First Caribbean Cruise on Glory

[Alexv500]

Hello everyone! I am considering taking my first carnival cruise and my first Caribbean cruise on the Glory, on March 19, 2016 to the Eastern Caribbean! The ports this particular cruise stops at is: Half Moon Cay, St. Thomas, San Juan PR, and Grand Turk. This would be our second cruise, our first was on Princess to the Mexican Riviera in March this year. We really want to go to new places, and I have always wanted to go to the Caribbean! Has anyone done this trip? We live in California so we will be flying to Miami, and am I bit nervous of flying across the country to catch this cruise, but very excited! Any tips, and what is it like? Has anyone flown from CA to do a Caribbean cruise? Thanks!

Edited May 9, 2015 by Alexv500

[cruisexlife]

Hello,

 

I have in fact taken this cruise! The only difference was that I was on the last cruise where it was Nassau instead of Half Moon Cay. I love Glory, she's an incredible ship, especially for a) first-time Carnival cruisers and b) someone doing something new with cruising (ie flying across the country for all-new places). You'll really enjoy her!

 

I have a link of my photo review I did on for my Glory cruise in my bio, you can start reading from the first sea day on if you'd like. There is also my Liberty review, and I have only been able to write San Juan and St.Thomas so far, so check that out too, my day in St.Thomas on Liberty was great.

 

You'll have the time of your life, feel free to ask any ship or destination questions under my review, I'll be happy to answer! :D

[1stTimeCruiserAmy]

I sailed on the Victory when it was new and didn't particularly care for it... My husband and I just sailed on Glory with that itinerary (but in a different order). We both had the time of our lives. I hope that you will love it as much as we did!

[campdaan]

 

I have a link of my photo review I did on for my Glory cruise in my bio...

 

 

Your links do not work for me.

Edited May 10, 2015 by campdaan

[cruisinbabs]

Hello everyone! I am considering taking my first carnival cruise and my first Caribbean cruise on the Glory, on March 19, 2016 to the Eastern Caribbean! The ports this particular cruise stops at is: Half Moon Cay, St. Thomas, San Juan PR, and Grand Turk. This would be our second cruise, our first was on Princess to the Mexican Riviera in March this year. We really want to go to new places, and I have always wanted to go to the Caribbean! Has anyone done this trip? We live in California so we will be flying to Miami, and am I bit nervous of flying across the country to catch this cruise, but very excited! Any tips, and what is it like? Has anyone flown from CA to do a Caribbean cruise? Thanks!

 

 

I am just north of you in Oregon. ::waving hi!::

 

I will be doing this cruise next Saturday. I will also be doing a review when I get back. :-) flying out Thursday on a red eye.

[Alexv500]

Hello,

 

 

 

I have in fact taken this cruise! The only difference was that I was on the last cruise where it was Nassau instead of Half Moon Cay. I love Glory, she's an incredible ship, especially for a) first-time Carnival cruisers and b) someone doing something new with cruising (ie flying across the country for all-new places). You'll really enjoy her!

 

 

 

 

I have a link of my photo review I did on for my Glory cruise in my bio, you can start reading from the first sea day on if you'd like. There is also my Liberty review, and I have only been able to write San Juan and St.Thomas so far, so check that out too, my day in St.Thomas on Liberty was great.

 

 

 

You'll have the time of your life, feel free to ask any ship or destination questions under my review, I'll be happy to answer! :D

 

 

Thank you! I've been reading your Liberty review, and I love it!! Can't wait to read more of your trip!! :D

Edited May 10, 2015 by Alexv500

[Alexv500]

I am just north of you in Oregon. ::waving hi!::

 

I will be doing this cruise next Saturday. I will also be doing a review when I get back. :-) flying out Thursday on a red eye.

 

 

You are so lucky! Hope you have a great time and enjoy your trip! Can't wait to read your review! :)

[cruisinbabs]

You are so lucky! Hope you have a great time and enjoy your trip! Can't wait to read your review! :)

 

 

Thank you. been a lonnnnnng wait since July 31st when I booked.. almost finally here! (just a tad excited) :D

[Hog twisted]

Liked Glory so much we cruised her 3 times In a row.lol

[cruisexlife]

Thank you! I've been reading your Liberty review, and I love it!! Can't wait to read more of your trip!! :D

 

Thanks for following along! I think you would like my Glory review too, check it out!! :D

[Tannison]

We are doing this exact cruise, so you might see us if you decide to book! We also live in California. We have done the Breeze out of Miami and the flight from LAX to Fort Lauderdale was fine. We left the day before, stayed in a hotel near FLL and then just got a shuttle to the port....no issues at all.

[kona_wahine]

We did this itinerary a couple weeks ago. We are in Oregon so feel your pain on flying, but it is so worth it! Half moon cay is paradise. Try to get a cabana. We really enjoyed ours. Glory is a nice ship. The crew were great. Had a great time overall.

[NHNEV2003]

We sailed Eastern Caribbean this past November on the Conquest and loved it--also went to Nassau on that trip.

 

We are sailing on the Glory this November with Half Moon Cay as the first stop. We've been there once--- looking forward to a return!

[tdk1938]

Alexv,

 

Hello from another Californian. We flew one or two days before the cruise to avoid missing the ship if they have bad weather or flight cancellation/delay. We've cruised similar itinerary with Holland America's Neiuw Amsterdam in January 2012 (ours called St Maarten instead of St Thomas.) That's what we did.

