Carnival Glory - February 2nd-9th Review

[jetexpress]

I just want to apologize off the bat. I am not as eloquent as some of you when doing these types of things and simply do not have the time to upload as many pictures as I would like to, so please bear with me. I will break this review into each day of our trip and try to keep things chronological. If you have any questions along the way, feel free to ask.

Background-----

My wife and I are 31 and 29 years old respectively and this was our sixth cruise together. We have taken four cruises previously on Carnival and one on Royal Caribbean. I also had one prior cruise on RCCL before we started dating.

[jetexpress]

Saturday, February 1st-----Pre Cruise

We left our house from Northern Ohio around 7:45am and headed to Columbus to fly out. Flew down to Miami on Delta and had no issues on the way.

Once we claimed our luggage at MIA, we hopped on the shuttle to Holiday Inn-Miami International Airport at 1111 S Royal Poinciana Blvd. I received the hotel through a bidding website for $75. Due to the Miami Marathon on Sunday, all hotel prices downtown and near the port were higher than usual. The shuttle ride was probably less than five minutes to the Hotel. There was a large group of new Carnival employees all checking in and the line stretched throughout the lobby. The manager called me over to the lane reserved for their elite loyalty program guests and quickly got us checked in. We ended up getting some grab-n-go type sandwiches and salads from the hotel's deli counter/coffee shop for dinner and took them up to the room.

Due to issues with the air conditioning unit, plumbing problems, and very thin walls and windows our night was miserable to say the least. We checked with the staff but no other rooms were available due to being sold out from all the Carnival employees.

[wb3690]

looking forward to reading whatever you post! We're cruising on the Glory next month!

[jetexpress]

Sunday, February 2nd-----Embarkation Day

We both were up early and decided to just take the shuttle back to the airport for breakfast so we could get out of the hotel ASAP. We killed a little time at the airport before getting a taxi and heading towards the port. I was glad I received advice on cruise critic about leaving extra time due to all the traffic delays that would be occurring from the marathon. What normally is a 30 minute or less trip to the POM took approximately 90 minutes. THANK GOD FOR THE $24 FLAT RATE!!! We pulled up in front of the terminal around 10:15 and there were people everywhere. There were no taxi's to be found for those guests that had disembarked from the previous sailing. Our driver told us none of the taxi drivers were willing to deal with traffic just to come to the port and have to sit in traffic again on the way out. I truly felt bad for these people and I'm sure quite a few flights were missed that day.

*For future reference, after seeing what we saw, we will never again be on a cruise that either embarks or debarks on the day of the Miami Marathon.*

We made our way through the crowd over to the terminal entrance and gave our luggage to the porters who immediately put a bright orange FTTF sticker around the handle before I could even point to the FTTF logo on our documents/luggage tags. We went inside the terminal and it was still practically empty. We breezed through security then check-in and had a seat in the waiting area by 10:30am. We found a seat near the escalators and waited. They began boarding right at 12:00. I did not see any wedding parties get on, so we were quickly getting on after Diamond, Platinum, and Suite guests.

Once aboard, we went directly to our cabin #1062 to drop off our carryon bags. Our luggage was not there yet so we ventured off to get some lunch.

I was skeptical as to how many people rave about the Guy's burgers, but, they were very tasty and I had a couple more throughout the week. We went back to the cabin and our checked luggage had arrived. Unpacked a few things then we went off to re-familiarize ourselves with Conquest Class layout and check out the new 2.0 locations. After a while we headed back to the cabin to finish unpacking before muster drill. Once muster began, we took our time getting there so we would not be stuck in the back row with sweaty people pushing up against us. We timed it perfectly and fell in just as the last surge of people were arriving. Once muster was complete, we headed to the Aft pool bar area where some members from our roll call were supposed to be gathering. We never really saw anyone there that was looking for other people, so we ended up going back to the cabin and enjoying a quiet, relaxing sail away on the balcony. Since this was Super Bowl Sunday, they were showing the game at a few venues throughout the ship, (Lido Big Screen, Ebony Cabaret, and of course the EA Sports Bar.)

We went to the MDR to try out the new dining concept along with the new menus. In short, menu choices seemed very limited and I missed the chilled soups even more than I thought I would going into the cruise. Also, dessert options were much more limited than in the past. The waiters seemed to have gotten some of the kinks worked out as far as timing. We never really waited too long and all food came to the table at appropriate temperatures. Tables looked very nice on casual nights without the table cloths. I enjoyed having the water carafe on the table along with the bread basket to not have to wait on more bread or a refill of water. A few weeks or months ago, I remember John Heald asking a question on his facebook page about if people prefer easy to spread butter or the hard little packets that used to be in the MDR. The easy to spread variety must have won out because there was a little butter dish on each table and we no longer had to fight the foil wrapper and not even be able to spread the old type. Our waiter the first night asked us what we thought of the new concept. I was honest and he seemed to insinuate that not many people are fond of the new menus. I asked him how he liked it and he even admitted, not as many choices, but now there is a different nightly steak offering, which is nice. I also got the impression, he thought the waiters had too much to do and could not provide the same level of service they had in years past.

 

[jetexpress]

Monday, February 3rd-----Sea Day

After eating breakfast at the Red Sail Lido Buffet, we changed and headed up to the Serenity area where we settled in to one of the circular beds. This whole area is nice but much more crowded than we found the adults only solarium area on Liberty of the Seas to be. We sat up there most of the morning, then went down to the spa and used the whirlpool and mini pool in there that was deserted at usual. We killed a little time in the casino and stopped by some of the smaller activities throughout the ship. We skipped elegant night in the MDR(American Feast), however I noticed much more, well dressed people on this sailing than our previous four with Carnival. Suits for men were much more common than I ever remember. This seemed to be the more formal of the two elegant nights. We went to the playlist production show of Divas. It was okay, but after seeing some of RCCL’s live entertainment on our last cruise, we were not expecting much.

[jetexpress]

Tuesday, February 4th-----Cozumel, Mexico

We booked the royal dolphin swim independently through Dolphin Discovery at Chankanaab National Park, as it was about half of the cost of doing it through Carnival. We grabbed a cab from the port area, which cost $11 USD, and were at the park in about 5 minutes. I made the mistake of watching the “Blackfish” documentary, about SeaWorld and their treatment of orcas, so I was on the verge of cancelling this excursion before we left, but, I am so glad we did it and both had an amazing time. There was lady in our group that had previously done a dolphin swim in Nassau (I assume at Atlantis) and she said this one in Cozumel was MUCH better and more fun. After our session we were free to use all of the Chankanaab facilities, including a Mexican food buffet, and did some good snorkeling from shore. We got a cab back to the port area and did a little shopping before getting back on board. Again, we watched sail away from our balcony and it was nice reminiscing about our last cruise, as we had been docked next to Liberty of the Seas.

We again ate in the Red Sail for dinner, as most of what was being served in the MDR was also on the buffet the same night. It was much more relaxed and we were able to sample a little bit of everything that way. We did not go to either the Motor City or Latin Nights playlist shows, as we were not that impressed with Divas.

 

 

Dolphin Discovery Pool at Chankanaab Park

Behind us is the ocean pen where the dolphin swim takes place

Snorkeling at Chankanaab. Pretty decent for right off the shoreline.

Glory (near) and Triumph (far) docked in Cozumel

[jetexpress]

Wednesday, February 5th-----Belize City, Belize

Using our FTTF we were on the first tender to Belize. Upon arriving in the port area, we immediately regretted not making plans ahead of time. Yes, there were plenty of excursion operators all over but the one we tried to make a deal with wanted to essentially take our money and he would go steal a sticker so we could join one of the NCL ship tours. We declined, and took a stroll through the port area. We stocked up on a few medications we usually get prescribed while sick, so we can hopefully avoid a trip to the Doctor’s office the next time around. We sat down at a little bar on the water for a few drinks, but due to the high volume of tender and excursion boats pulling in the out of the docks, the diesel fumes made it not very enjoyable. We ended up back on the ship relatively quickly and vowed to always purchase a ship excursion if/when we returned to Belize.

