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Another Stacy and Paul Adventure: Our Group Cruise on the Carnival Ecstasy!

stacycakes1

By stacycakes1,
in Carnival Cruise Lines

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stacycakes1

stacycakes1

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Yahhhhh, the day was finally here!!!!! I had been planning this cruise for a year and a half and was so excited to finally enjoy all of my hard work.

We originally had almost 30 people who were interested in joining us but as time went by a lot of our friends dropped out for one reason or another. Looking back now I am kind of glad we ended up with only 16 because I think I wouldn't have been able to handle coordinating many more people than that.

So the plan was set that we would all meet at my parent's house at 8:30am to load the cars. We were taking 4 vehicles and one of them was thankfully a truck so that we could fit all of the luggage in. A few of our Florida friends were not too thrilled about this early departure and so I had to explain why I wanted to leave so early.

We had booked a cabana for our stop in Half Moon Cay and you cannot reserve your cabana until you get onboard on a first come first serve bases. Well I was determined to get cabana #11!

After reading up on the cabanas here on CC #11 seemed like the best choice for us. It was down the beach a bit so it would be away from all the chaos over by cabana #1 – #7. It also had 4 hammocks on both sides and a beer cart is set up right in front of it. My second choice was cabana #12 which also had a lot of the same amenities close by. Another plus was that the restrooms were located right there as well as there only being a short walk to the bar and food pavilion.

Everyone agreed that they too would like this set-up so I convinced them we should leave early, pheeewwww.

Well, things didn't quite turn out exactly as planned and a few people were late.

Here is a pic of us waiting to load the cars...

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We didn't get on the road until 10:00am. I just reminded myself that things would happen like this all week being we had such a large group and went with the flow.

The first people to arrive that morning were my sisters and their husbands.

Here is a picture of my sister Kerry and her husband Brian…

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And a picture of my sister Kristy and her husband Mike…

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Next to arrive were my sister Kristy's friends Krystine, Anthony and Christine. There nickname for the week was the Jersey Shore Gang. They were always up for hanging out and getting a little crazyJ

Here is a picture of Krystine and Anthony...

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And here is a picture Christine, who like Troy was solo on this trip…

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Once the Jersey Shore Gang was all present we were able to load up the cars. There was one other couple joining us but we were meeting them on the way there so they wouldn't have to back track to my parent's place.

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pistoliom

pistoliom

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I just want to say Your PDF's are awesome!!! I'm going to be organizing a family cruise for 2014 (18 total) and all but 4 will be first time cruisers. The general PDF's will help me get information to everyone and may get a few more on board! thank you!! Can't wait to read the whole review!

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stacycakes1

stacycakes1

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I just want to say Your PDF's are awesome!!! I'm going to be organizing a family cruise for 2014 (18 total) and all but 4 will be first time cruisers. The general PDF's will help me get information to everyone and may get a few more on board! thank you!! Can't wait to read the whole review!

 

 

Let me know if you want the word versions of any of my organization stuff, I would be happy to email them. I also have a few other documents that I didn't post because they had too much personal info but that I can clear out and send that might be helpful such as a schedule, etc...

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stacycakes1

stacycakes1

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Sorry it has been a few days! I've been swamped with work since we got back.So where was I…

 

So after we were all loaded and ready we set off to pick up my friend Andrea and her husband Chris. They were a few minutes away awaiting our arrival so we could set out for the port. Andrea has been a dear friend of mine since we were in elementary school and I was so happy her and her husband could come with us.

 

Here is a picture of Andrea and Chris…

 

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So now that we were all assembled we were off!!!

 

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My family lives about an hour and a half away from Port Canaveral. It ssemed to go by much quicker then that though. In no time I got a view of that glorious whale tail!

 

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jtagphillycruiser

jtagphillycruiser

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Hi,

 

By chance, are you the Stacy that did the wonderful Paris & Carnival Mediterranean honeymoon cruise review??? That review was and still is my all-time favorite review!! My husband & I am going on a Mediterranean cruise in May of 2013 for our 30 yr. wedding anniversary aboard the Carnival Sunshine (Barcelona to Barcelona).

 

Because of your review, we have booked multiple RIL tours - can't wait!! I recommended everyone on our Roll Call to read your review as well. I will follow along on your current review/adventure. Take care.

 

Joanne

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stacycakes1

stacycakes1

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We arrived around 11:15am and dropped everyone and the luggage off with the porters. The drivers of the four vehicles then took the cars to the Radisson for parking. The Radisson has parking for $5.95 a day which is way less expensive then at the port, only 5 minutes down the block and offers free shuttle service to and from the port. I also liked that the cars would be at a hotel and well watched.

