Carnival Glory: January 13-20 Western Caribbean Review

Hi everyone, a few disclaimers before I get started:

- This is my first cruise review

- This is my first time sailing with Carnival

- I haven't cruised in 8 years, and this is my first proper vacation in 5 years

- I will try my best to answer questions about the ship/ports, but I don't have any menus/Fun Times, or many photos of the ship

A little about me:

My husband and I live near San Diego, CA. This trip was to celebrate our 10 year anniversary, and was also a huge deal because we hadn't had a vacation since having kids (hence the 5 year gap). We originally booked the 7 Day Eastern Caribbean trip on the Carnival Fascination (San Juan, St. Thomas, etc.), but ALONG CAME HURRICANE MARIA and our cruise was eventually cancelled by Carnival. We ended up re-booking like many others for the Eastern itinerary. We had never been to the ports (Grand Cayman, Roatan, Belize and Cozumel) so we were still hoping to make a tropical, romantic vacation away from the kids.

DAY 1- MIAMI

We flew into Miami the night before (took all day flying coast to coast) and stayed at a hotel in Coconut Grove. Not much to tell here, but we did try alligator and some Florida beer for the first time at a cool gastropub called Lokal, so that's worth a mention.

In the morning, we were picked up by Wild Lime Adventures for our Everglades nature walk and airboat tour. These guys were great- one of the few tours willing to pick us up from Coconut Grove, the tour was a comfortable 10 people, and there were no gator shows/penned up animals on display, just the natural reserve. We found a ton of gators sunbathing on the edge of walking trails- they're pretty lethargic in the morning. I could have reached out and touched them, but I was satisfied with taking photos. The airboat ride was exciting, and the seasoned boat driver told us lots of interesting gator facts while steering the boat right next to gators. He even lured them close to the boat and got them to smile for us ;p

Our tour ran from 7:30 am to noon (including transportation), and they dropped us off at the Carnival terminal around 1:00 pm. Embarkation was fast- we didn't encounter any lines, so we got right on the boat. We stopped at our room to unload, then went up to Lido to grab lunch and our first ship drink (we had Cheers, so there would be MANY). After the safety muster we left port around 4:30 pm.

Photos- Everglades tour and our first ship drink: Red's Rum Treasure, highly recommend!

Up next- a rough Day at Sea

More Please:)

Looking forward to your review! We’re doing this itinerary for the second time in July! But it will be our first time on the Glory so it will be great to read what you thought of the ship!

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Can’t wait to read more! Just booked the glory (eastern route) for June 9th!

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Thanks for the review.

We were on this cruise too. We had a fantastic trip, hope you did too!

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Very nice start!

Thanks for the review! We consider ourselves the Glory queens .Lol. We have been on the Glory 18 times now.

Thanks everyone! Will post more tomorrow.

In the meantime, here are my thoughts on... the MDR.

Ok, so 8 years ago we cruised with NCL and we were NOT impressed with the food or service. All I can say is wow, things have improved. We were seated in the upper Platinum Room for the early dining. Our serving team was wonderful (Glenn, Franklin and one other guy whose name escapes me). Our first night there, I ordered a chocolatini and they wrote my name in the glass with chocolate syrup! DH is more of a beer fan, and after a few nights they knew what he was going to order. The food was great overall- the famous melting chocolate cake didnt disappoint. The tirimasu seemed more cream/mousse than cake, but that was my only complaint really. I wish I had taken photos of the food, but I was too hungry and excited! Fave dishes included the rigatoni with sausage, peppers and mushrooms and the penne mariscos.

PS- DH said the ox tongue was good, but I passed on that

I was on this cruise too. I know where you are going with this reveiw. I just wish you could have brought some of the Califoria sunshine with you.

Very nice start to your review. Following along

Enjoying your narrative and the photos too.

Keith

following

Following! Sailing the Glory in a few weeks after having sailed NCL my last 6 cruises. Love the food on NCL, and it sounds like we'll enjoy it on Carnival too.

I was on this cruise too. I know where you are going with this reveiw. I just wish you could have brought some of the Califoria sunshine with you.

Right??? When I checked the Caribbean weather a week before the cruise, it predicted rain/thunderstorms each day. We did get some scattered showers, but hey at least the beach water was warm.

DAY 2- AT SEA

Ohhh boy. So remember how I said we had the Cheers package? We spent our first evening onboard "getting our money's worth" and boy, did I regret it the next day :o. If anyone remembers the drunk lady who tripped TWICE on her own flip flops and landed hard on her knees, well that was me. I woke up the next morning with a dry mouth, queasy stomach and a few bruises (one of which was so large and dark that it was frequently mentioned by fellow cruisers in the hot tub later). My husband was also feeling sick, and guess what? We were at sea passing the tip of Cuba, and those waves were a-rockin'!

