Chillin’ on the Conquest: April 2nd, 8 night Eastern

[CruzinScotty]

Enjoying your review and pictures! The Conquest is one ship we have not been on yet, but will have to do one day soon.

 

Thanks for the comments, Jeff. Always nice to see an expert trip reporter following along. :)

 

We really liked the ship and loved this itinerary.

 

I have started, but not yet finished your recent Fascination review. With Patty retiring; you'll have more time to catch those few straggling ships you haven't been on yet, eh? :D

[CruzinScotty]

For lunch, it’s time for another Guy’s burger. Today, I added mushrooms and onions as a side dish. The dessert choices included carrot cake cupcakes, along with a daily supply of cookies and jello. And ice cream.

 

I headed to the adult pool and hot tub by myself for a bit. Surprisingly, I met the sister of the woman who broke her leg! As I said before – you never know when you might need insurance. I found out she had Carnival’s insurance, and the money cap might be lower than you can get by using a travel insurance company. The Medivac from St. Maarten to Ft. Lauderdale took a lot of the money. They had to assure she was still stable enough there before making more economical arrangements that the insurance still covered, for her to continue her journey home for her surgery and re-cooperation.

 

A little later, Josh had his 2nd Titanic lecture: Untold and Unbelievable Stories. Just a few tidbits from this – do you remember the older couple from the movie where the wife wouldn’t get on the boat without her husband and they decided to go down with the ship together in their bed? Well, that couple were the founders of Macy’s! Also of interest, most people died of hypothermia, not drowning. They had 3500 life jackets on board; it was the life boats they were lacking. People could generally survive 20-30 minutes in the water. The person who survived the longest in the water was a crew member. He didn’t expect to live, so he found liquor and he drank. And drank. And drank. The alcohol in his system lowered his body temperature, he survived for two hours before he was rescued.

 

It’s time for Dinner. Boy, we’re in chillin’ mode. We are usually at the door at 5:45 or earlier every night. Tonight, we arrived @ 6:15. We asked for a new table with our friends from the Sea Day Brunch: head waitress Ni Pitu and Assistant/Comedian Rondel.

 

So, now we are on Day Five of the cruise. This must be the extra night that’s not on the Blogger’s 7 Day menu, so no need to post it now.

 

There was something new to us on the appetizer list tonight: Michigan Pasty. We are of Welsh descent and Pasties are a family dish – but we aren’t from Michigan. ;) A few of us tried them; let’s just say some things are better when homemade. The Lobster bisque was lacking in any lobster flavor; I think I’ll pass on it from now on. But the Caribbean wings from the Port of Call Selections and the Seafood Newberg were both very good. In fact, one SIL who also had the Lobster Bisque and Seafood Newberg noticed the Newberg sauce had the lobster flavor. LOL

 

Desserts tonight included my first WCMC. Also served were Bitter and Blanc, and roasted pineapple with whipped cream. The fruit plate was ordered often by our group at dessert as well.

 

DW and I split off for the evening. We headed to the photo gallery and found a couple of good pics. We then walked on deck and played Bean Bag. There were 6 of them to toss; I got 2 of them the first time. Beginner’s luck, I know; but I also know when to quit while I’m ahead. :D

 

We’re being very boring; but very relaxed this evening and the entire trip.

 

Coming soon: San Juan

Edited April 24, 2016 by CruzinScotty

[junebug8]

Loving your review! We are sailing on the Inspiration (June) and the Fantasy (October) and I can't wait to eat at Guy's Burgers (and Blue Iguana on the Fantasy).

 

Keep it coming! :)

[CruzinScotty]

Loving your review! We are sailing on the Inspiration (June) and the Fantasy (October) and I can't wait to eat at Guy's Burgers (and Blue Iguana on the Fantasy).

 

Keep it coming! :)

 

Thank you so much! We have no cruises scheduled, so writing this review is therapeutic for the post-cruise blues. :)

 

I'm sure you'll have fun on your up-coming trips.

