FlyingCruiserNJ's Victory Tour (Carnival Victory-OCEAN SUITE) 11/28-12/2

[FlyingCruiserNJ]

Great review so far. What camera/phone did you use to take the pics?

I hope they don't do away with formal nights. It is kinda difficult though for people who have early dining to do formal night on the first night of the cruise. Time creeps up on you when you do sailaway party, muster drill and a little tour. By the time all that is done it is dinner time and you realize you haven't showered or dressed as yet.

 

Thanks for the good words. I should be adding Day 2's activities later on tonight sometime. I used the Samsung Galaxy S7 (not the one that catches on fire and is banned everywhere lol) that I got just a month or so ago. Really nice camera, huge upgrade over the S3 I had before. Granted, it cost almost as much as my laptop but it is worth it. It even categorizes photos into types, like there is a section for food, faces, scenery, etc and it does that automatically. It is really nice. My mom has a digital camera that she uses to take her own photos but I feel like I don't even need a separate camera now that I have a really good camera on my phone.

 

I hope they keep formal night also, and they probably will because it is a revenue producer for them. Sell more wine in the dining room, sell more professionally taken pictures of people in their finest evening wear, etc. But unfortunately, I feel like more and more people are shunning the main dining room experience for whatever reason now. It is their vacation and they can do whatever they want but the mdr is a huge thing for me and always has been. But if it begins to cost the line more to put it all together than they get back in value from it, watch out - Carnival has cut stuff out already in the last few years that you would not have thought they would ever cut back on.

 

And sailaway day is always hectic. Especially when departure is 2 hours later than usual. It kind of throws everything off but that is also why I like late dining. Not as much of a rush at the later seating I feel. But most people don't get dressed up for the first night in the mdr if they go at all now, so we just headed right up to dinner from the tree lighting and it wasn't a problem on the first night. Honestly, the only night I even got remotely dressed up was on formal night and I didn't go too far then either. I feel like on shorter cruises that dressing up in a full suit once or twice is just not necessary and almost nobody does it anymore. Not to mention I try to travel light (carryon only if I am by myself) on cruises less than 5 days even though we didn't travel light this time due to my mom overpacking.

[FlyingCruiserNJ]

nice start and photos! keep it coming!

 

Thanks, I should be getting to the next part later on tonight, stay tuned. Thanks for reading and for your nice comments!

[FlyingCruiserNJ]

So far this is a great detailed review! I'm heading out on this ship Jan 6th and this is also my first cruise. So far your review and pictures are giving me a good idea of what to expect. Thank you :)

 

Thanks, I do make sure I make each part of these reviews as detailed as possible as I like to give the entire perspective of my experience as I saw things to people to see. Have fun on your first cruise in January, and you will have a great time. I still have lots and lots more pictures of the ship itself, the ports we visited (we didn't venture far away but there is stuff to do in the immediate areas at both places that can occupy a good bit of time) and of our post-cruise Everglades excursion which was tons of fun and pretty educational. I hope you continue to enjoy and this review gives you an excellent guide on what to expect and do on your cruise. Welcome to the cruising family, you will be booking your second cruise as soon as you get home from your first. :D

[FlyingCruiserNJ]

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you! I am loving this review. We are also South Jerseyites, and taking this ship on January 2. I am really looking forward to the rest, and especially your pictures! I already told my husband and two kids that they need to read your review!!

 

Thanks again!

 

Terry

 

You are very welcome, I am glad you like it so far. I really do try to take the time to do these right, so people can get the whole experience of the cruise vacation and everything surrounding it and can know what to expect when they do their cruises. Have fun on your January 2 sailing. Just make sure that they aren't still doing the delayed boarding then like they seem to have been doing each week this last month or so and if they are, plan accordingly so you don't have to sit in the terminal for half the day while you wait to board. Thank you for the kind words about the pictures. I have over 200 total, I will surely be including many more as this review continues on. I should be getting to the next part tonight sometime, or definitely tomorrow if not later tonight. Lot of folks from the NJ/Philly are seem to love to cruise from Florida, and why not? It is so easy to get there and especially this time of year, it is cold here and warm in Florida and it beats shoveling snow and scraping ice off your windshield every morning in the winter months. I hope your husband and kids enjoy reading this also, if you can get them to check it out.

