Elation Review- Progresso/Cozumel May 13, 2013

[cra-z-2cruise]

Found decent price on 5 day cruise and booked last minute. DS and I drove from Southeast Texas to New Orleans Monday morning. Arrived at cruise port around 1 and literally walked straight through embarkation! Honestly the easiest and fastest ever. Cabin was ready and we went and dropped carry on bags off in room. Deck six, midship, ocean view, port side. Great location. Then off to grab some lunch on the lido and a couple DOD's

 

 

 

 

 

We had requested anytime dining, but since we booked so late, we were wait-listed and assigned late seating. Went and spoke with the maitre' D, who was very nice, and made the change the next day. :)

Sail away was beautiful!

 

 

 

 

[cra-z-2cruise]

We ended up skipping dinner the first night and ordered the 1st of many room service BLT's. :) :)

 

 

 

The next day we hung out on deck and played MANY games of mini golf!

 

 

We are both a little competitive, so it was always...."just one more"

DS had never been to the casino, so we went for a while and I watched him play $20 worth of video poker.

 

I have to say that I did notice that there were not nearly as many "free" activities as there used to be. A sign of the times I guess.

 

Now the last time I took DS on a cruise, he ate 5 steak dinners on formal night! Needless to say, he was looking forward to dinner. This time he controlled himself and only had two lobster tales (his and mine). We skipped dessert and headed to the show. It was some sort of the "History of Rock". It was pretty good.

 

I will take this opportunity to discuss the food. I have done both set dining and anytime dining on several occasions. I know that anytime dining poses particular challenges for the waitstaff. However, they seemed particularly stressed on this sailing. While we did not have any real issues, we saw several other tables with lengthy delays. Still, I believe the convenience outweighs the negatives and will continue with this dining option.

 

With the exception of breakfast, I have completely stopped eating in the lido buffet, just because I don't care for the types of food they serve there. However, the sandwich station, the grill, and the pizza were all good. I actually enjoyed the breakfast buffet each morning. Loved the french toast. Just wish it had been available everyday. We hit the omelet station each day and it was great. They also serve cooked-to-order eggs. We never had a problem finding a great place to sit either. As always, room service was a great treat! We love the BLT's.

[cra-z-2cruise]

We have been to Progresso before. DS had been looking forward to the beach message since we booked the trip. We took the shuttle to town and walked down to the beach. Once on the beach, several people approached us and offered messages, usually $20-$30/hr. When we got down to Buddy's, a guy named Juan said we could both get a message for $15/hr. How could we pass on that?

He got us a table at Buddy's on the beach and told us to let him know when we were ready.

 

Buddy's has buckets of beer for $10 and margarita's 2 for $5.

There are a lot of peddlers on the beach selling their goods. They were not pushy though.

 

 

 

 

 

When we were ready, we flagged Juan down and told him we were ready for our messages.

 

All I can say is BEST MESSAGE EVER!

 

 

 

[cra-z-2cruise]

Maybe a little too much fun in the sun in Progresso. We were not up for going to dinner, so opted for room service again.

 

The next morning we were up early and ready for Cozumel. We have done the dolphin swim at Chakanaab and snorkeled before at Punta Sur before, so we were looking for something a little different. We decided on the Amazing Cozumel Race. It was pretty neat. The event was well organized, I felt safe at all times, and was able to see parts of Cozumel that I would not have seen on my own.

 

 

After the race, you are given the choice of going back to ship or going to town for shopping. We went shopping for a while, then headed back toward port. When we were withing walking distance, we had the taxi drop us off. We stopped for a drink at a small bar. Nice views.

 

 

 

Watched sail away from the aft deck. The water is so beautiful here!

 

 

 

 

 

[cra-z-2cruise]

Spent most of the next day out on the deck. Laying by the pool and playing mini golf. While the deck was crowded, we were always able to find chairs.

 

I did most of the packing while DS took a nap. Don't even remember what we did for dinner that night. I just know we didn't go hungry.

 

Got up early the next day and the sunrise was beautiful.

 

 

 

 

 

 

We had lido breakfast, headed to the room and waited for the announcement for self assist debarkation. We were off the boat in our car about 45 minutes after the announcement.

 

We had a really great time, especially considering we booked the trip less than a week before sailing! :)

[txponycruiser]

Nice quick review. Did you by chance do the double decker bus in Progreso? We'll be there in 2 weeks and was wondering the current price.

[cra-z-2cruise]

Nice quick review. Did you by chance do the double decker bus in Progreso? We'll be there in 2 weeks and was wondering the current price.

 

 

 

No, we did not do the double- decker bus in Progresso, but I found some information on the Carnival site that says the current price is $5. Here is the link. Hope you have a great trip.

http://www.carnival.com/Funville/forums/p/260146/1343466.aspx

[krazy4kruisin]

Nice review. I will be going on the Elation in a few weeks. Thank you for sharing.

[jamona2311]

Nice review n very interresting pictures:). We had a greattime in February.

[airlink diva]

Thanks for your review cra-z-2cruise!

I'm sailing on the Elation in less than 20 days and looking at it as a nice getaway. Mainly to relax.

I have late dining, but was thinking about changing to anytime. I normally love sitting with others, but for this cruise I want a table for 2 and eating around 8:30 p.m.

But thanks again!

[wrigley80]

Nice Review....we enjoyed our time onboard the Carnival Elation. Very nice pictures of the sunset

[Keith1010]

Nice review.

 

Keith

[cra-z-2cruise]

Thanks everyone! Hope all of you sailing soon have a great time! :)

[hill6]

Nice review. We sail on her in October.