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Miracle Review Oct 19-27 2009

TakeMeAway1001

By TakeMeAway1001,
in Carnival Cruise Lines

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UpstateCruizer

UpstateCruizer

Posted
Posted
Christin,

 

You are doing a wonderful job with this review , u must have taken a book full of notes. I think I had too much adult beverage to do this .

 

Tom

 

I agree I'm loving this and it's like re-living the cruise all over again :) BTW Kristen I was bummed a few cruises back to find out they had stopped serving the sun dried tomato bread as it was my favorite too.

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NCTribeFan

NCTribeFan

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Posted

Thanks so much for taking the time to write your review. I was in St Kitts and St Lucia in May on Victory. I toured St Lucia with Cosol, and St Kitts with Thenford Grey, but it seems like they did just about the same things.

 

Boy, would I love to do a B2B on Miracle with this itinerary and then the new one she'll be doing that is going to Aruba!

 

travelwitch: please come back and post a thorough review, as I'm on that itinerary in December. :D

 

law: I'm not sure the elegant nights will be the same, since it's a different itinerary. And same to you about posting a review, please.

 

I love to read reviews for itineraries I'll be sailing soon and then comparing those thoughts with my experiences.

 

Again, thanks to all here for all the great information about the ships, the activities, the food, and the ports.

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TakeMeAway1001

TakeMeAway1001

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Hello and thank you to all of you for the kind words :)

 

I apologize that due to dealing with DD's accident and issues connecting to the internet on my home PC the remainder of the review and the last two days of capers will be temporarily delayed but I promise to come back as soon as I can :)

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Yulesong

Yulesong

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I am really enjoying your review and pictures...you are doing an awesome job!!

We will be sailing on the Miracle Dec 30th and your review has made me more excited.

We have an extended balcony on the 8th floor. So looking forward to the cruise.

Thanks so much for all the hard work and time that you are putting into the review of your cruise..appreciate it and look forward to more.

 

Have you joined our Roll Call for the New Year's.sailing?

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TakeMeAway1001

TakeMeAway1001

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Sunday October 25th- 3rd Fun Day at Sea

 

Today DH and I were really looking forward to not having to get up and head out for a tour. Three stops in a row was exhausting!

 

We both got up around 7:00am and decided we were going to head to the pool for the morning, we grabbed a quick breakfast and headed to get our chairs. We spent most of our pool time in the AFT Adults only pool, it was quiet and since we both wanted to read we thought it was a better choice than the mid ship pool with the band. We found seats but watched the chair savers come out in droves, I would say and this is just a guess that 25% of the savers came back within an hour and the rest didn’t come back while we were there.

 

I made quite a few visits to the pool to keep cool, it was empty early on but quickly filled up. The hot tub didn’t seem to be working the majority of the time but that didn’t prevent people from sitting in it. I planned on staying by the pool until around 2:00pm but by lunch time I was roasting and needed to get out of the sun. DH & I decided to go back to the cabin to shower and get lunch, I once again had Asian and it was tasty.

 

After lunch DH decided to lie down and rest while I took the laptop and found a quiet spot to check my email. The service was really good today, thankfully since at this point we were paying by the minute .75 which made for quick messages home. I however had an email from my daughter saying she had been in a car accident and that my car had been towed. That was not a message I was prepared for, it was way too short and I needed details so I went back to the cabin to let DH know and to call home.

 

The phone connection was quick but we still managed to rack up a bill of over $200. I however needed to hear from DD directly to make sure she was ok and she assured me she was. I have to say I was relieved but found it very hard to not think about it, it’s a rotten feeling to not be there when your child needs you.

 

After we were reassured all was ok with DD we decided to head out and have a drink, there wasn’t anything we could do and thankfully DD was fine. All the car stuff would have to wait until we returned home, DD ended up sending us another long email reassuring us everything was fine and that she wanted us to enjoy the rest of our cruise and we felt better.

