Slightly delayed Triumph trip report Jan 29th - Feb 3rd 2018

I had submitted both a photo essay (https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=607827) and a written review but since it appears that only the essay was accepted, here is my review for the Triumph.

This was DW and my second cruise, having a so-so experience on the Elation in October of 2016. While we liked the experience of cruising, Nassau left a lot to be desired. Still, the bug bit again and a call from a PVP sealed the deal for a second cruise out of my wife’s adopted hometown of New Orleans. We flew in on Saturday, two days early with the intention of catching a couple of early Mardi Gras parades, but steady rain combined with fatigue put a damper on that idea, even though the parades still rolled. We booked at the Hilton Riverwalk at my wife’s insistence and was a pretty good choice as it was close to everything we wanted to do early, as well as walkable* to the cruise port.

*A persistent bone infection that I’d been battling for years in my right foot resulted in an amputation below the knee in May. I’ve been working with a prosthetic since July, but am limited on endurance so most of my time was spent in a wheelchair. I’ve used scooters for years,but tried to go light on this trip which was a mistake as I will cover later.

Carnival Dream is in port 1-28-2018

A very foggy day 2 saw my wife go shopping on her own while I went to the WWII museum. Not bad, but I wouldn't spend that kind of money again. I'm spoiled with having the Air Force museum practically in our back yard, regular visits to the Henry Ford museum, Naval Air museum in Pensacola and the Smithsonian. I had a laugh with a docent when I noticed a few oddities with a German BF-109 and they admitted it was assembled from various pieces.

Embarkation

We had a late breakfast in the mall before our scheduled boarding time of 11:30am. We have traversed the alleyway between the mall’s Julia St entrance and the Carnival cruise terminal many a time (going to and from Mardi Gras World) and I was well aware that this isn’t recommended for pedestrians. However, apparently my wife had not seen those signs until this visit and started to squawk, but without abetter plan of her own, angrily gave in. She slightly mellowed as we passed or were passed by other crew and passengers doing the same thing.

We gladly dumped off our bags with a porter at the port and joined the snake though the terminal, moving solidly from one station to the next. We got on board and passed the time having lunch, with the wife accidentally having Guy’s when she intended to get in line for the buffet. I would have Guy’s myself on the second day and neither of us were that impressed. After she settled with her food, I hunted down a bar in the far back corner of the ship to get her bottomless bubbles sticker and first drink while I got myself a diet Coke in a funnel cup. The bottomless bubbles package was a waste of money on this trip, but it made her happy to have it. Except for the one diet,I passed on the carbonated drinks and stuck with the free options.Rooms opened up at 1:30 as scheduled and we spent the rest of the time on the “secret deck” outside of our 4J cabin 7206.

Food

Aside from Guy’s, I had Pizza Pirate for my embarkation lunch. I had wanted one slice each of pepperoni and one of funghi (mushroom),but I got two slices of each with about a 10 minute wait between pizzas. First night’s dinner was in the main dining room (YTD) with a nice table for two with a window view of the Mississippi river.Food as a whole this trip was as expected, somewhere closer to Golden Corral than Mortons, but it got the job done. One standout was the Seafood Shack that we had on our first sea day lunch. A bit of a wait for preparation, but hot and tasty when it was done. As we were traveling light, we failed to pack extra for elegant night so the wife and I had the buffet, with others that also didn’t want to dress up or had a pack of kids in tow. They did have prime rib on the buffet which was good, but they sliced it too thin for my taste and there was no au jus to go with it. One minor complaint about the buffets as a while is I wish they would drop some of the curries and casserole type dishes for more everyday fare. We were back in the dining room on day three where my wife had to beg our server for a diet coke. I asked for tea which arrived after I had already started dessert with apologies from the girl who noted they were overwhelmed that day. Another buffet day and dining room again for our final sea day, this time went much better, plus we got to see the show.

Handicapped BMW(*itching, Moaning, Whining)

My PVP talked me out of a regular Lido deck cabin for 7206 listed as accessible and had the automatic door that was so handy on the Elation as I originally planned on bringing my full-size scooter.There was no such animal and I found out too late that Carnival considers this one accessible only in the sense that it has grab bars in the bathroom and a shower seat. I could not get to the back half of the room at all which was fine with my wife and barely had room to park my wheelchair bedside. NO turnaround space in the bathroom. Thank goodness I didn’t bring the scooter or we would have never of managed. Nothing less than a fully HA room from now on. I get annoyed with CC every time someone even mentions they have a wheelchair because it always prompts several unsolicited comments about not leaving chairs in the hallway. I have yet to see that, but we did have to contend with a double-wide stroller left in the hall on multiple occasions near the accessible cabins.

