Pre-Trip Report: First Timer Family on Carnival Triumph Over Spring Break 2017

Hello,

Just a tip or two for your Mother in Law. On our first trip (wedding cruise for my youngest son) We had my Mother with she celebrated her 87th Birthday on my Son's Wedding Day. We rented a Wheelchair from one of the cruise lines suggested medical stores in Miami. I paid for the week in advance. When we boarded the ship the wheelchair was delivered to our room. We were able to keep it in the hallway overnight ( it saved space ) She used it from time to time on the ship, but mostly at ports. One of the ports, (the island the cruise line owns ) has wheelchairs available there. Because we had to tender, my mother had her wheel chair on the boat to the island. When we arrived there we traded it in for one of their's. Their wheelchair was designed to get around in the sandy beach and trails. The regular one would not have worked well. Hallways are a bit tight so not sure on the scooter, most area's are probably good to get through. One of our other cruises we had our 3 year old Granddaughter. She did wonderful, I am sure your kids will do great as well. One thing we did was in the am we went and got her breakfast and brought it back to the room. It was nice to not rush in the am getting her to the buffet line. We spent most breakfasts doing this and just eating on the balcony. It also worked well on port days :) I would imagine you and your kids are going to have an awesome time! We are currently looking for a cruise in March, We will have our Granddaughter again, but now she is 6! She is looking forward to going to Camp Carnival again, although she only went for a few hours over dinner time, she had a blast :) Have a great trip!

We'll be watching your posts, as we are going on Triumph March 27 for spring break and literally following you onto the ship :). I am a former Disney World cast member - 5 years from 1996-2001 and cruised twice on Disney Magic with the cast discount. However this will be my first cruise with my husband and daughter (will be 11). We are not drinkers or party types either, but do realize that Carnival's clientele is simply budget-minded working class people, meaning it is laid back and casual, and there is something to be said for that. Sometimes high end cruises feel pretentious. You will see for every negative review of Carnival, you can find dozens of people here on these boards who have returned to Carnival 5 or more times, so they are doing something right. Disney is nice, but I don't think it's worth 2-3 times the cost unless you have a surplus of dollars lying around your house. Also Carnival's kids' clubs are considered among the best on the seas and should be a big plus for your family (expecting my kid to get a lot of mileage out of Camp Ocean). Like you, we chose this specific cruise because New Orleans and the dates are the best options to fit the school break schedule. Look forward to your posts!

I know, I fear it may have already happened and I have not even been on a ship yet.

ROFLMAO. That's how I feel. First I booked our first cruise for our 20th wedding anniversary, then I talked hubby into a family cruise for the summer and booked it. Then I decided I'd rather cruise more than walk around cold New Orleans for a few days so I booked a b2b for our 1st cruise so we'll be taking our first and 2nd cruise in a couple of weeks and I have a 3rd booked and I'm looking for the 4th, and I haven't even got on the ship yet. I so relate. :D

I don't think you will have a lot to worry about as far as the atmosphere on the ship. Yes there are plenty of people on the ship that will be drinking, but there are usually not many that are crazy drunk.

If you can at all persuade your son to go to the camp carnival events. They have different things set up for them to do according to age groups. One of the things they did on our cruise with my sons age group was a video game tournament. He won it and got a little trophy of the cruise ship.

We have sailed out of New Orleans twice, both times on the elation. We are looking forward to sailing on the Triumph in Feb. The port is easy to navigate and we haven't had a issue either getting on or off of the ship there. Hope you have a wonderful trip!!

We are on the 27th also!!

Love your enthusiasm! We first got the Disney bug in July 2015, and we've been 3 times in 18 months. Lol Also big time Carnival fans. Have a great cruise!

Hi Heath

It sounds Crazy you being from NE Arkansas and traveling with family on the same cruise my family and I will be on being we also live in NE Arkansas. Im 40 also will be traveling with wife and my three son ages 15, 12, and 5. We are surprising them with this for spring break leaving right after school that Friday and heading down to NO. This will be my wife and I third cruise the first with the children so will definitely be a new experience, hope we bump into one another on the ship.

March 18

My family and I will be on that cruise as well!! :)

We have only cruised once and it was with Disney. We got extremely lucky with the price. That was 2 years ago and I haven't found a price like that since. As much as we loved DCL, we just can't afford it. I would rather take 2 or 3 Carnival cruises for the price of one Disney.

Heath and Aaron - We are from Northern Arkansas as well!!

Hi Heath

It sounds Crazy you being from NE Arkansas and traveling with family on the same cruise my family and I will be on being we also live in NE Arkansas. Im 40 also will be traveling with wife and my three son ages 15, 12, and 5. We are surprising them with this for spring break leaving right after school that Friday and heading down to NO. This will be my wife and I third cruise the first with the children so will definitely be a new experience, hope we bump into one another on the ship.

That is tooo funny. We live in Caraway. Maybe we will bump into each other. My kids are crazy, so just look for the father pulling his hair out. LOL

I am sorry it has taken so long for me to get back to this tread. Life has just been crazy busy. Since my last post I paid off our cruise, including the soda package. Then a couple week ago, got a promotion for Carnival and my travel agent reran the numbers and got a discount. The new price was actually only about $10 less per person, but it had an on board credit. So we ended up with a $25 per person OBC plus the $10 per person credit, so that is pretty cool.

We have actually also booked a private tour in Progress with Lawson's Yucatan Excursions. They seem to have amazing reviews, and we are excited. I do plan to write a full report of what they have planned for us, but do not have time now. I would love to hear your thoughts on this company if you have used them.

I am sorry it has taken so long for me to get back to this tread. Life has just been crazy busy. Since my last post I paid off our cruise, including the soda package. Then a couple week ago, got a promotion for Carnival and my travel agent reran the numbers and got a discount. The new price was actually only about $10 less per person, but it had an on board credit. So we ended up with a $25 per person OBC plus the $10 per person credit, so that is pretty cool.

 

We have actually also booked a private tour in Progress with Lawson's Yucatan Excursions. They seem to have amazing reviews, and we are excited. I do plan to write a full report of what they have planned for us, but do not have time now. I would love to hear your thoughts on this company if you have used them.

I am not very familiar with anything in Progresso. This will be our first time there. We booked Mr. Sancho's all inclusive resort in Cozumel, but think we will just stay on the boat in Progresso. We love staying on the boats on port days sometimes.

Rooms can be tight for storage. My Mother cruised with us in 2010, she had a walker that she used on occasion, it collapsed so we brought that with and because it folded we had it in the room she shared with my Mother in Law. We also rented a wheelchair (from the city we left from, same you are doing in NO they delivered it to the cabin) that collapsed and we were able to lean it in the hallway next to the door. If you are tendering to one of the Cruise lines private islands, they tend to be sandy and they have wheelchairs on the island that have larger wheels that can be pushed easily through the sandy areas and trails.

I live in Philadelphia and have annual passes to Disney world. We went Labor Day week. Halloween week. Pop warner week. Booked for May and august. We are cruising feb 5 on vista. Our first cruise was a 7 day on sensation in 2000. Vista next week is #26 Cruising is a different type of vacation. Your 11 year old is in one of the best age kids camp on the seas. He needs your permission to sign in and out of camp in order to participate in scavenger hunts. Sounds like he may have his mind made up but for his sake make it mandatory that he go to orientation and for some time the next day. Just to meet the kids. Another thing we do at dinner is order something we have never tried from each course. Each person gets a taste then passes it around. Then we talk about what we liked or didn't like

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

But I still really wanted to go on a cruise, so I started looking at Carnival. I just did not want to do Carnival. I had heard so many mixed reviews. Several people talked about Carnival being a “party” cruise. That is just not my family. As I said in our cast list, I’m a pastor. We do not drink at all, and I am uncomfortable abound people who are drunk and have lost control of themselves. However my principal/boss had good things to say about her experience last year over spring break. She and I are very much alike in our personalities. So I decided it would be okay to give up WDW one year to give a cruise a try.

