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All Things Fantasy

NCTribeFan

By NCTribeFan,
in Carnival Cruise Lines

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missdebi

missdebi

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Just got back a few weeks ago from a 5 day on the Fascination and having cruised a few months before that on the Fantasy the Fantasy crew has them beat hands down!!! The Fantasy crew are so much more cheerful and accommodating~ we will be back Fantasy!!!! And this was cruise #12 so I can compare~the Fascination crew on this particular crew were the worst we have encountered~snappy, some rude and just not up to what we usually have seen on our other cruises~certainly won't stop us we are ready to book again!

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5NDaBed

5NDaBed

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We arrived at port at 11am for 12/12:30am embarkment but did not get on until after 2pm. It was HORRIBLE! People leaving their cars in search of porta potties. The ship apparently returned to port late and everyone had to go through customs on the way out. When we got to our rooms after 2pm, housekeeping was just getting into the rooms so we were unable to do anything but throw items into the closet. The ship was to leave port at 4pm but did not leave until 9:15pm so no casino and paid taxes until then.

The staff had to work hard to raise everyone's spirits after such a bad 1st day. The weather also didn't help as it was cold and extremely windy. My son and I did have to get motion sickness medicine (available at guest services for a few dollars). The cruise director and captain did not keep up updated with days events and weather as they had on the Pride last year but did well the last 2 days.

The staff were wonderful, helpful, respectful etc. Shout out to Dunkley who was our steward and my son loved his towel animals. Tono was our bartender (2 drinks and 2 cokes) but stopped by to say hello everyday. The Camp Carnival staff was amazing and I am now one of those parents I used to talk about as my child never wanted to leave.

Any vacation is what you make of it so be determined to have a great time and it will be difficult not to despite the weather (Bahamas and Key West broke records for cold this past week). Have fun!

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bahama97

bahama97

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We are just back from Carnival Fantasy (left 12/17 and got back 12/22). This was my first Carnival cruise & I really had a great time. There were a couple "issues" during our cruise but they were handled fairly quickly & appropriately.

 

We were in U144 and had Marcelino as our room steward. He did an excellent job & was always smiling. We chose anytime dining & that worked really well for us. We had Kristian from Croatia the first night & he was so wonderful that we requested him each night. The warm chocolate melting cakes is AMAZING...definitely recommend that to all chocolate lovers out there! Tono brought us drinks each night at dinner. Very friendly guy.

 

I wish the weather had been better, but I guess you take your chances when you cruise in December. However, it was much warmer than our temps at home, so can't really complain. The best days for the waterpark area were definitely while we were in port. Seems like the sun had a better chance at warming the water & the wind wasn't too bad.

 

We loved the Ticket To Ride show. It was a tribute to The Beatles & very well done. Definitely a do not miss!

 

Hope to be back on another Carnival ship sometime in the near future! Thanks everyone for the advice along the way!

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  • 4 weeks later...
Momta2girls

Momta2girls

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Wow so much helpful information in this thread of posts. Only 4 more weeks to go and I am getting so excited. We find ourselves talking about it more and more each day. My sister is getting married on the ship on March 1st and 13 of us are sailing with them as well. It's gonna be a blast.

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  • 4 months later...
cruisecrazy82

cruisecrazy82

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I have been reading a blog from a recent Fantasy Cruise and the author refers to the "secret deck" I am sailing the Fantasy in about 30 days, can anyone clue me in as to where this "secret deck" is located?

 

 

I would like to know this too!:D

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  • 1 month later...
petesweet

petesweet

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Nope..did mean the Majesty...we sailed her many years ago..knew Celebrity had a ship there too but didn't realize the Majesty was gone..small, older ship and just not a good cruise.

 

Also if you sail out of Charleston in the winter you could have a day or two with cold weather. We sailed in January and it was cold coming and going!

 

Please tell me the Fantasy is better than NCL Majesty.:(

 

Kathy

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hallmarkk

hallmarkk

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Please tell me the Fantasy is better than NCL Majesty.:(

 

Kathy

sailed the Fanyasy July 23rd to the 29, 2011 it was awesome, it was a full ship and I have NO COMPLAINTS, if I did I would not hesitate to complain I wasn't to excited to find out a bunch of kids were on that ship, since I was traveling with no kids, but they were fine, never a bother, food was wonderful, loved the serenity deck our room was kept perfect!!!!

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  • 11 months later...
NCTribeFan

NCTribeFan

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I thought I'd revive this thread since I just switched my Ecstasy B2B in November to a Fantasy B2B in October.

