Jamman's Solo FANTASY Adventure - 2/11/14 (with Pics)

[Jamman54]

Continuing my walk back to the ship, I took this photo of the three Carnival ships in port today, the Fantasy, Pride, and Magic…..

How handy is it the Senor Frog’s is about halfway back to the ship?.....

Feeling thirsty again, I ordered up a yard of Goombay Smash, and sat back to watch the party. The place was packed!! After about an hour, I stopped in the gift shop to purchase a hat, since I had forgotten to pack one. Then I proceeded to finish my walk back to the ship. The lines in the terminal to get back to the ships were incredibly long, but I have to say they moved very quickly. The reason for the lines was clear. It was raining pretty hard now, and with all the ships in port today, and everyone deciding to head back at the same time. It was understandable.

I finally got back on board around 2:30 pm, and shortly thereafter the sun came back out and stayed out the rest of our time here. I hung out at Serenity, relaxing until it was time to sail away from Nassau. Here’s a view looking down the pier towards the terminal building…..

Sharkeez is right across the street. I meant to stop there, but didn’t…..

It’s time to throw the lines…..

We are now sailing from Nassau……

 

To be continued…..

Edited February 24, 2014 by Jamman54

[Jamman54]

As we backed out of our berth before spinning around to head out to sea, I took some photos along the way. Here’s Senor Frog’s……

Next door is the British Colonial Hilton…..

Fat Tuesday’s is a little further down…..

And finally a long shot towards Junkanoo Beach…..

Here’s a view of the Atlantis and the Norwegian Breakaway…..

The Norwegian Breakaway and the Celebrity Century…..

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

As we leave, here is one last close up of the Carnival Pride…..

Leaving the last three ships and the Port of Nassau behind…..

Afterwards, I made my way to the internet café to touch base with Patti, then went back to the cabin for a short, much needed, nap before dinner.

Dinner tonight was once again, very good. I had the Shrimp Cocktail, French Onion Soup, and for my entrees, the Atlantic Salmon, and the Sicilian Chicken. Dessert was two scoops of Chocolate Ice Cream. Tonight, the wait staff danced to “Low, Low, Low”. Very funny!!......

After dinner I went to the casino and made a $200. donation to the Blackjack Gods. Yikes, I’m down again for this cruise, thank goodness I have two more days to right the ship. Since it was now after midnight, I made it back to the cabin, and tonight’s towel animal…….

After a room service BLT, I’m off to sleep, dreaming of my nice day in Nassau.

Coming up next, paradise on earth, Half Moon Cay!!!

[ibcnusoon]

Great review! Thanks for posting!

[lifeisgoodPat]

Loving your review!

[Jamman54]

Great review! Thanks for posting!

 

Loving your review!

 

Thanks for reading. Much more to come!!

[iheartmarshall]

More! More! More!

 

It's a slow day in the office and reading your review may just be the highlight so far :) Looking forward to the rest!

[allilivesay]

As we leave, here is one last close up of the Carnival Pride…..

Leaving the last three ships and the Port of Nassau behind…..

Afterwards, I made my way to the internet café to touch base with Patti, then went back to the cabin for a short, much needed, nap before dinner.

Dinner tonight was once again, very good. I had the Shrimp Cocktail, French Onion Soup, and for my entrees, the Atlantic Salmon, and the Sicilian Chicken. Dessert was two scoops of Chocolate Ice Cream. Tonight, the wait staff danced to “Low, Low, Low”. Very funny!!......

After dinner I went to the casino and made a $200. donation to the Blackjack Gods. Yikes, I’m down again for this cruise, thank goodness I have two more days to right the ship. Since it was now after midnight, I made it back to the cabin, and tonight’s towel animal…….

After a room service BLT, I’m off to sleep, dreaming of my nice day in Nassau.

Coming up next, paradise on earth, Half Moon Cay!!!

 

 

 

 

 

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[allilivesay]

Loving your amazing review!!! I'm heading out in June on fantasy!!! Can't wait!!! I have never been to half moon cay. I'm anxious to see what you did there!!! I have been to Nassau and Freeport. This time we are going to half moon cay, Nassau, and grand Turk. I can't wait!!!

 

 

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[cruisinbabs]

Hello again, everybody. My name is Jeff “Jamman” Maskall, and I am a cruise addict!! Right after the holidays, I was wandering around the Carnival website, when I spotted a whole bunch of “no single supplement” cruises being offered. This intrigued me, since solo cruisers usually have to pay 200% of the fare. Now, my wife Patti is a teacher, so cruising at any other time of the year except summer, is pretty much out of the question. We are comfortable, after 20 wonderful years of marriage, that we can take short separate vacations apart from each other. She has her interests, I have mine, and mine just happens to be cruising!! (She also loves to cruise, but not as much as me!!).

