Paradise………..everyone has their own definition of what this is. For some, it’s a hotel suite full of Latvian women while for others it conjures up lying by an infinity pool while Megan Fox serves you Spotted Dick……..naked.
Yes, yes…….those are my ideas of paradise but strangely it probably isn’t yours. Heidi’s idea of paradise some years ago was the Maldives which meant that despite my desperate pleas to stay at home and watch TV instead……..we jetted off there in 2004. I will never forget how the brochure called it “paradise” ……..but trust me……….it isn’t.
It takes 3 years to get there and after a long flight from the UK you land at the airport where you are pounced on by everyone from the baggage handler to the bus driver all of whom slap a reef of flowers over your head. By the time Heidi and I arrived at the resort I looked like Holland and as well as carrying our suitcases I was now had the extra weight of 200 tons of sodding lilies.
Heidi had booked us a room on stilts that stand in the ocean. That sounds romantic doesn’t it ………well it’s about as romantic as a turd in a swimming pool.
You have to “wade out” to your room in a foot of water which I am sure had killer piranha waiting to munch on my ankles. Then, when you order breakfast to come to the room it takes forever because your room is on the water and that means that your bacon and eggs has to be delivered by a bloody canoe!
It was supposed to be paradise…………it wasn’t……….it was hell. No TV, no entertainment …….and each night after Heidi and I would come back to our room on the water I would have to remove the 2 tons of rose petals that would be sprinkled over the bed. And despite the fact that I thought I had always gotten everyone of them off the bed I would always wake up with one secreted between my buttocks.
I felt sorry for the staff who were forced to wear the most ridiculous uniforms. Even the male staff had to wear grass skirts and they had to walk up and down the lava hot sand all day in bare feet. Unless of course they were trying to deliver our dinner, in a canoe, on a rough sea, without letting it blow away or go cold or fall into the water to be eaten by Peter the Piranha. I wrote on my comment card “give the poor bastards some shoes…….. and a pair of shorts.”
Heidi loved it though……….of course she did. Just the words “no TV” had her drooling although her opinion changed somewhat when an insect with the head and upper torso of a mosquito and the rear end of a wart hog landed on her arm.
This experience was supposed to show us a taste of what life is like on a tropical island. That is as ridiculous as thinking you can get a taste of pork by licking a pig.
On a real tropical island, like Tom Hanks in Castaway, you have to smash your own teeth out with ice skates and talk to footballs.
I guess though that many bloggers reading this will despite my misgivings think that this does indeed sound like paradise……….I guess though we dream the tropical dream. But me and a few others were built to live indoors, with a huge TV and not wake up every morning with a rose petal shoved up your arse.
So, if tropical island living is your idea of paradise then I have discovered you don’t have to fly thousands of miles to experience it……….and I will tell you more about that after today’s questions……………away we go.
Tom Foster Asked:
John, (Please Reply)I have read on your blog that the Future Cruise Desk should be open soon on the Carnival Elation and the Carnival Imagination. Do you have any Idea If the Bearded Ones have Plans to open one on the Carnival Ecstasy? We are Booked On our 2nd Cruise on the Carnival Ecstasy in October with my Wife’s Parents as well as another Couple from Work and we are all thinking of Future Cruises and would love to have the option to Purchase Future Cruise Credits on Board so we can start Planning our Next Escape from the Rat Race… We Really Enjoyed Steve’s Performances on our last Cruise and If I would have waited just a little longer my wife might not be mad at me, as I see by the new CD Schedule Steve is getting off the day we go onboard.:( Thanks for putting up with the things you do and letting all of us see through your Blog how different people React to different situations. You handle it all with Grace and Dignity that I am Surprised you have any hair left. Keep up the GREAT JOB that you do… Hope to see you in the Med Next Year.
John Says:
Hello Tom FosterDespite the obvious need for clarity with the future cruise certificate rules and regulations which as I promised a blogger yesterday I would post very soon (and I will) they do remain very popular indeed. I just spoke to the CD Steve on the Carnival Ecstasy who confirmed that yes indeed there is a future cruise desk on the ship. Steve is indeed one of a kind as you will see from his photo here.
But as you correctly noticed he will be on vacation when you sail and will be replaced by the superb Brad Calabrese from Canada. Here he is.
Thanks so much for those kind words of support and I hope that we will indeed see each other in the Mediterranean on the Carnival Magic next year.
Best wishes
JohnGeoff & Bethany Asked:
John- Please ReplyHi John!
This is my first time posting, sorry I have taken so long, but I love your blog! Just as I love Carnival.
I know it is long overdue but I wanted to give my review of my cruise last year. We were on the Carnival Conquest last September and it was the best ever! Everyone on the staff was wonderful, they truly made the cruise. I will start with our room steward, Edwin. Not only did he remember our names from day one, but he also made our days, by leaving notes on the marker boards we had on our doors.
Next there was our waitress Christina and her asst Daniel. No matter how busy our day at been, we always went to dinner to see them. Christina would always bring us new things to try when we were too chicken to order them.
We also had a wonderful entertainment staff. Our cruise director was Kyle Post, who was so friendly anytime we saw him around the ship. He even set a meeting for my husband to talk to one of the “bearded ones” about all the computer stuff they have going on the ships. Kyle’s staff was all awesome as well. Marcello, Katie/Annie, and Jacob. You could tell they all loved their jobs. My mom had written a letter to the morning show for my birthday, and they called my room live on the show! Later in the day Marcello made sure to give me my birthday hug. My mom found Katie again when they cruised with you on the Carnival Dream this past February. I must confess, I am jealous of my mom and step dad for getting to meet you. She said meeting you was right up there with meeting the Doobie Brothers, which trust me, is a big deal to her! One last person I must mention is one of the dancers Beau. He was very friendly as well, and an awesome dancer. The crew of the Carnival Conquest truly made our cruise the best it could be! We loved it so much that we are doing it again in October!!
Which leads me to my questions?
First, do you happen to know if any of these wonderful crew members will be there October 10, 2010 for us to meet up with again?
And Second, can you tell me a little about Danny Ghilarducci? I see he will be our CD then, but haven’t heard anything about him.
We can’t wait to get back on a carnival cruise!! This will be mine and my husband’s third cruise with Carnival and my mom’s (Bobbi & James) seventh. I don’t see any other cruise lines in my future, as I love Carnival too much. I’m sure my friends and co-workers are probably tired of hearing me talk about it, but I can’t help it. I am like a walking commercial!
Ok, sorry for talking your ear off, hopefully I will get the honor of cruising with you someday soon.
Best wishes to you, Heidi, and beautiful Kye.
BethanyJohn Says:
Geoff & BethanyThanks you for that great posting which I hope will be the first of many. Your review of the Carnival Sensation was great and I will make sure that Edwin, Christina and Daniel all see your words of praise. They represent what is best about a Carnival cruise experience and I never get tired of saying just how iconic our crew are. I have heard so many great things about Kyle Post but I have never had the chance to work with him …………. in case you have forgotten what he looks like…….here he is.
I will make sure he and the entertainment staffs also see your review and I am sure they will be thrilled.
Not knowing the last names of Christina, Edwin and Daniel makes it very difficult for me to know which ship they will be on in October but please don’t worry because I know whoever your stateroom steward and dining team are………they will give you a fun, unforgettable experience once again. Daniel Ghilarducci is as you can tell by his last name ……….Irish……………..kidding……………Italian. He has been helping us in the Miami office with some special projects and will be your Cruise Director in October. Danny is from California and I thought you might like to see his photo………..so here it is.
Please never ever apologize for talking about your love for Carnival. It is truly music to our ears and hopefully your enthusiasm will rub off on others and they will get to experience the fun for all vacation that you love so much.
