You are looking LIVE... Mardi Gras 11/19 Thanksgiving

[TxTeach79]

Howdy! Okay, I'm gonna give this a whirl... I've never done a LIVE live review before, so there's absolutely a chance this completely derails and withers into nothingness sooner rather than later. But hey, nothing ventured nothing gained, amirite???

 

So I'll be sailing on the 11/19 MG cruise out of Port Canaveral on Saturday, and I'll be solo this time - which is partially why I'm trying the live thing now, so that I'm not a completely dismissive jerk when my better half and I do this exact same cruise next month on the NYE sailing. Yeah, about that.... kind of an odd twist. In the midst of trying to cash in on a bunch of great post-COVID casino (and otherwise) deals, I booked this long ago (she had a girls trip planned way in advance), and then another great deal came my way, it was valid on the NYE sailing, I'd always wanted to sail on NYE and never have, and she wanted to sail the MG, so there you go. 

 

Oh, and not only is it the same cruise five weeks apart, I'm in the same weird cabin. Why not? Scouting run. My freebies are for insides, so inside we shall go... one of these quirky square interiors on Deck 14, cause I like oddball outlier cabins in general.

 

 

There's a little extra kiss of significance for me sailing on this ship... found our old document folder (remember those days??) from the OG Mardi Gras back in 1990. That was my third Carnival cruise with my folks growing up (Celebration, Holiday) and first time on an older ship, and we have incredibly fond memories of it, and of course the historical aspect of her being the original CCL ship. Ever since I heard the name was being reissued a few years ago, I've been excited. 

 

 

Anyway, as a teacher off for Thanksgiving week and trying to keep things budget conscious to an extent, I had actually planned on driving - I've always enjoyed a good road trip - but as we got closer, I kept checking to see if the insane holiday week airfares cam down, and just yesterday, with some patience and creativity, they did! Enough, anyway, to fly Frontier out of DFW (I'm in the Dallas area) and then back on Southwest (my usual air taxi) to DAL. I'll be heading out Friday morning, so we shall see! 

 

Edited November 15, 2022 by TxTeach79

[TxTeach79]

And in case you're curious where this might or might not go.... I mostly pulled off getting my Miracle Alaska review done after we got back....

 

 

As opposed to when I wanted too long after our March Horizon sailing and ran out of steam and bailed to parts unknown with a couple days left....

 

 

A year ago this week I kept my expectations low and did a photo dump mini review of my Vista Thanksgiving cruise...

 

 

And, because I have to, a few years back there was another mini photo dump for the late great Sensation, may she rest in peace. 

 

 

Sooooo yeah! Fair warning! Trying to step things up may or may not be a good idea, but THERE'S ONLY ONE WAY TO FIND OUT!

[TxTeach79]

 

#obligatory 

[TxTeach79]

Tuesday. We're getting closer. I've got my middle schoolers working on Greek mythology projects the rest of the week, so they're engaged (though incredibly chatty)... just gotta ride it out. So close yet so far.....

 

So the original driving plan was to stop once along the way in Louisiana or Mississippi and then make it all the way to Orlando on Friday. I lived in south Florida for a few years back in my 20's, so I've made the drive a bunch and I really don't mind it.... but once airfare seemed doable, it was a no brainer. Originally I had the SpringHill Suites in the Marriott Village Orlando booked for around $130 after taxes, which I was perfectly fine with since all the stuff in Cocoa Beach near PC was considerably more. Figured I'd just drive over Saturday morning, park, and rock n' roll. When the flight thing happened, though, I'm suddenly arriving at MCO at 1pm instead of rolling into town late in the evening.... and now that I'm dependent on Uber, things are a little different. 

 

So, after some thought, and since I'm solo and have no need to be fancy, I landed on a joint available on Cocoa Beach not far from PC and much of the action in town, somehow available for only $150 after taxes. Taking projected Ubers into account, that would actually run me LESS than staying in Orlando for the day - and partially since we're doing a whole Disney thing before the December cruise, I'm all in on Cocoa Beach. 

 

But wait - don't you get what you pay for? Shouldn't I be wary that everything else in the area is significantly more expensive? ABSOLUTELY MY FRIENDS!!! I give you Ocean Landings Resort & Racquet Club, a gem that seems absolutely proud to be firmly in a 70's-80's beach vacation movie. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So yeah... all that's missing is the plastic on the couches, and i am HERE FOR IT. Can't wait to report back on Friday, see how this old school party goes! Will I regret it? TIME WILL TELL!

 

[TxTeach79]

 

So based on this map, the timeshares are oceanfront (in yellow) and I'll definitely be in one of the Priceline specials in blue back in the Atlantic, Baltic, or AA (fitting for this week!) buildings. 

 

[fozzy1975]

On this cruise with you! So excited

[TxTeach79]

20 minutes ago, fozzy1975 said:

On this cruise with you! So excited

 

[lazydayz]

Enjoy. We love this ship.  And will be joining you on the NYE cruise.  

[DanOO]

Looking forward to your review.  My family will be on the MG NYE cruise as well.