 

We had beach days for Grand Turk and Half Moon Cay. The beaches there are beautiful. In Grand Turk the beach is by the cruise port and Margaritaville is by the port. In San Juan, we walked to Castillo de San Cristobal and El Morro (Castillo San Felipe del Morro). We took the island tour with Bernard's Tour in St Maarten.

 

Enjoy your cruise. :)

[Jenny in TX]

We were just on the Glory in April and did this exact itinerary and loved it! We flew in the day before from Houston. We had beautiful weather the entire cruise and really enjoyed all 4 ports. The Glory is a wonderful ship and I don't think you could go wrong choosing this itinerary!

[Alexv500]

Thank you to everyone who's replied! I was just reading that Glory has that new American table dining concept..and many do not like it. Has anyone tried it?

[kristie64063]

Thank you to everyone who's replied! I was just reading that Glory has that new American table dining concept..and many do not like it. Has anyone tried it?

 

Here's a link to my review - http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2081638

 

Did this EXACT itinerary last summer. Was amazing and loved Glory. Loved the new American Menu / dining room concept.

 

You will have a great time, and get a Cabana on HMC if you can, you will NOT regret it!!

Edited May 11, 2015 by kristie64063

[Alexv500]

Here's a link to my review - http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2081638

 

Did this EXACT itinerary last summer. Was amazing and loved Glory. Loved the new American Menu / dining room concept.

 

You will have a great time, and get a Cabana on HMC if you can, you will NOT regret it!!

 

 

Just finished reading it! LOVED IT! Glad you guys had a great time! I'm really hoping we will be able to do this cruise, I would love to try a guys burger and go to these beautiful places! I have always wanted to go to HMC and Grand Turk because the beaches there are just beautiful and breathtaking!

[nybumpkin]

Thank you to everyone who's replied! I was just reading that Glory has that new American table dining concept..and many do not like it. Has anyone tried it?

We've sailed on Glory five times, most recently this past August. Yes, she is a favorite of ours. I like the "colors" theme.

 

We liked American Table - there were plenty of selections that we really enjoyed. The only item I missed was Bitter and Blanc, and they have since added that back to the menu. A nice addition are the port-specific menu items. And we didn't miss the tablecloths one bit.

 

While we haven't sailed this specific itinerary, we've visited all of these ports. In Grand Turk, we walk down the beach to Jack's Shack. It's a tiki bar next to a dive shop and Jack makes a mean rum punch. Half Moon Cay is absolutely the best beach we've visited. We try to get a cabana there. In St. Thomas, we did an island tour/beach visit one time and a catamaran snorkel excursion another time. Finally, in San Juan we visited Fort San Cristobal and walked around Old San Juan.

[dogbert's mom]

We have sailed on the Gloria and it was a great ship and you can't go wrong with an Eastern Caribbean cruise.

 

We are are from southern CA and you will be shocked at how warm the water is compared to the Pacific Ocean. It's also much saltier and the color is incredible.

 

Generally we try to fly to Florida a couple of days early. There is so much to see and do. When checking airfare don't forget to look at Fort Lauderdale for flights. In general the flights cost less and the hotels are more reasonable. There are shuttles that will take you to Miami or a car rental is another way to go. Check out the Florida Departure boards. There is a wealth of information there that will help you out.

[xeroxme]

Hello everyone! I am considering taking my first carnival cruise and my first Caribbean cruise on the Glory, on March 19, 2016 to the Eastern Caribbean! The ports this particular cruise stops at is: Half Moon Cay, St. Thomas, San Juan PR, and Grand Turk. This would be our second cruise, our first was on Princess to the Mexican Riviera in March this year. We really want to go to new places, and I have always wanted to go to the Caribbean! Has anyone done this trip? We live in California so we will be flying to Miami, and am I bit nervous of flying across the country to catch this cruise, but very excited! Any tips, and what is it like? Has anyone flown from CA to do a Caribbean cruise? Thanks!

 

 

Yes. I have done the itinerary a few times. You will enjoy all of those ports. Only one I would use some caution too is San Juan. Stay in the tourist areas or on a excursion and you will have a great time. To find things you would like to do go to the port of call pages on CC for ideas and you will have a blast!

[Jenny in TX]

The only item I missed was Bitter and Blanc, and they have since added that back to the menu. A nice addition are the port-specific menu items. And we didn't miss the tablecloths one bit.

 

We didn't mind the American Table menu with the exception of the missing Bitter & Blanc. We were on the Glory last month and still no Bitter & Blanc. I was very sad about that. We didn't mind the missing tablecloths at all. The tables are very nice tables and there is really no need for a tablecloth.

[weebobby]

Hi all ,

 

Thanks for this forum thread - very informative...

 

what made you all go for the Glory over the alternatives ??

 

I am currently trying to choose between the Glory , Getaway and Oasis for June 27th !!

 

Thanks

[nybumpkin]

Hi all ,

 

Thanks for this forum thread - very informative...

 

what made you all go for the Glory over the alternatives ??

 

I am currently trying to choose between the Glory , Getaway and Oasis for June 27th !!

 

Thanks

As you will see from my signature, we've sailed only Carnival. I wouldn't mind sailing other lines, but right now Carnival suits us well. Understand that Glory is older than both Getaway and Oasis - Glory is 2003. If that makes a difference to you - I find the older ships are well maintained. However, Glory will not have the "bells and whistles" of the newer ships. If dining options are important to you, you likely will find more options on Getaway and Oasis. I find Glory a very comfortable ship, with nice lounges, good Lido Deck options, a nice Serenity Deck, and good cabins.

[seashinesunshine]

Here's a quick video of stills I made from our trip on the Glory to those ports In Jan 2015

 

 

It was a great cruise!