Just off the Conquest, Bahamas! Had a blast

[TX-JennSalos]

Any questions?

 

Just a few things I noticed about her. The new big screen is no longer blaring CNN all day. In fact I never heard it. Its HUGE and its a nice addition.

 

There is no Mongolian Grill.

The service has gone down, but it didnt ruin my cruise.

The Tuna sandwich from Pauls Deli is very good.

 

Freeport is a tad industrial , but a nice place to visit.

 

Yes there is such a thing as Chocolate Dipped key Lime Pie on a stick, and yes its heavenly!

 

All in all we had a great time, made some great new friends and loved the new ports of call. Had one really really rough sea night and one that was just annoying. I was really starting to wonder if the stabelizers worked on this ship. :)

[mudpievelour]

When you say the service has gone down, in what area and how?

 

Also, can you tell me about your shore excursions?

[Carguylee]

Did yall do an excursions in ports? If yes, what were your thoughts. We are going on this itinerary in 2010, and wondering about them. Thanks!

[pathoman]

is there a sushi bar on it? and if so any good lol

[TX-JennSalos]

We planned all along to walk around and site see in Key West. Its a beautiful city with many many things to do. We saw the Truman White House, The Hemmingway House, (no cats though) we shopped around, went to the mall and saw some parrotts, and the best thing we did in key west was definitely the CHOCOLATE DIPPED KEY LIME PIE ON A STICK!!!! OMG!! was that goooooooood! Everyons should try these. I am going to see if I can ship some home. MMMMMM! The tours for the Truman house and Hemmingway are around $12 per person. We opted not to go in, just to brouse the outside.

 

OHH and I highly highly recommend paying a visit to the Aquarium. Its superb!

Well worth the $12 to get in. They have a touch tank, and it has a ton of really cool sea creatures you can touch, hold, play with, pick up , etc... its too cool. They have a shark tank and a sting ray tank. Many many beautiful fish and a ton of knowledge to be taken in. It was a wonderful tour. Lasts about 45 mins. THere is also a Margaritaville in Key West. Get the Volcano Nachoes. YUMMY!

 

In Freeport we planned on paying a visit to Captn Tony, but we werent released to get off the ship until after 830 and we were not going to have time for his afternoon tour, so we walked around Freeport as well. This in MY OPINION is a wasted port. Its too industrial and kinda poring shopping wise if you dont have an excursion planned. However our table mates at dinner did the Dolphin Encounter and loved it. We took a taxi ride to the shopping area, about $5 PP to get there, and its about a 15 minute drive. There are two big hotels- The Westin and The Sheraton. Both beach front properties, but neither one of the hotels offered anything to ship passengers, only to registerd guests. So I was kinda disapointed there. Nice beach though. Oh and we hit the Isle of Capri Casino too. It was nice.

 

In Nassau, we did the Deep water dolphin swim at Atlantis. Waste of $200 in MY OPINION. The description makes it seem like you take water scooters out to the open ocean or lagoon and swim with these guys. Not so at all. I was very disapointed in this excursion for the money. I had swam with dolphins before in Cozumel and it was WAAAY better, cheaper and more interaction time. With this you were paying for the ATLANTIS name. Big waste of money.

 

So heres what you get for $200. A taxi ride to Atlantis. A 20 minute walk thru Atlantis to this nice covered hut where you are fit for a wet suit. No underwater cameras are allowed. You are given a set of goggles and a snorkle in a leather bag to keep. (big deal) Then you are lead into a room where you watch a video about dolphins and answer trivia questions. (boring) Then your trainer comes in and leads you to the water lagoon. Its a 10 to 12 foot deep pool, with sand on the bottom, made to look like its the ocean. (Im sorry but 10 to 12 feet deep is not DEEP to me) You are given a water fan/scooter to propel you thru the water and it will dive you down deep. So this guy takes you around this football size lagoon using your scooters, you do have a dolphin following you around, but you cant touch this one. (WTH?)

