Legend-ary Christmas and New Year's Back to Back Cruise Review

[ncbeachteacher]

This was our first back to back cruise but not our first on Carnival Legend. We are frequent cruisers on the Legend, mainly because we enjoy the ports and the ship.

 

I am the mom, Laura, and I sail with my youngest daughter, Katelan, who is 23, almost 24. We live in a small college town in western North Carolina but I claim the coast of North Carolina as my home. I am a teacher. Katelan is a graduate student at Western Carolina University and also works full-time as a tax analyst.

 

We flew to Tampa on Saturday, December 17th and stayed at the Westin on Rocky Point. We have stayed there several times before booking through Priceline or Expedia. My brother and his family live in Clearwater and his in-laws were also visiting from North Carolina. That evening, we had an early dinner, and then went to see my niece perform in the local theater production of The Nutcracker. Great to have family time.

 

Sunday morning, December 18th: My brother (bless him) picked us up at the Westin and took us to the port. We arrived right at 11:00 (the earliest we have ever arrived) and were able to process through security relatively quickly. We had aft wrap cabin 8268 and were able to check-in through the VIP area. Sweet! This was our 9th cruise, so it was nice to have the VIP check-in perk a little early. We were on the ship by 11:30 and drinking champagne! How awesome is that?

 

A quick lunch, enjoyed a hammock for awhile in the new Serenity area while enjoying the first shipboard drink (which is wonderful!) and it was time to head to the cabin. I knew we had a suite but I didn't quite know what to expect with the wrap aft cabin. I had definitely seen the balcony in pictures but we were very pleased with the cabin itself. (As soon as I can figure out how to upload the pictures, I will!)

 

Enjoyed our meet and greet although we "lucked" up having it in the Dream team lounge with multiple, loud football fans who were angry about not being able to see their football game.

 

More later!

[nessz79]

Looking forward to it! Please post pictures if you can!

[serene56]

was there a line at the VIP check in?

 

Did you have to wait any time after checking in to board the ship??

 

Your photos need a host site. Webshots or photobucket. Upload there and copy and paste to put on the site here

[rhcpchika1]

Very excited to read rest and see pics... subscribing!

[gelo7]

What a wonderful way to spend the holidays.

[melgent]

Can't wait to hear the rest!!:)

[Malinger]

Looking forward to more!:D

[ncbeachteacher]

We spent maybe 5 minutes waiting for one large family group in the VIP area ahead of us before we were checked in. We spent more time waiting in the security checkpoint line than in the VIP area. Once we had our sail and sign cards, we were able to board immediately, although they were still calling zones for other groups.

[ncbeachteacher]

Still Sunday, December 18th:

 

After our meet and greet, we returned to our cabin and unpacked, settling in for the next two weeks! I have to say, I really enjoyed having this cabin. It is basically three areas/rooms, with a huge entryway! The "living area" has a sofa, table, LCD TV, and bar area with fridge. The bathroom area is separated with a sliding pocket door, has a vanity area, and (get this) a walk in closet! The Bedroom is also separated and has another TV, safe, cabinets and drawers. I love the balcony area, especially that it had a covered area that is great when you need some shade but has plenty of open area for sunning. We enjoyed the aft wrap so much that when we got home, we called our TA and asked her to upgrade us for our B2B this summer. The only complaint I could have was the standard scraping of chairs in the early morning hours (we were right under the Serenity area) and having occasional stuff blow down from the Lido deck. Not a huge deal in our book, but if it bothers you, it is something to consider.

 

We took advantage of the first night bottle of wine offer at the steak house this evening. We had an awesome meal that is always a real treat. It is simply just too much food. But man, is it good! I know some people complain about having to pay extra for the steakhouse but I am okay with that concept. I am getting a different experience, much more individually prepared food, and highly tailored service. I would not want this experience every night but I like having the option. I think offering a free bottle of wine on embarkation night is also a really good incentive.

