Just off the Valor

[FOXYDEBBY]

I had a wonderful time!!! Carnival was wonderful!! The worst part of our cruise was that our cabin (6379) was right over the casino band. We heard loud music until 2am, sometimes later. My DH was unable to sleep. We went to guest services but the ship was full and there was no place to move us....so...They refunded us 20% of our cruise and 15% off a future cruise. We didn't ask for it. Kudos to Carnival!

 

The food was pretty good. There was only one dish I did not like and that was the oysters rockafeller. I am not a spinach fan and it was mostly spinach. Nobody at our table like the meatloaf (5 at our table tried it) so stay away!! We had anytime dining and as a party of 11, we never waited more than 5 minutes.Service was a little slow, but hey, we had plenty of time.

 

In Cozumel we did an independent tour with cozumel water sports. Went on mini personal underwater scooters. What a blast!! Well worth the money. We got to hold a sting ray, water spider (I think), feed fish and putter around. The coolest thing my family has ever done.

 

I didn't do much in Belize because I was not feeling too good, but DH and DS went out exploring museums and got some local food.

 

Roatan was my absolute most favorite port!! The hours we were there had changed so we didn't get to do alot, but we had booked Bodden tours. Our guide Anthony was FABULOUS! We learned about the culture, ate at an authentic roadside eatery. We zip lined and went to the monkey house there. We had such a good time it should have been illegal! My SIL and I want to adopt baby monkeys now.

 

At Grand Cayman my DH and I took a tour off the ship(20pp). Of course we went to Hell while we were there. LOL We saw most of the island and then were dropped off at 7 mile beach. Taxi back was 4pp. My SIL took DS to sting ray city but they did not have a good time because the water was so rough. They got a partial credit for that.

 

Didn't try the turkey on Thanksgiving because the other choices looked better. Breakfasts were ok. Lunch at the deli was really good.

 

We are all very sad that we had to leave. Bought a future cruise cert so I will have something else to look forward too.

 

Everything on the ship was chilly. Wore a sweater when we were inside. Balcony door stayed open without bungee cord. There were a lot of kids onboard but they were well behaved. Some of the adults weren't (when they had a watch sale it got pretty ugly).

 

Didn't get to see any pier runners, but we were missing 3 in Cozumel. My son and I were watching for pier runners and heard them say they were waiting on 3. Then an officer came out with an envelope, 3 passports and 1 ladies wallet. Too bad.

 

If anyone has any questions, feel free to ask. It was a great cruise over all. My 12yo wishes there was no school so he could stay aboard. He is now thinking of working on a ship when he gets older.

 

Hope everyone had a good thanksgiving!

Deb

[kyrisong1]

Deb, thanks so much for a great review, things weren't perfect but it looks like customer service on this ship was great!!! Glad you were compensated and view the cruise as positive!!!

Cheers, Carole

[swimmom32]

Deb our Experience on the Liberty was the Same as yours on the Valor..We are looking to book the Valor or the Glory for Next year so we will see...Glad you guys had a great time...and yes Kudo's to Carnival that was a great gesture on their part...Happy Thanksgiving to you and the family...Meatloaf was not an option on our Menu...

[gelo7]

Nice review.

[Crystalbast]

Just curious, did they change the order of your ports on your cruise?

[clackey]

Fox,

 

I want to thank you, first of all, for your review. There is one thing that bothers mne , though. Why would anyone order meatloaf on a cruise? It boggles my mind to think that someone, anyone, would miss out on the likes of: Chateau Briande, Mahi mahi, Tiger Prawns, Lobster, Prime Rib or even Flatiron Steak. Please tell me it was a joke.

[golfadj]

Fox,

 

I want to thank you, first of all, for your review. There is one thing that bothers mne , though. Why would anyone order meatloaf on a cruise? It boggles my mind to think that someone, anyone, would miss out on the likes of: Chateau Briande, Mahi mahi, Tiger Prawns, Lobster, Prime Rib or even Flatiron Steak. Please tell me it was a joke.