Thanks for the kind words and hope you write again soon
Best wishes
JohnGloria (Please Reply) Asked:
Hi John:Please explain to me what a blogger’s cruise is. Is it only for people who Have blogs or is it for those of us who READ your blog? If it is for the latter, how do we find out more information on booking it? Thank you very much. We will be on the Freedom 8-day cruise Dec 4 – 12. I’m so looking forward to it.
John Says:
Hello GloriaThe Bloggers Cruise is an exclusive cruise only for those people who read and write blogs in their underpants. Kidding, of course. Nope, a bloggers cruise is just a chance for people who read the blog and the comments and who like to meet others who love cruising. We have special events, shows and parties and a few gifts for all as well. You can book by calling a PVP or travel agent or any of the groups that are coming such as Big Ed’s Evil Krewe or Cruise Critic will be honoured (spelt correctly) to welcome you into their friendship group. It will be a lot of fun I promise and here is one of the 343 Stephanies to give you the booking information.
Hello Gloria. You can book the 02/27/2011 Bloggers Cruise on the Carnival Glory by using the farecode “PBL”. If you have any other questions about this definitely let me know. You can email socialnetworking@carnival.com.
Hope to see you soon and maybe on the bloggers cruise in February.
Best wishes
JohnTracy Asked:
Please replyHi john I don’t like rock band also. But I never played it lol. What is Kyle post like? He will be cd on the liberty when I’m on there. I have a question when it gets close to my sail date can I ask u a favor if u could get us a booth again in the dinning room? And since everyone can see what we post now do I still give u my cabin number? And I was hoping for the dining room in the back again. Have a good weekend
John Says:
Hello TracyYou can ask me for a favor anytime Tracy. Please make sure I get your dining request one month before you sail as I am still 3 weeks behind (sorry Tom) and I don’t want to miss it.
I just posted a photo of Kyle, did you see it above? He is a great kid with bags of energy and fun so I know you will have a great time. Thanks for the kind words and hope to hear from you soon.
Best wishes
JohnSpoiltrotten Asked:
Hello John,My 25 year old son, who is a Platinum cruiser and his girlfriend, will be sailing on the Splendor on 5/16. I realize that you will not be the CD, however I wonder if you could tell me how to contact that CD. Kev will be asking Savannah to marry him upon boarding that day (the ring is burning a hole in his pocket), so that I could perhaps have him wish Kev and Savannah the best.
Thank you for any help you could be, and I’ll be seeing you in Sept as DH and I will be taking the Splendor.
Spoilt
John Says:
Hello SpoiltrottenI just wanted to apologize sincerely for not getting to this comment until today and therefore miss the chance to help your son. Please forgive me. Did he propose? Please let us know and please if he did, send him and his new fiancée by best wishes which along with a big “sorry” I also send to you.
See you in September
Johncindy56 Asked:
Hi John (please reply)Chris Jefferson was the cruise director on the Carnival Triumph in 2005 which was my first cruise. He is absolutely brilliant. I then saw him again a couple of years later on either the Carnival Glory or Carnival Valor and by then he was married. Do they have any children yet?
Hopefully I will be able to join you on the bloggers cruise in February. I have a good friend who is considering coming with me and guess what? She’s from England too.
Happy Birthday to Heidi! Sorry I missed it yesterday.
Take care,
CindyJohn Says:
Hello Cindy56Yes indeed, Chris is a brilliant CD and he is on the Carnival Conquest. He and Emily did indeed get married and they make the perfect couple. It would be great to see you and meet your English friend on BC4 and I promise it really will be a fun for all cruise. Here is a photo of Chris and Emily.
Chris tells me they working on kids………..I told him to call me if he needs help.
Thanks for the kind words and best wishes to all
JohnJosh Mallory Asked:
Dear John,I just wanted to tell you that my family and I had the best time last week on the Conquest with you. You made the cruise so funny and we loved all the shows, That marriage show was so great, with Richard Goats( as in Yaba Daba Doo) and with Dick Littte and his wife Anita Little was the best show ever, plus we can’t forget Tiger, I just wanted to know if I was able to order cruise DVDs if we didn’t order them while we were on the boat, I wasn’t able to order the marriage show or the final talent show either, but If I can’t it’s okay, just wanted to tell u again how much we enjoyed you and u made it the best for us, please email me back if u can, thank u, Josh Mallory- Conquest cruiser 4-18-2010
John Says:
Hello Josh MalloryThank you so very much for helping me remember that great cruise on the Carnival Conquest. Unfortunately memories are all I can provide now though as we don’t keep master copies of each voyage…….we should……but we don’t. I remember that week and Mr. Goats and Tiger were sensationally funny. I hope it is not too long before we see you again and thank you for taking the time to write.
Best wishes to all
JohnSusan Carpenter Asked:
Please ReplyHi John I just want to let you know that I am really enjoying your blog. My first Cruise ever was on Valor and not knowing what to expect I went in nervous but that all disappear as soon as I got on the ship and started meeting all the nice crew. Our Steward Jose was awesome we never had a problem I am diabetic and when he found this out he had a sharps container for me. And opened the fridge for me to put my insulin in and this was before we were allowed in our rooms.
Our Dinner Crew was awesome they spoiled us so much it wasn’t funny Norman and I think Byron made us not want anyone else to serve us. And Byron at the late night food court always had our milk waiting on us. They made it that we wanted to do another cruise with you guys and we will be on Liberty on June 5, 2010 Even though our Anniversary would have been 3 months earlier ( March 29) ( 14 yrs for us) we booked this cruise to celebrate it. We are Traveling with our little girl Lilli K so that makes it more special for us. My point your probably are wanting to know is I just wanted to brag about the Crew On Valor and How they turned us into Cruise Addicts
Have a wonderful day
SusanJohn Says:
Hello Susan CarpenterThis is exactly what I was talking about just a few postings ago. It is, as you said, the crew that got you hooked on cruising with us ………..and that is simply brilliant. Thank you so much for sharing your experiences and I will be sure to pass this on to the crew of the Carnival Valor.
I know you will feel the same on the Carnival Liberty next week and I wish you a fantastic cruise.
Best wishes
JohnCrazy Cajun Asked:
John, please reply!!!Has carnival come up w/ any plans for cruises out of the gulf coast ports w/ the major oil spill we have off the coast of Louisiana?
The oil should hit the mouth of the Mississippi river on Fri. 4- 30 -2010.
This is a major oil spill which will affect our shrimp – oyster and fishing industry.
This is going to rival the Exxon Valdez spill b4 it is over.
Chin up Bob. We as Cajuns have survived for hundreds of years and we will survive this.
Just a lil advice for all of you out there, if you like gulf coast seafood, Buy it in the next 2 or 3 days. Because once this oil spill hits the price is going to go thru the Roof.
Please pray for us and our coast line and our lifestyle.
Because this spill has the capacity to change EVERTHING as we have known it for all our lives.
John Says:
Hello Crazy CajunWe have been monitoring the oil slick situation very closely and will continue to do so. It has been a tough few weeks for you all down there and I hope you know that all of us who write and read this blog thingy have been thinking about you. Maybe you can give us an update on what is happening now from your perspective.
Thanks for writing and you remain in our thoughts
Best wishes
JohnPamela Hogue Asked:
Dear John,Hi, my name is Pamela Hogue. I had the WONDERFUL pleasure of having you as the CD for my first cruise, which was on Carnival Dream on March 13th. The cruise was wonderful. I LOVED all of your shows in the Encore Theatre. We had a splendid time on the cruise.
While on the cruise, my birthday was March 18th, and my husband, Michael, wrote you a Dear John letter asking you to wish me a Happy Birthday. You read his letter on the Morning Show on Thursday, March 18th. You called our room to wish me a Happy Birthday in person, however, we were on Lido deck eating breakfast and watching your show. Thank you sooooo much for the champagne, picture and trophy of The Dream.
Michael purchased a CD of the trip because he thought the Morning Show was on the CD, however, it was not.