 

After a great dinner, we headed toward Follies to catch the welcome aboard show but got sidetracked at the casino. Kate ended up $150 ahead that night... always a great way to start the cruise. I think by the end of the cruise she ended up only $50 ahead but she did better than I did. Exhausted and with a full belly, we were rocked to sleep as we cruised toward Key West, our first port!

[SwedishCruiser]

This was our first back to back cruise but not our first on Carnival Legend. We are frequent cruisers on the Legend, mainly because we enjoy the ports and the ship.

 

I am the mom, Laura, and I sail with my youngest daughter, Katelan, who is 23, almost 24. We live in a small college town in western North Carolina but I claim the coast of North Carolina as my home. I am a teacher. Katelan is a graduate student at Western Carolina University and also works full-time as a tax analyst.

 

We flew to Tampa on Saturday, December 17th and stayed at the Westin on Rocky Point. We have stayed there several times before booking through Priceline or Expedia. My brother and his family live in Clearwater and his in-laws were also visiting from North Carolina. That evening, we had an early dinner, and then went to see my niece perform in the local theater production of The Nutcracker. Great to have family time.

 

Sunday morning, December 18th: My brother (bless him) picked us up at the Westin and took us to the port. We arrived right at 11:00 (the earliest we have ever arrived) and were able to process through security relatively quickly. We had aft wrap cabin 8268 and were able to check-in through the VIP area. Sweet! This was our 9th cruise, so it was nice to have the VIP check-in perk a little early. We were on the ship by 11:30 and drinking champagne! How awesome is that?

 

A quick lunch, enjoyed a hammock for awhile in the new Serenity area while enjoying the first shipboard drink (which is wonderful!) and it was time to head to the cabin. I knew we had a suite but I didn't quite know what to expect with the wrap aft cabin. I had definitely seen the balcony in pictures but we were very pleased with the cabin itself. (As soon as I can figure out how to upload the pictures, I will!)

 

Enjoyed our meet and greet although we "lucked" up having it in the Dream team lounge with multiple, loud football fans who were angry about not being able to see their football game.

 

More later!

 

 

OMG! We had this same cabin in August! Loved it, spoiled me for life. I especially liked the two seperate rooms. Great choice.

[ncbeachteacher]

Monday, December 19th, Key West

 

Daily, we eat breakfast in the dining room. We really do not like eating on the Lido deck (except for lunch) because it is rushed and crowded. We like having the option of sitting with others or eating by ourselves in the main dining room.

 

Welcome to Key West! I had been to Key West in the past but Kate had not. We were interested the local sights but the pub crawl was the excursion we opted for. This excursion was purchased through Carnival but is available on line through the same company.

 

After breakfast, we met our excursion guide Brian (who was lots of fun and has great blue eyes) just outside the ship before we hopped on the trolley to town. We were given our T-shirts (says Drinks well with others!) and headed to the trolley stop in town. A few short blocks later, we landed at our first pub stop of the day. We enjoyed a number of rum punches while being entertained by our guide and the bar tender as well as getting to know our fellow crawlers! This pub has a tree that has a sign that says, "Hemmingway pissed here!" I believe the name was Dirty Harry's Bar! Anyway, high energy bar tender and lots of fun. Kept giving us multiple drinks and too soon, it was time to move on down Duval Street.

 

Actually, I think it was across the street, but the next stop was The Lazy Gecko. Had to give Katelan some advice: It is okay to leave your drink at Dirty Harry's and mine too.... Pace yourself or it will be short afternoon. Interesting to see the differences in rum punches and rum drinks and how they vary bar to bar. Kate quickly decided a pretzel might be a good idea and paired the rum and food up.

 

Next, we headed to the Schooner Wharf Bar...probably the most eccentric bar we saw but definitely cozy next to the marina. Liked the rum drink there the least (Little too much grapefruit and not enough rum)... but each to her own.

 

We enjoy taking turns blowing Brian's conch! I didn't win the silly competition but can't say I was a horn blower in high school either! I sputtered and got some decent sound out of it and it was fun to try! I am sure we all looked right silly taking turns blowing the conch, but what fun!

