PRE-CRUISE: We traveled by car and stayed at the Amerisuites on 17th(near the port) the night before the cruise....we had two other couples cruising with us and they also stayed at the Amerisuites....we had dinner at Outback and it is located just a short walk from Amerisuites....there are a number of grocery stores/drugstores etc near the Amerisuites too which makes it a nice location for the pre-night stay. We were able to leave our car in the parking lot at Amerisuites during our cruise too. The shuttle service was a bit slow (at the motel) but it got us to the "port" quickly once we loaded the luggage etc. The driver was very nice and told us what to expect at the entrance to the port etc....and he dropped us off right at the entrance to the terminal.

BOARDING: Since we had a Cat 11 suite we used the Skippers Club once inside the terminal ...there were several checkpoints at the terminal I might add ...so have your documents handy once you get to the port and don't put them up until you get on the ship :) The gentleman that helped us with the Skippers Club was extremely nice and he just whisked us thru the embarkation process..very nice beginning to what would be a great cruise.

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ONBOARD: Once onboard all I could think was WOW!!! A beautiful ship indeed. The staff immediately went into their routine of making everyone welcome and that atmosphere continue through the entire cruise. I commend the staff on being one of the friendliest I have had on any of my cruises. The decor was full of "urns" and once you cruise on the Legend you will understand what I mean...they had silver urns as door handles, as pedestals for tables, as lamps etc. as the expression goes "they were everywhere"!!!

CABIN: I was quite excited about having a Cat 11 suite and was not disappointed....I am really spoiled now...the cabin is well appointed from the beautiful drapes to the mosaic tiled bathroom...so much storage even I did not fill up all the cabinets and closets...the wood floor as you enter the cabin gave the entrance a foyer feeling...the bathroom had a double sink and jacuzzi tub and shower...the dressing room was separate which was a nice feature (had the built in hair dryer in the drawer)...a sliding/pocket style door separated it from the rest of the cabin too which was a very nice feature...the cabin was very spacious overall...other extras I noticed in our cabin were: VCR..Bar stocked with glasses...dimmer type lighting..we had a great cabin stewardess and she was a true jewel on this cruise as she managed to always keep our cabin perfect and handled our every need when requested ....we emptied our fridge and put the contents Carnival had in it on the shelf beside it ..then we stocked it with our soft drinks, water etc.....our cabin balcony was oversize and wonderful to have lounge chairs etc..we had many catnaps on the balcony as we were cruising ...nice ocean breezes will do that to you quickly!!!

There were a few things about our cabin experience that were not biggie problems but I will note them for anyone to consider: when you look down from the balcony as you are standing at the railing you will see the top of the lifeboats(I like seeing water)....our jacuzzi did not work but after several tries it was repaired(so test the jacuzzi at the beginning of the cruise)....the crew was painting on one of the sea days directly below us on the deck and the paint fumes filled our balcony, cabin and hallways for approx. 24 hours and I became ill from the fumes(highly allergic to paint fumes) and was not able to attend the last formal night...

ENTERTAINMENT: Since we have cruised Carnival 15 times in the last 5 years we opted not to go to most of the shows..the ones we attended were very good ....the cruise director tried hard I think to make the cruise fun for all the cruisers as did his staff...we always enjoy Music Society and did so this cruise too..the Firebird Lounge IMHO should be used for live party type music as it is not only a beautiful room but the design is great for dancing (they had a guy with a band and he talked more than he sang when we were there ..the musicians in the band were quite good however when they got to play LOL) ....I think Carnival needs to upgrade their lounge entertainment on this ship IMHO....Karaoke was once again the most fun time and was well attended (lots of good talent too on our cruise)...we enjoyed the Lido group during the day....

