Glory 6/14 Western review

[impcinder]

Carnival Glory review 6/14/08 Western Caribbean Sailing

 

Background information: Myself and DH – early 50’s, DD 25, DD 22, DD friend 22. This was our 8th cruise, most recent: Carnival Glory (Western) summer 05, Carnival Miracle (Western) summer 06, Carnival Liberty (Eastern) summer 07. We had two cabins 7317 Cat 11 and 8397 cat 8C.

Embarkation: Since we had a suite, we were able to bypass the line and check in with VIP status. On the past three cruises, we had a suite – Skipper Club/VIP status and we were able to have our paperwork checked and receive room keys together as VIP (all S&S cards were connected to one credit card). This time, we were not able to use the VIP facilities, but were placed at the front of the non VIP check in line. Total time from entering the building to entering the ship – 15 minutes.

 

Suite – could not enter our room until after 1:15 pm, than we meet our cabin attendant – Antonio (Indonesia) and found the room in order, some minor wear and tear. Suite layout and furnishings were identical to the one on the Miracle and Liberty. Bathroom and dressing area were also identical. Our cabin attendant did nothing out of the ordinary, but DH and I are neat and the room could have been straightened in less than 10 minutes. We had towel animals each night, our DDs did not. According to Carnival – towel animals may be provided.

Our documents showed the itinerary (in order) to be: Sea Day, Cozumel, Belize, Roatan, Sea Day, and Freeport. Thanks to Cruise Critic, we knew the order had been changed, Roatan, Belize. A number of passengers were unaware of the change unless they attended the “Port Shopping” talk.

Cozumel – Fortunately, the ship docked at the downtown pier and we had a very short walk to the dive shop. We did a private SCUBA excursion. Please email me for details about this wonderful 2 tank dive! We were treated like royalty! The ship had to return to Cozumel (2 hour delay) to disembark a passenger. From the balcony we were not able to determine age/gender of the person on the stretcher. But 6 other people and what seemed to be a mountain of luggage also left the ship.

 

Roatan – We docked about an hour late due to the Cozumel return. First impression was Roatan was a developing port. A ‘tourist village/shopping village’ was in the construction process at the end of the pier. There were numerous vendors within the fenced port area. Outside of the port area were many shops.

 

We used Carnival’s SCUBA excursion; Anthony’s Key Resort (AKR). The divers met in the Amber lounge and had to wait until the ship docked and cleared customs before completing the necessary dive paperwork. It took about 60 minutes to complete and check all documentation – and then we boarded buses to the resort. Because AKR called on Sunday to check for sizes for rental equipment for DD22 – it was on the dive boat awaiting her! (a time saver!) AKR requested any diver who did not dive in Cozumel to do a buoyancy check prior to leaving. At the dive site, 14 people entered the water, one dive master in front of the group and one in the back. (We are not fans of ‘cattleboat’ dives and after our four person private dive in Cozumel, the dive seemed crowded.) The dives were interesting, on the second dive we saw huge groupers. Equipment was in good condition and the dive masters were helpful.

 

We had planned to shop for mahogany souvenirs after we dropped our dive equipment back on the ship; but because of the delay, DD25 stayed and shopped. She was able to purchase some gorgeous and relatively inexpensive wood pieces. I wish I could have participated in this adventure!

 

Belize – You have to tender to this port as the ship anchors about 4 or 5 miles from land. We purchased the Xunantunich Mayan Site excursion from Carnival. We met in the Amber Lounge, given an excursion sticker and met the first tender.

 

We traveled to the site in an air conditioned motor coach and listened to an interesting and informative talk by the tour director. It was about a two hour drive to the ruins, the time past quickly. The drive though Belize City was interesting and the countryside was colorful.

 

Upon arrival, bottled water was provided, and we were transported across the river on a hand powered ferry! (About a 2 minute ride) A van took half of the group up the hill to the site entrance. (Bathrooms and small souvenir shops were available.) A short climb up the hill brought us to Xuantunich. Part of the site was excavated, part was in ruins, and part still needed to be excavated. There were some similarities to Tulum and Chichen Itza but smaller. Information about the site and Mayan culture was given by the tour guide. You could climb, with the guide, to the top of the pyramid; an easier climb was to the side of the pyramid. For those who did not want to climb, there was a shaded shelter with picnic tables. A walk back down the hill to the entrance where you could use the bathroom, shop and ride the van back to the ferry. After crossing the river, road side vendors offered you their wares.

 

On the way back to Belize City, an authentic Belizean lunch was provided at a resort. The included plated meal consisted of baked chicken, rice and beans and coleslaw. One small glass of fruit juice was included. If you were a fast eater, you had time to use the bathroom (Warning: 1 stall for females!) and shop. Our tour guide recommended the Cashew Wine for purchase– Yummy!

 

We arrived back at the port about 30 minutes before the last tender. Had a few minutes to shop – DD22 and friend discovered a good deal on Coach purses. The shopping village was within the fenced port area. The tender line was looong, but moved quickly – while waiting had the opportunity to shop.

 

Freeport – The shipped docked in an industrial area, but there were a few tourist shops and cab service available. We planned our own excursion to Paradise Point (not offered by Carnival). The only problem was the cab/van would not leave until at least 11 people were interested in the trip. To be able to do this excursion, we had to compromise time at the beach and a stop at Lucaya village for shopping.

