Carnival Glory - Canada from Boston - Detailed Review - Part IV - Entertainment

[CaribbeanBound]

Due to the length of this review, I have broken it up into several parts which I will post as quickly as I can.

 

 

Part IV - Entertainment

A. Movies

Glory has a huge outdoor "drive-in theater" on deck 9 with plenty of stadium-style lounge chair seating. Popcorn is available. Unfortunately the movies couldn't be enjoyed on the three foggy nights due to frequent foghorn blasts.

 

B. Shows

The Glory's Amber palace theater spans 3 decks. Seating is reasonably comfortable on Decks 3 and 4 and very comfortable in the stadium seats on Deck 5. Sight lines are very good, except for a few seats that are blocked by support poles. Unlike Celebrity, there were no guest entertainers that performed here, no Broadway style shows, and there was no live music. All of the productions featured canned music with dancing and live vocals. I gave up after the first show, while my wife was determined to see them all. While the performers were energetic, we felt the shows themselves were not worth attending. Most of the entertainment in this venue was REALLY LOUD.

 

C. Casino

The Camel Club Casino on Deck 5 is filled with the requisite slot machines, one craps table, a roulette table, a few poker and blackjack tables, and an electronic Texas Hold'em table. The casino was open while at sea and closed while in ports. The casino is a smoke-filled venue which reeks of smoke so bad you can smell it up the stairwells and your clothes will smell of smoke if you spend any time walking through it. Table minimums started at $5 and up. The casino workers were friendly and very willing to help newbies with any questions on how to play the games of chance. Hint: the casino sells its used decks of quality playing cards for only $1 while supplies last.

 

D. Spa Carnival

It is located Forward on Deck 11. We did not use the spa on this trip.

 

E. Outdoor Pools and Hot tubs.

There is a giant outdoor slide accessible on Deck 10 that has 3 or 4 loops and lands on Deck 9. It looked like fun and was wildly popular with the children. The pools and hot tubs saw lots of action on this cruise. While we did not use either, the hot tubs were reportedly cooler than most would have preferred.

 

F. Carnival Orchestra and Other Ship Bands

There is no Carnival Orchestra on this ship. In fact, there was a absence of live music on the open deck (9) and in the theater. There was a 5-piece band that performed in the casino, a duo and a really excellent guitar soloist who played in a couple of venues, and a sing-along pianist who played in the Cinn-A-Bar.

 

G. In-room TV

There were several closed-circuit ship channels and sporadic satellite stations available on the TV in the cabin. We mainly kept our TV tuned into the web-cam on Deck 9. The front-of-the-ship webcam was out of order. When cruising in an inside cabin, we like to keep the tv tuned into the front-of-the-ship webcam at all times. It acts as our portal.

 

H. Room Service

You can order room service 24-hours a day. We didn't order anything from room service.

 

I. Sporting Events

Sporting events were not available on the room TVs. ESPN and ESPN-2 broadcasts were only available in the cool EA Sports Bar next to the casino on Deck 5. They showed sports on several big screens and had two additional screens that could also be used for playing popular sports-themed video games at no charge.

 

J. Activities

There is no lack of things to do: movies, bingo, trivia contests throughout the day, ping pong, shows, culinary demonstrations, health and exercise seminars, casino tournaments, cards, and dancing to name a few. The activities staff was outstanding.

 

The Sports Deck on 11 features a jogging track, small basketball court and a small volleyball court. Deck 11 features a reasonably fun 9-hole mini-golf course. All sports equipment is free to use and can be checked out on Deck 9.

 

K. Comedy Club

This is the first ship I've ever been on that featured a dedicated comedy club. Found on Deck 5, the Ebony Cabaret Aft Lounge was home to 2 visiting comedians who each performed at least 4 times. Family-friendly shows as well as adults-only shows were performed. All of the shows were packed. Seating was good and comfortable. Hint: arriving just 20 to 30 minutes early will get you front row seats!

 

L. Parties and Tours

Unlike Celebrity which runs a number of parties with free drinks for repeat cruisers, birthday and anniversary celebrants, and a Captains meet and greet, we didn't notice any on Carnival. It could be were just weren't invited. Carnival did have a Captain's meet and greet with Captain Francesco La Farina.

 

M. Bars

There were more bars on this ship than anything we've seen on Celebrity or Princess. If you're on a prepaid liquor plan, or just looking to drink, you won't have to walk far to find bartender. We found the bartenders and servers to be efficient.

 

N. Library

This small room appears to have been an after-thought. It was usually empty, and had very few books on its shelves. Apparently Carnival passengers don't read. They party!

 

 

Next up --- Parts V and VI: Health Concerns and Ship Notes

 

You can read also the review in its entirely, with images, at http://www.lavasurfer.com/info/carnival-glory.html, but you won't be able to enjoy the input from fellow cruisers like you can on CruiseCritic. Feel free to post your questions and comments below.

[Carnival_Brides]

L. Parties and Tours

Unlike Celebrity which runs a number of parties with free drinks for repeat cruisers, birthday and anniversary celebrants, and a Captains meet and greet, we didn't notice any on Carnival. It could be were just weren't invited. Carnival did have a Captain's meet and greet with Captain Francesco La Farina.

 

What a fun review! There was a past guest party, but unless you're invited, you pretty much don't know it's going on. It was on the last sea-day in the afternoon. CCL does their Gold, Platinum and Diamond party on cruises that are five days or longer.

[trvlgrl422]

Loved your thorough review of Glory! I got a lot of great tips from it. Thanks for providing such great info for fellow cruisers. You got me even more excited for my upcoming cruise!

[chipperberg]

Awesome review. However, it makes me even more sad to have missed this trip. But that is OK, I can live it through this...

[wmowan8485]

 

 

L. Parties and Tours

Unlike Celebrity which runs a number of parties with free drinks for repeat cruisers, birthday and anniversary celebrants, and a Captains meet and greet, we didn't notice any on Carnival. It could be were just weren't invited. Carnival did have a Captain's meet and greet with Captain Francesco La Farina.

 

Carnival only puts on past guest parties on sailings of 5 days or more. :)

[kangaand2roos]

Just curious what sorts of movies were offered on the big screen. I'm sailing in a week with my 10 YO daughter and just wanted to get a idea if there were any kid/family friendly offering? And what times did they show (or would they have shown had there not been fog?

[Carnival_Brides]

Just curious what sorts of movies were offered on the big screen. I'm sailing in a week with my 10 YO daughter and just wanted to get a idea if there were any kid/family friendly offering? And what times did they show (or would they have shown had there not been fog?

 

The week we went they were mostly family friendly--I know Tron and A League of Their Own.

[kangaand2roos]

The week we went they were mostly family friendly--I know Tron and A League of Their Own.

 

Thank you! I'm thinking that might be a fun activity, weather permitting!

[CaribbeanBound]

Nothing rated higher than PG-13. Our movies and big-screen concerts included: "Remember the Titans", "A League of Their Own", "Journey to the Mysterious Island", "Men in Black 3", "Quantum of Solace", "Chicago", "Mamma Mia", "Jack & Jill", "Johnny English Reborn", "James Brown - Live at Montreux", "Cher", "Chicago and Earth Wind & Fire".

 

These were all on the big screen. Lots of others also played on the TV's in the cabin.

[kangaand2roos]

Nothing rated higher than PG-13. Our movies and big-screen concerts included: "Remember the Titans", "A League of Their Own", "Journey to the Mysterious Island", "Men in Black 3", "Quantum of Solace", "Chicago", "Mamma Mia", "Jack & Jill", "Johnny English Reborn", "James Brown - Live at Montreux", "Cher", "Chicago and Earth Wind & Fire".

 

These were all on the big screen. Lots of others also played on the TV's in the cabin.

 

Ooh! I hope we get a similar line-up! There are some on that list that I would actually love to watch with her! Thank you so much!!

[CaribbeanBound]

You're welcome.