Just Back, A Newbie's Observations!

[BlueHerons]

Hi Everyone! I'm just back from the Carnival Fascination and I'm too tired to write a trip report, I wanted to jot down a couple of thoughts. This was most of my family's first cruise and some close friend's are old salts and have cruised many times.

 

1. We had a blast. I mean really, Carnival lives up to its Fun Ship reputation. We aren't hard partiers but neither are we teetotalers either. It was certainly up there with one of our most fun vacations.

 

2. The bottoms of my feet are killing me. The deck of the boat is HARD! Why does no one tell you to prepare for your feet to hurt?

 

3. How do people gain weight on cruise ships? Between walking the boat and walking in port, I think we lost weight.

 

4. Was it just us or is it impossible to understand a word of what anyone is saying over the loudspeakers?

 

5. The staterooms were great. I had plenty of room in the bathroom and didn't even use the shoe tree I brought for the back of the door. I also didn't use the extension cord I brought. One plug was fine. The beds were FANTASTIC and I slept like a baby!

 

6. The service was outstanding. I've stayed at some of the best resorts in the world and Carnival's service was certainly as good and in some places better.

 

7. One of the only downsides of cruising for me was it was like drive by vacationing. The ports we visited were Key West and Cozumel of which my husband and I have both spent much time in. You don't get enough time in Key West to do anything and the excursions they offer in Cozumel aren't indicitive of Cozumel. We did have a fantastic time at Paradise Beach in Cozumel and walking the streets of Key West.

 

8. The food was okay. Not great but not bad. For the amount of people they serve daily, they do an outstanding job.

 

9. We snuck liquor aboard and mixed a few drinks. We had no problems but that doesn't mean that everyone will have no problems.

 

It was a fantastic vacation. Boarding at 11AM had us on the ship and drinking a cocktail of the day by the pool by 12Noon. Would I do it again? Certainly but probably not for a while.

 

I'll be back to write a trip report but just wanted to write a few thoughts on Carnival. They sometimes get a bad rap and I don't think they deserve this.

[momof4boys]

Thanks for the report. I am going on my first cruise mid July. Just wondering about the feet...did you go barefoot or wear flip flops? :eek: Hate to think my feet will kill me! :)

[Giventofly]

I'd probably recommend next time taking a longer trip. The 3 day 4 night trip that I think you took, by your ports listed, is really too short to really experience cruising, IMHO.

 

On longer trips, it seems you have more port time as well.

 

Next time try a 7 nighter!

 

Thanks for the entertaining report.

 

Glad you had fun!

[Wennfred]

Great review, I guess it depends on the shoes you are wearing, never had problems with pain after long walks, even in Vegas where I walk the strip twice somethings since I Leave my car at home.

 

The shoes I use are the Saucony Grid Stabil MC, The shoes have extra support, who has a small- to medium-frame and low to flat arches, and has a Medial post provides motion control and flexibility, they dont bend in the middle.

 

After suffering from Plantars Fasciitis (Arch Strain) I stay more with these high-end shoes and life is good. Another good shoe to try out are the New Balance 1122 MC. Check out www.roadrunnersports.com and use the Shoe Dog to see what shoe fits you the best.

[TechDock]

After suffering from Plantars Fasciitis (Arch Strain) I stay more with these high-end shoes and life is good. Another good shoe to try out are the New Balance 1122 MC. Check out www.roadrunnersports.com and use the Shoe Dog to see what shoe fits you the best.

When I was under a podiatrist's care for chronic ankle pain, her first bit of advice was, "Stay away from cheap shoes!" She recommended New Balance, and these have been quite effective. I have also have had good luck with Cardiostrides from Nikken. Both have excellent arch and ankle support, and I had no problems with all the walking we did on our cruise last month.

[momof4boys]

Have to agree about the good walking shoes. Three years ago I went to a walking/running shoe specialty shop where they actually watched me walk and made me try out a pair for around 20 minutes. I only bye these saucony shoes now..not cheap (around 90 bucks) but worth every bit. Just wish they would change the color ever year..I am tired of wearing white with purple!!:eek:

 

I asked poster if she went barefoot cuz I read another Poster's comment that the ships floor got really hot so bring flip flops to run to pool.:)

[BlueHerons]

I'm a runner currently training for a marathon and an AFAA Certified aerobics instructer and understand the deal about wearing good shoes and proper support. My feet didn't hurt from everyday walking and sightseeing but my feet hurt and my family's feet hurt because of all the walking on deck. Those teak decks hurt the bottoms of my feet. The heels and balls of my feet ache not blisters and callouses.

[sgriff17]

yeah...try a 7 night...wouldnt seem like sooo much of a drive by vacation!

[thogan]

Thanks for posting the review! We leave on the Fascination a week from Monday--the same cruise you took. We are also first timers, and since there's not too much on these boards regarding that ship, I would appreciate any other insight you may have. Did you have children? We are going with my family, my sister's family and our 82-year-old dad. Five kids, ranging from 11-17. What cabin were you in? We are on the upper Deck, with three ocean-view and two interior rooms.

[pacerzfan]

Thanks for your review looking forward to the long version!

[BlueHerons]

Thanks for posting the review! We leave on the Fascination a week from Monday--the same cruise you took. We are also first timers, and since there's not too much on these boards regarding that ship, I would appreciate any other insight you may have. Did you have children? We are going with my family, my sister's family and our 82-year-old dad. Five kids, ranging from 11-17. What cabin were you in? We are on the upper Deck, with three ocean-view and two interior rooms.

 

We were Empress Aft but our kids were a little older (18-23). We had E169, E163, E159 and several interior staterooms on the Empress deck.

 

We enjoyed laying out on the back of the deck above the Lido deck. We didn't get any drink cards and no one seemed to miss having cokes. Drinks of the day were usually good. Although Carnival's liturature emphatically states no drinking under 21, I saw my 18 year old with a drink a couple of times. We all hung out with each other and really enjoyed our family's company. The oldest in the group was my stepfather who is 79 and had no problems navigating the decks or the ship.

 

We didn't really see any kids either.

 

The ocean view rooms are great and beds really comfortable.

 

For what it is worth, we had the 6:15 seating for the dining room and only saw a couple of tuxedos on formal night. Our formal night morphed into cocktail attire night. Also saw a lot of shorts in the dining room and a few jeans.

[corina27]

 

 

 

For what it is worth, we had the 6:15 seating for the dining room and only saw a couple of tuxedos on formal night. Our formal night morphed into cocktail attire night. Also saw a lot of shorts in the dining room and a few jeans.

Oh,dont go there...Youll get the fashionistas all wound up..:D

[ladycaveat]

Thanks for the report. I am going on my first cruise mid July. Just wondering about the feet...did you go barefoot or wear flip flops? :eek: Hate to think my feet will kill me! :)

 

Don't ever go barefoot on the Lido deck out in the sun unless you want to burn your tooties to a crisp. :eek: Even going from my chair about three feet from the pool was sooooo hot . . . you have to wear sandals or thongs and take them off just before you enter the water.