Carnival Breeze 2023 5-Day Caribbean Cruise Review
Day 1 Part 2 May 13, 2023 Galveston, Texas
Scheduled Departure: 3:30pm
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Day 1 Part 2 May 13, 2023 Galveston, Texas
Scheduled Departure: 3:30pm
Click Any Photo To Make It Larger!
After walking out of the Cloud 9 SPA, I walked from Deck 12 to Deck 5. The front elevator/stairwell area was crowded and most of the elevators were out of service due to embarkation operations & the elevators had operators to help embarking guests get to their muster station. The Deck 5 atrium area on the Carnival Breeze is home to the Fun Shops. One side has Carnival Logo items and liquor. The other side has jewelry and other products. Around the Deck 5 space in the atrium Carnival has some seats for guests to be able to look down on Deck 3.
I walked across the Carnival Breeze's atrium and went into the Winner's Luck Casino. I continued until I reached the Ocean Plaza. The Carnival Breeze's Ocean Plaza is used for many different games & activities as well as performances by the musicians onboard.
I walked across the Carnival Breeze's atrium and went into the Winner's Luck Casino. I continued until I reached the Ocean Plaza. The Carnival Breeze's Ocean Plaza is used for many different games & activities as well as performances by the musicians onboard.
Entrance to Cherry on Top
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Pixels Photo Kiosks On Deck 5 Outside The Casino
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Ocean Plaza Dance Floor & Stage Area
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The Carnival Breeze's Alchemy Bar is located by the Ocean Plaza right by a back entrance to the Red Frog Pub. At this time of the afternoon, the Alchemy Bar was closed. This bar serves cocktails and has a pharmacy theme.
Ocean Plaza
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Alchemy Bar
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Alchemy Bar
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I continued walking along the Carnival Breeze's Promenade deck towards the back. I stopped to take a few pictures of Piano Bar 88. The piano bar was primarily open at night when the piano bar entertainer performed. Our piano bar entertainer this cruise was Danmale. He was talented and has a great voice!
Area Between Liquid Nightclub & Piano Bar 88
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Piano Bar 88
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Piano Bar 88
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While on Deck 5, I walked inside the Red Frog Pub. The Red Frog Pub was not yet open and the room was completely empty. At the back of the Red Frog Pub, there are some games tables (such as foosball).
Red Frog Pub
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Red Frog Pub
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Red Frog Pub
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The Deck 5 (Promenade) of the Carnival Breeze has a large outdoor walkway that wraps around the entire ship. This area is called The Lanai. After Covid-19 shutdown, the front section of the Lanai became crew only, but the remainder of the open deck area is open for guests to enjoy. There are numerous deck chairs and seats on both sides of the Lanai. Also, each side has at least two hottubs.
Lanai
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Area Outside Red Frog Pub On The Lanai
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Hottub on Lanai
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Looking Towards Pelican Island
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Back of the Lanai
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View from the ship's back
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From the back of the Lanai I was able to see forklifts loading food & supplies onto the ship. There were pallets of bottled water being loaded when I looked outside at this time of the afternoon. A little further down there were watermelons, onions, and many other fruits & vegetables being loaded onto the ship.
Lanai
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Supplies Waiting To Be Loaded
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Supplies Waiting To Be Loaded
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When I was done walking around outside, I walked through the Winner's Luck Casino. The casino on Deck 5 is the Carnival Breeze's main casino. Smoking was prohibited in the casino at this time due to the casino being closed. One great thing about the Carnival Breeze is that there is a non-smoking casino located on Deck 4 that has many slots, tables, and games available for guests. When I used my FunPlay gift for being Platinum I utilized the non-smoking casino slots on Deck 4. Below are some pictures of the Winner's Luck Casino on Deck 5:
Winner's Luck Casino
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Winner's Luck Casino
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Winner's Luck Casino
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Self-Mustering On The Carnival Breeze:
After walking around Deck 5 I headed towards the front of the ship and down to Deck 3 to complete the self-mustering process. My muster station was "A3" which was the Deck 3 level of the Ovation Theater. A crew member was standing at the entrance of the Ovation Theater. We showed our Sail & Sign Cards and they were scanned in order to log attendance at this mandatory drill. The drill consisted of a lifejacket demonstration and some basic safety information. The drill lasted a few minutes and gave us a good reminder on how to wear a lifejacket & where we needed to go in the event of a real emergency. TIP: Your assigned muster station for the cruise can be found in multiple areas. Your boarding pass, Sail & Sign Card, the Carnival Hub App, and back of the stateroom door have your muster station letter/number printed. If you need assistance on the first day finding your muster station, crew members are stationed throughout the ship and can direct you to your assigned muster station. |
Checking Out My Oceanview Stateroom:
Staterooms were not open until 1:30pm, but Platinum, Diamond, & Faster to the Fun guests were allowed to come by the rooms to drop-off bags earlier. Stateroom keys were guest Sail & Sign Cards, which were located in the mailbox outside the stateroom door in a sealed envelope. My ocean view stateroom was located on Deck 2 close to the very front of the ship. The room was the 2nd large ocean view window as the windows closer to the front of the ship were porthole. The bed in the stateroom was two twin beds pushed together when arrived, but we asked our stateroom steward to separate the beds into two twins. The couch in the stateroom also was able to convert to a bed. Our stateroom steward separated the beds by the late afternoon. The middle of the stateroom had a vanity that had a phone and QR code on the wall to access the room service menu. Our TV was located in the middle of the room and had the standard onboard channels.
