FINALLY! My really long Victory review 1/17-1/24/10 with MEGA pix!!

[mimomf2]

Scraphappylady, thanks for the AWESOME review of your experience on the Victory! My husband and I have been following it, and using it as a starting point for planning our own cruise in October. We really feel like we were there with you! I could almost feel your pain watching the Victory leave the port without you after you debarked!

 

Oh, and Don? Not every thought needs to be expressed out loud. Just saying.:rolleyes:

[SCarlow]

Thank you soooo much for your detailed description of your cruise. We have booked the Carnival Victory in September and we are thinking of booking our hotel with Sheraton.

 

I enjoyed your commentary and your pictures as it gives me something to look forward to.

 

The pictures of the ship are amazing. :)

[crusing48/51]

Thanks again for the awesome review! DH and I did a Segway tour in Nassau and LOVED it. We would like to schedule the one you did in San Juan. May I please get the name of the company? Thanks! I went online and found the website. We are booked pre cruise for the Segway tour. Can hardly wait!

[scraphappylady]

Thank you everyone for all of your wonderful comments and support!!! As I said before, this was a great chance for me to relive my trip, too, and I had such fun writing it! And again, who doesn't like to talk about themselves? :D I got serious about writing reviews with my last trip on Legend and felt this was one I could really sink my teeth into. And for those of you going on Victory in the near or far future, enjoy her and have a drink for me!

 

i was also on this sailing and . . . i'm starting to get them old sailing joneses again.

. . . Please hurry and go on another cruise, so you can do a fantastic review, just like this one!!

 

From your mouths (errr . . . . keyboard?) to my family's ears!! Can you believe, they want to go to Disney again next? How could they . . .? I'm ready for more ports!

 

DH and I did a Segway tour in Nassau and LOVED it. We would like to schedule the one you did in San Juan. May I please get the name of the company?

 

Sorry I wasn't able to reply sooner. Glad to see you found them! (For others who have that question, too, it was called Segway Tours of Puerto Rico, and I believe they are the only ones in town.) They'll treat you really well. If you've been on the Segway before, you'll really be able to concentrate on the sights this time!

 

That could be a separate thread discussion entirely:D

- (Talking about "clothing optional" on Orient Beach)

 

Would you like to start the thread? I'll post . . . just without any pix, I'm afraid.:p

 

That pier in the back with the yellow huts are for the Oasis. I just realized from your post pictures, your boading experience was without such huts. Apparently the security scans are done on-board with your ship, while Oasis does not. I don't know if Oasis have scanners on-board like the other RCCL ships.

 

Great tidbit to file away! Yeah, we get zapped when we re-board. I guess I didn't realize not all RC ships have the scanners. (I think I remember them from when I went on Adventure). Funny, since DH mentioned the huts in passing and I said, nah, they're probably used to store tools, etc. My bad (as my daughter would say.) :p

[Benilana]

 

 

I loved your review but I have speak up here. We swam w/ the turtles in Hawaii and can't wait to do the same in the Caribbean this Spring. I hope everyone has a chance to experience these wonderful creatures, but please remember to NEVER TOUCH THE TURTLES (or any other sea life). It stresses them out which can shorten their lives. It can also spread disease both ways. Okay, stepping off my soapbox now. Thanks!

[DevilDogCruiser]

More! More! Give us more!

We are sailing on the Victory May 9th!

 

Thank you for taking so much time for your review. I can't wait to get on this ship!:):):):)

[Havinsnest]

Loved your review and your pictures.

 

Thank you so much. You've given me lots of great ideas and information for our Victory cruise in mid-May for our son's wedding and honeymoon cruise!

 

 

In fact, I'm printing this epistle out so I can refer to it as I continue to make plans.

[jennat]

Loved your review! You can't post enough pictures and talk enough for me. Just helps us all live vicariously though you.

Wow, Don....way to make friends...I am embarrassed for you. No one is making you read it.

[scraphappylady]

More! More! Give us more!

We are sailing on the Victory May 9th!

