Quick Review of Valor

[villagenut]

Sailed August 31-Sept 5 5 nights. Out of NOLA.  Sea Day, Cozumel, Progresso, Seaday.

4th cruise, first time on conquest class.  

first sea day and night were really rough, 3 in our group got a little sick due to motion.

Decoration and Cleanliness:

I can definitely see where people say decorations on this ship are "gaudy".  I generally don't pay attention to such things but after reading other reviews, I get where they are coming from. For me, decoration is never something to base a cruise on so i just look and move on.  As for Cleanliness, I have no complaints.  I constantly noticed staff wiping down railings, cleaning tables, doors, windows, floors, etc. 

Layout:

I have to say that I liked the layout of the smaller ship.  It just felt cozy to me.  It didn't feel like I was walking forever to get somewhere.  Lines were average during peak times.  Other times there were little to no lines anywhere.  Our rooms were on Deck 9 Lido.  The rear pool is adults only which was nice.  We spent a lot of time in this area.  Drink service was good here. Never had an issue getting chairs.  The area of the main mid ship pool was nice with the "terraced seating" but I must say, I missed the shaded middle deck of the Dream class and Vista class.

Food:

We ate at the Wok, Guys, Blue Iguana, Deli/Sandwich station, buffet, Pizza Shack, and Your Time Dining.  Wok was ok at best.  Guys never fails to please, Blue Iguana is good (wife loves there breakfast),  Buffet was typical fair although we mostly used it for breakfast.  Pizza Shack was excellent but they seemed to never have enough prepared.  Your time dinning is the only way to go.  This is our second cruise using it and will never do another scheduled seating.  Now, let me add that we were in line at 5:45 each evening and managed to get the same table and same service team.  Our group of 8 were always seated promptly and every evening we were done in just over an hour.  Maybe 1 hour 20 minutes at the very longest.  Food was good.  I did have a veal parmesan that was excellent by cruise standards.

Staff:

Nothing bad to say here, always friendly and courteous.  Both the stewards and the wait staff called us by name and provided anything we needed.  

Room:

Typical interior room. It was a bit warmer than rooms on other ships.  Interior rooms on vista and dream were definitely cooler.  I did not like having to swipe card to access safe.  Only my card would work, wife's would not.  Somewhat inconvenient at times.

Entertainment:

The main theater is so much better than Vista its not even close.  We saw the country show and the Studio VIP show.  Both were good.  Killer Beaz in the comedy club was good.  Gave the piano bar a try and didn't go back.  The guy did more crowd interaction and joking than he did doing "sing along" stuff.  We were in there for about 30 minutes and I think he did 3 songs during that time.  Casino was fun, staff was friendly.  VERY SMOKEY,  come on carnival, lets move forward and make it no smoking.  Wife came home sick because of it.  We like to spend time and money in casino but will think twice next time.  Cruise director was not very impressive.  So much so I don't even remember his name. Stuck my head in Red Frog Pub for a few minutes and heard a group in there that sounded pretty good but didn't stay long enough to catch their names. 

 

Overall probably the most relaxing cruise I have been on.  I have now sailed on Dream, Valor, and Vista and would have to rate them in that order.

Questions?

 

 

[jbethel11]

13 minutes ago, villagenut said:

Pizza Shack was excellent but they seemed to never have enough prepared.  Your time dinning is the only way to go.

I was on the sailing right before yours, and I got to know the Pizza Guy, who was from Indonesia, and he looked so overworked. He explained to me he enjoyed Cozumel more than Progresso, but never gets to go off to Cozumel as he is always working. The benefit of the smaller ship was he knew my order right of hand (Pepperoni Pizza) and it always seemed to be prepared. I also had Your Time Dining, and from now on, I will continue to have it!

[NJ CRUISE]

Thanks for the review. We are going on the Valor at the end of the month for a 5 day.

Going to have to try the TYD, we always get the 6pm dinner time.

 

Did you notice if Budweiser was served on board, a member of our party was asking.

How about the debarkation, what time did the ship dock in NOLA.

[h_blond2]

1 hour ago, villagenut said:

Sailed August 31-Sept 5 5 nights. Out of NOLA.  Sea Day, Cozumel, Progresso, Seaday.

4th cruise, first time on conquest class.  

first sea day and night were really rough, 3 in our group got a little sick due to motion.

Decoration and Cleanliness:

I can definitely see where people say decorations on this ship are "gaudy".  I generally don't pay attention to such things but after reading other reviews, I get where they are coming from. For me, decoration is never something to base a cruise on so i just look and move on.  As for Cleanliness, I have no complaints.  I constantly noticed staff wiping down railings, cleaning tables, doors, windows, floors, etc. 

Layout:

I have to say that I liked the layout of the smaller ship.  It just felt cozy to me.  It didn't feel like I was walking forever to get somewhere.  Lines were average during peak times.  Other times there were little to no lines anywhere.  Our rooms were on Deck 9 Lido.  The rear pool is adults only which was nice.  We spent a lot of time in this area.  Drink service was good here. Never had an issue getting chairs.  The area of the main mid ship pool was nice with the "terraced seating" but I must say, I missed the shaded middle deck of the Dream class and Vista class.

Food:

We ate at the Wok, Guys, Blue Iguana, Deli/Sandwich station, buffet, Pizza Shack, and Your Time Dining.  Wok was ok at best.  Guys never fails to please, Blue Iguana is good (wife loves there breakfast),  Buffet was typical fair although we mostly used it for breakfast.  Pizza Shack was excellent but they seemed to never have enough prepared.  Your time dinning is the only way to go.  This is our second cruise using it and will never do another scheduled seating.  Now, let me add that we were in line at 5:45 each evening and managed to get the same table and same service team.  Our group of 8 were always seated promptly and every evening we were done in just over an hour.  Maybe 1 hour 20 minutes at the very longest.  Food was good.  I did have a veal parmesan that was excellent by cruise standards.

Staff:

Nothing bad to say here, always friendly and courteous.  Both the stewards and the wait staff called us by name and provided anything we needed.  

Room:

Typical interior room. It was a bit warmer than rooms on other ships.  Interior rooms on vista and dream were definitely cooler.  I did not like having to swipe card to access safe.  Only my card would work, wife's would not.  Somewhat inconvenient at times.

Entertainment:

The main theater is so much better than Vista its not even close.  We saw the country show and the Studio VIP show.  Both were good.  Killer Beaz in the comedy club was good.  Gave the piano bar a try and didn't go back.  The guy did more crowd interaction and joking than he did doing "sing along" stuff.  We were in there for about 30 minutes and I think he did 3 songs during that time.  Casino was fun, staff was friendly.  VERY SMOKEY,  come on carnival, lets move forward and make it no smoking.  Wife came home sick because of it.  We like to spend time and money in casino but will think twice next time.  Cruise director was not very impressive.  So much so I don't even remember his name. Stuck my head in Red Frog Pub for a few minutes and heard a group in there that sounded pretty good but didn't stay long enough to catch their names. 

 

Overall probably the most relaxing cruise I have been on.  I have now sailed on Dream, Valor, and Vista and would have to rate them in that order.

Questions?

 

 

The safes aren't meant to be opened with two different cards. That is why your wife's card would not work. We never use our Sail and Sign card for the safe...we use an old gift card and have never had any problems! 

 

Thanks for the review...I will be on the Valor for the first time in June!

[buddylover]

We have sailed the Valor multiple times and the Vista once.....never been on the Dream, but have been on Breeze etc.  Would agree completely with you, that the Vista was our least liked ship.  We love the Conquest Class (the Valor) the best.  The Dream class with the extended Lanai on Deck 5 really changes the experience of overlooking the ocean from a balcony cabin for us.  The Vista to us was just the Valor on steroids where they crammed so many extra cabins thus flooded the ship with passengers.  The Atrium, theatre, hall to comedy theatre etc were abominations.....packed and flooded with humanity.  The theatre is another story all together, with moving chairs, visual pillar obstructions - just plain awful.  Lack of windows in Atruim, just a bad experience for us which we will not repeat on the Vista - but we always did enjoy the Valor and its patiotic decor.

[PhillyFan33579]

1 hour ago, NJ CRUISE said:

Did you notice if Budweiser was served on board, a member of our party was asking.

How about the debarkation, what time did the ship dock in NOLA.

 

Carnival no longer sells Budweiser or my previous favorite ship beer, Bud Light Lime. They still sell Bud Light. 

[villagenut]

1 hour ago, NJ CRUISE said:

Thanks for the review. We are going on the Valor at the end of the month for a 5 day.

Going to have to try the TYD, we always get the 6pm dinner time.

 

Did you notice if Budweiser was served on board, a member of our party was asking.

How about the debarkation, what time did the ship dock in NOLA.

 

No bud only bud light and i think bud light lime.

I must commend NOLA port.  We had faster to the fun.  We arrived at port a little after 10 and were in room dropping off luggage at 10:50.  On debarkation day, we arrived at theater on level 3 around 7 am carrying off our own bags.  We were thru customs and in car by 7:45.  Best Embarkation and Debarkation of any of my 4 cruises.

 

[Zuluboudreaux]

Gonna have to disagree with this statement “Cruise director was not very impressive.  So much so I don't even remember his name.”