 

Paradise Point was breathtaking! The Bahamians are serious about protecting their reefs. Before we could enter the water to snorkel, we were given a very detailed briefing on where we could stop, walk and snorkel. You could walk on the sand and rocky bottom, stop and put your feet on the sea grass (not permitted to walk on it) and snorkel over the reefs. Snorkeling equipment and water sport vehicles were available for rent. Food and beverages were available for purchase.

 

On the way back to the ship, we stopped at Lucaya village for about an hour to shop. The village itself had upscale shops, but a small tent area sold inexpensive Bahaman souvenirs.

 

Entertainment – Mark Price was the cruise director, however due to an injury, we only saw him at the opening show, excursion talk and disembarkation talk. 8-(

 

The Opening show – identical to the shows we saw in 05, 06 and 07 – time for a change! The Carnival show - about 1/3 of the songs changed. Comedians were good at the family shows, did not attend the adult show. One show was canceled, the performer missed the ship!

This was the first time drink staff circulated on the balcony prior and during the enterainment.

 

A variety of music to appeal to most tastes were available in the different venues.

 

Casino – DD22 and friend were asked for IDs, on the past three cruises she was never asked. At her age, she felt insulted to be asked. (to be so young!) Someone must have complained, but the floor attendant was very respectful and cordial. DD22 said she had her revenge – she won $65 on the slot machines with a $2 stake.

 

Pool – crowded on Sea Days, I wish Carnival would have an adult only pool – I don’t like to have ‘cannonballs’ next to me! Chairs around the pool seemed to be used by towels and not people. We didn’t experience any difficulties in finding five chairs as long as we weren’t close to the pool. According to the purser – it was a full sailing and their were over 900 children on board.

 

Dining - IMHO, this is where Carnival is slipping in quality by lowering their standards.

 

Red Sails (buffet) breakfast – same daily assortment served at lukewarm temperature. I put butter on my French toast as soon as I placed it on my plate – it never melted! Potatoes were not hot by the time you sat down. Fresh made omelets were delicious! Lunch – only had lunch on the two Sea Days. We were looking forward to fish and chips, very disappointing. Both days, the fish tasted as if it was reheated – very greasy and not very hot. Dinner – seemed to have 75% of the dining room menu available – we did not eat dinner at the buffet.

 

Platinum Dining Room – In the past, the serving team consisted of three individuals and it seemed they were responsible for less than 15 people. On this cruise our serving duo were responsible for 2 two-tops, 3 four-tops and 1 eight-top; a total of 24 diners. I don’t know if Carnival expects a certain percentage of diners as ‘no shows’ or we just had inexperienced wait staff, but this was a low point. On previous cruises, the wait staff had time to talk with you – I always was interested in learning about their home country/family, etc. It seemed the wait staff had only time to serve the food. We found the food to be mediocre and served at room temperature. Chilled soups were never cold, hot soups were warm and the main course was lukewarm. Our table of eight was always the last to be served.

We had an opportunity to speak with the Matre’D during diner (Cozumel port day) as the dining room was 1/3 – ½ empty. We mentioned how many diners our wait staff had to serve. The response was everyone would rotate stations and next week they would have less people to serve.

 

On the second formal night, prime rib was a choice, it seemed that a number of diners ordered that as their main course. From our seats at the table, we watched the plated food be delivered to the wait station and then served one table at a time. Each table was offered sour cream, horseradish and au jus. Our plates sat at the station 10 minutes before being served, no wonder the food was not hot. Did we leave the dining room hungry? No, there was plenty of food. We were just disappointed in the quality.

 

I talked with other passengers who had a more positive dining experience – this was either their first or they had cruised recently. I would be curious to discover if anyone else had the same dining experience.

 

Disembarkation – Your cabin attendant delivered tags with your disembarkation number. Again, we had VIP status but received #6 – the same as the inside cabin across the hall. I don’t think this was a VIP perk. Numbers and decks (for self disembarkation) were called at the same time. It seems to me the floors started at the top. Our tag number and deck was called at the same time, we were off the ship by 7:30 am.

Overall, it was a wonderful vacation. We didn’t let small mishaps put a negative aspect on the vacation. Would we go again? Probably.

[cjkumbaya]

Thanks for posting your review. Hate that you had some issues but at least they were not too serious. Glad that your overall experience was a good one!:)

[MamaParrotHead]

Thanks for the review. My only question was about your recollection of 3 person serving teams...when we sailed Valor in '05, we only had a head water and 1 assistant, and same when we sailed Triumph in '07. Strange. And we've had 2 different experiences as far as waitstaff taking time to chat...our head waiter on Valor wasn't real friendly, barely said a word. However the assistant was a blast. Both servers on Triumph were really nice and provided great service. I think the temp of your food also depends on where you're seated in the server's area in relation to the station. Both times we've been seated directly next to the station and haven't had a problem.

[impcinder]

I just checked my photo scrap books, the last time we had a 3 person wait team was the Carnival Destiny in '99 and Carnival Spirit '01. We had two person teams in '05, '06, and '07 but they had less diners.

 

I guess this is one method Carnival is using to keep costs affordable.