Michael was so disappointed that he made the mistake of not getting the Morning Show on CD for me to remember my Special Birthday by.
I contacted Carnival to see if there was any way I could purchase a CD of The Morning Show, but I received a letter from Carnival yesterday stating that the show had been erased and there was no way to obtain a copy of it.
I was wondering if you keep any copies of your shows OR if you by chance keep the actual letters that the people write to you. If you have a copy of the CD or a copy of the actual letter, is there any way I could obtain a copy from you?
I hope to see you again on our next cruise. I think we are hooked for life.
Thank You,
Pamela HogueJohn Says:
Hello Pamela HogueThat’s great to read and I also have terrific memories of my time on our Carnival Dream. Unfortunately we don’t keep copies of the Morning Shows and again I need to look at asking our Audio Visual department to keep them on file at least for a few weeks after the cruise. I hope then that the memories are clear and will remain so and I hope that you had a very happy birthday and that you both had a very happy cruise.
I hope to see you both again soon.
Best wishes to you both
John
That’s all for today………..there will be more Q and A tomorrow.
I had an e-mail from a mate of mine who pointed out that in yesterday’s blog there was a question about dress code on the Carnival Sensation and replied as though the guest had been on the Carnival Ecstasy. Well spotted and I guess it was the words “wife beater” that threw me. I still can’t get over that someone would name a piece of clothing in such a way.
I did want to share this review with you though from long time reader Lance who as you might know is a master designer and creator the now famous “Climb This” T-shirt. He just sent me this great review which I thought you might like to read.
Dear John,
I am sending you this as an email, rather than posting on the blog, as it contains a photo and story I’m sure you will want to post!
Our cruise was FANTASTIC! We had great seas, great weather and a lot of FUN!
Kirk was an excellent cruise director and had some fun stories about you!
We had the opportunity to experience the Chef’s Table, which was being offered for the first time when we cruised on the Pride.
It was the single most memorable culinary experience of our lives. I would highly recommend this to anyone who appreciates Haute Cuisine in an intimate setting.
Well worth it at twice the price.
John, we have never spent so much time at an Atrium bar as we did on this ship. It was because of the incredible chemistry and professionalism of the bar
Staff. We were completely enamored and entertained by the likes of Cynthia, Tshering, Uma, Adrianna, Praba and George. They were funny, charming, interesting and caring.
We just found ourselves going back to the bar each day, looking forward to seeing them again. They made our cruise very special.
Our Dining Room team of Trika and Renato were impressive in their table manners. We enjoyed each and every meal with them. The Maitre D’, Adriana, was attentive and personable, making a number of visits to our table. We were also visited a number of times by Chef Wellington Dias, which made our time aboard that much more special. I might add that the Normandy Dining Room is one of the most beautiful dining rooms of ANY Carnival ship. The use of materials, textures, patterns, furnishings and design is impeccable.
The food selection in the dining room was of course, incredible. I noticed that many new selections were added and the addition of the Chef’s own award winning dish on the menu was extra special.
Upon embarkation, Adriana, our Maitre D’, immediately honored our request for a table for two, making the celebration of our anniversary very special. As a matter of fact, Carnival has always honored our request for a table for two!
We experienced our first VIP cruise at 10 Carnival cruises and counting! That alone was worth it! Ilda and I felt as though we were celebrities!
The photographers onboard this ship were the best we had ever experienced. Ilda and I usually buy a few prints during the week to take home as souvenirs. The photos this time around were so good, that we wound up spending $300.00 on prints alone! It would have been even more because the hardest part was deciding which photos to choose from each photo shoot.
John, I could go on and on about the people, the entertainment, (which was smashing), the food, the ship, (which at 9 years old was in surprisingly good condition), the senior staff, Joe Farcus’ incredible interior design of the Pride, etc. What I am more impressed with is Carnival’s ability to provide a cruise that is in parts, elegant, fun, exciting, romantic, leisurely, adventurous, memorable and affordable, all in the same package.
That, my friend is why we are loyal to Carnival and always will be. It never ceases to amaze me how well this company and its collective employees pull that off, time and time again, all the while making it seem easy and effortless.
OK… now for the story.
We were waiting to disembark in the Starry Night Lounge, when we struck up a conversation with a group of ladies from West Virginia. One of them was fretting about the fact that she forgot to attach her luggage tags before putting them out. Her friend told her not to worry and she went on to say that if she can’t find her luggage, she would be going to work in the nude on Monday. I then found out that she was a circuit court judge and her friend chimed in and said, “Her name is Judy and yes, she’s a judge… the REAL judge Judy!” So here I was, sitting next to Judge Judy, musing about going to work in the nude. It was surreal and priceless at the same time and Ilda and found it hilarious, given your recent posts about Judge Judy in the nude. So there you have it! This lovely lady is Judge Judy Goontz, from New Martinsville, West Virginia.
They never heard of your blog and I told them how to view it, so they’ll be looking for the post.
We have a cruise coming up next April to Bermuda and then we would like to do the South American cruise, or the Panama Canal. I could live on a cruise ship!
Please give our love to Heidi and Kye, we’d love to meet her one day!
Your friends,
Lance & Ilda
And here is the photo of the real Judge Judy.
She looks so lovely, kind and pleasant compared to the TV version………but then again so would a bulldog chewing a wasp.
Thanks Lance for that great review and I hope that Judge Judy also had a brilliant time and thank you Judge (if you are reading this) for sailing with us. I hope you do book a Bermuda cruise Lance and I hope that it is not too long before we cruise together again.
Just one last thing about the comments. I see that there has been some friction between one or two bloggers regarding comments that were reported second hand by Corvette Lady. I just want to mention that I have now decided not to post anymore second hand comments from anyone…..especially Ann Martin but want to clarify that if anyone has anything negative to say about me or the blog or Carnival that for the most part I will post them. I have always said that the blog must be that way.
It is obvious that Corvette Lady does not like me or think I am funny (my wife will agree with you on that one) and that is her opinion and she is absolutely entitled to it and I totally respect all those on the cruise boards who may agree with her.
I am 3 weeks behind on answering comments although occasionally I do being some forward if they appear to be urgent or if I feel that they need answering immediately. The one thing that I just don’t understand that if people don’t like me or the blog…..why do they read it?
Let’s get back to paradise.
A few years ago our sister company Holland America Line bought an island they would call Half Moon Cay and it has become one of the most talked about destinations our corporation ships visit and this morning the Carnival Fantasy made her first ever call there. We use tenders to take guests ashore and I used the same set up as we did in Grand Cayman last week with guests needing tender stickers to go ashore. There are 3 tenders in use all day. Two carry 270 guests and one tender carries 150. The journey time is about 15 minutes each way so you do need a dollop of patience here but as I write, it is 10:45am and we have just stopped the tender sticker ritual as we already have 1,890 guests ashore and the remaining guests can depart when they wish.
Tendering here on the Carnival Fantasy is handled quickly and professionally with the busiest time seems to be between 10 and 11 am. However, there was never more than a 15-minute wait for the tenders and the wait is certainly worth it because the reward of your own private island is waiting for you.
Before we talk about what the guests do we should mention that this is a very busy day for the ship’s company. The crew of every ship are responsible for providing the food, the drinks, the entertainment, the music and we send 30 cooks and support staff, 20 bar staff, 1 DJ, 1 Calypso duo, 1 nurse, 4 entertainment staff as well as a whole cleanup crew who arrive 1 hour before the last tender which leaves at 3:15pm
The island is managed and directed by an old mate of mine who for many years worked for Carnival’s hotel operations department before joining our sister company Holland America. Nobody knows Half Moon Cay better than him and here is Holland America’s Vice President of Caribbean Relations Matt Sams to tell us all about his paradise …………. Half Moon Cay
Hello John
Half Moon Cay, located less than 100 miles southeast of Nassau, was conceived to provide an indigenous Caribbean island experience in an authentic natural setting to Holland America Line guests on Caribbean and Panama Canal itineraries. As an award-winning island, Half Moon Cay is our highest rated port call in the Caribbean and one of the highest in the world. What makes it so special is that it really represents the quintessential private island image for most travelers. Sandy beaches, aquamarine waters, no one else around, and we’ve added the fantastic service of our shipboard staff and the locals that assist with shore activities. Each year, the island’s stellar reputation keeps growing and we are excited about celebrating our 10th year of visiting the island this year. It was officially opened on December 12, 1997, by Bahamian Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham.