 

Thank you for taking so much time for your review. I can't wait to get on this ship!:):):):)

 

I'm sorry, but that's all I have! :( (Unless you want to hear about our rather boring airport experiences on Monday morning. So much better than trying to leave Sunday.)

 

But I promise to write another review on our next cruise . . . whatever and whenever that may be! And feel free to keep asking questions if you have 'em! I'm just glad I could keep so many people entertained for so long! :D

[barbevrn]

Do you remember if the dining room was chilly? I detest being too cold and have some sundresses that I wouldnt mind wearing if I wouldnt freeze to death

[scraphappylady]

Do you remember if the dining room was chilly? I detest being too cold and have some sundresses that I wouldnt mind wearing if I wouldnt freeze to death

 

The only areas I felt were really chilly at night were the Caribbean Lounge (main stage area), our room and sometimes walking in the hallways back to our room. Never really noticed it during the day, but then we were usually coming back to the ship from the hot, humid outdoors and the AC felt good. Occasionally, it would get a little chillier on the main deck areas at night, too, but that wasn't due to AC.

 

I never felt cold in the dining room and also, I saw a lot of women with bare shoulders each night for dinner, and none of them seemed cold. Just to play it safe, I'd pack a nicer sweater to wear with those sundresses!:D

[annbre16]

Thank you SO much for posting such an in depth post of your cruise. My boyfriend and I, both in our mid-20's are cruising for the first time March 21 on the Victory, same ports you visited. We are so beyond thrilled after reading this super awesome review!

[annbre16]

Hi! Your pictures of the sea turtles are AMAZING! Could you please tell me what type of underwater camera you used? I saw you listed 2 above but not the type/brand for the underwater one:) I would really appreciate it!

[scraphappylady]

Hi! Your pictures of the sea turtles are AMAZING! Could you please tell me what type of underwater camera you used? I saw you listed 2 above but not the type/brand for the underwater one:) I would really appreciate it!

 

Thanks! No problem! I used a Canon Powershot D10. Picked it up on Amazon for around $300. I absolutely love it!:)

[RaMar]

Truly a wonderful review and fantastic pictures. Thanks for sharing them,

[milokitty]

This was a busy week, but I just wanted to comment on how much I really enjoyed your review. We also had a wonderful time and could definitely do this itinerary again. (I think this time the kids would INSIST on coming!) I enjoyed hearing about the island tours of Dominica and St Lucia. My DH gets motion sickness and I didn’t think driving all day around mountainous terrain would be very good for everyone in the van.:eek: It was nice to see pix of those islands. We ended up doing boat trips (after taking a meclizine first). We saw sperm whales with IslandStyle Fishing, which was great and lots of fun, and we did the Carnival Catamaran Cruise to the Pitons. That was fine—not as bad as I was expecting. Our tablemates were also on that trip, which made it fun, and we all had a little too much rum punch on that trip!:p Like you, we really LOVED swimming with the sea turtles in Barbados and Thenford Grey’s tour in St Kitts. I’d love to go back to both of those islands.

The ship was wonderful, our room was great, and the service was also great. This was the second Carnival cruise we’ve ever done and for the 2nd time, we had Karl with a K for the cruise director! The food was MUCH BETTER on this cruise than the last—now we would now definitely cruise with Carnival again. We had primarily picked this cruise for the itinerary. We saw about half of the shows. The magician was the only show we weren’t too impressed with. There was way too much theatrics with too little magic. Other than that, we loved it too! I’m also glad we got in and out around snow storms—being stuck at home and missing that great week would have been horrible. Anyway, thanks for taking the time and including all those great pix!!:)

[SeaLionWoman]

Whew! That was fun. Great pictures and conversation. Thanks for sharing!

[scraphappylady]

Whew! That was fun. Great pictures and conversation. Thanks for sharing!

