just back from Elation 11/6 cruise

[JustJamieH]

we just got off the Elation yesterday. I will try to post pics later. the cruise was wonderful as expected but I came back from vacation SICK. ugh!!

 

anyway, we boarded on Saturday, November 6th. there were 4 of us. myself and my hunnie Kyle. this was my 3rd cruise and Kyle's 2nd. our friends Ken and Andrea were first timers. needless to say they are now hooked. ;) since we all live in Mobile, we rode together to save on the parking fee. K&A picked us up @ 11am. by 1115am we were in HELL. traffic waiting to get into the terminal was HORRIBLE! after waiting about an hour and not moving a foot we decided to hop out of line and go to Pollman's Bakery for a sweet breakfast. very yummy!

 

we got back into the hell line about 1210. we didn't park the truck until about 130. after parking we run into yet another line. at least this one moved a little. we get up the escalator and are herded thru the metal detectors and given zone number 29. we sit and wait for at least an hour before out zone is called. zone 29 finally called and we are herded into another long line. this one moved decently I guess. it's funny how the people doing check in are SLOOOOOOOOOW as hell right up until about 3 (ship is supposed to set sail @ 4) then magically they start moving people quickly! it took us less than 5 minutes to check in once we finally made it up there. took our boarding picture (everyone in the pic looks pissed but me LOL --- bought it anyway!) then we're on our way. finally make it to the LIDO deck around 330. grab a little lunch and of course some DOD's! vacation has officially started!

 

muster was so much better than last year. no staning outside in the heat with a bulky life jacket (not that the heat would've been a factor on Saturday anyway. the only cold weather we'll see here till January and e ran from it. haha). sitting in the air conditioned theater with a nice cold DOD on hand is perfect!

[JustJamieH]

after muster we went to our rooms (we had R33 - inside and K&A had R31 - porthole) luggage was already there so we unpacked. and by we I mean us girls --- the guys wanted nothing to do with it. they were happy to wear wrinkled clothes straight from the suitcases all week. lol

 

next we went to get some more drinks and explore. oh wait, I forgot!!!!!! the very first thing I did after stepping onto the ship was go to the excursion desk and book the Behind the Fun tour for Kyle and I. we were #12 and 13! whew, we made it. :)

 

ok so back to the drinking. LOL we found a nice little spot on the deck just above the pool. we spent a lot of time there watching the water. this is where we met IKE, our drink server. his nametag says "I KETUT" but he told us to call him IKE. he took great care of us the entire trip (even in the past guest party!!) so if anyone is going soon be sure to look for him. he's going on vacation on Dec 4th.

 

we hung out for a while and Andrea started feeling sick (sinuses) and went to bed. she ended up sleeping thru dinner. the rest of us had dinner in the Imagination dining room. I had shrimp cocktail, ceasar salad, some kind of fish entree and of course the melting cake! Kyle had shrimp cocktail, ceasar salad, flat iron steak and cheesecake. Ken had shrimp cocktail, ceasar salad, mahi mahi and I got him hooked on the melting cake! all was fantastic. after dinner we went back up to our little spot on deck 11 above the pool. we sat for a bit till the guys decided dinner wasn't enough so they had pizza I think. that's all I can remember for now about day 1.

[JustJamieH]

day 2 - sea day

 

beakfast @ the lido buffet. relaxing with drinks on deck 11 enjoying the beautiful blue water. today's drink was not great at all. Andrea liked it but the rest of us went back to the Funship Special. at some point on this day the light that hangs over the side of the ship swung around (windy) at the same time I was getting up out of my deck chair and it smacked me in the head. it hurt like a bitch!!!!!!! broke my favortie $10 WalMart sunglasses too! of course I didn't complain to anyone cuz I'm not that girl. just glad it wasn't any worse and that I had left my prescription sunglasses in the room that day. a few more drinks and my headache went away. ;)

 

Andra and I did a lot today while the boys hung out. We went to the "Shopping Talk" and the "Gemstone show" we got coupons for a free Diamonds International bracelet and free Tanzanite earrings in Cozumel. We also playing in the slot tournament. we both lost big time. LOL we went back @ 230 I think to see if we were the "wild card" ... no such luck. we stuck around to watch the final round. a little old lady won and it was the most precious thing ever! bless her heart. you know how you're supposed to continuously hit the spin button in a slot tournament? well she couldn't. she waited till it stopped spinning every time to reach back up there and she still won by like 100,000 points. everyone was standing around cheering her on. it was GREAT!!!

