Back from the Glory~5/1-5/8

[kath1021]

First off, I want to thank all of you for your help in preparing for my first cruise on the Glory. That being said, this was my first cruise so I don't have anything to compare it to.

Embarkation-We arrived in Orlando at 12:15pm on 5/1 and did not make it to the ship until 3pm. I highly recommend getting an earlier flight or flying in the day before because you waste a lot of time travelling when you could be enjoying lunch on the ship or exploring it. Since most people were already on the ship, we had no wait getting on and were boarding in about 10 minutes from the time we arrived.
Cabin-We had booked a 6A OV/gty and were upgraded to cabin 6485 an 8A! This cabin was located at the very back of the ship, right above the "ory" in Carnival Glory. There was a noticeable vibration some nights but nothing that kept us awake. The ship was also very rocky and we noticed it a lot more in our cabin than somewhere mid-ship or forward. The captain said it was one of the smoothest sailings they have had in the past month, but many people were complaining about how rocky it was. Our steward, Marcelo, was great and we enjoyed coming back to his towel animals every night.
Shows-The shows were great and very entertaining. The adult comedy shows at midnight were great and the comedians were hilarious, but they did offend some people so if you don't want to be picked on, don't sit in the front. We caught the end of Justin the Illusion and I have to say that this show might not be appropriate for young children. The end illusion involves a "hanging" and many people did not find this entertaining. So beware. The Cruise Director, Mark Price, was great and we loved him.
Food-We were in the Golden Dining Room on the second floor. Our waitress was Zuzanne and she was great. I'm a very picky eater and was concerned about the food in the dining room and ended up filling up on bread and salad most nights. I'm not used to the "gourmet" food they serve but wanted to enjoy the dining room experience and sit with our tablemates. There is always the 24 hour pizzeria and Red Sail buffet if you don't like what they are serving in the dining room. Everyone seemed to love the food in the dining room so I guess it was just me. Room Service was great and we took advantage of that many times for sandwiches.
Bars/lounges-So many bars and lounges, so little time. Our favorite was the White Heat Disco because that is where the younger crowd seemed to migrate to (my friend and I are 22 and 23). The Bar Blue was another favorite or ours for Karoake. They definitely know how to make drinks and most were very strong.
Pool areas-Tended to be very crowded on sea days and if you want a lounge chair by the pool, then be prepared to get up early. On port days, we got back to the ship ahead of time and found great lounges by the pool before everyone got back.

We did all the excursions on our own and it was very easy to get around all the islands.
Nassau-We took a water taxi over to Paradise Island ($6 round trip) and walked around the Atlantis. I stayed there in '96 and boy has that resort changed! It's definitely a sight to see. We then went to the public beach next to the Sheraton Hotel which is a short walk from the Atlantis. Beautiful beach with pretty good waves for the Caribbean.
St.Thomas-Took a taxi to Red Hook ($8per person). Took the water ferry from Red Hook to Cruz Bay on St. John's ($3 each way). Then took a taxi from Cruz Bay to Trunk Bay ($4 per person). Beautiful, beautiful beach. Very calm water. They have a snorkel trail but did not take advantage of that, heard the snorkeling was great that day. It's a National Park so there is a $4 entrance fee. They have bathroom facilities, showers and a snack bar with decent food. Trunk Bay was well worth the 45 minute commute over there.
St.Maarten-Favorite island! Took a taxi/van to Orient Beach on the french side ($6 or $7 per person). Gorgeous beach with some wave action. You can rent lounge chairs ($7) and umbrellas ($3). They have water trampolines which many people seemed to be enjoying. This is a nude beach so beware. We only saw a few completly nude people, many topless women though. No big deal. The water was perfect and the land surrounding the beach is beautiful. I highly recommend going here.

Debarkation-They were very behind in getting people off the ship, most likely due to only one escalator working in the pier terminal. We did not get off the ship until 11am and they still had two more colors to call after us. We left our luggage outside our rooms the previous night so we did not have to worry about dragging them through the ship, but if you can manage your own luggage, then you are the first ones to be called.

Overall, it was a great vacation with very few complaints. I would definitely sail Carnival again and recommend it to my friends. I hope this review helps some of you. If you have any questions, just let me know!

5/1/04~Carnival Glory~1st cruise and definitely not the last!

[ken_nyc]

thank your for your review, glad your first experience was a good one.

Carnival Pride 8/17/02 (Western Caribbean)
Carnival Glory 8/21/2004 (Eastern Caribbean) 30th Anniversary Cruise
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[tootiesmom]

Thank you so much for the info particularly the prices for taxi rides, etc. We're going on the Glory June 12-Eastern and the info you gave will help bunches to set up a budget. Glad you had a great cruise.

tootiesmom [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif[/img]

[gymbrat33]

I'm glad that you had a wonderful time. I went on the Glory last August and loved it!

In a few days be prepared to experience post cruise depression.

Imagination 8/02
Glory 8/03
Victory 3/04

Days til Miracle Partae Pirates Cruise from Tampa
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[crusingchicks]

Thanks Kath,
We're going in just 6 days. We were on Glory last July and it sounds like they have made some improvements for embarkation.
Last year was a disaster because Glory's parking lot wasn't finished.
Can't wait to see her again.

Till we cruise on Glory again
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Till we cruise on Carribean Princess
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[finigan94]

At what time in the morning did they start debarkation. Im thinking of doing the glory with a 11:30 flight out. Should I take a chance if Im one of the first off and carry are bags?

[kath1021]

I believe they started around 7:15/7:30. Tell them you have an early flight and they will get you off sooner. It is about a 45 minute ride to the Orlando Airport so keep that in mind too. You may want to take a later flight just to be safe. You never know what could go wrong that morning (late getting into port, custom problems, etc).

5/1/04~Carnival Glory~1st cruise and definitely not the last!

[sg4crzn]

we are going on the glory for the june 19 sailing. i booked a cat 8c and we got moved up to cat 11 on empress deck. can't wait to go. after going on the disney magic with a balcony i wouldn't want just a window. one tip for cruiser with little ones--on the family disney magic any little not potty trained toddler was not allowed in the pools and they did not have much for little ones to do outside. playgroup did not start till age 3 so you had to pay for babysitting. do you have any comments or suggestions you can give me? we are flying a few days early and visiting mickey before we set sail so i plan on getting to the ship early so we can eat and get settled. we are doing the western but you offered great help for those doing eastern. i have found if you book tours on your own it is less hassel and less confusion. when we took our disney cruise souvenir from newyears 2001 on the magic march 2003 we had booked stringray city through a private tour group and were able to spend more time in the water with less people.