An overdue Breeze review

[summercruisin']

Having recently booked my next trip after BARELY surviving this cold winter, I am finally getting around to writing the review from the LAST trip, as I had promised several (okay, two) eager “fans.” :D (Hello, friends!). Our trip last summer was aboard the beautiful Carnival Breeze, and if you want a quick idea of how we liked it, I’ll reveal that this year’s trip is also planned for the beautiful Carnival Breeze! The Breeze, the itinerary, and her fantastic cruise director were all amazing, and I am looking forward to re-living our vacation by sharing it with you! So, if you are willing to go along, get ready for a picture-heavy and probably very wordy adventure…

 

The trip: 8 days aboard the Carnival Breeze, leaving on August 2nd out of Miami and visiting Grand Turk, La Romana, Curacao, and Aruba (the Southern Caribbean itinerary).

 

So, first up, a little introduction…I am Paula, a 40-something mom and teacher. I’m traveling with my DH (40-something as well; a retail manager who works too hard and too much), our DS (just turned 13), and our DD (7). Our travels began from North Carolina (beautiful from the mountains to the ocean ;)) when we flew from Raleigh to Fort Lauderdale the day before the cruise. I had left my car at the airport in Fort Lauderdale a week before, when the kids and I flew home from our Florida vacation house, where we had been since summer began :cool:. Happy to be back in sunny (and HOT) Florida, we paid for parking at the airport ($7.50 a day), and then we hit the road heading toward Miami.

 

We stopped in Hollywood meaning to pick up a few things, but ended up with lots more. For one, I forced DH and DS to let me “run” into Old Navy in Hollywood (a must, since I found out they had their awesome linen pants in several colors….something I have not been able to find since I bought – and fell in love with—the white ones the year before!) It happens Florida was also having their tax-free weekend for back to school, something NC abandoned, AND Old Navy had school uniforms on sale. Score! Then we went to Target in Miami (where else can you pick up your last minute supplies and see an unorganized expensive car show right there in the parking lot?? I mean, who DOESN’T drive their Bentley or Rolls or Maserati (we saw all three) to their local Target? At least that made DH and DS a little happier). :o

 

Then we found ourselves in Best Buy. See, this time the year before, DH somehow let it slip his mind that we were “celebrating” our 20th wedding anniversary (I have forgiven him, but I am a Southern woman…..it wasn’t forgotten). Since our Breeze trip would include our anniversary, I casually mentioned that I sure would love to have a GoPro 3+ as my anniversary gift this time around. I’m guessing he decided this cruise would be a much better experience for him if he took the hint, so we dropped in Best Buy and guess what? I’m all set for some GREAT videos! 

 

After all that, we then found our way to the Hampton Inn and Suites Miami – Airport south and Blue Lagoon. The drive from Ft. Lauderdale to the hotel was pretty easy, despite the fact that we found ourselves in rush hour traffic after our stops. We had no trouble finding it with our crappy GPS. I had booked a park-and-cruise package several months ago, and I really balked at the price (it was almost $200 before taxes), but the reviews were good, and I wanted a secure place to leave my car for 8 days. We had stayed at the Comfort Suites Miami Airport North the year before, and we were NOT impressed with that one, despite the strong reviews on that trip site that advises people. So I really struggled with this decision. When the management sent an email a few days before our arrival offering any extras to make us comfortable, I had a good feeling about my choice. This good feeling was reinforced when we arrived. The welcome was warm, the parking was secure (you have to have a key card to open the gate and then you drive up a steep ramp to park behind the hotel along the second floor). The room was clean, quiet and comfy.

 

For dinner, we walked to a strip mall across the street from the hotel. There was a good selection of restaurants, and we settled on way too much Chinese food for DH, DD and me, and Subway for DS. There were several stores within walking distance as well, including a Walgreens and a Publix (that was cramped and crowded, unlike the ones I’m used to in Davenport, FL), so it is easy to pick up last minute supplies from this hotel. We felt safe walking around, which is important, of course.

 

I’m sorry to report that I didn’t take any good pictures of the hotel. My family (myself included) tends to enter a hotel room in a whirlwind, dropping bags and pillows and whatever is in our hands before I can get a good picture. But, I did manage to get this one, which seems to capture the excitement our kids were feeling when it was almost time to board the Breeze!

 

[summercruisin']

In the morning, we headed to the “complimentary” hotel breakfast. The kids and I were too excited to try to eat much, and that may have been a good thing. :rolleyes: The breakfast area at this Hampton Inn is like many others I’ve experienced…..way too crowded. It was nearly impossible to get to the food or to move around the space, and there was nowhere to sit. DH said the “topped bagel” he had was pretty good and the coffee was hot, so he was happy. He also had fresh fruit, and I made myself eat some yogurt. There was also some cereal, a waffle maker, a selection of breads, oatmeal, and a few other things.

