All Things Miracle!!!!

[miami]

There has been alot of people that have gotten back since the "change to Grand Turk"

 

Please let us know about Grand Turk

Please let us know about the cruise in general

 

We are 4 weeks away and we would like to know more about her!!!!

 

You want to know about about my cruise in general and Grand Turk.

 

Let's start with my cruise (7/12/2008). Not my favorite. Blast away... I did not like the ship, it's ugly. Thought the food was very good, our dinner wait staff was fantastic. The maitre'd was annoying. The shows were fun but I would have been disappointed if I had paid to see them. We had an extended balcony cabin, it was very nice. Our room stewards were adequate.

 

Grand Turk... I think only 4 excursion were offered through Carnival. They probably offer more now. Most of us just went through the shops, didn't buy anything then to the beach. It was fun to swim so close to the ship. The beach is nice but it's rocky and hard when you get into the water. They had some rental cabanas. Some enjoyed the power snorkeling excursion, others rented a scooter and drove around the island.

[hill6]

There has been alot of people that have gotten back since the "change to Grand Turk"

 

Please let us know about Grand Turk

Please let us know about the cruise in general

 

We are 4 weeks away and we would like to know more about her!!!!

 

I haven't been to Grand Turk on the Miracle but I visited her twice on the Crown Princess. It is a very quiet island that has the addition of the cruise center. Margaritaville can get very crowded but the pool is great and the music is constantly playing. The shopping area is pretty small and very limited as compared to some of the other islands and is pretty much confined to the port area. (Not a big bargin stop) Hubby has done two fishing tours there and had fun.

 

Princess has been sailing to there on the Caribbean Princess this summer and you may want to look there for some recent comments. I do have a number of pictures from there on my webshots albums. Look in Crown Princess 2007 Album 2 and also Crown Princess 2006

 

http://community.webshots.com/user/hill6

[4kidsplusty]

This was the only port that was a mess to get off of. for some reason it wasn't very organized,a lot of people were yelling at the young ass. cruise directors like it was their fault.I had to call jose and tell him we were still coming but were stuck in line on ship. jose was very understanding told me not to rush that he would wait for us. when we got off walked to next pier and met jose at the segway shop. VERY VERY NICE AND NOT BAD ON THE EYES:D. with having 6 of us one being 8 years old and me being heavy and afraid i couldnt do it jose spent alot of time with us before we took off. he actually had 7 segways but we opted to do it in 2 groups so me and the 8 year old wouldn't hold everyone else up.jose gave me the keys and said if we wanted to go walk around and than come back we could do that. so we locked up the shop and walked around.ben and i came back and sat and waited for the other 4 to return. when they did, ben and i went out. we had an amazing time and jose was full of knowledge about his island.we only did the 45 min tour for a few reasons one being we had 6 of us and it would have cost alot more money and i was afraid that me and the 8 year old wouldn't be able to do it. I WAS WRONG WE DID AS WELL AS THE OTHER 4 FROM OUR FAMILY. if we go again we will do the 2 hour tour.after the tour we went to senor frogs. it was a little wild but thats what we were on vacaction for to have an awesome time. we saw one group come in sit down than leave. when waiter asked them why they said it was to loud.the kids looked very disappointed but left with parents anyways. the waiter pointed to a sign that said something along the lines that if its to loud than you are to old to be there . we got a laugh at that. they called people up on stage and did different games. the savenger hunt was very funny.they did a conga line with fre shots every once in awhile.they came and sang happy bday to dd and brought a cake made out of whipped cream. the candle was a napkin that she couldnt blow out. whenshe finally got it out they threw the whipped topping in her face.we really enjoyed our dinner and the activies at senor frogs. we walked around old sanjuan before heading back to ship. the sailaway party was one of our kids favorite. they wished we did it after every port.so i can only speak for my family but we enjoyed old san juan, our segway tour,senor frogs and the sailaway party. The cruise is what your mind set is and what you make of it:cool:

[crisp1]

Does anyone know where I can find a printable copy of the 8 day dinner menus?

Thanks

[patty123]

hello everyone for those who had a great trip iam glad and for those who didn't sorry .i hope i will experenise a great trip when i go in june 09 but question who tip everyone and how much do the children have to tip and also get sea sick they told me to book riveia deck mid ship ov room less motion how true is this

[tennisgirl13]

The Miracle is a great ship. I can't wait to go soon!!!!

[serene56]

but question who tip everyone and how much do the children have to tip and also get sea sick they told me to book riveia deck mid ship ov room less motion how true is this

 

 

depends how old the kids are-- if over two they should tip as much as everyone else. 10.00pp per day. The cabin steward will be making their beds and cleaningup the bathroom. the waiters will be getting their meals, drinks etc. (also it goes for the lido buffet staff- as you will notice your waiters working that area on their days off)

 

yes, if you tend to get seasick--low and midship is where you want to be,

riveria deck is the cheapest deck.

[crisp1]

hello everyone for those who had a great trip iam glad and for those who didn't sorry .i hope i will experenise a great trip when i go in june 09 but question who tip everyone and how much do the children have to tip and also get sea sick they told me to book riveia deck mid ship ov room less motion how true is this

 

Service gratuities of $10 per person, per guest are automatically charged to your onboard account, whatever the age of the person is. Yes, the lower and closest to midship your cabin is, the less motion you will feel. But remember that you won't be spending all your time in your cabin. I would look into some alternate seasickness remedies- seabands, the patch, bonine, ginger. The worst nights for motion will be the first and last when cruising out of NY.

 

Enjoy

[Seydlitz]

Hi,

 

What is the band like on Mircale right now? Who is the CD?

[Shayneele]

We are booked on the Miracle for 9/5/09. I can still get into that info on the site.

 

JoAnn

 

I am also going on 9/05/09 Can't wait. But a few days ago I was having a hard time getting it to come up actually. I had to go directly to the Miracle and find it that way. Maybe it is working better today.

 

Can't wait for my 300 + days to be over so I can go cruisin....

[JMS920]

I am also going on 9/05/09 Can't wait. But a few days ago I was having a hard time getting it to come up actually. I had to go directly to the Miracle and find it that way. Maybe it is working better today.

 

Can't wait for my 300 + days to be over so I can go cruisin....

 

I'm with you! Can't wait either. It will be the first cruise my husband has been on with me since a 4 dayer in '89. I have cruised the last 7 Dec. with my girlfriends. We are doing b2b on the inspiration this year.

 

I'm in the bridal business and yesterday I did a fitting on a girl who said she was going to use the gown on a cruise next year. So I asked which line, and which ship.. Well guess what! She's on the Miracle 9/5/09 also. My daughter is part of a wedding party sailing on the Miracle this Sept. I can't wait to hear all the details.

 

JoAnn

[Thirsty Cruiser]

Hi,

 

What is the band like on Mircale right now? Who is the CD?

 

If you mean the band in Frankie and Johnnies, they were very good. The lead singer has an amazing range. The "house" band that plays the shows was very good also, but I have yet to hear a bad one.

 

Josh is the CD for the near future - through October I believe. Great guy and lots of fun.

[nyc_ship_nut]

If you mean the band in Frankie and Johnnies, they were very good. The lead singer has an amazing range. The "house" band that plays the shows was very good also, but I have yet to hear a bad one.

 

Josh is the CD for the near future - through October I believe. Great guy and lots of fun.

 

Just returned from our Miracle cruise, and Brent Mitchell was the CD.

[LauraAnne30]

Did you enjoy the cruise??? I am leaving next friday how was embarkation/disembarkation?

 

Laura:)

[magic&buddy]

I am on the cruise with LauraAnne and would love a review of this most recent cruise:)

[nyc_ship_nut]

Did you enjoy the cruise??? I am leaving next friday how was embarkation/disembarkation?

 

Laura:)

 

Hi Laura - Embarkation/disembarkation were a breeze. Seems to have improved over the summer. Here's my full review. Let me know if you need more info!

 

NSN

 

I have cruised several times before, over a number of years. Our last cruise was on Celebrity, which we really enjoyed. We selected this cruise based on different criteria than in the past: first, I did not want to fly. I travel a lot for work, and could not face a vacation that started at the airport. Second, we wanted at least a 7 day cruise. Finally, we had a couple of weeks in August that worked with our schedules. So only the Carnival Miracle met all of our planning needs. So, I guess Miracle selected itself for us. :D

 

For our vacation, all we wanted was relaxation. I did not really care about the ports, but was excited about the 4 sea days. I love cruising, and this was very appealing to me. So, this fed into my idea that we would be on our cruise for sun, food, rest, and not having to make any decisions at all. Overall, I’d say that we got what we wanted from this cruise.