 

We had a few drinks at that mid ship bar, Patric was one of our bartenders and we had a lot of fun talking with him. There was another pool area bartender named Svetlana and for those of you going on the Miracle soon please look for her, she is so highly energetic and a lot of fun to talk to, you won’t be able to miss her.

 

It was getting late so we made our way back to the cabin to get ready for the second Cruise Elegant Night, we got a few formal pictures taken but there were long lines so we only managed to get two taken. Dinner was good and we enjoyed it, but didn’t stick around for dessert since I didn’t want to feel overly stuffed and really wanted to have a few Sangrias from the Rio Di Sangria Bar in the Atrium before tonight’s show Ticket to Ride. Before we headed to the Atrium DH and I went back to the cabin to change into comfortable clothes.

 

We had a few drinks and then made our way to the show lounge, we didn’t get very good seats tonight since we got there after 8:00PM. The show was pretty good and the crowd really got involved but once again I was exhausted. Tonight was also the midnight R rated comedy of Will Marfori, Jay really wanted to see this so I forced myself into overdrive and we went. The show was funny, I am not sure but it seems like a lot of people are hesitant to laugh because of Will’s disability, he even jokes about the lack of laughter at times. All in all it was a good show and we made our way to the Lido for some pizza and drinks, the bed was calling my name at this point and I couldn’t wait to hit the pillow.

 

Capers

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Monday October 26th- Last Fun Day at Sea L

 

Today we were up by 7am and had plans for another pool day, at this time I was wondering where the heck our 8 days went?? I wasn’t too hungry so DH and I went and found two chairs and I settled in to read while DH grabbed something to eat. The chair savers were out by 9am reserving not just one or two seats but whole rows, I chuckled to myself since these people put so much effort into securing the chairs only to leave them unoccupied for hours on end.

 

We lasted until about 1:00pm today but I was really afraid of burning so we decided to shower and poke around the shops for a while. I have to say the stores have greatly improved, they actually had some nice clothing and sandals that had I needed something I could have easily found something I liked.

 

I did buy a Clinique set that included lotion/soap/toner since my skin was really feeling the effects of the sun and was so dry. After visiting the shops DH & I made our way back to the mid ship bar and chatted with the bartenders and had a few drinks while we people watched.

 

It was settling in that our cruise was pretty much over, we showered and got ready for our last dinner. We were a bit early so we went to the Gotham Lounge for a pre dinner drink and to listed to the music until it was time for dinner. Every night the line for dinner was huge, people would start lining up at 5:45pm, I couldn’t understand the lining up since there were plenty of seats and great entertainment to enjoy and we would just wait until the doors opened and the line dwindled and we would walk right in.

 

Dinner was good and we said our goodbyes and tipped both our servers for their service during the week, they were both very appreciative. We said goodbye to the people that had been sitting across from us, an older couple who made it a point to talk to us every night, they were really nice.

 

After dinner we went to look for some of our recently taken pictures and this is the first time that we didn’t buy a single one. There were a few pictures that we liked but not enough to spend the money, there was one that we loved but DH had creepy red eyes in it so we tossed it.

 

We went back to our cabin to put our luggage out, we were given Zone 18 luggage tags and realized it was a good thing we took the later flight at 1:00pm.

 

Tonight was the Fun Farewell in the show lounge, this is where they offered complimentary drinks with live music and dancing. We opted to not go but wonder how it went since this was new to us since our last cruise.

 

Tonight was also the Legends Show with only one seating at 10:30pm so we had some time to roam around and spent some in the casino and seeing our roll call friends around the ship, it was sad that we would be saying goodbye in the morning. We headed to the show lounge to get a seat and came in at the end of the Liars Game, after that they started selling tickets for the Mega Cash Bingo Finale and DH bought a ticket and sadly we didn’t win, how nice it would have been to win $5000 on the last night of the cruise.

