June Triumph cruisers

[malittlefoot971]

OK let's start with weather. It was sunny in NYC but with the breeze as we sailed, it was much more comfortable to be indoors. We had air temps of mid 60's so I didn't spend much time outdoors, though lots of people did (I saw them on my way to and from the Lido deck). Bravely wearing hoodies and towels and robes, they sat and gathered what little sun we had. Weather in St. John started nice but got cloudy and rained just as we set sail. One night it was so cold the Lido party (A Mexican theme) was moved indoors. (Although they did do the hairy chest contest outdoors). It was hazy mostly until yesterday and then the fog got so heavy they had to blow the horn periodically. If you were indoors it wasn't as bad (except in the gym which is right underneath the horn).

Movies I saw advertised--Beverly Hills Chihuahua.

 

I thought the other entertainment average (I saw the comic and the dancing show on the 1st 2 nights--skipped the magician and 2nd dancing show). The cruise director is Jorge and he is FABULOUS! Funny and charming, he really knows how to work the audience. Go to anything he introduces just to hear him.

Dinner--first full day at sea was formal night and that's when they served lobster. My inlaws ate in the Lido that night and didn't see lobster (not that it wasn't there, but they didn't see it). DH had it and claimed it was very good. I had filet one night and that was also very good. Overall I thought the food well worth the price!

 

We did not book excursions through the ship--just made our own walking tour. I read about the "inside connection" on here and can recommend it for anyone traveling with those who can't walk uphill real well. Start at the market at the bottom of the hill and take a series of escalators and pedestrian bridges to the City Market at the top of the hill. Great shopping all the way up and you can see the historical sites at the top (park and burial ground). Then you can take a leisurely walk back to the bottom of the hill where the ship awaits.

 

Cell phone--worked well. We have AT&T and we had coverage until in international waters, then the Cellular At Sea carrier kicks in. Check your plan to see if you will incur international charges for it. We were able to text each other when separated on the ship and that was convenient.

 

Embarkation is the one area I give low marks. There was a huge line no matter what your cabin number. We easily waited an hour to be called. Once called you had a short wait to get into the ship. (Probably because all the travel agents were leaving as we were entering). I think they were short handed at the desk. There were obvious gaps where extra tellers could have sat. We did park at the pier. Managed a spot right next to the ship and paid $120 to park for the 4 days. We docked one spot over, so DH had to fetch the car and bring it over to us but otherwise that was smooth. (OK, it did take 45 minutes to get through Lincoln tunnel and enter the pier but it's not like we had to drive through all of NYC to get there). We handed our large bags to a porter and they were in our room within 2 hours. Disembarking is really great. If you can carry your bags you don't have to use the service where they take your bags the night before and you have to search through a pile of numbered ones to find your own. Leaving the ship was much easier than entering.

 

OK, I think that answers your questions. I'm sure there will be more detailed posts coming. Have a great trip!

 

Connie

 

 

I have to agree with you 100%!!! He was Piss your pants funny! I know if I hadn't "gone" before going to the welcome aboard and newlywed game shows I would have left a puddle on the floor.

 

I finally have all the pics I want to use for my review uploaded (60 something of them) and will start typing my book tomorrow. Thanks to the wonderful face up blackjack table and getting up early I need to make up for the 4-6 hours of sleep I got each night.

[Sunniedays]

Glad to see some reviews. Can you let us know if Carnival is still giving the goodies of razor, toothpaste, etc. Shampoo in shower? Also, is there a hair dryer? Thanks

[patseacruiser]

