Just back April 2nd Ecstacy

[eiger]

Just returned from the April 2nd Carnival Ecstacy. We had a wondeful time and enjoyed 90% of the cruise, I will try to give you a breakdown of our trip without getting too lengthy. First of all a big thank you to all the cruise critic members for all of their help, as usual it made our planing much easier. Left Chicago Sunday morning and flew into Houston (day before departure). Rented a car from Hertz $70.00 for the day, expensive but about the same price as two people on a shuttle,so we did have the added convienance of a car until Monday A.M.. Took approx. 1 hour to get to Galveston, very easy drive. Stayed at the Holiday Inn Sunspree approx. $110.00 per night including breakfast. Nice hotel, nothing exceptional, but worked out well. Had dinner at M&M 24th and Parish (I think), dinner was exceptional. Next morning took the car back to Hertz approx. 10:30 and we were at the dock by 11:00. Had vip check in which was a breeze. Wewere on the ship checked in and ready to go by 11:30. They opened the ship at 12:00 so we went for lunch at the buffet, it was just what we needed. Rooms opened up at 1:30, Had a cat 12 which was beautiful. It had plenty of room for the two of us, nice sized balcony and plenty of storage. Had the usual muster drill and sail away. We arranged for the 8:30 dinner seating. Food in the dining room was very good. I felt that they did have a nice variety. Our waiter was good, not great, but he continued to improve as the trip went along. Went to the show that night, singers, dancers did a very nice job. Enjoyed our next day at sea relaxing, checking out the ship including the casino and bars, went to the art auction and did the general day at sea stuff. This was formal night so we dressed to the nines and had a wonderful evening. I thought the lobster was very good. Next morning we arrived on Progresso, this is where my review lost 10%. Progresso itself was not the type of town I wanted to roam around in. Other people on the ship loved it. We wanted to do some snorkling so we booked a resort day at 75.00 per person, thinking we could snorkel. well, the water is brown and cloudy, not what I expected, but this was my fault for not doing my homework better.Needless to say we were both dissappointed. Cozumal the next day was just the opposite, the clearest water we have ever seen. We did the three reef snorkel and enjoyed every minute of it. The next day eas at sea and we had a very rocky day. Prior to ths day the seas were smooth as silk. Next morning we did the self deparkation, other the being in a large croud in the hallway on deck 7 for about 20 minutes, it worked fine. We were back at Hoston Hobby by 10:00 am for our 12:30 flight back to Chicago. All in all it was a wonderful trip. Our tablemates were enjoyable and everyone was at the table every night. I am sure I missed a ton of items (towel animals every night and the were great), so if you would like to ask me any questions I will be happy to try and answer the. I am in the middle of cooking the Easter lamb, so please be patient.

[cruznurse]

I was also on the 4/2 sailing and I agree with most of what eiger had to say. My daughter and I flew from NY on Sunday and rented a car from Enterprise..stayed at the Galvez and had them shuttle us to the port on Monday. Was also on the ship by 12n. Food for the most part was good. We had the 8:30 dining and switched to the 8pm in Windsong. Our table mates all had switched as well and it was nice for my daughter(she's 25) since the other 4 people were under 30. Our waiter was ok, he also got better as the week went on. Shows were ok...the Dream show was strange, disjointed and didn't have an overall concept. Sea days were wonderful. Hit the sushi bar every afternoon for our snack. Friday was windy but we found the tables outside behind the Lido that were sunny and had almost no wind. Progresso we stayed on the ship and really loved having it all to our selves; Cozumel we went to Nachi Cocum where the beach, drinks and food were great. It was so nice not to have a crowded beach and loved the attention of the waiters. Saturday was cold and very windy when we docked back in Galveston. We also did self debark and since we were on Empress deck, the wait was easy and we were off by 8:30. The shuttle back to the Galvez was there and they even called to have the valet bring our cars out and waiting for us! A wonderful end..we kept the car for the week for $145 so it was better than taking the shuttle back and forth to Bush. Dropped luggage off at Continental then dropped the car off and was back having a snack in the terminal by 10:45am. We had to change planes in Cleveland where there was snow and our plane needed 'de-icing'...The casino was fairly good to both of us, but didn't win the cruise bingo however!!(we both needed one more number:( ). For a short cruise it was a wonderful getaway and the price can't be beat..I was on the Ecstasy back in the 90's and she still looks great. Loved the toned down neon...

[saq]

Thanks for the information. I leave on the Ecstasy Monday and can hardly wait. How did you find the temperature in the dining room, shows, or other public areas? Trying to figure out what to pack. Was there anything on the ship that you particularly liked....a show, activity, game, bar, food item? We are also on Empress deck. Did either of your cabins have a fridge? I'm also thinking about staying on the ship in Progresso. I think it would be nice to be on the ship when most everyone is gone? Were all the facilities still open while you were at port?