We did go to the MDR this evening and it was pretty comparable to the first night. After dinner we saw Phil Hughes, a comedian and ventriloquist. His show started slow but ended pretty good. I was hoping he would do an adults only show later in the cruise, but never saw anything else for him.

We then went to see the resident ship magician, Chris, do a show. I would agree with golfadj, that Chris was probably the highlight of the entertainers this week. He is pretty witty and has a good delivery to not come off as simply a magician doing tricks at a Birthday party.

When Chris’ show was complete, we stayed in the Ebony Cabaret lounge for the Carnival Quest. While it was funny it was not done as well as the original one on RCCL. Most of the items were taken word for word from RCCL. I just felt like Carnival didn’t even try to be original with this. I do not think the Ebony Cabaret was a good venue for it, either. Due to all the round lounge couches and raised stage, we witnessed several people fall and get knocked over. I think the Ivory Bar with its flat floor and stage in the middle of the room would have been much better.

 

While headed to our anchoring position, we passed right behind the Caribbean Princess

On the tender waiting to go ashore.

Headed back to the Glory on the tender.

Carnival Glory anchored in Belize with Norwegian Jewel, Caribbean Princess and Norwegian Dawn

[jetexpress]

Thursday, February 6th-----Sea Day

Although we had been scheduled to stop at Isla Roatan, Honduras the strong winds prevented us from making it into port and were forced to have another Sea Day. Our cruise director, Everson (more on him later), came over the PA system to make the announcement. To us, it honestly seemed like he was still half asleep and had just been awoken by the captain to come up to the bridge. We again went up to serenity and spent some time in the sun. Due to having a sea day, we ate lunch in the MDR and redeemed our past guest drink coupons. After not hearing anything for a few hours, Everson made another announcement that a new FunTimes had been printed with many more activities to fill up the sea day. I don’t want to sound like a downer but three things of trvia, half price bingo, and an extra installment of the Hasbro show is not much.

We ended up going to a digital scavenger hunt later in the day. Basically, you take your camera and are then given a checklist of items to go take pictures of around the ship. The team with the most pictures within twenty minutes wins. Needless to say, thanks to all the time I spend on cruise critic and doing pre-cruise planning, we easily won. We received another ship on a stick for our collection and a carnival medal.

After dinner, we went to a show from the ship variety band called ‘The Silver Screens’. They basically did cover versions of quite a bit of recognizable hits from movies. I was really impressed when they did “Cups” by Anna Kendrick, from the movie Pitch Perfect. Look it up on youtube if you have never seen it before. After that, we went to the Game of Love Comedy Show. Maybe we have just been lucky, but the three couples picked this time were just not as funny as in the past. There were still a few good laughs, but without Everson keeping things rolling, this show would have probably been a complete dud if hosted by some of the other cruise directors we have had.

 

Whale tail action. Note the rented Caterpillar Genarator strapped to the top deck. Thanks a lot, Triumph :rolleyes:

Picture from our scavenger hunt of "A well dressed strawberry"

Scavenger hunt "A wall of candy"

[jetexpress]

Friday, February 7th-----Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands

Again, using our FTTF priority tendering, we were quickly off the ship. Took a cab to Surfside Beach on Seven Mile Beach and did some shore snorkeling on our own. We originally had booked the stingray and turtle combo, but cancelled because we really wanted another beach day after having Roatan cancelled the day before. Did some decent snorkeling there, but water was not quite as clear as it had been in Cozumel. After a few hours, we headed back to the port area and got back on the ship to change and eat lunch. Headed ashore again then walked around the city a little while. It was so nice to not have all the shop owners screaming and pressuring you to buy something.

