Carnival Elation Review
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We came away from our week on the Elation, totally elated! "We" are six girlfriends who graduated from high school together....40+ years ago. Each year we plan a spring adventure. This was our first cruise. Through the years we have become more particular, fussy and finicky and didn't know how Carnival could possibly keep us happy. We chose the Elation simply because of the convenience of embarking in Galveston. We came from Alabama, Florida and Texas to test the water.
Our trip started with an overnight at the Galveston, Holiday Inn on the Beach, as it was one of the few hotels on the island that would take a one night booking. I cannot say enough about this hotel. I have never encountered a staff like this one. They simply cannot do enough to please their guests. We took advantage of their free parking for cruise customers and used their shuttle service to and from the dock. Our driver was Rodney, who was more than cheerful about loading and unloading our many bags. With a twinkle in his eye, as he lifted the 4th big bag onto the van, he said, " so you ladies are off on a months cruise?"....Our kind of guy. He gave us a mini tour of Galveston as he drove to the dock and told us exactly where to meet him upon debarkation, (we had no sooner gotten our bags together than he appeared).
Carnival seems to have boarding down to a fine science....it was fast and worry free. From the time we were dropped off at the dock until we were on deck, with a drink in hand, was less than an hour. We had three cabins in a row on Rivera deck and were very pleased with the amount of room we had. We had read a review from an earlier cruiser advising packing an over the door shoe bag...a great tip, as it came in very handy for makeup, and various sundries that would normally clutter up a bathroom counter. By the time we finished muster, our bags were waiting for us in the hallway. We had checked a soft side ice chest that held cokes, water, a gallon bottle of Vodka and Bloody Mary mix, all of which made it up with our luggage unscathed. Floyd, our room steward had his work cut out for him, but he kept us well supplied with ice and anything else we needed and ran his area cheerfully and efficiently.