Review of our Spring Break cruise on Carnival Legend

[falconfan]

Awesome review. Yours was the first one I have seen that had such detail on the Belize Cave Tubing excursion. I got a kick out of your pics of Roatan too. We were there last May when they were about halfway done with the construction of the shop. Instead they had a tent set up and the vendors were all located in there. I am looking forward to reading your review of the Freedom from 2008. We are going on the same ship, same itenerary in July.

[CMM]

This review was very informative & helpful in planning. Thanks again for your efforts.

[Rossey]

Paul a great review. I apologize if you've already answered these questions. We're thinking of the Legend for next month (nothing like waiting until the last second), but have a couple of questions.

 

Regarding room service, is the menu limited or do you have choices same as the dining room?

 

Are there tables for 2 in the dining room?

 

You mentioned the following: "The Maitre D' was very friendly and assured us that based on our booking date of 15 months out that we would have preference for the first available open seating dinning assignment." What do you mean by open seating dining?

 

You mentioned vibration in the room How bad is it? If the only cat 11 rooms available are the ones next to the stairs, would you still book? What about the privacy for this cabin?

 

Paul, thanks and again sorry if I messed answers previously posted.

[cantw82cruise]

Paul great review, I really enjoyed the pictures as they really make the review come to life. I saw early on you were talking about your new Olympus 1050SW. Did you take all the pictures with that camera or do you have another you use for when you are not in the water? I just bought the Olympus 1030SW after reading your review and I'm not sure if I want to only take it or bring my nicer camera as well.

 

Thanks again for the entertainment, smooth seas to you and your family,

 

John

[mitchpam]

Ahhh... thanks for sharing your great family with your CC family. I have had to steal away time from my family just to get comp time to read it, but it was worth it!!

 

I wonder how you thought the 4 port days in a row went? I wonder about the tired factor... your boys made it out of the "wake up and move" to "we are having fun" without too much problem? I guess it probably makes for better sleep at night... just curious if you think any differently about it now that you have been home and can look back on it.

[PaulMedik]

Paul,

 

Have you ever been to St. Pete Beach? ~20 miles south of Clearwater Beach.

 

My annual FL vacays started in 06 in Clearwater Beach, at the Quality Inn on the Beach. (Totally agreed that hotels south of Pier 60 are not on the beach.) We ventured beyond Sand Key Park, south on Gulf Boulevard... all the way to the Don CeSar, where I saw signs for Fort DeSoto Park. I had read about that place, so we checked it out and fell in love with it. You cruised by it on the Legend, right after going under the Skyway. Anyway, in 07 when my now-husband wanted to propose, he chose Fort DeSoto. We booked at the Dolphin Beach Resort on SPB, and I highly recommend it. We have been back each year since! That beach is nice, comparable to the Pier 60 area. (Not like Sand Key Park; I was there 2 days before you!)

 

Let me know if you want more info for future reference.

 

P.S. Thank you again for another amazing TR!

 

 

snc421,

 

We stayed in St Pete Beach in 2003. I don't recall the name of the hotel, but it was right on the beach and was an awesome hotel. The beach was beautiful white sand. Just down from our hotel they had a three foot diameter pipe which ran the length of the beach for several hundres yards then to an ocean sand dredge. They were replenishing the beach due to erosion and while the sand was white, it was crushed sea shells and not talcom powder like Clearwater Beach. We drove to Clearwater Beach each day instead of St Pete Beach because the boys also preferred the sand at Clearwater Beach.

 

We have pics of a beach with the Sunshine Skyway bridge in the background North of where we were. I don't recall the beach name but we were able to drive right out on the edge of the water. Is that near Fort DeSoto?

 

We had planned 23 days in FL; hurricanes changed our plans. We were first chased out of Orlando and were able to head west to St Pete to avoid the hurricane track. After three or four days we had to leave that area due to another hurricane so we went East and headed up the coast through Daytona FL, then Georgia to Myrtle Beach SC. Georgia has some awesome beaches that we'd never heard of. As I recall we spent a week or so in Myrtle Beach before they had a mandatory evacuation due to yet another hurricane. :mad: We waited until everyone left then had the best drive ever out of Myrtle with no traffic at all and all four lanes open heading out of the beach area. We ended our vacation in an inland hotel in North Carolina watching the rain pour for days.

 

We'll keep Dolphin Beach Resort in mind and check it out on our next trip. Right on the beach and talcom powder sand like near Pier 60? Sounds perfect!

 

 

We love the Gulf Coast and if you look for hotel south of Clearwater Beach, they are steps away. We love North Redington Beach which would probably be considered half-way down Gulf Blvd north of St. Pete Beach. There is a Doubletree (formerly a Hilton) that is lovely and we have stayed there many time. Paul, with your family, probably a condo-type set-up would be better and there are many, many option along the Gulf Blvd strip that are right on the beach. In my opinion, this area is not so busy and congested as would be St. Pete, etc., little more quiet, etc. Great place called John's Pass that has restaurants and shopping. Again, low-key but still fun. Haven't been there in a few years, but there was a big mini-golf place right before John's Pass that is fun for adults and kids.

 

I would agree about Fort De Soto...absolutely beautiful.

 

 

mnsawyer,

 

Every time we're in that area I am amazed that it's not more congested than it is. Even though there've been drastic changes to some areas in the past twenty years, the small town cozy feel still comes through.

 

Thank you for the suggestions.

 

I agree with everyone else - please don't ever condense your reviews! Your review was amazing and your pictures wonderful. You have such a beautiful family. You are absolutely right when you said that you have created memories that you will all remember forever. I think you have inspired me to bring along a journal with me on my cruise (Legend - Aug 2009) so that I can capture my own memories.

 

Thanks again!

 

Deena

 

Deena,

 

Thank you.

 

I doubt I would be able to do condensed versions; I like details and every time I attempt a short versin of something it usually ends up long or I don't finish it. :confused: Isn't it usually the other way around? :D

[PaulMedik]

I was out of town for a long weekend...and was thrilled and sad to find the end of your review today.

 

Thank you so much for taking so much time to share your cruise experiences and pictures as so many others have said, never ever condense them. They are wonderful.

 

You brought back many happy memories of our Legend cruise!

 

Like ya'll my dh and I don't get sea sick....so sometimes it is fun when the seas are rough to have the ship to ourselves :D

 

Looking forward to your next cruise!!!!

 

Happy Sails!

 

 

PopTart,

 

Thank you.

 

I wouldn't wish rough seas on our fellow passengers, but since they have to occur sometime, I don't mind being there when they do. From past experience though, the seas do get a whole lot rougher than we had on Legend. The wind in combination with high seas was what made it interesting.

 

 

 

 

Awesome review. Yours was the first one I have seen that had such detail on the Belize Cave Tubing excursion. I got a kick out of your pics of Roatan too. We were there last May when they were about halfway done with the construction of the shop. Instead they had a tent set up and the vendors were all located in there. I am looking forward to reading your review of the Freedom from 2008. We are going on the same ship, same itenerary in July.

 

falconfan,

 

Freedom's a fine ship. We enjoyed her and I'm sure you will too.

 

 

Paul a great review. I apologize if you've already answered these questions. We're thinking of the Legend for next month (nothing like waiting until the last second), but have a couple of questions.

 

Regarding room service, is the menu limited or do you have choices same as the dining room?

 

Are there tables for 2 in the dining room?

 

You mentioned the following: "The Maitre D' was very friendly and assured us that based on our booking date of 15 months out that we would have preference for the first available open seating dinning assignment." What do you mean by open seating dining?

 

You mentioned vibration in the room How bad is it? If the only cat 11 rooms available are the ones next to the stairs, would you still book? What about the privacy for this cabin?

 

Paul, thanks and again sorry if I messed answers previously posted.

 

 

Rossey,

 

Room service menu is limited. Depending on circumstances, they do sometimes allow dinner menu items via room service.

 

They do have several tables for two. I noticed more tables for two than other ships we've been on, but it may have just been the layout was more conducive to clusters of smaller tables.

 

Open Seating is an assigned option where you show up any time you like between 5:45 and 10:30 to be seated for dinner. You can request certain servers or table numbers or be seated at the next available table. Similar to other line's 'Dining your way' type offerings.