 

I'm sure we had lunch at some point but I don't remember what we had. LIDO buffett of course. more relaxing and enjoying the ship. then we all decided we needed a nap. I set my phone alarm for 7pm ... we had late seating in the MDR. got ready for elegant night after our nap. I had shrimp cocktail, ceasar salad, shrimp and lobster and of course melting cake again! Andrea had ceasar salad, prime rib and melting cake. Kyle had fried shrimp, ceasar salad and prime rib. Ken had shrimp cocktail, ceasar salad and lobster and shrmp. Our waiter brought him out another just as soon as he finished the first. He asked if I had said something but I did not. Our waiter just knew. He said it wouldn't be enought to fill him up so he thought he needed extra. I told Ken he was making a fat joke on him. LOL the guys left when the singing began so they missed dessert. too bad for them!! after dinner we went for elegant night photos. turned out great! went to roon to get back into some comfy clothes (READ: SHORTS!) more drinking, people watching and late night buffett for the guys. Kyle loved the grilled chicken on the late night buffett.

[JustJamieH]

we filled out the card for room service and went to bed.

 

day 3 - Progreso

 

woke up WAAAY early! called K&A to wake them up to go see the sun rise and pull into port @ Progreso. we found a quiet little spot on deck 12 (I think) all the way forward. it quickly filled up after the sun came up. we got some great pictures and enjoyed the view. being the nice person I am (anyone who knows me would laugh out loud at this) I snuck off and came back with OJ for Kyle and I and 2 cups of coffee for K&A. I even stuck some sugar in my pocket. too baad I forgot a stirrer. oh well I'm not a coffee drinker so it didn'te ven cross my mind till Ihanded it to them. hope Ken's finger doesn't still hurt. hahahah chatted with some fellow cruisers. they were also first timers so we gave them a few tips. one is putsome toilet paper in your carry on when going into Progreso.

 

anyway, we headed back to the room expecting that our breakfast would be there. yeah right. with the time change we didn't realise just how early we haad gotten up. we had time to shower, get dressed and sit and chat for a bit before it arrived. it was nice having rooms accross the hall from each other. we would open both doors and talk accross. didn't require talking loud or yelling. we all ate a little and went down to the gangway. took our pic with the Progreso sign in fron of us and headed down the pier. shopped very little because no one wanted to negotiate with me. Ken got dragged in by a guy selling cigars. LOL!! hopped on the bus for the ride into Progreso. bought several things in the flea market area. Ken spent $25 on some cigars ... we walked out of the flea market and Kyle spent $30 on 2 boxes of cigars. Ken wasn't impressed. hahaha Kle saw a nice bracelet for his mom and they wanted $25. I ended up buying it for $10. walked towards the beach area and haggled a little here and there, checked out what they had to offer. Andrea and I had $20 massages right next to Buddy's (they no longer do it on the beach here) while Kyle and Ken had drinks and chips & salsa in Buddy's. Kyle bought a seashell and coconut wind chime for his grandmother. it's very pretty! after our massages we joined the guys in Buddy's for drinks then we walked back up towards the flea market. I bought a plate that a guys paints with his fingers! he put "Kyle & Jamie" "Progreso 2010" on it ... only 8bucks. they were selling the same thing at the pier for TWENTY EIGHT! good deal I'd say. :) we did the double decker tour bus for $3 per person. that was nice. a little girl maybe 5 or6 ran uop to the bus while we were stopped and just stared at us smiling. I had some change in the bottom of my bag so I handed her 3 quarters. she acted like I had given her 10bucks! kids aounr here would laugh at 3 quarters. it sure made me smile. :) we walked around away from the beach a little ways. I walked into a pharmacy and asked for diet pills. the guys behind the counter handed my duracell batteries. no thanks LOL after looking around a bit we headed back to the ship.

