Fantasy Review...4/2 Very Long

[beach410]

About us: Family of 4, well really a family of 5, but oldest son wanted to do spring break in Myrtle Beach with his friends since this is his senior year. Traveled with DH, DS 9 and DS 14 on 4/2. Gosh, where do I begin, there is so much to say, where do I start?? Let me just start by saying we had a wonderful time!!

 

New Orleans: We live in North Carolina and didn’t get plane tickets while they were still relatively affordable, so we drove 13 ½ hours. Have traveled to FL same way, only takes 10 hours, there is a difference! But hey, we are going on a cruise, no complaints from me!! We left Saturday and drove for 10 long hours from 4pm and stopped around 2pm in Greenville Alabama to find a hotel to spend the night. Had a difficult time finding a non smoking room, they were all booked, finally ended up settling for the Jameson Inn, I had some Fabreeze in the car, that worked wonders in the room. The beds and the pillows were very very comfortable. The room charge includes a continental breakfast.

 

We woke up early and drove the rest of the way, 3 ½ hours and arrived at NO buy 12:30pm. Checked into the Marriott at 555 Canal Street that we paid $99 for through Priceline. Was pleasantly surprised the pool wasn’t closed, as advertised on their website and also happy about the location of the hotel in relation to what we wanted to do. Just a few blocks to Bourbon street in one direction and a couple of blocks to the river front in the other direction. Driving into NO, we noticed many of the abandoned homes and ravaged areas from hurricane Katrina, it was very sad. :( The French Quarter looked remarkably the same as it did before the hurricane. We walked around, took the boys to the Aquarium and Imax and had a pleasant day.

 

Embarkation: This morning we walked 6 blocks to Café Du Monde famous for their beignets, first time for my boys having French donuts and they really enjoyed them, as did I and we all enjoyed listening to a man play his trumpet, trombone, whatever! We went back to the hotel and checked out by 11 and arrived at the port just a few minutes away by 11:15. It is very easy to find and navigate your way around. After paying at the gate we drove in and dropped our luggage off with the porters, (snuck my bottled water into my luggage, about 8 bottles) who gave us direction on where to park and board. Check in with our Birth Certificates and Funpass was a breeze, it was about 11:30, there were no lines and we were taken to this waiting area where a lot of people were already sitting. We were about the 5th row and as soon as we sat down they started boarding the first row, then a few minutes later the 2nd row and so on. We were on board by noon. Did not see anyone get their luggage checked for liquor, I smuggled in a couple of mini bottles along with my 8 waters no problem at all. Also saw a family carrying on a small cooler, I never saw anyone looking in it and I also saw a couple carrying in a box of wine. :eek:

 

We walked around, the ship looks basically like all the others in this class. I don’t find it gaudy or loud. I liked the Egyptian theme and the promenade/galleria was very nice, had suitable seating and lounge areas. We had lunch in the Lido, it was very good, the boys found the pizza and ice cream right away and lived on that basically the entire week for lunch and snacks! By the time we were finished it was time to find our room, U190 and our stewards introduced themselves to us. I can’t remember their names (I admit it, I am terrible remembering names!) but they did a good job. We didn’t really ask for anything out of the norm besides extra bucket of ice for my waters, which he brought right away. This time or muster drill was in one of the lounges, we got lucky and had seats some people had to site on the dance floor. It was very quick though and then they shuffled us out to the decks to find the location of our lifeboats. After that we escaped through the Windows of the Sea and went back to our deck chairs to relax while the boys found the ping pong tables. I never found a problem finding a chair, but then I was out early, grabbed a couple of chairs for me and DH before going to breakfast around 8am. By 10am all the chairs were basically gone.

 

We were assigned the late dinner seating as requested, the very late seating 8:30, Yikes! Our room location was very good, at first I didn’t think I would like it, but it was very close to everything except for our dinner dining room, the Celebration, which was on the opposite end of the ship.. But so was the Universe lounge where all the shows were so that was convenient as we ended up there after dinner every night. Our wait staff was excellent, mucho Kudos to Izabele from Romania and her assistant, oops, again, I forgot his name, but he was right there helping all the time, wonderful, the best service we have ever had. One thing that was not that great is the bar service, it appears they only have one server for like ½ of the entire DR, she was fine for us, and brought our kids sodas right away they had the soda card, but for our tablemates I noticed service took a little longer, they were using drink coupons received as a birthday gift.

 

Funny thing is that our wonderful tablemates, hello Joal and girls (14 and 13) and Ben and family (wife, DS 10 and DD 14), are cruise critic members who were one of the few that posted a reply on the roll call that I started, wow, what a small world!! We had very enjoyable dinners with our tablemates!! Carnival did a good job putting us together.

