Short Valor review April 27-May 1.

[Flip flop lady]

This trip would be 8 ladies, 4 of us are long time friends. The other 4 consisted of a mother to one of us, a neighbor and her friend and another friend.

 

We drove in the morning of the cruise from Central Texas. We left At 7:00 and arrived at the port at about 11:30. After parking and embarkation process,me were on the ship at 12:45. We all had FTTF.

 

We had 2 interior rooms on the 2nd floor in he 4 bunk configuration. There was plenty of room and never felt crowded. Getting on and off the top bunk in the middle of the night for a potty break was dangerous and hilarious all at the same time.

 

Food: we had late dining in the Washington dining room. The food was just ok and quality definitely has taken a hit recently. I've cruised a lot (appx. 10). The wait staff was friendly and kind but S L O W.

We had one lady in our group who was driving the rest of us completely nuts so half of us left early the first night. The next night was no better with her so night 3 was at buffet and night 4 we got reassigned to another table in another dining room [emoji852]

 

Entertainment: We watched the Cowboy Comedian one night and he was pretty good. We spent a lot of time in the 3rd floor lobby area listening to Jesse Allan, singer and guitar player. He was excellent. The last night was the big show Its not Over, an 80's tribute . This was excellent and lots of fun. There was 80's music trivia that followed where I won a ship on a stick! Cruise director Frankie was tons of fun.

 

Random thoughts: the ship is nice but is starting to look tired. Definitely in need of carpet replacement in area. This casino was the absolute worst for smoking that I've ever seen. They really need to do something. The thing is, the people smoking in there were not even gambling. They only hang out in there to smoke as it's the only inside place allowed. This causes others to leave without gambling because it's intolerable. They have to be losing money . This was also the worst I've seen for chair hogs, people had entire rows saved with a towel on a chair and were gone for hours. Ridiculous.

 

In closing I have to say that this was one of the best crews I've ever seen.m all were so warm and kind and went out of their way to help.

All in all a Great cruise, next year we will have one less:(

 

 

 

 

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Edited May 4, 2017 by Flip flop lady

[bury me at sea]

Thanks for posting your thoughts on the Valor. I sail from Galveston but recently on Magic and Breeze.

 

One of your own party was the obnoxious table mate? Perhaps I mis-read your post.

 

Happy sailing.

[ScrapbookJ]

Thanks for the review!

[Flip flop lady]

Nope you read it correctly!!! She was horrible and I think is having some sort of mental break. I'm a nurse and I've seen this before ! She was rude, running around talking to everyone very loudly. "Interviewing" people as she decided she would write a book. Drumming on the table, trying to hug and kiss the staff. It was crazy town.

 

 

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[Clarea]

Appreciate the feedback.

[cruiser0216]

Hello! I was a fellow passenger on the April 27-May 1 sailing out of Galveston on the Carnival Valor. We had a FABULOUS TRIP!! I thought I'd add my own review to this one to sync it with your thread:

 

WHO WE ARE: We were a party of 4 longtime girlfriends, early 30s, not big drinkers or gamblers. All with young children and looking for a vacation where we could set our own daily schedule and not get our meals interrupted.

 

EMBARKATION: We arrived for embarkation at 1:00 and while we didn't have FTTF, we felt as though the wait was not too long. Maybe 30-40 mins from start to entering the boat. We immediately went up for lunch and found it to be fairly empty. (I sailed out of Galveston last summer on the Freedom and the embarkation took much longer and the lunch lines were much longer, but had an hour earlier check in time. I'd say the hour later made a big difference.)

 

FOOD: I'd say the food was in line with my last Carnival cruise last summer, but generally, a little less quality than past cruises. But still, excellent food options and a lot of variety. We ate in MDR each night, "your time", and asked for the same waiter each time. I agree - service was slow, but great! We ordered as much as we wanted and stayed late each night. Huge contrast to our normal dinners! Breakfast was usually in the Lido - the made the order options were fabulous (cantina and omelettes) but the buffet line items were average. We had twice in the MDR for breakfast (breakfast and a seaday breakfast) and both were wonderful. Lunchtime we did Guy's Burgers, the Deli and pizza. All were wonderful! All in all, we were completely satisfied with the quality of food and options!