 

After breakfast, we had the front desk call us a taxi van, because the earliest shuttle was scheduled to leave at 11 AM. Since DH and I are platinum cruisers, we like to get to the port by 11, so we can be checked in and ready to board as soon as possible :cool:. Our hotel package included free shuttle for two of us, but we would have had to pay $10 each for the other two. The concierge told me that a taxi would run just under $30 total (it ended up being $26.50 before a tip), so we decided to skip the shuttle and pay the little extra. The taxi showed up just after ten, and we had an easy drive to the port.

 

Our first view....

 

 

We arrived around 10:30, dropped off our bags with the porters, and headed inside.

 

On the way into the port, we were handed a notice that our itinerary was switched up a bit, in order for the ship to avoid Tropical Storm Bertha. I had worried about that a little before we left, since she was scheduled to visit the Turks and Caicos area about the same time we were. Our original itinerary was as follows:

 

 

08/02/2014 Sat Miami, FL depart at 4:00pm

08/03/2014 Sun "Fun Day" at Sea

08/04/2014 Mon Grand Turk 7:00am-2:00pm ~ early day! yuck! :p

08/05/2014 Tue La Romana, 9:00am-4:00pm

08/06/2014 Wed Curacao 1:00pm-10:00pm

08/07/2014 Thu Aruba 8:00am-4:00pm

08/08/2014 Fri "Fun Day" at Sea

08/09/2014 Sat "Fun Day" at Sea

08/10/2014 Sun Miami, FL 6:00am-4:00pm

 

Our new one:

 

08/02/2014 Sat Miami, FL depart at 4:00pm

08/03/2014 Sun "Fun Day" at Sea

08/04/2014 Mon "Fun Day" at Sea

08/05/2014 Tue Curacao 1:00pm-10:00pm

08/06/2014 Wed Aruba 8:00am-4:00pm

08/07/2014 Thu La Romana, 11:00am-6:00pm

08/08/2014 Fri Grand Turk 12:00pm-7:00pm

08/09/2014 Sat "Fun Day" at Sea

08/10/2014 Sun Miami, FL 6:00am-4:00pm

 

So, we have a new itinerary, but we aren’t scheduled to miss any ports. I’ll take it! :D In fact, I like the times a little better, since we are not really morning people, and this itinerary allows us to sleep in a little more than the other. :cool:

[summercruisin']

We went through security pretty quickly. We would have gotten through very quickly, except that I had brought a wine cube, and the security guy that was checking our stuff was not happy :mad: that I was trying to bring on more wine than was allowed……uh-oh! :o He sent me to the naughty room off to the side, where a lady asked if it was all the wine I had and then said, “it’s fine.” The first guy was even more annoyed about that, and he argued with the lady and a few other employees who showed up before he finally gave me a short lecture and sent us on our way. I probably won't try that again next time :rolleyes:. We also took onboard a 12 pack of Diet Mt. Dew (my addiction), a 12 pack of Orange Crush, and a 24 pack of water with no problems at all.

 

Soon after, we were directed to find a seat in the Captain’s lounge to wait for boarding. We were excited that we had moved through so quickly and had found our place in the lounge before 11…..surely we would be onboard in no time! But nope…..we waited and waited and waited. At least I had time to figure out the GoPro a little. And to take a picture or two with my old camera.

 

Waiting in the Diamond/Platinum lounge

 

 

 

 

The lounge got so crowded that they moved about half of those waiting to another area somewhere else. I'm pretty sure those that moved got to go on board sooner than we, but I don't know for certain.

 

 

Finally, somewhere around 12:30, we were taken through the crowds to get on board ….SO exciting!!! We did the usual welcome aboard picture, very happily “dinged” our cards for the first time, and walked onto the beautiful Carnival Breeze! Ahhhhhhh…….vacation has officially begun!

[summercruisin']

As soon as we got on the ship, we were, as always, warmly welcomed. I took a few pictures of the atrium (but I still hadn't figured out how to change the fisheye setting on the GoPro :o)

 

 

 

Then, we headed to our cabin to drop off our bulky carry-on stuff. I like it so much better now that we can access our cabin right away, even though it still feels a little awkward since the stewards are buzzing around trying to finish everything! :o

 

We chose to stay in cabin 2258, a cove balcony. This is our first time in a cove, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. I’m still not sure whether I like a regular balcony better. But I did LOVE being so close to the ocean. However, I did NOT love being this close to all of the machines. Although we carefully picked out a room under a quiet location (directly below the excursions desk), it was still noisy. I guess because the seas were so rough heading out (pictures for proof coming...), there was something under us (stabilizers? engines?) that was making all sorts of rumbling and shaking the whole ship! It was so bad the first night, it kept us awake. The kids thought there were storms going on outside. :eek:

 

I do like having a shady balcony (I remember there were times I couldn’t stay out on our regular balcony at certain times of day because the sun would be shining directly on it), but I do NOT love being right under the life boats. I like the privacy of the cove balcony, but I also prefer the larger glass view.