Staterooms were not open until 1:30pm, but Platinum, Diamond, & Faster to the Fun guests were allowed to come by the rooms to drop-off bags earlier. Stateroom keys were guest Sail & Sign Cards, which were located in the mailbox outside the stateroom door in a sealed envelope. My ocean view stateroom was located on Deck 2 close to the very front of the ship. The room was the 2nd large ocean view window as the windows closer to the front of the ship were porthole. The bed in the stateroom was two twin beds pushed together when arrived, but we asked our stateroom steward to separate the beds into two twins. The couch in the stateroom also was able to convert to a bed. Our stateroom steward separated the beds by the late afternoon. The middle of the stateroom had a vanity that had a phone and QR code on the wall to access the room service menu. Our TV was located in the middle of the room and had the standard onboard channels.
View Of My Stateroom
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Couch & Table
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Stateroom Vanity
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The stateroom bathroom was pretty typical. The bathroom consisted of a toilet, sink, and shower. Shampoo and body wash were available in the shower in dispensers. Our stateroom steward left a bar of soap in a box by the sink.
Stateroom Bathroom
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Sink in bathroom
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Stateroom Bathroom Shower
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Our luggage had not yet arrived in the stateroom when we stopped by. I left my camera bag and then went back outside to walk around the ship some more. It was still cloudy, but so far no rain! I walked around Deck 5 for a little while.
Harbor & Pelican Island - View From Deck 5 Lanai
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Entrance to Liquid Nightclub From Lanai - Was Always Closed
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Part of the smoking area on the Deck 5 Lanai
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At some point in the mid-afternoon I took a walk on Deck 4 to look around. Deck 4 is home to the Circle C youth lounge, Club 02 youth lounge, the smoke free casino annex, Library Bar, and more. The non-smoking casino was being used for muster station purposes, but I still walked in to take a look. Below are a few pictures from the smoke free casino on Deck 4:
Deck 4 Casino Annex (Non-Smoking)
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Deck 4 Casino Annex (Non-Smoking)
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Deck 4 Casino Annex (Non-Smoking)
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Looking Out From The Front Of The Ship:
One of my favorite spots on Dream class ships is the front outside decks. These decks can be accessed through stateroom hallways and lead to the outside. Deck 9's front area is my absolute favorite because of being able to look down the sides of the ship. From the front of the Carnival Breeze on this day, I was able to see the Carnival Vista docked at Cruise Terminal 25. I also was able to see part of the Battleship Texas sitting in dry-dock on Pelican Island.
One of my favorite spots on Dream class ships is the front outside decks. These decks can be accessed through stateroom hallways and lead to the outside. Deck 9's front area is my absolute favorite because of being able to look down the sides of the ship. From the front of the Carnival Breeze on this day, I was able to see the Carnival Vista docked at Cruise Terminal 25. I also was able to see part of the Battleship Texas sitting in dry-dock on Pelican Island.
View Of Carnival Vista & Galveston From Deck 9 FWD
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View From Deck 9 - Looking Towards The Cruise Terminal
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Deck 9 Front Outside Area
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View From Deck 9 - Side of Ship & Pelican Island
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Looking At Galveston
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Looking Towards The Galveston Strand
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After looking out from Deck 9's front area, I went back to the stateroom and unpacked as our luggage had arrived. Unpacking took only a few minutes and then it was time to go back & have fun! I took some pictures while I was on Deck 5 from the back area of the Lanai. Most of the supplies were loaded onto the ship. While outside the PA system went off and our cruise director, Shy, starting reading safety announcements. The ship's general emergency alarm rang (seven short blasts and one long blast) and then more announcements regarding safety were made.
