ChefSusan

Just got off the 7 night Independence OTS Sailing May 17-24, 2015. No Poolside BBQ. Major disappointment.

We prefer to not be hostage to schedules, so we absolutely love doing open seating dining. If we happen to be on a cruise with first-timers, then we will do traditional late seating.

 

Hope this helps!

The Venetian Restaurant (deck 6 aft) is open for lunch during embarkation. If you are not dropping off luggage at the Bamboo Asian Restaurant area (deck 7 forward) - another secret that most people are not aware of - make a left turn as soon as you enter the ship (on deck 7), and walk towards the back of the ship. Either walk down the stairs or take the elevator down one floor, and enter the restaurant. It's one of our favorite things about cruising on Norwegian - the fact that we can ease into our vacation without being crowded in the Garden Buffet area.

 

Enjoy!

I board her for the fourth time Sunday - cannot wait!

If it's sold out, then it does not show up under the home port shore excursions. We have heard that others have called Carnival and were able to book FTTF. You could try that, or check back in a couple of weeks. They are sold in allotments of 15 I believe, dependent on how many Platinum and Diamond Club members are sailing.

 

Hope this helps!

If you travel more than once a year, you may want to check into a yearly policy that could cover you regardless if you travel by cruise ship, airplane, or car. We compared a single policy to a yearly one, and believe it or not, but the difference was only a couple of dollars.

 

Better to be safe than sorry!

They offer them during certain times of the month. I'd try again in a couple of days.

Carnival has changed how they do the boarding when in port. They let a limited amount of people up the gangway, let them clear thru the xray machine, and then send another group up. They have learned that when there is a mob scene in the X-ray area, people will bypass the liquor check-in desk and bring it back to their cabins. Gone are the days of sneaking past the desk.

I still say that Carnival should have made it harder to get to Platinum, instead of harder to get to Diamond ;-)

Loving this review and I cannot wait to board Breeze in two weeks!

 

Looking forward to more of your adventures on board!

They're supposed to have all new shows on board. Everything will be revealed once the first sailings report back with reviews mid to late June.

 

With John Heald as Cruise Director, you have a different "experience" in the main theatre. Some say the shows that he does are a bit bawdy, some say that they are crude and over the top, I say that's just how John is and if you don't like them, you and your group can always walk out.

 

What WAS incredible was the show "Destination Nowhere", which combined magic and theatrics. There also was a new production show that focused on the music of the 60s and 70s, as well as the standard "Legends" show (where the 'cast' consisted of passengers who auditioned during the various Karaoke sessions at night), and a couple other shows that I cannot remember.

 

There will be nightly bingo, a couple of "game show" type games, plus John's very own "Bedtime Story" show, which is TOTALLY hysterical!

 

I say wait and make your decision then. Regardless, she is going to be one heck of a ship, and I cannot wait to meet her in January with friends!

Thanks for the 411 on the secret pools. We'll probably visit them during our sea days, as it will probably be too cold to be at the outdoor pools.

 

I remember the first time I had to pump gas by myself. Took a couple of tries but eventually I got it right! And I do miss not having someone pump it for me -that's why I usually have my husband take care of the gas when we're out and about!

 

Enjoy Boston! My husband is from there, and we try to get back every couple of years, if only to go to a Boston Red Sox baseball game (he's a lifelong fan)!

Thank you for such an awesome review! We will be on Glory for the second time in August (first time was May 2010 on the Western Caribbean Itinerary), and like you, we love eating at the Fish & Chips restaurant!

 

Never knew about the "secret pool and jacuzzis" in the spa area - I guess we'll have to find them while on board... unless you can share the secret of where they are ;)

 

Never thought about going to the Sheraton for a beach day in Nassau - will have to consider that the next time we do an Eastern Itinerary (Nassau's not on our list of favorite places to go to on a cruise).

 

Pictures were incredible - brought back lots of fun memories of exploring a new ship for the first time!

 

Thanks again and glad that all of you are back on land!

LOVE this review!

 

Thanks for the tips on Grand Turk - we'll be there in January with two other couples on Breeze, and I was wondering what we should do for that day.

 

I have to say that I totally love the photos you took with your camera! I picked up a Nikon Coolpix P500 a couple of months ago, and have been very slowly turning away from the auto setting and trying others out. I will definitely check out digital-photography-school.com and freehdrsoftware.com so that I can play around with my camera a little bit more before we set sail on Legend in two weeks.

 

Thanks for the inspiration, and I am so glad that they were able to find your SD card! I think I would absolutely freak out if I ever left my pictures anywhere!!!

