All things Fascination

[cruzegurl104]

BRW, I think we may have had Joseph on our Liberty cruise back in 2010... Your right, he was a hoot!! 😉

[ready2cruzagain]

Thanks! This is the first "smaller" ship we've been on, what did you like most about the ship? Did u find the main pool to be too crowded? Lots of chair hogs?

And, how was the food?

 

:D

 

Loved the size of the ship. Found it easy to get around. Main pool wasn't too crowded at all. The only day the chair hogs was out was the last sea day and still was able to find a chair a couple of rows back.

[ready2cruzagain]

BRW, I think we may have had Joseph on our Liberty cruise back in 2010... Your right, he was a hoot!! 😉

 

Yep...Joseph use to be on the Liberty. Here is a link to a youtube video with Joseph when he was on the Liberty:

 

 

 

.

[reerun25]

What deck you you catch the tender on when going to HMC?

[ready2cruzagain]

What deck you you catch the tender on when going to HMC?

 

I want to say we caught the tender on deck 3 but really not positive.

[daijayx2]

We did a b2b on the Fascination this past December. If you have any questions just ask and I will try to answer.

 

If Joseph is still the Maitre d try to get in the dining room that he was is working in. Best maitre d I have ever had. Quite the character.

 

We loved the bar located right outside the casino. They usually had a band playing there every night.

 

Serenity deck was great.

 

"Joseph your super charged Maitre D"

I loved him! He was walking around the dining room introducing himself to everyone and was tons of fun!

He was there in March, had him at late dining at 8:15 in the Sensation dining room.

Me and my travel companion went to the MDR after embarkation and requested a table for 2 and although the ship was fully booked we were able to get a table for 2 right in the middle of the dining room and enjoyed it very much.

 

 

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[gatorgirlcruiser]

We did a b2b on the Fascination this past December. If you have any questions just ask and I will try to answer.

 

If Joseph is still the Maitre d try to get in the dining room that he was is working in. Best maitre d I have ever had. Quite the character.

 

We loved the bar located right outside the casino. They usually had a band playing there every night.

 

Serenity deck was great.

 

Yes dining in Joseph's MDR is a must!!!

[Cruise Envy]

So glad to finally have found this thread -- I'll be making my first trip on the Fascination next year, after 3 sailings on the Fantasy, so I am quite interested in what's unique about her from the others in the class.

 

I see that the safes use the credit card and not a code.

 

Here are some other questions I have:

 

1. Is Faster to the Fun (FTTF) available?
   
2. What Fun 2.0 upgrades are on board, and where are they? I keep seeing deck plans that don't show any.
   
3. Which dining room has the Anytime Dining (my DH has difficulty walking so this affects cabin selection for us)
   
4. What are the main two shows? Hopefully not Ticket to Ride & Nightclub Express.
   
5. Any particular tips or threads about the Jacksonville port?
   

I'm sure I'll have more questions as we get closer. Thanks in advance!

[MrsZee]

So glad to finally have found this thread -- I'll be making my first trip on the Fascination next year, after 3 sailings on the Fantasy, so I am quite interested in what's unique about her from the others in the class.

 

I see that the safes use the credit card and not a code.

 

Here are some other questions I have:

 

1. Is Faster to the Fun (FTTF) available?
   
2. What Fun 2.0 upgrades are on board, and where are they? I keep seeing deck plans that don't show any.
   
3. Which dining room has the Anytime Dining (my DH has difficulty walking so this affects cabin selection for us)
   
4. What are the main two shows? Hopefully not Ticket to Ride & Nightclub Express.
   
5. Any particular tips or threads about the Jacksonville port?
   

I'm sure I'll have more questions as we get closer. Thanks in advance!

 

Just got off the Fascination last week so I can answer your questions.

 

The safe does use cards, but I could not get any gift card to work. The safe specifically said to use a credit card or drivers license but I had read on here that any gift card would do. But, it would not work. So, I ended up using my drivers license and keeping the license under stuff in a drawer.

 

I do not believe that Faster to the Fun was available, but I may have bought it if it was. Embarking, Disembarking, tendering, etc were the worst parts of the trip. That's expected though, with everyone trying to get on or off at once.

 

There are no Fun 2.0 upgrades on the Fascination and it isn't scheduled to get them any time soon.

 

I was in the Imagination Dining room right by the entrance. As I didn't see people coming in and out as they please, I am going to guess the Your Time Dining was in the other one.

 

The shows were "Hey Mambo", a latin music show that was painfully boring, and "Not Yet Over", an 80's show that was a lot of fun. People were excited about that one and got to their seats 30-45 minutes early. It is hard to see in a lot of places in the theater, so get there early.

 

Jacksonville port- park in the 8$ lot and use their shuttle. They are fast and a lot cheaper. I will say, though, they will tell you not to get a porter and just tip your driver because everything was included. But, then we get to the port and the guys unload our luggage from the van and expect us to haul it all from the van to the luggage area. So, I hired the porter that the driver said was "bothering us". He wasn't bothering me, he saved me a lot of hassle. We drove and had a kid, it felt like we packed half our house with us. The porter was great! And he got the tip.

 

As for embarkation, get there early or prepare to wait. But really, there is not much else you can do. 2000 something people are waiting to get on all at once. It's gonna take some time. Security was a breeze though.

[MrsZee]

To add: Disembarkation at Jacksonville was the best I have ever dealt with. The people on board the ship called too many zones at once, so we were all crowded in waiting to get off. But, once we got off the ship, we were out in ten minutes. So easy to find your luggage in the huge area they provide.

 

A hint for disembarkation, once they call your zone, if they call 4-5 zones at once, just hang back for about 30 minutes. Everyone in those zones heads downstairs into this small area and it is crowded, hot and miserable. I imagine if you can wait until just before they call the other zones, you would be in a much situation.

[jcearth]

Just a clarification -- Fascination is getting some of the 2.0 upgrades when it goes into drydock in January 2013. John Heald mentioned it on facebook last month, and it is now listed on the Carnival website. The 2.0 upgrades will include:

 

Punchliner Brunch

Taste Bar

Hasbro the Game Show

DJ Irie

BlueIguana Tequila Bar

Red Frog Rum Bar

 

 

Also, the forward dining room (Sensation) has anytime dining.

[MrsZee]

Sorry, I was going by a schedule posted on the Cruise Diva website, no idea when it was last updated. Glad to hear they are adding some to the Fascination then.

[jwjax]

Here's a link to the older All Things Fascination thread. Although some of the info may be outdated, there is a lot that might still be relevant.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=826275

 

And a link to the Jacksonville Info Only thread. Same as above, old and new info.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=850690

 

jw:cool:

[tnvol8753]

Will be on the ship in 63 days for my first cruise. Can't Stop reading all these boards!

 

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[cookiejarvis]

Thanks to you all who contributed...we leave on Saturday......Yeah

[hannahsmomtoo]

We dont sail her until 10/2014 - but counting days ! I have never been on a Fantasy class ship !