Truly a wonderful review and fantastic pictures. Thanks for sharing them,

 

Thanks, guys! I had a lot of fun doing it and reliving our trip as I went along! Glad you enjoyed it too!:D

 

This was a busy week, but I just wanted to comment on how much I really enjoyed your review. We also had a wonderful time and could definitely do this itinerary again. (I think this time the kids would INSIST on coming!) I enjoyed hearing about the island tours of Dominica and St Lucia. My DH gets motion sickness and I didn’t think driving all day around mountainous terrain would be very good for everyone in the van.:eek: It was nice to see pix of those islands. We ended up doing boat trips (after taking a meclizine first). We saw sperm whales with IslandStyle Fishing, which was great and lots of fun, and we did the Carnival Catamaran Cruise to the Pitons. That was fine—not as bad as I was expecting. Our tablemates were also on that trip, which made it fun, and we all had a little too much rum punch on that trip!:p Like you, we really LOVED swimming with the sea turtles in Barbados and Thenford Grey’s tour in St Kitts. I’d love to go back to both of those islands.

 

The ship was wonderful, our room was great, and the service was also great. This was the second Carnival cruise we’ve ever done and for the 2nd time, we had Karl with a K for the cruise director! The food was MUCH BETTER on this cruise than the last—now we would now definitely cruise with Carnival again. We had primarily picked this cruise for the itinerary. We saw about half of the shows. The magician was the only show we weren’t too impressed with. There was way too much theatrics with too little magic. Other than that, we loved it too! I’m also glad we got in and out around snow storms—being stuck at home and missing that great week would have been horrible. Anyway, thanks for taking the time and including all those great pix!!:)

 

Thanks again, MK! Yeah, my kids are seriously considering this ship and itinerary for their next cruise. DS even started off last night's supper table discussion with "So, mom, the next time we cruise . . . " He's just assuming we're bringing him next time!:rolleyes:

 

I told them, it's a cruise or Disney next year - doubt we can afford both in one year! DD wants to see the new Harry Potter at Universal, though, so that might be enough to sway them there this time. I guess if that's the case, I might just have to get my girlfriends together again to do another ladies only cruise! I don't know how long I could wait, and that way would be a heck of a lot less expensive!

 

I agree with you, though. We also cruise for the itinerary, and this trip really set the bar high. With maybe the exception of Dominica, I would go back to any of these islands in an instant. So if your family decides to do the Victory again, same itinerary, and you'd like company, give me a shout out. We'll see if we could coordinate something with you all! (email me at oh dot scrap @ yahoo dot com)

[milokitty]

I agree with you, though. We also cruise for the itinerary, and this trip really set the bar high. With maybe the exception of Dominica, I would go back to any of these islands in an instant. So if your family decides to do the Victory again, same itinerary, and you'd like company, give me a shout out. We'll see if we could coordinate something with you all! (email me at oh dot scrap @ yahoo dot com)

 

Sound good--I think that would be fun!

[leah1]

Awesome thread!!! Thank you so much for all of the info. We are taking this cruise on 11 Apr and cannot wait.

[MzOhioLady]

What a Great Review!!! And I LOVE the Pictures!!

[S.E.]

AWSOME REVIEW..

 

Thanx for sharing.. The pictures were really great.. I give you a alot of dumbs up.. so detailed with pictures as well.. great job..;):D

 

Emphasses mine. :D

[hottexan]

lOVING YOUR REVIEW! ME AND MY DH WILL BE ON THE VICTORY 4/25/2010 AND WE ARE SO EXCITED!

[PreciousCruiser]

Hey "hottexan". You will be cruising with us and others on The Victory on April 25th. We too are so excited and can't wait! I was born in Texas, moved away when I was very young, but some say I still have the accent. I have an accent, just not sure what it is!

 

Please check out our Roll Call if you haven't already. Think I might have seen a post from you on there already.

 

Here's the link to the Roll Call: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1014748

[kenrod]

scraphappylady

 

I thoroughly enjoyed your review. Your pictures were beautiful, and the story you told made me feel like I was right there with you!

 

I have been looking at this itinerary for some time now and your review makes me want to book this cruise immediately.

 

Thank you very much for sharing your experience with us.