Park Journey
Menu

Join Park Journey on the Coaster Cruise in December 2020

12/1/2019

0 Comments

 
Hey Park Journey Readers!!

By now we're sure you've all heard about the Bolt Coaster that is debuting on the Carnival Mardi Gras in 2020. Well, our friends at The Coaster Guy have put together a group next December to not only spend 7 nights aboard the Mardi Gras cruising the Caribbean, but also to ride the all new Bolt Coaster.

We are already registered and wanted to offer you all a chance to register as well.

When you register, make sure you indicate that you heard about the cruise through Park Journey (as shown below). We'll have some special treats just for those who join through us.
Picture
Click here to register for the Coaster Cruise!!

You can see all of the information about the Cruise below. 

In 2020, Carnival Cruise Line will launch Mardi Gras, the largest ship they have ever built. At 188,000 gross tons, with enough room for over 6,600 passengers, it is the very first ship in their brand new XL-class and the 5th largest cruise ship in the world.
Picture
For us coaster enthusiasts, the most exciting thing about this ship is not how big it is, or how many passengers it holds. What we are excited about is what is bolted to the top of it - a roller coaster!! The Mardi Gras will be home to Bolt: The Ultimate Sea Coaster, the first and only roller coaster at sea.


The only way to get this coaster credit is to take this cruise!
Picture
Come join us on one of the very first sailings of this magnificent ship and spend a week riding a very unique roller coaster while visiting three exotic island locations - Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, and Turks & Caicos.
Picture
If you have never cruised before, absolutely everything is included! For less than a typical hotel room per night, you get your stateroom, all your food, entertainment, and stops in three exotic ports of call for an entire week. Here is what is included:


Stateroom Amenities
  • Deluxe Balcony Stateroom (8G - upper deck, mid-ship)
  • Private bathroom/shower
  • 24-hour room service
  • Nightly turndown service
  • Television with movies


Food and Drink
  • All meals and snacks are included
  • Freshly prepared food in the main dining restaurants
  • Casual dining in the Lido Restaurant
  • Specialty eateries (BBQ, burgers, pasta, salads, hot dogs, tacos, seafood, stir fry, etc)
  • 24-hour pizzeria
  • Soft-serve ice cream and frozen yogurt
  • Lemonade, iced tea, coffee, hot tea, hot chocolate, and water
  • Spa Carnival menu (healthy, low in fat, calories, sodium, and cholesterol)


Onboard Activities - Day & Night
  • Production shows and entertainment
  • Live music
  • Comedy acts
  • Clubs, bars, and lounges (live dancing, karaoke, etc)
  • Casino
  • Pools and hot tubs
  • Serenity adult-only retreat
  • Fitness center/outdoor jogging track
  • WaterWorks water park
  • Sports (basketball, volleyball, dodgeball, ropes course, mini golf, foosball, etc)
  • Library
  • Carnival dive-in theater
  • Poolside activities and entertainment
  • Bolt: Ultimate Sea Coaster


Much like a theme park, the Mardi Gras will be made up of six distinct themed zones, with each area uniquely inspired to create a different atmosphere. This allows you to create your own personalized vacation, as you roam from zone to zone, each with different dining, drinking, entertainment, recreation, and relaxation options. The six zones are:


Grand Central
Your cruise will start in the main atrium, which is called Grand Central. The first thing you will notice are the high ceilings, giving you a peek at the fun happening on the three decks immediately above you. There will be lots of natural light streaming in from the floor to ceiling windows, providing you with amazing ocean views. It is here you can enjoy a nice cup of coffee while enjoying live music from the stage, or grabbing a handcrafted cocktail before a show.
Picture
The French Quarter
As the name implies, this zone is inspired by none other than New Orleans itself. The French Quarter is lined with bars and eateries worthy of their namesake, serving up everything from small plates to classic Hurricane cocktails straight from the bayou. There is also a hot jazz club, as well as funky little shops to explore.
Picture
Summer Landing
This zone is considered the greatest chill spot at sea! This is where you will find Guy's Pig & Anchor Smokehouse and Brewhouse, with freshly smoked favorites designed by celebrity chef Guy Fieri. You can wash all that smoked meat goodness down with Parched Pig beers, which are brewed right onboard with a resident brewmaster. Of course, this is all available just mere feet from a swimming pool and hot tub.
La Piazza
This zone is home to the 24-hour Pizzeria del Capitano, with pizzas made to order using imported Italian flour and fresh mozzarella cheese. It will also house the specialty Italian restaurant Cucina del Capitano, as well as a new Mediterranean spot specializing in seafood. Look for roaming musicians that will enhance your time spent in this zone.
Picture
Lido
If you have ever sailed on a Carnival ship before, you should be familiar with the Lido deck. This is where a lot of outdoor fun happens. Wrapped around the pool, you'll find Guy's Burger Joint, the Seafood Shack, and the BlueIguana Cantina taco spot, which also serves amazing breakfast burritos! At night, grab some soft-serve from Swirls and pull up a lounge chair to watch the evening's Dive-In Movie on the giant TV screen.

Picture
The Ultimate Playground
Last, but certainly not least, is The Ultimate Playground. This zone has something for everyone. First and foremost is Bolt: Ultimate Sea Coaster, the first and only roller coaster at sea. There is also the largest WaterWorks water park that Carnival has ever built, with three huge spiraling slides. SportSquare has a full mini golf course, an elevated ropes course, a full basketball court, and more. That should be enough to get your blood pumping!


Here are some additional artist renderings of what different parts of the ship will look like
Bolt: Ultimate Sea Coaster
The Bolt roller coaster is an industry first! Never before has anyone ever been so bold as to attach a roller coaster to the top of a cruise ship. Leave it to a Carnival Fun Ship to do what we've been dreaming about for years! This coaster is located at the highest point of the ship, giving you 360 degree ocean views as you circle the iconic red, white, and blue Carnival whale tail funnel. Unlike traditional roller coasters, this one is not powered by gravity, as there is no lift hill. Instead, it's electric powered, so you launch out of the station, and you control how fast (or slow) you go on the track. Here are some stats:
  • Manufactured by Maurer Rides - Spike model
  • Two-person inline cars
  • 800' single vertical rail
  • Maximum speed: 40 MPH
  • Minimum rider height: 43 inches
  • Maximum rider height: 76 inches
NOTE: This will be an upcharge attraction, requiring an additional fee to ride. It is not included in your base cruise fare. Carnival has yet to publish pricing for the ride, so we have no idea what it will cost. However, we are providing a $50/cabin onboard credit that can be used to purchase tickets. We want to ensure that everyone in our group has the opportunity to experience this ride without going out of pocket while on the cruise.


Cruising 101
For those of you who have never cruised before, I would like to explain a few basics. First and foremost, cruising is a lot of fun!! This is not your grandfather's cruise. Think of it as a nice hotel room, situated inside a small city of entertainment, that moves from country to country as you sleep. Every day you wake up, there's something new to see and do. You will have the entire day to explore the city and/or country, having fun and creating new memories. For those days at sea, there is a ton of things to do on the ship. In fact, you will likely not even get to do or experience everything that you want just because there is so much there. Between the shows, bars, entertainers, sports, restaurants...you will never get bored. I promise!


As I mentioned above, absolutely everything you need for the week is included in your base cruise fare; room, meals, entertainment, etc. Just like a hotel, your room will be made up daily, and you'll never go hungry. However, sodas and alcoholic drinks are not included. You can either pay for them as you go, or you can buy a drink package, either soda or alcoholic. They're basically unlimited, all-you-can-drink options that make drinking onboard much easier, and a whole lot less expensive. If you think you might drink more than five drinks a day, then a drink package will save you a ton of money. Ask me for details.


Shore excursions are another cruise add-on that are very popular. Every port of call has different vendors that provide local adventures you can go on, for a fee. Depending on the location, you can ride horses on the beach, go wine tasting in the valley, sail around the island on a catamaran, go golfing, scuba diving, zip lining through the jungle, or any number of fun things in that area. Ask me for details.


The staterooms we have chosen for this group are some of the nicest cabins on the ship. They are on a high floor, for great visibility, and are mostly located mid-ship, so you are never that far from your room. They also have private balconies, so you can sit outside in total privacy and watch the world float by. While in port, you may even have a beautiful view of the island or surrounding area. If you'd like to spring for something even nicer, or perhaps bigger, we can certainly arrange that for whatever the nominal price difference is. If you'd like to try and save a little money, we can also downgrade your room for an ocean view or inside cabin. Talk to me if you think you might like something different.


The base price for this cruise that we have locked in with Carnival is $964/person, based on double occupancy, not including port fees and taxes. This means that you need to commit to two people in each cabin to get this price. If you're a solo traveler, there is a 200% supplement charge, which is a fancy way of saying that you'll basically be paying double for the privilege of having the cabin to yourself. Each cabin will either have one king size bed, or two twins, based on your preference during booking. The port fees and taxes are just that. They are fees that Carnival gets charged every time they dock in a foreign port. They take that cost and split it up amongst the passengers, so everybody pays their fair share. This amount varies on every cruise, based on the ports you call on, and how many of them there are. For this cruise, it's $127.52/person and there's no getting out of it. Therefore, when you look at the total cost for this cruise, it comes to $1,091.52/person. We only have a limited number of cabins guaranteed at this rate. Once they are gone, we can still book you into the group, but the cost will be based on whatever the prevailing rate is that day. Bottom line is - book soon to guarantee the best price.


This cruise comes out to be just under $156/person per day for the entire week. You can barely find a decent hotel room for that, not to mention all the food you care to eat, entertainment, transportation between multiple countries, all on a brand new ship. And, don't forget that you will also get a brand new coaster credit that all of your friends will be jealous of! It really is a tremendous value for a wonderful vacation!


You also do not need to pay for the entire cruise right away. Since we do not sail until December 2020, you have almost two whole years to save for it. All you need to pay now is a small deposit to lock in a cabin on the ship. For a nominal deposit of $250/person, you not only guarantee your spot on the ship, but you also get to pick out your exact cabin. The sooner you sign up, the better cabin selection there is to choose from. The rest of the money isn't due until Sep 21, 2020. You can wait and pay it all at once, or you can make smaller payments along the way. However you want to do it. You can also rest assured that everything is 100% refundable up until that same date, Sep 21, 2020. Two years is a long ways away and we never know what the future holds for us. If something comes up and you can't make the trip, you can rest assured that you can get your money back up until Sep 21, 2020. Even after that date, you can still get a refund, but there will be penalties involved. The closer to the cruise date you cancel, the more severe the penalties are. I will go over all the dates with you when you book.


One expense that people don't often warn new cruisers about is the gratuities. The cruise lines charge all guests a flat gratuity per person, per day, for the duration of the cruise. This covers the tips for all the various people that will wait on you throughout each day, such as your cabin steward, bartenders, and restaurant wait staff. For Carnival, this is currently set at $13.99/day, or $97.93/person for the entire week ($15.99/person for suites). This can either be prepaid before the cruise, or it will be added to your onboard account that must be settled before you depart. If you choose not to pre-pay it, you will have the opportunity to discuss it with Guest Services at the end of your cruise if you are dissatisfied for any reason. They will do their best to make it right with you. The gratuities are the only mandatory expense that is not included in your cruise fare. I mention it here because I never want anyone getting to the end of a cruise that I arranged and get blindsided with an unexpected expense.


In Closing
This is going to be an amazing cruise! A brand new ship, a new roller coaster, three amazing islands...how could it not be? All that is missing right now is you! I will be personally escorting this group, so I really hope to see you there! Be sure to click on the Cruise Information tab above to see more specifics about the ship and where we will be going. If you already know you want to go for sure, click on the Register tab above and fill out the form. It won't collect any credit card information, but it will alert me to call you and we can walk through the details. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to call me (310.424.5591). -Kurt Dahlin


Grab all your coaster friends and join us on this amazing adventure!!

Related Videos:

Related Updates: 
  • West Coast Racers Update at Six Flags Magic Mountain - November 10, 2019
  • Final Weekend of HHN Hollywood and USH Construction Update - November 4, 2019
  • Los Angeles Haunted Hayride 2019 Review, Pics and Video - October 1, 2019
  • Knott's Scary Farm Opening Weekend - September 24, 2019
  • Howl-O-Scream at Busch Gardens Tampa: 20 years of fear - September 23, 2019


If you enjoyed this update please share with your friends and make sure you "like" us on Facebook and "follow" us on Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. 

If you have any comments, please share them below
0 Comments

Mexican Riviera on the Carnival Splendor - Part Three

11/15/2019

0 Comments

 
Picture
Hi everybody, and welcome to Part Three of our Cruise aboard the Carnival Splendor in August. Sorry it's taken so long to get to part three but, well, it was scary season. 

We promise the wait is worth it, as today we're looking at our shore excursion in Puerto Vallarta which was all kinds of amazing.

​
And lastly we'll take one last look around the ship which is actually in dry-dock right now getting refurbished before going to it's new home in Australia. Definitely interested to see how it will look when it's done. 

If you missed Part One or Part Two of our cruise, be sure to check them out!! 

Written by Gregg Condon
Good Morning Puerto Vallarta!! 
Picture
Absolutely beautiful
Picture
Picture
We sat and watched them docking, it was super cool. 
Picture
Picture
Amazing music to greet us!! 
Picture
And I met a friend!! 
Picture
Today we are going on a snorkel adventure!! 
Picture
It was nice that we could just walk from one ship to another right in the port. 
Picture
Picture
Let's go have some fun!! 
Picture
Picture
So at this point of the update, we switched to our 10+ year old Olympus Tough camera. It's not the best camera, but it's water proof and drop proof. 
Picture
Our excursion was put on by Vallarta Adventure and they couldn't have been more amazing. 

First stop was Majahuitas for a bit of snorkeling. 

And of course, each update must include a video of me looking like an idiot. =) 
Picture
Picture
Oooooh, Fishy, Fishy, Fishy, Fish
Picture
Picture
Picture
As you can see, the water was amazing. 
Picture
Floating around in the ocean
Picture
Then it was off to Yelapa. This looks like a postcard. The only way to get here is by boat, which is kind of awesome. 
Picture
There were two options here, the first included a hike to a waterfall and the second included extra time relaxing on the beach. We took option 2. 
Picture
Is it wrong I want to buy one of those condo's and just work from here? No? Good. 
Picture
We spent the next 2 hours lounging in the sun, enjoying the amazingly warm water and just enjoying our amazing vacation. 
Picture
After finding our relaxation it was time to head back to the ship. 
Picture
These are the faces of two totally relaxed and content people. 
Picture
The crew put on a really fun show as we made our way back to port. 
Picture
Picture
So long Mexico, we've got two sea days coming up!! 
Picture
Picture
Dinner that night was pasta something, and it was amazing. 
Picture
And bread pudding
Rockin' night at the theater. It was awesome!! 
Over the next two days we spent a lot of time exploring the ship and of course relaxing A LOT. This also included our second formal night. 

​We've come to refer to this as our "Prom Picture". 
Picture
Our last day at Sea
Picture
Picture
Picture
Had to get our St Jude shirt!! 
Picture
And of course get a selfie with our amazing Cruise Director Leigh
Picture
Oh, and Bingo with the amazing Captain Cash (who's a huge Disney fan we found out) 
Picture
Picture
Also, just a shout out to the amazing service team at all of the restaurants, our room steward and basically everybody. You get SO spoiled while on a cruise, nothing can prepare you for the amount of pampering. 
Picture
Flatbread, it was so freaking amazing. 
Picture
Baked Alaska
Picture
Our final Sunset 
Picture
We're not really "party" people, but we had such a fun time the last night at the departure party. 
Picture
Picture
Sadly, the next morning we woke up to find ourselves pulling into Long Beach. 
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Get out. We mean, Please, Get out. (a little Jungle Cruise humor)
Picture
Thank YOU Carnival!! 
Picture
Picture
So that's our trip, we hope you enjoyed our adventure and we seriously can't wait until the next one. It's literally our Xmas present to each other this year. 

Related Videos:

Related Updates: 
  • West Coast Racers Update at Six Flags Magic Mountain - November 10, 2019
  • Final Weekend of HHN Hollywood and USH Construction Update - November 4, 2019
  • Los Angeles Haunted Hayride 2019 Review, Pics and Video - October 1, 2019
  • Knott's Scary Farm Opening Weekend - September 24, 2019
  • Howl-O-Scream at Busch Gardens Tampa: 20 years of fear - September 23, 2019


If you enjoyed this update please share with your friends and make sure you "like" us on Facebook and "follow" us on Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. 

If you have any comments, please share them below
0 Comments

Mexican Riviera on the Carnival Splendor - Part Two

9/6/2019

0 Comments

 
Picture
Today we're back with part two of our cruise on the Carnival Splendor to the Mexican Riviera. For this update we're going to concentrate mostly on our days in Cabo San Lucas and Mazatlan. We'll talk a bit about what we did on shore and some things we noticed that may help future vacationers. 

​Enjoy!! 

Written by Gregg Condon
Pictures by Gregg and Kristi Condon

We'll start off this update with a video we did of the ship. It's definitely not the most comprehensive tour of this ship we've seen (that one is linked in the video) but we wanted to show off some of what we enjoyed on the ship as first timers. 
In addition, I tried a few times to get a sunrise or sunset time-lapse on the GoPro but it never quite worked out. The last morning I was finally up early enough, but of course hadn't charged the GoPro.
So this video isn't exactly what we wanted, but I will admit, I liked the set-up I came up with for mounting it. I thought it worked great. If it wasn't for the technical issues on my end. 

If you're celebrating something make sure the cruise knows, I got a nice little gift card for the spa and for pictures for my birthday. I didn't use the spa one (not really my thing and never really found the time) but we did use the picture one. 
Picture
A little pre-Cabo fuel. =) 
Picture
After being at sea for over 36 hours it was actually kind of nice to see land
Picture
Picture
Hola Mexico
Picture
The famous arch
Picture
As you can see, we were quite happy on our vacation. =) 
Picture
​No I'm not ignoring my wife, I'm trying to not get too much sun. Trust me, you'll only sunburn your head once. =) 
Picture
Cabo was a Tender port (no, not Tinder) so we had to take a boat to shore. 
Picture
Hi Splendor!!

The ship is an older one, but she's got a lot of personality. Will be interesting to see what she looks like after her upcoming refurb. 
Picture
We did not eat here, but we of course had to get a pic. 
Picture
No matter what your political affiliation is, this is funny. I forgot to pick it up on the way back to the ship. 
Picture
Cabo was definitely the most "touristy" of our three ports. 
Picture
Picture
I love little things like this that are kind of out of the way. 
Picture
Picture
Picture
Just on the other side of the harbor area are more classic restaurants and the diamond store. =) 
Picture
Cabo Wabo
Picture
Policia 

Not once, in any of our three ports, did we ever feel unsafe or unwelcome. The people of Mexico are amazing. 
Picture
#Cabo 
Picture
We actually took a couple of really nice pics. I'm proud of us. =) 
Picture
Picture
After walking what seemed like 10 miles (it was about 2k) we arrived to the restaurant a friend recommended. Aaaand it was closed. 

But right next door was a beach club, and as you'll see below, we weren't suffering at all. 
Picture
We each had 4 tacos, chips and guacamole and 4 beers (each). Grand total with tip $40. 

I'm sure we could have found cheaper but we didn't care. It was amazing, the service was great and this would have cost us at least double that at home. We were very happy. 
Picture
Picture
After all that there was no way we were walking back (there's really not an easy path from the Cruise terminal to Medano Beach where we ate) so we took a water taxi back. 
Picture
It was $5 each. Again, we probably could have negotiated more than we did, but we were happy to support the economy. 

Of course, once we were on our driver asked if we wanted to see the arch. For another $20. We politely declined. 
Picture
Picture
Picture
After doing a bit of shopping it was back on the ship!!
Picture
We were actually back on the ship about 3 hours before disembark, and it was so nice and quiet. We sat by the pool and relaxed a bit. And took a nap. ​
Picture
We don't drink a lot of soda, but can't say no to Mexican Coke. 
Picture
It was 80's night that night, the show was amazing!!

​We had brought 80's stuff to wear for the glow party, but it wasn't until 11:15pm. And we were tired. Next time!! 

The next morning after a trip across the Gulf of California, we arrived in Mazatlan. It was absolutely gorgeous. 
Picture
We had booked an excursion this day, to an all-day resort with a pool and beach. 
Picture
Apparently Mazatlan is a newer cruise stop, this is your view at the shore. It gets better than this though. =) 
Picture
On the way to our resort we got to see some of the city. 
Picture
People waiting to pay their water bill. For real. 
Picture
As seen from the bus window
Picture
After about a 30 minute drive we arrived at our resort, the El Cid Marina. 

This resort actually had two options. An "all inclusive" option which included a buffet or an "open bar" option. We went with the open bar and got food on our own. 

This ended up working great for us as the buffet was on the beach side, and we stayed on the pool side all day. You'll see why. 
Picture
Lots of Iguana's wandering around. Be careful, they like chips. 
Picture
Picture
We drank a lot of cerveza and ordered some nachos and quesadilla from the menu. Total, $20. We also gave our server a nice tip as we drank free beer for 4+ hours. 
Picture
2 seconds after this shot was taken I was asked to not jump by the hotels staff. Ooops. 
Picture
The pool was amazing. It had underwater caves, waterfalls and we could even sit on the edge of the pool and enjoy our drinks. 

And a bonus, the bathrooms were not only immaculately clean, there was also AC in them. 

Definitely recommend this excursion if you're looking for a nice day to relax in Mazatlan. We've even talked about just coming down to stay at this resort for a week sometime. 
Picture
Picture
After a full day in the sun it was back on the bus and back to the ship. There is a nice little flea market outside the cruise terminal so we were able to do some more shopping. 

We got a 33oz bottle of Pure Vanilla Extract for $12. Don't even want to know how much that would cost here. 
Picture
Back on the ship we took a nap (again) and enjoyed another amazing dinner. 

We were back to bed a bit early as the next day we had another shore excursion in Puerto Vallarta. In hindsight I think we would have preferred to not have back-to-back excursions but it's hard to argue with the two that we did.

As Puerto Vallarta was our favorite as you'll see in our next update!! 

​Until next time ... 

Related Videos:

Related Updates: 
  • Busch Gardens Tampa Bier Fest and 2020 Coaster Update - August 20, 2019
  • Walt Disney World: Star Wars Galaxy's Edge Preview - August 15, 2019
  • Midsummer Scream: The Perfect Kick-Off to Halloween 2019 - August 8, 2019
  • Jurassic World: The Ride Media Night Celebration - July 23, 2019
  • Six Flags Magic Mountain West Coast Racers Tour - July 19, 2019


If you enjoyed this update please share with your friends and make sure you "like" us on Facebook and "follow" us on Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. 

If you have any comments, please share them below
0 Comments

Welcome to Cruise Journey!

9/3/2019

0 Comments

 
Welcome to our newest page on Park Journey, the aptly named Cruise Journey!! 

If you're new to our site it should be pretty clear from the list of other pages on the site that we mostly talk about Theme Parks and everything to do with them. This includes new rides, Halloween events and more. 

But more than all of that, our mission for the past almost 6 years has been to have fun, and we've had a LOT of it. And it was in that spirit of fun that led my wife and I on our first Cruise aboard the Carnival Splendor and to the amazing Mexican Riviera (Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan, Puerto Vallarta). 

Needless to say we loved it, so much so we decided to create a new page on the site, and we've already started looking for our next cruise. 

So while this page may not be updated as much as some of our other pages will be, we hope that quality over quantity will be sufficient enough. 

On this page we'll also share Cruise news (we already share Disney Cruise info on our Industry News page, we'll do that here now) as much as we can. 

So if you're new here, enjoy. Check out some of the other pages. If you're one of our long-time followers, we hope you enjoy this new page of the site just as much as the others!!

Enjoy our first update below, the first of a few updates from our cruise last week. We'll also have a video walk-through of the ship later this week. - Gregg 

Mexican Riviera on the Carnival Splendor - Part One

Written by Gregg Condon
Pics by Gregg and Kristi Condon
Picture
We'd been talking about going on a Cruise for years, in fact, in our 23 years of marriage this was the first vacation we've ever taken without kids that was anything more than a long weekend (coaster trips to the east coast, Vegas, Bay Area, etc). Something about getting married and having kids at 20 and 21 puts a cramp in all that (but no "regerts" as we've had a truly blessed life). 


A few months back we decided to finally just do it. We talked to our good friend Kurt (The Coaster Guy) who has his own Cruise Travel Agency (seriously, look them up if you are looking to book) and plopped down the money. Our countdown began and finally, last week, it was here!! 

The good thing about having kids young, when you're in your early-mid 40's they can drop you off at the airport or cruise terminal and you don't have to pay to park (just a tank of gas). 
Seeing that we were boarding in Long Beach, we had to get some Dark Harbor construction pics
Heading into the terminal 
Picture
Picture
We're in and ready to go!! Love that they have a "too early" line. We were on the ship by about 11:45. 
Picture
Picture
The first of too many good meals!! 
Picture
Picture
Picture
After a nice quiet meal and exploring the Lido deck a bit, our room was ready about 1:30. And our luggage was waiting for us which was nice!! 
Picture
Picture
We had originally booked a portal room but had an upgrade offer not long after we paid off our cruise. So glad we upgraded.
Picture
The books I planned on finishing during our week at sea, I didn't. Although both are fantastic.
Picture
We spent most of the first day just hanging out, doing the safety drill of course (totally new experience for us), sitting by the pool and just adapting to our new home for the next week. 
Picture
Picture
Picture
We had originally made steakhouse reservations for our night in Cabo but we then heard that if you book the steakhouse on night 1 you get a free bottle of wine. Doesn't take much to convince us!!

And in hindsight, the absolute best way to start off our first night on our first cruise! 
Picture
Lobster Bisque
Chocolate Sphere Thingy
Baked Potato
Mini Burger Thingy
Surf and Turf
Our first sunset at sea
Mushroom Risotto
Hazelnut Cheesecake
It's funny, when we were planning what we were going to do on the ship it mostly consisted of sitting on the balcony or the pool and reading. And we did a LOT of that. 

But we also found ourselves increasingly joining in on the cruise fun due to the amazing Fun Squad! More on them in future updates. 

The amazing Leigh, our Cruise Director. 
Picture
We also decided to attend the night one show which gave some more information about the cruise and what we should expect!!

I then got picked to go up on stage and make an ass out of myself. But it was SO fun. And we won Entertainment VIP for the week which consisted of reserved seats for all of the shows. Which was amazing!! 

I will neither confirm or deny if there is video of this, and if that video will be posted in a future update. =)
Picture
After a full day we turned in rather early and had night 1 of the best 7 nights of sleep we've had in our lives. Rock-A-Bye-Gregg and Kristi! 
Day two we were up rather early, but instead of rushing off we took the option to have coffee delivered to our room. We sat on our balcony and enjoyed our coffee most mornings. It was magical. 
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
We also saw that very first morning that there was breakfast in one of the restaurants every day, the Gold Pearl. Apparently it was kind of a hidden secret as there wasn't a line here until Thursday morning. We ate at the buffet exactly once all week. And we had some of our best meals of the week during breakfast. 

And apparently we were so hungry we didn't take pics that first morning. Sorry. 
That first sea day was spent mostly by the pool, reading, having a couple of drinks and honestly, thoroughly enjoying being "disconnected" from the world. Even though D23 was going on, I didn't find myself wondering what was being announced at all. It was sublime. 
Picture
Picture
Picture
This was also the first of our formal nights, it's nice to get dolled up and we were very glad to see most of our fellow guests followed suit (pun intended). 
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
I had lobster 2 nights in a row. That was a new one for me. 
We turned in pretty early that night as we were to arrive in Cabo the next morning. We were looking forward to our first day in Mexico. But that will have to wait until the next update. Stay tuned!! 

We usually share related videos and updates whenever we have a new post, but since this is our first blog post on Cruise Journey we got nothin'.

​We did post a couple of water ride videos, that counts right? =)

​So for those of you who are new, some of our recent updates from elsewhere on the site. Be sure to like our social media channels and subscribe on YouTube!!

Related Videos:

Related Updates: 
  • Busch Gardens Tampa Bier Fest and 2020 Coaster Update - August 20, 2019
  • Walt Disney World: Star Wars Galaxy's Edge Preview - August 15, 2019
  • Midsummer Scream: The Perfect Kick-Off to Halloween 2019 - August 8, 2019
  • Jurassic World: The Ride Media Night Celebration - July 23, 2019
  • Six Flags Magic Mountain West Coast Racers Tour - July 19, 2019​


​If you enjoyed this update please share with your friends and make sure you "like" us on Facebook and "follow" us on Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. 

If you have any comments, please share them below
0 Comments

    Archives

    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019

    Categories

    All
    Bolt Coaster
    Carnival Cruises
    Carnival Mardi Gras
    Carnival Splendor
    Coaster Cruise
    Cruise Journey
    Disney Cruise Line
    Mexican Riviera

    RSS Feed

  • Home
  • Six Flags
  • Cedar Fair
  • Universal Studios
  • Disney Parks
  • SeaWorld Parks
  • Other Parks
  • Beyond The Parks
  • The Other Side of the Tracks
  • Industry News
  • Cruise Journey
  • Park Journey Shop
  • Theme Park Art
  • Past Updates
    • 2019 Updates
    • 2018 Updates
    • 2017 Updates
    • 2016 Updates
    • 2015 Updates
    • 2013 and 2014 Updates
  • Contact Us
  • Home
  • Six Flags
  • Cedar Fair
  • Universal Studios
  • Disney Parks
  • SeaWorld Parks
  • Other Parks
  • Beyond The Parks
  • The Other Side of the Tracks
  • Industry News
  • Cruise Journey
  • Park Journey Shop
  • Theme Park Art
  • Past Updates
    • 2019 Updates
    • 2018 Updates
    • 2017 Updates
    • 2016 Updates
    • 2015 Updates
    • 2013 and 2014 Updates
  • Contact Us