While the cars were being parked everyone was going to wait outside for the drivers. Paul and I had purchased the FASTER TO THE FUN passes and being we wanted cabana #11 very badly we decided we would go on ahead of everyone and get on board as quick as we could.

If anyone is interested in purchasing the FTTF passes for their cruise I think you should definitely go for it! Our FTTF passes got us right through the embarkation line, no waiting time. We also got our rooms as soon as we boarded, had our own guest services line with no wait (which came in handy a few times that week) and also priority tendering and debarkation. The price for the FTTF is $49.99 per cabin and WELL worth it!

So we breezed through the line, took that picture we all love to take for our sail and sign cards and 10 minutes later we were on board!!!!

We headed straight to the excursion desk and I held my breath as the map of the taken cabanas was pulled out. BOO!!!!!! Cabana #11 was taken! So were almost all of the upper number Cabanas and I almost wanted to cry. Then I realized #12 was still available which was my second choice! I took it and was so happy we made it in time!

With Cabana #12 booked we decided to celebrate by getting our first drink of the day and then head to our cabin which would be ready early. We were in cabin #M256, the very last balcony cabin at the aft of the ship. All of our friends would be on the same floor in the aft as well in balcony, inside and ocean view cabins.

Now we really enjoyed this cabin but it was a bit of a bummer because 2 days prior to sailing I got a call with an offer for the OWNERS SUITE!!!! They wanted $1,200 more though for it and we just couldn't see spending that much more for a five day cruise. Later we found out from our friends that they would have chipped in for it just so we could have it to hang out in, oh well. It was really hard to pass up that opportunity…

So we put our stuff down and then we headed out to find everyone and get some lunch up on the lido deck. Once we found everyone we head to the back balcony off the lido deck buffet and found it basically empty. It was like this all week which I never understood. We had such beautiful weather and everyone always ate inside where it was a mad house. The back balcony became our go too place to meet every morning and have breakfast/lunch. It was perfect for our group and we always had great views out there.

 

On all of my past cruises I have never waited in line for the Mongolian Wok so I thought I would try it this day. I got the beef with Thai BBQ sauce and veggies and it was good. The food at the other lines just didn't look that appetizing except the deli and that had a long line too.

 

I sat with my sis and friend Andrea and enjoyed a drink of the day too....

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The boys with a "few" drinks of the day too...

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*Warning* This is where the drinking begins and does not stop until, well, our flights home:)

 

Another pic off the balcony...

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stacycakes1

stacycakes1

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Hi,

 

By chance, are you the Stacy that did the wonderful Paris & Carnival Mediterranean honeymoon cruise review??? That review was and still is my all-time favorite review!! My husband & I am going on a Mediterranean cruise in May of 2013 for our 30 yr. wedding anniversary aboard the Carnival Sunshine (Barcelona to Barcelona).

 

Because of your review, we have booked multiple RIL tours - can't wait!! I recommended everyone on our Roll Call to read your review as well. I will follow along on your current review/adventure. Take care.

 

Joanne

 

 

Yes Joanne, that me! So glad you enjoyed the honeymoon review so much and that it inspired you to take your trip! It truly was the best trip we have ever taken and is proving hard to beat. This trip was fun for different reasons but definitely dis not beat that one out.

 

Thank you for reading and have fun on your trip!!!!!!

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stacycakes1

stacycakes1

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After lunch and a "few" DODs later we decided to take a tour of the spa so we could enter the drawing for free spa services. The Ecstasy's spa is pretty small but they seemed to have plenty of services offered. If we wanted to win the drawing we had to go back up to the spa at 4:30pm after muster. Of course they do that so you end up buying things but we thought we would give a try anyway.

Pics of the Spa area...

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After we were done with the tour there wasn't too much time left until Muster Drill. We were all scheduled for section E in the starlight lounger for muster drill. Everyone agreed that we would take some time to relax and unpack in our rooms then meet up there. Most of us made it. We had a booth and were waiting for everyone. When the drill started we realized my sister, Krystine Anthony and Mike were not there!

Muster Drill Fun waiting for our missing friends...

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Two seconds later Mike and Anthony got escorted into the Drill with drinks in their hands looking mischievous. They were trying to hide on deck somewhere and skip out and got caught!!! I am such a brown noser and would never even think about missing muster. Plus I know how serious the safety measures need to be and after watching some disasters happen to cruise ships as of late wanted to make sure I knew where to go and what to do if something happened.

My sister Kristy and Krystine were still missing though! After the drill I went up to their room and found them hiding in the dark which I have to admit was kind of funny.

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