[l2f]

I booked a massage on my first cruise and was so irritated with the hard sell afterward, combined with the outrageous prices, I highly doubt I'll ever do it again. Maybe that's starting to catch up with them?

 

It has been a few years since we have gone to the SPA, but the last time (based on a review we read on CC) we wrote right on the card the SPA has you fill out prior to your treatment, NO SALES PITCH. They never tried once with me and only once with the better half.

 

Not sure if the note helped or not. Seemed too.

[missymac]

We sail on the Conquest in January and this will be our first time on this ship. Thank you for your review!

[tlw440]

This was asked by the OP. "Saba. Never heard of it. Is it inhabited? Anyone know?"

 

 

 

 

Yes it is inhabited.

Edited April 25, 2016 by tlw440

[coasterjan]

 

Also in port with us was a Silver Sea ship, the Silver Spirit and two mega yachts. I heard a rumor back on board and confirmed it when I got home thru the ever trusty internet ;) - one of the yachts, the Seven Seas, is owned by Steven Spielberg. Was he there? Who knows, but its’ fun thinking he was sitting there looking at all of us with no idea he was there.

 

 

The other *huge* white yacht in port, the Rising Sun, is owned by David Geffen. We were told by locals (our divemasters and crew) that neither Steven Spielberg or David Geffen actually spend any time on those yachts when they are docked in St. Maarten - the crews pull into port to restock the yachts, and occasionally one of the owners will happen to fly in on a private jet and be whisked to their yacht which immediately pulls out once they are on board, but most likely neither one of those guys were anywhere around the day we were there. Still pretty cool to see their yachts. Rising Sun is among the largest yachts in the world, originally built for Larry Ellison of Oracle fame.

Janis

[CruzinScotty]

We sail on the Conquest in January and this will be our first time on this ship. Thank you for your review!

 

Thanks for your nice comment; I hope you're getting some good info and it helps pass the time.

 

Enjoy your cruise.

[CruzinScotty]

This was asked by the OP. "Saba. Never heard of it. Is it inhabited? Anyone know?"

 

 

 

 

Yes it is inhabited.

 

Thanks for the info. I bet it's a lot more secluded since the cruise ships have not arrived yet. ;) :)

[CruzinScotty]

The other *huge* white yacht in port, the Rising Sun, is owned by David Geffen. We were told by locals (our divemasters and crew) that neither Steven Spielberg or David Geffen actually spend any time on those yachts when they are docked in St. Maarten - the crews pull into port to restock the yachts, and occasionally one of the owners will happen to fly in on a private jet and be whisked to their yacht which immediately pulls out once they are on board, but most likely neither one of those guys were anywhere around the day we were there. Still pretty cool to see their yachts. Rising Sun is among the largest yachts in the world, originally built for Larry Ellison of Oracle fame.

Janis

 

I did notice the other yacht was quite a bit larger. When I found out for sure the Seven Seas was Steven Spielberg's; I was curious who owned the Rising Sun.

 

Thanks for sharing.

[CruzinScotty]

Thursday, April 7th: SAN JUAN

[CruzinScotty]

Today is our shortest port day: debarkation @ 7am, back on board 1:30 for a 2PM departure.

 

I was up early and on deck at 6 to see us round El Morro. I watched us dock, with the Oceania Riveria just behind us at the next terminal. We had slight rain, off and on similar to yesterday.

 

Time to start meeting on the Lido. Time for another omelette. Today, I tried adding arugula for the first time. OK, that’s not happening again. Why did they take the spinach away? LOL

 

This morning, most of our gang opted to have breakfast in the dining room and stay on the ship. Just a few of us got off @ 8:45. We headed up to the Plaza de Colon.

 

I love the atmosphere and narrow streets in Old San Juan:

 

 

And all of the colorful buildings:

 

 

Time for a little side-street shopping, just a few t-shirts and what-nots. Here, you can see Castillo de Cristobal in the background:

 

 

We decided to stop in the plaza and have a pina colada. The FRESH coconut and pineapple made this the best we’ve ever had:

 

 

We started shopping our way back to the ship when one of those 5 minute passing rain showers lasted longer; with several bouts of hard rain thown in…just because….