We were on the Aug 22nd sailing.  CD Kevin Donohue was great, especially was the synergy with Captain Enzo.  We thought he was very personable.

Just wanted to give another opinion.

 

[jbethel11]

33 minutes ago, Zuluboudreaux said:

Gonna have to disagree with this statement “Cruise director was not very impressive.  So much so I don't even remember his name.”

We were on the Aug 22nd sailing.  CD Kevin Donohue was great, especially was the synergy with Captain Enzo.  We thought he was very personable.

Just wanted to give another opinion.

 

Being on the sailing after yours, at times I thought he was annoying and the "cliché" version of a CD. Overused jokes as well as frequent announcements. Emma Nixon or Chris "The Flying Scotchman" are the best on ships I've sailed on. 

Edited September 6, 2019 by jbethel11
Accent over e in cliché

[kbh2]

What dining room on the Valor is for set dining times? 

[jbethel11]

Just now, kbh2 said:

What dining room on the Valor is for set dining times? 

Washington. Lincoln is YTD.

[kbh2]

2 minutes ago, jbethel11 said:

Washington. Lincoln is YTD.

Thank you for the quick reply...

[jbethel11]

3 minutes ago, kbh2 said:

Thank you for the quick reply...

Haha, no problem, I was already on the thread when you posted 😂

[Green Boy]

going on the Valor in 36 days... have been on her 4 times already.. but not since they had the Sea Food Shack. did you try that out ?  just wondering how it was.

 

[NJ CRUISE]

Ok,

 

Thanks for the Bud replies. and debark info.

Looking forward to our 5 day.

[Lottacruises]

2 hours ago, Green Boy said:

going on the Valor in 36 days... have been on her 4 times already.. but not since they had the Sea Food Shack. did you try that out ?  just wondering how it was.

 

 

It's really good.

[Organized Chaos]

We'll be on the Valor in December. Same itinerary. We really like the Conquest class. We were on Glory last year and Conquest a couple years before that. I thought Conquest was as gaudy as all get-out. The Glory was much more subdued. I think my favorite part is the terraced decks overlooking the pool and big screen. That design leaves a lot of room to get up higher and watch deck parties and plenty of room for viewing the movies. Plus it helps make it feel like you're not stuck down in a deep hole.

 

For future reference when you have a safe that needs a card to swipe...we always bring an old gift card or hotel key card and then hide it somewhere in the room so all of us can get into the safe if need be. As someone else said, the same card that locks it has to unlock it. So instead of carrying it around with one person, just put it somewhere where both of you can get to it.

 

We saw Killer Beaz on Glory last year. He's great. We sat in the front row for one of his shows, which is usually asking for trouble from a comedian, but he was cool. He'd talk to us during his set without giving us a hard time. "There's that, there's that." He's good friends with a couple guys from the show, "Moonshiners," so he's been on that a few times. I talked to him a minute after one show. He seems like a good, down to Earth guy.

 

We're excited to leave out of NOLA for the first time. Think it'll be interesting to cruise down the Mississippi for a while. The only downside is, it'll be Dec. and get dark early. 😕 Thanks for the review.

[airlink diva]

Great info!  Sailing on her Monday!  What movies was showing on your sailing? 

Also did you use the Carnival app?  Last sailing in December using the app cause major issues with my phone

 

[jaymarycruisers]

is the village nut really donna

[krisbtr]

We were on the same sailing (8/31). Have to say...this was my favorite cruise.  We were in an interior on thenlido as well, and loved the location.  Frequented the lobby bar, casino bar, and piano bar...all of which were lively and fun.  I noted several times that the ship did not seem crowded at all.  We never had a problem finding chairs, even on the last sea day on the serenity deck.  

 

FYI..we had early dining and it was on he top level of the Lincoln dining room, not Washington,  my husband and I also did the chefs table....outstanding!  Our wait staff was top notch, and the food in mdr was excellent.  We purchased the cheers package...well worth the money!

 

walked around Cozumel..been there now 5 times so nothing much. We stopped at a restaurant in Progreso with our friends to hang out...9 beers and a large margarita for $23!!  What a steal. Walked further into town and really enjoyed the local vibe. 

 

Can’t wait to go on the Valor again 

[canes20]

1 hour ago, krisbtr said:

walked around Cozumel..been there now 5 times so nothing much. We stopped at a restaurant in Progreso with our friends to hang out...9 beers and a large margarita for $23!!  What a steal. Walked further into town and really enjoyed the local vibe. 

Leaving in3 weeks.Doing Sancho's in Cozumel. Do you remember the name of the bar in Progresso?