Tonight, was the second elegant night (American Feast) and like I said earlier, I did not think people were as dressed up as the first time. We did eat in the MDR and I ordered two entrees. Both the Filet Mignon and Crab Cake were good. Free champagne toast was a nice touch and this night we had the best MDR service of the three nights we went.

That evening, we laid on Lido Deck and watched the Winter Olympics opening ceremony on the big screen. This was a very neat experience and people cheered as whatever country they were from walked into the stadium.

On the tender, headed to Grand Cayman

Puffer Fish at Seven Mile Beach.

School of Blue Tang.

Floating table at Surfside Beach

[jetexpress]

2014 Sochi Winter Olympics Openening Ceremony on the Lido Big Screen.

 

[jetexpress]

Saturday, February 8th-----Sea Day

Most of our last day, we tried to just take it easy and enjoy our time away from the frigid Ohio temperatures.

Our cruise director, Everson (Dr. E) hosted an informal Question and Answer session along with the assistant cruise director, Laura. This was a cool experience as he was pretty blunt about most questions and didn’t necessarily give the politically correct answer that Carnival Beards probably wanted him to. Everson said Carnival recently had several cruise directors leave the company due to all the new requirements and what they have to do. He was an assistant cruise director for the past two and a half years with Carnival and just was promoted to Acting Cruise Director four weeks ago. I will say he has some entertainment abilities and is definitely a people person. I do think he could cut back on the announcements. I understand they want people to show up at stuff and make money, but I just felt like there a few too many announcements on the PA system. He actually made one right before Team USA was about to enter during the Olympics Opening Ceremony (which muted the big screen) and I heard a few people boo and one actually shouted “Shut up!” I am sure he will get into more of a rhythm. Like I said earlier, his witty ability definitely salvaged the Game of Love show. That evening we made our depressing trip back to the room to get all packed up again and then caught one of the adults-only comedian shows.

Last Sea Day

Did not see one other person on the "secret decks" any time we went out there.

Carnival Glory Lobby

Carnival Glory Golden Dining Room

Beautiful sunset on our last night.

[jetexpress]

Sunday, February 9th-----Debarkation Day

We got up early, had breakfast, and returned to the cabin to get everything together. Our FTTF instructions said to meet in the Golden Dining Room on Deck 3 at 7:30 am. We headed down at about 6:55am and discovered people were already debarking from the Atrium. I found it extremely odd that Everson had not made any announcements about the debarking process that morning or advised that priority and self-assist debarkers could now go to the gangway. I really do not think he is a morning person, as he even admitted to still being asleep, while we had attempted to dock in Roatan, during his Q&A session the day before.

Anyways, we were off the ship and through customs by 7:10am. We took a taxi to the downtown Budget Rent a Car office. We actually had to wait for them to open at 8:00am. We got our car and drove up to Fort Lauderdale for lunch and to walk around. Arrived to FLL about 2:45 for our 4:30 flight out on Southwest. I normally do not choose to fly Southwest (I prefer to know where I am sitting and not go through the cattle herding boarding process) but we had received some Southwest gift cards to use up. Southwest’s terminal and gate area at FLL is way too small for the volume of passengers they are attempting to fly out of there, especially since their merger with AirTran. There were nearly 30 minute waits at the three food vendors (Yes, only three!) and only one set of restrooms once past security. Men’s restrooms almost never have a line and there was line here just to use a urinal. The seating areas were full at every gate and many people were forced to stand or sit on the floor. Lesson learned, we will not fly Southwest home from FLL again. Especially on a Sunday with all the cruise ship passengers and an Oasis class vessel in Port Everglades. Our flight finally left approximately 2.5 hours late.

[jetexpress]

Overview-----

This was our first Carnival experience with 2.0 upgrades and I did enjoy most of them. Serenity, Blue Iguana Cantina, and Guy’s Burgers were especially welcome additions. The Red Frog Rum Bar and Blue Iquana Tequila Bar (on Conquest class ships anyway) seem to really crowd the Lido deck space. I also felt that this along with the DJ’s led to a Spring Break type atmosphere and we both felt this was the loudest lido deck ever. We honestly did not spend any time here except during the Olympic Opening Ceremony. I also do not think they should allow the DJ’s to continue playing music to nearly 1:00am on the Lido deck, as there were a few nights we could hear the bass thumping all the way in our cabin. (We do leave our balcony door propped open at night.)

