Carnival Pride 4/25

[nancybruce5]

Hey everyone.. just got off the Carnival Pride on Sunday... we had a fantastic time!! It was a terrific cruise. We cruised on the Pride 7 years ago from Port Canaveral. This was our 6th cruise with kids.. We are in our 40's and have five daughters... 11, 12, 13, 14, & 15 yrs old.. The 14 yr old didnt cruise with us, but a friend of my 15 year old came along..

 

We are from New Hampshire and flying to FLA for cruising is just too expensive, so Baltimore was perfect for us. In addition, we have family in Baltimore, so they were able to drop us off to save on parking!

 

We arrived on Sunday around 12:30 and unloaded ALL our luggage (5 girls plus mom!!).. it was a breeze... short registration line and then a short wait in a staging area.. All very painless.. Carnival did require a letter from our daughters friends parents stating she was accompanying us on the cruise...

Got on board and around 2:30 the rooms were ready. We had two bottles of wine in our carryons..in addition.. we had 7 1 liter bottles of soda.. No problems at all.. I also had stowed away a " box of wine" in luggage, couple of nips, and husband found a way to get some of his beloved " Jack" in his suitcase...no issues.. Cruising out of Baltimore was a little overcast and cool.. but kids got suits on and hit the pools and hottubs.. The semi-roof over the one pool really helps on days that the weather isnt so great.

Dinner was casual.. dress as you are on first night.. We ate dinner every night in dining room. We had early seating.. not what husband wanted.. but it worked out.. The "dress code" is all over the place.. some people in really dressy clothes and people in jeans and shorts.. I guess you can just wear what you are most comfortable in and it will be appropriate! Our dining room waiters were terrific!! They were very patient and understanding with the kids.. who would change their minds or add more food to their orders!! We found the food to be good... some stuff delicious..spinach salad, stuffed mushrooms, escargot, thai chicken tenders.. lobster tails, fettucini carbonara, salmon, Chateaubriand.. much more.. never really had a bad meal!!! we ate primarily in dining room for breakfast also.. so nice to be waited on for breakfast and have coffee delivered to table then to fight the buffet lines in the morning...trying to balance trays, coffee cups, dodging people and searching for an empty table.. no thanks... we did buffet for lunch and waited in line for burgers and chicken fingers for lunch.. Late night Pizza, yes.. Ice Cream 24 hours.. yes.. Room Service.. yes.. all good!!!

We had two cabins.. 5228 and 5234.. obstructed balcony... Really not obstructed.. great cabins and perfect location on ship.. near elevators and stairs.. Great view.. the life boats are right below your balcony, not really obstructing... just cant see straight down.. ok.. Our cabin steward, Novi.. was amazing.... she knew our names immediately and we saw her several times every day!! every time she asked how everything was! she was very patient and understanding.. especially with girls cabin.. messy! I made them pick up every morning and every evening before she came in.. she didnt seem phased about the mess at all!! She probably has seen alot worse!! and not necessarily kids either!!!

The majority of people on this cruise were older.. big groups of people cruising together.. Red Hat ladies.. Alot of retired and elderly people.. it was a quiet week.. First day at Sea was a little rocky..windy and foggy.. we still laid out by pool.. Second day.. was gorgeous.. sunny warm and bit windy still.. pretty calm.. Day three.. Port Canaveral.. nice day.. high 70's.. my dad lives in Port Canaveral .. so we just hung at the beach with him for the day.. Day four.. Nassau..we really wanted to do Atlantis.. but the price is crazy .. and since we didnt dock until about 11 am and and the Atlantis water park closed at around 5 or 6 pm.. we just couldnt justify the price.. we did a day pass at the Wyndham Cable beach for $40 pp.. cab ride was about 15 minutes.. you can use both pools at Wyndham and Sheraton.. beach access... and buffet lunch at the Wyndham.. we had a great day.. nice and sunny again! Freeport.. Day five.. it is not an attractive Pier area.. small area of shops walkable from ship.. we didnt do anything in Freeport either.. ( this was kinda a budget vacation for us.. we usually arent so boring!!)... A woman apparently drowned at Deadmans reef in Freeport so we were slightly delayed in leaving Freeport.. very sad.. but not much said at all on ship by anyone...Day six.. at sea.. very calm seas and very beautiful weather.. sunny and hot.. all in all.. we had great weather.. I was on a cruise out of NYC couple years ago in February.. and I will never do that again.. cold and rough seas.. April seemed a much better choice!!!

I tried to encourage girls to check out the kids clubs so they would not be bored.. there wasnt a whole lot for them to do.. I guess they thought they were to "cool" to go to kids club.. and ended up making friends anyways and kinda hung out.. they stayed out of trouble.. I made sure of that!!! In the past on all the cruises they took, kids club was always the highlight of their cruise vacations.. I guess they have outgrown that aspect of cruising and are looking for more "young" adult activities.. Hard for mom and dad to relax!! yikes..

