2/17-2/24 Miracle Review

This is late because we were hit with the flu as soon as we returned home! 2 weeks of yuck.

Anyway, backtrack to September, when my sister decides she wants to go on her 1st cruise.

In an incredible act of kindness, she is paying for my husband and I to join her.A few things

she wants on this cruise are a newer boat with lots of amenities, and to stop on Belize.

She got neither of those...she got the Miracle! (Yes, it was scheduled to stop in Belize)

It finally got to February! We rented a car to make the long drive to Tampa. Cheaper than

excess baggage. It also allowed us to drive further south to Punta Gorda to visit my husband's

father.

We stayed in Tampa the night before the cruise. My sister flew in and shuttled over to the

Tahitian Inn. We chose this hotel because they had free parking and shuttle service to the cruiseport.

Alas, they have a limited amount of guests they shuttle, and we didn't get on that list. They had a nice

tiki bar, rooms were okay. We ate dinner at Shells, which we all enjoyed.

Saturday-departure day! We shuttled over to the cruiseport. The amount of people and luggage everywhere

looked daunting, be we were checking in and on board in no time. Our rooms were ready, both balconies, on

the Empress deck, next to each other. Had we let them know earlier, they could have opened the partition

between our balconies, but, oh well, it didn't happen.

Let me say, my sister and I really liked the decor of this boat. Full of whimsy, cherubs, fairies, and mermaid

elevator doors! The rocking and vibration were hardly noticeable. It was a low population boat, liked that.

No waits for anything, such as guest care, or elevators. Waits for food, though! ( Buffet)My sister liked

the Serenity deck even though there weren't many kids on this sailing.This boat was constantly being cleaned! Liked that.

The food was really good. You could often find the same items at the buffet that were served in the main

dining room. The lobster was good, though we missed the 2nd elegant night due to my stupid IBS. Everyone

writes about the chocolate melting cake, but what about that s'mores parfait? So good. I deserved the stomach

problems. We liked the deli.

Ports were fun. Grand Cayman, we took a tour with Shana, that ended up at the beach. Roatan, went to Gum-

balina Park, which we loved, then ended up at Henry Morgan's beach. Cozumel, walked around the pier

and outskirts of it. A few street over, we found a fish spa! Liked that.

Notice I had nothing to say about Belize. Turns out it was too windy to tender. My sister and I took a wind

tunnel walk on the 10th deck. Yikes. They shortly closed the deck after that.

We really enjoyed this cruise. My sister had a great first experience! My husband and I had cruised CCL, NCL, and

RCI, but it had been a while. Hope you enjoyed this semi-comprehensive report!

Terrific review.

Keith

Thanks for the fun review. Does your sister want to cruise again?

Fish spa....is tris the pedicure where the fish nibble your feet? I must know where this is at. We go in July, same ports. My daughter wants to do this. Directions please and how much was it?

Fish spa....is tris the pedicure where the fish nibble your feet? I must know where this is at. We go in July, same ports. My daughter wants to do this. Directions please and how much was it?

It is at Mahogany Bay. It is on the far side of the beach. There is a walkway that goes directly back there. You just go past the restaurant/bar building. I think it was less than $30.

Bury Me @ Sea- I don't know if my sister will cruise again.

As for the fish spa- this was in Cozumel. We saw one shortly down the pier. It didn't seem to have good

filtration. We walked out through the main thoroughfare, across the street, down into a small plaza.

This lady scrubbed our legs and feet- fish liked that. Her water was clean and bubbly. She charged

$ 20 for 15 minutes. Smooth feet!

Thanks for the review.

Thanks for the review. We will be sailing on the Miracle in two weeks, 45th cruise and 32nd on Carnival, but first time on the Miracle. We live 45 minutes from the Port, so very convenient and happy that Carnival has a 7-day cruise from Tampa now.