Amenities that were required to support ship visits included food and beverage facilities, shops, restrooms and other various support facilities. The island’s offerings have steadily expanded to also provide a full beachside water park for children, private beach cabanas and an array of shore excursions that include horseback riding by land and sea, personal watercraft adventures and an opportunity to swim with stingrays.
In December 1996, Holland America Line purchased the uninhabited 2,400-acre island of Little San Salvador from several Bahamian owners for $6 million and debuted Half Moon Cay as a port of call Dec. 12, 1997. The line initially invested $16 million in the facility – which today is situated on approximately 50 acres – and developed it according to the guidelines of the Business Charter for Sustainable Development established by the International Chamber of Commerce.
The island was uninhabited and there was no infrastructure whatsoever. In May 1997, I joined Holland America Line. Construction of Half Moon Cay began that same month and completed in December 1997. Due to the topography of the island, we needed to raise the developed areas by 14 feet in order to be above the flood plain. A marina was dredged and constructed in order to allow safe tender operation and shore excursion vessel departures. All mechanical systems such as electrical generators, reverse osmosis water plants, sewer treatment and incineration plants needed to be installed in order to accommodate our guests.
There’s a lot to do on the island. The idyllic Bahamian island offers extraordinary activities, such as its horseback riding and swimming excursion, guided AquaTrax watercraft tour, stingray adventure, bicycle tour of island highlights, and fun-filled family Aqua Park. In addition, guests can enjoy excursions including catch-and-release deep sea fishing trips, eco tours by glass-bottom boat, kayak trips and parasailing. Or they can simply relax on the crescent-shaped, white sand beach, swim, snorkel and sail in the turquoise waters, indulge in a beachside massage, enjoy traditional barbecue fare and play volleyball.
Half Moon Cay also features a walking trail and a designated wild bird reserve. All facilities are accessible to persons using wheelchairs, featuring hard-surfaced pathways to connect venues. Beach and jitney trams facilitate getting around the island.
We offer an open-air market, ice cream parlor, ships, first aid station, several bars and beverage stations, sports area, a chapel for wedding renewals, and an array of water sports equipment to rent — kayaks, sailboards, snorkel gear, floating mats, and those fun aqua bikes. One of the most popular features is the barbecue area, where we hold a lunch barbecue for guests on the island. Ribs, fish, burgers, sausage, salads, fruit, corn on the cob, brownies, cookies and more. I’m getting hungry thinking about it.And for anyone wanting to have a real exclusive experience on the island, there are 15 beachfront cabanas for rent, and one Grand Cabana. The beachfront cabanas have air conditioning, misting station, dining table and four chairs, lounge chairs, changing room, refrigerator, dry bar, fresh water shower, and sun deck. Optional Butler and Drink packages are also available. The Grand Cabana accommodates 24 guests and is perfect for a large family or small group. This cabana has a hot tub for 8, 2 changing rooms, his and hers rest rooms, fresh hot water showers, misting stations, dining room, wet bar, BBQ grill, covered and outdoor seating, massage table. Optional food and beverage packages are available for the Grand Cabana as well.
The island has 9 miles of beach so finding a secluded area is not a problem. Guests enjoy the lounge chairs, hammocks, clamshell sunshades, shaded sitting areas and the natural beauty of the island. There is a water park for the kids to enjoy, while mom and dad watch them from shore. Often, guests arrive and mingle in the open-air market a bit. They then wander to the beach for a few hours to swim and relax. And about noon, the open sitting BBQ luncheon is very popular. Of course, many folks opt for shore activities in the morning or afternoon, too.
More than 110 Bahamians operate the island. This group is in charge of all of the maintenance of the island, technical areas, landscaping, shore excursions, vessel captains, crew, staff and guides, lifeguards, tram drivers, engineers, mechanics, chef, straw market vendors, secretary, police, customs and island managers.
It is paradise and I hope your passengers have the very best of times on Half Moon Cay
Matt
What a brilliantly written review Matt and thank you so much for whetting the appetites of those who have yet to experience all that is Half Moon Cay.
Well, I was supposed to go and visit the island myself today. In fact Matt had arranged a tour of the facilities but alas…..here I sit……fully clothed writing to you. That’s because I have a sore throat, an annoying tickly cough and every few minutes my eyes fill with water plus my nose is doing a good impression of that volcano in Iceland and spewing out ash, snot and something that looks a lot like liquefied broccoli. I have had this for a few days but haven’t mentioned it here on the blog because it’s just a cold ……… everyone has a cold……….and while I can get through a show….there was no way I could spend the day mincing around in 90 degrees of sunshine ……..so my trip to paradise was buggered.
However, you don’t keep a Cocker Spaniel and bark yourself so I asked Sexy (Ugly) Craig to go in my place and take with him the ship’s photographer and so while I sniffle, cough and drip hot snot over the desk……..here are some brilliant photos taken this morning by ship’s photographer Brainislav of Half Moon Cay.
It’s those kind of photos and Matt’s brilliant description that I am sure has many of you adding Half Moon Cay to your must see list. Yep, Half Moon Cay offers breathtaking beaches that are lapped by crystal clear waters. This island is then the perfect antidote to the tourist bustle you might find in other ports of call…….and you have to go and experience paradise for yourself.
I am really pissed off that I have this cold. I haven’t been off the ship for many weeks and today I had a reason to go …….but with more shows tonight and the past guest party to host it would have been just silly.
Anyway, I decided reluctantly that I needed medical help and went to see the doctor to get some cold medicine which when you are diabetic is not easy because it can cause your sugar to spike. Anyway, I eventually got some Theraflu which is a lemon drink that tastes like a lemon that has been nestling in a sumo wrestler’s jockstrap for a few hours. So while I waited for the nurse to get this and some iburothingy I glanced at one of the magazines that was laying on the waiting room table. It was “Men’s Health.” Why would they put this in the waiting room of a medical center?
Why remind us of all the healthy people out there who are not sitting in a medical center waiting room with colds, coughs and diseases? It’s as pointless and as cruel as giving Stevie Wonder a copy of “Big Jugs” magazine
Anyway the title on the front cover read “Ageing – the signs you weren’t expecting.” Intrigued I had a flick through the pages and found a load of nonsense about varicose veins and grey hair.
What a load of bollocks. I expect all of that and more. What I didn’t expect were the hairs that suddenly sprout on my big toe, the involuntary “ohhh eeee” noise made as I heave myself off the toilet after sitting there for 20 minutes or more and that right now when I look at my face in the mirror and sniff back another string of snot I didn’t expect that at 45 my face would resemble a bag of wrenches. So instead of walking round Half Moon Cay judging the sandcastle building contest and looking for southern belles in G Strings ………..I am off to bed to sleep off this sodding cold.
I know how I got this cold………it’s because I went out to the cigar bar last night and sat under the air conditioning vent……. wearing only a wife beater.
Goodnight
Your friend
John
Look, friends — there are a few things you should remember before you comment. The space below is for you to post your comments about the post I've just written above. If it is something that's unrelated, please use the Ask John tab above. Now, while I may not be able to reply to your comment below, I do sit in my underpants almost every morning and read everything that is here. So feel free to comment on the comments and then if someone wants to comment on the comment to the comment then go ahead as well. Please be courteous unless the poster is French...........then you can say whatever you want.
Hi John (please reply),
By all means, I agree, paradise would be lying by an infinity pool with a naked Megan Fox…..not sure if the Spotted Dick reference make the British to American translation :-O
I’m sure you are getting this question over & over, but have to ask again for all us Cruise Critic (CC) folk out there;
When is Carnival going to announce the Carnival Magic’s U.S. homeport? There are rumors running rampant on CC on how this will cause “the dominoes to fall” and the repositioning of multiple Carnival ships.
Jeanne & I are looking forward to our July 10th cruise on the Carnival Ecstasy
Marty & Jeanne
Carnival Elation Cruise Report
John, We hope this helps you understand our time on the Elation.
While we were on the Elation April 30 to May 14. We thought you might send us a little something however we never received anything. If Steve Knicely was supposed to handle this I would say he failed. However thanks for the thought.
CRUISE DIRECTOR
Steve Knicely seemed like a nice guy but he is NOT a John Heald!. We observed him several times during port talks etc., and noticed he talked too fast. He came off as if he wanted to spit out his stuff and be done with it. He spoke as fast as he could read the material. We thought that was a bad sign and others around us commented the same.
We met Steve at the Past Guests party about day 3 or 4 and introduced ourselves. We
had been checking the Library every day to read the Blog and could never find it. We
ask Steve and he said he would have his Assistant, print copies and bring them to our cabin. We told him it would be much better if they were placed in a binder in the
Library for many to read. He said, he did not believe enough people on the ship were interested in the blog and they had a copy in a book but they disappear. We continued checking during the cruise but never saw anything. For several days someone dropped
off two copies of the blog in our cabin but it only included your text part and sometimes not the remainder of your blog and never any comments. After that we received no more copies. I asked Steve again later when he quickly passed us and he said they did not
have enough paper to print these everyday. We thought that was an odd comment.
LIBRARY
We thought you indicated in a prior blog that new books & reading material were being added in the Library for this trip, however books etc. were few and far between. The crew that was supposed to be at the library to manage things and check books in/out were scarce and we never saw any memo about hours other then the Fun Times. One day we saw a girl as she stopped in to lock cabinets and she said they were supposed to be open one hour a day but only if she had the time. We thought it was poorly handled.
FUN TIMES
We consider the FUN TIMES publication a bust Vs. the Capers. It does not contain some of the information the Capers contained but does have a few good features. It has way too much underutilized white space.
PHOTOGRAPHERS
These folks did some fantastic work on board and with the around the ship photos. I still think their are way too many out around the decks in the evenings and you just about trip over them like dogs laying in your path. Special mention to RADU URSO and the many wonderful scenes shot from the helicopter while the ship passed through the Panama Canal. We bought several of the photos in canvas to hang at home. Our personal thanks to Radu for looking after us very well.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
It was really aggravating that the announcements were so low volume and poor you could NOT HEAR them while in our cabin. I consider this a MAJOR SAFETY issue because each time you would want to hear if what was being said was important, you jump up, run to your cabin door, wrestle it open and about that time the message was over. Many around us did the same and everyone would yell to each other what did he say?
Carnival needs to quit pussyfooting around this issue and make a corporate decision to broadcast ALL MESSAGES into cabins AND PROVIDE ON/OFF SWITCHES IN CABINS TO ALLOW EACH PASSENGER TO SELECT IF THEY WANT TO HEAR MESSAGES OR NOT.
SCHEDULING CONFLICTS
The drawing for the free cruise held at the end of the cruise was scheduled at 9:55 PM
on the last night during the final bingo game. This was a very poor choice and was set to occur at the same time (between 9-11PM) when everyone was to have their bags outside their cabin doors. It forced many to make the choice of finishing packing after dinner and getting bags out by 11 or being present to see if you won a free cruise, then run back to your cabin, finish packing and maybe place your bags out side maybe at midnight.
SHOPPING ASSISTANT
Theresa Bordelon was the on board Shopping Person and really impressed us with her spirit and zeal to do a great job and meet people. She was a real asset to the ships experience and we really enjoyed meeting her and hearing her talks. She is a real down to earth Louisiana girl and with her personality and desire to perform well will make Carnival look really good.
DIMINSHING FOOD
The ship started running out of different foods, juices, milk, cream and many other items about the time we arrived at Grand Cayman. I thought all Carnival Ships worked on at least a one or two week supplies inventory so they did not have this happen to them. When we left the ship in Tampa May 14, they were bringing on a lot of food items for the remaining one day trip to Mobile and beyond. .
MOBILE DEPARTURES
I understand from reading comments online from others that the departure in Mobile was a real zoo. Many passengers had a difficult time with procedures of debarkation and lack of coordination from the ships crew. BP evidently was holding a big meeting at the time affecting the area and Mobile also had an LPGA Golf tournament going in the area.
ENTERTAINMENT
We did not go to any of the entertainment shows because we saw they were more like vaudeville acts and very boring. They were not “Al Ernst” caliber entertainers. He is a real artist and performer. We also did not like or appreciate the PhatCat rapper comedy at all. I do think that type entertainment (I use the word loosely) belongs on cruise ships.
CREW MEMBERS WHO MADE OUR CRUISE BETTER.
We were in the Imagination Dining Room with Maitre D (Kreshna) and old shipmate
and friend of yours. He took great care of us and also Chris, the other Maitre D who was on the Splendor or Dream, checked us several times to see if were doing OK. We noticed the Pizza had very little taste and not cooked long enough and brought that to Kreshnas attention as well as telling him the Lasagna was somewhat tasteless and needed more Italian spice and the serving portions were too large.
Our waiters were Joel Castillo (Carnival ID #213628) and his Asst. Debrovna from Dubrovnik. They were great and took very good care of us. Kreshna had us at a table for 6 next to a window, port side, in the Imagination dining room at 6PM. That was greatly appreciated. Joel Castillo is a Team Head Waiter and submitted a transfer to go to the Splendor for Sept. 2010. I hope he is approved as he is an asset to Carnival. His assistant is leaving for another Carnival ship next month.
SHIP CONDITION
The hull of the Elation really needs paint and cleaned up. I could not believe they were taking her into Mobile looking like that. Too much rust on the sides and it looks like it needs a good overall scrub down and cleaning. I noticed our cabin window as well as all the others were never cleaned (washed) and this got worse until we could not see through the window anymore. I thought that in one of the ports they would do a wash down,. Inside the ship was pretty clean and they crew took care of it quite well.
CABIN PROBLEMS
We had an issue in our cabin when we first went aboard. The cabin (as well as many others) has a wooden 3 ft. x 3 ft x 18 in high box in the corner of the rooms where they stored life jackets and things. Our bed was made into a king (as requested) which meant one would have to crawl over this box to get to and from the side near the window. We decided to have our cabin steward move the beds into two singles on the side and that resolved our problem. He told us they have told him for a year they will remove the wooden boxes but never do so. It is a stupid thing to have in a cabin.
Our TV was so bad that people were all red faced with a glow around them or looked like a white ghost. We called for a replacement or repair and it took 2 days for someone to show up. Our Cabin person “Wayan” also called several times. When the maintenance man came it was 10PM and we were in bed so we told him to come back tomorrow.
He did not return until 7 PM as we returned from dinner. They changed the TV and reprogrammed channels. We began receiving channels we did not previously see and the TV was much better. From the amount of dust we saw behind the TV on the shelf I believe it was the original TV placed in the cabin when the ship was new. Our cabin stewards were Wayan from Fiji and Deb. They made sure we were well taken care of.
MISSING AMENITIES
We really missed the normal amenities we have gotten used to on later ships. We thought we were in the dark ages. We had no refrigerator, no interactive flat panel TV, no way to check and book excursions via room TV, no way to check the daily menus to choose where to go for lunch and dinner. We had very poor TV reception even in US areas such as San Diego and nearer to Tampa.
