Belated Triumph Review 1/9-1/16 :-)

[Rodeomomof2]

We arrived on one of the coldest days on record for us southerners..I think New Orleans never got above freezing all day. We pulled up to cruise parking around 10:30 and they were telling everyone that they were taking cash only, the credit card machine was down; but we had the $112 in cash for our 7 day parking. We hopped out and a really nice guy took our bags and we tipped him and he told us to follow him with our big crew cab truck, he removed some orange cones and we parked right there on the drop off level (3). We went got on the elevator and went down to level 1 to start the boarding process...there were hardly any long lines for anything...security did open our bags to see what the nightlight and leatherman were...but were fine with is having them, they also made my husband pull his shoes off etc. to get through the scanner. We then waited about an hour in the waiting area for them to call our group to go through..we were finally on the ship and headed to the Lido by noon. I could see that there were lines to check in when we were walking past to board the ship.

We got our first Lido cheeseburger and fries and sat down inside the dininr area...it was WAY too cold to sit out by the pool and eat, there were a few leaks when we arrived near the grill and then it started leaking in the restrooms near the back of the Lido...BUT there were guys immediately there working on it and trying to get the leaks stopped. My daughter and her friend found the 24 hour icecream and made friends with it quickly, they would frequently checkc in with this machine througout the week to make sure that it felt loved! haha

We had an extended balcony cabin on the Verandah deck (8) and although the balcony was too cold to enjoy the first couple of days we were very happy with the extra room that cabin 8427 offered us, even with the 2 rollaways for the girls and the couch, we had plenty of walking room! Our dining time was not what we wanted so as soon as we got our hands on the capers and saw which dining room to go to, we were off to ask the matre'd to change it for us, and he did, we wanted the early dining in Paris dining room, and we enjoyed our meals there all week. We had more than one server during the week because of some illnesses with crew members.

More to come.....

[Rodeomomof2]

Coming out of the mouth of the Mississippi into the Gulf was a little turbulent, you could feel rocking motion and some things in our room slid around a bit...but it was actually a very nice motion to sleep to. Our first Sea day was a lazy day for us, too cold to swim, with lots of sea motion, so most people were inside taking part in what there was to do, we enjoyed tea that afternoon, they really have some nice little treats that they serve with tea each sea day afternoon at 3:00. The food in the dining room was great, the lido deck food was fine, and room service was the best I have ever had on a cruise!

The girls (14) both enjoyed the Circle C and Club 02 activities and were very often found hanging our in the rooms there. My husband and I both brought books to read and after the first couple of cold days we were able to sit on our balcony and read with a blanket. So it was peaceful and relaxing.

Our first stop was Key West, I was told, but not sure this is accurate, that the day we were there it was a record cold temp for them. We walked around the main streets there in our blue jeans and jackets...the sun was shining and although the wind could cut right through you, it was still a beautiful day. I thought Key West is a pretty little city...I felt at home with the chickens that just wander the streets there, haha we took lots of pictures of everything and thought it was a nice day!

Freeport was the 2nd stop that we made, I was unable to join my husband and girls for the taxi ride to Freeport's main shopping area; but they said it was pretty, and spent about 3 hours just walking and looking and then they came back to the ship, saying that they felt they had pretty much seen everything there was to see there.

Nassau was our next stop, we were off the ship by about 9am to walk and look, we came across a tour guide who offered a 2 hour tour and to show us everything there was that was worth seeing for $20 a head, we though , ok...sounds fine. His name was John and in those 2 hours we learned and saw a lot of Nassau, we got to walk on the beach for a few minutes, it was too cold to go in the water, but we can say we were on the beach haha. We also went to several different neighborhoods, wealthy and poor and heard about how they live, their government and what life is like for Bahamians....we saw million dollar houses that celebraties own and tiny little shacks in need of some TLC. John really made the trip interesting, we also went over to Atlantis and saw the lobby aquarium and took pictures of the resort...it was pretty, but too expensive for us to stay there! haha

We boarded the ship again and ate lunch and then people watched from our balcony until we set sail again. It was always nice to watch the ships sail out away from the islands, something very serene about it all. The last 2 days were sea days and it was getting a bit warmer, the girls even got brave enough to try to slide at the pool and enjoyed their time there. All in all I think it was a nice relaxing cruise for us there were pros and cons...leaky ceilings, sewer smells,long lines and lots of older people on scooters and walkers who, to my surprise tended to be very rude to everyone, especially the staff. Lots of LSU and Saint fans and southerners who tend to be very friendly and outgoing who made the trip a bit more lighthearted. I would definitely refer people to cruise on the Triumph, I intend to be on her again in August and hopefully we will get to enjoy some sun then! As long as you go with a open mind and good attitude and not knit-pick about every little thing, you will enjoy it too. Sailing this time of the year isn't for everyone, the weather is always a gamble and a ship sailed by humans and taken care of by humans will inevitably have some problems...but they were all seen to and fixed in a timely manner. The staff seemed to be friendly and helpful and someone was always cleaning!

Here is a link to some of our pictures that we took during that 7 days!

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=46509&id=1128934456&l=f366661213

[Rodeomomof2]

Please excuse all of the mispelled words and typos, when we got back to New Orleans, my husband and I were loading the luggage in our truck and he slipped a disk in his back and pinched some nerves, he went to his knees and I barely was able to get him home and to an ER.....so I have been taking care of him and our farm on very little sleep! So that is why the review is late and my brain is dead and not able to spell!:eek:

If you have any questions...fire away and I will try to answer them!;)

[Rodeomomof2]

Oh, yeah..one more thing that I thought of to share was the cruise director was great, I have never seen port and debarkation talks that were that full! he made everything entertaining! We went to a few shows, that is a type of entertainment that we do not normally get to see, so we thought that they did a good job.

We did not get to watch any movies under the stars because it was too cold...but they did have something on every day and night.

Also, we did self assist debarkation and we were off of the ship by 8:30! ...too bad my sweet hubby hurt himself loading luggage...but we did purchase travel insurance, so we should not be out of pocket for the ER visit.;)

[CruiserJul]

Thanks for the review! We will be sailing on her in a couple of months. Glad to see that embarkation wasn't a problem. Sorry that the weather was on the cool side. I am from Ohio so I am eager to escape the cold weather! Funny about the walkers and older people. I have heard other cruisers talk about them (not necessarily on the Triumph). I doubt they will be a problem during Spring Break as the older crowd would try to avoid a time when there might be more kids:rolleyes:.

 

Sorry to hear about your DH - My DH experiences back problems from time to time and he can hardly move!

[Shelleywood]

Very nice review! Sounds like ya'll made the most out of your cruise. I always wondered if the Bahamas was as cold in Jan. as it is here. We are like beach fanatics so we try to only cruise during the warmer months. I haven't been to Key West yet but was wondering what there was to do there. We live here on the gulf coast of Mississippi so will probably be doing a trip in the near future on the Triumph. So sorry your husband got hurt. Thanks again for the review!

[Rodeomomof2]

Very nice review! Sounds like ya'll made the most out of your cruise. I always wondered if the Bahamas was as cold in Jan. as it is here. We are like beach fanatics so we try to only cruise during the warmer months. I haven't been to Key West yet but was wondering what there was to do there. We live here on the gulf coast of Mississippi so will probably be doing a trip in the near future on the Triumph. So sorry your husband got hurt. Thanks again for the review!

I think there is a lot to do in Key West as far as watersports and beaches go...and even in January, it is normally not as cold as it was when we were there, we were just lucky! haha I had planned on doing a jet ski tour around Key West...and was looking forward to it! The rates are really great in January...and I would go again if I could, and just hope for warmer weather.

You can walk up and down the main tourist blocks of Key West and go down the the southermost point for a photo op and then do something fun in the water if you do get to go...I am sure you will find some fun to get into!;)

[hogwildcruzers]

Thanks for the great review and photos...we will be on the Triumph May 1 and doing the same route...I think we will be much more comfortable weather wise than y'all were....hope your DH is doing better with his back.