[TxTeach79]

Can't wait! And yeah, totally stoked to be on the NYE cruise! See y'all there!

[1kaper]

On 11/14/2022 at 9:50 PM, TxTeach79 said:

 

#obligatory 

 

 

Ha! We are sailing on November 19th as well, but on Spirit.  We decided on the intinary after reading one of your other posts (Aruba, Bonaire, Grand Turk and HMC)

[TxTeach79]

10 minutes ago, 1kaper said:

 

 

Ha! We are sailing on November 19th as well, but on Spirit.  We decided on the intinary after reading one of your other posts (Aruba, Bonaire, Grand Turk and HMC)

 

OMG, that sounds absolutely amazing! Aruba and HMC alone would make me jump on any ship ASAP! And considering how much I enjoy Aruba and Curacao, Bonaire is near the top of my last! Have a fantastic cruise - love the Spirit class too!

Edited November 16, 2022 by TxTeach79

[TxTeach79]

Welp, for some reason my booking vanished on the website for a minute. Had to manually re-add it. No big crisis or anything, but a definite moment of *****. Oh well, onward and upward!

[TxTeach79]

Okay. One more work day. We can do this, right??

 

I haven't packed a thing yet. That's fine. I'm a last minuter. I'm a dude. It'll take a half hour tops. (Take the under). I'm still antsy and making a list trying not to forget anything. 

 

So to kind of get ahead a little, what I have prepaid is CHEERS (big duh), the Premium internet package (I'll have to rely on YouTubeTV to watch certain games I don't wanna miss, and since the MG doesn't have a true sports bar I need to make sure), gratuities, and the max allotment of cruise cash I've chipped away at over the last few months - likely to go heavy toward the casino. 

 

As of now, I have nothing concrete planned in ports. I'm a big ship guy, I don't love overplanning, and since I'm solo and doing this cruise again for NYE, I don't feel the need to do much ashore. We already have stuff booked in every port on the NYE cruise anyway. The exception, of course, is San Juan, which is replaced with Nassau (meh) on that one. TBD for all that. Hoping for some swim up bar action in Grand Turk and Amber Cove, nothing else hard on the agenda as of yet. Go with the flow. 

[TxTeach79]

 

I can almost taste it…..

[amyjoy202697]

I am on this cruise too! This week is DRAGGING by.

[TxTeach79]

42 minutes ago, amyjoy202697 said:

I am on this cruise too! This week is DRAGGING by.

 

YOU AIN'T JOKIN'!

[TravelGirlinDallas]

On 11/15/2022 at 10:56 AM, TxTeach79 said:

 

 

I think the Golden Girls were here...

[TxTeach79]

3 minutes ago, TravelGirlinDallas said:

I think the Golden Girls were here...

 

I can't wait, that's PERFECT!

 

[TxTeach79]

 

and we are officially checked in….

 

 

paid a little more (#lowcostcarrierlife) and grabbed a “Stretch Seat,” so I’ll be in 13A. On paper, it looks strong to quite strong. Fingers crossed. 

[TxTeach79]

 

a quick antsy check to see where she currently is located reveals a crowded Carnival Cozumel k(c?)inda day!

[haehaehaley]

17 hours ago, TxTeach79 said:

Okay. One more work day. We can do this, right??

 

I haven't packed a thing yet. That's fine. I'm a last minuter. I'm a dude. It'll take a half hour tops. (Take the under). I'm still antsy and making a list trying not to forget anything. 

 

So to kind of get ahead a little, what I have prepaid is CHEERS (big duh), the Premium internet package (I'll have to rely on YouTubeTV to watch certain games I don't wanna miss, and since the MG doesn't have a true sports bar I need to make sure), gratuities, and the max allotment of cruise cash I've chipped away at over the last few months - likely to go heavy toward the casino. 

 

As of now, I have nothing concrete planned in ports. I'm a big ship guy, I don't love overplanning, and since I'm solo and doing this cruise again for NYE, I don't feel the need to do much ashore. We already have stuff booked in every port on the NYE cruise anyway. The exception, of course, is San Juan, which is replaced with Nassau (meh) on that one. TBD for all that. Hoping for some swim up bar action in Grand Turk and Amber Cove, nothing else hard on the agenda as of yet. Go with the flow. 

Hi there, just curious, do you know why they substituted Nassau for San Juan? I’m going on the Mardi Gras on December 2 and supposed to go to San Juan but wondering if that will change…

[TxTeach79]

Just now, haehaehaley said:

Hi there, just curious, do you know why they substituted Nassau for San Juan? I’m going on the Mardi Gras on December 2 and supposed to go to San Juan but wondering if that will change…

 

Nothing official, just rumors here and there. Either way, I'd bet you're good to go to SJ... the first cruise changing to Nassau is the NYE cruise. 

[TxTeach79]

 

it’s a LARGE iced coffee/add a shot of espresso kinda day here in the mines. Two. More. Hours. 

[kelkel2]

I’ll be following along! It’s a great way to count down the days until our Mg cruise on 1/21!