Our Carnival Vista B2B - Havana Style - (with pics!) - 4/14/24

[Knights on the Beach]

51 minutes ago, Jamman54 said:

I think every hotel in Port Canaveral has one of those. 😁

 

There's definitely one at the Radisson. 🧑‍🚀

[SenatorsFan]

@Jamman54 did you ever happen to see Tina at the front desk? She was so sweet to talk with and kept handing us bottles of water when we walked by. She told us how to get to the Carib Brewery, which was so close to the hotel, and we spent a few hours there. 🍻She also packed up a bag with trail mix and granola bars when we checked out. They came on the cruise and back home as we certainly didn't need extra food on our cruise. 😁 We liked the Home2.

[Jamman54]

Pre-Cruise - (April 13th) – Another day in Cocoa Beach and Port Canaveral.

 

We were up at 6am to a sunny but cool day, and just like yesterday it’s supposed to warm up to the mid 70’s. The ships in port today are the Carnival Freedom, Mardi Gras, Mariner OTS, and Disney Fantasy.

 

At 7am we went down to the lobby for some breakfast. They have two separate breakfast areas presumably one for each hotel, but you can eat at one or the other, or even both if you choose. Patti first got pictures from the Hampton Inn side…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Indiansbaseball]

Page 4 ….but I’m here !! So excited to follow another Jamman and Patty review ! 

[Jamman54]

Patti got these pictures from the Home2Suites side…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These were our breakfast plates…..

 

 

 

To be continued……

[Jamman54]

14 minutes ago, SenatorsFan said:

@Jamman54 did you ever happen to see Tina at the front desk? She was so sweet to talk with and kept handing us bottles of water when we walked by. She told us how to get to the Carib Brewery, which was so close to the hotel, and we spent a few hours there. 🍻She also packed up a bag with trail mix and granola bars when we checked out. They came on the cruise and back home as we certainly didn't need extra food on our cruise. 😁 We liked the Home2.

No Heather we didn't, but we wish we did! 

[SenatorsFan]

1 minute ago, Jamman54 said:

No Heather we didn't, but we wish we did! 

Maybe next time, since I know there'll be a next time for both of us! 😁

[PrincessPatti]

I am late to the game — page 4.  Looking forward to it!

 

My sister and I are considering driving to Miami in October because airfare is so outrageous for the return flight.  Your reviews are helpful in that regard.

[BlondieB]

23 hours ago, Jamman54 said:

Hello Cruise Critic Family! My beautiful wife Patti and I have just returned from another cruise adventure. This time we were aboard the Carnival Vista for B2B cruises. The first cruise was a six day cruise to Half Moon Cay, Grand Turk, and Amber Cove. The second cruise was an eight day cruise to Aruba, Bonaire, and Grand Turk.

 

For both cruises we had the same Havana interior cabin # 5214. When the Vista came out in 2016, we thought that we would love to try one of the Havana Cabana cabins, but we never got a chance to book one before Covid hit. When cruising resumed, our first cruise was on the Horizon, but those Havana cabins were not available so we just booked a regular balcony aft on the port side. Much to our surprise we saw that we could look down directly into the cabana and see that there was no privacy. Also, the views of the sea from there were not very good.

 

 

 

We decided then that those cabins were not for us, so we booked a Havana interior for our Panorama cruise. We couldn’t have been more pleased. We felt that with the Havana area itself, an interior cabin is all you need, and it is very cost effective. When we got back from that cruise we immediately booked the same for these cruises. The bonus was we received a great offer that basically gave us two weeks on this ship for the price of one. We couldn’t have been happier!

 

We decided once again to purchase Cheers for both cruises. Since we came out a bit ahead on the Tribe Cruise, we figured that with a total of six sea days we could make it worthwhile. I calculated that with some coffees, waters, and milkshakes, collectively we would have to consume about twelve (12) alcoholic beverages a day to make it worthwhile. That’s just twelve (12) out of a possible thirty (30) alcoholic drinks a day. That seems doable to me. I know that I will have to do the heavy lifting, but like I said, I am always up to the challenge! As the review progresses I will keep track of our numbers, and at the end of the review, I will reveal if indeed, it was worth it for us. These cruises were going to be about nothing but relaxing. We didn’t book any all-inclusives since it would be cheaper to utilize the Havana Area and Cheers. We did book Pool Cabanas in Amber Cove and Grand Turk just for a change of pace, and a reason to get off the ship!

 

Once again, we will be driving down to Florida. We must have made this trip a hundred times. Being away from home for so long it just makes sense for us to have our own car down there. We can pack as much of our stuff as we want to, since we don’t have to worry about luggage weights and car rentals. Back in the day when our vacation time was limited, we used to drive straight through in one shot which used to take about eighteen hours. Since we have the time now, we will break it up into two days. 

 

 

As usual, our reviews start and end at home and cover everything in between. I know that some people like to get right into the cruise stuff and I understand that, but when doing these reviews we want to re-live the whole vacation, not just part of it.  Our format will remain the same as our past reviews with a day by day account. As always, there will be many, many pictures with plenty of explanations and details. For those that are wondering, our go to camera is the Canon PowerShot XS740 HS, and our water, and back-up camera, is the Fuji FinePix XP60. Unfortunately, our water camera died halfway through the cruise.

 

 

So, let’s get this party started! We strive to make you feel that you are cruising right along with us, so grab yourself a DOD, and hop on board with us and join the fun! 

 

Pre-Cruise  -  (April 10th & 11th)  -  On the road again!