 

Cannot image ordering it myself but we are all different.

[kyrisong1]

Fox,

 

I want to thank you, first of all, for your review. There is one thing that bothers mne , though. Why would anyone order meatloaf on a cruise? It boggles my mind to think that someone, anyone, would miss out on the likes of: Chateau Briande, Mahi mahi, Tiger Prawns, Lobster, Prime Rib or even Flatiron Steak. Please tell me it was a joke.

Everyone is different!! I would never order Flatiron Steak because it's too tough unless you cook it perfectly. Meatloaf .....yuck, but some people like it so <shrug> great world that everyone has different tastes, makes it interesting don't you think??

A while back there was a big stink about ordering the mac and cheese. But it was delicious :D

Carole

[waldocruiser1]

I had a wonderful time!!! Carnival was wonderful!! The worst part of our cruise was that our cabin (6379) was right over the casino band. We heard loud music until 2am, sometimes later. My DH was unable to sleep. We went to guest services but the ship was full and there was no place to move us....so...They refunded us 20% of our cruise and 15% off a future cruise. We didn't ask for it. Kudos to Carnival!

 

The food was pretty good. There was only one dish I did not like and that was the oysters rockafeller. I am not a spinach fan and it was mostly spinach. Nobody at our table like the meatloaf (5 at our table tried it) so stay away!! We had anytime dining and as a party of 11, we never waited more than 5 minutes.Service was a little slow, but hey, we had plenty of time.

 

In Cozumel we did an independent tour with cozumel water sports. Went on mini personal underwater scooters. What a blast!! Well worth the money. We got to hold a sting ray, water spider (I think), feed fish and putter around. The coolest thing my family has ever done.

 

I didn't do much in Belize because I was not feeling too good, but DH and DS went out exploring museums and got some local food.

 

Roatan was my absolute most favorite port!! The hours we were there had changed so we didn't get to do alot, but we had booked Bodden tours. Our guide Anthony was FABULOUS! We learned about the culture, ate at an authentic roadside eatery. We zip lined and went to the monkey house there. We had such a good time it should have been illegal! My SIL and I want to adopt baby monkeys now.

 

At Grand Cayman my DH and I took a tour off the ship(20pp). Of course we went to Hell while we were there. LOL We saw most of the island and then were dropped off at 7 mile beach. Taxi back was 4pp. My SIL took DS to sting ray city but they did not have a good time because the water was so rough. They got a partial credit for that.

 

Didn't try the turkey on Thanksgiving because the other choices looked better. Breakfasts were ok. Lunch at the deli was really good.

 

We are all very sad that we had to leave. Bought a future cruise cert so I will have something else to look forward too.

 

Everything on the ship was chilly. Wore a sweater when we were inside. Balcony door stayed open without bungee cord. There were a lot of kids onboard but they were well behaved. Some of the adults weren't (when they had a watch sale it got pretty ugly).

 

Didn't get to see any pier runners, but we were missing 3 in Cozumel. My son and I were watching for pier runners and heard them say they were waiting on 3. Then an officer came out with an envelope, 3 passports and 1 ladies wallet. Too bad.

 

If anyone has any questions, feel free to ask. It was a great cruise over all. My 12yo wishes there was no school so he could stay aboard. He is now thinking of working on a ship when he gets older.

 

Hope everyone had a good thanksgiving!

Deb

 

What did you do for the $20.00 per person? Did it include the trip to Hell? We are going in January, and want to do a sight seeing tour, trip to Hell, and end at the beach also. Their will be 5 of us.

[waldocruiser1]

Fox,

 

I want to thank you, first of all, for your review. There is one thing that bothers mne , though. Why would anyone order meatloaf on a cruise? It boggles my mind to think that someone, anyone, would miss out on the likes of: Chateau Briande, Mahi mahi, Tiger Prawns, Lobster, Prime Rib or even Flatiron Steak. Please tell me it was a joke.