[FlyingCruiserNJ]

Enjoying your review and the pictures. Following along.

 

Thank you, I am happy to hear you are enjoying. I should be getting to the next part tonight or tomorrow sometime, be sure to check it out.

[FlyingCruiserNJ]

Hi, it's nice to see you back with another review. I'm enjoying it so far and look forward to reading more whenever you have the chance! :) I know what a busy time of year this is.

Heather

 

Hello there! I am surely back with another review, as I love doing them and haven't been on Carnival lately and am eager to share my experiences in an ocean suite. I am going to try to get to Key West day tonight later on, but it might have to wait until tomorrow. Either way, hope you enjoy it and thanks for joining along with another one of my adventures. :cool:

[FlyingCruiserNJ]

Following

 

Thanks, glad to have you along for the journey!

[FlyingCruiserNJ]

GREAT start to your review! Looking forward to the rest. :)

 

Thank you Jamman! I haven't done a Carnival review in a while but I have looked forward to doing this one since I got home a few weeks ago from the cruise. I do like doing these write-ups. I have lots and lots more to talk about concerning this journey so we are just getting warmed up. I also have to check out your latest review, yours are always excellent as well.

[FlyingCruiserNJ]

Loved Key West when we visited 5 years ago can't wait to hear your thoughts on it! Really enjoying your review

 

Key West is nice, I have been there many times. We honestly did not do that much there this time around, as I have done so much in the past and we just did not have that much time in port but I have done a lot in past visits and I do like it there a lot. I have done the conch train tour, seen the southernmost point, done the trolley, walked all up and down Duval Street, seen the evening festivities at Mallory Square (on a land trip and the early December sunset is probably why they wanted us out so early on this day) and eaten and drank in many different establishments on the island. I did get to go to yet another place I have never been to during this recent visit. Thanks for checking out the review and I will be getting to my Key West activities tonight or tomorrow at the latest.

[FlyingCruiserNJ]

Hey from Exit 5 (or 47, off 295 :) )!!

 

Loving your review so far, I'm on the Victory for 10 days in 2018 on a charter and I can't wait. Looking forward to more photos of the ship!

 

LOL, I was actually just up that way this past weekend. Burlington City exit right? :) I am actually from further down a ways, near the semi-permanent construction zone known as the 42/295/76 interchange, so not far at all from Philly. The only time I ever go on the Turnpike is if I am going up to North Jersey or NYC or going to that awesome Roy Rogers at the rest area on the Turnpike in Cherry Hill (if it's still there), between Exits 3 and 4 I think. Just hate paying tolls if I don't have to.

 

Anyway, thanks for checking out the review and I am glad you are enjoying it. I should be getting on with the next part of it fairly soon, tonight or tomorrow so be sure to check that out. I have never done a charter cruise but I have heard they are a ton of fun. Maybe I will do one sometime. I don't know if the Victory is doing a dry dock before 2018 though, I don't know when the last one was and if they plan on adding any specialty dining stuff to it in the future. I will surely be back with many, many more photos of the ship and of our off-ship activities as well as we move along.

[FlyingCruiserNJ]

Thank you for your review! Can't wait to read the rest. Sailing the Victory in May! I am from Jersey too!

 

You are welcome and thanks for reading along! I am glad that you like it. I should be getting to the next part pretty soon, which will cover my day in Key West and the rest of the day on the ship, which was also formal night. Enjoy your upcoming Victory cruise! And Yo! fellow Jerseyite! :D How YOU doin'?

[tw67]

Hey from Exit 5 (or 47, off 295 :) )!!