 

 

As always, we begin our travels around 9pm in the evening. This allows us to bypass the morning rush hours in Baltimore and Washington. Our son Ryan will be minding the house and our cats. As usual, he takes our picture as we head out the door…..

 

  

After leaving the house we make a quick stop at Dunkin Donuts for a large coffee. Though I took a nap before leaving, the extra caffeine will definitely help. I really don’t mind the drive at all. There is hardly any traffic, so I set the cruise control to 79 mph and listen to tunes all night. For the most part, the drive down was uneventful until we hit North Carolina where it began to rain. Between watching the lines on the road, and the windshield wipers moving back and forth, it was making me sleepy. Patti, who normally doesn’t do any of the driving, took over for me and drove for an hour and a half until we stopped at the Cracker Barrel in Santee, South Carolina…..

 

 

 

 

 

That breakfast sure hit the spot…..

 

 

 

 

After filling our bellies, and Patti getting a little shopping time, we are back on the road again. We made really good time so we arrive at today’s final destination, Kingsland, Georgia a little after noon. We are going to be staying at the Country Inn & Suites. If this place looks familiar, it is our usual stop over point when heading south or cruising from Jacksonville…..

 

 

 

To be continued…..

Yay, I'm here fairly early.  I haven't been on CC much the last few yrs and hopped on last week and the first thing I found is your Celebration review. I always loved reading your reviews! We're booked on her next March in an Ocean Suite.  While I've been on the Vista twice and she's probably one of my least favorite, I know I'll still read every line of your journey LOL 

Edited May 2 by BlondieB

[ramref]

Hi Jeff,

Looking forward to your review and Patti’s photo as we will be doing a back to back the end of September and beginning of October.

Rich

[Jamman54]

9 minutes ago, ramref said:

Hi Jeff,

Looking forward to your review and Patti’s photo as we will be doing a back to back the end of September and beginning of October.

Rich

Hey Rich, glad that you dropped in!  Do you have Havana cabins? Give our best to the rest of the gang! 

[ramref]

3 minutes ago, Jamman54 said:

Hey Rich, glad that you dropped in!  Do you have Havana cabins? Give our best to the rest of the gang! 

No they were sold out we ended up with inside spa cabins.

I will keep looking to see if something opens up

[Jamman54]

After breakfast, Patti needed to make a Walmart run. When she got back, we headed towards Cocoa Beach in search of some mini golf. We decided to try this one out…..

 

 

Not only do they have two 18 hole mini golf courses, they also have a go kart track, an arcade, and even a small zoo……

 

 

 

 

We’re inside the Clubhouse. We are going to play both mini golf courses.…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

And we’re off and running……

 

 

To be continued……..

[Jamman54]

Here are some views around the mini golf courses…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That’s not a real alligator……

 

 

These are real alligators…….

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

Here are some more views around the mini golf courses……

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued……

[Jamman54]

Here are some of the exhibits on display here…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued…….

[VictorWI]

8 hours ago, Jamman54 said:

We checked out of the hotel at 7am, and then went next door to gas up the car for the trip to Port Canaveral. Being a New Jersey guy, I love to finally be able to pump my own gas. New Jersey and I think Oregon are the only two states where it is illegal to pump your own gas…..

 

 

 

Just New Jersey now, Oregon legalized it last year. Anything and everything it seems makes you smile. I love that!

 

 

[Jamman54]

Heading back into the Clubhouse we see that they also have a Party Room and a Gift Shop…..

 

 

 

 

We enjoyed our time here. In case you were wondering, Patti beat me by one stroke on the first course, and I won by four strokes on the second course.

 

Our plan now was to head over to the Cocoa Beach Pier and have some drinks at the Riki Tiki Bar. When we pulled in it was crazy crowded and they wanted $30 to park. That wasn’t happening, so we went back to the hotel and had drinks at the Mission Control Pool Bar…….

 

 

 

 

 

 

At 3pm we decided to head over to Fishlips for dinner and drinks, and to watch the ships sail out…..

 

 

 

 

To be continued……

[Princess Cruiser27]

Jeff glad you found the Husband Day Care while Patti was doing her walk. 👍 I haven't played Mini Golf in years.

[Journey11]

Jamman54, I love your reviews. They are always so interesting and entertaining, full of great pictures and information. 
Thank you and Patti for taking the time and effort to prepare them.⭐️

[Jamman54]

We have arrived at Fishlips…….

 

 

 

 

Here are some views of the lower level of Fishlips….

 

 

 

 

We will be eating upstairs…..

 

 

Here are some views upstairs at Fishlips….

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued……

[Jamman54]

Patti orders the grilled brie and the scallop risotto…..

 

 

I ordered teriyaki boneless wings and the fried seafood combo….

 

 

The Carnival Freedom, (Ol’ Stubby II), departs Port Canaveral…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

The Mardi Gras heads out to sea…..

 

 

Next up, the Mariner OTS departs Port Canaveral…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We were back at the hotel a little after 5pm. We began to get our bags ready for tomorrow while watching the Masters. I spent some time working on the pictures until it was time to call it a night.

 

Coming up next: Get ready to board the Carnival Vista!!!

[Knights on the Beach]

1 hour ago, Jamman54 said:

The Carnival Freedom, (Ol’ Stubby II), departs Port Canaveral…..

 

 

To be continued…..

 

Speaking of ol' Stubby, we saw her go out today. We were out on the balcony admiring the gorgeous blue water, so pretty this afternoon! And then I went back inside and took a nap! 🤦‍♀️

 

[MEUB1112]

We sailed on the Valor from there, ate at Fishlips years back. Loved it,  my wife wanted to see " I dream of Genie Lane" and we did. Great port!!