 

One of the cruises offered was the Carnival Fantasy, sailing from Charleston, South Carolina, 5 days to Nassau, and my favorite place in the world, Half Moon Cay. This cruise was scheduled for February 11th, right after a very hectic month for me, between work and other activities I am involved with, which meant I was burning the candle at both ends. This would be a perfect way to recover!! So with Patti’s blessing, I booked it, choosing an inside cabin to save even more money. I was able to book a reasonable roundtrip nonstop flight from Newark to Charleston, flying in the day before. I was also able to get a GREAT deal on a suite at Spring Hills Suites ($82), for the night before the cruise. Now all I had to do was wait, and keep my fingers crossed that Mother Nature didn’t throw a wrench into the plans!!

 

Now…fast forward to Monday, February 10th. In New Jersey, we have been hammered all winter with at least two snow or ice storms a week. We had just had one the previous Friday, and another BIG one was on the way. As luck would have it, the 10th is a beautiful, but cold day, and there are no flight delays or cancellations. Yippie!! I was prepared to hop in the car and drive the 12 hours if I had to!! In any event, the flight was great and on time, the hotel was wonderful; especially for what I paid for it. My mini solo vacation is off to a GREAT start, so let us begin…..

 

 

Embarkation Day is here!! I can’t wait to get on the Fantasy again. This will be my third time on her. The first time was in 1990 from Miami when she was brand new. The second was in 2006 from Port Canaveral, but this will be my first time on her after her Evolution of Fun upgrades, when they put in the Waterworks, Serenity, and upgraded the Lido Pool area.

 

I awoke to a cloudy, rainy, dismal kind of day, with the temperatures only in the low 40’s. Not at all what I expected when I booked this cruise. The good news is that it was going to get much worse in the next 24 hours with a major snow/ice storm slated to hit the area. We would be long gone by then! After eating their free breakfast, I asked the front desk to have a cab pick me up at 10am to take me to the port, which they were happy to do. I’ll say it now, that everyone from Charleston that I interacted with during my short time here, were extremely friendly, polite, and helpful!

 

The cab arrived a few minutes past ten, and 25 minutes and $25. Plus tip later I was at the port. Things are done a little differently here at the Port of Charleston, so I’ll try to explain. If you arrive in your own car you will be directed to join the Port Grand Prix, following a course thru the orange barriers. (You will see pictures later). You will stop once to show your documents, stop again to offload your luggage, then finally park inside a warehouse. Then you will be directed to board a shuttle that will take you to the cruise terminal. If you are just being dropped off, whether it be by car, taxi, shuttle, etc, you enter a different gate, again having to show your documents, before proceeding to the baggage drop where you give your luggage to the friendly porters. Again, you will be directed to a nearby shuttle for transport to the cruise terminal. Sounds like a lot, but it went quite well.

 

By 10:40 I was aboard a shuttle, but after pulling up 100 feet, the driver informed us that they weren’t ready to check-in new passengers yet, so we would have to wait. No problem, as I was now warm and dry. At 11:10, the driver was given the green light, and to the terminal we went. What happened next was by far the fastest and easiest embarkation I ever experienced in now my 33rd Carnival cruise. I literally walked from the shuttle, thru the security line, into the VIP line, to the check-in desk, up the stairs for my embarkation photo, to the security photo, and onto the ship in 8 minutes!!!

I have arrived!!!.....

 

To the Lobby Bar for my first drink of the cruise…..

Atrium (Grand Spectrum) Elevators…..

Looking up to the Skylight…..

Guest Services Desk…..

To be continued…..

 

YES!!! another jamman review!!! cant wait to read the rest!!

[Got2GoGo]

I am considering crusing on this ship in May. Your pictures and review are nudging me toward doing it. Thanks!

[jks336]

YES!!! another jamman review!!! cant wait to read the rest!!

 

I agree, I very much enjoy his reviews.. the first I read was his splendor which of course is one I have coming up. :D

[allilivesay]

I am considering crusing on this ship in May. Your pictures and review are nudging me toward doing it. Thanks!

 

 

We are leaving May 31st on a 7 day. Come with us!!!

 

 

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[gcdanno]

So loving this review. We are leaving tomorrow on the Fantasy! Does anybody have any recent Funtimes they can post? The last copy I've seen floating around is from November 2013.

[jenny105]

I've been to Nassau 4 or 5 times so I plan on staying on the ship this time around. It's not my favorite place.

 

The Breakaway is huge! Sailed her last October.

[Got2GoGo]

We are leaving May 31st on a 7 day. Come with us!!!

 

 

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Thanks, but I was looking at the 5-night leaving on May 26. I'll give the 7-night a look. Maybe....