Embarkation - we arrived at about 11 am. parked our car for $120 which they collected in cash or credit card as we arrived. you stop and open your trunk after payment and an officer comes over with his dog and sniffs your trunk. we parked and walked a short way to an elevator which took us down to the terminal. porter takes your bag. terminal was clean and lines to get your pass were short. we waited about 15 minutes and were headed to the gangplank. the rooms were already open and we went and dropped off our carry ons. the lido deck was very crowded but we grabbed some lunch and headed off to explore. weather in nyc was beautiful and we were to leave port at 5 pm. at 4:30 we had muster drill which was long and hot shoved against the wall 5 deep. they did not take attendance like they do on the other lines. as we were at muster our ship started to leave. we quickly headed up to see the statue of liberty and sailing under the verrazano. however, we had early seating at dinner and didn't get to see the VZ but did notice as we were ordering dinner that we were passing under it. quickly the weather turned much colder and our balcony was pretty much unusable during the trip unless you wanted to wrap yourself in a blanket and sit out there and read. seas were very calm - the calmest i have ever been on in the atlantic. it did turn foggy and was foggy most of the time. one of the members here did have an aft balcony and i didn't find the same conditions there as ours. cruise director, Jorge, was very funny. There was a song and dance show on 'cruise elegant' night which was nice but magic and last nights show you could have skipped. movies in room was slumdog millionaire, bridewars, twilight, get smart, beverly hills chihuahua. i did see wall-e playing on the big screen but i don't know what else. it was too cold in my estimation to sit there and some people i saw with the heavy blankets from their beds. i'm sure their cabin stewards were so happy about that. the hot tubs were full with people who sat there the whole time to watch the movie. public hot tubs are so clean. LOL the night they served lobster they also served duck and prime rib so some people ordered all three. the first night they served bbq ribs which everyone at my table that did order it raved about. temps in the pool were cold except for the mid pool which was heated but maybe it was heated by all the kids swimming in their diapers - yuck. luggage was delivered to our rooms in a very timely manner. the cruise elegant night was the night of the first sea day which was day 2. we took an excursion thru shore trips - ask for trina - to the bay of fundy. because we took a private tour we were able to get out right away and they knew the tides and we were able to get into the sea caves. by the time the ship's busses arrived the caves were inaccessible. it was a very nice tour - included city tour, reversing tides. NOTE: if you're taking a private excursion there is an hour time difference so if you're excursion says 9:30 the ships time is 8:30 so remember to get off 1 hour earlier than your private excursion time. cell phone worked but check the rates at like $8 a minute. internet service is 75 cents per minute. disembarkation: i carried my own luggage. walk forward before getting into the elevator because you can not cut through on deck 3 where the gangway is because of the closed dining room midship. so walk forward and then go to 3 - you may have to go up and then down to get the elevator. we went to paris dining room for breakfast at 6:30 when they opened. small line but moved quickly. we went back and got our luggage at about 7:30 and were in our car by 8:15. no lines leaving at that time but we did come into a different pier so had to walk over to the other pier to our car. not that far but if you're parked at the end of the lot and make that mistake it could be a longer walk than you wanted to take. so take note of where you park - pier and section.

on a side note, the entire midship elevators were out of service most of the trip. the lido deck food was terrible in my opinion but i do give props to the main dining room's food. it was much better than i expected and better than royal caribbean's food of late. the warm chocolate melting cake is available every night for dessert - thank goodness - don't miss it. 1/2 the beverage machines on lido didn't work which was annoying because then it made a bigger line at the working machines which very rarely had cups on them. i think that covers it for a quick review since i know others from our trip will be doing longer ones. if i can answer anything else feel free to email me.

[patseacruiser]

p.s. - yes there is still razors and toothpaste in the bathroom.

[MrPete]

Embarkation - we arrived at about 11 am. parked our car for $120 which they collected in cash or credit card as we arrived. you stop and open your trunk after payment and an officer comes over with his dog and sniffs your trunk. we parked and walked a short way to an elevator which took us down to the terminal. porter takes your bag. terminal was clean and lines to get your pass were short. we waited about 15 minutes and were headed to the gangplank. the rooms were already open and we went and dropped off our carry ons. the lido deck was very crowded but we grabbed some lunch and headed off to explore. weather in nyc was beautiful and we were to leave port at 5 pm. at 4:30 we had muster drill which was long and hot shoved against the wall 5 deep. they did not take attendance like they do on the other lines. as we were at muster our ship started to leave. we quickly headed up to see the statue of liberty and sailing under the verrazano. however, we had early seating at dinner and didn't get to see the VZ but did notice as we were ordering dinner that we were passing under it. quickly the weather turned much colder and our balcony was pretty much unusable during the trip unless you wanted to wrap yourself in a blanket and sit out there and read. seas were very calm - the calmest i have ever been on in the atlantic. it did turn foggy and was foggy most of the time. one of the members here did have an aft balcony and i didn't find the same conditions there as ours. cruise director, Jorge, was very funny. There was a song and dance show on 'cruise elegant' night which was nice but magic and last nights show you could have skipped. movies in room was slumdog millionaire, bridewars, twilight, get smart, beverly hills chihuahua. i did see wall-e playing on the big screen but i don't know what else. it was too cold in my estimation to sit there and some people i saw with the heavy blankets from their beds. i'm sure their cabin stewards were so happy about that. the hot tubs were full with people who sat there the whole time to watch the movie. public hot tubs are so clean. LOL the night they served lobster they also served duck and prime rib so some people ordered all three. the first night they served bbq ribs which everyone at my table that did order it raved about. temps in the pool were cold except for the mid pool which was heated but maybe it was heated by all the kids swimming in their diapers - yuck. luggage was delivered to our rooms in a very timely manner. the cruise elegant night was the night of the first sea day which was day 2. we took an excursion thru shore trips - ask for trina - to the bay of fundy. because we took a private tour we were able to get out right away and they knew the tides and we were able to get into the sea caves. by the time the ship's busses arrived the caves were inaccessible. it was a very nice tour - included city tour, reversing tides. NOTE: if you're taking a private excursion there is an hour time difference so if you're excursion says 9:30 the ships time is 8:30 so remember to get off 1 hour earlier than your private excursion time. cell phone worked but check the rates at like $8 a minute. internet service is 75 cents per minute. disembarkation: i carried my own luggage. walk forward before getting into the elevator because you can not cut through on deck 3 where the gangway is because of the closed dining room midship. so walk forward and then go to 3 - you may have to go up and then down to get the elevator. we went to paris dining room for breakfast at 6:30 when they opened. small line but moved quickly. we went back and got our luggage at about 7:30 and were in our car by 8:15. no lines leaving at that time but we did come into a different pier so had to walk over to the other pier to our car. not that far but if you're parked at the end of the lot and make that mistake it could be a longer walk than you wanted to take. so take note of where you park - pier and section.

on a side note, the entire midship elevators were out of service most of the trip. the lido deck food was terrible in my opinion but i do give props to the main dining room's food. it was much better than i expected and better than royal caribbean's food of late. the warm chocolate melting cake is available every night for dessert - thank goodness - don't miss it. 1/2 the beverage machines on lido didn't work which was annoying because then it made a bigger line at the working machines which very rarely had cups on them. i think that covers it for a quick review since i know others from our trip will be doing longer ones. if i can answer anything else feel free to email me.

 

OH MY :eek:

 

Too bad this was written this way. I would have loved to have read it!

[krissy72]

Do they still have robes in all the rooms?

[patseacruiser]

there were 2 robes in the room

[krissy72]

Is is possible to drop off the rest of my family at the terminal along with the luggage before I park the car and walk back? Do they have valet parking?

[crusinmama06]

Is is possible to drop off the rest of my family at the terminal along with the luggage before I park the car and walk back? Do they have valet parking?

 

I didn't notice the valet parking. But I did notice that you can drop your bags and family off at the terminal and then go park. The security at the parking deck (as Pat will tell you) will ask why you have no bags though. ;) They have the dogs snif them.

 

And if you remember one thing from all of our reviews, remember this...

 

PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR PIER NUMBER!!!!!!

 

The ship can dock at 88, 89 or 90. Our cars were parked at Pier 90. The ship pulled back in yesterday into Pier 88. So we had to go up 2 sets of escalators and walk down to the original pier dragging our luggage behind us.

 

Some guy tried to argue with Brian, Sherry and I that we were parked at the same pier. That guy is probably still walking around trying to find his car. :p

[JaniceB]

Thanks for all the great information, especially to remember where you parked. Kind of sounds like Disney World, LOL! I am looking forward to your full reviews.

 

Janice

[we3k9]

I didn't notice the valet parking. But I did notice that you can drop your bags and family off at the terminal and then go park. The security at the parking deck (as Pat will tell you) will ask why you have no bags though. ;) They have the dogs snif them.

 

And if you remember one thing from all of our reviews, remember this...

 

PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR PIER NUMBER!!!!!!

 

The ship can dock at 88, 89 or 90. Our cars were parked at Pier 90. The ship pulled back in yesterday into Pier 88. So we had to go up 2 sets of escalators and walk down to the original pier dragging our luggage behind us.

 

Some guy tried to argue with Brian, Sherry and I that we were parked at the same pier. That guy is probably still walking around trying to find his car. :p

so i guess my question is "how do you know where to park?" I don't want to be dragging my luggage all over the place. Can my Mom just wait with the luggage while I go retrieve the car and swing back in to pick her up?

[we3k9]

OK let's start with weather. It was sunny in NYC but with the breeze as we sailed, it was much more comfortable to be indoors. We had air temps of mid 60's so I didn't spend much time outdoors, though lots of people did (I saw them on my way to and from the Lido deck). Bravely wearing hoodies and towels and robes, they sat and gathered what little sun we had. Weather in St. John started nice but got cloudy and rained just as we set sail. One night it was so cold the Lido party (A Mexican theme) was moved indoors. (Although they did do the hairy chest contest outdoors). It was hazy mostly until yesterday and then the fog got so heavy they had to blow the horn periodically. If you were indoors it wasn't as bad (except in the gym which is right underneath the horn).

 

Connie

our cabin is in the front on Panorama deck. Will we be able to hear the fog horn blowing in our cabin? This is not good for sleeping purposes. I may have to move my cabin.

[Valley Twin]

Embarkation is the one area I give low marks. There was a huge line no matter what your cabin number. We easily waited an hour to be called. Once called you had a short wait to get into the ship. (Probably because all the travel agents were leaving as we were entering). I think they were short handed at the desk. There were obvious gaps where extra tellers could have sat. We did park at the pier.

 

Embarkation - we arrived at about 11 am. parked our car for $120 which they collected in cash or credit card as we arrived. you stop and open your trunk after payment and an officer comes over with his dog and sniffs your trunk. we parked and walked a short way to an elevator which took us down to the terminal. porter takes your bag. terminal was clean and lines to get your pass were short. we waited about 15 minutes and were headed to the gangplank. the rooms were already open and we went and dropped off our carry ons.

 

What time did you arrive, pennguin? Seems like patsea had no problems at 11. Were you earlier or later?

[Valley Twin]

our cabin is in the front on Panorama deck. Will we be able to hear the fog horn blowing in our cabin? This is not good for sleeping purposes. I may have to move my cabin.

 

I was wondering the same thing. I'm on the Panorama deck too.

[cathalane]

I'm on the panorama deck too! I hope its not too loud - however, even if it wakes me up (which, considering how heavy I sleep, is unlikely), I never have any problems going back to sleep when I'm on a ship!!! ;-)

[crusinmama06]

Parking - you will just have to ask. When we got to the parking deck, I could see Triumph "parked" next to 90. So I parked my car there. Then I took a picture of my car off of my balcony when I got on the ship.

 

THEN, when we got back, I looked off my balcony and the car wasn't there. ;) So I knew 2 things, either the car was stolen or the ship was parked at another pier. :p

 

When we got off the ship, we asked which pier we were currently docked at (just asked security) and they said 88, then told us how to get back to 90. Yes, we could have sent one person to bring the car back to 88. But we all walked together. :D

 

The fog horn - wasn't loud. And it seemed to only blow during the day, I didn't hear it at night. I know that doesn't make sense but I was up at 3am each night and never heard the fog horn, just during the day.

 

I know what time Pat arrived and I can only assume what time Penguin arrived. Pat arrived EARLY, like before 11am. We were "section #1" to be called. We waited until 11:40 until they allowed us to board. The Travel Agents (it was a cruise show that week) were allowed to board for "inspection" at 11:30am and were onboard until 3pm. So if Penguin was getting on as the TAs were getting off, then Penguin arrived later than Pat and I did.

[pennguin]

What time did you arrive, pennguin? Seems like patsea had no problems at 11. Were you earlier or later?

 

I think it was almost 1 o'clock when we got to the pier, so yes we were a bit later. Survey says: GO EARLY!

 

Also, when parking at the pier, there are porters right at the entrance to the building so you can drop your bags off there before parking if you want. On the return, if you are parked at a different pier, you can wait at the building for someone to fetch the car and bring it over so everyone can load their luggage.

[crusinmama06]

Writing my review with scanned Capers here...

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1004642

[A.S.]

Thanks to everyone posting their experiences on the Triumph.

 

Did anyone scan the menus for the 4 nighter? Would love to see them!

[JaniceB]

I am guessing that arriving at the pier around 11 is the best time?

 

Janice

[ILov2cruise]

what I will be looking for in the reviews is, how was the weather, were the seas rough, how foggy was it. Can you sit out on deck and enjoy the seaside theater movies. what movies were showing. how was the entertainment, who was the cruise director. what temp was the water in the pools, were people swimming? Did you get lobster? what nights are formal nights. did you take an excursion in port. did your cell phone work, if so, what provider do you have? how long did it take to board in NYC. Did you park at the pier? did you carry your own luggage on board or hand it over to a porter? I hope that some of the reviews touch on these topics.

 

 

Just got home from the June 11 cruise.

 

We left in the rain, it was foggy and cold the whole way to St.John. You couldn't sit outside the first sea day. Our day in St John was a beautiful warm day. The second was warm and sunny. The seas were not rough.

The entertainment was very good.

CD was Jorge (don't remenber his last name and I never saw him).

Pool water temps were around 70, yes people were swimming.

We took a 2 hour tour, did not book on the ship. We were not going to do a tour,were just going to walk around but there was nothing close to the ship to see. Down the street from the ship was a tour company, they were doing 2 hour tours for $17.00. We were behind the bus from the ship(which cost $39.00.).

Yes we got Lobster. Formal night was the first sea day.

Food was very good, we were in the London dining room.

Casino was great,I won $400 playing craps(and didnt give it back) .

I have T mobile, it did not work on the ship but did in St.John.

There were ALOT of kids but never heard them, they were great.

I got to the port around 2:00, we got right on no lines.

Yes we parked at the port, plenty of parking, cost was $120.00.

Handed the luggage to a porterand the luggage got to our cabin aout 10 min after we did.

We carried our luggage off, we were off the ship by 8am. \

 

We had a great time.

[we3k9]

Just got home from the June 11 cruise.

 

We left in the rain, it was foggy and cold the whole way to St.John. You couldn't sit outside the first sea day. Our day in St John was a beautiful warm day. The second was warm and sunny. The seas were not rough.

The entertainment was very good.

CD was Jorge (don't remenber his last name and I never saw him).

Pool water temps were around 70, yes people were swimming.

We took a 2 hour tour, did not book on the ship. We were not going to do a tour,were just going to walk around but there was nothing close to the ship to see. Down the street from the ship was a tour company, they were doing 2 hour tours for $17.00. We were behind the bus from the ship(which cost $39.00.).

Yes we got Lobster. Formal night was the first sea day.

Food was very good, we were in the London dining room.

Casino was great,I won $400 playing craps(and didnt give it back) .

I have T mobile, it did not work on the ship but did in St.John.

There were ALOT of kids but never heard them, they were great.

I got to the port around 2:00, we got right on no lines.

Yes we parked at the port, plenty of parking, cost was $120.00.

Handed the luggage to a porterand the luggage got to our cabin aout 10 min after we did.

We carried our luggage off, we were off the ship by 8am. \

 

We had a great time.

thank you thank you, short and sweet and Glad YOU had a GOOD TIME. :)

[jimbri]

Thanks for the review. Sounds like you had a good time. Looking forward to next month.

[ILov2cruise]

We parked at 90(88 was full), were told pier 90 had to be dredged(sp) and it would be done by the time we returned, it wasn't so we docked at 88. Very short walk to 90 for the car.

[BBigfoot613]

I am guessing that arriving at the pier around 11 is the best time?

 

Janice

 

Janice, we (malittlefoot and I) were shooting to be there at 1030-11 and arrived around 1130. we were from the porters to a seat with a holding # (6) withing 15-20 minutes. I found it was FAST considering that includes the lines, security and checking in. Most of the time spent was at the checkin desk. I wouldn't want to think about going any later.