 

Here are some detailed thoughts:

 

Dining

 

Breakfast (Horatio’s) – we ate continental style breakfast every morning. There were hot selections available (the made to order omelets looked good!), but I never tried them. Good selection of cereals, yogurts, breads and fruit. Don’t expect bananas after the 4th day, as they all go bad, and food is only replenished in NYC. Also, the orange and grapefruit segments are not fresh, which was disappointing. You can get whole fruits, and segment them yourself, but the ones in the buffet taste of preservatives and sugar. Also, don’t expect freshly made bakery products since they seemed to be frozen products. I usually had cereal, yogurt and a piece of fruit. Then I got a latte, and found a space on the back deck to eat. Perfect start of the day! Overall: B+

 

Lunch (Horatio’s) – I had read about some problems with the organization of the buffets. My sense going in was that it would be rather chaotic. So, I was pleasantly surprised that it was organized, and easy to find what I wanted. The selections were good, and I thought the quality and freshness were pretty good. There were always healthy choices to be found. The sandwich station was very popular, as other reviews already noted. The international station was good, and usually offered something interesting to try. I never tried the outdoor grill, but it looked very popular. Overall: A

 

Dinner (Horatio’s) – Only did this twice. Once, I just couldn’t face the dreadfully slow service in the dining room (see below). The other time was when we abandoned our dinner mid-service in Bacchus, and went to Horatio’s to serve ourselves (just before it closed). Both times, I thought that we should eat every dinner in Horatio’s. Although the choices were limited, they were served up fresh and juicy. We got exactly what we wanted, when we wanted it. If I were not the eternal optimist (thinking that the service in Bacchus would get better), we would have eaten in Horatio’s for 7 out of 8 nights. Overall: A

 

Dinner (Bacchus) – Unfortunately, not good. Our service team had too many tables, and too many people to serve. While I am able to complain about service, the staff should also be able to identify and correct problems. It was painfully obvious that our servers were overloaded, and service was continually behind other sections. Why didn’t they (Frankie?) make adjustments? It is not my job to manage the dining room service. I watched Frankie (someone I could do without) berate 2 couples for approaching him for some reason, and decided I did not want to deal with him. I felt bad for our servers, as they seemed to be trying their best. Plus, we were upstairs, so they did not want to make multiple trips down to the galley (not that I blame them). The result is that, once we were served our appetizers, we had to wait until the other 22 people in our section were served. Then the dishes for all 22 were cleared. Then, they went to get 22 entrees from the galley, etc…Just a painfully slow process. It never failed that the section next to us would finish dessert and get their coffee just as we got our entrées. ‘Showtime’ (ugh) would start while we were eating, while the conga line was dancing past us. Not pleasant. Also, I lean toward more healthy food selections. When I select an appetizer of shrimps on green beans, I assume it will be relatively healthy. What I got was green beans mixed with mayonnaise, and shrimps in a glutinous sauce. Usually, I would send it back for a different choice, but we did not have time to do that. Overall: C-

 

Public Rooms – Everyone has already read about the decorations and the grapes, so I won’t go into it here. My only observation is that the ship seemed ‘dark’, and that windows always seemed blocked. I can’t put my finger on it, but it sure seems like bright sunny Caribbean days would reflect inside. But, they didn’t. It was like being in a cave. Not a huge downer, but it would be nice to enjoy the outdoors without having to be in the sun all the time.

 

Cabins – We had #7347, and aft wrap balcony. It was absolutely terrific! If you can get one of these rooms, do it. Perfect layout, with 3 rooms, and the balcony is unbelievable. Loved it, and would do it again in a heartbeat. I have seen a lot of comments about soot, and we did get some black chunks of something on the balcony and furniture. We ended up just putting bath towels over the chairs, and everything was fine. Note that this balcony could get very hot at times. Also, our attendants were great. They took excellent care of us, and were really pleasant. Based on advice from this board, I tipped them on embarkation. Not sure if that got us the service, but we got great service. Additionally, it's at the back of teh ship, where we pretty much stayed. Very convenient to the adult area, and Horatio's. Also very quiet!

 

Entertainment – The shows were fine. I wouldn’t take a cruise for the entertainment anyway. So, it was something to do after dinner. During the days, we did not participate in any of the activities, since we usually just hung out in the adult area, or somewhere quiet.

 

Spa & Fitness – Went to the gym every morning, and really liked the layout and quality of the equipment. I rarely had to wait in line, since I was there by about 6:30a. My only negative relates to my other comments about the ship’s ‘darkness’. There are a lot of windows, but when you get on the cardio machines, you look straight at the curtains. The big ugly curtains do not raise high enough, and they block a very nice view of the ocean. Why have curtains anyway? Do they ever need to be closed? Did not try any services or classes – only used the equipment.

 

Children – No rating, since we have no kids. I will say that, although there were a lot of teens and pre-teens on our cruise, I thought they were very well behaved. I had minor fears of wild children rampaging the ship, but this never occurred.

 

Excursions – Did not purchase any excursions on this cruise.