 

had a late lunch, DOD's (I didn't like the Blue Margarita's but Kyle did) I went back to the FunShip Special till I remembered the KISS ON THE LIPS! YUMMM-O!!! Andrea was still hooked on the 2nd day DOD - GoomBay Smash. we watched the ship pull away from Progreso and the sunset. we all went to bed early this night.

[disneyden]

I'm glad that you had a good time on your cruise. :) I can't wait to see some pics of the Elation! We sailed on the Freedom on Oct. 31st and loved every minute of it! I'm ready to go on another one!! :D

[JustJamieH]

forgot to say that I went for my Future Cruise Certificate on day 2 also! can't forget those! :)

 

oh and PG party: Ike found us in our normal spot on deck 12 and told us he was working the PG party and what area he's be serving so we went. as soon as he spotted us, he came up with 2 drinks each for Kyle and I. Kyle was drinking the Blue Margarita and I had the Kiss on the Lips. Every time he came around, which was often, he had two more drinks for each of us. it really pays to find a great server and stick with them. Kyle tipped him about $10-$20 in cash every day. amount depended on how drunk he was. he gets happy when drunk LOL

 

day 4 - Cozumel

 

woke up super early again today. went up to watch us pull into Cozumel but we were nowhere close. so we hung out and watched and waited. finally saw a pilot boat pull up next to us and a guy hopped off and onto our ship. that was pretty cool to watch!

 

after we finally pulled up to the pier we grabbed some breakfast and went back to our rooms to get ready to get off the ship. took our pic with the Cozumel sign in front of us. walked down the LOOOOONG pier admired the beautiful blue water and wondered what we could possibly be doing here to cause our waters to be do brown and icky while a 3rd world country manages to keep theirs so beautiful.

 

anyway, headed to Diamonds International for our free bracelet. if you pay $5 you get a charm from them and 3 other stores "free." we did it of course. who can walk away from free? lol some of the stores with the "free" charms that we had already paid our $5 for were rude! bought a few things before I smartened up and realised I needed to do my shopping on the way back in so I didn't have to lug it around with me all day.

 

we got a taxi for the day. it was $25 per person but the driver stays with you all day. if you walk way out of the way, he even runs back to the taxi and brings it to where we were! our driver was Javier. if you get the chance, ask for him. he was FANTASTIC!

 

he drove us around the island and anytime we saw something we wanted to check out of take pics, we just let him know and he'd stop. after the tour he brought us back to their "flea market" which is really closer to a mall type here. not like the flea market area in Progreso. we did some shopping bought some drinks. then I asked about henna. he took us straight to it. I got two henna tatts which I LOVE! Javier stayed with me while I got the henna so the others could explore in the shopping area. really nice of him!

 

after shopping he took us to see the ruins. he even provided us with some OFF as they had some rain last week and he said the inects could be bad. total cost of $6.75 per person to get in. amazing.

 

after the ruins we rode around for some more sightseeing then headed back. our time wasn't up with the taxi yet but we thought we'd give him the chance to pick up some more people. I hope they enjoyed him as much as we did. we tipped him well for his service! even got pics with him. :)

 

did a lot of shopping and a little haggling before heading back to the ship for food. had a late lunch and came back off the ship for a cheap drink. they only served beer so I just sat back and enjoyed while the guys had their beer. hmmm, not that I think of it, this may have happened on Progreso day)

 

we took pics with several of the props right at the end of the pier and @ Three AMigos. took pics of the Elation/Inspiration side by side. these ships appear identical --- minus the waterworks. there was also a Royal Carribbian ship in port with us. it was massive. and all the balconies??? WOWZA! Oh, Javier told us that this was a slow day with only 3 ships in port. they usually have 8 per day!!!!

 

anyway, back to the ship for food and drinks. we watched the sail away from Cozumel. Kyle & Ken enjoyed some Mexican Mama DOD's while Andrea had her trusty ole Goombay Smash and I stuck with the Kiss on the Lips. they had a deck party this night. it was great. the back was really good. they had some dancing and a conga line. much fun. the band stopped at 1 or 2am and we weren't done so we found the Jeckyl snd Hyde bar. newer music, not alot of people. had a lot fo fun. then we called it a night. had to be up early for the Behind the FUn Tour.

