|
This was our first Carnival cruise. We live in Jacksonville, but had previously only sailed on Royal Caribbean's Sovereign of the Seas out of Port Canaveral. Those three trips were pleasant, but the two and 1/2 hour drive home was not, so we decided to give the Fascination a shot. I originally booked an interior room on the Verandah deck, but a Carnival agent called a couple of weeks before departure and offered a balcony suite for only $340 more for both my husband and me, so I jumped on the opportunity. The biggest upside to that upgrade was the VIP embarkation & debarkation.
My father in law dropped us off at the port at about 12:30, and we went straight through the VIP entrance to the VIP waiting area, where we waited about 10 minutes before being checked in and personally escorted to the gangway. Once on board we familiarized ourselves with the ship and headed to our cabin. The suite was very nicely appointed with a king size bed, mini-bar with refrigerator, and couch. Our steward came by to introduce himself and inform us of the cabin service schedule, and he was absolutely delightful.
For a fifteen year-old ship, the Fascination is in remarkably good shape. All of the areas we visited were extremely clean.
When we vacation, we keep things very casual, so we didn't visit the dining room at all during the cruise. We ate all of our meals at the Coconut Bar and Grill, which had a good variety of food from day-to-day, ranging from spicy fried chicken to prime rib to baked ziti with a number of varied side items and baked potato bar. The breakfast was standard fare; scrambled eggs, ham, grits, oatmeal, bacon, etc., and of course the usual cereals and yogurts. There was an omelet station available outside on the Lido deck, which also served fresh eggs to order. The selection of fruit was very good at every meal. The pizzeria and deli are open 24/7, and we particularly enjoyed the hot grilled panini. I had a couple of reubens that were pretty tasty. The salad bars offered just about anything you could think of to put on a salad, and the produce was fresh. The deserts were just so-so, however. We did get cake delivered by room service that was much better than that served in the grill. Room service, by the way, was prompt. Every morning we asked for coffee to be delivered between 7-8 a.m., and it never arrived later than 7:10.
The bar staff at all of the bars was very pleasant. The drink service in the casino was outstanding. We had one particular waiter who memorized our names and drink orders and never let us sit with an empty glass. Speaking of the casino, a couple whom we met the first day of the cruise won their choice of a BMW or $25,000 cash on the 2 cent slots, so the advertisement of the BMW prize is not a gimmick! They happily took the cash.
Our day at Half Moon Cay was really nice. The tenders only take a couple of minutes to get you to the island, and there were plenty of activities for all ages once ashore. I staked out a couple of lounge chairs early and relaxed while my husband snorkeled for a while. He wasn't overly impressed with the snorkeling...he said there were barely any fish and no interesting formations to explore, just sand. Bar service on the island is pretty good, and we had a pretty decent lunch there...hamburgers and hot dogs and the like. Nothing too fancy, but they do a good job under the circumstances. We are definitely going to try the horseback riding the next time. Those folks looked like they had a really good time.
We tend to go to bed early, so we did not see any of the shows. We did, however, attend the "Newlywed/Not so Newlywed Game" and it was a scream. The cruise director, Felipe, is a riot. He gave the debarkation talk the day before arriving back at port, and it was hilarious as well as very informative. I recommend attending so that debarkation is a smooth experience.
To sum up, the Fascination is a great ship (soon to be even better after a dry dock renovation), and the staff were all just wonderful.
Debarkation was a breeze...another perk to the VIP status we got along with our suite. The VIP passengers waited in the "Puttin on the Ritz" lounge and were the first called after the self-assist passengers got off. We were escorted to the gangway by a member of the staff, and from there it was a five to ten minute trip to gather luggage and breeze through customs. Brother in law picked us up, and we were home by 10:45!
|