 

Embarkation – Excellent! We arrived at the pier at about 11:30am, and were on board before 12n. Even though we were VIP, I noticed that all lines moved very quickly. No issues at all.

 

Service – Outside of the dining room (and I feel bad writing that), the service was pretty good.

 

Value for Money – Pretty good. Definitely worth the money for our cabin! The only real issue we had was in the dining room. But trust me, we did not go hungry.

 

Rates – Good compared to RCL out of NYC. It was due to the rates that we could afford to take the category 11 cabin.

 

Other – Debarkation was perfect. We chose to self assist, and were off the ship by 8:15am. We caught a taxi right across the street from the pier, and were home in Harlem before 9am. Can’t complain about that at all.

[LauraAnne30]

NSN - so do you think we should plan on not eating in Horatios? My hubby would be happy not to have to dress in a suit..... OR do you think it depends on the servers???

 

Laura:)

[nyc_ship_nut]

NSN - so do you think we should plan on not eating in Horatios? My hubby would be happy not to have to dress in a suit..... OR do you think it depends on the servers???

 

Laura:)

 

Well, let me clear this up first: Bacchus is the 'formal' dining room. Horatio's is the casual buffet style area.

 

I think the Bacchus experience is totally dependant on the servers, and the size of their station. I also think the lower level (probably) gets food that has not sat around quite as long. Just a guess at that, though. As for the 'formality' of it, it's completely in your control. Most nights are 'cruise casual', which meant nice shorts and collared shirt. Even the 'elegant' nights are easy. I just did black slacks once, and khakis the other. Some people did suits, others did jeans. Ladies usually dressed more elegantly, though.

 

Horatio's is a good alternative to the more formal dining room experience.

 

Did that answer your question? :)

[jimswims]

We just got back from the Miracle as well. we had a great cruise and I will post a full review later.

 

we were also in the upper level of the dining room and had a few slow dinners as well. It got better as the week went on. Our head waitress was very good. She went through 3 assistants on the cruise with the last one making a positive difference.

[MrPete]

We just got back from the Miracle as well. we had a great cruise and I will post a full review later.

 

Jim....

 

I'm looking forward to reading your review. :)

[LauraAnne30]

NSN - thanks it totally did....I think I may scale back slightly on the "really nice" clothes and even tell the hubby he doesn't really need to bring a suit unless he wants to. Thanks....

 

Laura:)

[CarolR]

This was our ninth Carnival cruise and our first out of NYC. Easy drive from Ontario. I found the Carnival staff at the port to be very friendly and helpful and embarkation was the easiest ever. We were on the ship before noon and had our luggage shortly after sailing.

I personally did not like the ship decor - gaudy and strange but that did not affect our cruise experience in any way. The purple grapes dining room is definitely different to say the least.

We are middle aged with grown children so we spent our time at the adult pool. We were pleasantly surprised to see the security staff enforce the "adult only" rule for the pool and spa.

We found the food to be good and tasty at Horatio's and never had difficulty finding something we enjoyed.

Regarding the dining room, we enjoyed our dinners but found our waiter and assistant to be on the slow side and not to the level that we've had on other cruises. The one thing that astounded us on this cruise was the disregard by many other cruisers of the dining times. We had early seating at 6 and our table was close to the front entrance so we could see a constant parade of people arriving as late as 7:15 for dinner. I felt sorry for the staff trying to serve these people in a timely manner and get the tables cleared and ready for second seating. Regarding the dining room food, generally good except we found the quality of the beef not what it used to be. The prime rib was very fatty and steaks tough.

We enjoyed the shows we attended and the band in Frankie and Johnnys was very good.

The one thing we found extremely annoying on the last day of this cruise was regarding the comment cards. They were constantly "encouraging" the passengers to put "exceeds expectations" on the comment cards. Let the passenger complete these cards as they see fit.

 

Overall, a very nice cruise and a good value for the money.

[vanillagurl]

Does the Miracle have connecting balconies? I thought I read somewhere they are, but I was on cruisedeckplans.com and the plans for the room say no connecting balconies. Don't know if it makes a difference but we are on the Verandah deck. The people we are cruising with are next door and would like to open up the balcony.

[jimswims]

Jim....

 

I'm looking forward to reading your review. :)

 

It is quite long so I posted it as a new thread on the Carnival board. We really did enjoy ourselves :D .

[patty123]

It is quite long so I posted it as a new thread on the Carnival board. We really did enjoy ourselves :D .

hey jim glad u enjoyed your cruise but i have been reading about dining how many dining are there and do u have to get dressed formal for all dinner.is these dining diff from the formal night