 

We began darting in and out of stores, and over to the Information Center which has public restrooms. We got a bit wet, but we were having fun. Part of why we were having fun is because we were singing, “If you like Pina Colada’s, and getting caught in the rain”. :D

 

And, here’s the rain on our way to the post office to mail a post card:

 

 

 

Thankfully, it cleared by time got to the boardwalk by pier. But, the rain dampened our shopper’s spirits, so we had to hit the Duty free shop inside the terminal.

 

 

Back on board, we headed straight to the Lido for lunch. For me, it’s time to hit the Fish and Chips; and there’s no line. But, I remember in the past they cooked your order fresh. This time, there was no line because most things had been cooked ahead of time. I should have known when I placed my order of fried oysters and calamari fritters and I got a whopping two oysters and one fritter that this wasn’t going to be the best. I said, “uhhh, I was placing a full order for each item”. He came back with four oysters and two fritters. OK, that’s fine. The moral: cooking this food ahead of time helps with the lines, but it decreases the quality of the food when it sits. I usually get the calamari fritters a 2nd time during a cruise; but skipped it this trip.

 

The dessert choices today included Banana cupcakes and a delicious white cake with chocolate icing.

 

Coming Soon: A very, Very special event for the Military, and a surprise for my family

[NoDayButToday]

I'm still reading, but we did this exact cruise back in February, and so far many of our experiences were similar. I do find myself wishing I had gone to Josh's history lectures, but we decided to prioritize relaxation on this cruise and it usually seemed to happen when we would decide to take a nap mid afternoon. The only one we could have made it to was the one about Hitler, and we decided we weren't really down for Hitler talk on vacation, especially since we had a feeling we knew which theory about the end of his life would be presented so it wouldn't be new information. Maybe if we sail with him again we will actually make it to one!

 

 

 

 

Sorry about your battery. We live in central FL so a bit more of a drive and had a flat tire in Jan. 15 when heading south. We were so blessed that it did not happen on the lonely road getting to the turnpike and there just happened to be a AAA tow truck sitting there. (Spare was flat) We made it to the port with 1/2 hour to spare. That was nerve wracking! Now we have a new car so hopefully this time will be smooth sailing!

 

 

 

It's funny...we are also from central FL and when we made the drive down in February we got a flat when we first got to Ft Lauderdale. We came out of our pedicure appointment to find the flat tire. Luckily there was a Winn Dixie within walking distance so we could get some fix a flat and then found a tire place to fix it quickly. We also, thankfully, had decided to spend the night before the cruise in Ft Lauderdale "just in case", so we luckily had the time to get it fixed. Between the 3 of us I think we have the car trouble on the way to south Florida covered and everyone else is safe!

[CruzinScotty]

I'm still reading, but we did this exact cruise back in February, and so far many of our experiences were similar. I do find myself wishing I had gone to Josh's history lectures, but we decided to prioritize relaxation on this cruise and it usually seemed to happen when we would decide to take a nap mid afternoon. The only one we could have made it to was the one about Hitler, and we decided we weren't really down for Hitler talk on vacation, especially since we had a feeling we knew which theory about the end of his life would be presented so it wouldn't be new information. Maybe if we sail with him again we will actually make it to one!

 

 

 

 

It's funny...we are also from central FL and when we made the drive down in February we got a flat when we first got to Ft Lauderdale. We came out of our pedicure appointment to find the flat tire. Luckily there was a Winn Dixie within walking distance so we could get some fix a flat and then found a tire place to fix it quickly. We also, thankfully, had decided to spend the night before the cruise in Ft Lauderdale "just in case", so we luckily had the time to get it fixed. Between the 3 of us I think we have the car trouble on the way to south Florida covered and everyone else is safe!

 

Yes, between all of us; we shouldn't hear of any other travel mishaps - at least car related - for quite a while. LOL

 

I will say it was different going to history lectures on a cruise. If you're not a history fan, it wouldn't interest you. But, it was enjoyable - kind of like Trivia; but with no prizes. How much did you already know; did it refresh your memory, or did you learn something new?