I'm usually one of the people yelling from our balcony for those people to hurry up and get on the ship so that we can leave. For once I would LOVE to see the ship pull away with all of those people on the dock - it would teach them a lesson to watch the time and to not take anything for granted!

Fantastic review so far! I have subscribed to it, as a cruise to Hawaii is on my bucket list. I would love it, my husband would probably go stir crazy with all of the sea days! :eek:

I am curious to know how many times you've sailed the same ship and why?

 

We just sailed on the Dream, and we really liked that ship. I am already browsing cruises on it for next year different itinerary. Would you choose the same ship again or choose something different for a change?

We will be on Legend for the fourth time in three week. In August we will be on Glory for the second time (first time did the Western Itinerary, second time we'll be going to Halifax and St. John's). We have done both the Western and Eastern Itineraries on Freedom. All of the other ships we have been on once.

 

Legend: love the "fairy tale" theme of the ship.

Glory: love the "different color" theme of the ship

Freedom: love the "art nouveau/Americana" theme of the ship

WE LOVE LEGEND!!!!!!!

 

When we board her on 5/20, it will be the fourth time we have been on her. She was our first Carnival ship, our first Spirit ship, and our first balcony.

 

We actually live 10 minutes from the Port of Tampa, and when we're not doing anything on a Sunday, we like to drive down to Channelside, have lunch, see her off, then drive to Davis Island and watch the ship come out of Sparkman Channel, heading off to Hillsborough Bay.

 

The bridge that is in the above pictures is the Sunshine Skyway Bridge. It was constructed in the '80s after the original span was partially destroyed when a freighter collided with the span. Details can be found here for those of you interested: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunshine_Skyway_Bridge

 

What keeps us coming back to Legend is many things: the ease of getting around the ship, the decor (yes the "urns" all over the place are a bit nerve-wracking, but once you get used to them, they do "grow" on you), the Enchanted Forest Promenade is a favorite spot to have a drink and relax, it was the first of the Spirit class ships to have its Adult pool and bar area converted to the new Serenity concept, there is a minimal amount of neon on the ship, the crew is always friendly, and we have yet to experience a bad cruise on her.

 

The only negative that I can think of is that she only does Western Itineraries. I know that she's supposed to call on Key West, HMC, and Grand Turks later this year - I am hoping that once she returns from her 6 months in Europe (still miffed about it!!!!), that Carnival keeps both itineraries.

 

Favorite cabin: 6230 (extended balcony towards the back of the ship)

Favorite place for sail away: Deck 10 by the funnel

Favorite public space: The Firebird Lounge, home of Punchliner's Comedy Club

 

I'll post pictures when we get back from our cruise.

Carnival.com has all of the information on this ship, which does not begin her transformation from Carnival Destiny until next spring.

 

You may also find other similar threads by using the search feature.

 

Good luck!

Unlimited use of the Thalassotherapy pool, the various steam rooms, the saunas, the heated tile recliners.

 

We had a spa level cabin when we were on Magic, and the thalassotherapy pool really came in handy after a long day of walking around the various ports. If you book a spa level cabin, the pass is included in the price of the cabin for the first two passengers, and it's so worth the money!

Can you earn points at table games? If so how does it work?

Stu, I think the "Drinks On Us" program is only good at the slot machines... but then again I could be wrong!

We looked into it, and I almost got sick when I found out how much they wanted for the session and photos! Maybe if I was getting married or having a vow renewal ceremony onboard I'd spring for the photos. Just waaaaaay too expensive!

I am headed to Cozumel this weekend and wondered what your opinion on Los Cinco Soles vanilla.

I looked at my bottle at home and it does not contain coumarin which is the big no no in buying.

 

I know it's a touristy shop - but is this vanilla the good vanilla or should I be going else where to purchase vanilla in Mexico.

 

Thanks!

I swear by their vanilla, and pick it up in liquid, paste, and bean form. Which reminds me - I need to add that to my shopping list for when we're in Cozumel in February... running low on it!!!

Yes, there is a channel on the TV where you can see the ship's current position. We keep it on at night as the music in the background is very soothing, and helps us fall asleep.

I have a question that I would love awnsered....

 

When Carnival are in the Med, what TV Channels are avalible? are they from the UK? or USA?

 

And, are thre a sports bar / section on the Magic ?

TV Channels are from the US - ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, ESPN, plus the usual CNN, CNN International etc...

 

I can answer the second question a little bit better when I'm on board Magic in a week.