Definitely following! Will be on the Miracle in 2 weeks! Was in her before all the renovations so will be nice to compare with our last trip!!! Do you have the daily fun times you can post (I know they are in the app now not sure you can easily grab).

 

Thanks!

I second the request to see paper funtimes. TIA.

[jimbri]

Have a great time!

[mondello]

Love your pictures. 12/26 Horizon/Sunshine will be our first holiday cruise and I know my wife will be thrilled with the Christmas decorations. Do keep posting your thoughts on the food, I always like hearing various opinions and love food porn.

[Cscomedygrl]

Looking forward to hearing more. Maybe internet issues for the OP? That has happened recently for a few other folks doing live reviews. 

[nyonefivetwo]

Hi everyone! Happy night before debarkation!

 

I apologize for the lack of posting. We found out Saturday morning that my grandmother passed away the night before (not altogether unexpected), so my Mom and I have been a little more contemplative and less enthusiastic the last couple of days. I’ll share a few pics now  to hold off until I can get home to gather my thoughts. Then I’ll post more. 

 

Oh - and before I forget, this letter came mid-cruise along with some stricter mask signage and enforcement on board. Everyone seems pretty diligent, and I haven’t heard of any major issues…though I did take the picture of the sign as I was quickly heading back to the cabin to grab a new mask when mine blew away 😂

 

 

Okay. The more fun pictures:

 

[CruisinMama2003]

Oh no 😔 so sorry to hear about your grandma. {{{HUGS}}} Enjoy your last night aboard as much as you can considering the circumstances. Post more whenever you are ready. 

[Cscomedygrl]

So sorry to hear about your grandma. We will be on standby whenever you are able. Take care and virtual hugs to you and your mom. 

[jimbri]

So sorry for the loss of your grandmother.

[luvcruzing]

So very sorry that you received such sad news on your cruise.  Have a safe trip home and post when you can.

[JMKreno]

So sorry about your grandmother!! Take the time you need to heal, reviews are not even on the radar of things you need to think about at times like this! What you already posted looks great!