We tried to enjoy the Sea Day Brunch in the MDR, but one look at our food and we asked the server to give us to-go lids. We retreated back to our cabin, placed our postponed breakfast on the table, and crawled back into bed. When we did eat later, we agreed that the cold breakfast (eggs benedict for me, corned beef hash and eggs for DH) was pretty good, but the standard ship coffee was not. I ventured out to find the Creams Coffee Bar, and for the rest of the cruise we used our Cheers to get specialty coffee every single day. I'm not a huge mocha/frappa/expressachino fan- I can normally drink regular coffee with milk and sugar. But hey, we're on vacation, the drinks are included and it's so much easier. White Chocolate Mocha for me, please and thank you.

We managed to recover by dinner time for our first formal night- we both ordered lobster tails in the MDR, and DH liked it so much he ordered a second. I also made a point to inform him that lobster wouldn't be included on the second formal night, so that may have influenced him as well. They served us a chocolate ganache heart for dessert and sang "Happy Anniversary to You" which was very sweet. We spent the rest of the evening taking a few fancy photos and trying out some of the bars.

And here are my two cents on the bars/lounges/adult areas. Our favorites were:

-Comedy Club: get there early to get a good seat, and don't be afraid to share a table.

-Cinnabar Piano Club: we normally brought in drinks from another bar, since there is only one server here and it takes a while for them to get to you. Clay the pianist was great, and he enjoys Gentleman Jack on the rocks if you want to get him one :evilsmile:

-Colors Lobby: this was our go-to place to chill out if there was nothing else going on- grab something from the bar, sit down near the live band, rinse and repeat.

-RedFrog Rum Bar: Stop by for Red's Rum Treasure or a draft red ale on your way to the pool/hot tub/buffet

-Serenity Bar: their berry sangrias were great, plus they serve drinks to the forward hot tubs.

I really wanted to check out the White Heat dance club, but every time we walked by they hadn't opened yet. Also I couldn't get over the gaudy giant candles everywhere- were these Christmas leftovers? Didn't really send out a "dance club" vibe at all.

And the final incident of the night: our cabin was on Deck 2 (Main), right under the galley. On this particular rocky evening, it sounded like a dining cart was loose and rolling back and forth in the area above us. There were a few bangs as well, like cabinets being opened and shut. This happened late in the evening until early in the morning, when no cooking should have been taking place. It took us a while to get to sleep due to the noise and all that wave motion. We complained to Guest Services the next day, and the noise stopped. They also gave us $150 in "Gestures" to make up for the inconvenience. Gestures are like onboard credit, but they can only be used for the Pixels photos, Spa, Steakhouse and a few other places. They don't show up on your account right away, so we kept asking Guest Services to apply the Gestures on certain purchases, just to make sure we weren't charged.

UP NEXT: Day Drinking in Grand Cayman

DAY 2- AT SEA

 

I really wanted to check out the White Heat dance club, but every time we walked by they hadn't opened yet. Also I couldn't get over the gaudy giant candles everywhere- were these Christmas leftovers?

LOL, the first time I walked by and saw the candles, I thought they used during an on-board wedding.

DAY 3- GRAND CAYMAN

I woke up in the morning feeling much better and excited to get off the ship. I had heard that Georgetown was pretty nice (though expensive) as far as ports go, and I was eager to take in the beautiful island scenery.

However, when we got onto the tender boat and left the Glory we headed to... somewhere else. Apparently the waves were too rough for us to tender to Georgetown, so they chose an alternate landing point. I wish I had taken a photo, or bothered to ask where we were dropped off, but I guess it didn't matter. The makeshift landing point was a patch of dirt and rocks with a few pop-up vendors, tour guides with their signs, and one building that served as an information/help desk. We found our tour group for the day and set off for "Cayman Bar Hopping and Beach Break."

(If you have no interest in alcohol whatsoever, you may want to skip the next few paragraphs)

This tour was great for people who like to go beer tasting, rum tasting, etc. plus the bonus of being dropped off at the famous Seven Mile Beach. Our bus driver was named Leo and he made the drive both informative and entertaining. Our first stop was Cayman Island Brewery, which included any six tastings (maybe 6 ounces each) from their lineup. Their most popular beers were Caybrew Lager and Caybrew Light (gluten free), but my favorites were Mango Tango and the 345 Stout. I checked my phone to access the free wifi and realized it was only 9:30am… beer for breakfast! Thankfully we had come prepared with some snacks and water bottles, so we weren’t drinking on empty stomachs.