 

The next bar was the Flying Monkey's Bar and we enjoyed some tasty frozen rum drinks... I think mine was a banana something or other. The brief walk of several blocks made me wish we had also booked an afternoon tour but Kate was still enjoying all of the drinks and what was left in mine.

 

Lastly, we returned almost to the beginning of our tour with a stop at Rick's Bar. We finished out the day strong but afterward, Kate was done and we returned to the ship following a brief and uneventful trolley ride.

 

The good thing is that we are going back to Key West this summer on the Freedom and inasmuch as we want to do another crawl, Kate is saying that she wants to enjoy some of the sites and sounds we saw from a distance while on the crawl! We can certainly enjoy a few pubs on our own time.

 

Key West Promotions did our pub crawl and I highly recommend them whether it is through Carnival or own your own! Lots of fun! Brian was highly entertaining and we had a great experience.

 

Following a nap, I enjoyed the Serenity deck whirlpool, a little sushi, prep for dinner, followed by dinner in the main dining room, and then we enjoyed the comedy show in the lounge. I can't remember the guy's name but he was funny and entertaining. And he was from Charlotte, North Carolina!

[LizaMM]

Great start! Looking forward to the rest. Thanks for posting!

[ncbeachteacher]

Swedish cruiser: Agreed, I don't know if we can ever go back to a regular balcony! Spoiled! :)

[ncbeachteacher]

Trying to get pictures posted in between appointments and such! Sorry for the delay! and still trying to figure out how to get pictures full sized instead of thumbnails! Input welcomed!

[ncbeachteacher]

More pictures

[ncbeachteacher]

More pictures

[bobandkelly]

To receive the complimentary bottle of wine did you book the steak house on the ship or in advance?

 

Great review so far, the Legend is my favorite ship. We will be on her again in February.

[CrusieToy]

Monday, December 19th, Key West

 

Daily, we eat breakfast in the dining room. We really do not like eating on the Lido deck (except for lunch) because it is rushed and crowded...

 

We sat with you and another couple the first morning on the cruise (saw the picture below). Enjoyed talking to you and your daughter. We love the Legend too. Hope to do a back to back some day....

[cruisinbanddirectors]

Sorry we didn't make it to the Meet and Greet. We had a great time on the cruise...interested to keep reading your take on it as well.

 

I'm jealous about the B2B though :)

[ncbeachteacher]

bobandkelly: We made our reservation the day we boarded. They were enticing folks with the bottle of wine! And come to think of it, it was a bottle of red wine which only my daughter drinks and she did not finish it. They sent it downstairs to the dining room for her to finish the following evening!

 

Cruisetoy: We did indeed have breakfast together and enjoyed talking with you as well. Hope you had a great cruise.

 

Cruisingbanddirectors: Now that we are back and I see your avatar, I recognize you from the ship. Sorry we missed you at the meet and greet but glad you had a great cruise!

[bobandkelly]

bobandkelly: We made our reservation the day we boarded. They were enticing folks with the bottle of wine! And come to think of it, it was a bottle of red wine which only my daughter drinks and she did not finish it. They sent it downstairs to the dining room for her to finish the following evening!

 

Thanks! We'll have to check that out on embark day!

[RunsWithFlyingDolphins]

Thanks for the review!!

[rhcpchika1]

VERY jealous of the room! Looks and sounds wonderful!

[fuzzmane]

I know exactly where you are from. Love the mountains. I used to live in Sylva some years ago and went to Sylva-Webster High School.

 

Great review, will be on the Legend on 01/15/12. Can't wait.

[serene56]

I know exactly where you are from. Love the mountains. I used to live in Sylva some years ago and went to Sylva-Webster High School.

 

Great review, will be on the Legend on 01/15/12. Can't wait.

 

 

Will be on right after you- New CD on the Legend that week. Had him on the Pride- he was ok.