cruisingbajan Posted September 15, 2014 #51 Share Posted September 15, 2014 Great review and awesome pics!!! Makes me want to take that Alaska Cruise off my Bucket List even sooner.:D I am also looking forward to the Glory portion of your review.:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nybumpkin Posted September 15, 2014 Author #52 Share Posted September 15, 2014 Wow, that was quick! :eek: Glad you got home safely and thanks for sharing your trip with us. Looking forward to the next part! :)LOL - When my new boss' assistant e-mailed with proposed meeting times, all I asked of her was to not schedule me for 9 a.m. I wanted at least two cups of coffee first.:p Thanks to all of you for reading. I'm going to give some thoughts on cruising Alaska with Carnival and then move to the Glory portion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hogladyrider Posted September 16, 2014 #53 Share Posted September 16, 2014 Enjoyed your review. Cruised Alaska on Carnival Spirit in 2009 and it wet my appetite for Alaska so much so that I returned this summer for a land trip with Alaska Wildland Adventures. I am a cruise junkie, but this land trip was far superior to any cruise. Yes it cost more but so worth every penny. Looking forward to cruising Alaska again next year....it is just the tip of the depth of true Alaska! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hogladyrider Posted September 16, 2014 #54 Share Posted September 16, 2014 Looking forward to your thoughts on cruising Alaska with Carnival.....we are Carnival people considering venturing out to HAL or NCL. We enjoy the casual atmosphere of Carnival. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nybumpkin Posted September 16, 2014 Author #55 Share Posted September 16, 2014 Enjoyed your review. Cruised Alaska on Carnival Spirit in 2009 and it wet my appetite for Alaska so much so that I returned this summer for a land trip with Alaska Wildland Adventures. I am a cruise junkie, but this land trip was far superior to any cruise. Yes it cost more but so worth every penny. Looking forward to cruising Alaska again next year....it is just the tip of the depth of true Alaska! I have a work colleague who did a 2-week land-based Alaska vacation two years ago. He loved it. He and his wife don't care for cruising so it was great for them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nybumpkin Posted September 16, 2014 Author #56 Share Posted September 16, 2014 So my thoughts on cruising to Alaska on Carnival? The Carnival experience for us was fine. We loved having a full orchestra, good shows, the excellent Maitre’D (Ken Byrne knows how to run a dining room), and John Heald. Our dining room staff was top notch, our cabin stewards were great, and the ship had lots going on. We were disappointed in (a) missing Ketchikan and (b) having early dining changed from 6:00 to 5:30. Even if we had 6:00, though, I don’t think we would have wanted to be tied down to a specific dining time. This is a cruise for Your Time Dining. I might also look at a cruise that spends more time in the Inside Passage. Carnival’s cruise sails on the outside of Vancouver Island. We did see a fair amount of the Passage, but we also spent a fair amount of time out of sight of land. I'd also consider a land-sea vacation. Other lines do combinations with tours of Denali. I realize that we just scratched the surface of touring Alaska. However, it was a great introduction. In all, I think Carnival provides a good Alaska product - but if you want something more in depth, I'd look at some other itineraries. That BIL who sailed on Princess later in the month? They loved the itinerary. However, he managed to throw his back out and he and his wife ended up missing some of their ports. They want a redo.:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcjigs Posted September 17, 2014 #57 Share Posted September 17, 2014 Great review so far, thanks for taking the time for the Alaska cruise, but now onto the Glory, which I will be on in 18 days.... waiting for Glory review.....:D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caribsun Posted September 17, 2014 #58 Share Posted September 17, 2014 Hi Kathy, enjoying your review. I'm Mike and I lived in Cox.for 25 years and now in Greenville. :) We took our 1st Alaska cruise 1 week after yours but on the Golden Princess. We have all the same pics. Go Indians 2&0.:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nybumpkin Posted September 17, 2014 Author #59 Share Posted September 17, 2014 Hi Kathy, enjoying your review. I'm Mike and I lived in Cox.for 25 years and now in Greenville. :) We took our 1st Alaska cruise 1 week after yours but on the Golden Princess. We have all the same pics. Go Indians 2&0.:)Thank you, Mike! We loved our cruise. My youngest son is on the JV team - they're 2&0 as well. And Varsity even had two articles in a week in the Times Union - amazing. The future is looking good.:cool: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nybumpkin Posted September 17, 2014 Author #60 Share Posted September 17, 2014 I was back at work a grand total of 1 1/2 weeks before we left for Miami. Got to meet the new boss – briefly. Then Friday 8/1 we flew to Miami from Stewart (Newburgh) to FLL, then a shuttle via SAS Transportation from FLL to Holiday Inn Port of Miami. We arrived about an hour later than we planned. The hotel is very nice – no complaint about the room. We headed over to Bayside for dinner – it’s a very easy walk. We went to Tradewinds – Nice dining, and right on the water. http://www.tradewindsbarandgrill.com/ 2014-08-01 21.04.07 by baxted, on Flickr American Airlines Arena. Le Bron is not in the house.:D 2014-08-01 21.11.44 by baxted, on Flickr Miami tower. It's not the greatest picture. I could have sworn we took more photos in Miami. Well, I'll make sure to do that next year. We booked the July 4 Southern Caribbean cruise on Carnival Breeze.:cool: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nybumpkin Posted September 17, 2014 Author #61 Share Posted September 17, 2014 The next morning, we awoke to look out our window at the ships in port. At about 10:30 we took a taxi to the port – the taxis were lined up right outside the hotel. It was a 5 minute ride, we were dropped off quickly, gave our luggage to a porter, and went through Platinum check-in very quickly. We were aboard around 11:15. It took a bit longer on this cruise to get our luggage, but we still had our bags well before muster drill. Lunch was a first sampling of Guy’s Burgers – and they’re good. I had four on our sailing. IMG_1998 by baxted, on Flickr View toward South Beach and Government Cut IMG_1991 by baxted, on Flickr Red Frog Rum Bar. I really like Thirsty Red Frog, and most of the bars aboard serve it. IMG_1999 by baxted, on Flickr Blue Iguana. To be honest, I never visited the bar. Red Frog seemed to have better hours. Glory is an old friend for us. We sailed on her four times before, three Canada cruise from NYC and one Eastern Caribbean cruise from Port Canaveral. We had aft wrap 8455 and adjoining starboard balcony 8449 – the “bowling alley.” Our cabin steward had the balcony opened very early in the cruise, so we had the starboard corner of deck 8 all to ourselves. I'll post balcony pictures along the way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nybumpkin Posted September 18, 2014 Author #62 Share Posted September 18, 2014 IMG_1985 by baxted, on Flickr Carnival Breeze, docked behind Glory. This will be our next cruise! IMG_1994 by baxted, on Flickr Miami as viewed from the Serenity Deck IMG_2001 by baxted, on Flickr Sunset. There was lightning that accompanied these clouds, but I'm nowhere near a good enough photographer to get a photo of lightning.:o Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nybumpkin Posted September 18, 2014 Author #63 Share Posted September 18, 2014 We sailed late – well after we were seated for dinner at early dining, so no sailaway photos. We had a table for four, Golden Dining Room, upper, near the entrance. That brings me to…. American Table. The “Fun Times” describes it as “The true essence of American cuisine, featuring familiar, soulful regional specialties that are firmly rooted in generations of American homes and lovingly prepared with a contemporary feel.” A lot of folks here on CC didn’t like the concept of American Table, with a different menu and “for the table” appetizers. I think we sailed late enough after the rollout that they worked out the “bugs” in the dining. On our cruise the only dish given to us “for the table” was the bread. And we liked it – nice selection, something for everyone. (Well, except DH who is on a low-carb diet.) The boys devoured the bread basket, and they didn’t have to wait for our waiters to offer seconds. The food was just fine. Oldest son opted for pizza and fries every night, while younger son (much more adventurous) liked going out of his comfort zone for things he’d never tried before. I can’t remember everything I had, but the only item I really missed was bitter and blanc. And I didn’t miss the tablecloth, although our waiter did have to wipe down the table between courses due to condensation from our water glasses. My only real complaint about American Table? The menus are too clunky. After dinner we spent some time on our balcony, looked for our boarding photo (we always buy it), and after wandering around a bit made our way to the Welcome Aboard Show, featuring Playlist Productions’ “Latin Nights” and our cruise director, Craig E. Johnson. I gather Craig was filling in as CD, since he does not show on John Heald’s CD schedule as a regular CD. However, I really liked him. Despite his usual introduction as “that voice in the ceiling,” he was actually pretty visible out and about. His Welcome Aboard show was fun. I think he’ll make a good CD when he’s promoted. And that brings me to… Playlist Productions. Before sailing, I had read a number of posts here on CC that absolutely panned the Playlist Productions shows. A number were from people I’ve seen here for a number of years, and I respect their opinions. And in the end it does come down to opinion. I decided that I would see the shows for myself and come to my own opinion. Well…. The naysayers were right, in my opinion. Latin Nights was an assault of canned music, bright lights, and little talent. DH’s description was “an assault on the senses.” The month before we had a wonderful Welcome Aboard program with a 10-member orchestra – now, not a single live instrument. DH gave up on the shows after that. This was simply awful. Another reviewer noted the sweat dripping off the performers – yeah, that was pretty unattractive. After that show, DH said he wouldn’t be back. Fortunately we don’t cruise for the shows – but it also means we won’t be spending money on drinks in the show lounge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nybumpkin Posted September 18, 2014 Author #64 Share Posted September 18, 2014 We followed our usual day at sea routine, with Breakfast on Lido, gin rummy on Promenade, trivia, lunch on Lido, and afternoon relaxing and going to tea time. We weren’t anxious to do too many activities – after all, we were only two weeks off our Alaska cruise and this cruise was more about relaxing. Dinner was “American Feast,” aka “tablecloth night.”:rolleyes: Honestly, I didn’t think the addition of a tablecloth changed the meal. However, the food was very good. DH and I both had the mushroom soup and lobster, while youngest son opted for Caesar salad and the lobster. Older son… pizza and fries, yet again. His doctor says he’s healthy…. After dinner we went to Just June’s 8:30 “family friendly” show. She’s very funny and we had a good time. They do clear the lounge between shows, and there was a line formed outside the lounge for Lars Callieou’s 9:30 adults only show. DH went back to the cabin, while I opted for another try at a Playlist Productions show, “Divas.” This show had a twist – someone in the audience would be selected to join the cast at the end of the show, dressed as a diva. While that portion was fun, overall my reaction to the show wasn’t very good. More bright lights, canned music, and not-great performers. (I don’t say that lightly; I know the work that goes into a performance career, and I know these folks were really trying. They don’t have great material to work with, though.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wandbrich Posted September 18, 2014 #65 Share Posted September 18, 2014 Can't wait for the rest! We are in 8455 for our January cruise. Thanks!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LUVMYGSDOG Posted September 18, 2014 #66 Share Posted September 18, 2014 We loved the Glory and hope to sail her again some day! Will be sailing for the first time from POM in January. We have visited Miami several times (oldest DS lived in South Beach for awhile) and it was so enjoyable to sit on the beach and watch the cruise ships head to sea. I am very excited to finally be on one of those ships! Looking forward to the remainder of your review! Kim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nybumpkin Posted September 18, 2014 Author #67 Share Posted September 18, 2014 Can't wait for the rest! We are in 8455 for our January cruise. Thanks!!!We loved 8455! One minor "nit" with the cabin was water pooling on the balcony. If they wash the balcony or if it rains, the water tends to puddle up near the cabin door. It