 

Thanks for reading. If your experiences were similar to ours, then I'm sure you had a great time. :)

Edited April 26, 2016 by CruzinScotty

[CruzinScotty]

The other *huge* white yacht in port, the Rising Sun, is owned by David Geffen. We were told by locals (our divemasters and crew) that neither Steven Spielberg or David Geffen actually spend any time on those yachts when they are docked in St. Maarten - the crews pull into port to restock the yachts, and occasionally one of the owners will happen to fly in on a private jet and be whisked to their yacht which immediately pulls out once they are on board, but most likely neither one of those guys were anywhere around the day we were there. Still pretty cool to see their yachts. Rising Sun is among the largest yachts in the world, originally built for Larry Ellison of Oracle fame.

Janis

 

I just went back and looked at the photo I posted of the ship in St. Maarten. You can see the back of the Rising Sun. Unfortunately, you can't see how massive it is.

 

It's in post #7:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2345418

 

 

.

[CruzinScotty]

Just as Sail Away from San Juan started, we headed to the new Military Appreciation Gathering. This is the new and improved Veteran’s meet Josh spoke of a few nights ago.

 

It’s great to see Carnival raising the bar in honoring all of our military veterans. Being the history buff he is, Josh may have his version of this meet in over-drive; but I think I’ve seen mention on the boards of other Military Meets that are getting better.

 

 

Josh recognized each branch of the military, along with their song. Since my Pop was in the Army, I’ll show that:

 

 

After finishing this section, Josh disappeared to the back of the theater for a minute. When he came back, he announced that the Captain would like to say something to the group. He said this is the first time the captain has done such a thing. You could tell in his voice he was telling the truth, he was very surprised. The captain said he did not have anything prepared; he really did just decide to attend. He just wanted to thank every veteran for their service. How nice.

 

Then, Josh wanted to recognize people from each war they were in, or if they served during peace-time. Being the comedian he is, he asked if we had any Revolutionary vets. LOL. Then, he asked for any WWII vets to stand. He knew Pop would be there, but wanted to honor any other WWII vets on board he had not met. Pop was the only one standing. That is until everyone gave him a standing ovation. I must say our family was very moved and proud. Then, to top it off; Josh asked Pop up on stage; the captain requested a photo be taken with Pop, Josh, the Captain and his first Mate.

 

 

WOW – this is way beyond our wildest expectations. Two photos were taken; the other one was posted by John Heald on his Facebook page.

 

After recognizing vets from each conflict, Josh had an open mic session for people to speak about whatever they wanted.

 

He also had champagne available for everyone.

 

Then, Josh also called ALL Veteran’s to the stage for a group photo. This doesn’t do it justice, but is the best I could get:

 

 

Carnival has teamed up with Operation Homefront, an organization that helps vets coming home now. They are selling dog tags to raise funds. Over $1000 was raised at this event.

 

Bravo, and thanks to ALL of our military veterans.

 

Afterwards, I watched while some family members played Bingo. Then we waited in the Artists Lobby for everyone to arrive for dinner.

 

So, if you’re keeping track, this is Day Six of our cruise; our menu is Day Five from the Blogger’s cruise..

 

http://www.zydecocruiser.net/CarnivalFreedomBC9/menu/mdr_menu.html

 

Dinner tonight was also slow, almost 2 hrs. The choices included Escargot and pumpkin soup appetizers, while lasagna, penne marisco, pork chops and flat iron were popular entrée choices. For dessert, they had cheesecake, WCMC and I tried another trick I heard on CC: I ordered from the kid’s menu and had some chocolate chip cookies. These are the same great cookies you can get on the Lido at lunch. After I got home, I saw a picture of the kid’s banana split – that’s definitely on the list for the next cruise. ;)

 

We hit a family friendly comedy show with Just June, then headed to bed for an early night.

 

It has been a FANTASTIC day!

