Carnival Victory 5 Day

[cleo1998]

I just booked this 5 night cruise for June 25th I need to know how many formal nights are on this cruise to Canada and when are they?

[yogimax]

We have done this cruise three times on Victory and Triumph. In the past, there has been one formal night on the second night.

[Clutterlady]

Just booked this cruise for July. We don't want to have to bring formal clothes for a 5 night cruise. Are there any other options for dining?

[nybumpkin]

Just booked this cruise for July. We don't want to have to bring formal clothes for a 5 night cruise. Are there any other options for dining?

The buffet on the Lido deck will be open every night if you'd prefer not to eat in the dining room on a given night. I haven't gone to the buffet for dinner on any of our cruises, but as I understand there are items like steaks available. However, the lobster tail that's served on formal night apparently is available only in the dining room.

[Lewdog]

There is a deli with some EXCELLENT pastrami and reubens, I would put them up against many of the land based "real" deli's I have been in.

[Clutterlady]

There is a deli with some EXCELLENT pastrami and reubens, I would put them up against many of the land based "real" deli's I have been in.

 

So the deli is open for dinner? How formal is formal nights on Carnival?

 

Have done other lines, but first time on Carnival. Doing a short 5 night cruise just for a summer get-away!:)

[steel123]

We are thinking about booking the 5-day Canada cruise. We are leaning towards going in early August or maybe late June. I think it might be warmer if we go later.

 

We were on the Miracle last August. My husband wore a navy blazer, tie and khakis, and I wore a sleeveless ankle-length black dress the first formal night. I wore a shorter red dress the second formal night. We were dressed fine. I haven't been on other lines, so I can't compare.:)

[steel123]

I had another question. Is it worth getting a balcony on the sailings to Canada? It sounds like the views may be nice, but I'm just wondering if it's too cold to use them.:)

[yogimax]

I had another question. Is it worth getting a balcony on the sailings to Canada? It sounds like the views may be nice, but I'm just wondering if it's too cold to use them.:)

 

Although the weather is always unpredictable, in general, it will be quite cool and possibly damp. You might luck out and have warm weather, but the odds are that it will be cool.

 

I wouldn't recommend a balcony for this cruise

[Lewdog]

We were on the Victory in last June and did not use the balcony once, too cool.

 

When we got to Halifax it was pouring rain and fairly cool.

 

On the way back, roughest seas we have experienced.

 

Best cruise I have ever been on! <--Not sarcasm!

[steel123]

Thanks for your feedback on the balcony. I would hate to spend the extra $$ if we can't use it due to the weather, so we may book an OV.

 

Lewdog, It sounds like you enjoyed your cruise. Can you recommend anything special? Also, do you think the sea will be too rough? I wonder if it will be better in August.:)

[steel123]

I've never cruised North before, so I have another question. If the weather is damp and rainy, are the pools and the slide closed for the Canadian trips? Also, if the pools are open, since ocean water is used to fill up the pools, would the pools be too cold to swim in?:)

[Clutterlady]

Never been north either, but love a little rocking!! Been in the Atlantic a couple of time coming into NYC from the south, always had a lot of rocking and rolling going on:D

 

We did get a balcony for this cruise, but will bring along some warmer clothes. Love to sit and watch the sea.........using this cruise for a get away from the rat race for a couple of days. We won't be doing the formal thing, just eat at the deli I guess:)

 

Friends of ours did this cruise last July and said they loved it. Did have some light rain and a lot of fog............. so need to be prepared!

[nybumpkin]

We just booked Victory for the third time to Canada, sailing in August. Our previous cruises were end of June 2004 and end of August 2006, and both times we had at least some days that were rather warm (downright hot the first time we were in Halifax).We actually have used our balcony fairly often; DH likes to spend some time in the afternoon out there to read a book, and we both enjoy waking up in the morning and going out there.

 

On the pools - On our first cruise the waterslide was in use, but it wasn't open on our second cruise. The pools were all open, although they're not nearly as heavily used as on a Caribbean cruise. (On the plus side - there's no problem with chair hogs!) There is a magrodome over the aft pool, and they generally close the dome at night and when the weather is bad. I noticed more night swimming on Victory than I did on either Conquest or Legend!