 

Food: We had breakfast at the buffet every morning except for once because I wanted Eggs Benedict and they only serve that in the DR. Breakfast was your normal fare, never long lines, even for the omelet station. Always found plenty to eat and enjoyed it all. The raspberry danish are to die for!

 

We also had lunch in the Windows of the Sea every day. Lines were never too long. One day we ate at the deli and it was very good, again, only a couple of people on line. I had the Reuban and then later on when my DH was hungry, he had a corned beef sandwich and a slice of pizza, ok he had two slices…I also tried the fresh mozzarella sandwich, only planned on having a taste, but ended up eating the whole thing..I had been dieting since October, lost 35 pounds, and was not planning on counting calories or fat on this vacation, yes, I gained weight on this cruise, but it was worth every calorie I am now counting again…LOL. We ate lunch in Mexico at the days we were not on board.

 

Dinner eaten every night in the DR, everything I ordered I enjoyed. The Filet Mignon was a bit chewy on the outside, more tender on the inside but the sauce was very tasty. Lobster on formal night was cooked perfectly, not overdone and nice and firm and the prime rib very good. Of course, we tried the chocolate melting cake, that was a big hit I also enjoyed the Tiramasu and the cappuccinos. DH got sick after the corned beef sandwich and pizza, he missed formal dinner. We are not sure if it was something he ate or just sea sickness, he was fine the next day. I actually ordered a seafood pasta dish one night and was very suprised at how good it was, the pasta was aldente!

 

Shows: We enjoyed the comedians and the magician. The boys found the broadway dancing shows boring, so we only lasted 15 minutes before heading back to the room for bed. I didn’t go to any of the lounges or late night comedy shows or buffets, so I can’t comment on those. But the entertainment staff did a really good job, I stumbled across a trivia game on the promenade one afternoon and enjoyed watching the participants and the host was very funny. We also attended the first art auction, it was enjoyable, we didn’t find anything we particularly cared for but enjoyed it none the less.

 

Pools: The water was cold!! But the kids didn’t seem to mind it, mine did, they played ping pong most of the time, did the water slide a few times and the hot tub under the water slide, but complained that the pool was too crowded. We never went to the adult pool or kiddie pool. I am good with just sticking my feet in to cool down.

 

Cruise Director, Big Tex, was the best I have seen. He was a barrel of laughter, he sings, he was in the piano bar on the first night belting it out, he jokes, every talk will make you laugh and yes, he even dances and that IS NOT to be missed. We really enjoyed Big Tex! Also Noonan, his assistant, who basically ran bingo, was very pleasant and funny.

 

I played bingo twice, once on the lido out by the pool and once in the universe lounge (tryng for that free cruise), I didn’t win! :( We missed most bingo in the evenings because it started at 9:45 and we didn’t finish with dinner until about 10:30. Played the quarter slot machines in the casino, my DH lost everything, we started off with 10 each, he lost it all, I won a few times, but ended up walking out with 13, down 7 bucks, not bad. We are big gamblers..woo hoo..LOL.

 

Costa Maya: We had planned on doing the Chochanobean Ruins tour with David and Ivan, but I got completely lost. We could not find a taxi to take us to the Cat’s Meow and I was worried that the tour left without us, we were a little late getting off the ship. We walked several blocks away from the pier towards taxis we saw further down and were told that they could take us to the ruins. We really hesitated because we heard such good things about David and Ivan, but we were worried that after taking a taxi to town we wouldn’t find them there, so after some negotiating, the taxi place came down on the price 85$ round trip and told us we could hire a guide at the ruins. It was about a 40 minute drive and that was a fast drive, 120 kph, which computes to about 75 mph! When we arrived at the ruins, we paid 3 bucks each to get in and the cost to hire someone for a party of 4 was 35$. While we were standing there trying to figure out how to hire a guide when we noticed another tour guide from an organized ship tour probably, gathering up his group and we ended up just tagging along with him, I know, shame on us. The tour guide as very informative and it was interesting. Remember to bring bug spray, the mosquitos will attack your legs once you get into the wooded area. Afterwards the taxi driver, who was waiting for us, took us back, little speedy Gonzales I tell you! Got back to the port at about 4:30 and spent an hour or so at the pool, order some beers and a bite to eat, nachos and very fresh salsa and my oldest DS had chicken quesidillas. Then we headed back to the ship to relax then get ready for dinner.