[twentyknots]

I believe this is one of the best reviews I've ever seen. Very thorough, well written, and positive. I've been on the Fantasy 6 times and your review made me realize that I haven't had as much fun on her as I probably could have. You embraced your cruise in a way that I haven't. I'm going back again in October. I'll keep your review in mind.

 

Thanks for taking the time to do this and I look forward to reading about the rest of the cruise. HMC is one of my favs too.

[Jamman54]

Thank you all for all those wonderful, positive comments. If by reading, this has helped you in any way, I have done my job. It truly is a labor of cruising love!! next segment will be up either later tonight or tomorrow.

[sammee]

You've really done a great job. I can't wait to sail her May 11. I've seen her from Patriots point tour, and now I just can't wait. I keep going through this review. Just can't get enough.

[Jamman54]

Hi again everybody! There’s nothing like spending the day at Half Moon Cay, my favorite port of call.

If there is a time of year when Half Moon Cay is skipped because of adverse tendering conditions, this is it. However, looking at the bow camera view on the TV, it showed me that it was sunny out, and the seas were calm. We wouldn’t be skipping here today!!

Having been here over a half a dozen times, we have always rented a cabana. Being a solo this time, it made no sense to rent one by myself, and I had planned to just pull a lounger in the shade and hang out. At our informal meet and greet on embarkation day, Jan and her daughter Lauren, mentioned that they had rented a cabana, and that we were all invited to spend the day there with them. So thank you, thank you, to Jan and Lauren for keeping my cabana streak alive!!!

This also meant that I wouldn’t have to be on the very first tender over to the island, so I went up to the Lido for my usual omelet breakfast. Afterwards, I went back to my cabin to get ready before heading down to Guest Services. Being Platinum, I was entitled to priority tendering, so when you are ready to go, you just head to Guest Services, and they will escort you down to the front of the line. I was led down, along with a couple who had purchased FTTF (Faster to the Fun), and we were the first persons to board the third tender over to the island. It was a nice smooth, beautiful ride. Once there, my camera immediately sprang to life! Welcome back to Half Moon Cay!!!.......

 

The fountain at the Pirate’s Cove…..

This is Rumrunners Bar, the closest bar to the tender landing area. Very handy location when waiting to catch the last tender back to the ship….

The vendor Market Stalls. You use your Sail & Sign card for everything else on the island, but only cash accepted here….

 

To be continued……

[Jamman54]

You can get your hair braided here. They won’t make any money on me!! Lol…..

 

The HMC Gift Shop…..

 

A couple of the Distance Signs…..

The Water Sports Hut and Locker Rental…..

 

The Oasis. There is only one, and it costs $1,500. To rent it, but it’s worth it if you have a group…..

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

The kids Aqua Park…..

 

Looking down the beach…..

 

The Wish I Could Stay Here Forever Bar…..

 

Looking towards cabanas 1 thru 5……

 

Looking back towards the Aqua Park……

 

The Massage Hut…..

 

To be continued……

[Jamman54]

View of cabana # 5 and Captain Morgan’s Pirate Ship Bar…..

 

The entrance to Captain Morgan’s Pirate Ship Bar……

 

Yes, there are lifeguards at HMC…..

 

Looking towards Villa’s A, B, & C. These cost $500 to rent, and are designed to hold between 8 and 20 people…..

 

The Carnival Fantasy anchored off of Half Moon Cay……

 

I promised Jan and Lauren that I would take care of the beer for the day, so I stopped at Captain Morgan’s to pick up 4 buckets of beer. Lo and Behold, my favorite bartender, Neb, was working there today, so he helped me carry the beer to the cabana, and lent me a bottle opener for the day. Thanks Neb!! Here’s a view of the interior of cabana # 6…..

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

Here is the view looking left from the cabana…..

 

And here’s the view looking right from the cabana……

 

The best view of all, looking out at the Carnival Fantasy…..

 

Another tender, making it’s way to the island…..

 

We spent the rest of the morning floating around in the water, enjoying our beer. The water was just a little chilly, but with the sun being out, the air temperature was nearly 80. It was very comfortable. Around Noon everyone started to get hungry, so we made our way over to the Island BBQ. Here’s a view of Captain Morgan’s from the back road…..

 

A view of the back side of Captain Morgan’s…..

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

The HMC Island BBQ…….

 

HMC Island BBQ buffet lines…..

 

HMC Island BBQ drink station…..

 

The Bell Bar, which is located near the HMC Island BBQ…..

 

 

We spent the rest of the afternoon floating around, then hanging out in the cabana, finishing up our beers, when we noticed that the beach was nearly deserted!!!.....

 

To be continued…..