Glory, May 12-19th...Trip Report with photos and videos!

Friday, May 18th.... Sea Day

Last day onboard has come...boo. Our usual routine, DH to the gym, then back to shower and change for breakfast on the Lido. We got up there at 7:30am and went to Blue Iguana for breakfast burritos. Yummmm. We also got arrrepas on the side, just love those.

As usual on the last sea day, T-shirt sail, held by the Main pool.

And of course, the pool was popular all day long. It was actually sunny!

Aft pool was a little less insane...

We did our usual routine...walk, stop for sodas, walk, sit and crowd watch, walk... LOL Yes, we are boring.

...

Lunchtime.... all the usual places were open, I went straight for the salad bar again. DH was wanting to try the Seafood shack, so got in line and ordered the Seafood platter for $10. They gave him a buzzer and said it would be 10-15 minutes. Meanwhile, I returned with my salad plate and drinks, the food arrived and he was happy.

My yummy salad, just love the pear and arugula

his seafood platter

all the seafood was good, nice crispy batter, fries were excellent, too.

After lunch we went to the room to start packing. The Luggage Tags.... aaahh yes, the NEW system. They hang the luggage tags on a board down on Deck 5 outside of casino, and you just grab whatever number you want. The sign says to take larger number if you don't need to debark early...but it is on the honor system. The tags start at #4 as the numbers 1-3 are given to Platinum, Diamond, and FTTF and supposed to be delivered to room.

Here we go again..... yes, the delivered ours to the empty room, the room that had the pipe leak, where workers had been ALL WEEK working to fix the leak. Once again, and they were in the mailbox. This time we were both furious... and went right to Guest Services to complain. It was the last freakin' day and they still didn't realize we weren't in that room. We went to the Priority line since we had FTTF, and stood in line. We could see Felicia, the head of dept, and she saw us. Immediately she came up and asked what was the problem. We both were red faced I guess. We told her that all week we had to go to that old room to get our stuff.... we did not feel it was acceptable. Sure, the first day or two, but not every day of the cruise. She apologized, of course, and said that all depts had been notified of our move, and .... that was it. Oh well. I know she understood how angry we were, and I am not expecting anything in return for it... but we do hope she chewed out some people so it doesn't happen to the next guest.

So, back to the room with our #3 tags.

....

The rest of our Sea Day was spent relaxing and packing...

Dinner, we just didn't feel like doing the dining room, so we went up to the Lido buffet for dinner. The menu had Mussels as an appetizers, and DH is crazy about them, so we figured he could make a whole dinner from a bowl of them with a salad. There was also some ravioli and he loves that too..so he was set. I was just in the mood for some chicken and a salad, nothing heavy.

If you have never done the Lido buffet at dinner, here is the scoop...there is always a line forming when they open as there is only 1 buffet serving. It is the AFT buffet, not the mid-ship buffet. Lots of people, especially families with kids, eat there every night. We usually do it at least once every cruise as we just don't want to sit in dining room for an hour and half. The Menu is usually most of the dining room menu anyhow... with better salad options. Back home DH and I eat lots of salads so it works out fine for us. Some people want multiple servings of main courses, so it is a way to try a little bit of everything from the menu, and go back for anything if you want. No need to wait for waiter or service from the galley. Also, you get to see the food before you order, unlike the dining room.

It is busy right when they open, at 6pm I think most nights, then it ebbs and flows for 2 hours. After that, not sure if you can get much. I wouldn't wait until after 8pm to eat there. Just my opinion.

The Sushi window, Deli window, Pizza and Seafood on aft deck are all open at dinner.. some busier than others but always people waiting at each. The Deli window seemed to be busy every day on this cruise, so I am guessing it was good. We never tried it this time.

After dinner, we went down to the Theatre for the LipSync Battle finals. It is a really fun show! You get to see the 2 guest competitors who have been practicing all week, but also you get to see the Kids Clubs perform with the dancers, as well as the CD and crew perform. It is a full hour of craziness, lots of laughs, and kids dancing, too...can't beat that.

Kids on stage

And of course, CD Dustin got in the act with an 80s number.

After the show, we took our free drink coupons to .... Alchemy Bar, of course.

..

After...we went to the Lobby party with CD Dustin doing the 90s music.

Once again, CD Dustin is insane and got the hundreds of people singing and dancing to every song! It was packed top to bottom, families and kids, and everyone else..no matter the age, everyone singing. So much fun.

After the show, we hurried back to the room to put out our luggage... about half the rooms had bags out already, and we saw the crew coming around to pick them up. We made it in time...and remembered to weigh all the bags before to make sure we didn't get dinged at the airport checkin in the morning.

.... coming next...debarkation

I can't believe they delivered the mail and items to your former room for the entire cruise. I would understand the first day or two, but not even on the last sea day.

That pear and arugala salad looks so good! I love salads, but the salad bar on our last cruise (Ecstasy) didn't have anything that looked like that. I'm hoping our next cruise on the Magic has better options- even the produce on the Ecstasy looked old. Did you get the salad at the Seafood Shack or is it in the Lido buffet somewhere?

My husband and I make a habit of going to the buffet around 6 PM to take a peak at the food and decide what we want for dinner that night, since we always do late seating. Or sometimes, we just get a pre-dinner snack.

I can't believe they delivered the mail and items to your former room for the entire cruise. I would understand the first day or two, but not even on the last sea day.

 

That pear and arugala salad looks so good! I love salads, but the salad bar on our last cruise (Ecstasy) didn't have anything that looked like that. I'm hoping our next cruise on the Magic has better options- even the produce on the Ecstasy looked old. Did you get the salad at the Seafood Shack or is it in the Lido buffet somewhere?

 

My husband and I make a habit of going to the buffet around 6 PM to take a peak at the food and decide what we want for dinner that night, since we always do late seating. Or sometimes, we just get a pre-dinner snack.

The salad was at the buffet, no salads at the Seafood shack. The pear and arugula was the best salad, but there were a couple other good ones, too. I think there was a caesar salad most days, lots of people got it. I usually build my own, then I found the pear one.. so good and made fresh.

We were on the Magic last year..yes, there are 2 buffet areas, all good, but the aft one is less busy breakfast and lunch. Have fun!

robin

Saturday, May 19th....Debark Day

During the night the rain started and when we got up at 6am, we looked out the window....yup, rain! We actually were arriving early, too. We headed up to the Lido for breakfast as we could see Miami coming up. Docking time was supposed to be 8am, but we arrived at 7am. I guess the captain wanted to beat the storms coming towards Florida.

Our FTTF letter that came with our luggage tags said that if we had checked luggage (left in hall the night before) we would meet in the Golden Dining room on Deck 3 at 7:45am. But since we were docking early, we figured we had better get there earlier than that. We ate quickly, went back to the room to grab our carryon bags, passports and money from the safe, then off to our meeting spot.

We got there, and sat down to wait...holy cow, they started the debark process and people were getting off the ship early! The Platinum, Diamond, and FTTF were ushered off using one door, while the self-assist people were called by floors and ushered off through the other door. It went fast. We were downstairs waiting to grab our luggage before 8am, and then in line for customs which took about 15 minutes. It was FAST.

I think many people who said out of Miami do not fly to port,, they drive, so they were not in a rush to get off the ship. Those of us with flights headed outside the building and were directed to the Carnival shuttles...one bus for FLL, one bus for MIA. It is important to get on the correct bus - but there are clerks there who check your paperwork over and over before you drop off your luggage then get on the bus. Our bus to FLL was over half full already so we knew it would be quick.

(The Vista was also docked and unloading so some of these people may have been from that ship)

Sunday morning in Miami... traffic and pouring rain. We made it to the airport at FLL in no time really, grabbed our bags and went inside. It was easy peasy. We had to wait an hour before we could check in due to our early arrival, but soon we were inside the controlled area, eating some Cuban empanadas from a bakery, and waiting for our flight home.

SUMMARY

1. We had a GREAT cruise overall, despite the water leak day one and room change issues.

2. May is usually a dry calm month in the Caribbean - but we had rain and/or high winds every day. This meant that some parts of the ship were dangerous, Serenity deck was closed most days, only open during port times. If the ship was moving, it was difficult to walk around outside on upper decks, that is why they closed them for safety. Rain off and on all cruise meant the aft pool cover was closed part of the time, pool activities like the Sailaway etc were not held outdoors. One night movie was in rain so people were watching from under cover at the bars or walkways. Another day it rained in middle of day, so pool deck and stairs were a slippery hazard.

3. CD Dustin and his crew were excellent. Not our favorites but still better than expected since they all seemed so young (early 20s average). They were all high energy and upbeat, even with all the "issues". I give them all an A.

4. The itinerary was excellent. It was our second time doing this one, but reversed of last time. We would do it again with no hesitation. So much to see and do at each port. I would give the itinerary an A even though our port times were shortened at 2 ports due to those issues.

5. Crew overall, good service, helpful, friendly. I would give them a B+.

6. Food - very subjective, for sure. The main dining room was okay, not as good to us as other ships. Waitstaff wasn't as good even though they seemed to try, they just seemed frazzled or new at the job. We had to ask for things a few times, not sure about side dishes with main courses, and had to look at menu when ordering kind of thing. The steakhouse was good but very subdued staff, almost like zombies to me. It made me a bit uncomfortable. The other places - buffet breakfast lunch and dinner the staff barely spoke to us, which is odd. Usually the workers are friendly and talk to you. Sushi window and Seafood -same. The guys are Guys and Blue Iguana were the only ones that were the exception - friendly and smiling all the time. So overall --- I would only give the Food Venues a C-.

7. Room -- Where to I begin. I have discussed all the issues in my report, so I won't go over them again. The OV room on Deck 1 turned out to be fine. We liked it. The original room, 2405 was a nightmare and as we went by there every day during the crew - it was a difficult fix, if it every did get fixed. The first 3 days they had door open and ladders and ceiling tiles pulled out...for 3 days! It seemed like they could find the source of the water. DH asked the workers how it was going, and the look on the faces said they were having problems. Of course, by the end of the week the door was shut, and workers gone, so we are hoping it was fixed. Either way, I would NOT recommend anyone book that room . Who knows what happened and if it will happen again. We saw another room on the same floor with furniture pulled out in hall one day, guessing that was the other room they said had a leak. Anyhow ...Room this cruise I would give a D-.

...more..

8. FTTF - our first time having it, not sure it worked for us at all. Our room was not ready until dinner time due to the water leak and being moved. Debark was fast but we didn't need to get to airport that early as our flight wasn't until 2pm. So it really wasn't an advantage. YMMV.

9. Comedy Club and Piano Bar - both good. No problems with getting there about 10 minutes before shows but would fill up by showtime. Don't wait too long. The Piano Bar we only did one night for an hour, looks like it might be fun if there was a bigger crowd. Comedy was mixed - first guy we saw was worst ever, the second guy was fantastic. We love Comedy, don't mind R rated shows like some, but both shows we saw this time were PG. I would give these venues an A-.

10. Casino - We don't gamble and I can't handle smoke. With the lousy outdoor areas and wind/rain, this meant most of the smokers were in the casino all cruise. It was horrible.

11. Shows - Playlist Performers, Hasbro Gameshow, and Lipsync Battle were all great. We only saw part of 2 Playlist shows but the performers were excellent. The Hasbro is hosted by CD Dustin who is very fun, and ditto Lipsync show. I would give them all an A.

12. Music -- Ugghh... we didn't particularly like a single music act on the ship this cruise. We usually love all the live music, but didn't find any of the acts to our taste. The Latin band in fact was awful in my opinion, the Rock band had 2 lead singers and just didn't work for us. There were 2 different acoustic guitar guys playing here and there, and they seemed to be talented but didn't engage the crowd at all. The only bright spot was the Caribbean steel drum guy David. He was great. So Music on the Glory we would give a grade of D. Really disappointing as one of the things we like most about Carnival is the live music.

13. Embark and Debark were SMOOTH ... Would give them both an A.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask!

robin

Thanks for the great review! Your pictures were FANTASTIC, especially the ones you took diving.

What time was your flight out of FLL? We are doing this itinerary next year and curious about flight times for our return trip home.

Thanks for the great review! Your pictures were FANTASTIC, especially the ones you took diving.

Thanks!

What time was your flight out of FLL? We are doing this itinerary next year and curious about flight times for our return trip home.

Our flight home was at 2:20pm and we got to the airport around 9:30am, BUT that was because our ship got in an hour EARLY and we had FTTF.

If you are using the Carnival shuttle, I wouldn't book a flight before 11:30am departure, just because the customs lines could be longer or traffic might be crazier. We got lucky, I think. It was early enough to beat some of the traffic on highway, for sure.

Its a great itinerary!

robin

I am a big fan of the Alchemy Bar! I'm usually there every evening before dinner and after.

But that's because I live in New Orleans--home of Tales of the Cocktail and the Cocktail Museum at the Southern Food and Beverage Museum.

I am a big fan of the Alchemy Bar! I'm usually there every evening before dinner and after.

 

But that's because I live in New Orleans--home of Tales of the Cocktail and the Cocktail Museum at the Southern Food and Beverage Museum.

LOL

We enjoy the Alchemy bar but since I rarely drink alcohol and DH is a beerman, we don't stop there often. We took our son (age 28 at the time) on a cruise 2 years ago and he found the Alchemy bar ... he still talks about it. He thought it was the coolest thing on the ship, would sit and watch bartenders make all their special magic.

I just finished reading your review and I really enjoyed it and your beautiful pictures, especially the scuba diving pics and video from Grand Turk! Those are spectacular! We did a similar cruise 8 years ago (can't believe it's been 8 years, seems like 3 or 4) and on Glory (itinerary out of Miami to HMC, sea day, St. Thomas, San Juan, Grand Turk, sea day), so I really enjoyed following along and seeing an old friend (Glory). So sorry about your plans in St. Thomas. We were supposed to arrive in St. Thomas at 9AM on our Glory cruise but due to a medevac in the very early morning hours the previous day, we were behind schedule and arrived at 11AM. Fortunately, we booked our tour (snorkeling in Trunk Bay) for 1PM, so we were able to do it, but those who had excursions in the morning had theirs cancelled. They also extended our port time an hour, so we left at 6pm instead of 5...gorgeous sunset and then watching it get dark with the lights coming on was just gorgeous. I do hope you get a chance to redo this itinerary to hopefully do some of the things you didn't get to do this time. Thank you for taking the time to do a review, again, I really enjoyed following along.

Great review! Thanks for taking the time to post. Dustin was our CD on the Glory in April. He was fantastic--very interactive with guests and extremely visible!

I just finished reading your review and I really enjoyed it and your beautiful pictures, especially the scuba diving pics and video from Grand Turk! Those are spectacular! We did a similar cruise 8 years ago (can't believe it's been 8 years, seems like 3 or 4) and on Glory (itinerary out of Miami to HMC, sea day, St. Thomas, San Juan, Grand Turk, sea day), so I really enjoyed following along and seeing an old friend (Glory). So sorry about your plans in St. Thomas. We were supposed to arrive in St. Thomas at 9AM on our Glory cruise but due to a medevac in the very early morning hours the previous day, we were behind schedule and arrived at 11AM. Fortunately, we booked our tour (snorkeling in Trunk Bay) for 1PM, so we were able to do it, but those who had excursions in the morning had theirs cancelled. They also extended our port time an hour, so we left at 6pm instead of 5...gorgeous sunset and then watching it get dark with the lights coming on was just gorgeous. I do hope you get a chance to redo this itinerary to hopefully do some of the things you didn't get to do this time. Thank you for taking the time to do a review, again, I really enjoyed following along.

Thanks. I think it is important to roll with the punches. Its still a cruise and still better than sitting at home! I do hope we can do that itinerary again, or at least go to St Thomas again, maybe we'll do the Fascination itinerary, then we can dive at lots of ports.

Great review! Thanks for taking the time to post. Dustin was our CD on the Glory in April. He was fantastic--very interactive with guests and extremely visible!

Thanks! I agree with you, Dustin is great and I would have no problems sailing with him again as CD. I think a great CD makes a good cruise into a great one.

robin

great review!! glory looks sorta similar to the victory. We too had FTTF this last spring right before easter. We got the FTTF as we had a baby with us. i swear they called zone 1or whatever right after they called FTTF...they could at least get FTTF peeps on maybe 20 minutes earlier to at least make you feel like you're getting a deal.

Besides that our room was ready and we were afforded the other usual perks, so it wasn't a complete bust anyway.

That looks like a fun itinerary though...glad you had fun!

great review!! glory looks sorta similar to the victory. We too had FTTF this last spring right before easter. We got the FTTF as we had a baby with us. i swear they called zone 1or whatever right after they called FTTF...they could at least get FTTF peeps on maybe 20 minutes earlier to at least make you feel like you're getting a deal.

 

Besides that our room was ready and we were afforded the other usual perks, so it wasn't a complete bust anyway.

 

That looks like a fun itinerary though...glad you had fun!

Thanks!

I am not sure that FTTF really did us any good, especially for the money. We will be Platinum soon so not sure we will both with it next cruise{last one before Platinum}. The new staggered boarding seems to work so well now it really isn't that big a benefit unless you have a special need, like a small child, etc.

It is a great itinerary, you should try it!

robin

We are going on this cruise at the end of the month and are so so excited! Thank you so much for a detailed and fair report! I have thoroughly enjoyed it! :)

We are going on this cruise at the end of the month and are so so excited! Thank you so much for a detailed and fair report! I have thoroughly enjoyed it! :)

you are welcome and have a great time!

Just finished reading your report. Love it !

We are sailing on the Glory in May and I enjoyed reading what we will be looking forward to.

Your pictures in the report were fantastic, I love when I can find a report with lots of pictures.

I've always thought scuba diving looked so amazing, after seeing your pictures, WOW. 

Very amazing, how awesome that would be to see how beautiful it looks in the carribean ocean.

Thank you for posting them.

Also, I love that you are from the ABQ !

So am I. And, I really love the fact that your name is Robin.

Me too ! Crazy, small world. 

Thanks again for taking the time and posting this report.

- Robin

Thanks for the review! I will be on the Glory for the first time in 87 days and I can't wait!

Great Report.  enjoyed reading it.