Review - Big Boat Glory - March 13 -20, 1011

[Dulin79]

Great review. Going on Glory in 30 Days on Easter Sunday celebrating 10 Year Anniversary

[emmasmom123]

We will also be on the Glory April 24 celebrating our 10 year anniversary!!! Sooooooo excited!!!

 

Love your review so far!!!

 

Jenn

[OneManWolfPack]

What is the "new drink card" you mentioned?

[brnsnbrws]

I cruise on the Glory in 8 days! Anxiously awaiting for more of your review.

[arf2005]

What is the "new drink card" you mentioned?

 

If you rack up 1500 points in the casino, you will be able to drink for free for the remainder of your cruise while you are gambling. The down side to this is finding a waiter - they aren't always around when you want them - but hey, it's still free so you can't complain about that!

 

Thanks everyone for the positive comments - and I'm so jealous of those of you who are just now getting ready for your cruises! Wish I was going back! Please report back on how yours went as well.

[jusplainsh0rty]

We will also be on the Glory April 24 celebrating our 10 year anniversary!!! Sooooooo excited!!!

 

Love your review so far!!!

 

Jenn

 

Great review. Going on Glory in 30 Days on Easter Sunday celebrating 10 Year Anniversary

 

Happy Anniversary to the both of you!! I will also be on the Glory for my 2nd time the week of Easter (the 24th-1st) <3 i am SO ready!! :D

[arf2005]

Tuesday - First Sea Day

 

It was very windy on our first sea day and therefore very hard to be on our balcony or on the top decks - therefore we spent way more time in the casino than we should have! The Big Boat was moving pretty fast and a few of our group had some problems with the movement so that put a little damper on things as well until they got their sea legs under them. Since this was my 6th cruise, exploring the ship isn't as high on my list as it use to be. March Madness was in progress so part of our group spent quite a bit of time in the sports bar again. Several checked out the Serenity Area and said it was a cool area for the adults. I never made it that far!

 

 

 

Since it was March 15th and the Ides of March we decided to dress in Togas for dinner that evening. It was also the birthday of another of our group. By the end of the week we decided everyone in the dining room had had a birthday! That's how many times Happy Birthday had been sung it seemed! Once again service was wonderful!

 

[arf2005]

Wednesday - St. Thomas - Sapphire Beach

 

We had visited St. Thomas once before and gone on the champagne catamaran excursion (wonderful!) and decided with such a large group we would just do a beach day this time. We decided on Sapphire Beach based on the reviews I had read here on cruise critic. We took a taxi from the port and while I don't remember the exact time it took to get back and forth I would estimate about 20 minutes or so. We spent the afternoon laying in the sun, playing in the water and walking along the beach. A Perfect Day in Paradise!

 

[arf2005]

Thursday, San Juan - St. Patrick's Day

 

Part of our group hired a private tour guide to go to the rainforest. They throughly enjoyed this although they said you had to be physically fit to be able to climb the waterfall. They were also able to zip-line.

 

 

My cousin and a friend and I hit the outlet stores where we bought Coach purses at 1/3 the normal cost and then celebrated at the birthplace of the pina coladas where my friend found our waiter to be the long lost twin of her boyfriend!

 

 

The boyfriend...

 

 

The waiter...

 

 

My granddaughters thought the buildings in Old San Juan looked like castles! They were also enthralled with the pirate ship just outside the port.

 

 

As we were leaving San Juan, we had to turn the Big Boat around and go back for a medical evacuation. Luckily we weren't but a few minutes from port. That night there was a huge deck party with a Mexican buffet on the Lido deck - yummy!

[capndinghy]

Thank you for such a great Review. I am looking forward to more!

[navybaby1113]

Great review so far!

[arf2005]

Friday - Gran Turk

 

Woke up with a sinus infection - yuck! Went immediately to the infirmary because I knew the airplane ride home would be miserable without medication. Thank goodness for antibotics! I couldn't believe how busy that place was at 8am! There was a line of people waiting for it to open!

 

My new favorite place is Gran Turk! What a beautiful place! My son and his fiance decided on the spot they wanted to take their honeymoon there. It is everything you think of when you think of a tropical island.

 

 

 

We got off of the Big Boat and went directly to Margaritaville to watch several of our party on the Flow Rider. What fun!

 

 

 

Then the little ones played in the water by Margaritaville for a while as it was too far for them to walk down the beach to the famous Jacks Shack where the rest of us were going. We noticed a big difference in the sand at the port vs further down the beach - you can tell it's coarser - as though it's been brought in.

 

 

Jack and Janet at Jack's Shack

 

 

The drink menu (I highly recommend Janet's Mojito (she grows her own mint) and the Sandy Vagina!

 

If you prefer to stay at Margaritaville, it was pretty wild, but I like the more calm, laid-back scene of the beach bar to be found at a place like Jack's.

 

 

This is just an amazingly beautiful place. We actually saw conch shells on the ocean floor as we swam out as well as many fish. The water is so clear you can see clear to the ocean floor for quite a distance from the beach.

 

 

 

If you are looking for wild adventure you may not find it at this stop (other than snorkeling, etc) but if you want sheer beauty and relaxation - this stop is for you! If you look for it, there is also a tribute to the original 7 Mercury astronauts (by the shops) as several of them landed by the island in the 60's at the end of their mission.

 

 

This was the second elegant night and we chose to do a 20's theme - flapper dresses/gangster style suits with fedoras.

 

[JAXCRUISER]

I'm really enjoying reading your review. Thanks!

[arf2005]

Saturday - Day at Sea

 

Lots of Activities plalnned today - seemed like they should put some of thesse on the other sea day when there wasn't as much planned! We played bingo, trivia - you name it - we tried it!