 

Loving your review so far, I'm on the Victory for 10 days in 2018 on a charter and I can't wait. Looking forward to more photos of the ship!

 

Hello Exit 5, I am Exit 7, or 57 off 295! We are neighbors!!

[CruisinMama2003]

I really like the fact that OP takes the time to address each and every one of our comments! Anxiously awaiting the rest of this review :) Thank you!

[nc350]

Thanks for your review! I love the style you use and it's getting me excited for my march cruise! Looking forward to the rest of the review. :)

[FlyingCruiserNJ]

I really like the fact that OP takes the time to address each and every one of our comments! Anxiously awaiting the rest of this review :) Thank you!

 

It is my pleasure to do that. I appreciate that people read the review and then take time to comment on it. The least I can do is address each comment, it does make for a more personal touch to the review also. Many of the big and popular reviews I read here feature the OP doing the same thing and it makes for a good conversation inside of a cruise vacation review. Anyway, thanks for reading and I am going to get with the next part in just a minute here.

[FlyingCruiserNJ]

Thanks for your review! I love the style you use and it's getting me excited for my march cruise! Looking forward to the rest of the review. :)

 

Thanks, I guess I can say my style is taken a little bit from the many great reviews I have read on this site over the last few years and I try to make mine entertaining and informative and reader participation in the discussion of the entire review makes it that much better. For people who have upcoming cruises and use these reviews for guidance for their future trips, I do try to include as much of the total experience as I can for them to see so they get a good idea of what to expect. I hope this helps you get ready for your March cruise and you will have a great time.

[FlyingCruiserNJ]

I am back with the next part of this Carnival Victory cruise review from the 11/28 sailing from Miami. Thank you all for your comments and thanks for reading and I am glad so many people are enjoying it. I had tried to get on with this last night but I ended up going to bed very early but I am going to make sure to get to it tonight. Our first day was the busy embarkation day part of the cruise, the second day featured a stop to the familiar port of Key West, FL.

 

DAY 2: KEY WEST

As I said above, the first day was downright busy and I got a really good night's sleep after it was all over (probably the best rest I got all cruise long). Since Key West is not that far from Miami (near the west end of the Keys), we featured an early visit to this island city on this day. I was still asleep when we arrived but I think I heard us pulling up to the dock before 0700 as I woke up a few times during the night even though I did sleep well. Well, as a matter of fact, I slept until probably close to 1000. My mom was up early and was just milling around some and watching TV (Carnival TV programming is bad but most cruise lines' TV programming is bad) and when I finally got up for good, I went out on the balcony to see what was up and where we were parked.

For those who do not know, Key West only has one downtown (Mallory Square) dock for cruise ships and it is first come, first serve I guess unless they plan ahead and just put the biggest ships at the downtown pier. Either way, we were the only ship here today as it turns out so we got the prime parking spot. And that saves lots of time, as the other parking area is on the US Navy base and that is far from downtown. It requires boarding a tram to ride to town and that takes time, and of course it takes time to queue up to get back on the tram to ride back to the ship. So we were fortunate today I guess. I looked out at the nice, warm and mostly sunny day that we had and planned out my wardrobe for the day and we talked about what we were going to do in the short time we had off the ship today. That is a major plus of having a balcony, huh?

 

You can see the island that is separate from the main town, and I guess only accessible by boat, don't know what it is called but I guess you have to have some serious money to live there. We were on the side of the ship facing away from the dock. You can also see a US Coast Guard boat there, as they have a large presence in Key West and they take care of guiding us in and out of the port area.

 

 

 

I cleaned up and we figured out what we were going to do for the day. Since it was after 1000 already and we were scheduled for a 1300 (ended up being 1400) departure, that wasn't much time to do much. However, I value my sleep as I refuse to be tired and sleepy on vacation (I do that enough the rest of the time), and so we slept in instead of being the first off the ship as some people were. After all, we have both been here many times and there is only so much one can see and do here on a cruise. We decided we would just get off the ship and walk around and get some lunch. I also wanted to stop at the CVS in town to get a few things that I forgot to bring in my suitcase. If you have never been here or have an excursion booked, it is a different story and you might want to get off the ship early to spend the most time possible in town.

