triumph review

[jfpb]

we just got home and I want to write this while everything is still in my mind.

we arrived at the pier about 10:45 monday morning and were on the ship about 12:00, sitting down for lunch by 12:20. The rooms weren't ready, but our steward let us keep our carry on luggage on the bed with the door locked. Took a tour of the ship while it was still pretty empty. It is a really pretty place to be. Everything was neat & clean and just waiting for vacationers. Spent much of the first day in front of the pool on the lido deck enjoying the band and eating ice cream with the kids. The first dinner was great, our waiters were very nice. My only complaint with the dining room staff is that they seemed to be taking care of more tables then they should have been and service was a little erratic. Portions were perfect for me, I'm on weight watchers, have lost about 40 pounds, so I really wanted to stay on track and never left the dining room feeling bloated or stuffed. I know that some people may think the portions were small, but you can ask for seconds, thirds, or even elevenths! The deserts were great. Always something chocolate on the menu. They even had chocolate suchi. What a treat:) The shows were outstanding. The singers and dancers were very talented rivaling some broadway shows I've seen. I'm not a fan of magicians, but the one on the boat was hilarious. I didn't get to see the after hour adult comedy shows because our children ages 2 & 7 still woke up at 6:00 every morning and we needed our sleep. The gym was great. Never had a problem working out on any machine I wanted to. The pools were very cold. Too cold for me, but my 7 year old was on the slide every day for about 3 hours straight. He had a blast and met some really great kids. For the amount of kids on board, there was never a problem. all were very well behaved and respectful. Camp carnival was good too. the counselors were very attentive to my 2 year old. My 7 year old didn't enjoy it as much as I thought he would, but did go each night so my husband and I could have some alone time to throw our money away in the casino. St. Johns is a beautiful city, but there wasn't that much to do in my opinion. I would have rather have had an extra day in Halifax. We were there during the Buskers festival and really enjoyed the street performers and craft shops. Room service was great too. I got really sea sick Thursday night, and they were in my room with saltine crackers and apple juice within minutes. I was nervous about getting off the ship because I've heard so many horror stories. Our deck was cleared about 9am and we were on the street waiting for our ride by 9:25 or so. Overall, the carnival staff couldn't do enough to make our trip relaxing and worry free. I am already starting to plan next years cruise. Any suggestions? I'd like to leave out of NYC again since it was so convenient. Thank you all for all of your help and suggestions over the past few months. I really learned a lot from all of you.

[cruise pup]

Welcome back! Thanks for a great review and posting it so quickly. Also, congratulations on your 40 lb weight loss. Keep up the great work! I really enjoyed the review and was glad to see that you were pleased with the ship. Not too long ago I read a review that was just a list of complaints. Of course the reviewer chose just to point out the thinks he disliked and didn't bother to cover anything that perhaps might have lead to a kind remark.

 

I leave on the 4-day cruise to Halifax on Thursday. It will be my second time to Halifax on Triumph. I had a great time the last time and am looking forward to this cruise. I'm already booked for next summer on the 5-day cruise over the July 4th holiday so you can tell I like this particular cruise.

 

If you are looking to do another cruise out of New York, there will be a lot more cruises to chose from in the future as Princess will be coming out with cruises out of New York. I really like that line. Also, one of my favorite ships that I've sailed on in the past year was Norwegian Spirit in Alaska. This is a terrific ship with a very friendly staff. It is freestyle cruising which means you can dine in any of the dining rooms (there are many; some charge a fee) at any time and the formal nights are optional. It will be doing cruises to the Caribbean and the Bahamas, I think starting this fall. I highly recommend this ship so you might want to look into it.

 

Again, thanks for a terrific review.

[jfpb]

glad you liked my review, I'll never understand people who complain about little things, as long as the food is good, the crowd is nice, and the place is clean, what more can you ask for. I would love to go to alaska, but will wait until the kids are much older. Definately looking into the carribean & mexico. Are the lines you recommended as kid friendly as carnival?

[jimbug]

Just as a quick note, let me say that I think Alaska is VERY kid-friendly, believe it or not! As a matter of fact, I'd be willing to say that younger kids would enjoy it more than teenagers...I think the younger ones are more fascinated by the wildlife while the teens would be "bored" because they can't lay around in their bikini watching boys, or vice versa. :-) Lots of kid-friendly excursions, as well. Alaska has been my favorite trip so far!

[jfpb]

ever since I saw northern exposure in the early 90's on tv i've wanted to go to alaska. So now that I hear that it is kid friendly, maybe we'll consider it. what types of excursions are there?

[jimbug]

We did a floatplane trip in Ketchikan...and although I know a child would probably be thrilled at the thought of going in a floatplane, it was quite expensive ($250/pp, not through Princess). Ketchikan has many boat tours, salmon fisheries, go-karts in the mountains, all kinds of "fun" tours for all ages. Next was Juneau, where we went to the Mendenhall Glacier and then on a whale-watching tour. Highly recommend! We had a bunch of kids on our whale boat and we saw TONS of orcas and several humpbacks, not to mention bald eagles, sea lions, etc. Everyone (all ages) was just in absolute awe. In Skagway, we did sea kayaking, and again, there were several kids. Very fun and "active" for those with lots of energy. Also, there is the White Pass train which might be a little more boring for little ones, but then again, it is the thrill of riding on a train. Finally, we went to Victoria. We did a wine tasting here, so I really can't recommend it for kids, haha....but Victoria is a beautiful city, and you usually have very limited port time here since it's on the last night.

[cruise pup]

Are the lines you recommended as kid friendly as carnival?

As far as I know, the lines do offer children's programs but since I don't have kids I don't have any personal experience in that department. You may want to visit the boards for these lines and ask this question. I'm sure you'll get a lot of feedback.

 

By the way, to clarify, I was recommeding Norwegian Spirit because it will be doing cruises out of New York starting this fall that will be going to the Bahamas and the Caribbean. I mentioned Alaska only because that's where I sailed her. I just loved this ship so much I was glad to see that she will be doing cruises out of New York. Since you're looking for other cruise opportunities from New York Norwegian Spirit came to mind immediately.