There are steel plates covering seams in the ship, especially near the elevators which were difficult to cross in a manual wheelchair. And speaking of elevators, I wish the indicator lights were more visible or gave you better notice because more than once I missed an elevator that opened at an end opposite of where I was. I will commend my fellow passengers for being patient with my chair again. In two cruises, I have yet to experience being cut off by people trying to beat me in getting on. On Lido, there is a serious choke point between Guy’s, Blue Iguana and the buffet in back. Designed to only be two persons wide, it becomes virtually impossible to access buffet during rush hours in a wheelchair when one half is taken up with lines and the other with people coming head-on.

Ports &Excursions

Our port stops were Cozumel and Progreso and we fell in love with Mexico. While the hustlers were calling out their wares, we weren’t accosted as we were in Nassau and even the wife felt comfortable. We went on the Mayan Ball Game excursion at Kun Che Park and can’t say enough good things about this excursion. We were met with a comfortable bus for transportation, with the show consisting of a purification ritual, the ball game and dancing, demonstrations of food and living of the Mayans before finishing with the buffet and more dances. I was able to participate in all of the desired activities despite being in a wheelchair, although I did have to transfer to one of their own chairs and was pushed though the tour by one of their guides.

I was torn for along time on a Progreso excursion for the wife who had her heart set on seeing Mayan ruins. Although I wanted badly to go and keep tabs on her, because frankly she isn’t the most cognizant person when it comes to what is going on around her, I just couldn’t find one that could guarantee I could go in my condition. I ended up biting the bullet (with assurances to her that because it was a “Carnival tour” that she wouldn't get left behind, failing to mention that Carnival doesn’t actually host the excursions) and sent her off to Uxmal and Hacienda Ochil. She says she had a blast, even getting to climb a pyramid, although she complained of muscle cramps for days afterwards. For my part, I got off long enough to see the shops and debated about trying to bus into town, but decided to go back and play trivia with a reduced crowd where I managed to get a ship on a stick. An earlier attempt on the first sea day was a mess, with a huge throng in the main lobby playing along and teaming up.

Crew

I really wanted to give kudos to the crew here. Even when they dropped the ball such as with drinks in the main dining room, they still made me feel like they tried their best and were simply overworked. Bartenders at both the New World bar and Red Frog Rum bar where my wife got a blow fish to go with my funnel cup made us welcome despite not really knowing much about drinks or being regular drinkers, unlike Elation where I had no idea how to get my wife a coconut monkey. The only thing slightly stifling with the crew was the number that offered to “help” with the buffet. “I’m good, thank you” once should have been enough. Debarkation day saw crew running around and getting things spruced up and painted before the next batch of passengers arrived.

And speaking of debarkation, things went MUCH better than Elation. We waited for a pusher in the main theater and got one at the appropriate time,getting quickly though customs, having our bags brought to us and being escorted to a taxi to our next hotel where we caught another weekend of parades.

Overall experience was good enough that we’re already booked for Valor after she comes to New Orleans, although lessons learned from this trip means we have a fully-accessible cabin this time. (Bumped up to a balcony) Instead of flying, I will be getting controls on the car so I can drive again and will pack the scooter. Wife wants to do Chichen Itza next.

enjoyed the review.thanks

Thank you for the review.

I saw on your photo essay that Carnival has put benches on the "Secret Deck". My wife and I will be on Carnival Triumph on April 9th in room 7202 (right next to the room you were in), and we are looking forward to having access to a "secret deck."

Thanks for the report.

Thanks for sharing your review.

Nice review. Thanks for sharing.

Great review! Thanks for sharing the lessons learned about accessibility - you don't see many reviews providing those details which will be helpful to others! Congratulations on getting a ship on a stick! I agree with you on the trivia games. They are fun but at times the atrium area can't handle the crowd. Also glad your wife had a good time at Uxmal and that the guides took good care of her for you. Enjoy your next trip on Valor!