 

Entertainment: We LOVED the entertainment!! We saw both theatre shows and they were awesome!! We saw one Comedian, a woman, and she was very funny. We did karaoke one night (hilarious), and the piano bar and nightclub almost every night. We also loved Jesse Allen (as the original poster mentioned) that played a solo guitar in the atrium. We loved sitting in the atrium before and after dinner enjoying the show.

 

ALCOHOL: We aren't big drinkers, so this will be quick. We each brought a bottle of wine that we poured into glasses and took to dinner each night. Great way to save cash. We LOVED the martini bar. Ezgi and Milos (bartenders) were so fun!! The first night was a martini tasting and we wished they had that each night. So good! We also enjoyed the Red's Rum bar for Rum Punch and Caribbean Coladas during our pool days.

 

QUALITY OF SHIP: I thought she was in great shape! Sure, some wear and tear, but great! The public areas were very clean and bathrooms everywhere.

 

CASINO: One of us spent 10 minutes in there each night. Sure, it was smokey, and I'm pretty adverse to the smell, but it wasn't too bad. The promenade, that lines the casino, was only smokey right next to it. There was plenty of seating on the Promenade further up front, closer to the nightclub and Martini Bar, in which we spent a lot of time.

 

STAFF: Shoutout to Hendri (waiter in Lincoln MDR, the spotlight dancer too :) ), Wayan (our cabin steward on Deck 1 midship, Antonnete (entertainment staff who gave us many hugs!), Ezgi and Milos (Martini bartenders), and Jesse Allen (musician). You each made our trip unforgettable.

 

RECAP: We couldn't have had a better trip!! I think most of this was because we are 4 Stay at Home Moms who were desperate for R&R. My advice --- come expecting not everything will go perfectly, but choose to have fun!! Talk with the crew, enjoy the food and drinks responsibly, and Giggle with your travelmates!

 

If you have any specific questions, Let me know!!

[JaniceB]

Thank you both for your thoughts on the Valor.

[cynt]

Thanks for your mini reviews. I board her in 21 days! Yeah!

 

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[venym19]

I board in 39 and I appreciate the review. Thanks

[TravelGirlinDallas]

We are cruising on the Valor in August. Did you find that the cabins were hot? I've never had that happen on a cruise before, but people here have talked about it happening. Did any people in your group sleep on the sofa bed? If so, how did that go?

[Flip flop lady]

We are cruising on the Valor in August. Did you find that the cabins were hot? I've never had that happen on a cruise before, but people here have talked about it happening. Did any people in your group sleep on the sofa bed? If so, how did that go?

 

 

Well we were 4 almost 50 year old ladies in an interior room so yes it was stuffy and somewhat warm.

 

 

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[cynt]

On deck 9 the lido deck what's in the space opposite the Deli?

 

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[Flip flop lady]

On deck 9 the lido deck what's in the space opposite the Deli?

 

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It is a sushi place but there is an up charge.

 

 

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[cynt]

Great! Thx

 

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[easyboy]

Thank you for the review.

 

 

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[AdventurousCruiser07]

Nope you read it correctly!!! She was horrible and I think is having some sort of mental break. I'm a nurse and I've seen this before ! She was rude, running around talking to everyone very loudly. "Interviewing" people as she decided she would write a book. Drumming on the table, trying to hug and kiss the staff. It was crazy town.

 

 

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So sorry to hear about your troublesome traveling companion! Was that behavior out of the norm for her? Random thought - but was she wearing a scopolamine patch for motion sickness?

[Flip flop lady]

No she wasn't wearing patches or anything. She is a little odd all the time but completely insane on the cruise. Now she's saying the other 7 of us must have been drunk, that she was just fine. Crazy town!!!!

 

 

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[bury me at sea]

No she wasn't wearing patches or anything. She is a little odd all the time but completely insane on the cruise. Now she's saying the other 7 of us must have been drunk, that she was just fine. Crazy town!!!!

 

 

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Now that's both sad and funny. Who was it that said, "The whole world is crazy but me and thee, and sometimes I worry a little about thee."

 

Hope your next cruise is fantastic.