 

The show was good and we enjoyed the performers, Garth was the best IMO but they were all brave for getting up there, I know I could never do it. After the show we walked around and looked for something to do but there really wasn’t much going on so we went back to the cabin and watched some TV. We saw our room steward Noli in the hallway and said our good-byes, he was a very nice person and he did a great job. DH and I gave him some extra money and he was genuinely happy about it.

 

I slept very well and woke up to find us docked in Fort Lauderdale, we got showered and packed up the rest of our belongings before heading up to the Lido for breakfast, we didn’t get off the ship until 10:30am but we enjoyed our last few hours and when it was our turn we headed out. Our luggage was easily located very easily and we grabbed our bags and headed out to where the taxi’s where and grabbed one to take us to the airport.

 

The lines at Southwest curb side check in were fairly long and since we weren’t in a hurry we just chilled and the line moved pretty fast. We had done the Early Bird Check In with Southwest before the cruise, for those of you who haven’t heard of it you pay $10 per person and they will check you in 36 hours before your flight, this was worth it to us since we didn’t want to have to deal with trying to get online on the ship.

 

The check in person took our bags and printed our boarding passes for us, we were in the low A’s which was great and off went to the gate. FLL has great free WiFi and I found a seat and logged on to check my emails and to kill some time. I ended up seeing and chatting with some of our Roll Call friends who were also waiting on flights, before you knew it they began boarding.

 

We had a stop over in Orlando and had an uneventful flight to RI, we were happy to be home and to see the kids and the dog.

 

This cruise was great! From embarkation to disembarkation, we thought things went very well.

 

Capers

 

2518340620104170056S425x425Q85.jpg

 

Random things

 

Ship

We really enjoyed the Miracle and thought the staff was very friendly, almost all of them were quick to smile and say hello. We loved our room steward, he was really accommodating and a true asset to Carnival.

 

Ports

We would definitely cruise on the Miracle again, however the islands weren’t my favorite. We have been to St Maarten before and do enjoy it however I am not sure I would visit the other two stops again.

 

Cabin

The cabin, we loved getting a balcony however at the last minute I changed from cabin #7150 to an Aft balcony #5260. I missed sitting on the balcony and reading or having a drink, the aft balcony was way too hot for this and if the sun wasn’t out the balcony seemed to always be wet.

 

Food

The food was really good, I have read so many reviews that say the food is hit or miss but for us it was enjoyable for the entire cruise. Sure there were things we didn’t find overly appealing but I just loved the fact that I didn’t have to cook or clean for ten days.

 

Staff

We found the majority of the staff to be very friendly and enjoyed talking with them when the opportunity was there.

 

Entertainment

Other than the show lounge evening shows we didn’t participate in a lot of the on board activities, not because we didn’t find them interesting we just made this a relaxing cruise.

 

The shows were good, however I would really like to see them changed up a bit. I first cruised in 2001 and I see a lot of the same stuff from my last few cruises which takes away from the excitement a bit.

 

Lounges

We enjoyed the Gotham Lounge and Jay a lot. We also liked Sam’s Piano Bar and Peter, he was really fun!

 

We visited Frankie & Johnnie’s but didn’t stick around too long, we stayed for a drink and listened to the band and they were ok. We never visited the night club, nor did we go to Mad Hatters other than a quick walk through one night during Karaoke.

 

Spa

We only used the spa once and they were very nice, I liked that the sales pitch wasn’t the way it was the last time I used them since it was a big deterrent. I am glad we gave them another try because it was so relaxing.

 

On every cruises you see things that make you wonder about people, I had a few of those moments and here they are…

 

Guests who treat the staff like they are pee on’s, a simple please and thank you goes a long way.

 

Finger snapping at the staff, we have seen this more than we like to admit.

 

People who do odd things in the food lines like sampling items, people who despite seeing tongs use their fingers to pick food up.