 

Both our cruises were very smooth, with the exception of 2006's last day at sea. We ran into the remains of TS Eduardo and it made for some rough seas. Not as rough as when we were on Conquest sailing around Hurricane Dennis, though. The first cruise we had a fair amount of fog, and the ship's horn will sound every few minutes in fog. It's loud:eek: . The second time we had absolutely no fog.

 

My bottom line is to be prepared for just about anything - warm, cool, damp, etc. You may find you want to dress in layers in port.

[cruisetmc]

We were on the Victory, 9/23/06, wonderful cruise. We had an oceanview room which was fine with us. The only thing there was a lot of fog so I don't know that a balcony is a must like the Caribbean. I remember sailing into Boston in the afternoon, we were out on the forward section of deck 6 and it was a beautiful clear day.

 

In Halifax we did the Trolley tours and saw the Citadel, and theTitanic cemetery. We used the Fred buses the rest of the day. I loved this cruise, wish we were going again this year.

[Clutterlady]

Ok, now I'm starting to get excited about this cruise!!

 

We really don't want to do too much, but has anyone seen the Bay of Fundy and did the tour of the brewerys?

[yogimax]

Ok, now I'm starting to get excited about this cruise!!

 

We really don't want to do too much, but has anyone seen the Bay of Fundy and did the tour of the brewerys?

 

The Alexander Keith tour in Halifax is excellent. It's more than a beer tour - it's history and entertainment.

[nybumpkin]

The Alexander Keith tour in Halifax is excellent. It's more than a beer tour - it's history and entertainment.

We loved the Keith's Brewery tour as well! We were hesitant because we had our kids along, but they had lemonade and iced tea for non-ale drinkers (they were very good). They demonstrated 19th century pub games - oldest son and I lost. The ale is very good - we found a restaurant (Stayner's Wharf) with Keith's on tap for lunch after our tour.

[steel123]

We did go ahead and book a balcony cabin on August 11th. (nybumpkin, I just realized we'll be on your sailing). Thanks for the info. on the pools/slide. Our kids are cruising with us, and they spent most of their free time either in the pool or on the slide on our last cruise. Also, thanks for the advice on packing. We'll just try to bring layers and be prepared for anything. We'll also bring swim/water shirts to keep the kids warm while in the pool.

 

These all sound like great tour ideas! Now that I have booked this cruise, I have start deciding what we're going to do in port!:)

[Clutterlady]

The Keith's brewery tour, is that an indenpendent tour or through the ship?

[Lewdog]

We had more than a little rocking, it got quite rough. I can't remember the name but we caught the tail end of the first hurricane of the season last year was why it was so rough.

 

I think the pools were open for those willing to put up with a bit colder weather.

 

I will expand on the Keith's beer...we only did one thing in Halifax, O'Carroll's Pub. A true Irish Pub (great bangers & mash) and they have Keith's on tap! Even better, they had a Keith's Amber brewed exclusively for them. We went there on our own but they are a stop on the pub crawl.

 

I think the deli was open most night. On the other side is the Asian food and in the middle is the regular buffet.

 

In the Capers one night was listed a midnight buffet. Much to the dismay of the many people waiting, it never happened.

[nybumpkin]

The Keith's brewery tour, is that an indenpendent tour or through the ship?

On your own; it's a very easy walk from the ship. Their website is www.keiths.ca.

 

Steel123 - If you haven't visited the Roll Call section, there's a roll call for the August 11 cruise: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=420585. Look forward to meeting you!

[steel123]

Lewdog, thanks for the info. on the rough seas. I had heard there could be rougher seas when you sail from New York. That's one reason we hadn't booked this cruise before. I hope it won't be too bad when we sail. The tail end of the hurricane might explain the rocking, so I'll have to hope we don't encounter one next August. I'm glad the pools should be open, even though it might be a little cool.

 

nybumpkin, I didn't have a chance to check the roll calls, yet. I'm glad there's one already there for our sailing. I'll have to check it out soon. Thanks!:)

[BobbyK]

Great information. Thanks. I'm thinking of flying in from southern California for a September cruise. I noticed how expensive hotels are. Is is possible to fly in and get to the port the same day? What is the distance, any particulars? Thanks. Robin :cool: