Just returned from Miracle Hawaii cruise, had a great time!

We left from Vancouver on Tuesday, Sept. 17. The clouds had obscured the mountains for two days before, but cleared up for a beautiful sailaway.

Bear with me, trying to add photos but keep getting error message. I also submitted a review last Thursday and it's still not up - what gremlins are on this site?

Bummer about pics and review :( Excited to see your review and pics...anxiously awaiting my Hawaiian trip in April !

Well, I can't seem to upload any pics, although I've never had a problem before. I even uploaded them to photobucket, but still no luck. I'm feeling very stupid tonight. So I guess I'll just have to do a short review (and I had TONS of food photos, too!) A little background - this was our 50th anniversary celebration and friends we've known since before our wedding went with us.

Embarkation was a breeze from Vancouver. Boarded around noon, in room before 1:30. We really liked this ship, sort of a Caesar's Palace/Las Vegas effect, so many colors and details, always something interesting to look at.

Dinner on night 1 was roast brisket for me and it was yummy. The seas started rolling during the night and by morning it was difficult to walk. Cloudy and windy, outdoor decks were closed.

There was a naturalist aboard and each day on the crossing to Hawaii, she gave talks on the history of the islands, the volcanos, etc. We went to several of these in the mornings.

On this first sea day, our roll call had the meet and greet followed by the cabin crawl/poker run. Really enjoyed seeing all of the different types of cabins.

Dinner on 2nd night I had braised short ribs. I will say there was no shortage of beef on this cruise!

2nd sea day the seas were even rougher, like riding a roller coaster. We thought it was fun but I heard a number of people (even crew) got sick. This was the first elegant night and I had lobster and shrimp - prime rib was also offered. We had anytime dining and the most we ever waited was 15 minutes one time, usually we were seated within a few minutes if not right away. We usually went between 6:30 and 7:30. The seas were so bad that the shows had to be re-arranged and tonight we had the Big Band show with a crooner but no dancers, sort of them hanging and winging it.

Day 3 on the seas and they were calming some, all decks opened by the afternoon but still windy and some rolling, temps around 68 degrees. We tried to go to Serenity in the afternoon but needed blankets! Dinner was Osso Buco for me, filet mignon for hubby.

Day 4 on the seas, temp was 77 degrees, lovely, less windy, calmer seas. Lots of people out, we sat on deck 10. People must have started saving places on Serenity before dawn, as there was never any place to sit there. We found it too crowded and congested anyway and preferred the quieter upper deck. Dinner tonight was beef stroganoff with noodles and a yummy warm spinach salad with portabello mushrooms and bacon. "Generations" revue was excellent, lots of talent there.

Day 5 on the seas, rainy early, finally cleared up by 11 AM, sunny and 82 degrees, smooth seas. Stayed out on the decks most of the afternoon. Had fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy dinner and it was GOOD.

Honolulu - 5 AM I could see the outline of mountains and some lights. By 6 AM we were coming around the southside of Oahu with Diamond Head at the left edge, just gorgeous!

We were off the ship at 9 AM and took a taxi to Pearl Harbor ($37 plus tip for 3 couples). We had reserved tickets for the Arizona Memorial online. This was a great experience, but be forewarned it is very hot here, most of the buildings are not air-conditioned. We took The Bus back to Waikiki, $1 for seniors. Had $3.50 mai tais at the Shorebird at the Outrigger Reef Hotel, great views, good food and very reasonable prices. At 5 PM, we walked down the beach to the Hale Koa hotel for their luau. Enjoyed this very much, especially once the sun went down and a little breeze picked up. Excellent show. Taxied back to the ship.

Maui - docked about an hour early, around 6 AM. Sail-ins were fantastic on this cruise! We rented a car from Alamo and headed first to Iao Valley State Park. This is a gorgeous, lush, mountainous spot, great place to walk around on paved paths. Then we headed off to the leeward side and Lahaina. Walked up and down Front Street, in/out of the little shops and had lunch at Cheeseburger in Paradise there. We then drove on to Kaanapali to Whaler's Village and the Whaler's Museum, a nice little exhibition ($2). This area looked like Disney to us, so we headed back to the ship. Easy drive, very nice roads.

Tonight, Carnival brought a Maui troupe onboard for a Polynesian Spectacular at 9:45 - terrific show!

Glad you enjoyed yourself.

Kauai - sail-in was once again spectacular. It was really something to see how they could get such a large ship into such a tight port. Rented a car once again and drove up the windward coast and around the north shore. Gorgeous scenery at every turn - stopped at the lighthouse, Anini beach, Hanalei and on to the end of the road before we turned to head back. What a beautiful island. Back on the ship for dinner - I had grilled salmon.

Kona was a tender port and it went very smoothly. We did the Outrigger canoe with Kona boys, and it included beach chairs, umbrella and snorkel gear. This little beach is just adjacent to the pier and really lovely - very calm, clear water in a sheltered cove. Did a little shopping, had lunch at Splasher's. Really nice beach day. Dinner on the ship was a grilled pork chop for me, really yummy.

Hilo - rented a car and drove to Volcano National Park, about 30 minutes away. We really loved this place, saw the steam vents, the volcano with smoke and ash pouring up out of it, then drove to the lava tube. It was fantastic - you walk down a paved path into a primeval rain forest, then into a cave formed by lava. Not to be missed. We then drove another 30 miles to the black sand beach and saw the sea turtles resting. What a fabulous vista, well worth the extra miles. Back on ship, I had cornish hen, hubby had fried catfish.

We were on the cruise as well. Cannot believe it has been 2 weeks since we sailed into Honolulu. Sea was rough the first 2 days and the last 2 days. Other than that, fantastic.

Heads up to anyone renting a car in Honolulu, we rented from Alamo and they said they would have a shuttle running to and from the pier. However, no one told them there would be 2 ships. We were at pier 11, while Royal Caribbean was at pier 2. Alamo did not know we were there and was only going to pier 2. Bunch of us walked down to pier 2 to catch the shuttle. Once down there, we found tons of people ending there cruise with hundreds of bags all waiting for the Alamo shuttle. Ended up taking cabs to Alamo, but only cost $20. Alamo does pick up at pier 11, but only if they know there is a ship there. So call as soon as you pull into the port. Great price though. Got a compact for $32 and had a nice day driving the island.

Make sure you hit Giovanni's shrimp truck on the north shore. Between cultural center and Turtle Bay. Also, pull into Turtle Bay and follow signs for public beach. Kinda hidden away beach perfect for snorkeling right next to the resort. They even have a shack there were you can rent all the equipment for about 8 bucks or so.

We have been to Hawaii many times, but never on a cruise. I had a lot of questions before about the logistics. If anyone has any questions let me know. I would love to pass on some of the lessons we learned.

Best cruise we have done with Carnival. Second time on the Miracle. Felt like being home.

Back on the seas on the way home, first day out was sunny and 78 but once again very windy. Upper decks were closed. Tonight was Hawaiian night, and there was a free cocktail reception in the Atrium from 4:45 to 5:30 and another one a little later. Roy, our Hawaiian singer/uke player, performed. Nearly everyone was decked out in their newly acquired Hawaiian duds. We went to Nick and Nora's for our anniversary dinner, and were so full and tired we forgot about the luau deck party later that night. We heard it was fun but very windy.

The next 3 days remained extremely windy and slowly turned cooler. There was off and on rain/sun. The first Comedy Brunch of the cruise was today, 2nd sea day back, but we didn't care much for it. While we really enjoyed most of the food on this cruise, the brunch menu seemed a little wierd. We preferred either the Lido or just the normal MDR for breakfast. The 2nd elegant night was tonight, as was the "Ticket to Ride" production. What a show - the best I've ever seen at sea! Really top-notch.

Final two sea days were spent inside playing cards, going to the casino, reading, etc. The 3rd sea day we had 15' swells and it was a really rocky night!

Embarkation at Long Beach was just a mess - very chaotic, long long lines. People started self-assist off the ship a little after 8 AM, but we stood around waiting for our number to be called and didn't get off the ship until after 10:30. Outside the pier was also chaotic, no one seemed to know where to go for shuttle transportation, taxis, etc. It was the only downside to the whole trip.

We loved this ship - the service was exceptional, and we've sailed on nearly every line. We really like the food, the ship was spotless and didn't show much wear at all. We like most of the entertainment - plenty of great live music, wonderful bands and shows, good talent in all of the Phantom Theater shows including headliners. We were disappointed in the talent (lack of) in the Comedy Shows, but most of the time you couldn't get a seat in there anyway!

Overall a fantastic cruise, great value, would do it again in a heartbeat if we had the chance.

I wish there could be a better way to get everyone off the ship. Some have a difficult time, while others make the journey easily. Fortunately, we made it easily. Carried our bags off, handed our customs form to CBP and walked right onto our transfer bus to LAX.

I wish there could be a better way to get everyone off the ship. Some have a difficult time, while others make the journey easily. Fortunately, we made it easily. Carried our bags off, handed our customs form to CBP and walked right onto our transfer bus to LAX.

We were on this cruise too and we did self assist .It is the only way we do it now.. quick and easy because we dont pack very much anymore so we can carry our own luggage.We did the transfer bus as well and it worked great.. except our driver had no clue about the airport and we all had to direct him where to drop us off lol.

Can't wait to read, and hope you are successful with the pix.

Kauai.

Thanks for sharing your anniversary cruise with us!

It took several days before my review showed up under the review section. Don't know what to tell you about your pics. Are you using the right link from Photobucket? I always do "preview post" to see if the pics are going to show up. If not, I try another link. Good luck. I'd love to see your pictures. :D

Well, I submitted a review last Thursday, Oct. 3, and it still isn't showing up. I think 5 days to publish a review is a bit much!

Kauai - sail-in was once again spectacular. It was really something to see how they could get such a large ship into such a tight port. Rented a car once again and drove up the windward coast and around the north shore. Gorgeous scenery at every turn - stopped at the lighthouse, Anini beach, Hanalei and on to the end of the road before we turned to head back. What a beautiful island. Back on the ship for dinner - I had grilled salmon.

 

Kona was a tender port and it went very smoothly. We did the Outrigger canoe with Kona boys, and it included beach chairs, umbrella and snorkel gear. This little beach is just adjacent to the pier and really lovely - very calm, clear water in a sheltered cove. Did a little shopping, had lunch at Splasher's. Really nice beach day. Dinner on the ship was a grilled pork chop for me, really yummy.

 

Hilo - rented a car and drove to Volcano National Park, about 30 minutes away. We really loved this place, saw the steam vents, the volcano with smoke and ash pouring up out of it, then drove to the lava tube. It was fantastic - you walk down a paved path into a primeval rain forest, then into a cave formed by lava. Not to be missed. We then drove another 30 miles to the black sand beach and saw the sea turtles resting. What a fabulous vista, well worth the extra miles. Back on ship, I had cornish hen, hubby had fried catfish.

I really enjoy your review, we are taking this same cruise this September. Were you overnight in Maui? Also, were you able to walk off the ship to the Kona boys and the outrigger canoe? Thanks so much!