 

We skipped breakfast (if you have had one breakfast on Carnival, you have had them all) and figured that we could get lunch at one of the many bars and restaurants on the island instead. Even though we did not do a ton here, I will do my best to list some of the stuff that is available to see in a day, and what my favorite stuff to do there is. There is really a lot to do and see there if you have the time. So, we got off the ship around 1030 and headed through Mallory Square, towards downtown. We stopped for pictures as we headed off the ship (they do that at every port it seems) and began walking. It was a pretty nice day today, and I have been here when it rained, when it was unbearably hot, and when it was cold and windy (50s in January) so it was good that the weather was nice for our visit.

I should also mention that the crew was doing safety drills all morning and you can hear the announcements from the captain and safety officers on the loudspeaker all morning. So if you are a light sleeper, that would probably wake you up eventually, lol. But there is so much crew turnover from cruise to cruise, I would rather they do these drills and know what to do in a real emergency than to not do them. We did hear a few mysterious crew calls later in the cruise as well, I will get into them at a later time.

So, there are shops right near the dock that sell anything from trinkets to apparel to high end jewelry in addition to the famous Key Lime Pie that everyone has heard of. My mom loves Key Lime Pie but she didn't get any here. We passed by the Hemingway museum (never been in there however) and I got a nice pic of it from out in front as we figured out what we were going to do in town today. Obviously we were going to go to CVS which is just a few blocks up, but what else? Had to keep in mind my mom is not a fast walker and we only had about 3 hours to do our thing so that means we couldn't go too far.

 

 

I had destroyed my old Phillies flip flops that I had gotten at a spring training game many years ago so I figured this would be a great time to get a new pair, along with a new pair of shades as I did not bring any along with me. My mom wanted some new shades as well. Many stores along Duval Street (the main street for eating and shopping it seems) offer just that type of thing, so we went into a store called Play Time, we got 2 pairs of sunglasses and a pair of flip flops for like $16. Not too shabby. The girl at the cash register wasn't too bad looking either, haha. We also passed a Starbucks, right near the port area (NOOOOOOO) and that was unusual, as there are not that many chain type places there. Guess we cannot ever escape Starbucks, lol.

 

 

 

We also passed the Conch Train Tour office and station, and that is a great tour to take once or more, if you never have before. It is offered as an excursion but you can just walk up and buy tickets at the office. It takes you all around the island and you get to see lots of historical landmarks along the way. The drivers like what they do and you will have a good time. They also have the Old Town Trolley here, and they take you on a tour around the island as well. The same company offers similar tours in San Diego and St. Augustine and maybe a few other places. One of the tours is a hop off and hop on all day, I forget which one. Do that if you never have, you will enjoy it.

 

 

Anyway, after that it was off to CVS to get a travel size shampoo and a notepad as I forgot the nice notepad that I usually take on cruises, that I got as a VIFP Platinum gift a few years ago on the Magic. If you are wondering if you can get your 12-packs of soda to take back on the ship with you, yes you can but a 12-pack ran like $6.49. Just stay with the soda package if you don't bring any from home at the beginning of the trip. I can get 4 cases for $10 on sale at home, oh well. They also sell wine and beer here but there are plenty of places to drink in town and you can't drink any wine you bring back on the ship with you anyway. I got my stuff and headed back outside, and by now it was close to 1130. Time to figure out where we could go for lunch that was close by and not too outrageously expensive. I have been to great places like Sloppy Joe's (touristy), Irish Kevin's, Rob's (or something like that), Flying Monkeys Saloon, Red Fish/Blue Fish and Pat Croce's Rum Barrel (located further away, not on Duval) but they were too much of a walk for my mom today. So, we settled on a place called Island Dogs Bar, which was not too far away for lunch. Good choice too.