 

I love Cocoa Beach and sailing from Port Canaveral, but with all the extras needed (transportation from the airport/rental car, flights, etc), we decided we could do the 7-night from Charleston for about the same as the 4-night Ecstasy. And since the itinerary is Grand Turk, HMC and Nassau rather than Freeport and Nassau, it just makes so much more sense for us.

 

Yes, I was going to surprise DD and her new DH with a balcony cabin on Ecstasy and that isn't an option on Fantasy. Oh well! Saves me some money. :p

 

So I won't be on the ship for my 60th b-day. Well, boo hoo! I'll just have to have an early party, right?

 

Here's my question - I normally sail in inside cabins because that means I can sail more frequently. Having a window means nothing to me. I'd rather spend that money on something meaningful.

 

I really like the beds arranged in the "L" configuration. My PVP put us in an inside on Main, midship, as I requested. But when I look at the deck plan, our cabin has the two dots, meaning two fold-down bunks.

 

Will that prevent us from having the beds configured that way? It really opens up the floor space.

 

I'll be solo on Leg 1, so the beds will have to be separated and moved before Leg 2 anyway.

 

Any recent Fantasy sailors gotten a good deal on Park-N-Cruise hotels that include a shuttle to and from the pier?

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NCTribeFan

NCTribeFan

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I know what you mean. I sailed on Glory last October to Bermuda then Fascination about 5 weeks later.

 

Yes, the menus have changed some but the food was still very good. I never had a problem finding entertainment (or I just made my own!).

 

Is it still the case that you should NOT arrive at the port too early? When I cruised her last, it was just the 2nd sailing after she moved to Charleston. I know it isn't the largest, newest port from which to sail and that they're pretty strict about how vehicles are allowed in both to park and as drop-offs.

 

I'm going to try Anytime Dining by myself on Leg 1. Did you do that or have set dining?

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All4fun&fun4all

All4fun&fun4all

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I know what you mean. I sailed on Glory last October to Bermuda then Fascination about 5 weeks later.

 

Yes, the menus have changed some but the food was still very good. I never had a problem finding entertainment (or I just made my own!).

 

Is it still the case that you should NOT arrive at the port too early? When I cruised her last, it was just the 2nd sailing after she moved to Charleston. I know it isn't the largest, newest port from which to sail and that they're pretty strict about how vehicles are allowed in both to park and as drop-offs.

 

I'm going to try Anytime Dining by myself on Leg 1. Did you do that or have set dining?

 

I have heard from some folks that have been arriving as early as 10:30. I think this time around we are going to do the same. We sailed in March of this year and got there later than I wanted to (GRRRR Andrew) but this sailing, I want to get there by 10;45 at the latest.

 

We are also sailing the 7 day cruise this time around but ours is in December. Do you think you may do a review?

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Pinkfloydfan

Pinkfloydfan

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Just got of the Fantasy yesterday,and we had a blast! All these threads that talked about cut backs,and no live music had me worried.But I didn't see any of this on the Fantasy.There was live music almost every night .

mamaof3crazykids, Glad you enjoyed the Fantasy. Did you happen to hear Music Boardwalk while onboard? Pink,PS if I didn't already have my screen name I would of used "daddyof3crazykids" (all girls:eek:)

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mommytotwins

mommytotwins

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Any recent Fantasy sailors gotten a good deal on Park-N-Cruise hotels that include a shuttle to and from the pier?

 

Would love to know this as well. We will be on the Fantasy in April and I've only been to Charleston once. I know some areas are kind of shady and would love to avoid those.

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NCTribeFan

NCTribeFan

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I've asked on the East Coast Departures board. The person I think of as Isle-of-Palms-Guy has given some very good info.

 

Last time, I stayed at the Hawthorne Suites for $99, including parking and shuttle. It's now $179! :eek:

 

I love Charleston. I'm really trying to talk myself out of doing the B2B and just going down a couple of days early. But I figure 2 extra nights in Charleston, plus food, plus any activities would cost at least 50% of what the 5-day solo is costing me. So, would I rather hang out in Charleston or get another 5 days on the ship. Hmmm. I bet I'll keep the B2B! :p

 

All4fun - You betcha I'll write a review! I did this itinerary on the other Charleston sailing (7 day, GT, HMC & Nassau). It was my first true solo cruise (I'd done the CTN out of Norfolk but that doesn't really count).

 

Let me find the link to my review. It won't be as entertaining as yours, but feel free to read through it.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1210460

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