[Joebucks]

On 9/6/2019 at 3:03 PM, PhillyFan33579 said:

 

Carnival no longer sells Budweiser or my previous favorite ship beer, Bud Light Lime. They still sell Bud Light. 

 

I'm not pleased by this either. Bud Light Lime is great when you want something light and refreshing.

 

Thanks for the review. I will be on the Valor shortly. The Conquest class is highly underrated IMO

[Butterbean1000]

I

19 minutes ago, Joebucks said:

 

I'm not pleased by this either. Bud Light Lime is great when you want something light and refreshing.

 

Thanks for the review. I will be on the Valor shortly. The Conquest class is highly underrated IMO

I have ordered a Bud Light Lime with a Margarita and mixed the two.  Very refreshing. 

[Butterbean1000]

On 9/6/2019 at 12:06 PM, villagenut said:

Sailed August 31-Sept 5 5 nights. Out of NOLA.  Sea Day, Cozumel, Progresso, Seaday.

4th cruise, first time on conquest class.  

first sea day and night were really rough, 3 in our group got a little sick due to motion.

Decoration and Cleanliness:

I can definitely see where people say decorations on this ship are "gaudy".  I generally don't pay attention to such things but after reading other reviews, I get where they are coming from. For me, decoration is never something to base a cruise on so i just look and move on.  As for Cleanliness, I have no complaints.  I constantly noticed staff wiping down railings, cleaning tables, doors, windows, floors, etc. 

Layout:

I have to say that I liked the layout of the smaller ship.  It just felt cozy to me.  It didn't feel like I was walking forever to get somewhere.  Lines were average during peak times.  Other times there were little to no lines anywhere.  Our rooms were on Deck 9 Lido.  The rear pool is adults only which was nice.  We spent a lot of time in this area.  Drink service was good here. Never had an issue getting chairs.  The area of the main mid ship pool was nice with the "terraced seating" but I must say, I missed the shaded middle deck of the Dream class and Vista class.

Food:

We ate at the Wok, Guys, Blue Iguana, Deli/Sandwich station, buffet, Pizza Shack, and Your Time Dining.  Wok was ok at best.  Guys never fails to please, Blue Iguana is good (wife loves there breakfast),  Buffet was typical fair although we mostly used it for breakfast.  Pizza Shack was excellent but they seemed to never have enough prepared.  Your time dinning is the only way to go.  This is our second cruise using it and will never do another scheduled seating.  Now, let me add that we were in line at 5:45 each evening and managed to get the same table and same service team.  Our group of 8 were always seated promptly and every evening we were done in just over an hour.  Maybe 1 hour 20 minutes at the very longest.  Food was good.  I did have a veal parmesan that was excellent by cruise standards.

Staff:

Nothing bad to say here, always friendly and courteous.  Both the stewards and the wait staff called us by name and provided anything we needed.  

Room:

Typical interior room. It was a bit warmer than rooms on other ships.  Interior rooms on vista and dream were definitely cooler.  I did not like having to swipe card to access safe.  Only my card would work, wife's would not.  Somewhat inconvenient at times.

Entertainment:

The main theater is so much better than Vista its not even close.  We saw the country show and the Studio VIP show.  Both were good.  Killer Beaz in the comedy club was good.  Gave the piano bar a try and didn't go back.  The guy did more crowd interaction and joking than he did doing "sing along" stuff.  We were in there for about 30 minutes and I think he did 3 songs during that time.  Casino was fun, staff was friendly.  VERY SMOKEY,  come on carnival, lets move forward and make it no smoking.  Wife came home sick because of it.  We like to spend time and money in casino but will think twice next time.  Cruise director was not very impressive.  So much so I don't even remember his name. Stuck my head in Red Frog Pub for a few minutes and heard a group in there that sounded pretty good but didn't stay long enough to catch their names. 

 

Overall probably the most relaxing cruise I have been on.  I have now sailed on Dream, Valor, and Vista and would have to rate them in that order.

Questions?

 

 

The Valor was my favorite ship until I sailed on the Magic.  I have also heard bad things regarding the main theater on the Vista.  Truthfully,  I am not interested in sailing on Vista or Horizon. 

Edited September 10, 2019 by Butterbean1000

[villagenut]

On 9/6/2019 at 10:02 PM, airlink diva said:

Great info!  Sailing on her Monday!  What movies was showing on your sailing? 

Also did you use the Carnival app?  Last sailing in December using the app cause major issues with my phone

 

Sorry i don't remember the movies.  We did use the carnival app.  The chat feature is the best when with a group.  Everyone bought it and just left the app running.  We set up a group chat and everyone was able to stay in touch.  Not saying it was without glitches but overall it works pretty good.