 

More on that coming in a second....

 

 

 

[FlyingCruiserNJ]

DAY 2: KEY WEST CONTINUED:

 

I forgot to talk some about the mystique of the island. A lot of this is available on the "internets" if you look but I will talk about it anyway. Pirates are a huge draw here and that same Pat Croce has a pirate museum that I have been to on a past land trip. Many restaurants and shops here are also themed towards that pirate thing. Also, Hemingway was a huge figure. He lived there (have been to his house on a past tour) and a lot of his work and influence is still there today.

 

It was also a strategic military port in the past, so lots of military history and the Truman Annex is all owned by the US Navy to this day and is closed off from the rest of the island. The homes feature metal roofs and I think a lot of them have cisterns to catch rainwater to use. The cost of ownership is high there but renting is less expensive so many people rent and come and go throughout the year. Also, Key West is called Bone Island as it is built on coral I think, and therefore there is not much of a beach to speak of there. Half the island is filled in for development by the US government and the southernmost point (90 miles to Cuba) is a huge tourist attraction that there is always a line to get a picture taken at. I have also bought fresh coconuts with holes drilled in them to get the sweet water from a guy wheeling a grocery cart around town (it was good too) and you have to see the southern end of US Highway 1 (Mile 0) and the original Pan Am building. Just tons of stuff to do there and that is just some. Hopefully I gave you a few ideas and you can surely find out more about them if you are interested.

 

Anyway, so we went to Island Dogs. It was not crowded but as with most eating and drinking establishments in Key West, it is open-air, you just walk right in and get seated. I like to try out different stuff that I cannot get at home so I got what is called a "Key West Pizza" which is a pizza with lobster based sauce, shrimp, pineapple, pepperoni and probably something else I missed. Figure I can't easily get that at home. My mom got the safer pulled pork and some chicken fingers to share (freshly battered and real fresh white meat chicken, kind of like what I make at home lol) and I got a Rum Runner (good) and my mom got a Mojito. Everything was good but it did take a while for us to get the food. Can't rush perfection, right?

 

Nice atmosphere here

 

 

Rum Runner drink

 

 

Chicken tenders and Key West Pizza

 

 

Outside of the Island Dogs Bar. Good lunch choice.

 

 

We were done with lunch sometime between 1230 and 1300, and made our way out. I also got a Samuel Adams beer before we left, I really wanted a Yuengling (local Delaware Valley beer, oldest brewery in America and now on tap in some places in Florida) and the total bill was somewhere around $50 but the experience was worth it. Marcelo emphasized that pax should be back by 1300 as the line to get back on the ship would be long around 1330 but we know better and headed back about a half hour to departure. My mom was too full from lunch to get any Key Lime Pie so she didn't get any. Oh well. My buddy M got some at a nice bakery a few blocks off Duval when we were there on the Empress last July (forget what the place is called but it is a corner store type thing) so that is also an option if you don't mind walking. Then again, many places have Key Lime Pie there so you can pick which place you want to get yours at.

Along the way, there is a local area near the square where little kiosks selling all kinds of stuff is set up. Didn't get anything here but if you are a shopping-minded person, you can get something I am sure.

 

 

We hung around the port area some before getting back in line to go back to the ship, and I got a nice picture of the large floating city we were on as we waited. As you can see, the line was not all that long and it was moving. Just know that in addition to your sign and sail card, you have to have a driver's license with photo to get through port security. They really do check them closely also. And since we were still in the USA, regular cell phone provider service works normally so talk, text and surf the web all you want. That is another perk of Key West.

 

 

We got back in line and passed the station with the cups of water and music playing and chairs set up along with a little nexturf carpet and a Carnival crew member escorted us to the front of the line due to my mom's mobility issues. Good for them and we were onboard the ship again before 1345, earlier than we would have otherwise.