EXCUSIONS
We purchased a Costa Rica Skywalk Rain Forest excursion which was listed as two man (moderate activity) trip. However we found after being dropped off, that while the bus dropped you off at the top of the trail as advertised, it was not just a downhill walk of about an hour. It was not just slippery as advertised but it was also DANGEROUS.
The trail had steps made of heavy concrete and sometimes rocks that were of many different heights and depths dug into the earth trail. They were anywhere from 2 inches
to 18 inches and the concrete steps were from 18inch square to double or more at 36 inches. The trail was wet and occasionally muddy as advertised but what was not advertised was how many steps going up and down hills were on this trail. We progressed from about 1500 feet above sea level to about 500 feet. Sometimes they had only 5 or 6 steps in a row up or down and other times 25 to 50 steps up or down. My wife had a real problem with this walking trail because she has a depth perception problem walking up and down on uneven and unmarked surfaces. This made it much worse and she was not able to see anything of the rain forest. Instead she had to concentrate on where she was placing her feet so she would lot slip or slide. She was so terrified and shaking and hung onto my shoulders tightly with both hands for every step we took. She had to carefully watch every step because we also found a lot of moss on the steps and rocks which was very slippery. We proceeded very slowly as the group went way ahead. The guide was very nice and came back several times to check our progress. I was very proud of Jo and she went on like a trooper and crossed the 3 swinging bridges slowly and haltingly every few steps but she did it. The guide had everyone else get on the bus at the end and returned to where we were on the trail, about ¾ way through and assisted Jo to help her up and over the final trail area and final steps, about 50 going up, and onto the bus.
The trail was dangerous because it was quite narrow the whole way, about an hour walk, and while they had metal post poles in cement along one side and they were 10 to 15 feet apart but in between they only had a thin plastic rope line strung between posts. They were limp and went through holes on each pole. You could not grab anything substantial between the poles and the trail slipped off quickly and over the side and down into the forest and rocks. This Rain Forest Walk excursion was a really hard one for us and when we returned to the ship, after we were able to take a shower and get Jo calmed down, we stopped by Shore Excursions and spoke with the girl on duty. We told her we believe the tour is mismarked and should at least be a three man tour, and not a two man moderate activity trip. She said no one else made any comments or complaints at that time and she would check with her supervisor and someone would get back to us. She would see if she could do anything for us however we never heard from anyone about this.
We also want to mention that the Grand Cayman tender crew (guys who run the tenders from ship to port) were doing a great job assisting passengers on and off the ship at gangway and at the port. They were extremely careful not to pull or try to force anyone who was not ready to step on or off the tenders and only supported many older folks instead of pulling their arms and shoulders.
INTERNET PROBLEMS
We purchased a 250 minute time plan as we normally do on these trips and carry our own laptop. We found the Internet service on this ship to be poor. The Internet person running the internet was “ELVIS”. His brother does the same job on the Carnival Imagination. Something was going on and the Internet was not working many times and would lock you out of your account. It was giving many people similar problems. Elvis added time to my account and others several times. The time would show up on the account as added however many were complaining they were not able to access or use the added minutes.
After we returned home we see Carnival was doing changes to the web site and had it out of service for some time however ELVIS never knew or mentioned this was happening. Finally Elvis contacted the Miami Tech support people who claimed ONLY MY ACCOUNT had a problem and they worked on it for several days. The final outcome they came up with was to tell me (through Elvis) they could not resolve this problem and I needed to sign on with a different account name and take out another time plan then it should work OK. We did not do that and paid a $.75 a minute rate for the last several days which cost us less then signing up for another time plan.
LEAVING THE SHIP IN TAMPA
We left the ship in Tampa and expected to be released from the ship about 10:30-11AM but while at breakfast at 8:30 AM they calling our number to leave. About 800 were leaving in Tampa. We were ready and were off the ship by 9:15. The people at the Tampa terminal (Channelside) were fantastic. Everyone had great attitude and all were greatly helpful. The Tampa airport is really nice and comfortable even the TSA workers, and that is a first, were all very friendly and happy. This was impressive in case you ever go to that airport or get stuck their. They cruise terminal folks told me they won awards for the last two years as the friendliest cruise terminal in the USA. Our bus driver to the airport was great and we were at the airport by 10:30 AM. We were too early to check in for our 4:20 PM flight. Your cannot check in until 4 hours before a flight so we waited comfortably until 12:30 to check in. Our Tampa to Newark, NJ flight did not leave until 4:20 and we ran into weather problems over PA and southern NJ, so we had to land in Richmond, VA. for 3 hours. We finally arrived in NJ and our car service never showed up and we had to take a taxi home.
Our next trip will be on a Sept Splendor Cruise where we will celebrate our 45th wedding anniversary. We look forward to seeing you the Ugly Sod, Gorgeous Heidi and Cutie Kye,
Dave and Jo Myerly
Frequent Cruisers
Evil Krewe Members
John:
When we were on the Imagination with you and Heidi in 2008, we got to see first hand just how the Half Moon Cay operates. We were on the first tender with a lot of the supplies.
It was amazing to watch the staff set up the “I Wish I Could Stay Here Forever” bar.
I would have never dreamed that all of that would have been brought off the ship just for the day.
We had friends that rented a cabana and they loved it.
The beach and water were breathtaking.
Hope you feel better soon.
Linda (Mom of your friend DJ)
John and Stephanie(s),
Could we also include the group at Cruisemates.com as a possible contact path for Gloria to get involved in the Bloggers cruises?
I’m sure it was just an oversite to only mention Big Ed and CC.
Thanks
Phil & Liz
Dear John,
Thanks for the pictures of HALF MOON CAY today. Yes we are planning a trip there in early 2011 and now I’am looking forward to it even more.
Have you heard anything more about the new revised Platinum Cruising System? We have heard that they may be changing to something similar to what Holland America has in place now where points are accumilated by the number of sea days rather than the number of cruises. For those of us who prefer the longer cruises I am really hoping that Carnival opps for this approach. It also has the possibility to continue to give people who cruise all of the time (four or more a year) even more recconition for being loyal to Carnival. I think I saw four or five levels on Holland America’s web site. There is no reason that it couldn’t be expanded even more.
Have a great cruise and I hope so get over the cold real fast. Watch out for the Theraflu though as it also has actifed in it and tends to raise the blood pressure.
The Cruzin2some
James & Nancy Enslow
I received one of those on-line surveys that asked questions similiar to the Holland America program so they must be asking our opinions anyway.
The Holland America program only offers the laundry benefit at a very high level, much higher than our Platinum so that would be one of the drawbacks.
Hopefully, if they do this they will include all of the Carnival brands.
Dear John,
You poor sod…..A COLD…..a nose full of snot…….another visit to the doctor……take an aspirin and check back with us tomorrow (please).
Hey, didn’t those photos that Sexy (Ugly?) Craig took for you at Half Moon Cay honestly remind you of the Maldives? Just a little? When you wake up from your nap, check your posterior….there might be a rose petal wedged in there (hopefully a fresh one from the Formalities shop, not from the 2004 trip).
Take care young man, hope you’ll shake the cold ASAP!
Your OLD buddy,
Steve O
Hi John ~
Hopefully you will be able to see this…I didn’t want to put it as a please reply because I know you have enough of them already.
But, seeing pictures of the assorted cruise directors, I think it would be fun if you would do interviews with them again. I know you had mentioned bringing them back in a somewhat recent blog. Given that it’s been a few years, I would enjoy reading about them.
Maybe even see if any would be interested in doing a guest blog so you can get a day off and we can still get a blog.
)
I know there are some that don’t care about who their CD is…well, they can just skip that part of the blog!
See you in October!
Colleen
Hi John, My daughter & I just returned from the fantasy cruise out of charleston to the bahamas – you were wonderful – we have been trying to contact tim pierce to see where he might be appearing once he has finished his cruise tour – i have his e-mail address from the university of south carolina, but the message was returned – any help you may give us in following his career would be very much appreciated – i brought my daughter on the cruise for her 40th birthday & we thoroughly enjoyed you, calvin, & tim please respond
Dana:
Tim and I email.
If you want to send me your email address to:
musicalcruiser@hotmail.com
I will make sure that Tim gets it.
Linda (Mom of DJ)
John
Sorry to hear about your cold, hope you are able to get rid of it quickly take care of yourself
Cheri & Michael
Hope you are feeling better real soon! Outside world has the May Flu going around in NC. Sis in law has it–just called The Flu. So be real careful and take care OF YOURSELF! Just thought I would give you a lil itty bitty shout out and thanks for the Blog today, U r a Hoot! Made Our Day. Have a good time off with the Girls.
Best Wishes,
Viv
Johnny Boy:
Time for a fact check. In today’s blog you said it was the Fantasy’s first trip ever to Half Moon Cay. Not so mate, Patti and I sailed on her back to back in late Aug of 2006, and we experienced HMC on her during that trip as well. So, whoever gave you those facts was in deed mistaken. Just thought I had to kick you in the shins a bit, I haven’t done that much lately.
Regards, Tim
Hi John,
We’ve been to Half Moon Cay before and really liked it. We wish that the Bloggers’ Cruise was going there instead of Nassau next year. Do you have any pull to get that changed?
Hope you’re feeling better. I got a little cold myself after flying back to Indiana and Illinois a couple of weeks ago. Whenever I go back north I get sick.
Get well soon and get off the ship!
Linda & George
John, I’m glad you finally went to the ships doctor for medication to help you kick this cold before you go home to Heidi and Kye. I know you don’t want either one of them to catch it.
Don caught this cold the same place and time you did a couple of weeks ago, on the Carnival Fantasy
I can assure everyone if you complain it is justified. Don caught it while we were cruising with you, then I caught it from him after we got home, . II felt like someone had beat me. I ached all over. I still have the drippy nose and tickle in my throat like you do.
I sure wish whoever carried the cold germ onto the ship when we were there, had stayed at home. or cruised on the Mall of the Seas……….. lol
Hope the meds made you feel better.
Carolyn…..
John, I just wanted to mention “Dave” in the Casino is a wonderful, caring. informative employee of the Fantasy. Somehow the Casino staff seems to get left out during our praise. I would hope he gets recognized for his good work. If you have time when you feel better, please send this to his boss.
Thanks again! Mitchell and Viv
Please Respond
Hi John,
In the response you sent me on April 16, you requested that I let you know a few weeks before our Honeymoon cruise on the Carnival Liberty.
We’re leaving in just over a month on the July 12th voyage to the Eastern Caribbean. Reading your blog today about Half Moon Cay, we couldn’t be more excited. I can’t wait to experience that paradise first hand. This cruise also goes to Grand Turk, so I look forward to your review from the Carnival Fantasy.
We’re also very much looking forward to cruising with Butch as the CD. I hear very good things about him.
I had previously written you about the run-in we had with one of the servers at the Past Guest party on the Carnival Destiny during our March 13th cruise. We have not heard any word from Carnival on the incident. You wrote:
“As for the attitude of the young lady serving you at the past guest party……….well I am so sorry that you found the one bad apple in the barrel and knowing the Hotel Director Kevin as I do, I am positive that he has taken care of that situation.”
So far, there has been no word.
We appreciate the help and rest assured, we are now loyal Carnival cruisers. I doubt I’ll return to any of the Monstrosities of the Seas.
Also, which night on the Liberty would you recommend we do the Steakhouse? I’d like to do something special with the new Mrs. and the Steakhouse seems like a great idea.
Thank you again and I hope you feel better soon. Enjoy your upcoming vacation.
Reid Bartlam
John (please reply) :
Reading today’s blog (5/26) a blogger asked about Dan Ghilarducci. I just wanted to share a story about Dan and give him some well deserved recognition. Dan was the assistant CDduring my cruise on the Carnival Pride several years ago (while it was still in Long Beach Ca. doing the itinerary that now belongs to the Carnival Splendor). I had not at that time yet discovered your blog or I would have posted this back then. We met Dan on our forst sea day at a trivia event. Right away we knew he was a great guy and we were joking around and having fun from the getgo. He and the rest of the staff were great all week but 1 thing in particular stands out. Our first port of call was PV (yes I’ll abbreviate it just as you did yesterday for the same reason). We had a great time on our shore excursion and still had a few hours to kill before dinner so we decided to do something quite unusual and different..visit the local Walmart. We were wondering around getting some bottled water and just checking out things when we ran into Dan in plain clothes off duty doing some personal shopping. I know when I am off work I want nothing to do with work so I decided to leave Dan alone and let him enjoy his free time. Well, Dan happened to see us and came right up to us and asked us about our shore excursion and told us if we needed any help finding anything in Walmart that he would be happy to help us as the language barrier can be difficult and he knew the store layout well as he goes there every week. That is going way beyond the call of duty and I just wanted to give him the recognition he deserves even if it is several years late. He was a great assistant CD and I’m sure he’ll do a great job as a CD.
One other suggestion while I’m on the topic of old cruises. I noticed several bloggers recently asking you about former CD’s and what they are up to these days. Perhaps you could do a “where are they now” blog every once in a while. I know you have a lot of things to cover and will probably never run out of ideas but in case you do you could throw that in. I’m not talking about hours of resesrch or promoting the competition if they went elsewhere, but I’m sure some if the popular former CD’s keep in touch once in a while. just a thought. Enjoy your time at home with Heidi and Kye and hoprfully I’ll see you on the Carnival Splendor this fall.
John, please don’t be bothered by the people who say they don’t like you or don’t find you funny. This one time, John, I heard a radio interview with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson when he was wrestling in the WWE. He told the interviewer, “Some people like chocolate ice cream, and some people like vanilla ice cream, but everybody… And The Rock means EVERYBODY loves pancakes.” That’s you John, you’re a pancake!
I had written to you on the blog a couple of years ago, where I mentioned that you were the CD on my honeymoon cruise on the Destiny back in 1998, and the CD on my wife’s 1st cruise on the Sensation back when it was brand new. It had been about 10 years since we’d cruised with Carnival and you said why not come back. Well last September we did a 7 day Canada/New England on the Triumph. Oddly, we drove from our home in Canada to New York, only to cruise back to Canada, but I digress. We had a great time.
We’ve got 3 kids now, and the older 2 loved going to Camp Carnival, they even wanted to eat with their new friends for breakfasts and dinners, instead of with us, so much of the time it was just my wife, myself and the baby.
We enjoyed everything emmensely, the food, the weather was great, the ship was lovely. The 5 of us were all able to shoe-horn ourselves into one cabin which also helped out financially. Now I have heard that the 3 original Destiny Class ships and the Fantasy class ships all have a few inside staterooms that will fit 5 people, my question is, do any of the newer ships have similar rooms or is it just those ships? Is there any way you could post a list of the ships that have rooms that fit 5, if you could, that would be great!
Thanks,
Doug
Hi John,
The pictures from Half Moon came look fabulous. Can’t wait to visit there some day.
Hope you feel better soon.
Clair
John
Although CruiseMates does not have an official group going on B4 (they already had a group cruise scheduled on that date) there are a lot of Bloggers who post there that have created a group on the Carnival Glory for Bloggers-4. Information can be found at:
http://BloggersCruise.info
Hi John (Please Reply!),
I’m very excited to learn that you will be the CD on our up coming cruise on 10/10/10 on the Splendor! This will be my and my fiance’s very first cruise. It will also be our honeymoon! Not only that, immediately after the cruise, instead of flying back home to Seattle we will be flying to Ft. Lauderdale to take another cruise aboard the Miracle (10/18/10). Very excitited!