 

I am looking forward to trying the meatloaf, I love a good meatloaf, I am starting to rethink having it as the main dish, maybe just ordering it as an EXTRA to try it,

 

I also think at times teh Flatiron steak is a lot tough, like it was hit by a flatiron.

 

Great review, we are going in January and like all the positives, we loved the Liberty a few years ago and hope it is as nice.

[lappy22]

Thanks for your review. Roatan is my all time favorite port and I'm sure Bodden tours had alot to do with that.

[TriciaEMTB]

Thanks for your review!

 

i'll be on the valor NEXT november, so I'm glad to read that it's a good ship!

[Aviendah]

Thank you for the review Deb! We are traveling with our 12yo twin boys in January. If there were activities that your son especially enjoyed, we would love to hear about them. We'll be on the valor as well! :)

[nathand95]

I'm glad you had a great time. She is my favorite ship in the fleet. Why did your hours get changed in Roatan though?

[FOXYDEBBY]

Thanks for the comments. I will see if I can answer them all.

 

Our ports were changed several times and ended up being the original itinerary. I think we went to Roatan at 10 instead of 7 or 8 due to port congestion. That was my favorite stop though.

 

I would NEVER have ordered the meatloaf because I wanted to try new things. I really don't know why the others at my table ordered it. Lobster was ok. Filet mignon was very good. I tried lamb, and a bunch of chicken dishes. My favorite night i ordered 2 escargots apps and then the chateau briand (sp?). Best thing I have ever eaten!! My son ate off adult menu every night and usually got the flat iron steak. A little tough for me but he loved it.

 

Our tour in Grand Caymen was good. We got off the ship and booked a private tour for 20pp. Our first stop was the tortuga rum cake factory. Tried (and bought) some rum cake. We even got to sample different rums. Spent about 15 minutes there. We then went to Hell (hehe..still sounds funny). Bought some postcards and mailed them home. Also picked up some t shirts. Rock formations there are beautiful! We then went to the dolphin or turtle encounters for about 1/2 hour. Didn't see the turtles because it was 10pp and we weren't going to be there long enough. Did walk in to see the dolphins but it was sad seeing them in tiny pens. For 25$ you could get a picture of them kissing you. After that stop we were dropped off at 7 mile beach (or shopping if you would rather do that). Our guide Jackie was great and we got a lot of history about the island. Very good tour.

 

My son didn't hang out in circle c. He went once but was too shy to make friends. He spent a lot of time in the arcade or hanging out with us. He is 12 and at home he stays up late when there is no school the following day. On the ship, I think he would lay down around 10 (us too) and fall right to sleep. There were lots of activities for the kids I saw though.

 

The saddest thing (besides getting off) was that we finally learned how to get around the ship on the last day there.

 

I am going threw withdrawl right now...I think another cruise might help.....

 

Hope you all have wonderful vacations just like I did!!!

[scperk]

I am looking forward to trying the meatloaf, I love a good meatloaf, I am starting to rethink having it as the main dish, maybe just ordering it as an EXTRA to try it,

 

I also think at times teh Flatiron steak is a lot tough, like it was hit by a flatiron.

 

Great review, we are going in January and like all the positives, we loved the Liberty a few years ago and hope it is as nice.

Meatloaf is on the new menu and I tried it on my Triumph cruise in Sept..It was way too salty and I like the flatiron steak cooked med or med-rare, it's pretty tender if it's not overcooked..Dennis

[lcseale53]

Deb,

 

Glad you had a great time...we did as well, and agree that Carnival once again did a great job. We watched for the runners too, as Cozumel is usually the most likely port to lose track of time (or consciousness :D) - but the dock cleared pretty much on time.

 

Sorry we missed you - we were behind the pool, but we did spend some time with George.

 

Leon

[coldweathergirl]

Thanks for the review. We sail on the Valor in 4 days and I'm getting quite excited for the trip :D. Glad you had a good trip.

