Carnival Victory AGAIN: Embarkation Day

Feb 3 Day 1- Miami
Feb 4 Day 2- Day at Sea
Feb 5 Day 3- Grand Turk
Feb 6 Day 4- Day at Sea
Feb 7 Day 5- Little Stirrup Cay (CoCo Cay)
Feb 8 Day 6- Miami


We started our day bright and early... well maybe just early because it certainly wasn't bright!! Our plane departed at 6 am so we were on our way to the airport at 4:15. With about a 30 minute drive we arrived, checked our bag and headed through security. They started boarding around 5:30 and we were quickly on our way. We landed at MIA a little before 8:30 and the plan was to pick up our luggage and head to the port. Well wouldnt you know that right next to our baggage carousel was right in front of Carnivals handy Miami Airport check in counter. CONVENIENT!!

So we waited(forever) for our luggage and then popped into the Priority Line since we had purchased Faster to the Fun. There were two attendants working the counter and things moved rather smoothly. We gave them our boarding pass, took our sail & sign photos and were given our S&S cards as well as a priority boarding placard.  We promptly headed up to Starbucks, headed back down to a taxi and headed to the port. Taxi rate was $24 as posted on the window sticker plus $1 for our extra bag. I had seen this in Puerto Rico but not the last time in Miami. The $24 rate said it included all fees so I am sure we got ripped off but whats a $1 right?

We arrived at the port around 9:30 and it was a disaster. There were sworms of cruisers who had just debarked everywhere. After briefly standing in line behind some debarked passengers waiting for their shuttle we were shown the correct way. We went straight inside but realized we hadn't checked our bag. No worries, the woman checking us in assured us that we could carry both of our bags on. I was worried our bag would be too large but it wasn't and worked out just fine. Just a note, we didn't need to use FTTF for this area since there were very few people there this early.  We had no line in security, bags went through easy and we were sent upstairs to wait. We sat right down since we had already checked in and just waited for boarding. I did notice the terminal we were in no longer had the "kiosks" to add money to your S&S account. We did this in 2011 on the Destiny and thought it was a neat feature. The lines to check in also seemed very long. I would say either get there early, get there after they start boarding or check in at MIA.

Finally around 11:30 they began to call the wedding guests for them to embark, followed by Diamond, Platinum and Suite guests. Faster to the Fun was called next and by 11:45 we were on board! We went straight to our room to drop off our luggage. We were on the Panorama deck and found the fire doors to be closed. We opened them up and went to our room with no fuss from anyone. We didn't stay long and then headed to the lido to eat and get our first drinks. After lunch we headed back to our room for a small nap before muster.

Muster drill was running a tad late. It was hot as usual but pretty painless and lucky us our side of the ship was called first. Wahoo, that never happens! So we made a quick face time call to my nephew and then shut our phones off for a lovely week.

The first night was really relaxed. We had anytime dining and headed there around 6:45 along with everyone else. We were in line for maybe 10 minutes before we were seated but dinner was incredibly slow. We were there for about two hours and it was dreadful. We decided to go a bit later the rest of the week and it mostly worked out. The ATD seems to be a bit over worked and service was slow the entire cruise, with the first night being the absolute worst we have ever had.

We spent our night a little in the casino, stopped by the Taste Bar, headed to the disco. The disco is using quite slow the first night and then it livens up but there was a pretty good crowd in there and we had a good time. We stayed out until about 2 am and then headed to bed with the hopes of sleeping in for our first day at sea.



Stay tuned, more on the taste bar, day 2 and pictures to come!

Carnival Victory: Planning process

Hey fellow cruisers!! As we have crept on 70 days until we set sail we are diving into the planning process! Final payment is closely approaching and although we are happy with the price we paid I am sure a lot of people are eagerly hoping they get a price drop. Since the rate we booked at included OBC (On Board Credit), the price drop would have to be pretty significant for us to scoop it up but we would consider upgrading to a balcony if the price was right ;)

We have been doing a little research here and there in regards to excursions but this will probably be a no frills type of vacation. We really just want to take a relaxing break and hang out on the beach in February while everyone we know is freezing their tails off; yes we will be sending some braggy photos to them!