 

Coming soon: our last port – Grand Turk

[CruzinScotty]

Friday, April 8th: GRAND TURK

[CruzinScotty]

This morning, I slept in until 6:30 – late for me. LOL Time for the daily walk and then breakfast: I just can’t get enough of the Cantina. Today let’s talk about the Huevos rancheros – hold the eggs. My first cruise, they never asked about eggs. To me, they taste just as good and are lighter without them.

 

Some of us head up to Deck 10 for our arrival in Grand Turk. I know this port is completely man-made by Carnival – I call it “Carnivalized”. But it’s one of our favorite ports. We’re at the point where we don’t venture far from the ship and here, you have everything you need: shopping, the beach, a swimming pool, Margaritaville, and just up the beach some quieter local bars if you desire.

 

We headed off the ship @ 1030, here’s a shot from the dock:

 

 

Some shopping at the Caribbean Outpost was our first stop. Boy, I just love how beautiful it is here:

 

 

 

 

 

 

In past visits, I kept forgetting to go past the Mercury exhibit to go find the whale. Humpback whales migrate thru here in the winter. So, I finally made here:

 

 

Now it’s time to head to the beach. It’s close to lunch time, but we’re not heading back to the ship. We decide to have a drink at the Margaritaville Beachside Tiki Bar: beer, Havanas andBananas, and pina coladas for all!

 

We haven’t spent any time in the main pool area on the ship, so have had no chair hogs to deal with. Until now. There’s four of us and we’re more than willing to use a single lounger for our stuff. It took a few minutes; but we found one and headed into the water.

 

The water was …… refreshing. Yeah, you all know what that means; it was cold. ;)

 

But, compared to the Serenity pool last year on the Sunshine – this really wasn’t bad. LOL As long as you kept moving, it was great. Plus, the sun was hot, which helped. We stayed quite a while and were all very, very glad we had finally made it into the ocean this trip.

 

When we got out for a quick break, a couple was just leaving and offered us their umbrella + chairs. I guess it’s good karma for not being chair hogs. It was very nice and I had to get this last pic of the ship:

 

 

After more swimming, we decided it was time to get back on board and have a late lunch.

 

Coming soon: the rest of our day on the ship

[CruzinScotty]

So, we begrudgingly left our paradise that is Grand Turk, and got back on the ship – just as most of the lunch locations are closing. It looks like Guys and pizza will be the options; but are the lines horrendous? Nope – only two people in line at Guy’s. One last “Double Ringer with extra Donkey sauce”. And, don’t you just love those HOT fries?

 

Mama must like Grand Turk as well, because today she had her favorite chocolate cake out, complete with cherries in the middle. A very nice hazelnut vanilla cake was still available as well. We hadn’t changed, so we chose to eat outside in the rear Adult Lido area.

 

This shaded area by the rear pool is one of our favorite features on the Conquest class ships. You can have “fun in the sun” and have it “made in the shade” – all just a few steps from each other. :D

 

Next it’s time to hit the pool and hot tub again before cleaning up for the day.

 

I headed to another of Josh’s lectures: The Last Days of Hitler. I couldn’t stay until the end, but there have been rumors that Hitler escaped and fled to Argentina. The evidence I saw until I left sure pointed in that direction. The body they presented in many ways did not match the descriptions of how he supposedly killed himself.

 

I left to make sure everyone knew where and when to meet in the Artist’s Lobby before going in for our 2nd Formal Dinner. Tonight, we brought Dad’s bottle of champagne. We had mixed results in asking if a bottle given to you or won during the cruise could be opened in the Dining Room without a corking fee. It may be specific to the wait staff. We heard a resounding “No” on the Lido Deck from a person who is a head waiter at dinner. But, Rondel said he would not charge us, so we made sure we asked for his table tonight. BTW – it’s cheap champagne; but it’s the thought that counts, right?

 

We’re on Cruise Day 7; the 2nd Formal Night on the Blogger’s Menu is Day 6.