[rdler]

Thanks, Deb for the review. My son and I were also on this cruise. We had a wonderful time and were very pleased with the staff. We had no complaints at all.

 

I did notice the decline in the food, however. I hate the new dining room menu. Not only are things like meatloaf and fried chicken on the menu, but they have taken quite a few things off, offering fewer choices. And I have to admit there was something just not right about sitting across from a woman on formal night who was pigging out on a Quarter Pounder with Cheese. Even the steak house seemed to have cut back with new versions of the Chocolate Sampler and the Cheesecake. There is no way I'm complaining about the steak house, however.

 

We really did have a great time and we certainly did not starve. But I thought that in general, the food was pretty poor.

[golfadj]

Thanks, Deb for the review. My son and I were also on this cruise. We had a wonderful time and were very pleased with the staff. We had no complaints at all.

 

I did notice the decline in the food, however. I hate the new dining room menu. Not only are things like meatloaf and fried chicken on the menu, but they have taken quite a few things off, offering fewer choices. And I have to admit there was something just not right about sitting across from a woman on formal night who was pigging out on a Quarter Pounder with Cheese. Even the steak house seemed to have cut back with new versions of the Chocolate Sampler and the Cheesecake. There is no way I'm complaining about the steak house, however.

 

We really did have a great time and we certainly did not starve. But I thought that in general, the food was pretty poor.

 

The only thing I noticed missing was the veal parm. What else is missing other than that they just added a bunch of comfort foods that will not be ordered by me on a cruise.

 

Also why worry about what someone else is eating?

[rwstout]

do you have pictures

[TKDgirl2456]

 

The food was pretty good. There was only one dish I did not like and that was the oysters rockafeller. I am not a spinach fan and it was mostly spinach. Nobody at our table like the meatloaf (5 at our table tried it) so stay away!! We had anytime dining and as a party of 11, we never waited more than 5 minutes.Service was a little slow, but hey, we had plenty of time.

 

A lot of Carnival cruisers are unaware of this fun fact, but you can order as many appetizers, entrees & desserts as you would like. Don't eat something you don't enjoy, send it back & get something else or order 2 entrees if you're unsure if you'll like what you ordered or not. I always order both a lobster & the steak when they have lobster. Just a tip. =]

[mjl1960]

I just sailed the Valor a couple of weeks ago, and I love it. I had been on the Splendor before that, and I was worried that I wouldn't like the older ship, but I actually liked it better than I did the Splendor.

 

Had real reservations about booking on the Spirit, but after my experience on the Valor, I am not nervous at all, and am in fact looking forward to the smaller ship.

[BENNETT531]

I was on the Valor last week as well. It was our first "real" cruise. I loved everything! I really don't understand how people don't like the food. There is such a good selection. Two pages, actually. Our family tried new things every night. I'm amazed how they can feed that many people at one time with the quality and speed that they do. Quite impressive. The night before we flew home, we ate at an Outback Steakhouse by our hotel. Honestly, for $50+ that meal was no better than what we ate on the ship. Actually had to send back my steak at Outback since it was well done instead of Medium. On the ship, we ordered a total of 7 steaks during the week. All cooked perfectly Medium. Amazing.

To answer someone else on the board, my 9 & 11 year old daughters did go to camp a few nights. They loved it! They had scavenger hunts, made t-shirts, played balloon games, etc. I could see quite a few boys there too. They had a bunch of video games as well. All the kids seemed happy.

 

To sum it up (for our family). There's not really anything specific we didn't like. Would do it again tomorrow if I could. Best vacation ever. You will love this ship!

[zqvol]

 

Didn't get to see any pier runners, but we were missing 3 in Cozumel. My son and I were watching for pier runners and heard them say they were waiting on 3. Then an officer came out with an envelope, 3 passports and 1 ladies wallet. Too bad.

 

 

You must have great eyesight to be able to determine what was in that officers hand.