One thing we do want to try to get in is horse back riding on the beach. I am a little iffy about it but I get to do a lot of the planning for our trips so if my boyfriend comes up with an idea I try to incorporate it. We originally looked into doing this in the Bahamas for our cruise on the Glory but got no response from the tour operator :(

Carnival does offer a horseback riding excursion in Grand Turk but it is about the same cost as doing it through a private company. I feel we may get a better experience being one on one with a small group rather than being herded around on the ship excursion. It does make us feel better that if we book with Carnival the ship wont leave us behind but with us having such a long day here I am sure we will have no issues with timing. Decisions, decisions. Only time will tell.

We are definitely planning a beach day for our stop at Little Stirrup Cay. Just a nice, relaxing day drinking a Miami Vice or two and hanging out in a lounger.

Have you been to Grand Turk or Little Stirrup Cay (Coco Cay)? Ever been horseback riding on the beach? Let me know your thoughts!

Post cruise in South Beach part 2

We decided we werent going to do much during our stay in south beach. We walked across to the beach and decided to just walk down a ways and then make our way back to the street. It was the end of November but there were quite a few people swimming and enjoying the beach. There were netted areas recommended for swimming due to large amount of man of war jellyfish. They had washed up on the beach everywhere.

On Ocean Drive when you are walking over to the beach there is Lummus Park which is a great area! There is tons of work out equipment and a bath for biking, skating, or running. It is a nice touch and there were tons of people making use of the facilities. There is also an area for washing off sand and restrooms every so often. 

After a bit we headed back up to the street and did some souvenir shopping. There and quite a few restaurants, bars, shops along with businesses. We grabbed a quick lunch and headed back out. We decided to go to Wet Willies for some drinks ( they have more of the slushie style drinks i mentioned in my Key West post). We decided to sit on the balcony of the second floor which overlooks Ocean Drive. South Beach is absolutely gorgeous at night and was so fun to just walk around.

The next day we had an early evening flight so we checked out in the morning. Ocean Reef was kind enough to keep our bags for the day in their office so that we could take in our last couple hours of vaca. We did more walking around today, decided to head opposite of the beach and look around at what else South Beach had to offer.

We had our airport shuttle come pick us up at the hotel and then we were on our way back home. We had a wonderful time in South Beach and would definitely consider staying at the Ocean Reef again.

Have you stayed in South Beach? What kind of things to you enjoy there?

Carnival Destiny Post Cruise: South Beach

You want to know the best thing about debarking the Destiny? We didn't have to go home!!! Yet. We decided to stay an extra day in South Beach before going home thanks to super expensive thanksgiving travel prices!!!

After debarking, we got in line for a taxi at the port. Lucky us we got a driver who wanted to try to rip off a tourist, not nice! I told our driver the name of our hotel, Ocean Reef, and showed his the paper with the full address. He  drove to SOBE, got onto Collins Ave (our street), drove around, then got on Ocean Drive and attempted to drop us off in front of a random hotel. Oh no no buddy. I told him the name of our hotel again and showed him the address. Apparently all he heard was Ocean and decided anywhere on Ocean Dr was sufficient. He then drove around to our hotel, turns out he had passed it earlier, and stopped in the middle of the street and had us get out. Certainly not going to let this hiccup ruin the end of vacation, we paid and went across to our hotel.

Though we stayed on the Destiny until last call we still go to the hotel before 11 am. They had told us earlier that if we were unable to check in early that they would be able to hold our bags for us. The entire booking process was great, they answered any questions promptly.  Low and behold we were able to check in early AND they were kind enough to upgrade us to a suite! Lovely, lovely place.

The hotel is located perfected on Collins Ave between 11th & 12th St. Walk across to Oceans Dr and you are at the beach and right in the hustle and bustle of South Beach :) Check in was fast and we were ready to check out room 305!

The room was nice & spacious. Queen size bed & queen size sleeper sofa as well as a kitchenette. The bathroom was a little on the small side but still nice. We were only there for one night so it didn't make a world of difference. I know what you are thinking... I thought this was a suite?  Well the suite has an extra 175 sq ft and the room divider separates the bed from the main area somewhat. A free upgrade is a free upgrade and we very much appreciated it.