 

http://www.zydecocruiser.net/CarnivalFreedomBC9/menu/mdr_menu.html

 

 

Of interest on the menu tonight for me was the crab cake which was wonderful. We’ve noticed the last few trips that the beef selections have been a lot tougher than in the past. The filet mignon was no exception. But, I will say it tasted great.

 

For dessert, I had a taste of the low-cal Key Lime mousse – which was better than expected. The Hazelnut Chocolate Cake and Grand Marnier Souffle were also very good. The soufflé definitely came straight from the oven, I burned my tongue. LOL

 

Tonight, we went to the Spa to use our gift card. We had asked earlier if we could use it to buy products. The answer was yes, but the male cabin member had to accompany the female picking out the products because…they really, REALLY won’t let anyone except the named person use the gift card. They tried to hard sell a combo of products to get you over $50; but DW didn’t waver, she got 2 bottles of shampoo. Carnival – you could make some money if you let cabin-mates use the gift card….

 

Since we’ve been enjoying the music trivia in the Artist Lobby, tonight was Motown, which was as fun as the others. When Josh announced that, “Can’t Take My Eyes off of You”, was by Franki Valli and the Four Seasons; we were confused. First, we didn’t think it was a Motown song to begin with. Also, we thought that was Franki Valli’s first solo single. I used that trusty internet when I got home and found out that for a short period of time, Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons were signed with Motown. But, it was after this song was originally released. I also found out that the album this song is from was titled: “The Four Seasons present Franki Valli Solo”. Who knew or remembered any of that?

 

So, we sang “Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You “last night, and tonight, it’s part of Motown. It turns out there’s a method to Josh’s madness. ;) This is Josh and his wife’s song. He tried to call her on the phone. It was quite funny, he called and called and called. It was busy, busy, busy, and then finally went to voicemail.

 

Next, we headed to the photo gallery. Why are they taking down the Grand Turk pics – they just took them today? I tried the impossible “deck of cards” trick of just randomly stopping while thumbing thru the pics. Amazingly, I found our picture on the 3rd try. They now have cute boxes in the photo gallery. That photo definitely deserved to be in the “OK, so it’s not your best shot”; “Make photo go bye-bye” bin.

 

We did find one more photo to buy which got us a mug we won’t use; but it had a photo of the Conquest in it that will make its way into our photo album.

 

While we were there, DW asked about Military photos. Pop was supposed to get a copy of the ones with the captain, but they never arrived. There was another communication error, they didn’t have a room number to send them to. They hoped someone would come by for them; good thing we did. We found out later that Josh did have a 2nd copy of the photos he was in possession of. He just hadn’t had time to get them to Pop. So, we ended up with two free copies.

 

Back to our evening ritual: balcony and then bed. The end is nearing, we stayed up until 11:30 tonight!

 

Coming soon: Sea Day #3

Edited April 27, 2016 by CruzinScotty

[CruzinScotty]

Saturday, April 9th: SEA DAY #3

[CruzinScotty]

Today, I saw the best sunrise of the trip:

 

 

After my walk, I head to the Blue Iguana for one final breakfast of my favorites: huevos rancheros and I MUST mention the wonderful, crunchy hash browns they have on the burrito side.

 

DW and I did a little walking. She stopped to play bean bag again; not me. ;)

 

We usually start packing slowly throughout the last day to break it up. Today, we got 90% of it done early. I admit, It was nice to have it out of the way. It’s our last day to relax on the balcony, while others in our group went to the last Sea Day Brunch.

 

For lunch, I had more Mexican – I just can’t get enough of it. :D Today was the fish tacos; we ate outside on the rear Lido Deck again, enjoying the fresh air.

 

Next, we met others for the Chocolate Extravaganza. On the Conquest, we found the items split between the front and back buffet stations. We find most of the offerings to be dry or lacking in flavor, but there a few things we like. The rice pudding was good. The Chocolate pudding was different for us. It had a mocha taste and was very thick this time, more like icing. Today is also the first time I’ve seen pineapple cobbler (peach cobbler with pineapple in it). For me, it was the winner of the day.

