Sensation
by Debbie Dean
Western Caribbean
February 8, 2003
First let me say THANK YOU to everyone here for all
the help, advice and tips. I was a newbie, but I
felt better informed and prepared than some of the
seasoned cruisers! Second, this may be a long
review so get ready! :rolleyes:
We flew out of Milwaukee at 6:15am on Saturday. I
was very nervous about flying down the same day we
sailed, but it worked out great. I think next time
we will go a day early though. I don't think my
nerves could handle it again! We had a connecting
flight in Memphis and landed in Tampa at 11:55am.
Caught a cab to the pier (2 people, 4 pieces
checked luggage, 2 carry-on = $21.00 with tip).
When we got out of the cab we were greeted by a
porter. He found our cabin number (V10, an awesome
upgrade! We had booked a 6A GTY. Of course I knew
already because of the Kelly Method! :D) and we
tipped him a buck a bag. Off we went to the line
that leads into the terminal. I think it must've
been about 12:45am. When we reached the first
Carnival rep. we were directed to the Skippers Club
check in. Nothing fancy, just a nice short line. We
met a couple there that had no idea they had been
upgraded! Of course as soon as they told me the
cabin number I pulled out my deck plan and showed
them the Cat. 12 they would be enjoying! I don't
think they believed me until they saw the cabin!
Boy, were they happy! After checking in and getting
our S&S cards we went right to the ship. We were on
board at 1:15pm. Time for a drink!!
Article continues below
This was our first cruise so we spent a lot of time
gawking at the ship as we made our way to our
cabin. We weren't expecting to see the guy video
taping the pax as we boarded. We soon noticed him
everywhere on the cruise and we would then watch
the replay of the travelog on our TV in the cabin.
Very fun. If you see him, be sure to wave! We
didn't buy the video, but in hind sight I wish we
would have. Sigh...
Our cabin was fantastic! Lots of room, lots of
closet space. I had brought extra hangers and they
came in handy. The balcony was small, but very cool
to have. I loved sitting out there and watching the
ocean and the people. I even saw schools of flying
fish. The room steward was great. I wish we
could've tipped him even more. Worth every penny.
The room was always clean but we never saw him do
it!
We had late seating for dinner (8:30pm). I think
this worked out great for us. We never felt rushed
in the ports (at least not because of our dinner
time). The only drawback was we never made it to
the midnight buffets! We were too full! Not to
mention the late night comedy started at the same
time. So I can't comment on that part, but our
dinners were SUPERB!! Seafood Newburg, New York
strip steak, Lobster, fish, quail, pasta, shrimp,
escargo, Grand Mariner Souffle!!! YUM!!!! So many
choices. It was always hot and fresh. Some of the
best food I have ever eaten! The staff was
wonderful. The only complaint I had was the drink
waitress. We never saw her until the last night.
But, I had read about that so we knew to expect it.
that's ok, we drank our water (need to ingest
something other than Pina Coladas and Miami Vices
at some point, right?! :D) Our tablemates were
fantastic. Hi Rick and Janice, Hi Bill and Diane!
After dinner we all would hang out and go to shows
together. Miss them already. :( We had a table for
10, but only 6 of us showed up every night. We
never saw the other couples. We never ate breakfast
or lunch in the dining room so I can't comment on
it, sorry. We loved the made to order omolettes on
the Lido deck buffet. Lots of choices, scrambled
eggs, hash rounds, pancakes, french toast, bacon,
sausage, oatmeal, cereals, bagels, taost, fruit and
of course ice cream! That was a very popular
dispenser after breakfast! Lunch menu always
offered hot dogs, fries, burgers, salads. Other
items varied. Fish fingers, chicken strips, pasta,
etc. (One tip I learned here that was nice to know,
the lines at the buffet are always shorter outside
the dining room. Same food!) Inside the Seaview
Grill (way to the back, by the pizza grill) at
lunch they had a table set up with different things
for lunch each day. One day it was crepes, the next
Ceaser (sp.?) salad and other things I can't
remember. We never had trouble finding a clean
place to sit and eat. The pizza was good, not
incredible but not bad. Always hot.
The shows were very good. We saw "Hey Mambo" and
enjoyed it. The dancers are all really good. We saw
3 comedians, and 2 of them were VERY funny! We
laughed out loud for an hour! Maurice Jovan was one
and I just can't think of the other guy. The third
guy was so bad we never went to see his midnight
show.
The ports were fun. We did Stingray City, booked on-
line in advance with Nativeway. They did a great
job. We met Sharon at the dock right when she said
she would be there. We took a bus to the marina,
boarded a boat with Capt. Dean and first mate
Sheldon and took off. First stop was snorkeling at
Coral Gardens (not really a reef, but some corals,
lots of fish. Water here was deep, about 12 feet. I
used a life vest and did fine) then on to SRC.
WOW....Those stingrays are HUGE! They are every
where! Very tame. The water was about 3 1/2 feet
deep. We all got a chance to hold them and feed and
pet them. Lots of photo opps so don't forget the
underwater cameras. We were only in Grand Cayman
from 8am to 2pm, so after the stingrays all we
could do was get in line to wait for a tender. The
last one left at 1:15pm so the wait was very long.
It was a shame we couldn't see more of the island.
Be careful walking around the downtown area.
Traffic was NUTS! Lots of cars and lots of tourists
not paying attention. It is very congested.
Cozumel was fun. We went horseback riding through
Buena Vista. Bus ride to the ranch was about 20
minutes. Our guide Aldo was a riot. He basically
did a stand up routine the entire bus trip! :D The
horses are in good shape and I know mine liked to
run! Too fast! I have never been on a "trail ride"
like this one and I have the bruises to prove
it! :eek: This was not a slow walk along the trail.
This was flat out galloping! For most of the trail!
WOW It was a great time! On the other hand people
that took the afternoon ride said the opposite.
Well, they had a good time, but no galloping at
all, so I guess it depends on the guide?
After that we went to Playa sol. $28.50 pp through
the ship. All drinks, non-motorized water toys
(kayaks, paddle boats) and beach. We got there kind
of late, like 3ish so we didn't get to do much. Did
some snorkeling, not great but good. Lots of fish.
Water was warm and very clear. Drinks were potent!
My DH told the BT to go easy on the tequila for me
and he said what's a margaritta with out tequila!?
And then he poured it on! ;) Another tip...don't
try to kayak for the first time after tequila. We
thought we would kayak out to the big iceberg
thing, climb that, slide into the water, how cool!
Yeah, right! LOL First I dumped the kayak losing an
oar, then lost Dh's sunglasses! Now try to climb
this 3 story iceberg! HA! Couldn't even get out of
the water! So we decided to go back to town and
shop. Caught a cab (did you know that 141
kilometers per hour equals 90 miles an hour! Holy
cow!! Look out for the chickens!!) and as we tried
to enter the pier DH discovers he has lost his S&S
card. Total panic on my part! Thankfully I have his
DL in my bag! No problems getting back on...whew!
Picked up new card and just had enough time to shop
quickly and get back on board.
OK, this is getting long! Let me say we had a GREAT
time and we will do it again as soon as possible.
We were never bored. You can do as much or as
little as you want. You can eat as much or as
little as you want (I lost 2 lbs. without trying. I
didn't deny myself anything either. We did take the
stairs a lot and I never had room for too much
food!) The staff was wonderful. Everyone we met was
helpful and had a smile. The activities directors
and cruise director (Lenny) are all great. They get
everyone involved and make sure everyone has fun.
Some things I learned were.... that it gets very
windy on the open decks.
There aren't enough ash trays.
There aren't enough signs pointing out the smoking
sections (sides).
Need more hooks in the cabins. No where to hang wet
suits, etc..
Save room for desserts!
We bought drink coupons and I think we may have
drank more because of it! Next time we'll try
without them.
Hammocks cannot be used as a carry-on. Almost cost
us $80 to get it home on the airline!
If you take your luggage down to the infirmary to
weigh it, you will get lots of funny looks. Just
tell them you asked to get off and they said no!
I know I have seen this before, but it bears
repeating...pack half the clothes you think you
need and twice the money!!
And finally the most important thing I learned
was...... CRUISING IS FUN!!!!!!!! :D
Comming back to reality....BITES!!!!!!!! :(
If anyone has any questions feel free to ask or e-
mail me CelticD1@hotmail.com I have posted pics at
Webshots.com,
http://community.webshots.com/user/celticd1
Thanks again for all the help and I hope this helps
someone else! Debbie :cool:
