First timer Carnival Miracle

[mrya1967]

Hi guys,

My family of four have booked on the miracle for the Dec1 Mexican Riviera cruise. Does anyone have copies of a recent Carnival Miracle funtimes?

We are travelling from Australia and have not cruised before so were looking for some tips to make the cruise even more awesome than I am hoping it will be.

 

Thanks in advance

 

Marty

[sandy toes]

Sorry don't have them but have to tell you, the miracle is one of my favorite CCL ships. She is so lovely. You will really enjoy her. Have a great cruise.

[mrya1967]

Thanks Sandy toes. Any tips for the miracle?;)

[firefly333]

Since the Miracle was going out of NY or someplace on the east coast and now on its way thru the panama canal .. Im not sure what a "recent" Miracle funtimes would tell you?

 

Here is a thread about it making its way to the west coast. It will start doing Alaska in May, which since you are not doing Alaska, might still not help a lot.. any fun times will be as close? Wouldnt have to be Miracle.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1813694

[nimiq]

Hello,

Was on the Miracle in 2012 and this ship has been my Carnival favorite since. I love the layout,staff,food and the ship itself.

 

Have a nice cruise

 

sea ya

Eric

Tba fall cruise 2013

Caribbean Princess Feb 2013

Carnival Liberty Nov2012

Hal Westerdam March2012

Ruby Princess Nov2010

Sapphire Princess Sep2010

Rccl Adventure Of The Seas April 2010

Carnival Miracle Feb2010

Rccl Oassis of the Seas Feb2010

Rccl Majesty of the Seas Nov2009

Rccl Navigator of Seas Sep2009

Hal Westerdam Nov&Dec2008

Caribbean Princess Nov2007

Sea Princess Nov&Dec 2006

Diamond Princess Apr2005

Rccl Navigator Dec2004

NCL SUN Nov2004

Visit of QM2 Oct2004

Carnival Victory Nov2003

Golden Princess Apr2003

Celebrity Mercury Nov2002

Carnival Elation Nov2001

NCL SKY Nov2000

[Tammylyne]

ahh the Miracle..our favorite ship..you will love her!

 

Everything you need is on decks 2 and 3.. with a straight run from front to back. No crazy mazes and stairs. Easy to navigate

 

Definitely have dinner at Nick and Nora's supper club. The food is outstanding..I believe this is on decks 11 and 12

 

Deck 2 has lots of public spaces. Along the big round windows are comfortable chairs and couches looking out on the ocean. We would get a drink in a nearby bar and sit here for a while on a sea day afternoon. It was quiet and a great place to visit with whomever you came with

 

When we sailed..Karaoke was always at Mad Hatter's Ball.

 

Afternoon tea use to be served in Jeeves lounge and you HAVE to get there early as it was always packed!

 

Have a great trip :D

[labsnabys]

Mrya, we are traveling on Miracle April 7 to Mexico. If you have not gotten to see the Funtimes by then, I will scan and post ours for you.

 

:)

Lisa

 

Sent from my DROID X2 using Tapatalk 2

[mrya1967]

Thanks Tammylyne and Lisa much appreciated.

[labsnabys]

Hi guys,

My family of four have booked on the miracle for the Dec1 Mexican Riviera cruise. Does anyone have copies of a recent Carnival Miracle funtimes?

We are travelling from Australia and have not cruised before so were looking for some tips to make the cruise even more awesome than I am hoping it will be.

 

Thanks in advance

 

Marty

 

Hey Marty,

 

We returned from our fabulous cruise on the Miracle last Sunday, and I saved all but one of the Fun Times for you! I have them scanned and uploaded to a google drive. Here are the links:

 

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2b_Ya11EoNbeXBmYW80Y0lDSGs/edit?usp=sharing

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2b_Ya11EoNbY0k3OV9Ba2RPT00/edit?usp=sharing

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2b_Ya11EoNbdVZUMWx0X2ExRHc/edit?usp=sharing

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2b_Ya11EoNbZS1yVWJsZGIyUEE/edit?usp=sharing

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2b_Ya11EoNbamt2UHJ2aHZlYkU/edit?usp=sharing

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2b_Ya11EoNbR2hEWW00ekw4S0k/edit?usp=sharing

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2b_Ya11EoNbRDd0MmlUR1ZwVWs/edit?usp=sharing

 

Let me know if you are unable to see them for whatever reason.

 

You will have a blast on the ship -- I know we did. There was a big group of Aussies on board, and they were loads of fun!

 

Lisa

[mrya1967]

Thanks so much Lisa. are you going to review your trip? what excursions did you do?

[labsnabys]

Thanks so much Lisa. are you going to review your trip? what excursions did you do?

 

I wrote a review on the reviews page...I don't think I'll post one on the main Carnival forum. I also wrote up reviews on our two excursions both here and on tripadvisor.com. We did the dune buggy adventure in Cabo and Las Caletas in PV. Both were through Carnival. We heard great things about the canopy adventure in PV. I think if we did it over again knowing what we know now, we would have just gone to the beaches in Cabo or maybe to a hotel where you can use their beach and facilities for the day. We would have done the canopy tour in PV except one of us is afraid of heights (not me! LOL).