Entertainment.. comedians were good.. You have bingo and the casinos, Karoke was pretty entertaining.. the usual.. didnt see any shows..

Kinda off subject, but.. the tip policy.. honest to god.. $70 per person for a weeks worth of being waited on at dinner time and having someone clean, and I mean clean, your cabin everyday.. is beyond worth it.. Working in the Restaurant and Hospitality industry for the past 10 years.. you have no idea how hard these people work to earn so little!! We even gave the cabin steward more cash at the end!! I dont think any of us would want to or could work like those people on the cruise staff.. I wonder if its even legal....???!!! food for thought..

I would not hesitate to cruise on the Pride from Baltimore again.. if they add a longer cruise with different ports of call, that would make it that more attractive.. It was a very relaxing vacation.. but that is just what I needed.. so no complaints..

Have a great cruise.. have fun.. relax.. I am jealous!!

[cantwait06]

You were getting on as I was getting off :( lucky you!

 

I'm glad to hear you had such a great cruise! I loved our trip on the Pride, it really was amazing!

 

Thanks for the mini-review!:D

[thePrincess1]

Hey everyone.. just got off the Carnival Pride on Sunday... we had a fantastic time!! It was a terrific cruise. We cruised on the Pride 7 years ago from Port Canaveral. This was our 6th cruise with kids.. We are in our 40's and have five daughters... 11, 12, 13, 14, & 15 yrs old.. The 14 yr old didnt cruise with us, but a friend of my 15 year old came along..

 

We are from New Hampshire and flying to FLA for cruising is just too expensive, so Baltimore was perfect for us. In addition, we have family in Baltimore, so they were able to drop us off to save on parking!

 

We arrived on Sunday around 12:30 and unloaded ALL our luggage (5 girls plus mom!!).. it was a breeze... short registration line and then a short wait in a staging area.. All very painless.. Carnival did require a letter from our daughters friends parents stating she was accompanying us on the cruise...

Got on board and around 2:30 the rooms were ready. We had two bottles of wine in our carryons..in addition.. we had 7 1 liter bottles of soda.. No problems at all.. I also had stowed away a " box of wine" in luggage, couple of nips, and husband found a way to get some of his beloved " Jack" in his suitcase...no issues.. Cruising out of Baltimore was a little overcast and cool.. but kids got suits on and hit the pools and hottubs.. The semi-roof over the one pool really helps on days that the weather isnt so great.

Dinner was casual.. dress as you are on first night.. We ate dinner every night in dining room. We had early seating.. not what husband wanted.. but it worked out.. The "dress code" is all over the place.. some people in really dressy clothes and people in jeans and shorts.. I guess you can just wear what you are most comfortable in and it will be appropriate! Our dining room waiters were terrific!! They were very patient and understanding with the kids.. who would change their minds or add more food to their orders!! We found the food to be good... some stuff delicious..spinach salad, stuffed mushrooms, escargot, thai chicken tenders.. lobster tails, fettucini carbonara, salmon, Chateaubriand.. much more.. never really had a bad meal!!! we ate primarily in dining room for breakfast also.. so nice to be waited on for breakfast and have coffee delivered to table then to fight the buffet lines in the morning...trying to balance trays, coffee cups, dodging people and searching for an empty table.. no thanks... we did buffet for lunch and waited in line for burgers and chicken fingers for lunch.. Late night Pizza, yes.. Ice Cream 24 hours.. yes.. Room Service.. yes.. all good!!!

We had two cabins.. 5228 and 5234.. obstructed balcony... Really not obstructed.. great cabins and perfect location on ship.. near elevators and stairs.. Great view.. the life boats are right below your balcony, not really obstructing... just cant see straight down.. ok.. Our cabin steward, Novi.. was amazing.... she knew our names immediately and we saw her several times every day!! every time she asked how everything was! she was very patient and understanding.. especially with girls cabin.. messy! I made them pick up every morning and every evening before she came in.. she didnt seem phased about the mess at all!! She probably has seen alot worse!! and not necessarily kids either!!!

The majority of people on this cruise were older.. big groups of people cruising together.. Red Hat ladies.. Alot of retired and elderly people.. it was a quiet week.. First day at Sea was a little rocky..windy and foggy.. we still laid out by pool.. Second day.. was gorgeous.. sunny warm and bit windy still.. pretty calm.. Day three.. Port Canaveral.. nice day.. high 70's.. my dad lives in Port Canaveral .. so we just hung at the beach with him for the day.. Day four.. Nassau..we really wanted to do Atlantis.. but the price is crazy .. and since we didnt dock until about 11 am and and the Atlantis water park closed at around 5 or 6 pm.. we just couldnt justify the price.. we did a day pass at the Wyndham Cable beach for $40 pp.. cab ride was about 15 minutes.. you can use both pools at Wyndham and Sheraton.. beach access... and buffet lunch at the Wyndham.. we had a great day.. nice and sunny again! Freeport.. Day five.. it is not an attractive Pier area.. small area of shops walkable from ship.. we didnt do anything in Freeport either.. ( this was kinda a budget vacation for us.. we usually arent so boring!!)... A woman apparently drowned at Deadmans reef in Freeport so we were slightly delayed in leaving Freeport.. very sad.. but not much said at all on ship by anyone...Day six.. at sea.. very calm seas and very beautiful weather.. sunny and hot.. all in all.. we had great weather.. I was on a cruise out of NYC couple years ago in February.. and I will never do that again.. cold and rough seas.. April seemed a much better choice!!!

I tried to encourage girls to check out the kids clubs so they would not be bored.. there wasnt a whole lot for them to do.. I guess they thought they were to "cool" to go to kids club.. and ended up making friends anyways and kinda hung out.. they stayed out of trouble.. I made sure of that!!! In the past on all the cruises they took, kids club was always the highlight of their cruise vacations.. I guess they have outgrown that aspect of cruising and are looking for more "young" adult activities.. Hard for mom and dad to relax!! yikes..

Entertainment.. comedians were good.. You have bingo and the casinos, Karoke was pretty entertaining.. the usual.. didnt see any shows..

Kinda off subject, but.. the tip policy.. honest to god.. $70 per person for a weeks worth of being waited on at dinner time and having someone clean, and I mean clean, your cabin everyday.. is beyond worth it.. Working in the Restaurant and Hospitality industry for the past 10 years.. you have no idea how hard these people work to earn so little!! We even gave the cabin steward more cash at the end!! I dont think any of us would want to or could work like those people on the cruise staff.. I wonder if its even legal....???!!! food for thought..

I would not hesitate to cruise on the Pride from Baltimore again.. if they add a longer cruise with different ports of call, that would make it that more attractive.. It was a very relaxing vacation.. but that is just what I needed.. so no complaints..

Have a great cruise.. have fun.. relax.. I am jealous!!

 

 

Did your daughters take anything for seasickness? We are heading out on the Pride on May 16th and I'm not sure if I should give my 15 yr old something right away or wait... Any advice is greatly appreciated! I'm so glad that you had a wonderful time! Thanks for the review!!

[josh35b]

I was on the same cruise. The review sounded dead on.

 

I would have your daughter start taking "less drowsy" drammamine before she gets on the ship and to keep taking it the whole cruise if there is any chance whatsoever she could get sick. It won't hurt anything. Once she gets sick, it is so hard to get better, I wouldn't take the chance. The first cruise my wife went on, she took drammamine the first few days, the water was really rough and she felt fine, she got cocky and stopped taking it and shortly after she got sea sick.

[nancybruce5]

We all took Bonine the morning that we departed for the Pride. I tend to get seasick and I was fine.. I kept taking the Bonine for three days and then stopped. The girls were fine. They only took it for two days and we were fine.. We were lucky because I thought we had pretty calm seas.. Enjoy!!!

[thePrincess1]

Thank you both for your input!!

[Aknot]

Nancy,

 

I really want to read that but Im having a difficult time.. :( can you paragraph it out?

 

We sail Sept and I am attempting to devour any and all information on the Pride.

 

Thanks.

[tomsgirl3]

We board on Sunday with our daughters. 7 & 5!!! Thank you for your review! I am devouring Pride reviews this week! It's our first cruise and we are all so excited!

[iamgolden]

i was on this cruise, and was scheduled to go to deadman's reef snorkling in freeport. we decided not to go because it was so overcast at 9AM when we were supposed to meet the group. yikes.

 

i had a good time on this cruise, but think i will stick to sailing out of FLA in the future. it was just too cold, i wore a sweatshirt the first 4 days of the cruise until we got down around the bahamas.

[murphyarnold]

:)

 

Hi Nancy!!!!

 

So glad you had a great cruise!! I was on the Pride the week before you.

 

I have a question I booked the same room 5234 as you. How was the obstruction? I am going Spring Break 2011 and last month I had a balcony 8C and this time I booked the 7A and am a little nervous.

 

If you could let me know I would appreciate it.

 

We had a great time.....I got off the ship Sunday and booked the Pride on Monday the day after!! My husband thinks I am NUTS:)!!!!

 

Thanks again,

 

Patti

[nancybruce5]

Your not nuts!! I wish I could of booked again for next year.. I loved this cruise.. not alot happening.. but very relaxing... I would do it again with just my husband or friends... kids were bored...teens... !!!!!

Cabin 5234 was fantastic... really not obstructed in my opinion.. the life boats are not at eye level.. you look down on them.. you have a great view of the ocean and ports.. just not straight down.. who cares... I thought it was a perfect location on the ship.. elevator and stairwell right around corner.. just short walk down to the Normandie dining room for dinner.. it was terrific... Have a great time...