wasn't a terribly big deal for us as it dried quickly, but there were a few times we had to dodge the puddles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nybumpkin Posted September 19, 2014 Author #68 Share Posted September 19, 2014 Fourth visit to Cozumel, and fourth visit to Paradise Beach. When we first booked this cruise we asked the boys if they’d like to do something other than PB – and they looked at us in horror. NOT go to PB? As far as they were concerned, we’d might as well not go to Cozumel.:eek: IMG_2017 by baxted, on Flickr Sunrise in Cozumel IMG_2016 by baxted, on Flickr Pilot Boat IMG_2022 by baxted, on Flickr MSC Divina coming into Cozumel We took our time getting off the ship; we were in port 8 hours and really didn’t feel a need to get off the ship at 8:00. We had a leisurely breakfast, watched Carnival Sunshine dock next to us (they have to close the gangway while another ship is docking), and then headed out around 10:30. Easily found a cab and were on our way to PB. IMG_2023 by baxted, on Flickr Carnival Sunshine arriving in Cozumel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nybumpkin Posted September 19, 2014 Author #69 Share Posted September 19, 2014 The first time we went to PB was 2005. There was a bar patio, beach seating area, pier, water trampoline and the iceberg. Over the years it has grown substantially. Now you have your choice of sitting at the pool (with swim-up bar) or the beach. The water toys are much more numerous. You do pay a nominal fee for the beach chairs (either 2 or 3 dollars – I can’t remember now) and you buy a wristband for the water toys. We bought wristbands for the boys and they took off for the trampoline. DH and I settled into (shaded) beach chairs and ordered drinks. (DH splurged – he ordered a frozen Margarita along with me.) IMG_2028 by baxted, on Flickr I think I like this sign almost as much as the "I wish I could stay here forever" sign at Half Moon Cay. IMG_2025 by baxted, on Flickr Our seating area at the beach. There's also WiFi! IMG_2024 by baxted, on Flickr Water toys IMG_2034 by baxted, on Flickr More water toys 2014-08-04 12.07.53 by baxted, on Flickr Lots of people, but still lots of seating 2014-08-04 13.01.50 by baxted, on Flickr A scavenger. I think it must be related to the grackles we see in the Northeast. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nybumpkin Posted September 19, 2014 Author #70 Share Posted September 19, 2014 For lunch we ordered chicken fingers and fries along with a nacho platter. All the food was great. 2014-08-04 13.05.40 by baxted, on Flickr Lunch! IMG_2035 by baxted, on Flickr Waterfront IMG_2027 by baxted, on Flickr Parasailing. No, we didn't try it. IMG_2050 by baxted, on Flickr "Teeter-totter." I don't know what else to call it. IMG_2051 by baxted, on Flickr Another "teeter totter" shot. IMG_2037 by baxted, on Flickr Sons on trampoline Back on Board was 4:30, but we wrapped up at PB around 3:00. Had to drag the boys out of the water. All of us loved our day at PB. Taxis were waiting right there and we were back to the port in short order. The night’s entertainment in the main lounge was “Hasbro the Game Show.” It didn’t interest us, so we didn’t try it. We did listen to music on the Promenade deck by the Casino by Summer Breeze. They were very good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nybumpkin Posted September 19, 2014 Author #71 Share Posted September 19, 2014 The last time we visited Belize we opted for a cave tubing trip. It was fun, but we wanted something different this time. We opted for the “Altun Ha and Rio Wallace” excursion, booked through Carnival. Belize is a tender port, which means that you have to be booked on a Carnival excursion or get a tender ticket to board a tender – unless you’re not planning a Belize excursion, in which case you can wait until they call for open seating on the tenders. Since we had an excursion booked, we met in the main lounge where they gave us stickers with a tender number. It took a while boarding the tender, but once ashore we quickly met up with our excursion team. This tour can work in two ways. You can take a boat up the river to the lunch spot followed by the Mayan ruins tour – or you can take the bus to the ruins followed by lunch and the river tour. On our cruise, we walked over to the dock to board our boat for the river tour first. On our tour, we had the river cruise followed by lunch and the ruins tour. We walked along the piers to a souvenir