 

We hit the Gift Shop one more time, inquiring about the t-shirt sale they usually have the last night. We didn’t see anything in the Fun Times about it. It turns out the sales are so popular, they had two of them this cruise. The first one was in the Fun Times and we missed it. They said they had a sale this evening, but were running low on supply. (During a lull in dinner, DW looked and ended up getting us the Conquest logo shirts we saw the first night.)

 

Then we watched some family members play Bingo. Sadly we had no winners this trip.

 

Josh had his last lecture of the cruise: How WWI became WWII. This was a new lecture for him; it was very interesting. The Versailles Treaty at the end of WWI was so unfairly harsh on Germany, it’s easier to understand how Hitler could manipulate the country in his favor.

 

Soon, it was time for our last dinner. Most of us are gold, so we had a drink coupon you can only use after 5PM on the last day. Some of us chose have a dinner drink. Here is a Bahama Mama and a Tiramisu:

 

 

So we are on our last night, which is also the last night on the Blogger’s Cruise menu: Day 7

 

http://www.zydecocruiser.net/CarnivalFreedomBC9/menu/mdr_menu.html

 

Gosh, don’t you hate it when so many of your favorite appetizer choices are on the same night: chilled mango soup, frog legs, French onion soup, mussels, tomato w/mozzarella, shrimp cocktail. Prime rib was my entrée to night, I had another good cut. I think the key for me has been to order my beef a little more rare than normal. With the mass production and plates sitting, they came out exactly the way I like them. Our final desserts consisted of WCMC, Carrot cake, and Banana white bread pudding.

 

Tonight, I made it to my first R-rated comedy show of the cruise; Tony Esposito with a funny bit about flying.

 

Then, a few of us headed to the Playlist Production Show: Latin Nights. This show has a “Splash Zone” in the front two rows. At one point, a couple of dancers rise up from the orchestra pit in small pools of waters. They purposely splash water into the audience. You have been warned. ;)

 

Sadly, it was time to head to bed; they anticipated we would dock early in the morning.

 

Coming next: Debarkation

Edited April 28, 2016 by CruzinScotty

[CruzinScotty]

Sunday, April 10th: DEBARKATION :(

They predicted right, we were already docked when I first stirred at 4:50, finally getting up at 5:30 to finish packing. The Allure of the Seas had docked by then, DW and I watched more ships arrive.

 

We decided to do self-assist debarkation. Priority passengers were to be in Renoir at 6:30, but called they called for self-assist debarkation for decks 1 thru 5 at 6:15!

 

We gathered our luggage, with the help of one brother’s straps to keep some pieces together to make it easier on the elders in the group. In the lobby, we did ask for a wheelchair; but they said we would have to wait until 8AM. They said if you need a wheelchair, you need assistance; and this is self-assist debarkation at this time.

 

I get what they are saying, but Diamond/Platinum/FTTF guests have earned or paid for the right to get off when they want. Again, it’s just a very different than Port Canaveral.

 

Pop walked very slowly down the gangway and we were thru customs ahead of the crowds. It really went very fast; but the area did seem rather small. I’ve heard the lines are very long if you get off later; I can see that being the case.

 

When I got to the car; I cranked it up first thing – to make sure it would…… ;)

 

It was 6:59 – by far the earliest we’ve been off a ship. So, all-in-all; a great debarkation!

 

We had a GREAT trip.

 

We LOVED this itinerary; I’d do it again in a heartbeat.

 

We like the Conquest class ships the best of the ones we’ve been on, which include Fantasy, Conquest, Dream and whatever you call the Sunshine. ;)

 

I had fun re-living it with you. I hope you enjoyed the journey. :)

 

I’ll be happy to answer any lingering questions you might have.

 

Until next time, happy cruising!

[ChicoCA]

Thank you CruzinScotty for the great review! I'll be on her over Halloween and can't hardly wait!

[CruzinScotty]

Thanks so much; glad you enjoyed it.

 

Halloween should be such a fun time to cruise. Have fun!