Thanks

[gr1634]

SAG - see you Monday. Our 8th Carnival cruise - bringing brother and SIL - their first ever :)

[ChristieDawn]

We will be on the Ecsatcy on Monday as well! :D

 

gr1634 - we would love to have you on the roll call board! (I didn't see you on there!) We are planning to meet on the first sea day (Tues) at 11am at the Rolls Royce Cafe!

 

eiger and/or cruznurse - Thank you for the information. I would also like to know if it was cool inside in the evenings.

 

Looking forward to relaxing!!!!!:)

[Stircrzy]

I love the Ecstasy...but I take a light jacket/sweater for evenings! It gets chilly in the lounges, dining room, and casino!

[eiger]

Bring a light jacket with you as the evenings can cool off just a bit. The dining room ran hot and cold, we never knew what were going to run into, so play it safe. Our room did have a refrigerator, we used it to store 2 bottles of champagne which we brought on board. We did not have a particular area of the ship that we liked more than anywhere else, but the entire ship was fun. The best room on the ship was our stateroom, we would spend hours relaxing on the balcony

:)

[joby09]

Thanks for the review. We leave next Monday and can hardly wait. How was the casino? What are some must do's and don't bother with? Any tips are most welcomed.

 

joby09

 

Ecstacy - Apr 16

Destiny - Jul 99

Westerdam - Jun 97

[jdjaguar]

We stopped in Progreso 3 years ago on the Glory and I took the boys to see Chitzen Itza (mayan ruins) (wrong spelling I'm sure)...it was awe -inspiring.

 

The bus ride there and back was also an awakening as you really get to see how the people live in mexico away from the tourist areas.

 

I highly recommend it if offered by the cruise. (warning..i wouldn't book it outside of carnival because I agree..progreso is not a place that i would want to be stuck after missing the ship.)

[natvtxn]

I had started a new thread (not seeing this one). It seemed to not go through, so I checked...then this thread was up top, so I'm adding here.

 

There was no problem getting water/sodas on. Ours were inside luggage, but some was sitting on top of bags being pulled. We were in our rooms by 1pm. Luggage took about 5 more hours, tho. I never went to the F deck, so I have no report on it. The food was really good. One night there was a black bean enchilada, that was extra good. Had 1 1/2 lobsters on formal night. The second one was mushy. Not sure why. In Progreso we took the bus into town and shopped at the open air market and then walked to beach and sat under a palapa with beer and nachos all afternoon. We didn't want to wait for the bus, so we took a cab back to the ship for $6. In Cozumel, we took a cab to Playa Uvas ($10 for 5 of us). Just relaxed on the beach with more beer and nachos. The lady from Argentina with the jewelry finally showed up. We bought 3 pairs of earrings from her. I was going to get a massage, but the price was no better than one you can get here at home. Took a cab to the shopping district in front of the international pier. Shopped a bit and then back to ship. Thursday night/Friday early morning we hit some rough seas. There were quite a few nauseous people. We all had on patches and were not effected at all. I heard one lady telling about her dd that she was in the infirmary getting IV fluids because of dehydration. It finally calmed down Friday night. All of our departures were within 30 minutes of sailing time. Getting off the ship was a breeze. BUT, who knew that winter would be visiting again when we got off?! Thankfully, I had talked to dh the night before and he told me it was going to be cold in Galveston Saturday morning. Cell phone service worked fine at sea. We had Cingular and Sprint. This was a first cruise for 3 of our 5. They loved it and want to go again! Now, I keep thinking to myself..."one week ago I was..."

[conwakr]

We were also on 4/2. Also rented a car for the week, left it at the Holiday Inn and utilized their shuttle to and from the port. Category 12 for us, too. We tend to spend alot of time on the balcony so that is a must for us. I liked the ship even with all the neon. We all thought the food was better than any of the other 3 cruises we've taken. I was very surprised by the quality. We were in Windstar and only one night saw a guy in shorts. My husband remarked how much he appreciated that people didn't abuse the dress code. The fact that he even noticed and commented floored me. Although our first Carnival cruise there were alot of man hairy armpits in tank tops in the dining room - ick. I did see jeans on women this cruise, but I guess people think that's OK these days. Nothing really bothers me in the dining room except hairy man armpits in tank tops. Merely pointing out that people seemed to "care" on this cruise. No one in my group was affected by the seas the last day, we've all been on much rougher water, but I suppose it might have bothered some considering the seas were basically flat the first part of the cruise.

Sea days, the pool was full of little kids, but Carnival did an excellent job of keeping them out of the adult hot tub. I was happy to see that. The music was so-so, but it was 24/7 rap so if you didn't like something it changed just about every hour. We liked Progresso and are bored wtih Cozumel. Would go back to Progresso anyday. We were very, very pleased with this ship as we had not enjoyed our previous Carnival cruise anywhere near as much as two other cruises on competitive lines. I would cruise again on this ship in a heartbeat. Customs was painful in Galveston, worse part of the week if you ask me, plus it was raining and cold that day - no way to end a fun, hot, sunny week!

[ChristieDawn]

Ya'll are making me even more excited! 6 days and counting!!!!!!:p