[JustJamieH]

day 5 - sea day

 

woke up to alarm blaring at me at 715am. not fun after a night of drinking!! I woke Kyle up and hopped in the shower. I went and grabbed us some buffett breakfast while he was in the shower. we ate quickly then headed to the library for our tour.

 

well, something I haven't mentioned is that Kyle hurt his back somehow a couple of days before we left. he made it from the library to the galley beforehe had to stop. I told our director that he couldn't continue and he headed back to the room. I stuck with the tour. it was fantastic. I completely agree with everyone who says it is well worth the $. ($55 per person on this ship) I soooooo want a smaller version of the sheet and towel machines. the bridge was AMAZING!!!!! I could stand there for hours. took pics with the captain. Iwas standing right next to him and he forgot his deoderant. the tour was great and is something everyone should do at least once. very informational. we will try it again next cruise because I know Kyle will enjoy it. the tour was supposed to last about 2 hours but due to a VERY TALKATIVE fellow passenger it lasted 3.5hrs.

 

after the tour I went back to the room and Kyle was napping. he looked so comfy I crawled back into bed with him. we slept till almost 2!!!! when I looked at my phone I turned on all the lights and woke him up saying we can't sleep away our last day! we got up and called K&A who were also slepping so we weren't the only lazy ones lol

 

went and got something to eat and lazed around the ship all day. a couple drinks for us all and just enjoying the remainder of our trip. kinda sad that it was scoming to an end. it was very windy this day and the water was a little rough. they closed the top decks due to winds. I started feeling this sinus crap this day so I knew a dr visit was in my future on debark day! final trip through the gift shop, cigarettes and alcohol and we called it a night.

[JustJamieH]

debark day

 

we woke up around 7 and the ship was already in port. we learned that our fellow passengers are not good at following directions.

 

had breakfast and watched crew load and unload the ship. they filled up a uhaul with old mattressess. we were told in the Behind the Fun tour that they donate them so that's nice.

 

wasn't long before our zone was called and we were off. herded thru the lines and down into the luggage warehouse. Kyle went to the porter line while the rest of us located our bags. the regular customs line was LONG and looked dreadful, but we knew to get a porter and we were out of there quickly. tipped outr porter $20 just for saving us from that long line. ;)

 

another note: we did visit the casino several times and make our donations. no winnings thistime though. there's always hope for next time! we also didn't attend any of the shows so I can't creally comment on them. others said they were really good. the shows are new. we learned this was only their 3rd production of the new shows in the BTF tour.

 

anyway, if you have any questions, feel free to ask. and again. I'll try to get some pics posted soon.

[JustJamieH]

oh I forgot to say it's pretty sad to come back home to reality! I've been dialing 8000 since yesterday and I still haven't received any room service!!!!!! lol

 

been home about 36 hours and I'm already itching to book the next one. ;)

[gfsmith]

Thank you for such a detailed review I felt like i was there with you :)

 

Did you save the fun times sheets? I would really love a copy of them if you have them.. We will be on the Elation in December, 3rd time for me BF is a cruise virgin :)

 

Thanks, Becca

[JustJamieH]

Thank you for such a detailed review I felt like i was there with you :)

 

Did you save the fun times sheets? I would really love a copy of them if you have them.. We will be on the Elation in December, 3rd time for me BF is a cruise virgin :)

 

Thanks, Becca

 

sorry Becca, I did not keep the Fun TImes on this cruise. I did last time and have never even looked at them again after getting off the ship so I figured it was a waste. hopefully someone else has them for you. :) maybe check the 11/6 roll call board?

[JustJamieH]

sorry it took so long, but I *finally* got my pics together

 

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2109541&id=1418568142&saved#!/album.php?aid=2109541&id=1418568142

[marshhawk]

Thanks, loved the review and the pictures. We are sailing the Elation next year. I can finally say in less than a year, but you know once you are ready to cruise,one year seems like a million!