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

[TxTeach79]

5 hours ago, ericrz said:

 

Sadly, it is not.  Our cabana waitress told us that they've been waiting for repair parts "for a long time."  My 13-year-old nephew was super bummed.

 

Interesting, that explains a lot. I noticed it was completely strangely dry, but knowing nothing about Flowrider operations, I wasn't sure if that meant it was down or not. Guess so!

[shark&minnow]

On 11/23/2022 at 9:31 AM, TxTeach79 said:

Menus at coco Cana and sky bar. Sky bar is great, but I’ll save it. That’s a long walk. Did it last time. #nopainnopain 

 

 

About how far is it? I'm having knee replacement in January so I have to pace myself but I was hoping to go to the sky bar. Thank you for your review. My son & daughter in law are UNT grads. 🙂

[pcrum]

Thanks for a great review. We have not sailed Carnival since 2013 and I really thought it was not for us anymore, after trying NCL and MSC. Your review is the first one that has really made me think that we might want to try one of the newer Carnival ships. That Havana coffee and bar area looks really cool.  Now, if Carnival would just go all inclusive with the drinks package included in the fare…

 

Thanks also for your work as a teacher. I gave middle school teaching a go, but did not last!  I now do HR at a university, lol. Teachers and nurses are the true heroes of our society! Enjoy the NYE cruise. We are on Celebrity Summit out of Miami (a new line for us), returning NYE. Someday we will do NYE at sea. It’s my birthday, so a double celebration. 

[pcrum]

15 hours ago, TxTeach79 said:

Pretty terminal 

 

Are you in Terminal C.  That’s our new terminal. My daughter just flew out of it and loved it. They have Wine Bar George and Chef Art’s Homecoming from Disney Springs. 

[pcrum]

On 11/26/2022 at 8:07 PM, jimbob22 said:

we just got home from the same sailing, have enjoyed reading your report.  Sometimes, the line at Guy's was not bad at all (but definitely long at other times), same for BC.  Our thought was that all of the quickserve places could have used one more person to keep things moving faster, but overall the lines were not too bad.  Lines were even shorter at the 'street eats' area, but there were enough people on the ship that people were going there too, which is good to see (on smaller ships, I'm not sure if the 'international' concepts are as popular).

 

In many ways our take is that Carnival really hit a home run with this ship.  We are a different demographic than you (we are just a basic dull family with 2 teens.  We don't get drink package b/c we don't drink nearly enough to make it worth it, we don't gamble but are not offended by any of it of course).  We enjoy some outdoor time, going to shows, trivia, and not having to cook.

 

Loved all the quick serve food places.   Actually got some paninis last night, put them in ziplocs in our fridge to have some lunch for our drive home.  Great looking ship, lots of people spread out into different 'fun zones', so the crowds were never actually bad for anything we were doing.  Casinos were packed.

 

We ate at chibang twice, but figured out for second time: everything there is 'tapas' sized.  Any adult with normal appetite should order a minimum of 2 or 3 apps and 2 entrees.  Carnival is now (by default) often serving dinners that are like 350 calories...

 

Carnival is now often putting icecream and sides in those little metal ketchup holders.  This annoys me.  Last night, we wanted to try P&A for dinner, it was a very disorganized setup but someone did eventually arrive at front to seat us.  Since *supposedly* you can get 2 entrees, I filled in that I wanted the salmon (I like salmon and was curious to try it) and brisket. The guy came back to me and said I could not get both. So I went with just the salmon.  It was good--but not big.  And I got a ketchup-container of collards, same of baked beans, and normal serving of slaw (same as Shaq's slaw).  So my dinner was like 300 calories.  I had to scavenge off of the rest of the family (or I probably could have gone through an entire re-seating, re-ordering).  Why wouldn't the guy just bring the salmon and the brisket? They shut down at 9:30, 5 minutes later, and seemed to still have a ton of food on the ambiguous 'not-self-service' buffet, where guests kept walking up and either serving themselves or asking to be served, but it was just for the worker to use to fill the orders.  

 

So in general I noticed that Carnival sort of ruined the 'predictability' of the sit-down family dinner.  In MDR, some meals were normal sized (TG turkey dinner), and others were half size (TG shrimp and grits).   

 

We ate at the Italian place one night and overall liked it. We really liked how they put olive oil, balsamic, and good parm on the table--but then they never offered seconds on bread.  Skimping out on the bread is duly noticed.

 

And the ketchup-sized servings are NOT saving them money.  Here's what I notice: many people seem to put like 4lbs of food on their plates at the buffet, then they only eat about 2 lbs of it.  *This* is where the food loss is.  

 

So I mention all this partly to vent and also give insight to people who have not yet gone.  Overall, we had a great time, but everyone should be aware that chibang is ALL small-sized portions, and everyone should assume that the standard single app+single main in the MDR will only be like 350-400 calories.  The desserts seemed pretty normal (except for when they put ice cream in the ketchup containers).

And this is why we have not sailed Carnival  in a while. I always felt like they skimped on the food.  Ugg, just when I was thinking maybe to give them another go…

[keels81]

11 hours ago, TxTeach79 said:

Already updated! It’s crazy to me that Carnival updates past sailings in one day but it takes my Marriott Bonvoy app like 3-4. 
 

 

okay. So by my math, I have MG NYE to get to 181, a 12 night Pride in May to 193, and an 8 night Dream in July to 201 and the magic number. That said, I’m not ruling out finding a 7 over spring break in March if something pops open, but that’ll be a later post holidays call

 

The gals and I are looking for a 7 day in March as well (they live in Fort Worth, so really close to you) ... keep us updated if you pick something and maybe we'll join! We need another 7 somewhere to put 2 into Gold because she's going to be really butt-hurt on the Jubilee when I'm Platinum, 1 is Gold and she is still Red. 🤣

[jimbob22]

10 hours ago, pcrum said:

And this is why we have not sailed Carnival  in a while. I always felt like they skimped on the food.  Ugg, just when I was thinking maybe to give them another go…

we never felt like they were skimping on food until this cruise--but the existence of Guys, big chicken, blue iguana, panini, pizza seemed to offset it to a good extent.  And you can get multiple entrees--but it's hard to know ahead of time which ones are normal, which are small.  Excel class requires that the diner be more aggressive--asking for 2 breads, multiple entrees, multiple order sheets in P&A.  

[TxTeach79]

10 hours ago, pcrum said:

Are you in Terminal C.  That’s our new terminal. My daughter just flew out of it and loved it. They have Wine Bar George and Chef Art’s Homecoming from Disney Springs. 

 

I think this was terminal A.... MCO is different in that you just follow the gate number, I was at 121

[TxTeach79]

11 hours ago, pcrum said:

Thanks for a great review. We have not sailed Carnival since 2013 and I really thought it was not for us anymore, after trying NCL and MSC. Your review is the first one that has really made me think that we might want to try one of the newer Carnival ships. That Havana coffee and bar area looks really cool.  Now, if Carnival would just go all inclusive with the drinks package included in the fare…

 

Thanks also for your work as a teacher. I gave middle school teaching a go, but did not last!  I now do HR at a university, lol. Teachers and nurses are the true heroes of our society! Enjoy the NYE cruise. We are on Celebrity Summit out of Miami (a new line for us), returning NYE. Someday we will do NYE at sea. It’s my birthday, so a double celebration. 

 

Thank you! Excited to hear about your summit cruise! X and MSC are the last mainstream lines I have yet to scratch off the list. Well, and I guess Virgin now!

[Jelly_Toast]

My family and I were on this cruise.  I enjoyed reliving the magic today while pretending to work (first day back is so hard).

 

I saw my son in one of your photos, that was hilarious.  Thanks for your great trip report!

[ninjacat123]

On 11/24/2022 at 8:16 AM, TxTeach79 said:

Ah, the much maligned excel class “party lite”…. still gonna go tho

 

 

does that voucher work if you have CHEERS?

Just attended the P&D party on Elation and we had drinks galore!  Our CD said he would be disappointed if anyone left without a drink in each hand. 

[d-train]

Thanks so much for sharing your vaca with us!

It was so great to relive our MG sailings through your eyes!

Loved the ship and experience just as much,

and look forward to being back on board!

[TravelGirlinDallas]

I really enjoyed your fun review!! Looking forward to the next one!
 

We just returned from our Thanksgiving cruise today, so I share your mixed emotions. Not ready to re-enter real life.

[TxTeach79]

On 11/27/2022 at 7:08 PM, shark&minnow said:

About how far is it? I'm having knee replacement in January so I have to pace myself but I was hoping to go to the sky bar. Thank you for your review. My son & daughter in law are UNT grads. 🙂

 

#GMG! I would definitely attempt it! It's more winding than steep, and there are lots of little landings along the way if you need to stop and rest. Sky Bar itself isn't that high and you get great views, so it's worth the stroll! 

[TxTeach79]

On 11/28/2022 at 4:20 PM, ninjacat123 said:

Just attended the P&D party on Elation and we had drinks galore!  Our CD said he would be disappointed if anyone left without a drink in each hand. 

 

Yes!! I was on Vista with Kyndall Fire last Thanksgiving and you couldn't drink fast enough! The bar in Liquid Lounge was jumping, tubs of beer, servers going around, etc.... Then same CD on MG, it's the new "one glass of wine" move. The venue doesn't really allow for much else tbh. And I guess you can't do it in Grand Central because it's so open. 

[ninjacat123]

1 hour ago, TxTeach79 said:

 

Yes!! I was on Vista with Kyndall Fire last Thanksgiving and you couldn't drink fast enough! The bar in Liquid Lounge was jumping, tubs of beer, servers going around, etc.... Then same CD on MG, it's the new "one glass of wine" move. The venue doesn't really allow for much else tbh. And I guess you can't do it in Grand Central because it's so open. 

That must be the reason.  We were sequestered in a comedy show size room so they knew who was coming in and drinking.  I didn't even wait for a waiter and walked up to the bar and asked for a chocolatini.  Soooo yummy!!

[TxTeach79]

On 12/5/2022 at 12:36 PM, ninjacat123 said:

That must be the reason.  We were sequestered in a comedy show size room so they knew who was coming in and drinking.  I didn't even wait for a waiter and walked up to the bar and asked for a chocolatini.  Soooo yummy!!

 

Yes! Any time the party is a room with a bar, it's a big win! 

[Knights on the Beach]

On 11/21/2022 at 7:09 PM, TxTeach79 said:

Hurricane from The incomparable Melissa in the Brass Magnolia 

 

 

On 11/22/2022 at 8:20 PM, TxTeach79 said:

Hurricane. BM. Melissa the great. I’m telling her she’s beloved online and she doesn’t believe me. Didn’t someone say something earlier? She’s the absolute best. 
 

 

We LOVE Melissa! How did I miss seeing her in your review the first time I read it?? I'm feeling really dumb right now; she's my favorite! We were on MG for the 12/10 cruise and spent a LOT of time at Brass Magnolia with her. 

[bornin49]

Thank you for a great informative view, we will be sailing on the M G Feb 4,2023, loved all your photos of the different areas of the ship, thanks for taking the time to do this review.

[TxTeach79]

On 11/25/2022 at 4:00 PM, TxTeach79 said:

Kyndall just flat said “I am starting the rumor. I’ve always dreamed of being the first American female cruise director to bring out a new ship. So y’all think about me and let’s hope this Texas girl brings the Jubilee out in Galveston!”

 

I RESPECT it 

 

Remember this?

 

[rizkeeper]

On 11/19/2022 at 4:41 PM, TxTeach79 said:

Jewel OTS is the first to roll out! 
 

 

 

 

We are on the Mardi Gras this Thanksgiving, but we were on that ship, JOS last Thanksgiving, not sure I can see me in that pic, great picture!! 

[rizkeeper]

On 11/20/2022 at 12:39 PM, TxTeach79 said:

Nothing gives you comfort like a rowdy laugh filled Grand Central to reassure you everything is good…. (Those three story windows are amazing) 

 

 

does anyone know how to sign your family up to play family feud, on the Mardi Gras?  We are a family of 4, kids are 20 and 12, do you need a family of 5?  Does everyone have to be 18+?  Any pointers to get picked? 

[Happy0810]

What better way to honor your current live than taking a trip on the time machine to read last Thanksgiving's live. Great review, commentary, and pics of the Mardi Gras.  I'm 75% of the way through this review and then I'll hop over to the current live. 

[Haljo1935]

On 11/18/2022 at 7:34 AM, TxTeach79 said:

 

 

Edited November 19, 2023 by Haljo1935
Deleted - wrong thread

[cruiserNC]

Great review.