Fantasy Review 8-14-06 (long)

[Burks126]

First of all I need to thank all of our fellow cruise critic members for providing us with a wealth of information. We felt as though we had the "inside track" for a good amount of the time. My computer desk is still rockin' since we just got home last night.

 

My wife, son (13), daughter (10) and I cruised onboard the Fantasy. We booked a five day, Bahama itinerary which included (in order) Grand Turk, Half-Moon Cay, and Nassau.

 

We flew from Columbus O_H_I_O to West Palm Beach Florida. We opted for this because the airfaires were cheaper than going into Orlando, and the airport is much quieter and more managable. We picked up a rental car and drove up to Cocoa Beach. Once there, we checked into the Hampton Inn. (See my hotel review for more information). It was, overall, very nice with great beach access.

 

Since we had an extra day built into the itinerary before we departed, we used that day to tour the Kennedy Space Center. It was just fabulous. I would highly recommend it to anyone. A bit pricey, but well worth it nonetheless. We had dinner that night at Grill's Tiki Bar at the port. Excellent seafood, and if you time it right, you can watch the cruise ships sail right by. (There is plenty to eat for those who don't like seafood, just in case.)

 

We stopped at the Publix grocery store and bought some water and Gatorade to bring on board with us. We over did it just a bit, and left some on board at the end of the week.

 

The morning of our sailing we dropped off our rental at the Budget office in Cocoa Beach and took the free shuttle to the terminal. We left our bags, and actually had to wait a bit to be allowed on the ship. I think it was about 11:30 AM as we crossed the gangway to board. We were speechless as we gazed at the size of the ship. At this point we were not allowed access to our cabins, so we headed back to the Windows on the Sea restaurant for lunch. Our daughter was chomping at the bit to go swimming, but could not because our bags were not delivered to our stateroom until about 4 PM. We passed the time wandering around trying to learn our way around, and the adults even stopped at the bar for a quick drink. We purchased two soda cards, one for our son, and one for mom. We used them improperly, but felt we got away with something. Our son bought sodas for him and his sister, and mom and I shared one as well. As long as you move from bar to bar, and pass the drink to the other person after leaving, you can get away with it.

 

We had an ocean view room on the Empress deck -- room E-47. Empress is three stories below the Lido deck. We had to climb a lot of stairs to get to the pool. We weren't too far from the casino, but had to walk to the aft to get to our dinner seating. The first night was a rough sail -- and several passengers complained of getting seasick. Fortunately, no one in our party did. Based on our cabin location, I can believe though if the weather were to get rough, this part of the ship would rock and roll! All in all, it was a pretty smooth sailing week with a constant easy back and forth feeling.

 

Muster drill was at 4:30, and only took about twenty minutes. I am amazed at the number of people who were too cool to actually put their life jackets on. You know the types: "Yeah, the rules don't apply to me." Once the obligatory drill was over, we were moving, and we all headed up to an open deck to wave at the Grill's Tiki people like we had done the night before.

 

The kids were in the pool, the band was playing on the Lido deck, mom and I were in the casino that night (once in international waters) and life was good.

 

We were at sea all the next day. We were still wandering around somewhat confused, but we all managed to get breakfast in at Windows. Kids went back into the pool, mom and I got a short drink, and layed out on deck. The wind was fierce on the adult deck, but the sun was bright and shining for most of the day. Word of caution -- it can be very easy to get sunburned while sitting in the cool wind. Block up often!

 

Our cabin steward was Russ, and I gave him a few bucks the first time we met. He did a very good job. Always keeping the ice bucket full, turning down the beds, picking up wet towels etc. Our son had a shower head accident one day, and he smiled and just cleaned up the water that was all over the bathroom.

 

My wife and I are not "dress up" people, but we did do the formal night on Tuesday. The kids were put into Camp Carnival, and we went to a very nice dinner in the Jubilee dining room. Steak and lobster, of course. Our waiter, Paul from Romania, was fantastic. His service was exceptional. He oozed charm, was wonderful with all the kids, and the last night when the wait staff all broke into song, my wife cried like a baby, she was so sad to have to say goodbye. We made dinner every night after that in the Jubilee dinig room, and he was the main reason for our return. We also met our table mates who coincidentally (?) enough, were also our cabin neighbors. They had two boys about the same age as our kids, and we found them to be wonderful people. We chatted each other up every night, shared a bottle of wine and champagne, the kids bonded, and they were just another reason our cruise was so enjoyable. Even though our daughter won't admit it, I believe she and their son had a little "crush" going. They were inseparable for most of the week.

 

On Grand Turk we did the "Reefs and Rays" excursion. Unfortunately though, our daughter's bathing suit developed a wardrobe malfunction the day before, and before our excursion we had to hail a cab and go into town to buy her a new one. It worked out pretty well though, because the cabbie gave us an impromtou tour covering the history of the island, and pointed out various things along the way -- like the fact that John Glenn is a local hero. Being from Ohio, of course we were impressed.

 

We exited deck three to find our excursion meeting place and were put on a small covered boat to head off to snorkel. We were all very excited but upon arrival found ourselves with a little rain squall developing. This made the water choppy, and the snorkeling was tough. We have snorkeled before, and this trip was just OK. The rain stopped, and we all headed over to the beach to do the stingray encounter. This was just too cool! We fed them, held them, pet them, the whole bit. There were about three of them in the water in various sizes, and demeanors, and this experience made the trip all worth it.

 

The next day we found ourselves at Half Moon Cay. Now I had read about this island, and people were saying it was the most beautiful thing they had ever seen, but I could not imagine anything more perfect. You need to tender ashore here because a pier does not exist. The staff on board made this process easy, and we were in one of the first groups off the ship. We immediately rented two rafts for floating around, and a shade. We had gotten pretty crispy by this time, and liked the option of getting out of the sun for a while. At one end of the beach there is a kids' play area with large tethered animals to climb on, water slides, a fountain etc. There were people parasailing, lounging about, a live band, etc. The cool thing is that the ship's culinary people set up an entire buffet table on this island. You can have a cheeseburger in paradise! I think this is now our favorite island in the entire Caribbean. The other nice thing is you can use your soda card, or sail and sign here just like being on the ship.

 

The next stop was Nassau. Here we had booked a dolphin encounter. I know, I know, really expensive. It was truly worth it though. We petted them, rubbed their bellies, fed them, danced with them, got a kiss, was given the raspberry, the whole bit. It was so cool! The pictures you just had to buy. Again, they were expensive, but what the hell, we'll only do this once, right? We never made it into the town of Nassau, which was OK for us. We're not real fond of shopping anyway, and by the time we got back and had lunch, we only had an hour before sail away.

 

Wrapping things up, I have a few random thoughts I feel I need to throw in here. First and foremost, always remember that you get out of it what you put into it. Remember you're in very tight quarters with 3500 other people. We found some places that were quiet and uncrowded, but the common areas of the ship reminded me of a Las Vegas hotel. People everywhere! Just deal with it. Treat your wait staff and ship workers with respect and courtesy, and you'll be treated like royalty. Be considerate, follow the rules, don't be pushy, demanding, etc., etc. We went into this experience with a very laid back attitude, and if you do the same, you'll be very pleased. Remember: the ships staff goes to sea for six, or eight months at a time. They work ten to fifteen hours a day with no days off. Put yourself in their place, and tip them where and when you feel a little something extra is in order. They deserve it!

 

Some would consider us to be "pary poopers" in that we didn't stay up until all hours drinking or partying, but you could do that if you want. Just remeber the drinks you rack up all add up. We put two hundred per person on our sail and sign, and with very little effort, used up most of it. We each had a couple of drinks a day, a couple of specialty coffees, a bottle of wine with dinner, a couple of photos, some money for the kids to go to the arcade, and poof, it was gone.

 

Taking a cruise with kids in the middle of August means a ton of kids on board. If that is not what you want, don't do this ship at this time of the year.

 

The ship looks and feels great. Keep your expectations in line. Sure it's a little older and smaller, but it still a very nice ship. They are constantly polishing, vacuuming, painting, cleaning etc.

 

Do the dinner at night. You'll meet great people, have some very good food, and really enjoy the wait staff.

 

We did spend more time in the casino than we intended. Left more money for future cruisers to win! The first night the table limits were lower than the rest of the week. 3$ craps, and 3$ black jack. After that, it was all five dollar minimums. The machines are tight, just like we were told. They'll chew you up and spit you out. We weren't too eager to revisit the casino.

 

The pools are salt water, but the aft adult only pool was not very crowded at all most of the time. (Parents: if you wish to visit the adult pool, please don't allow your kids to join you. Again, follow the rules -- if it says "Adult Only" -- let the adults enjoy it!)

 

The Lido deck was a party most of the time with either a DJ, or a live band. Do the conga line, yell and scream at the hairy chest contest, and just generally let your hair down while there.

 

We didn't formally do the shows, but caught bits and pieces of game show night, horse racing, and part of a vegas review thing. Very good, all very well done. Very easy to forget you're on a ship.

 

Disembarkation was OK. You need to be out of your stateroom by eight AM. The thing that really angered us were the number of people who didn't attend the meeting, and did exactly what we were told not to do. It did take us a while to exit the vessel. Long lines snaking their way all over. I am convinced that if everybody simply followed the directions that were given the day before, it would have gone smoother.

 

The budget shuttle was prompt and we had a three PM flight out of West Palm. We gave ourselves plenty of time, and were glad we did.

 

Our overall impression of the experience? Well worth every penny! We enjoyed the intinerary, were completely satisified with the dining, the accommodations, and how we were treated by staff throughout the entire trip. If we had any suggestions for improvement, I would say that some rules needed to be reinforced more often -- because some of the passengers just didn't seem to feel the rules applied to them.

[Vidimom]

Thank you for a great review! We will be sailing on the Fantasy 9/25. We are booked in cabin E43 right next door to the cabin you had. Did you find it quiet in the cabin? We have sailed on other Fantasy class ships and look forward to this trip.

 

Just a few more questions if you don't mind. Which dinner sitting did you have? You said you were in the Jubilee dining room and I am just trying to figure out which dining room offers which dining times. Do you know if they have a photo kiosk on the ship that you can print pictures from our digital camera? Who was the Cruise Director? Where was your muster station since you were in the cabin next to ours, we will have an idea of location.

 

If you have any pictures from your trip, we would love to see them if you can post time on line!

 

Thanks again for a great review!

[dksquare]

Burks126;

 

Thanks for the review. We are looking at taking the Fantasy for a short cruise in November and are wondering about the ship's condition because of her age. Did you notice any musty odor at all? I ask because the couple we are planning to go with had an experience with an older ship years ago. Can you tell me anything else about the ship, have you cruised on larger ones at all. All of our cruises have been on the larger ships and I'm trying to compare it to the Fantasy.

 

Thanks,

Diane

[letsgocruz1]

Thank you for a great review! We will be sailing on the Fantasy 9/25. We are booked in cabin E43 right next door to the cabin you had. Did you find it quiet in the cabin? We have sailed on other Fantasy class ships and look forward to this trip.

 

Just a few more questions if you don't mind. Which dinner sitting did you have? You said you were in the Jubilee dining room and I am just trying to figure out which dining room offers which dining times. Do you know if they have a photo kiosk on the ship that you can print pictures from our digital camera? Who was the Cruise Director? Where was your muster station since you were in the cabin next to ours, we will have an idea of location.

 

If you have any pictures from your trip, we would love to see them if you can post time on line!

 

Thanks again for a great review!

 

Hey...we were on the Fantasy in May and had a 5:45 seating in the Jubilee dining room.

[Talltales]

Thanks for the great review - I'm sailing Sept. 2. I was a little worried about the age of the Fantasy but you've put my mind at ease. Can't wait.....13 days!

[Burks126]

Vidi:

 

I'll do my best here....

 

We were indeed in the Jubilee dining room for the 5:45 seating. Most nights in the Jubilee seatings are at 5:45 and 8:00 in the Jubilee, and 6:15 and 8:30 in the Celebration.

 

Yes you can print your digital photos for .29 each at the digital kiosk in the gallery.

 

 

The cabin was quiet. We didn't notice any real noise except when the side thrusters were working and getting us close to the dock. It didn't matter though, by the end of the day we were all so wiped out, we fell asleep dead away in a matter of minutes. The only other thing that was weird was the last morning as we entered port Canaveral, the escort\pilot boats that lead you into port have police style lights. The lights lit up our cabin like searchlights because we left the curtains open! Oh well, we had to get up anyway.

 

Our muster station was station A, in the universe lounge.

 

The cruise directors' name was Marahscalh. He was an absolute hoot! He had more personality than any ten people I have met. Very likeable, I guess that's why he's the cruise director!

 

I'm not sure how to upload pictures.......sorry

[Burks126]

Diane:

 

No musty odors at all. There was a passenger I had talked to one day that complained that the carpeting smelt of old alcohol, but I didn't notice. The casino of course smelled of stale cigarette smoke, but I'll reiterate.......I thought she looked great.

[gtcruzer]

Thanks for the great review!

We're also on the 9/2 sailing. Hope ours goes as smooth as yours seemed to!

[cruisy-suzy]

Thanks for a great review! I appreciate all the detail.