 

More coming in a few....

[FlyingCruiserNJ]

DAY 2: KEY WEST CONTINUED:

 

I also forgot to mention that Key West is also known as the Conch Republic because decades ago, I think they actually voted to secede from the USA. I don't remember the whole story but it really happened, so they say. Anyway.....

 

We went right back to the cabin as I was a little sleepy again and I took a very short nap right before departure from Key West. Surely enough, as soon as all pax were back on before 1400, we were right out of port. I know they do festivities each night at sunset in Key West and they need all the cruise ships out before that so that is probably why we left so early. My mom was engrossed in some semi-important phone calls with back home as I sat out on the balcony for a while before napping to see the sailaway. We spun around before sailing out so we got to watch the town get smaller and smaller as we sailed out from the comfort of the private balcony.

 

 

And, for a plane geek like me, a trip to Key West would not be complete without seeing a few jets buzz the ship on the way to landing at KEYW airport Runway 9 on the other side of the island. That runway is SHORT (never flew in there but check out youtube for entertainment) and so the largest plane that can make it in and out is a 737-700 (with special performance engine packages I think) but they fly LOW over the ships. I have seen some nice low flyovers during past trips. I didn't see any today until we were on our way out, but I still got to see a Republic E175, a Silver B190 and a Delta 737-700 coming in as we sailed away. Really neat if that is your thing.

 

Some scenery as we sailed out. We lost cell service again somewhere like 15 minutes after leaving town. It was nice while it lasted.

 

The Coast Guard station, some boats and a close-up of where we would have parked if we were not in Mallory Square.

 

 

Old fort from centuries back I guess

 

 

Well, after things calmed down some and we were back at sea, it was time to take a nap. I like to nap on cruises as I rarely do back home. I will note that we skipped lunch again today as we had quite enough at Island Dogs. You could hear the music playing on Lido if you stood out on the balcony which I did not mind too much but if you are sensitive to outside sound, a 7300-range ocean suite might not be for you. We heard lido music a few times while being outside on the balcony during the week. Lunch is usually served from noon to 1430 or so on Carnival and the theme changes daily, while places like the burger grill, hot dog stand, deli (located on the other side of the lido from the Chopsticks) were the same each day.

 

As was the theme on this cruise, the sky did not cooperate too much with getting a good sunset photo this evening. Oh well. I got up from my nap around 1700 and this is the best I could do from the balcony.

I went to the hot tub afterwards, around 1730 and hung out there for a while (for the first time on this cruise, I love to do that before dinner whenever possible on a cruise). It took me a few minutes to figure out which hot tub I wanted to go to (settled on the one on the Serenity deck on Deck 12 I think, forward) and hung out there for a while. Serenity is for pax 21 years and older, and features padded deck chairs, hammocks, secluded relaxation areas, two "hot" tubs and a dedicated bar. Was not too crowded and there is a nice view of the stars there and the music is not as loud as on Lido and not as much foot traffic passing by as the aft pool. However, it is windy up there so secure your belongings that you leave on the deck chairs. I did see a beanbag toss competition as I walked towards the Serenity deck (either go up the elevators midship to get there or walk up along the side stairwells from lido) and that was fun, I should have gotten in on that action, haha. There was also a mini golf course on 13, but it was too crowded to play tonight so I would wait until a later time to play. Elon, the DJ was also good and he played a lot during this cruise.

 

Anyway, tonight was formal night and it was close to 1930, so I had to get out of the tub and head back to the room to get cleaned up again and changed for dinner. As is normal with me, my timing was just off a few minutes as a nice cute lady got into the hot tub with me and we did strike up a little bit of a conversation before I had to get out of the hot tub a short few minutes later. Ahhhh, lol. Missed opportunity but I did see her later on a few times during the cruise. I can say I didn't see a lot of single women on here, most seemed to be with boyfriends or husbands and that was kind of a bummer but it is what it is. It was a good relaxing hour or so in the whirlpool.