 

Cozumel: Headed off the ship around 8:45 and walked over a couple of blocks to find a rental car. We met a man on the corner, we bargained a bit, probably ended up spending too much, but I wasn’t in the mood to haggle anymore or shop a different rental agency. We ended up renting a Jeep with Alamo, stick shift, top off for 75 bucks plus tax, that included full insurance with 0 deductible. This is a wonderful way to tour the island. The gentleman who did our paperwork was very nice and informative, supplied us with a map and clear directions to get around. We went to the San Giovese ruins first, you can do a self tour with this, as each of the ruins have a description of what they are at each site. We enjoyed setting our own pace. After the ruins we headed towards the east side of the island, really nice, its mostly uninhabited besides a couple of restaurants on the beach and a couple of small hotels. It was a really pretty drive. We wanted to go to the lighthouse, but missed the turn off, headed over to Paradise Beach, it was really crowded!! Beware, if you want a good seat near the water activities get there before 11am, that is what time we were there. We were finally able to snag a few chairs up front, but it was work! The boys really enjoyed it here. They climbed the ice berg and slid off the top from the back of it, they floated on mats, jumped off the trampolines but their favorite time was standing on this large floating mat and trying to knock each other off. DH and I order a bucket of Dos XX’s, yum..and watched them..man, what a life! :cool: Then we ordered lunch, we had extreme loaded nachos, they were good and the boys ordered a chicken burrito, huge and chicken fingers for my youngest DH, very tasty as well. We ordered all this from the waiter that walks around the beach taking orders, I had to flag him down several times, I think we were invisible or something. We left at 2:30, the boys were whooped. We dropped off the jeep and headed back onto the ship.

 

Last day at sea it was very windy, you could see the white caps and it was very chilly on deck. I couldn’t believe there were people actually in their bathing suits and swimming!! I found a nice warm spot up by the ping pong tables to sit and read.

 

Self assist debarkation: Not bad, got to our car by 8:45, however, after the Verandah deck was called there were no other decks called, we waited in our room as directed until about 7:55 and made our way down and found a huge line, when I spoke to the gentleman who was calling out the decks, he said he is supposed to call the next deck after the lobby clears, but because all other decks were heading out too, he couldn’t because the lobby never cleared. So, there is not much regulation for debarking.

Headed back home, crying, bye bye Carnival

All and all, this was a fantastic cruise, I enjoyed every aspect of it. I met some nice people on the Lido deck and of course our dinner tablemates. My DH wasn’t happy with the coffee in Windows of the Sea, not hot enough for him so he purchased the coffee It was ok at breakfast for me. I really cant think of any other complaints at all. OK, a 2nd room would have been nice for getting ready for dinner and a little privacy, but it worked out fine. The passengers, even the kids were well behaved, the service was outstanding everywhere we went and again, we really enjoyed Big Tex, the cruise director. I would go on this cruise again in a heart beat, well that’s no fair, because I would go on any cruise in a heart beat! But being that I like to try new itineraries and experience new ships, I am aiming for that 6 or 7 day cruise next time, but the Fantasy was probably the best cruise I have been on (my 4th,, 2 previous with Carnival and one with RCC) and they were all good.

 

If I missed anything let me know, sorry for being long winded. If you have any questions, I wud be happy to try to answer them!

 

Thanks for reading my review! :D

[Rodeomomof2]

Thanks for taking the time to send in the review!:) I am really excited about my cruise on the Fantasy! Did you bring home any Capers? Do you have a way to scan them if it is not too much trouble?:o

[BigDfromTN]

Thanks for taking the time to write this review!

 

We leave on this trip in 53 days.

 

Thanks again,

Don

[Jolie]

What a fabulous review! Thank you for taking the time to write it! It makes us very excited about our upcoming Fantasy cruise!!!

 

If you have specific times of late shows (after the late dinner seating), would you mind posting those times?

 

Thanks again!

[crazycruzer68]

Thanks for the review, I too would like to see the capers if you have them.

 

Was your S & S card your room key? I have heard different answers on this one just wanted to ask someone else.

 

What did you kids think of the ruins? Is it a must see or just something you could pass on?

[LAFUNGUY]

thanks for the great review... quite refreshing to hear from one who made the most out of a special vacation experience...driving to new orleans on the 15th, stayin at the Monteleone, eating at Galitoire's, and boarding on june 16.....can't wait!!!!!!!!!!! thanks again

[Ceece911]

grabbed a couple of chairs for me and DH before going to breakfast around 8am. By 10am all the chairs were basically gone.

 

 

Does this mean that you are a chair hog? :eek:

 

Just kidding, we will be on the fantasy in a couple of weeks, so I enjoyed your review. Thanks. :)

[beach410]

Well, I certainly hope I am not a chair hog :eek: , just a chair saver, I only saved two seats for like 45 minutes during breakfast and didnt save 4 of them needlessly, I made our kids share with us if there wasnt enough for them and returned my towels when going to the art auction and when we returned took what was left.. Chair HOG....HMPH..LOL

 

Yes, the S&S card is the room key. Late show starts at 10:30, perfect timing for late diners like ourselves. Yes, I have the capers, I can try scanning them, if you want, send me your request via email, not sure how to post them otherwise, my email is cchambers1@nc.rr.com. Also, you may want to check out Webshots.com, I know they have capers, but it might not be for the 5 day cruise.

[beach410]

Josie1968, regarding the ruins, I enjoyed them. My son is a history lover, his hopes are to be an archeologist one day, so I really wanted him to experience them. As he put it, going to the ruins wasnt "fun", but it was "interesting". Not sure my 9 year old agreed with that, probably pretty boring to him, except in the areas that he could climb on.

 

I have heard awesome things about David and Ivan's tour in Costa Maya and was disappointed that we didnt end up with them. I wouldnt go back again, but I am glad we did get to see them. What is interesting about the ruins in Costa Maya is that they were only recently discovered, so not all uncovered, and they are also one of the oldest sites, I think the tour guide said 200 BC, older then Tulum. I would definately say for a little history and culture, if that is something you enjoy, go see them. We didnt do Tulum because I feel that tour is way too long. This tour is only 1/2 the day. I would definately go to Tulum if we were staying at a resort in Mexico and would like to experience them as well one day.

 

The ruins in Cozumel were nice, I liked that you could read about each building's signifcance and tour the ruins at your own pace. Hope this helps!

[dwildenst]

Thanks for the great review. My wife, 11 yo daughter and I are going on this same cruise in July. It seems like it will never get here!

[sa7776]

Beach 410:

 

Do you recall whether there was a lounge with Karaoke each night. I have also had someone ask if there is country music in any of the lounges. Thanks for posting such a great review.

[beach410]

July will be here before you know it, unfortunately, it goes by so quickly once the time arrives, no more anticipation, only the lasting memories and the desire to cruise again!

 

To tell you the truth, I didnt do any of the lounges, with the late night dinner, after dinner shows and having the kids with us that was enough, we were in bed by midnight. I did see the piano bar and I am sorry I didnt get to hang out there a bit, my first cruise I remember having a blast in the piano bar. I will check out the capers tho, maybe it will mention something about country music and karaoke. I did read in a previous post that the Dakota band was very good, not sure where they played tho.

[Rodeomomof2]

Yes, the S&S card is the room key. Late show starts at 10:30, perfect timing for late diners like ourselves. Yes, I have the capers, I can try scanning them, if you want, send me your request via email, not sure how to post them otherwise, my email is cchambers1@nc.rr.com. Also, you may want to check out Webshots.com, I know they have capers, but it might not be for the 5 day cruise.

Thanks, I sent you an e-mail for the capers! So there is not a domino key for the rooms? haha We sailed on the Sensation and the Holiday and BOTH had the domino looking keys that were seperate from the S&S card.....that is one more thing to look forward to, one less thing to carry around on the ship! :D

[Rok4u2]

Beach410 you are incorrect on the S&S card being the cabin key. On the FANTASY they two different items. Yep, domino cabin keys.:cool:

[Rodeomomof2]

Beach410 you are incorrect on the S&S card being the cabin key. On the FANTASY they two different items. Yep, domino cabin keys.:cool:

Oh, OK. Thanks for clearing that up, I was getting excited for a second. :D I have never cruised when we did not have the domino keys. On our first cruise on the Sensation out of NO, we did not know how to use it correctly we kept putting it in and pulling it out like a hotel card and wondering why it was not unlocking. Finally, after getting much amusement out of our stupidity someone yelled down the hall "leave it in and THEN turn the knob". We had a duh huh moment, but laughed it all off in good sport (as did everyone around us).:D

[WellDeserved]

Did you dock or tender in Cozumel?

[beach410]

Yes, thats correct, I forgot about the domonio keys, they are tan and/or brown.

[beach410]

We docked!! Woopee, saw a RC ship that was tendering, poor kids!

[oceanmom62]

If you want to see the Chacchobben ruins please go with Ivan and David. Ivan's father is the one who took care of the ruins and then turned them over to the state. They both grew up nearby and have lots of knowledge. Best tour I've ever done!

[concour]

On the cruise that left 4/7 we were tendered in Cozumel. I believe we were the 6th or 7th ship in port that day.

[beach410]

Hi Marilyn........ not having any luck emailing capers to the email address you sent, please send me another email. I keep getting errors message, Recipient address unknown, do you have another email address perhaps?

[bonniemari]

According to another website there will only be 2 ships (Fantasy & RCCL ship) in Coz on the April 21st sailing. Hope this means we will dock cause tendering is not my favorite thing.

[Carolinamamasita]

Thank you for sending me the Fantasy capers ... GREAT WORK !!

Looks like it was hard work ...LOL:eek:

[Rodeomomof2]

Yes, thanks for sending the capers, the ones that came thru have been very imformative!:D

[mountaingurl]

Does someone mind sending me the capers? knightrazor1949@yahoo.com

Thanks!