[PaulMedik]

Paul great review, I really enjoyed the pictures as they really make the review come to life. I saw early on you were talking about your new Olympus 1050SW. Did you take all the pictures with that camera or do you have another you use for when you are not in the water? I just bought the Olympus 1030SW after reading your review and I'm not sure if I want to only take it or bring my nicer camera as well.

 

Thanks again for the entertainment, smooth seas to you and your family,

 

John

 

 

John,

 

Thank you.

 

The majority of our pics were taken with a Kodak 12MP point and shoot. I also took some with a larger zoom Kodak.

 

Ahhh... thanks for sharing your great family with your CC family. I have had to steal away time from my family just to get comp time to read it, but it was worth it!!

 

I wonder how you thought the 4 port days in a row went? I wonder about the tired factor... your boys made it out of the "wake up and move" to "we are having fun" without too much problem? I guess it probably makes for better sleep at night... just curious if you think any differently about it now that you have been home and can look back on it.

 

 

Mitchpam,

 

Thank you.

 

Four port days in a row is tiring without a doubt. By the third port day the boys woke up pretty much exactly like they do for school; Bryson woke up tired, but gained function quickly. Spencer was hard to wake up and wasn't fully awake for quite a while. Britt woke up ready to go. In Roatan we had a tour of the island planned first then zip lining. We had to cut the tour short because all they could talk of think about was zip lining. They were also still tired and not fully awake at that point, but they became wide awake when we arrived at Victor's house and met the monkeys. :)

 

It would have been much better for us to have had port days that began later in the day. Late afternoons and evenings ashore are much more relaxing than mornings and early afternoons. An eight day cruise with two sea days at the end would have made it better....or a second week of a B2B! :D B2B's are the best relaxation ever.

 

Looking back, everything went pretty much as expected in terms of our enjoyment of the days. We expected the boys would be tired and we made sure they knew each evening what we'd be doing the next day and what time everything would start so they could mentally prepare.

[CMM]

Sorry, I thought of one last question!

 

My kids are prone to motion sickness. Especially in twisty roads, when a driver changes speeds a great deal or breaks excessively.

 

I can give them bonnine, but even though it is considered less drowsy it still nocks them out.

Don't want them in a tired stupor all day if not necessary.

 

Is the bus ride for cave tubing relatively calm? Or is it full of twists , etc. ?

[PaulMedik]

............

 

Is the bus ride for cave tubing relatively calm? Or is it full of twists , etc. ?

 

 

CMM,

 

Your boys should be OK without meds. 90% of the ride is straight and relatively smooth. The parts that aren't straight don't have too much jerking to them. The buses are comfortable and have AC.

[snc421]

Paul,

 

Sounds to me like your pictures with the Skyway in the background were taken at Fort DeSoto Park, the East Beach to be specific. There are areas to park literally along the water there. That angle provides an amazing shot in photos!

 

The North Beach at Fort DeSoto is what I read about that originally drew me there. Dr. Beach ranked it (North Beach) as #1 in the nation in 2005, and since I started visiting, Trip Advisor ranked it #1 in 2008. That was mostly just for anyone else's interest...

 

Also interesting you experienced as I did but in reverse! That first year we drove down to SPB from CB every day, and then just stayed in SPB instead in future years. Funny! I do not disagree with Pier 60 being amazing. Just so you know. I wanted to go there this year so as I said we made the drive. Bad decision on a Saturday. One HUGE advantage to SPB is the traffic and layout. For sure. Needless to say we did not stop at Pier 60. We headed back down. I wish I would have went to Fort DeSoto that day because I would have seen the Inspiration up close and personal as it went by... however, I did see it from my hotel. Albeit from a distance, but I still could make out the red and blue fin!

[CMM]

CMM,

 

Your boys should be OK without meds. 90% of the ride is straight and relatively smooth. The parts that aren't straight don't have too much jerking to them. The buses are comfortable and have AC.

 

Thanks! Great to have the insiders information!

[PaulMedik]

CMM,

 

You're welcome.

 

 

 

 

Paul,

 

Sounds to me like your pictures with the Skyway in the background were taken at Fort DeSoto Park, the East Beach to be specific. There are areas to park literally along the water there. That angle provides an amazing shot in photos!

 

.........................

 

Also interesting you experienced as I did but in reverse! That first year we drove down to SPB from CB every day, and then just stayed in SPB instead in future years. Funny! I do not disagree with Pier 60 being amazing. ...............!

 

 

 

Carrie,

 

I'll scan the pics in and upload them to webshots ASAP so you can see the angle to know if we were at the right place.

 

Also the sand at Pier 60 and North of there is what we really like. Is St Pete Beach normally like that? The rough sea shell sand in 2003 is the main reason we went North to Clearwater Beach. Is the sand normally like talcom powder?

[snc421]

I love Skyway pictures! Reminds me of my home... okay, wishful thinking there, but I do live there a *very* small part of the year. ;)

 

I have not actually stepped onto Pier 60's beach in three years, let me make sure you know that. The sand in SPB does have a shell line, let me make that clear too. But it is very wide. Look up the Dolphin Beach Resort area on a Google-type map and you can see that way how wide it is because wow. (Treasure Island, the next town north of SPB has even wider beaches.)

 

Before the shell line the sand at my hotel is awesome. Very much like talcum powder. They do groom the beach every morning as well, which was nice. After the shell line and into the water IMO its not really rough.

51 more weeks and I'll be back home! :rolleyes:

[shortstuf1255]

Loved your review Thank you

[blessedwith12]

Thanks for such a detailed review. I will be on the Legend in November and I appreciate all the information. About Belize and the tender problems, would it be better to book a Bannister Island tour through Carnival, rather than go through Coral Breezes? I have never done a Carnival tour - I prefer the private, smaller tours, but it seems like the delay with tenders, preferred tendering for Carnival excursions, and a trip directly to Bannister Island, rather than to the port, might make this stop an exception. Any thoughts?

 

Also, at Pier 60 - did you see the guy playing the drywall mud bucket drums? He was amazing. One of my sons plays the drums and I had to tape some of that for him.

[PaulMedik]

Thanks for such a detailed review. I will be on the Legend in November and I appreciate all the information. About Belize and the tender problems, would it be better to book a Bannister Island tour through Carnival, rather than go through Coral Breezes? I have never done a Carnival tour - I prefer the private, smaller tours, but it seems like the delay with tenders, preferred tendering for Carnival excursions, and a trip directly to Bannister Island, rather than to the port, might make this stop an exception. Any thoughts?

 

Also, at Pier 60 - did you see the guy playing the drywall mud bucket drums? He was amazing. One of my sons plays the drums and I had to tape some of that for him.

 

 

blessedwith12,

 

Going directly from the ship should get you there earlier than private tours. I recall that Bannister Island tour via Carnival was closed due to a murder investigation around the time we were at Belize. I'm not sure whether the tour has resumed or not.

 

Yes we saw the drywall bucket drummer and he was quite entertaining. Our boys spent so much time watching him that I have been dreading a bucket drum practice session since we've been home, but they haven't had one yet. :o

[blessedwith12]

Thanks for the quick response. I keep thinking up more questions, though! (I'm looking forward to returning to Pier 60 and drywall bucket guy is a definite stop for me. Thankfully, our drum player here is 19 and caught on fairly quickly to playing. We didn't have many months of painful noise here. Now, his 8 year old brother is a different story!)

 

I loved your pictures of the beach at Roatan. We have booked a Victor Bodden tour and I'm wondering about which beach we want to go to. I've seen pictures of the Mayan Princess, and you can get in there and use chairs, the pool,etc., for $ 10. Do you know if that is close to Infinity Bay? I thought Infinity Bay was beautiful, but I would rather be somewhere where we can have chairs and a pool.

 

Also, since we'll have 12 children back at home to buy souvenirs for:D, which port would have the best prices? I'm guessing Roatan. I know GC is expensive, and I've already been to Cozumel a couple of times and bought things from there. So between Belize and Roatan, which would be best?

 

Thanks again for the time you put into your review. I posted a fairly long one from my cruise on the Inspiration in March, and I know how much time it takes.

[PaulMedik]

Thanks for the quick response. I keep thinking up more questions, though! (I'm looking forward to returning to Pier 60 and drywall bucket guy is a definite stop for me. Thankfully, our drum player here is 19 and caught on fairly quickly to playing. We didn't have many months of painful noise here. Now, his 8 year old brother is a different story!)

 

I loved your pictures of the beach at Roatan. We have booked a Victor Bodden tour and I'm wondering about which beach we want to go to. I've seen pictures of the Mayan Princess, and you can get in there and use chairs, the pool,etc., for $ 10. Do you know if that is close to Infinity Bay? I thought Infinity Bay was beautiful, but I would rather be somewhere where we can have chairs and a pool.

 

Also, since we'll have 12 children back at home to buy souvenirs for:D, which port would have the best prices? I'm guessing Roatan. I know GC is expensive, and I've already been to Cozumel a couple of times and bought things from there. So between Belize and Roatan, which would be best?

 

Thanks again for the time you put into your review. I posted a fairly long one from my cruise on the Inspiration in March, and I know how much time it takes.

 

 

blessedwith12,

 

I'm fairly certain that Mayan Princess is along the same stretch of beach as Infinity Bay. There are several there that offer day passes. Victor's tour offers two others; one for ten and one for five dollars as I recall. I don't recall the specifics, but I remember one of them includes pool access along with beach chairs.

 

We stopped at several road side vendors in Roatan and while we didn't buy anything, I would recommend Roatan vs Belize for road side vendors. The port / pier areas are similar, but better prices and selection are outside.

 

Twelve kids to buy for......whew that's hard to imagine. :)

[blessedwith12]

Yep, 12. We have a lot to show for our almost 27 years of marriage!:D

My husband and I weren't able to do anything to celebrate our 25th anniversary because we have a special needs son and he was having a really difficult time at that point. Now things have calmed down to the point that we can get away and this will be my husband's first cruise. (I have been on a couple of girls only cruises.)This will be our late 25th anniversary celebration and likely a trip we won't be able to repeat in the near future so I'm having fun trying to make it the best. Thanks for all the information. After seeing your pictures, I think Roatan is the stop I am looking forward to the most.

[Wennfred]

Paul, when it comes to reviews and pictures, youre number 1 !!!

 

Thanks so much, tell Karen we said hello.

 

 

 

Fred

[PunkinsDad]

Paul,

 

Great review!!! I must say, it was a real pleasure meeting you and your wonderful family. I just wish we were sailing together on the Dream in April, but we will be on the 4/10 sailing, getting on as you guys are getting off.

[carribeancruzr]

Thanks so much for your great review...like a good book I couldn't stop reading! We are going on the Legend in Jan. with our 3 kids (21,18 & 12), 2 of their friends and DSL.

First of all, my DH is a medic too so thanks for the helmet tip in Belize. Our youngest, who is 12 and rides dirtbikes, thought your ATV Belize tour looked great and asked to sign us up already (we don't leave until 1/3!). DH thought it was a good idea too after seeing your great pics of the cave tubing! When we were in Belize in 2006 we booked a tour through a tour guide Joseph Zaldivar who was very good. Also, thanks for the info about the great resort Infinity Bay Spa in Roatan. We were in Roatan a few years ago and booked our tour through Victor Bodden-wonderful! We did the island tour , beach and the Iguana Farm (which was very cool, especially for us animal lovers!).

I also can't wait for your cruise review when you go to Costa Maya. Went there in 2006 and also spent the day on the beach in Mahahual. Unfortunately, a hurricane about wiped it off the map. I hope it's not all built up and "Americanized"! We loved all the palm trees, dirt main road and "quaintness".

[TX Southpaw]

We stopped along the way back to the ship for some pics. I'm not sure what the purpose of this building will be when finished, but it was pretty;

 

 

 

 

 

I see progress has been made on this building. This is what it looked like in Dec. 2008.

 

[michaelaz]

Bumped for a great Legend review.

 

Going next month Dec. 27-3.

 

Thanks !