Roughly two months before the Carnival Triumph was stuck at sea {http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/fire-carnival-cruise-ship-strands-4-200-article-1.1261258} we cruised on her to Progreso and Cozumel Mexico. I have been asked many times if the ship seemed okay when we cruised-and for the most part the answer is yes. The only odd things we noticed were how much shaking there was in the aft of the ship, particularly the aft dining room, and we were late getting to ports and back to Texas where we sailed from. As this trip was our first balcony cabin we were definitely excited to see the sites from our stateroom. Lots has changed for the Carnival Triumph since the disaster at sea-in fact the entire ship has been updated and spiffed up. Here is a link for the latest information on the Triumph features and amenities: https://www.carnival.com/cruise-ships/carnival-triumph.aspx
While my review is not timely in terms of what offerings the ship has now, the layout and atmosphere of the Triumph was quite similar to now. The Triumph is not a large ship-but still holds a sizable amount of passengers- about 2,750. The solid design and "fun ship" feeling reverberates throughout the entire ship. We sailed on the Triumph from Galveston, Texas. The activities offered were typical of the fleet-lots of trivia games, fun contests poolside such as the hairy legs competition for guys and deck parties. The Triumph was our first cruise having a balcony room-our first cruise ever was an inside room on the Fascination- http://thecheerfulcruiser.blogspot.com/2016/06/carnival-fascination-cruise-review.html -so being our second cruise and having our first balcony was really exciting! We were on the 7th deck (Empress) mid ship. This was a great location and the balcony was sizable. This five day adventure was to Progreso http://thecheerfulcruiser.blogspot.com/2016/06/pleasant-progreso-mexico-mayan-ruins.html and Cozumel http://thecheerfulcruiser.blogspot.com/2016/06/picturesque-paradise-beach-in-cozumel.html - also our first trip to Mexico! The ship itself has a bit of a choppy layout but it is not so large that getting around is difficult. Our cruise director was the always awesome Jen Baxter and she added tons of energy to all the cruise activities and even the shows. We saw two main shows on this cruise- a variety style show and a New Orleans/Mardi Gras themed show. This was before the advent of Playlist Productions fleetwide. The comedians at the Punchliner comedy club were so funny! The food was yummy and we enjoyed many of the tried and true Carnival favorites like the chocolate melting cake and the spring rolls!
We had a wonderful time on the Triumph back then, but to be honest I would not cruise on her again since the fire and stranding of the passengers at sea. I personally don't feel comfortable cruising the ship again. However, many passengers have cruised on the Triumph since 2013 and have reported a fabulous experience. :)
Are you planning a summer cruise? Perhaps a holiday cruise is on your agenda or you plan to sail in 2018! No matter when your next cruise is you will want to know about the latest cruise news-including changes and updates to popular cruise policies. As I am researching a Fall cruise I decided to see what has changed fora few of the major cruise lines-both for good and not so good! Here is a list of some current cruise news:
Royal Caribbean-
*As of June 15, 2017 cruisers on Royal who book ship sponsored excursions who choose to cancel or modify their booking must do so 48 hours prior to the port. Before this change cruisers had up until 24 hours before the ship arrived at its destination to make any shore excursion changes without losing money. This new change may lead to folks waiting until the last minute to book ship sponsored tours on shore.
*As of July 1, 2017 another change regarding deposits will take effect fleet wide for RC ships. The implementation of Non-Refundable deposits will be offered for all ships when booking at least six months prior to cruising. The advantage of this promotion is that guests who opt for this will qualify for up to $100 per stateroom of on board credit. The non-refundable deposit can be combined with other offers as well. Piggybacking on this new offer... Certain guests will only have the non refundable deposit as an option for booking-specifically those in the following categories:
Grand/Upper Suites and higher
Guarantee Categories including W/WS, X/XB, XN, Y/YO and Z/Z.
Should a guest modify or cancel their reservation a fee of $100 per guest will be assessed to all reservations booked
under the nonrefundable fare rate. Multiple adjustments to the sailing or ship will incur a $100 per guest
change fee equaling each qualifying change made to the reservation, with no limit on the number of change fees that may be incurred.
*As of June 23, 2018- which is perfect for anyone already planning next summer's trip-RC will be home porting in Galveston, Texas. The Enchantment of the Seas will be the ship in the port of Galveston.
*As of December 15, 2018 RC will add the Vision of the Seas to the port of New Orleans, which will sail on seven night journeys.
Norwegian-
*Effective June 5, 2017 guests in a suite or the Haven will no longer receive the UBP perk without paying gratuities on the package. Gratuities for the Unlimited Beverage Package are roughly $200 for a seven day cruise for two adults, which is calculated based on the total package value. Prior to this change guests in a suite or Haven cabin would automatically receive all offered "perks" and be exempt from paying the gratuities that passengers in all other cabin classes paid if they chose the UBP as a perk. You can opt out of the UBP-or any of the perks as a suite/Haven guest. Anyone who booked a suite or Haven before June 5th is grandfathered in for any future cruises (with a deposit paid) and will not be charged the gratuity.
*Beginning this summer NCL will employ certified lifeguards at all of the family pools across their four largest ships -the Escape, Getaway, Breakaway and Epic. The rest of the ships in Norwegian's fleet will attain certified lifeguards by early 2018.
Carnival-
*The first week of June 2017 Carnival announced the implementation of EasyPay.
Coined a "hassle-free vacation payment option"
guests’ may have their cruise payments automatically deducted from the credit
card on file, and applied to their balance interest free for three months. After a guest makes his/her deposit, the remainder of the balance is divided and taken out in three equal payments on the same day of the month, each month.
If you have a travel agent they can also sign up for Carnival
EasyPay to process payments for you.
What do you think of the changes RC, NCL and Carnival have implemented? Will this change your future cruise plans? I will be on a Suite on the NCL Sky in August, and I am happy I booked this trip well in advance of the gratuity increase Norwegian ordered in the Spring of this year. I am excited to do a full review of the ship and the "suite life" in two months! :)
A majority of cruisers have heard the terms "Roll Call", "Cruise Critic" and "Meet and Mingle"- but not everyone is sure what this means. After 8 cruises I participated in my first Cruise Critic meet up in March of this year. The most popular site for passenger meet ups is Cruise Critic, where cruisers can find their cruise ship and date of travel and sign up to be part of the virtual group. There is usually a passenger or two who start the "Roll Call" and facilitate activities on board for everyone. This passenger prearranges a "Meet and Mingle" type event, as well as other activities such as Q&A with the officers, a slot pull, a coffee and cake meetup mid cruise, a cabin crawl or a dinner meet up. You do not have to participate in all of the events either. Each cruise line is different too. As I partook in the Norwegian Cruise Critic meet up, our coordinator was Gardiner, and he did an amazing job planning events-like the Q&A Meet and Greet with the officers and staff. It was fabulous to meet the senior officers and head chef! :) In this case the Roll Call coordinator did receive some perks for setting up the Q&A, Meet Ups, etc. However, this is not a guarantee so only take charge of a roll call if you want to coordinate the events without expectation of perks, like suite dining privileges or priority port debarkation. The on board meet ups are a great way to meet fellow passengers-and single cruisers often find new friends to dine with and hang out with during the cruise as well.
So are you interested in joining a Roll Call? To begin the process go to Cruise Critic to check out the events for your upcoming cruise- http://www.cruisecritic.com/rollcalls/
You do need to be a member of the Cruise Critic forums to add your name to the Roll Call or post- but this is free and easy to do! Another site with passenger Roll Calls is Cruiseline.com- you can check their site out here-https://cruiseline.com/rollcall
Royal Caribbean offers a "Meet and Mingle" with the Cruise Critic site- you can find information on how to sign up here- http://www.royalcaribbean.com/customersupport/faq/details.do?pagename=frequently_asked_questions&faqId=210&faqSubjectId=343
My personal experience participating in a Cruise Critic meet up was positive and I appreciated meeting the senior officers and staff. Everyone working on the NCL Pearl was extremely dedicated to improving the customer experience and hearing passenger's thoughts. A few folks used the opportunity to complain to the staff about personal issues they have with their cruising experience-so that would be the only negative issue with the staff/officer meetup/Q&A. However, the vast majority of cruisers were happy and personable. I enjoyed hearing tips from others as to cruises they have been on and seeing a few cabins. The Cabin Crawl did not fit in our schedule but I did get to see some fellow CC member's cabins and then I took them to see our wonderful cabin. That is essentially what a Cabin Crawl is- an arranged meet up for cruisers to walk the ship and see one each others cabins. This is a fun and interesting activity as new cruisers can check out the various cabin types and decks for future cruises. Although there are plenty of photos online, seeing the cabins in person is extremely helpful. For example, I did not realize how large some of the indoor cabins on the NCL Pearl were until I actually saw them. :)
Have you participated in any Roll Calls? Do you plan to? Please share your experience!
O'Sheehan's is on almost all Norwegian Ships and is their all day/all night dining venue. While a few ships have Blue Lagoon and Longboard's as their 24 hour restaurant the majority of NCL's fleet has this pub themed spot. We have been enjoying food at O'Sheehan's for several years now on various ships-and the menu has changed some since our first visit on the Norwegian Getaway in 2014. Below is a picture of the nachos-although I asked for just cheese and sour cream so they look a bit plain! :)
Here is a small order of wings. They have new flavors now and while I did not eat them my husband and son both declared them outstanding!
Our last visit to O'Sheehan's was in March 2017 on the NCL Pearl-right after the drydock. The restaurant was nicely put together and had the typical pub atmosphere.
Here is my husband's Coney Island hot dog and fries- he really enjoyed it!
The burgers are always awesome at O'Sheehan's- they have a classic cheeseburger and a "black and bleu" one. The baskets they served the burgers and fries in were new to us- and the ketchup oozes out the sides! It was a little messy but yummy! :)
We have tried the fajitas, bangers and mash, shepards pie, chopped salad, brownie cheesecake and the fruit plate too on our various visits. Breakfast is also served at O'Sheehan's from about 5:30-10:30- each ship may be a bit different. Your dailies will have exact times. The breakfast menu is not large but offers waffles, pancakes, omelettes, eggs, bacon, corned beef hash and other typical breakfast foods. Their omelettes and hash brown potatoes are always a favorite of mine and my husband and son love the corned beef hash. While I did not get a menu picture, my friend Gardner has a great video of the new O'Sheehan's on the Pearl and a glimpse at the menu as well. The menu shot is right at the beginning of the short video and you can pause it if you like. :)You can find it here- http://tsptravels.blogspot.com/2017/03/ncl-pearl-osheehans-after-2017-dry-dock.html
So folks who have yet to cruise on Norwegian or try O'Sheehan's often ask me how it compares to land based dining-like an Applebee's. The menu is smaller than a land based chain restaurant, but there is a full bar. The quality of food at O'Sheehan's has always been above average for us. I cannot proclaim their bangers and mash to be better than an Irish pub, but the food is always nicely seasoned, flavorful and filling. The wonderful thing about O'Sheehan's is there is something available to eat all day and all night! Table service that is complimentary, a lively atmosphere, being able to eat whenever you wish and a full bar makes O'Sheehan's a fantastic addition to the cruising experience on NCL. On ships like the Getaway you can sit above the atrium to enjoy a meal at O'Sheehan's while you watch a show on the floor below. You can eat, drink and play darts or bowl, too! Give O'Sheehan's a try on your next Norwegian cruise. They are open for lunch on embarkation day too! :)
I reviewed our amazing suite experience in my first blog post after debarkation from the newly refurbished Norwegian Pearl here- http://thecheerfulcruiser.blogspot.com/2017/03/norwegian-pearl-suite-life-cabin.html
While I did describe our experience in total I did not reveal the details surrounding our first experience enjoying "The Suite Life". I will start at the beginning-embarkation day in Miami:
After parking in the garage (C) we headed to the check in area for the Pearl. We waiting roughly 10 minutes in a line with everyone to go through the initial security and metal detectors, then we veered off to the Haven (also Suites) room immediately to our left. We were not told to go here to check in by anyone on the staff but I knew that was available to us as a perk so we went in. It was there that our names were on a list and we received our key cards, check in paperwork, etc. This was really easy and let us avoid the wait with the other 1000+ passengers in the main area for check in. We were told to sit and enjoy a snack (photo of the offerings are above) and our butler would head down to get us shortly. After 15 minutes no one came to get us-or about 10 other Haven/Suite guests. So, a lady with a Priority Escort sign came to retrieve us and led us through the crowds to a private elevator to join the line of passengers entering the ship upstairs. These folks were likely in group 1 or 2 and we just joined them in line. I asked several employees where we should go for embarkation lunch as suite guests but no one seemed to know. I knew we could go to Cagney's or Moderno but I wanted to be sure as this was our first time on this ship and in a suite. After waiting in the customer service line for 10 minutes the assistant concierge, Maira, was brought down to escort us to Cagney's. She was very apologetic and surprised our butler never came to get us. Anyhow, we got to Cagney's and enjoyed a spectacular lunch- which you can read about in my "Suite Life" blog post!
After lunch we were told we could head to our room, which happened to be cabin 10164 in the very aft of the ship. We found our room fine and spoke briefly to our very sweet room steward, "EmJe". We hung out in our room a bit before the mandatory muster drill and figured out how to use the awesome Lavazza espresso maker. Right as we were ready to head to the safety drill our butler showed up and rang our doorbell (yes you have a suite doorbell!). His name was Erlindo. Here is a picture of him-
Just a note- I did ask if it was okay to put everyone's photos on my blog and they all said yes-so no one is pictured here without their consent! :) Erlindo offered to explain the espresso maker to us but we knew what to do already. We asked him to clear out the fridge and please put 2 pitchers of cold water in it for us to drink throughout the day. There were sodas and 2 big glasses of juice with saran wrap over them in the fridge and we did not want that stuff in there. He said nothing else, however. He did not ask us about snack preferences, if we wanted to dine in the room at all, if we needed extra pillows, etc. He was in a hurry and really seemed like he was dialing it in. We did not pipe up and ask for anything as we truthfully were not sure what we should do. We headed for the drill and assumed he would take the stuff out of the fridge and put water in it for us. Unfortunately he only took out the soda and he left the juice. He actually left the juice the entire week, although we asked him 2 more times to remove it. He did not bring the water pitchers as we requested. We ended up talking to the hotel director the next day and he made sure we had pitchers of water in our room daily- but they were delivered several days by room service! Another note about our butler- each morning around 11 he would come in the room and take any of the plates and glasses we used and leave them sitting in front of our door in the hallway. He did this with all the suite cabins on our deck! I was told by the hotel director that he was supposed to remove everything himself and not leave it outside the door. Our room steward ended up cleaning the hallway every day. So, other that bringing a daily snack-the same snack to each suite cabin he had- he was not at all what we expected for butler service. We are not pretentious people and we normally don't stay in a suite, but we really thought he would show more effort to make us feel like suite guests. Our fellow suite neighbors told us they too were disappointed in him as a butler and the couple in the cabin next door, who cruise exclusively in suites, said he was the worst butler they ever had! As for the daily snack we did enjoy it- some days more than others. We really liked the cheese and fruit plate we got one afternoon, as well as the desserts. Here are some photos of the suite treats we received:
Having a concierge was also a benefit for suite guests-and our concierge Noami was wonderful! She was helpful in escorting us off the ship at each port in private exits and elevators, as well as aiding us with on board credit issues, shore excursion planning and reservations. Having Noami welcome us warmly and help us during debarkation, etc. made the suite experience really relaxing.
By far our favorite perk of being in a suite, besides the huge room and luxurious balcony, was being able to dine in the private dining room for breakfast and lunch every day. While we did feel a bit removed from the goings on ship wide for the first two meals of the day the ability to dine in a low key and less crowded atmosphere was truly fabulous. Plus the food was SO good! In addition to the private dining we definitely took advantage of the suite perks. We did get all the freestyle options when we booked the suite (you do not get all of them if you upgrade or move to a suite with a bid-you keep the freestyle perks you originally booked with), and we used the UBP and UDP happily! :) We ended up using the shore excursion credit of $50 for one port, and about 30 minutes of WiFi. We usually never go online when we cruise but since we had the perk of the minutes, and we wanted to check on email updates from our vet regarding our new rescue Yorkie who was boarding there we decided to use some of it! (She did great by the way!) We sat in the reserved seating section in the theater for Haven/Suite guests at every show, as it was never packed and we could wait until a few minutes before show time to get a seat. On the Pearl this seating was located in the balcony area on the left side. The view was great though! We also took advantage of the suite perk for getting off first at the ports-our concierge Noami swiftly and easily helped us off the ship each time. We also had a lovely meet and greet/cocktail party with the captain and officers one night as a suite guest. We got a complimentary photo with the captain and had a chance to visit with the officers too. Everyone on the Pearl was truly top notch and it was a pleasure meeting all of them! :)
On debarkation day I was sad and did not want to leave-but having breakfast in Moderno and Noami walking us off the ship was a stress free way to end our vacation. We have a suite on the Sky in August, so I am curious as to how our experience will be compared to the Pearl. I wonder if our butler will be different and more hospitable? I will post about our next suite life experience for sure! :)
Norwegian offers complimentary dining in their Asian venues fleetwide. While some ships have the same restaurant, like Shanghai's on the "Away" ships, others have a distinctive and unique venue. We have tried several of these no cost dining spots and by far Lotus Garden is the most expansive and inviting. Located on the Pearl the Lotus Garden has a large menu and fairly large dining room as well. Unlike the noodle bar Shanghai on the Getaway this Asian venue can seat many cruisers and is comfortable too. The sushi is not included in the complimentary fare, but it is available for a reasonable cost. Here is the menu:
The pot stickers are in the photo at the top of this post-and they were tasty! :)
Here are pictures of some of our main dishes and desserts:
Char Siu Beef-
Vegetarian Fried Rice-
Kung Pao Chicken-
Spicy Seafood Udon Noodles-
Panda Salad-
Green Tea Ice Cream-
Chestnut and Red Bean Triangles-
A full bar is at Lotus Garden too!
The restaurant is really big and beautifully decorated!
Have you dined at Lotus Garden? If so what did you think? :)