That lasted maybe 10 minutes, then onto the next trainer where you get a boogie board and a foot push from a dolphin. Still cant touch them, they just push you on a boogie board the length of the lagoon. Then onto finally the touching, if you want to call it that, you get to kiss a dolphin and hold it for a picture while it poses. ( picture packages for 4 pictures start at $60) Then three tricks later and your deep water swim with dolphins is over. Now granted this swim was my husbands first swim with dolphins and he really liked it. Like I said before I had swam with dolphins in Cozumel and I still feel that you are paying for the name atlantis and the state park in cozumel does a way better job as far as interaction with the dolphins goes and its cheaper, and all the money goes towards the animals and not to support atlantis.

The food at Atlantis is expensive- We had two hot dogs, two French fries and two bottled waters and it was $16.

 

As far as service on the ship, our room steward was right on, he was perfect, anything we needed, we had. Loved him. We had a balcony stateroom, 6376, on Main Deck, mid ship. Great location. We only heard one club and it was the kids club and it was only open til 11 PM.

The dining room service and the Room service is in need of improvement. Our waiter was a Team Headwaiter, so with that title, I expected him to be johnnie on the spot. We had to ask for coffee several times, our food time was slower than all the other tables and rolls and refills we not prompt. I commented to the assistant maitre d' and she came over to our table the very next night to check on us and I will say this, it was a huge improvement from the night before. HOVERING is the word that comes to mind. Almost too obvious. Well that only lasted on night and then it was back to ho hum service. I even tipped the guys $10 on the hovering night and told them "job well done" Did I let it ruin my cruise, certainly not, did I expect more, oh yah. All of my previous cruises set the service bar way high and well I guess I was spoiled.

 

As for room service, we ordered the same breakfast everyday. 2 bagels cream cheese, grape jelly, hot tea, and hot coffee, oh and 4 cereals with 4 milks. 1 out of the 6 days they forgot the tea bags and the last day they forgot the cups and the tea bags. I will give them this, when I called to ask for these items to be brought to the room, they were there within 5 mins. Way to go!

 

Yes there is a sushi bar on board, its on deck 5 mid ship. Sushi is served from 5:00 to 8:15 every night except Monday, thats the Captains Party, so its closed. They sell saki too, yes its warm. They usually had a selection of 2 rolls and one sashimi. The salmon sashimi and the eel sashimi was very good. You only get 2 pieces of each max but you can come back for seconds. It was good, but not like sushi at home, but sushi at home is not free.

 

Hope I havent busted your bubble too bad. All in all we had a great vacation. We had two very very rough sea nights and I really wanted to get off the boat and just swim home on one of them but it was a great cruise and a wonderful itenerary if you know what to expect ahead of time.

 

Hope this answered all of your questions. Sorry for any type errors. Iam very tired. Trust me when I tell you this, you will welcome the two sea days in a row. NAPS! Take lots of NAPS! You will need them. :)

[mudpievelour]

Hope this answered all of your questions. Sorry for any type errors. Iam very tired. Trust me when I tell you this, you will welcome the two sea days in a row. NAPS! Take lots of NAPS! You will need them. :)

 

Thanks for the info. We are doing this cruise in October, and haven't seen a good review of it yet.

 

We plan to take the trolley on our own in KW so we can get on and off as we please. We've been to Freeport before and the best place on the island is Port Lucaya IMO, so was wondering about excursions.

 

Sorry to hear about the DR service. This was our experience two years ago also, so I guess it hasn't improved much. Room service, though, was VERY good 2 years ago when we sailed. However, we only order 2 coffees and muffins or danish. After we wake up we usually go to the buffet for breakfast, but sometimes we go to the DR.

[tiggerman101]

I had to laugh when I read your enthusiasm for the Key Lime Pie on a stick. We spent 5 days in Key West a couple years ago. I tried one on my first day there and it was all over for me. I had to try one at just about every place that had them. I even tried to convince my partner that we should buy some dry ice or something and take some home in a cooler. Our Fascination Christmas cruise last year stopped in Key West and I just about barreled over people getting off the ship to find the nearest place that sold them. Even now I feel a craving.....

[Texaslandshark]

I was pretty excited when I heard Conquest was doing another route out of Galveston. I told some others who have been to those ports and they pretty much agree with you.

Seems like we'll have to go to Florida to catch a better itinerary.

[Littlegoo75]

Thanks for the review- We board the Conquest in 6 days and I am so excited. Haven't sailed on the Conquest before, but have been on the Valor and Liberty- so I am sure it will be pretty similar. I have always tried to sail on Carnival's newest ship at the time, but now that we live in Houston, I would rather just sail out of Galveston than fly to Miami just to sail on a brand new ship. How does she look after the refurbishment? Does it have a new ship feel to it?

 

Do you remember what movies they showed at the Seaside Theater? My father in law is looking forward to that.

 

Also, my mother in law is "married" to a couple of tv shows, and I would hate for her to have to miss them. She must watch Dancing w/the Stars and Desperate Housewives. If a show is ususally on at 7pm in Houston, what time does it show on the ship's tv?

 

Also, I am addicted to "LOST" and have never missed an episode (even on past cruises) and I really don't want to miss it (although, it won't ruin my cruise if I do).

 

Now, you said some of the service went down in qualify...how about the food quality?

 

Thanks!

[TX-JennSalos]

I had to laugh when I read your enthusiasm for the Key Lime Pie on a stick. We spent 5 days in Key West a couple years ago. I tried one on my first day there and it was all over for me. I had to try one at just about every place that had them. I even tried to convince my partner that we should buy some dry ice or something and take some home in a cooler. Our Fascination Christmas cruise last year stopped in Key West and I just about barreled over people getting off the ship to find the nearest place that sold them. Even now I feel a craving.....

 

I had heard about them, but I thought that it was possibly someone teasing me, that it had to be too good to be true. But I did keep one eye out for it and when I saw the sign for it I nearly peed myself I was so excited. :D

 

I saved the wrapper and I believe there is a website on there. I will let you know when I finally dig it out of my still packed luggagge.

 

Took today off to recoop from my vacation. I still cant get the room to stop rocking. That last rough sea night just about did me in.

[TX-JennSalos]

Thanks for the review- We board the Conquest in 6 days and I am so excited. Haven't sailed on the Conquest before, but have been on the Valor and Liberty- so I am sure it will be pretty similar. I have always tried to sail on Carnival's newest ship at the time, but now that we live in Houston, I would rather just sail out of Galveston than fly to Miami just to sail on a brand new ship. How does she look after the refurbishment? Does it have a new ship feel to it?

 

Do you remember what movies they showed at the Seaside Theater? My father in law is looking forward to that.

 

Also, my mother in law is "married" to a couple of tv shows, and I would hate for her to have to miss them. She must watch Dancing w/the Stars and Desperate Housewives. If a show is ususally on at 7pm in Houston, what time does it show on the ship's tv?

 

Also, I am addicted to "LOST" and have never missed an episode (even on past cruises) and I really don't want to miss it (although, it won't ruin my cruise if I do).

 

Now, you said some of the service went down in qualify...how about the food quality?

 

Thanks!

 

 

I too am addicted to LOST and I couldnt find it. The TV stations are all Colorado stations, so all we heard/watched/saw was the news about more snow. Why this ship uses a CO station as their main news source is beyond me. TX has some great news channels and HELLO its local so you will know what to wear off the ship!

 

I would plan to TIVO everything. Why would you go on vacation to watch TV? Delaying one week wont hurt too bad. In fact I plan to catch up on my delayed LOST episode today. :)

 

The Conquest is a beautiful ship. I never noticed it not being clean, or cleaned. Three pools, a water slide, all the clubs you could ever want, a huge casino, two beautiful main dining rooms, a great (extra charge) restaurant called the POINT ($30 PP to eat great straks), 4 to 6 hot tubs, a spa, workout room, beautiful light fixtures in almost every level of the ship. I cant say enough good things about this ship. I would say- allow yourself one hour to walk the entire ship and take pictures. You will walk aaway with some great shots.

 

The food was very good. I was especially excited to get the Chocolate melting cake that everyone has been raving about but I was disapointed. I was expecting something simmiular to CHILIS melting lava bunt cake but this was more of a half baked chocolate cake in a souffle dish. Not my favorite dessert. NOW The Grand Marnier Cake with vanilla sauce you will have a choice of on the last dining night was SUPERB! Oh and the Chocolate Buffet was on Sat afternoon.

 

You will have a blast! These 6 days will come very fast. Have fun and update me when you get back.

[TX-JennSalos]

I was pretty excited when I heard Conquest was doing another route out of Galveston. I told some others who have been to those ports and they pretty much agree with you.

Seems like we'll have to go to Florida to catch a better itinerary.

 

My Dh and I were discussing this last night, and I really think we had more fun on the Cozumel, Jamaica, GC tour. We will definitely be booking that again. We just loved the sting ray swim in GC.

[NOLA_Cruiser88]

We just got off the same boat.. Got engaged on the cruise.. (NO Im not the guy that did it on stage)

 

Loved the trip... Easily the best vacation I have been on. Im currently swaying though due to the rough day on Friday. Sorry but something must be wrong.. 7.5 foot seas should be easy for that boat to handle.. Embarkation was AWEFUL! 3 hours to get on the ship? Loved everything else though.

 

Ship: Beautiful other than the bad stabalizers. Had an inside cabin and I was very suprised how nice it was. Even won money in the casino..

 

Crew: Steward was outstanding the first night our waitress was horrid. However the second night we moved tables because they sat us on the couch section of the tables and you sunk to where you needed a booster seat to eat.. Waitress didnt like us moving but we got a new waiter and he was great! Im hesitant to eat breakfast in the dining room because the service outside of dinner was just bad.. But the food was good.

 

Food: Dining room food exceeded my expectations. However the buffet food was good the first day but pretty bad the rest of the trip. Pizza was good and the sushi was good too. Never got to eat at PC Wok because they seemed to always be closed.

 

Ports:

Key West was beautiful we went on a snorkling trip which I inhaled too much salt water from the 4 food chop but it was a fun trip

 

Freeport: Port was ugly but we only stayed there long enough to cacth bus to excursion.. Did the Kayaking Adventure.. 6.5 hour tour and it was GREAT! The beach they took us to was amazing and we saw lots of fish especially puffer fish kayaking through the mangroves. Probaly my favorite day on the trip. Shopping here (at port) was too expensive and pretty bad.

 

Nassau: Did the Yellowbird and had a blast.. Very nice island they took us too and we snorkled and saw alot of fish on the rock in 3 feet of water.. Even saw a octopus. This was a great day with just enough beach time and plenty of booze. lol Incredible value of 35 through carnival.

[Carguylee]

I'm getting a little worried about this alternitive route also, seems like the excursions arn't as many as the Coz, GC, Jam route and not as good. We picked this one for the fact that it went differnt places than we had been too. Hopefully it will be good!

[renalrn]

I was on the innagural trip of Conquest in Feb. of this itin. and loooved it!

Key West: Fabulous. Rented an electric car, more like a 4 seater golf cart. Saw more of the island because of this. Mel Fischer treasure museum was my favorite, Kermits pies will ship you those pies on dry ice.

Freeport- Hellhole. I will stay on the ship the next time here.

Nassau- Great. Shopped, bought a 20 dollar day pass to the British Colonial Hilton to use their beach and pool.

 

Desperate Housewives season ended with Edie dying ( I thought, could be wrong...)

I'd do this itin. again in a heart beat, just want them to replace Freeport with another Key West day or possibly Cuba if that legislation passes.

[NOLA_Cruiser88]

"Freeport- Hellhole. I will stay on the ship the next time here"

 

I have seen people say this many times on this board and I will say its COMPLETLY wrong. The beach we visited was the most beautiful I have ever seen. Just do some research and take an excursion. The absolute worst thing you can do there is stay on the boat because where it docks is horrible and the shopping by the boat is worse. I highly recommend anything that takes you to the National Park Beach. The Bahama Nature Tours were great.

[SkiAz4Free]

Thanks for the review- We board the Conquest in 6 days and I am so excited. Haven't sailed on the Conquest before, but have been on the Valor and Liberty- so I am sure it will be pretty similar. I have always tried to sail on Carnival's newest ship at the time, but now that we live in Houston, I would rather just sail out of Galveston than fly to Miami just to sail on a brand new ship. How does she look after the refurbishment? Does it have a new ship feel to it?

 

Do you remember what movies they showed at the Seaside Theater? My father in law is looking forward to that.

 

Also, my mother in law is "married" to a couple of tv shows, and I would hate for her to have to miss them. She must watch Dancing w/the Stars and Desperate Housewives. If a show is ususally on at 7pm in Houston, what time does it show on the ship's tv?

 

Also, I am addicted to "LOST" and have never missed an episode (even on past cruises) and I really don't want to miss it (although, it won't ruin my cruise if I do).

 

Now, you said some of the service went down in qualify...how about the food quality?

 

Thanks!

 

Hey there! First time here on this forum, and it looks like we'll be sailing together! My wife and I head out from Colorado on Friday and will be spending a few nights with friends in Galveston.

 

We've never been on a cruise, and we've never been to the Caribbean. I recently had knee surgery, so I'm looking forward to relaxing, but also want to make the most of the port calls.

 

The Montego zip line is out, as well as the Grand Cayman scuba trip, so we're not sure what we will end up doing. Any reccomendations?

 

Do all of you book your excursions through the cruise? I've already found a few instances where it's a little (only slightly) cheaper to do it yourself through the actual companies, but can't tell what the pros/cons are.

 

We were smart and upgraded to a deluxe balcoony suite about a week before I blew out my knee, going to need that extra space now I think, as well as the VIP boarding. I've been hearing bad things about trying to get on the ship.

 

We're REALLY looking forward to this vacation, we soooo need it!

[txcruzr]

I've seen a couple of posts that the current CD (Chris?) was not-so-good... any thoughts on this from your trip last week? We'll be on the 4/19 sailing.

 

Thanks!

[ctnecruisers]

We were on the March 15th trip and had a great time. In KW I booked a private fishing guide so I did not do anything in town. My wife did the trolly thing and thought it was great. In freeport we did Capt. Tony's snorkel trip. The weather was bad and a large number of people were sea sick. The snorleling was tough due to the rough water. Had the weather cooperated, it would have been great. In Nassau, we did the dolphin swim at Paradise Cove. The dolphin swim was great but afterwards we barely had time to look at and purchase our photos. The Conquest is a very nice ship. We had a great time. I recommend The Point Supper Club. We went one night and it was a true dinning experience. Worth the money in my opinion.

[Catfishhhh@aol.com]

Small world we were across the hall in 6374 and 6378 You might have heard the college boys playing PS3 at night they got a little loud sometimes. Our room was cleaned by a guy from India who did a good job and did leave us towel animals every night. We agree the food was not as good as we remember. But the BBQ ribs they had on two nights was the best. Formal night,Friday, was the bad ride we had we heard the stabilizers went out and that was why it was so bad. Really enjoyed the cruise,food,and entertainment, but food was cold several times on the buffet line. It was also the same food every morning,except when they took the sausage, cut it up, and tried to mix it with gravy for something different. I liked the round tater tots much better than the hash browns with onions. We liked Key West the best. We walked all the way down Duvall St. In Freeport we caught a cab to Isle Of Capri went to the casino then across the street to the market. Nassau took a cab to Atlantis, walked around the free parts then walked next door to the RUI and the free beach stayed awhile took pictures went back to the ship. Overall had a great time didn't take any excursions this time just tried it on our own. Never felt unsafe except at the straw market in Nassau several trying to sell drugs. Police standing on there pedestals directing traffic in there crisp white uniforms and white hats were a sight to see. When we got off the ship in Nassau we walked to the end of the pier and went straight, instead of turning to the right to go into the terminal. We told the Military guard we wanted to get our passports stamped so he directed us into the building, down the hall, last door on the right to get our passports stamped. They were happy to do it. Booked again in January as soon as we got home. Have fun