 

People who open mouth cough or sneeze and then touch things.

 

People who don’t wash their hands in the restroom

 

People who waste huge amounts of food.

 

People who just put their waste wherever they want, we saw trash dumped in stairwells, hallways, elevators etc and I find that very rude.

 

Seat saving, I think it’s wrong for Carnival to allow people to save entire rows especially in the show lounge. I really wanted to take a picture one night of this lady putting an item where each person would soon be sitting like a cell phone, a sweater, a bag, etc. She basically lined the entire row with her personal items and kept jumping up to tell people the seats were taken, I don’t get people if you want a seat you show up on time and get one.

 

I wish Carnival would implement a better photo process, there is so much waste in my opinion and with the prices of the photos I find more and more people are not purchasing them. I wish they would have a system where the photographer could swipe your S&S card and then you could view your pictures in your cabin and order the ones you liked.

 

We didn’t try room service, I really wanted to try it since I have never done so but we never got around ordering it...again.

 

We never tried the pay for dessert/coffee bar but the cakes looked amazing.

*********************************************************

All in all we had a wonderful cruise, one of the best however I will say that I have been on this board for a long time and I feel I always give a fair review, I like to share all aspects of my cruises. A few days ago I noticed that a few of our roll call members shared a not so great experience of one of our tours on this cruise and I decided to share my thoughts as well but found out quickly how defensive some posters are of a possible negative experience.

 

I don't know why others cannot believe that just because they had an awesome experience on a tour that not everyone down the road may have the same experience. I have read so many reviews where one person raves about a particular cruise and then another poster who was on the same one comes back with an all negative experience. What is clear to me is that what might bother one cruiser may roll off the back of another but we all participate in this board for the same reason ultimately and that is the love of cruising :)

 

Like everything in life there are ups/downs and while others may not find the issues I had worth griping about ultimately we are all entitled to share our stories on this board. I did what I always do when I have a positive or negative experience and that is address it with the right person because I believe strongly that both good and bad experiences can teach valuable lessons in life. My issues were addressed and I think that some of my suggestions will be taken to heart and that makes me happy.

 

For those of you who followed my review thank you for your patience the last few days, I really enjoyed writing it and I hope that some of the info was helpful :)

 

Take care and happy cruising!

 

 

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hockeyluver

hockeyluver

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What :eek: Thats it :eek: its over :eek: damn:rolleyes: Thanks for such a wonderful review. But isnt that the way it goes you just start having fun and its over. I loved reading your review and your summary at the end. Thankfully everything was ok with your DD.

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Tallcruiser

Tallcruiser

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It has been such a delight to read your review. I appreciate so much that you took the time to post pictures, information and opinions.

I booked on the Miracle Maniac Group b2b group cruise Jan/Feb. 2011! I am counting the days!

 

Here here! I raise my glass to you when you said.....

[seat saving, I think it’s wrong for Carnival to allow people to save entire rows especially in the show lounge. I really wanted to take a picture one night of this lady putting an item where each person would soon be sitting like a cell phone, a sweater, a bag, etc. She basically lined the entire row with her personal items and kept jumping up to tell people the seats were taken, I don’t get people if you want a seat you show up on time and get one. ]

This is a sterling Idea!;)

[i wish Carnival would implement a better photo process, there is so much waste in my opinion and with the prices of the photos I find more and more people are not purchasing them. I wish they would have a system where the photographer could swipe your S&S card and then you could view your pictures in your cabin and order the ones you liked.]

 

:D

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crusinpsychRN

crusinpsychRN

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Sorry that I haven't been back to post another day, we just found out that our credit card was used to purchase a $1000 camera while we were away.

 

The only time we took out our card was at the Westin and at the Carnival check in counter, the purchase was made the day after we checked out of the Westin :(

 

It's stuff like this that ticks me off, I called Citi right before we left and gave them specifics on dates/locations yet they let a charge go through like that that didn't correspond with where we were at the time.

 

This happened to us once before when we used the card at a hotel in Palm Springs, when we were at the aiport heading home Citi called to let us know there had been $3000 worth of computer parts ordered from an address in NJ :mad:

 

I won't be able to post the review and pics from work tomorrow so the next day won't be until I get home tomorrow, thanks for reading :)

 

That's terrible. My credit card company called me and asked if I ordered $1300 of computer stuff to be sent to New Jersey. What's up with NJ?

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johnlcruise

johnlcruise

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Sunday Random things[/b]

*********************************************************

All in all we had a wonderful cruise, one of the best however I will say that I have been on this board for a long time and I feel I always give a fair review, I like to share all aspects of my cruises. A few days ago I noticed that a few of our roll call members shared a not so great experience of one of our tours on this cruise and I decided to share my thoughts as well but found out quickly how defensive some posters are of a possible negative experience.

 

I don't know why others cannot believe that just because they had an awesome experience on a tour that not everyone down the road may have the same experience. I have read so many reviews where one person raves about a particular cruise and then another poster who was on the same one comes back with an all negative experience. What is clear to me is that what might bother one cruiser may roll off the back of another but we all participate in this board for the same reason ultimately and that is the love of cruising :)

 

Like everything in life there are ups/downs and while others may not find the issues I had worth griping about ultimately we are all entitled to share our stories on this board. I did what I always do when I have a positive or negative experience and that is address it with the right person because I believe strongly that both good and bad experiences can teach valuable lessons in life. My issues were addressed and I think that some of my suggestions will be taken to heart and that makes me happy.

 

For those of you who followed my review thank you for your patience the last few days, I really enjoyed writing it and I hope that some of the info was helpful :)

 

Take care and happy cruising!

 

So well said!

 

GREAT review. Really enjoyed reading it. Also it was GREAT meeting both of you on the cruise. Your review reflexs everything both Juli and I felt about this cruise.

I hope your DD is OK and life is now getting back in order for both of you. All my best. Untill we meet again.

John

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framerman

framerman

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Thanks for taking the time to write such a thorough and thoughfull review. I enjoyed every post. thanks again and we will be looking for your next review after your JUne cruise. Hope your car did'nt get too badly screwed up and that your DD is fine.

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TakeMeAway1001

TakeMeAway1001

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That's terrible. My credit card company called me and asked if I ordered $1300 of computer stuff to be sent to New Jersey. What's up with NJ?

 

When we were in Palm Springs prior to my DH's deployment in 06 and our Citi # was taken and used to buy $3000 worth of computer stuff and was sent to an address in NJ, scary stuff. Sadly Citi let another $1800 go through last Weds :mad:

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TakeMeAway1001

TakeMeAway1001

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So well said!

 

GREAT review. Really enjoyed reading it. Also it was GREAT meeting both of you on the cruise. Your review reflexs everything both Juli and I felt about this cruise.

I hope your DD is OK and life is now getting back in order for both of you. All my best. Untill we meet again.

John

 

Thanks John~ We enjoyed meeting you as well. DD is fine, the car is a total loss :( Tonight we are beginning our hunt for new one.

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TakeMeAway1001

TakeMeAway1001

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Only about every 8th picture shows for me. I get nothing but boxes with red X's in them. Why do some show and others don't?

 

I am horrible when it comes to computer stuff, does anyone else have any idea why the photo's aren't showing up?

If there is something I can do to make viewing possible please let me know :)

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TakeMeAway1001

TakeMeAway1001

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Thanks for taking the time to write such a thorough and thoughfull review. I enjoyed every post. thanks again and we will be looking for your next review after your JUne cruise. Hope your car did'nt get too badly screwed up and that your DD is fine.

 

Thank you :) I can't wait for June to get here, I am really looking forward to the Dream.

 

DD is fine, the car was totalled but we can deal with that. Have a great day!

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