 

Suzy

[BND]

My favorite part is talking about cheating the system to get free sodas, then further down talking about people who won't put on life-jackets saying the "rules don't apply to them". Huh?:confused:

 

How exactly does that work? I think you need to rethink those two statements in the same review. Sounds like the rules don't apply to you!

[cubdaddy]

Thanks for the great review fellow Buckeye! We were on the Fantasy only a couple weeks ago and had a blast!

 

I agree with you about taking care of the crew! These people are awesome and work some tough hours/months! If I didn't know better, I would have thought I wrote the review, except the casino part!:D For the first time we did not gamble except for bingo.

 

Thanks again!

[Whimsy]

I'm glad to see your review, brings back memories of our first cruise on the Fantasy last year. Glad you had a great time. We are seriously thinking about booking another sailing when she goes to New Orleans.

[sammie70]

Do you remember how much the pictures were at the dolphin encounter? We are leaving on the Fantasy in 8 days and can't wait. We have the encounter booked too and trying to figure how much money we need for pics. I am glad you had a great time.

[ljchris1990]

My family and I were on this cruise also. We LOVED IT!! My kids are now bugging us about when we are going to book the next one. I will be writting a review also but not til tommorrow we just got home and I'm dead tired.

 

ljchris1990

[Burks126]

Sammy:

 

If I remember correctly the 8x10's are 20.00 each. At the dolphin encounter they have professional photographers capturing every minute of it. They AIso have the whole experience videotaped on VHS. I think that was about 50.00. It's difficult to bring your regular digital camera because it will get wet. Many people had the underwater jobs. They don't usually take very good pictures though (IMHO)

 

Burks

[jbhcw]

Enjoyed your review :) We were on the Fantasy in April and like you said, she is older but in great shape. We also thought all the wait staff were super great. There is a bar waiter named Kurni who is one of the best we've ever had, they all really go the extra mile to make your cruise special:) :) :)

[Aero247]

My favorite part is talking about cheating the system to get free sodas, then further down talking about people who won't put on life-jackets saying the "rules don't apply to them". Huh?:confused:

 

How exactly does that work? I think you need to rethink those two statements in the same review. Sounds like the rules don't apply to you!

 

That is almost exactly what I was thinking. While I agree the soda cards are a huge rip off, I don't think I would mention that I was cheating the system then go on to mention 4 times how people should "follow the rules". I'm glad you and your family had a good time

[Mysticks1]

Thanks for the review. I have been anxiously awaiting each Fantasy review in anticipation of our 11/18/06 cruise. Did you try any of the sandwiches from the deli or the salad/pizza from the pizza counter?

[tahitidreamz]

Hi All-

 

Burks I am glad you had an awesome time...:D

 

MYSticks- the pizza and salad and deli bar ROCKS...:D

 

Have a wonderful day

 

tahiti

[beaming90]

Thanks for the great review, I loved being on the Fantasy a year and half ago! :D

[Caribbean Buckeye]

Another fellow Buckeye here. I really enjoyed your review as well. Hopefully, some of your fellow cruisers will post reviews in the coming days. Welcome back to Columbus.

[tnroche]

Can any of you tell me if (when they refurbished) they added fridges to the rooms (not the suites, just OV)?

 

Also, can you fill me in on the disco? We went on the Triumph last November and they made the disco for teens until midnight, then opened it to adults. I was wondering if Fantasy did the same thing.

[tahitidreamz]

I do not know anything about the fridges...BUT I do know something about the clubs TNRoche.... I stepped into the teen one for a moment or two- and left and went to the Live DJ run one..Drat, I am sorry I cannot think of the name, but it was more of a dance club. And If I am not mistaken there is a club that plays Disco music..70's......I dont have my capers on me so I cant tell you off hand.....the times and all...

 

Just wear some good shoes... The one that played the dance club music stayed open till 4..I would know because I crawled out of it alot...*laughs*:D

 

tahiti

[tnroche]

On the Triumph, they were "in the process" of building the teen nightclub. That's probably why they put them into the regular dance club until midnight...otherwise they'd probably roam the ship all night. I will definitely bring comfy shoes...4 ladies...no husbands...no kids! Thanks for the info...sorry about your boyfriend! Kudos to you for going without him!

[Celeste548]

Another fellow Buckeye here. I really enjoyed your review as well. Hopefully, some of your fellow cruisers will post reviews in the coming days. Welcome back to Columbus.

 

Seems like the Fantasy is really popular with us Buckeyes :p Thanks for the review...I always get excited when I see Fantasy in the title of a post!