[ciship]

Small world we were across the hall in 6374 and 6378 You might have heard the college boys playing PS3 at night they got a little loud sometimes. Our room was cleaned by a guy from India who did a good job and did leave us towel animals every night. We agree the food was not as good as we remember. But the BBQ ribs they had on two nights was the best. Formal night,Friday, was the bad ride we had we heard the stabilizers went out and that was why it was so bad. Really enjoyed the cruise,food,and entertainment, but food was cold several times on the buffet line. It was also the same food every morning,except when they took the sausage, cut it up, and tried to mix it with gravy for something different. I liked the round tater tots much better than the hash browns with onions. We liked Key West the best. We walked all the way down Duvall St. In Freeport we caught a cab to Isle Of Capri went to the casino then across the street to the market. Nassau took a cab to Atlantis, walked around the free parts then walked next door to the RUI and the free beach stayed awhile took pictures went back to the ship. Overall had a great time didn't take any excursions this time just tried it on our own. Never felt unsafe except at the straw market in Nassau several trying to sell drugs. Police standing on there pedestals directing traffic in there crisp white uniforms and white hats were a sight to see. When we got off the ship in Nassau we walked to the end of the pier and went straight, instead of turning to the right to go into the terminal. We told the Military guard we wanted to get our passports stamped so he directed us into the building, down the hall, last door on the right to get our passports stamped. They were happy to do it. Booked again in January as soon as we got home. Have fun

 

 

You mention your boys were playing PlayStation in their cabins?? They have PS in the cabins now??

[cruisedarling]

We were on the March 15th trip and had a great time. In KW I booked a private fishing guide so I did not do anything in town. My wife did the trolly thing and thought it was great. In freeport we did Capt. Tony's snorkel trip. The weather was bad and a large number of people were sea sick. The snorleling was tough due to the rough water. Had the weather cooperated, it would have been great. In Nassau, we did the dolphin swim at Paradise Cove. The dolphin swim was great but afterwards we barely had time to look at and purchase our photos. The Conquest is a very nice ship. We had a great time. I recommend The Point Supper Club. We went one night and it was a true dinning experience. Worth the money in my opinion.

 

The main thing we want to do in the Bahamas is a dolphin swim. Can you tell me more about the swim at Paradise Cove. The OP said the Atlantis swim wasn't too great for the price. We have been to Chankanaab Park in Cozumel and enjoyed it. How did you get the excursion? Was it with Carnival or on your own? Anything you can tell will be appreciated. Thanks in advance.:p

[20yranniversary]

Hi. My husband and I are going to the Bahamas 7/12. Thus far, there are no scuba excursions for pre-sale. Can you tell me if they were offered on your cruise at Freeport and Nassau? Also, what can we take to prevent dizziness while onboard? Thanks

[Shorty1007]

"Freeport- Hellhole. I will stay on the ship the next time here"

 

I have seen people say this many times on this board and I will say its COMPLETLY wrong. The beach we visited was the most beautiful I have ever seen. Just do some research and take an excursion. The absolute worst thing you can do there is stay on the boat because where it docks is horrible and the shopping by the boat is worse. I highly recommend anything that takes you to the National Park Beach. The Bahama Nature Tours were great.

 

We just got off the same cruise and we went to the Viva Wyndham Fortuna beach and it was great. I read some reviews on the internet from people that had spent a week there and was a little concerned, but it is great for a day. Great beach and pool. Drinks were free flowing after 10:30am and very strong. All food was free. They had a hamburger bar on the beach that we didn't use, and they had a buffet inside. It was okay. I would suggest this excursion in Freeport.

[Shorty1007]

I've seen a couple of posts that the current CD (Chris?) was not-so-good... any thoughts on this from your trip last week? We'll be on the 4/19 sailing.

 

Thanks!

 

 

I think he was fine. Nothing to write home about. I did notice that he used some of the same jokes that the cruise director on our last cruise on the Conquest used. I think that may be a Carnival standard that they need to change with so many repeat cruisers.