[summercruisin']

Some pictures of the cabin...

 

 

I promise, we did not lock DS out :eek:.....this time :D

 

 

 

You're speaking my language! LOL

 

[summercruisin']

After dropping off our carry-on loads, we headed to the Lido deck for lunch. The ship was still pretty much deserted, so we were able to walk around the Marketplace a little bit without a crowd. We went to the deli and ordered up my usual “welcome aboard” lunch (bagel with smoked salmon, pickled veggies, Caesar salad from the pizza place, drink of the day). Right from the start, the employees at the deli were very friendly and outgoing. DH had the same as I, and the kids ordered grilled cheese sandwiches.

 

 

So happy to be onboard!!!

 

 

 

After a yummy lunch, we headed to guest services to get some information about our alternate muster drill. Our DS happens to have high functioning autism, along with generalized anxiety and a sensory integration disorder. He does exceptionally well in so many instances (and, in fact, those of you who "know" us a little more personally know he has grown tremendously and really "flourished" over the years!!), but because of those challenges, the traditional muster drills, depending on how they are managed, are very difficult for him. So, we generally contact Carnival ahead of time to request an alternate drill for our family, and they are always very accommodating. The year before, on the Victory, we had a discouraging and insulting experience when we were directed to the safety leader for directions for our alternate drill and he asked “what’s wrong with your son?” :mad: Not cool, safety guy. I mentioned that to Carnival when I requested accommodations in advance this time, and they were very eager to please on the Breeze. :) We were told to meet one of the safety officers in the ship’s library before the safety drill.

 

We finally were able to set out to familiarize ourselves with the Breeze and get a few pictures.

Edited March 29, 2015 by summercruisin'

[summercruisin']

before lunch

 

 

after lunch

 

 

 

 

 

[Frank12]

Subscribing to this one! We are on the Breeze in a month.

[summercruisin']

 

arcade

 

They had Big Bang Theory bobbleheads in there!!! I wanted one soooo badly!!! I know.....I'm a nerd LOL.

 

the teen club

 

 

Edited March 29, 2015 by summercruisin'

[summercruisin']

We returned to our room and unpacked. There was plenty of space for all our belongings, except there were only three usable drawers, which made it a little difficult for four people to store socks, underwear, and bathing suits. But we made do. Everything else got hung up, and the emptied suitcases easily fit under the beds, as usual. Next time, I will definitely remember to bring along at least one of those shoe holder thingies that hook on the back of a door.

 

When it was time to go to the alternate muster drill, we headed up to the beautiful ship library. There, we were met by a safety officer and another employee. They were both very kind and friendly. They showed us a safety video, asked us if we had any questions, and walked us to our muster station just as everyone else was getting ready for the regular drill. The experience was easy, fairly quick, and pleasant. We went back to our room for the regular drill, and we had to explain to our steward why we were still in the room. That was a little awkward! :o Then, it got even more uncomfortable when we got the naughty notice stating that they "knew we didn't attend the required safety drill" :confused:. We decided to let it go, and we never heard anything else about it. The regular drill was also fairly quick and pleasant.

 

DD also has sensory integration issues, so she was afraid they were going to blow the ship's horn any second :eek:. Hence, the fingers in her ears. But, you can see from this pic the clear view inside the port if you are in a cove balcony

 

 

After the drill was over, DD and I went up to the Lido deck, which had been cleared of chairs just before and during the regular drill, so there was room to dance

 

 

for a little bit of the sailaway party! It was soooo much fun! The awesome cruise director, Matt Mitcham, gathered a crowd really quickly and got lots of people dancing. Club music was playing, and the energy was just fantastic! I was having so much fun, I forgot to take any pictures....sorry!

 

BUT....a note to those who are cruising the Breeze......find Matt on Facebook and send a friend request (he will accept it!) so you can access his dance tutorial videos that he posts. Then, you can practice before you go and be allll set when you get onboard. Matt gets the party started quickly! I understand he is going to be on vacation from May 3 until early July, so if you are going to miss him....I'm so sorry. :(

Edited March 29, 2015 by summercruisin'

[rhcpchika1]

Counting down the days unti we board! 27 to go! Thanks for the review :)

[summercruisin']

We stayed up there while the ship turned around in the basin and started to move down the canal to head out to sea.

 

 

 

We passed some other ships waiting for their turn to head out

 

 

 

Then we returned to enjoy the rest of the sailaway with DH and DS on our balcony.

 

On the way out, lots of people were waving, some even stopping their cars on the road to do so.

 

 

In this picture, you can see how low the lifeboats hang above the cove balconies...

 

[summercruisin']

DS had a great time spotting exotic cars, even on the ferry...

 

 

There were nice boats to see as well...

 

 

And then the VERY crowded :eek: (at least compared to the gorgeous NC beaches!) South Beach...

 

 

[summercruisin']

 

 

 

 

 

Goodbye, indeed, Miami! See you next week! :D

[nessz79]

Following along!

[summercruisin']

Subscribing to this one! We are on the Breeze in a month.

 

Counting down the days unti we board! 27 to go! Thanks for the review :)

 

Thanks for reading! Y'all are going to LOVE the Breeze! :)

[summercruisin']

Following along!

 

Glad to have you! :)

[summercruisin']

The rest of the afternoon and evening was a whirlwind of activity. I can't put my hands on the Funtimes, so I'm relying on spotty memory, but I know we stayed very busy!

 

I know DD insisted on our checking out the waterpark right away. She was a little overwhelmed by it all (anxiety kicked in, and the dumping bucket made her nervous), but she hung out there for a little bit. At some point in the evening, we went to sign her up for Camp Carnival in the theater. She met a friend right away :) but was then disappointed to discover that her new friend was just barely too young to be in her age group :(.

 

DD and I hung around the theater to catch the welcome aboard show. It was lots of fun. Matt, again, was hilarious! :D Eventually, dinner time came around. We always choose late dining (we are serious nightowls). We also usually request a table just for our family and away from the kitchen doors or major walkways, due to DS's autism. The Breeze crew took good care of us, putting us by the windows in the very back of the second floor of the Blush dining room (on Deck 4).

 

 

I didn't take a bunch of pictures this evening, but it was the only evening I wrote down what we ate :rolleyes:. Hey, a girl can only manage but so much on the first night! LOL. Both DH and I had spring rolls for an appetizer, and I also had cured salmon. DH tried (and loved) the bean soup. For our main course, I had sweet and sour shrimp, DH had pasta with Italian sausage, DD had fruit salad and chicken nuggets, and DS had salmon (available every day). For dessert, DD had brownies (she claimed she didn’t really like them but ate them all). DH had lime sherbet, and I had WCMC. DS skipped dessert because he was feeling a little antsy to get out and explore the ship a little more. Since it was getting late, he set out to walk around a bit before we had finished dessert, which always makes me a little nervous. But, DS is incredibly cautious and quite a rule follower~some of the benefits of his "disorders" ;) so we let him go.

 

Our first impression of our serving team was that they were nice but slow moving. It took what felt like forever for DD to get milk, and that wouldn't get any better as the week went on, even though we came to really love our team! You'll get to see them some later....

 

Well, I'm at the end of our embarkation day. Nothing else exciting happened, as we headed to bed pretty soon after dinner - even DS came back quickly. It had been an incredibly busy day! I'm going to take a bit of a break, because DS is nagging me for a turn on the computer! I'll continue in a while....

 

Thanks for coming along!

[summercruisin']

But first.....I found a few more pictures I had taken around the ship on embarkation day!! Here ya go....

 

the adult nightclub

 

 

 

the Red Frog Pub

 

 

 

The theater

 

 

our cabin in relation to the elevators....convenient, but next time I'm choosing one a few doors down, so our door doesn't open directly into this hall and the cross hall

 

[legion3]

Cool, leaving at the end of April on the Breeze

[summercruisin']

the elevator area near the front of the ship (right outside our door)

 

 

little racing slides in the waterpark area

 

 

the crowded mid-ship pool....those cabanas are really cool, though!

 

 

the atrium

 

 

okay....really giving up the computer now! :cool:

[Jenner9]

Love your review already! Can't wait for more!! Thank you for taking the time. The upper bunk in your cabin....did it have a rail?

[cruisecraze96]

Loved your Embarkation photos, it was pouring rain the day we left in Feb and had just stopped when we started to leave. Spent most the time in the room getting things unpacked before Muster and then meet up for a quick meet and greet during sail away

[davesgirl0419]

Looking forward to reading the rest of your review and looking through the pictures. Thanks for posting [emoji2]

[foxcent]

Can't wait to read more