 

At 4 we had an hour party for oiur group in the disco. Free drinks and snacks! From there we moved to the Farewell Party at 5 where there were more free drinks and a live band. The Farewell Party was actually much better attended than what I was led to expect by reading here on the boards.

 

Our drink waiter from dinner took care of us at the Farewell Party by bringing our group the drinks he knew we normally drank instead of those being passed around. Needless to say he was well tipped!

 

Saturday Night:

 

Before I finish I want to say that out of all my cruises, I believe the service I received on the Glory was by far the best! Miguel and Rauol were outstanding and I hope Carnival knows and appreciates what great employees they have in these gentlement as well as those who help support them.

 

That being said, we did unfortunately end the cruise on a sour note - not Carnival's fault.

 

I as laying on a lounger on my huge wrap around balcony about 3:30 am Sat./Sunk morning half sleeping, half watching the beautiful moon that we had that week. Fortunately, a light mist came up (they may have been washing the balcony windows) and I got up to go in to the bathroom). "The door to my room was standing open and as I crossed the threshold a loud (and I mean LOUD) crash came from behind me! It's a wonder I didn't wet my pants right then and there!~ Before I actually lkooked, I thought a light had exploded on the balcony. However, as I turned to look, I heard loud laughing and talking and there on my balcony was what appeared to be pottery pieces (turned out ot be plates). Some teenagers on the 10th floor appparently decided they would try and hit the ocean and instead hit the floor of my balcony!

 

I called security, but of course the kids were long gone. My nerves however were shot and I had a cut on my toe from a piece that had ricocheted(sp) to show for their horseplay. No more sleep for me that night. I am thankful I didn't sit there 5 seconds longer or I would have had very serious injuries.

 

My concern, and maybe I'm being a baby here, is that no one from Carnival bothered to check Sundany morning to see if I was tkruly ok. My nerves were shot - sort of like immediately after you've beein in a near miss car accident. Their ship, their guest, their unruly guests, their concern - I would think.

 

Sorry that is so long but it was really the only negative of our trip and I thought it should have been handled differently.

 

After debarking the Big Boat we were picked up by QLS and taken to the Holiday Inn Oceanfront on Miami Beach. This is a beautiful spot to spend the night, however not too many places to eat that are reasonably priced! Monday QLS picked us up and took us to FLL and we breezed thru security and onto our nonstop fllight home. Back to reality!

[brnsnbrws]

Thanks for your review. We leave 1 wk from today for Miami-then on Sunday boarding the Glory. We will be doing the western itinerary.

[lucy-ba-ducy]

We were on this sailing with you. Its funny how many times we crossed paths...Holiday Inn Port of Miami Saturday night -- what was up with that "music" festival Saturday night?! lol We also spent the day at Jack's Shack. Such a good time. Our neighbors (aft cabin on deck 7) were at Margaritaville and while they had a good time, they complained about the prices and how crowded it was. As for us, Jacks was perfection! We chatted with a couple who had just moved there (John & Debby), and they definately planted a seed in DH's mind about dropping out of life and moving there as well. I don't remember seeing your group there, probably because Jack was pouring very liberal Goldendoodles that day!!, but I do remember seeing the two little girls in their cute dresses on the 2nd formal night. Anyway, thanks for posting this review. It was such a good time:)

[margie1221]

Thanks for sharing - we did the same cruise on the Glory in February and also had a fantastic time!! Loved reliving it with you and your photos. Looks like your group had a lot of fun - love the pre-planned shirts and themed outfits!

 

Glad you had some divine intervention to walk off your balcony moments before the knuckleheads above you tossed the plates overboard only to land exactly where you were blissfully enjoying that full moon...

 

YIKES!! Sorry to hear that the Management didn't handle it better.

 

Terrific review

[brnsnbrws]

The Holiday Inn Port of Miami isn't as nice as where we've stayed the past few year (Embassy Suites FLL), but it is certainly adequate and the location is perfect for Miami departures.

 

After checking in, we ate supper across the street at Bubba Gumps. I had some fantastic gumbo! Reviews from the others were mixed. About half felt the food was excellent and about half thought it was just ok. The Bayside area was a party place on Saturday night with tons of things going on and we walked around for awhile just taking in the sights.

 

We also made sure to walk down to the CVS to get our allowed bottles of champagne. It's 2 blocks down from the hotel (turn right as you exit the hotel).

 

We had made arrangements for QLS to pick us up at 9:45. Some tried to eat breakfast at the hotel but be very careful. Make sure that if you are given a ticket for a Continental breakfast, you don't stray to the OTHER side! They will hunt you down and slap you hard in front of one and all! (Their set-up is very confusing to say the least when it comes to the breakfast buffet items but hey - we were going on the Big Boat and I didn't need no sticking breakfast!)

 

We arrived at the Big Boat around 9:50 and of course were in Zone 1! We breezed through the check-in and within 20 minutes the lines were fairly long. Zones 1 and 2 were called t0 board around 11:30 and we were finally on our way aboard the Big Boat! Lunch and a DOD by 11:45!

 

We sail Glory this Sunday, 4/03. We are also staying at the Holoday Inn POM. After reading your post we are contacting QLS for a shuttle to the port. Do you pick the pick up time or do they? We want to get to the port about 10:30

[DebNJoe]

Not to hijack but we were on the Glory March 6 and had no issues at all with room temp. As a matter of fact one day we even had to turn it down, it was getting so cool(and I am very warm by nature). Our room was 7439.

 

Great review, ready to read more.

 

Do you recall if the balcony divider was able to be opened between 7439 and 7435?

 

Thanks!