shop, where our guide suggested we use the facilities before boarding the boat- there would be no other opportunity until we arrived at the lunch stop. Then we boarded two open-air boats for the trip up the Wallace River. (Our boat had a bimini top that partially covered the seating area, but the other was completely open. Wear a hat.) IMG_2070 by baxted, on Flickr Belice City harbor Once aboard, we headed out to the mouth of the Wallace River. There’s a manatee area; we stopped for a little while and saw manatees around us, coming up for air. DSCF1713 by baxted, on Flickr Waterfront IMG_2073 by baxted, on Flickr More waterfront IMG_2072 by baxted, on Flickr Believe it or not, there is a manatee in this photo.:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nybumpkin Posted September 19, 2014 Author #72 Share Posted September 19, 2014 Then we headed up the river. Along the way, our guides pointed out wildlife and some of the plants growing along the river. It’s a beautiful area. DH started thinking about retirement property here. IMG_2078 by baxted, on Flickr Mangroves IMG_2085 by baxted, on Flickr Palms and mangroves IMG_2089 by baxted, on Flickr One of our guides, showing us a tropical flower IMG_2094 by baxted, on Flickr Look at the base of the branch jutting over the water. There's a small crocodile. IMG_2096 by baxted, on Flickr A the left of the photo is a long-legged bird. Unfortunately, I can't remember what type it is. IMG_2099 by baxted, on Flickr Fishermen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nybumpkin Posted September 19, 2014 Author #73 Share Posted September 19, 2014 IMG_2107 by baxted, on Flickr Howler Monkey. The guide in the photo with the flower found him. Our boat operator was more than willing to double back and find animals along the way. We stopped for lunch at a resort along the river. Lunch wasn’t cheap, but it was good – I had the Belizean chicken, rice and beans, and slaw washed down with a really good Belikin Beer. DH joined me in having the chicken, but the boys went for – hamburgers. We also had some time to walk around and there were several tables with native crafts for sale. IMG_2108 by baxted, on Flickr Lunch - Chicken, rice and beans, slaw, plantains and Belikin beer. IMG_2115 by baxted, on Flickr At our lunch stop IMG_2118 by baxted, on Flickr Local flora Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nybumpkin Posted September 19, 2014 Author #74 Share Posted September 19, 2014 The folks from Carnival Sunshine (again in port with us) who opted for this tour had done the reverse tour – they took the bus to the ruins and then the bus to the lunch spot, finishing their tour with the boat trip. We met them at the lunch spot and boarded the bus they had used for their morning tour and headed to Altun Ha. A word of warning: the bus is older and the roads aren’t particularly good. The seat backs kept bouncing. However, I’ve had worse bus rides – at least the boys didn’t get carsick as they did on a bus tour in Jamaica when they were younger! At Altun Ha we walked through a small shopping area (if you didn’t bring water, it’s $1 for a bottle here) over to the ruins. Our guide, who is a native Mayan, had lots of great information about the site. One talk he gave was about the Mayan calendar, which was a hot topic two years ago. He talked about how many of them gathered on the date the calendar “ended,” honored their ancestors, and then renewed the calendar for another cycle. He was very proud of his ancestry. IMG_2119 by baxted, on Flickr First view of Altun Ha. So many of the Mayan ruins haven't been excavated. IMG_2121 by baxted, on Flickr An excavated pyramid IMG_2123 by baxted, on Flickr Tomb of the Masonry Altars IMG_2127 by baxted, on Flickr DH and son, Tomb of the Masonry Altars IMG_2130 by baxted, on Flickr Stone carving on the pyramid IMG_2135 by baxted, on Flickr Boys at the top Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crusin Karen Posted September 19, 2014 #75 Share Posted September 19, 2014 Oh, my, I am SO ENJOYING THIS. Seems past couple of cruises all we have done is eat, drink and sit on the beach. (have been doing the PC/Bahamas and GT/HMC cruises from Manhattan) Not complaining, but I kind of wish I had done some different itins to see different places and experience different things. But that is what picture reviews are for, so thanks for sharing yours! :);) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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