Anyway, I was wondering if you could do something… anything… for us to make our cruise on the Splendor more special (mostly for Sarah, my fiance). Whether its anything from a surprise mention during a show (feel free to embarrass her
) or just a note from you congratulating her, it would be very appreciated and would make her day. If you don’t mind, I’ll leave it up to come up with a great idea! And if you need any help from me just let me know.
Thank you in advance and can’t wait to meet you!
-Josh Combs
hello john, please reply.
My husband asked me to ask this question..
He has heard that when Canrival brings in a new ship to itss fleet it must retire one of its olderones. If this is so which ships are you retiring when you bring in the magic and the breeze?
I also have a question, you have been talking about kyle post as a CD and other people have said he was great On our cruise on the liberty may 15 he was assistant cruise director to Butch. How do they go form being their own director to being assistant? is he being punished or demoted?
just a few questions that have been bouncing around in our heads.
Thanks in Advance.
Maurene
Feel better.
Dear John,
Kind of disappointed that Dick and Anita Little that were on the Dream in March were also on the Conquest recently. I sure hope no one was from Stinking Creek!! I have never laughed so hard. Don’t know how you pull it off, but you do it well. How do you get the drunks to do what you ask?
Before reading this post, I was one of those who wasn’t even going to consider visitng HMC – now I want to thanks to you & Matt. (Before I thought that we would use that day to loaf around on the ship.)
John:
I would also check with your doctor and see if Zicam is an option.
If you use it at the very first “tingle”….I have found it to be very effective.
IF you have the rhinovirus (which is 35% of all colds that adults get) then Zicam literally stops the virus from replicating.
That is what Todd was using on the Dream when he had a cold during the Blogger’s cruise.
Linda (Mom of your friend DJ)
John & Linda,
Please be very careful with Zicam…..follow the directions exactly….I did not and have lost my sense of smell amost completely……which can be a good thing now and then John?
Steve O
John, you seem to get colds fairly frequently. I know you don’t need advice, but I found that when I started systematically taking Vitamin C every morning (500 mg), and started washing my hands on a set schedule (not just when I go to the bathroom), that my colds dramatically decreased.
I wish you the best and thanks for putting out the blog even when you don’t feel well. I wish you a speedy recovery….
Hi John,
(Please reply)
I think it is a great idea that you will not be posting any more second hand comments on the blog.
You are absolutely correct – you can’t be so bad that so many people keep reading and posting on your blog. Even though you have a few dissenters, your fans are overwhelming in numbers. Even the best political figures rarely have had approval ratings over 90%.
One of your many fans,
John R.
Hi John,
I have just discovered the Carnival Blog pages and have really been enjoying the blogs that you post. My husband, Kurt, and I have been on 2 previous Carnival cruises, the Liberty, and the Pride. Had wonderful experiences both times. We strayed a little this past January and went on that other cruise line. The ship was beautiful, but we did not feel as welcome and at home as we have on the Carnival Cruises. We came home a promply booked a cruise on the Carnival Valor for our 32nd wedding anniversary in October. We are excitedly looking forward to that cruise. I noticed on your cruise director’s schedule that Goose Neumann will be our CD. Can you tell me a little about him? Possilble post a picture?
John, I’m the biggest baby in the world when I have a cold. (Well, maybe you rank pretty high too) I do hope you feel better quite soon. What a shame you didn’t feel up to visiting Half Moon Cay! We have been there several times and hope to go again. It is a marvelous place. Take care. Jeri
John,
I have been just recently reading your Blogs. Love them!!! My husband, Kurt, and I have been on two prior Carnival Cruises, on the Liberty, and on the Pride. We had absolutely wonderful experiences both times and were very impressed with the staff on both ships. So cordial, caring, and entertaining! We strayed this past January and went on a cruise on that other cruise line ( only because we were with a group of people and that was the cruise they chose). Although the ship was beautiful, we did not feel the welcoming or friendliness was near comparable to what we had experienced on Carnival. Needless to say we came home to Indiana and immediately booked a cruise on the Carnival Valor for this coming October 17th. It will be our 32nd wedding anniversary and we are really looking forward to another wonderful Carnival cruise. Can you tell us anything about our CD Goose Neumann for this cruise?
Thanks so much, Corene & Kurt
Hey John!!!
Long time reader, first time poster. Though you don’t know me from Adam, I’ve had the pleasure of sailing with you a few times over the years on the Ecstacy, Destiny, Triumph, and Legend. I even was honored (spelled correctly) to play Black Bart in the Bedtime Story one time.
As mentioned by Tim above, we also visited Half Moon Cay aboard the Fantasy in August of 2006 as part of a regularly scheduled 4 day cruise from Port Canaveral. I’m not going to kick you in the shins over this, but thank you for the blog and photos which reminded me of the FANTASTIC time we had there!!!
We will be going back there on the July 2nd cruise aboard the Miracle from NYC. Can’t wait!! This will be doubly special since this will be my 25th cruise with Carnival, since my first aboard the Holiday in 1986.(perhaps you served me a drink on that one). I’ve sailed on other lines as well, including the one with the chargeyouforyoursteakontheseas, but I will always come back to Carnival. Thanks to Carnival, and to you, for supplying a product worthy of my hard earned vacation dollars!! Fun Ships forever, and here’s to the next 25!!!
Jeff “Jamman” Maskall
Dear John,
I hope you feel better soon! Theraflu can be some nasty stuff, but I found a trick to getting it down – plop a tea bag and a packet of artificial sweetener (or skip the sweetener if it’s a no-no for diabetes), and you get a lousy lemon-flavored tea. Yeah, it’s still lousy, but it goes down easier than without the tea.
The photos are beautiful! Here’s a suggestion for Carnival to introduce on their ships – a digital photography seminar by one of the ship’s photographers! Everyone brings a camera on their vacation. Wouldn’t it be great if a professional photographer could give pointers on the best way to capture the uniqueness of each port, the best angles for the various areas of the ship, and even how to make food pictures look as delish as it is on board?
At the least, it would be a good add-on for the port talks that are already on board, but I think a separate seminar would be well-received.
Feel better!
Laura
Good Idea Laura I vote Yes Yes Yes
The Cruzin2some
Ah John, a cold and a man cold at that, how unfair is that. Well, you should be much better in a couple of weeks.
I loved your story about your vacation with Heidi, only you would hate something like that. I am glad that Heidi did though. I really think that would have been romantic.
Loved the Judge Judy letter. I for one love her, I know I would not want to be the one she was mad at but she is a good jurist, at least I think so.
The pictures were great, very pretty.
Keep smiling John, you truly are one of the good guys.
My best to Heidi and Kye.
Peg Dunbar
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Dear John, please reply….
Last summer we sailed on the Carnival Freedom on a 6 day cruise out of Ft. lauderdalle. You were our cruise director, (our first exposure to Carnival) and we had a great time. We espscially enjoyed all of the quality entertainment (and I have to say that the food was pretty darn good too). This year both of our daughters (19 and 24) are sailing with us and we have reserved a couple of balcony cabins on the Carnival Triumph, sailing from New Orleans on June 26th. I was wondering if you could help us secure a table for 4. We have already requested a late dinning preference. Our cabin numbers are 8288 and 8292.
Thanks in advance.. the Savary’s
John:
Thank you in advance for taking the time to read my message. I wanted to know if you had any insights on starting a business on HMC? What the policies are? Whom to speak to? Financing, etc. I am a Professional Chef by trade, however an entrepreneurial business man of hospitality and current trends. Please advise. Likewise for the neighboring islands….Nassau, Turks/Caicos.
I anxiously await your response.