DINING ROOM/FOOD....We had 3 couples in our group and when we received our sign and sail cards we were all at different tables...we went immediately to the dining room and they gave us a table for 6 by the window (this was a nice table esp. during lunch/daytime)...our dining team was great and they took care of us as if we were "kings and queens" ..many kudos to them!!!! ...the menus have changed some and a few of my favorites are no longer being served but believe me I was always pleased with the food...we ate more meals on Lido this cruise than ever before ...the food was very good and we enjoyed the "nation of the day" offerings during lunch...never did get hungry LOL One side note: the Thanksgiving dressing/stuffing served is not for me ..I love cornbread dressing myself LOL

PORTS: Since we have cruised to these ports many times, we only booked one excursion: the Jolly Roger at Barbados...it was a fun time and was the first time we had tried this excursion....the crew was fun and they truly let the cruisers provide the entertainment esp. after the rum punch began to flow....since I don't drink I can provide detail info about the fun everyone had because I remember and not sure if they did or not LOL....the JR docks near the BoatYard... and a tender takes you ashore to the beach so you can swim or snorkel...some stayed on the JR and swam and snorkeled I think during the hour or so we were on the beach...I think next time I do this excursion I will stay onboard too....the JR had nice restroom facilities FYI.........we shopped and browsed on St. Martin as well as Martinique...we were in Martinique on Sunday and not many stores were opened. We enjoyed the ports and look forward to doing some different things in port in Feb when we cruise her again...

LEAVING THE SHIP.....we were one of the first colors called and our leaving the ship was very easy ...found our luggage ..the porter took us to a checkpoint for taxis..taxi service without being asked put our luggage in the car quickly and we were at our motel to pick our car up in record time....UPDATE: you have to show your picture ID/Passport/or Proof of Citizenship to US Immigration as you leave the ship ...more security checkpoints even as you leave the ship.

MEET AND GREET: We had a great "meet and greet" and state/gift exchange....the people we met were so friendly and we all bonded rather quickly ...the gift exchange was fun and entertaining as so many added comments that kept us in stitches as we opened the gifts...we shared some fun times with many of them during the cruise....and I will forever remember each of them as I reminisce of our Thanksgiving Cruise on the LEGEND. Thanks to all that participated that made this " meet and greet" so much fun and memorable.

MISC...
(1)..If you need ice during the hours your cabin steward is not available take ice bucket to the Lido and fill up
(2) Casino on the Legend provides a neat little expandable (like a telephone cord) that had a clip on one end and the other end they punched and attached your sign and sail card...the Casino machines have slots to put your Sign& Sail card in and you can earn points for prizes and money I think (not sure of the details)...easy way to find your Sign & Sail card in the cabin too LOL
(3) Although not noted in the Capers ..at 3PM on sea days ...regular ice cream as well as soft ice cream with lots of toppings like hot fudge/sprinkles etc are served on the Lido deck aft...great chocolate chip cookies too !!!!
(4) Room Service: we ordered room service several times for breakfast and they never got our entire order correct and they were slow (about 40 minutes each time) I mention this so those cruising on the Legend might consider the timing as they plan their schedule use of room service..(this might have only been slow in the morning) not a negative problem just a little disappointing to have to wait that long for my 1st cup of coffee!!! LOL
(5) Be sure to check your Sign n Sail folio on the interactive tv ...we had a few errors on ours and they were quickly corrected by the purser's desk.
(6) TV ....love the new setup for the tv lineup ...you not only get the info about the movies but you also can rent pay per view movies(we did not do this but some like to esp. on a sea day)...the excursions were listed and you could order them via the tv....I have a list of the movies showing LOL if anyone wants them.

OVERALL OBSERVATIONS: The age group on this particular cruise was much older than any other Carnival cruise I have been on IMHO...there were not many children I understand but they were more visible than any other cruise we have been on ..esp the 9-12 age group ...they were constantly running all over the ship in an unruly manner and at all hours of the day and night (the first I have encountered like this I might add) ....one morning they were several in the internet cafe/library with a ping pong paddle and ball and using the wall to bounce the ball on ..not only noisy but destructive as they hit the glass case many times where the books are stored...now I love children and have always found them to be, in many cases, the highlights of our cruises and there were some very well behaved children on this cruise as well that we enjoyed :)......The ship is beautiful ...the staff gracious....the food very good....and we are going to cruise again on the LEGEND to prove we loved it the first time!!!!!

I have many pictures of the cruise and will be posting a link soon so anyone interested can view...

Susan/John>>>anxiously awaiting our next cruise on the LEGEND