.

The worst drunk behavior I have ever witnessed on a cruise was on a 7 day Royal Caribbean cruise at the end of August. So much for the "short cruises are the party cruises" myth. We rarely notice anyone out of control. I have found that most of the people who talk about Carnival being the "party cruise" have never actually been on a Carnival cruise themselves! It's like kids saying "I don't like that" to foods they have never tried. Ignore them, they don't have a clue what they're talking about.

We are also cruising on the Triumph over spring break, but ours is April 10. Can't wait to read your thoughts on the private tour company. Cozumel is easy, Paradise Beach all the way, but stumped on what to do in Progresso. Last time we just went to the beach and walked around the town.

The bug will hit you. Get ready:)

Cozumel...been there twice, the first time was my honeymoon but Carnival did a disembarkation stop for Playa Del Carmen, for an excursion. This was the first time we got off the ship. We went to the Tulum Ruins and it was the first sight of the multi-colored Caribbean sea. To this day, this is my most cherished vacation memory !!!

My daughter was 11 and my other daughter was 7 when we did a cruise and stopped at Cozumel for the 2nd time. The Tulum Ruins was a required site. I did research and planned my own excursion (which I am sure you can appreciate).

My daughters (and myself) learned so much. When we got back, my 11 year old had to do a project on the Aztecs and she did it on Tulum. She incorporated what she learned from the guide into her project, which in turn, taught the teacher.

So we really did not do anything in Cozumel.

BTW..The trip was during spring break and no problems with the people. Yes people drink but everyone is there to enjoy themselves, so everyone is happy!!!

Welcome to the madhouse, Heath! :)

You'll really like the Triumph..we've sailed on her 4 times now and we really like that ship.

I totally get having to only stick to certain times of the year for vacation--my husband's a retail mgr so pretty much the only time we can take vacations is Spring Break and during the summer. From about mid-Sept through Jan, he's swamped at work with getting ready for and then going through the "Holiday Season". We're getting ready to maybe head out on our own Spring Break cruise in mid-March on one of the ships leaving N'Awlins (probably the Dream, I'm guessing, based on when our Spring Break is).

We're Disney nuts too and when I first looked at a Disney cruise, I was like "Holy cow! They want HOW MUCH?" and then promptly passed out from shock. :D

We are also cruising on the Triumph over spring break, but ours is April 10. Can't wait to read your thoughts on the private tour company. Cozumel is easy, Paradise Beach all the way, but stumped on what to do in Progresso. Last time we just went to the beach and walked around the town.

Progreso is the gateway to famous Mayan ruins - Chichen Itza or Uxmal. (Google them!). The CI ruins are more famous, more crowded, and a 2.5 hour bus ride each way. We chose Uxmal, with a slightly shorter 1 hour 45 minute bus ride. You are also allowed to climb more of the structures at Uxmal. We were suitably impressed, and I know that any return visit to Progreso means that CI awaits exploration. I will admit that mobility-challenged mom might have problems visiting a ruins site, but your children will love it!

Me and my gf will also be cruising on March 18th cruise. My 2nd time on Triumph and 5th cruise, her first cruise in general. Planning on enjoying St. Patrick's Day in NOLA Friday and the market early Sat. before heading to the port. Hope everyone has an enjoyable and safe trip.

-Anyone heard anything about a meet and greet? Usually run across those threads, but haven't on this cruise.

Well I am back for another update. Our March trip is soooooo close and we are getting excited. Though I am still not sure about Cozumel, it will probably be a beach day. We have made plan for our day in Progresso. Trip Adviser had amazing reviews of a private company called Lawson's Yucatan Excursions. They were able to arrange a private tour for my group. We will have a tour of the Uxmal ruins, swim in a cenote, stop at a hacienda, old church and market. They will of course provide transportation and and English speaking guide and a cooler of drinks and snacks. As it turns out, there is another teacher in my building going so we are going together. That cost is $68 per person, which sounded great to me for what were were getting.