 

Next up......my first time in the whirlpool bath in the cabin and dinner.

[FlyingCruiserNJ]

DAY 2: KEY WEST CONTINUED:

 

I made a mis-statement on the past post. The Silver plane was a Saab 340 IIRC, they used to fly B190s in there. If you care. I am sure someone would notice, lol. Also, got this nice pic of me with the Hemingway museum in the background before getting back on the ship. Finally a picture of me, lol.

 

 

I also got a nice shot from the upper deck of the post-sunset sky, a little better than the one from the balcony I guess.

 

 

I did try out the whirlpool bathtub before dinner as the hot tub on Serenity was just not that hot (heard lots of complaints all cruise long about it, it was supposedly malfunctioning but they were working on getting it fixed) and it was nice with good, strong jets but it was small and cramped and I couldn't move around in it like I could move around in a hot tub. It was still nice though, never had that before. I got dressed up (sort of lol) for formal night and we headed to the Pacific dining room for some dinner.

 

Recently, Carnival did away with lobster on formal nights on cruises shorter than 5 days and while that is not a huge loss as I don't eat lobster except for on cruises it seems, it is another cutback. They do still do tablecloths on formal nights, or "American Feast" as they call it. The dining room was a little more crowded but half the 10-top next to us was empty yet again. The lower level seemed to be a little better attended. We were at a nice 4-top with no tablemates and so plenty of room in the booth.

 

 

I got some minestrone soup and unlimited bread for dipping and it was pretty good.

 

 

We got some blue crab ravioli to share and I got a Japanese sea bass with white rice as an entree. The ravioli was slamming and the sea bass was pretty good. See what I mean about exotic stuff that the old menus never even went near? I also got some St. Louis spare ribs and my mom got prime rib. I am not a huge fan of Carnival prime rib. Too thin, and not mesquite enough for me. However, the spare ribs were great and always have been. Love them.

 

 

 

More shortly.....

[FlyingCruiserNJ]

DAY 2: KEY WEST CONTINUED:

 

Shh, but I took some wine to dinner with me tonight. Figured with it being formal night and all, ya know? It wasn't bad. To go along with my Cokes. I got WCMC as dessert (what else?) and we got to see the wait staff dance to a Four Seasons song (want to say 1963 but can't remember) which was a nice changeup from the past routines. Some waiters got into it more than others and many diners were getting into it as well. No repeat performance of the defective teacup for my mom tonight, lol. That's always good.

 

 

We were finished with dinner around 2200 and we split up to see different shows at 2230. My mom saw the stage show called "Livin' in America" in the theater at 2215 and I saw the 2230 performance of the comedian known as Macio. It was crowded in the Adriatic Lounge on Deck 5 aft, but he wasn't all that funny. It was something to do but he was just not that kind of funny where you sit there laughing out loud for the whole show. The other comedian on this cruise would be Percy Crews, and he would be performing on the other nights. I had seen him before in the past and he is a little funnier. My mom said the stage show was really good.

Anyway, I wasn't ready for bed yet so I went and played in the casino on Deck 5 some. I charged it to the room account (easier to do and you rack up credits that can get you cash back and free drinks in the casino if you spend hours upon hours in there which I did not) and was a whopping 10 points toward my 500 needed for cash back before I was out $20 on the "penny" slots and moved on to some other stuff to do. The penny slots require a minimum play of 20 cents the way they are set up and pay almost nothing. Better off playing back on land in Philly or what is left of Atlantic City I guess. The casino is the area on the ship that you can smoke so it is smoky but they have a bar there as well and the cover band called Sweet Spot played right outside of it all evening. Plenty of table games to play as well and there is a casino vault game for those of you who like playing that.

 

We agreed to meet up at the Pizza Pirate at the aft end of the lido deck at midnight as we like to spend time there after shows and just people watch and talk about the past day we had and the next day's activities over pizza and a late night soda from the pool bar. I will tell you the lines get very long here after shows as the only thing open on the ship is the pizzeria if you do not want to pay for room service. But the waiting is part of the experience I guess. They have plain pizza, proscuitto, salads, and pepperoni pizza along with a type of white pizza and they are all made to order so it can take a while for you to get your pizza but they are hot and pretty good when you finally get yours.

 

We got back to the cabin around 0100, and since we were not scheduled to arrive in Cozumel until nearly noon tomorrow, it was OK to be up late this night and not miss anything in the morning. I did get this pic of the new Platinum gift (it is a box that hold a notepad and some other small stuff, cute I guess), our free drink tickets that can be used at the seaday brunch on the last day of the cruise, the next day's Funtimes and the tickets for our post-cruise Everglades excursion that we purchased through Carnival. Agus actually made the cabin up this evening so we had a nice turned-down cabin waiting for us when we went back at the end of the night.

 

 

Funtimes close-ups

 

 

That pretty much wraps up our Day 2 activities. I hope you enjoyed reading all about it, and I will include some of the pics I took of the cabin while it was still turned down in the next post for you to check out. Our next day would feature a trip to another familiar port of Cozumel, so be sure to check that out. Thanks for reading along, thanks for your comments and have a good night!

[FlyingCruiserNJ]

OCEAN SUITE CABIN:

 

Our Platinum sweet treat. Guess they don't do strawberries anymore?

 

 

 

 

2 bottles of water on the nighttable for Platinum, 2 for being in a suite, and 2 that they hope you pay their crazy prices for.

 

 

 

[FlyingCruiserNJ]

OCEAN SUITE CABIN CONTINUED:

Water again....

 

 

The entrance corridor

 

 

Oh, and my pizza from the lido 24-hour pizzeria. Not bad. And hot chocolate. Available on lido, next to coffee machines. Rich and creamy, even made a thread on cruise critic about it once. Something mysteriously good about it.

 

 

The lido dining room after hours. Always cleaning something onboard the ship. This is where the breakfast, lunch and dinner buffets are. There is an upstairs seating area there as well and a dessert stand next door. The deli is also just out of view of this picture.

 

 

Lemonade and iced tea and water, open all the time and free. OJ/apple juice and guava passion fruit juice there instead in the mornings....

 

 

24 hour ice cream and frozen yogurt, 2 machines on lido. This one was not working but the other one was. Vanilla/chocolate/swirl and cones or cups for it. It is good.

 

 

Good night!

[beccabgrateful]

Thank you so much for all the detail. We are doing our first cruise in February on this ship and itinerary so this is very helpful! Im already looking forward to your Cozumel port day post.

 

 

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[FlyingCruiserNJ]

Thank you so much for all the detail. We are doing our first cruise in February on this ship and itinerary so this is very helpful! Im already looking forward to your Cozumel port day post.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

No problem, the more detail in a review, the better. No point in doing a review that just says, ship was good, ship wasn't good, excursions bad or not bad. I feel that doing a detailed review that puts the reader in a position to see things from my perspective helps bring life to it. The best reviews I have seen here do that and yes, they do take more time and effort to do but they are worth it in the end. Besides, when it is cold and icy like it has been and will be here for the next 3 months, it is nice to be able to re-live the vacation experience again through a review.

 

I hope you enjoy your cruise on the Victory in February and although it isn't the most modern ship with the latest eateries or attractions, it is a classic Carnival ship with good food, good service for the most part and good entertainment. You will enjoy it. I was going to get to Cozumel day later tonight, but it is just too late to get started on it now so I will try my best to get to it tomorrow sometime. It was a good day spent in the port area with some humorous stuff along the way, I can't wait to get going with writing about it. Although I didn't do anything exotic here, I will talk about some of the stuff I have done in the past and what I think is worth doing if it is your first time there. I am sorry it is taking so long to do but this is a busy time of the year for everyone.