[mrya1967]

Thanks again Lisa,

 

I can understand the height thing unfortunately my whole family is that way haha. i'm really glad you had such a wonderful time and we are very much looking forward to our trip. It will be my first one outside of Australia. I read your review yesterday it was excellent. We may now go anytime dining to free up options, Do you think that would have been better for you guys?

Hope you and your family are all good and thanks very much for the advice

Regards

 

Marty

[labsnabys]

We may now go anytime dining to free up options, Do you think that would have been better for you guys?

 

Hi Marty,

 

In hindsight, I think Any Time Dining would have been a better option for us. For one, we would not have been tied to a particular waiter if we were not happy with the service. Two, we wouldn't be bound to show up at a specific time. I thought with a set seating time, we would be placed at a larger table where we could meet some other cruisers, but we ended up with our own table in a very dark corner. I would definitely opt for ATD next time. This was our first cruise, so live and learn!

 

If you are interested in the "swimming with dolphins" type of excursion, our CD (Tex) said the one in PV is better than the one in Cabo. Lower dolphin to human ratio or something. LOL

 

I hope you have fun planning and anticipating your trip...you still have a while to wait! Has there been a roll call set up yet for your cruise?

 

Lisa

[sjcruiser]

Love the Miracle as it's not to small or not to big, but just right. As stated on deck 2 and 3 where most of the action is, you can go from front to back easily. I'm just off the Pride, and one of the things I like about both ships is the "hidden" seating areas where you can go relax, read a book, or take a nap.

[mrya1967]

Hi Marty,

 

In hindsight, I think Any Time Dining would have been a better option for us. For one, we would not have been tied to a particular waiter if we were not happy with the service. Two, we wouldn't be bound to show up at a specific time. I thought with a set seating time, we would be placed at a larger table where we could meet some other cruisers, but we ended up with our own table in a very dark corner. I would definitely opt for ATD next time. This was our first cruise, so live and learn!

 

If you are interested in the "swimming with dolphins" type of excursion, our CD (Tex) said the one in PV is better than the one in Cabo. Lower dolphin to human ratio or something. LOL

 

I hope you have fun planning and anticipating your trip...you still have a while to wait! Has there been a roll call set up yet for your cruise?

 

Lisa

 

yEh there is Lisa, not too much action on it yet though...sadly. I am taking my 12yo daughter and 18yo son with us and we were looking at the dolphins so the PV advice is much appreciated. The cabo idea of a hotel is great, do they provide info on what is available regards these types of hotels on the ship?

I also noticed on your review thatthe embark process was a bit slow. We are staying in Long Beach the night before any advice on what time we should get there?

I was hoping the role call would give my daughter the opportunity to communicate with other young ones before we got on board but no luck yet. Were there many kids on board when you were there? Did you guys use the serenity area much?

We are staying in adjoing rooms on the upper deck so hopefully this will suit us. Thanks again for the communication, it is greatly appreciated. Did you guys stay in long beach before you left? If you did any advice on what to see, do or where to eat?

 

Regards

 

Marty:)

[mrya1967]

Hey Marty,

 

We returned from our fabulous cruise on the Miracle last Sunday, and I saved all but one of the Fun Times for you! I have them scanned and uploaded to a google drive. Here are the links:

 

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2b_Ya11EoNbeXBmYW80Y0lDSGs/edit?usp=sharing

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2b_Ya11EoNbY0k3OV9Ba2RPT00/edit?usp=sharing

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2b_Ya11EoNbdVZUMWx0X2ExRHc/edit?usp=sharing

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2b_Ya11EoNbZS1yVWJsZGIyUEE/edit?usp=sharing

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2b_Ya11EoNbamt2UHJ2aHZlYkU/edit?usp=sharing

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2b_Ya11EoNbR2hEWW00ekw4S0k/edit?usp=sharing

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2b_Ya11EoNbRDd0MmlUR1ZwVWs/edit?usp=sharing

 

Let me know if you are unable to see them for whatever reason.

 

You will have a blast on the ship -- I know we did. There was a big group of Aussies on board, and they were loads of fun!

 

Lisa

 

Hey Lisa,

 

I'm sorry but Icannot access them for some unknown reason. I have tried on my samsung galaxy note and not my pc cos our internet allowance is run out until tomorrow.

I'm not sure why this isn't working but it is a bit frustrating.

 

Egards

 

Marty

[labsnabys]

The cabo idea of a hotel is great, do they provide info on what is available regards these types of hotels on the ship?

I also noticed on your review thatthe embark process was a bit slow. We are staying in Long Beach the night before any advice on what time we should get there?

I was hoping the role call would give my daughter the opportunity to communicate with other young ones before we got on board but no luck yet. Were there many kids on board when you were there? Did you guys use the serenity area much?

We are staying in adjoing rooms on the upper deck so hopefully this will suit us. Thanks again for the communication, it is greatly appreciated. Did you guys stay in long beach before you left? If you did any advice on what to see, do or where to eat?

Regards

Marty:)

 

Marty, after I replied to you, I went to tripadvisor looking for resort hotels on the beach that allow you to use their facilities. There may be good advice on the Carnival forum too, but the consensus seems to be that just getting a water taxi to Medano beach and staking out a spot near one of the beach front restaurants that provide lounge chairs is probably the best bet. I guess if you order food and drinks from them, they let you use their loungers as long as you want. The all-inclusive hotels were pretty pricey and maybe not as conveniently located.

 

We had priority boarding since we were in a suite, so we arrived just before 11am and were on the ship around 12-ish. So it didn't take long, it just seemed disorganized. I don't know how long it took for the non-priority people to board. Just be patient is all I can suggest!

 

There were lots of kids on our cruise, but it was still the latter part of spring break. Early December is not a typical school break time here, so there may not be a ton of kids. Our boys met kids through Circle C and did some of the organized activities and some on their own with their new friends. We didn't use the Serenity area, but it does look very nice and relaxing!

 

We have family in the LA area, so we didn't stay in Long Beach. There is a very nice aquarium not far from the port and of course the Queen Mary is right there. I know there is an area with a bunch of restaurants across the bridge from the port, but I couldn't tell you much more than that.

 

Lisa

[labsnabys]

Hey Lisa,

 

I'm sorry but Icannot access them for some unknown reason. I have tried on my samsung galaxy note and not my pc cos our internet allowance is run out until tomorrow.

I'm not sure why this isn't working but it is a bit frustrating.

 

Egards

 

Marty

 

Try again when you can get on your PC. I've tried it from my hubbie's computer and it works fine, but I don't have another way to test it. I did make the documents public, so anyone should be able to view them. :confused:

[mrya1967]

Thanks Lisa you are a legend again much appreciated for the advice.

 

Regards

 

MArty

[Rosefloater]

We may now go anytime dining to free up options, Do you think that would have been better for you guys?

 

We do ATD just for that reason. We don't want to stop what we are doing and rush to dinner at a specific time.

 

I also noticed on your review that the embark process was a bit slow. We are staying in Long Beach the night before any advice on what time we should get there?

I was hoping the role call would give my daughter the opportunity to communicate with other young ones before we got on board but no luck yet. Were there many kids on board when you were there? Did you guys use the serenity area much?

If you did any advice on what to see, do or where to eat?

 

No matter what time of year we cruise, there have always been kids in all age groups. So, even if there are no kids around your daughter's age on our roll call, there should be kids in your daughter's age group on the ship.

 

In Long Beach, there is the Aquarium. Where are you staying in Long Beach? Depending on where you are staying, you can take the free shuttle bus. Check out the West Coast Departures board for more info or ask on the roll call for more info.

[mrya1967]

Thanks Rosefloater,

 

We are staying at the Courtyard Downtown Long Beach. I think I will nominate anytime dining thanks for the heads up.

Regards

 

Marty

[thekidsandi]

I haven't been on the Miracle yet, but have taken the same itinerary on the Splendor. We did the dolphins in Cabo and had a great time. I think we had 6 people in our group and I felt had plenty of time in the water with the dolphins. We did the Jeep tour in PV, which was also great fun. The Jeeps hold 4 passengers and whoever of the 4 is driving needs to know how to drive a stick shift and doesn't get samples at the tequila factory. As for Long Beach, we stayed the night before at the Hotel Maya. I loved this hotel. We originally chose it because they offer a great Carnival rate and give free parking for the week, but the location can't be beat. I got up early on our departure day and walked along the water to the ship to check things out and get my bearings. I then walked back to the hotel, packed up and took the hotel shuttle to the ship for check in.

[mrya]

Hey Marty,

 

We returned from our fabulous cruise on the Miracle last Sunday, and I saved all but one of the Fun Times for you! I have them scanned and uploaded to a google drive. Here are the links:

 

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2b_Ya11EoNbeXBmYW80Y0lDSGs/edit?usp=sharing

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2b_Ya11EoNbY0k3OV9Ba2RPT00/edit?usp=sharing

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2b_Ya11EoNbdVZUMWx0X2ExRHc/edit?usp=sharing

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2b_Ya11EoNbZS1yVWJsZGIyUEE/edit?usp=sharing

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2b_Ya11EoNbamt2UHJ2aHZlYkU/edit?usp=sharing

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2b_Ya11EoNbR2hEWW00ekw4S0k/edit?usp=sharing

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2b_Ya11EoNbRDd0MmlUR1ZwVWs/edit?usp=sharing

 

Let me know if you are unable to see them for whatever reason.

 

You will have a blast on the ship -- I know we did. There was a big group of Aussies on board, and they were loads of fun!

 

Lisa

 

 

Hey Lisa,

 

no matter how hard I try I cannot open the documents. I have never used google drive before but when I click on the link it gets me to a page with the name of the file but everything else is blank. I have tried everything, any suggestions?

 

 

thanks

 

Marty