Speaking of our cabin #1062, we really did like the location. It was nice to be near the main elevator bank and also convenient to be able to easily walk out to Lido (past the noise) and get to the Red Sail Lido Buffet. We did have a minor issue with the shower draining slowly, but guest services promptly sent up a plumber and the issue was resolved.

Staff was all very friendly.

Ship was very clean and well maintained.

Since our most recent cruise had been on RCCL Freedom class, I was a little hesitant about what I would think about Carnival again. They are definitely more similar than different.

Plusses for RCCL are:

-Entertainment(both the production type shows and smaller things hosted by CD or Asst CD)

-Ship design, décor, and overall impression

-Main Dining Room service and food choices

-Much quieter Lido main pool area

Plusses for CCL are:

-Overall food taste and quality (Both MDR and Lido buffet.

-Cheaper (can cruise more often or book longer cruises)

-Buffet set-up seems more efficient. It seems to help that Blue Iguana and Guys draw some of the crowd away especially during lunch

 

I think we are both 50/50 as to which line we prefer. I do think we need to experience a Spirit class CCL ship as everyone raves about the passenger to space ratio.

 

 

Again, if you have any questions feel free to ask.

[WAHMto5]

Thank you for the review!!

[golfadj]

Saturday, February 8th-----Sea Day

Most of our last day, we tried to just take it easy and enjoy our time away from the frigid Ohio temperatures.

Our cruise director, Everson (Dr. E) hosted an informal Question and Answer session along with the assistant cruise director, Laura. This was a cool experience as he was pretty blunt about most questions and didn’t necessarily give the politically correct answer that Carnival Beards probably wanted him to. Everson said Carnival recently had several cruise directors leave the company due to all the new requirements and what they have to do. He was an assistant cruise director for the past two and a half years with Carnival and just was promoted to Acting Cruise Director four weeks ago. I will say he has some entertainment abilities and is definitely a people person. I do think he could cut back on the announcements. I understand they want people to show up at stuff and make money, but I just felt like there a few too many announcements on the PA system. He actually made one right before Team USA was about to enter during the Olympics Opening Ceremony (which muted the big screen) and I heard a few people boo and one actually shouted “Shut up!” I am sure he will get into more of a rhythm. Like I said earlier, his witty ability definitely salvaged the Game of Love show. That evening we made our depressing trip back to the room to get all packed up again and then caught one of the adults-only comedian shows.

Last Sea Day

Did not see one other person on the "secret decks" any time we went out there.

Carnival Glory Lobby

Carnival Glory Golden Dining Room

Beautiful sunset on our last night.

 

Didnt notice the Q and A in the fun times or would have gone to it. Seems like he will make a good CD but he does like to talk. His singing at the beginning and end of his announcements got on my nerves after awhile.

[riclop]

Thanks for the review.

[nybumpkin]

I enjoyed your review. We've sailed Glory 4 times but all pre-2.0; we're booked in August for a Western itinerary. I especially appreciate your dining experience; to be honest, I hope the "American Table" experience is gone by the time we sail in August. It's certainly not a deal breaker for us, but from everything I've read it certainly seems a step down.:(

[funinthesun1964]

Thanks for your report and especially about the MDR waiters and your conversations. I wondered if they were still gathering opinions and how things are going with that new menu. I haven't been on a ship with it yet, but it definitely does seem to not have as much variety.

 

Anyway, I am happy for the spreadable butter. I hated opening those little foil packets and then they wouldn't move anywhere! Just one big clump!

[Toesinthewater728]

Thanks for the post.... just did that Itinerary in November and feel bad you did not get to see Roatan! What a great place it was.