Our second stop was the Tortuga Rum Company. If you’ve been anywhere in the Caribbean, you’ve probably seen their rum cakes for sale. They come in all kinds of fun flavors, but when we stopped by they only had one type of cake and two flavors of rum to sample. The samples were small, but you could come back for more if you wished. This was a short stop on the tour, so after a quick stroll around the gift shop we decided to buy some rum. They had a package deal of three 750 mL bottles for $40, which they delivered directly to your ship (which the ship will hold until the last night of your cruise). The flavors we chose were mango (sweet and fruity),vanilla (smooth and light) and pineapple (fruity and strong).

Our third stop was the Cayman Spirits Co. There were at least a dozen bottles of rum, vodka and liqueurs lined up on the bar. The bartender gave us each a shot glass, turned up the music, and let us drink as much as we wanted. Partying ensued, followed by a quick distillery tour. Their most popular spirit is the Seven Fathoms Rum, which is literally aged in barrels submerged seven fathoms down into the sea. Very nice rum for sipping, but it is a little pricey at $40 a bottle.

Finally, Leo dropped us off at the Royal Palms Beach Club on Seven Mile Beach. We grabbed ourselves a table and ordered some much-needed lunch:conch fritters and Mahi Mahi tacos. The food was delicious (or maybe we were just tipsy and hungry), and we had more than enough to share. Then we walked to the beach and saw the waves still looked a bit rough, and rather close to shore. The beach club charges for using their chairs, so we plopped our stuff in the sand instead. DH went for a swim,but I was content to just get my feet/legs wet. After a while we left the beach and swam in the pool for a bit, which was much more relaxing. Then we showered and headed back to the bus.

By the time we arrived back at the port/landing point it was time to jump back on the tender and return to the Glory. We took a nap and changed, and then it was up to the MDR for dinner. I don’t remember what we ordered this night, but I’m sure it was good. After dinner we sought out the bars and comedy club, and that was the end of a long and exciting day.

UP NEXT: Rainy Day in Roatan

DAY 4- ROATAN

We arrived in Mahogany Bay, Roatan to find it cloudy with sprinkling rain. Our excursion for the day was “Canopy Tour & Tabyana Beach Break,” although we weren’t sure if we’d be able to enjoy either at this point. Our tour guide assured us that the zip lining portion would proceed as scheduled unless there was lightning,so we piled into two buses and started the long drive toward West End.

The bus trip was over an hour, and our silent driver spent most of it navigating rain-filled potholes in the two lane road. After the bumpy ride, we arrived at the top of the zip line course. Thankfully the rain had mostly stopped at this point. We handed over our bags and were fitted for harnesses and helmets, and then they gave us a safety briefing. The instructor added with a grin that since the lines were wet from the rain, we would be going even faster than we expected.

I confess that this was my first time zip lining, but I wasn’t too worried about the heights. I was more afraid that I would end up bashing into a tree. Turns out my fears were justified. I got the hang of the harness fairly quickly, but as I used my glove to brake, it never seemed to be quite enough to slow me down. Yes the instructors caught me before I hit the trees, but I know my feet grazed them a few times. I ended up using both hands to brake, and that seemed to work better.

Maybe we just had a poor experience due to the weather, but DH and I left that course unsure if we’d ever try zip lining again. We were so worried about braking the whole time that we weren’t really paying attention to the beautiful scenery. After we reached the bottom of the course, we were given some time to use the facilities/buy photos before the bus picked us up. We had a nice photo op with a parrot and a green macaw casually sitting on the ground near the parking lot. The best photos are ones you don’t have to pay for :-)

Our bus finally came and we took a short drive to Tabyana Beach. This looked like a neat little complex, with shops, a bar/restaurant,security guards watching over the beach chairs, and I had heard this was a great spot for snorkeling. Unfortunately the clouds had rolled in again, and the light rain returned. I felt disappointed, because after the harrowing bus ride and zip line experience, I had really been looking forward to relaxing on the beach. We got changed anyway and grabbed drinks at the bar. By the time we reached the empty rows of beach chairs, the rain had mostly moved on. DH went swimming for a bit, while I took a few photos and tried to cheer myself up. The water was still warm and beautiful, and I had a drink in my hand and toes in the sand. There were a few vendors roaming around, but they moved on after I said no thanks.

DH came out of the water and asked for his snorkel mask- he had found the coral reef to the left of the resort. We walked together with our masks and waterproof camera until we reached a large rock wall with some coral reefs in the shallows. All you have to do is wade in about waist high, and you will start to see fish. One of the other snorkelers tossed some chunks of fresh banana in the water, and the fish swarmed all around us. It was an amazing experience seeing that many fish and feeling them brush against you without having to tread water or hold your breath. It was the highlight of my day.

We eventually returned to shore, showered and got back on the bus. It was a long drive back to port, and I was so tired that I fell asleep for parts of it. We stopped at a few shops in Mahogany Bay for souvenirs, including some local coffee, recycled metal ornaments and some T-hirts. I had hoped to take some photos of the port,but the sprinkling rain had turned into a steady downpour, so we pulled out an umbrella and hurried back to the ship.

Since we skipped lunch at Tabyana Beach, we were extra hungry for dinner at the MDR that night. I had the cannelloni for my appetizer and the linguini with sausage, peppers and mushrooms for my entrée. Can you tell yet that I’m a huge pasta fan? The linguini was one of my favorite dishes from the whole trip- DH even took some from my plate and said it was great. I also had the famous Bitter N Blanc for dessert, and it was pretty good.

UP NEXT: A Howling Good Time in Belize

Enjoying your review as we sail the Glory in June.

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DAY 5- BELIZE

The two things I had read about Belize City was that 1)almost all the interesting activities require an hour drive/ferry away from the port and 2) the tender ride from the ship to port is almost as long. Our tour for the day was the “Lamanai Mayan Ruins and River Boat Cruise.” The bus ride was over an hour long, but unlike our experience in Roatan, our tour guides were cheerful and talking the entire time, giving us facts about the city and Belizean culture. Also the weather was bright and sunny, so I think that helped brighten our attitudes as well.

We reached our first stop, which was a bar/restaurant/gift shop at the boat landing on the New River. We had a few minutes to look around, so DH and I tried some local beer(Belikin Lager and Belikin Stout, respectively). We piled into the boat and zoomed down the river for maybe twenty minutes, and then docked at the Lamanai site.

I can’t recommend this tour enough. The guides were friendly and gave us plenty of info, and even though there were other tours going they were all spaced out so we didn’t feel crowded. There is a bit of walking involved, but the jungle sights and sounds are worth it. We saw three temples- the Mask Temple, the High Temple, and the Jaguar Temple. The High Temple was the most impressive, and we got to climb all the way to the top. It was strenuous and scary at times- we had to climb the last part up on all fours since it was so steep. The panoramic view was amazing, and we were even treated to the sounds of howler monkeys. If you’ve never heard them before, they sound like dinosaurs roaring, and that day there were two males competing to see which was the loudest.

After a couple hours, we took the boat back to the landing, where we had a buffet lunch at the restaurant. Lunch was jerk chicken, potato salad and fried plantains with punch. Then we piled back into the tour bus and started the long drive back to port. By the time we returned, we only had about 30 minutes until the last tender, so we decided to skip the shops and get in line for the tender. We were just in time,too- dark clouds rolled in as we boarded the Glory, and it looked like it was going to rain soon.

For dinner I had two appetizers- I tried escargot for the first time, and it wasn’t bad, it just looks weird. I also tried the Belizean fry jack, thinking they were like empanadas, but they had no filling so it was just a flaky crust with nothing in it. Very disappointing. DH and I both had the penne mariscos for our entrée, and it was delicious. DH really liked his cheesecake, and he is a bit of a cheesecake snob. I had the chocolate panna cotta, and it was okay, not as good as the melting cake though.

The weather continued to worsen as the night went on- we were disappointed to find the 80s Glow Party on Lido was cancelled due to rain. It was one of the few events on the ship that we had looked forward to. We moved to one of the indoor bars and settled in for the night.

UP NEXT- Wind, Waves & Winging It in Cozumel

Question about your Tabyana beach break in Roatan. Were going in April and I booked the Tabyana beach break through the cruise ship excursions but in the description it says for excursion time is 10:15 am to 2:15 pm. But the ship is supposed to be in port till 6pm. Is the last bus back to the ship leaving Tabyana beach at 2:15 pm then? Ship gets into port at 10 am and I get that buses start running at 10:15 am and run round the clock back and forth shuttling passengers but the excursion description say till 2:15 pm. Just want to verify if that mean last bus leaving Tabyana back to ship is at 2:15 pm or does that mean last bus from ship to beach is at 2:15 pm?

Great review so far!!

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Loving your review, sailing on the Glory in October!