If anyone has any experience with Lawson's, I would love to hear your thoughts.

HI all!

hawkinsh ~ enjoying your precruise thoughts & planning

& looking forward to your experience.:D

That tour in Progresso sounds great!

I'm doing this cruise in April of next year. Did a cruise that returned to New Orleans a couple of years ago so now will do

2 that leave & return. I want to see the Mississippi River sights.;)

Soon your cruise will be here!

~ Jo ~ :)

It has been a while, but I thought I would add another update to my pre-trip report. We are 21 Days out from our trip and I am getting so excited. At thins point there does not seem to be much I can do but research and read boards when I get time.

A couple weeks ago I did the pre-check in stuff online including choosing a check in time (10:30 am), attaching a payment method, and checking the kids into the kids programs.

Now I am trying to decide if we want do Faster To The Fun. As I understand it, Check is time and boarding time is not the same. Who knew???? Well, I do not want to be stuck waiting in the terminal for hours. We have two cabins, so it would be like $140. Any thought on it being worth it?

Keep in mind I have three rowdy kiddos and my mother-law who has some mobility issues. I am just thinking it would be good ot be able to board soon, rather than later.

the other thing I am trying to decide on is the Dr. Seuss Breakfast. Anyone done it. It know my daughter who is 6 will love it, but not sure about my boys who are 8 and 11. Is it worth the small charge?

Hi Heath,

I just returned from my 42nd Carnival cruise (62 overall) 3 weeks ago so i know Carnival pretty well. If you picked a check in time of 10:30 you will be among the first to check in. If you decide to get faster to the fun you will still not board immediately. Once the ship is cleared and boarding starts it will be in this order. Wedding parties, diamonds, platinums, faster to the fun and finally zone numbers will be called. Checking in at 10:30 will give you a low zone number so the wait shouldn't be too long. The best part of faster to the fun is that your cabins will be ready as soon as you board. You will also have access to the diamond/platinum line at guest services. If Progresso is a tender port (I have never been there) then you will be able to get on one of the 1st tenders. If these things are important to you then it is worth the cost. However, this close to your sail date it might be sold out. Only you can decide if it's worth it.

As far as the Suess breakfast, it's fun and definitely worth the $5 charge to do it once. I took my daughter for her 21st birthday. We had a blast. Even got our picture taken with The Cat in the Hat. Hope this info helps. Enjoy your 1st cruise. If you are hooked on Disney you will definitely be hooked on cruising. If you are anything like me you'll be planning your next one before you get off the 1st one. My next one is on April 23rd. Ft Lauderdale to Barcelona, Spain!

Last thing first- do the Dr Seuss breakfast... from what I hear everyone, kids and big kids alike, love it. It's only $5 pp so well worth it from what I hear.

As for FTTF, it's very subjective about whether it's worth it to you...

Do you want to get on the ship earlier? Get FTTF (you'll board right after wedding parties, VIPs)

Do you want to be able to drop your carry-ons right away? Get FTTF (your cabin is available as soon as you board.

Do you think you'll need to visit Guest Services? The VIP line is wonderful if you do. Get FTTF

Do you need priority tendering at any of your ports? I believe you do for Progresso... if so, get FTTF

I got it the first time I cruised after they started offering it and it was really worthwhile. But it was also only $49.95 per cabin then. This time we have no tendering ports and we'll just board when our zone is called, so we decided to pass on our next cruise. I'll see if this is a mistake or not.

If you decide to get it (and it often sells out and you might need to jump on this so close to your cruise) make sure that the porters at the dock put the orange luggage tickets on your checked suitcases... that way your luggage will arrive at your cabin earlier (usually prior to departure).