Grain Elevator Behind Cruise Terminal 28
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View From The Back of Deck 5
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Supplies Still Outside, But Most Are Loaded
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Aft Ropes Are Still Tied
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View From Deck 5 - Passenger Gangway Is Lowered & Disconnected
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View From Deck 5 Of Pier & Cruise Terminal
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Sail-A-Way From Galveston:
The Carnival Breeze was scheduled to set sail at 3:30pm from Galveston. However, we ended up leaving a few minutes after 4pm. The Carnival Vista left before us, but later in the evening we passed the Carnival Vista up despite their head start of getting into the Gulf of Mexico. I went up to the front of Deck 9 to watch our Galveston sail-a-way. The cloudy sail-a-way was disappointing, but at least I was not going to get too sunburned being outside in these conditions! Below are some pictures I took from our Galveston sail-a-way:
The Carnival Breeze was scheduled to set sail at 3:30pm from Galveston. However, we ended up leaving a few minutes after 4pm. The Carnival Vista left before us, but later in the evening we passed the Carnival Vista up despite their head start of getting into the Gulf of Mexico. I went up to the front of Deck 9 to watch our Galveston sail-a-way. The cloudy sail-a-way was disappointing, but at least I was not going to get too sunburned being outside in these conditions! Below are some pictures I took from our Galveston sail-a-way:
Carnival Vista Departing Galveston
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Carnival Breeze Moving Away - View Of Cruise Terminal 28
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View Of Harbor As We Departed Galveston
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Cruise Terminal 25 (Where Carnival Vista Docked Today)
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Sailing By The Galveston Strand
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View Of The Harbor House Hotel & Pier 21 From The Ship
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Passing By The Oceanstar Drilling Rig & Museum
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Passing By the Future Cruise Terminal For MSC Cruises
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Passing By Cruise Terminal 10 (Royal Caribbean Ships Dock Here)
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UTMB In The Distance
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Sailing By A Marina
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Galveston Ferry Landing
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Seawolf Park on Pelican Island & Galveston Bay In The Background
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Looking Back At Galveston
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Reaching The Tip of Galveston Island
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View From The Front As We Left
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Looking Back At Galveston
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How The Your-Time Dining Check-In Process Worked:
I had Your-Time Dining which means I could dine in a specific dining room from 5:30pm until about 9:00pm. Dining assignments are printed on guests' Sail & Sign Cards. My Sail & Sign Card indicated that for dinner I needed to check-in on the Carnival Hub App and then I would be assigned a table. Shortly before the dining room opened the Carnival Hub App began allowing guests to check-in. The check-in for dinner was easy and involved clicking a check-box for each guest that was going to be eating. Within a couple of minutes of checking in the app notified me that my table was ready and I selected that I was on my way. The app will hold table assignments for 10 minutes before cancelling a reservation. The Sapphire Dining Room is the Carnival Breeze's mid-ship dining room. Upon arriving at the atrium entrance of the Sapphire Dining Room I told the hostess my table number that was assigned on the app and she had someone bring us to our table. This new process of checking in for Your-Time Dining replaced guests lining up early and then everyone speaking with a hostess when the doors opened.
I had Your-Time Dining which means I could dine in a specific dining room from 5:30pm until about 9:00pm. Dining assignments are printed on guests' Sail & Sign Cards. My Sail & Sign Card indicated that for dinner I needed to check-in on the Carnival Hub App and then I would be assigned a table. Shortly before the dining room opened the Carnival Hub App began allowing guests to check-in. The check-in for dinner was easy and involved clicking a check-box for each guest that was going to be eating. Within a couple of minutes of checking in the app notified me that my table was ready and I selected that I was on my way. The app will hold table assignments for 10 minutes before cancelling a reservation. The Sapphire Dining Room is the Carnival Breeze's mid-ship dining room. Upon arriving at the atrium entrance of the Sapphire Dining Room I told the hostess my table number that was assigned on the app and she had someone bring us to our table. This new process of checking in for Your-Time Dining replaced guests lining up early and then everyone speaking with a hostess when the doors opened.
First Dinner On The Carnival Breeze In The Sapphire Dining Room:
After being seated our table's waitstaff came by to introduce themselves. The menus were available through a QR code or on the Carnival Hub App, but paper menus were available upon request. The choice of bread for the night was baguette or multigrain cranberry. I have always enjoyed the multigrain cranberry bread on past cruises so I asked for two multigrain cranberry slices. The slices were not large. I ordered two appetizers each night of the cruise. Tonight I had a caesar salad and quesadilla. For my main course I ordered Grilled Mahi Mahi. Since my last time cruising, Carnival implemented a charge for guests who order more than 2 main courses at dinner, but I never ordered more than 1 main course so I did not have to worry about this charge. For dessert I ordered a banana split off the kid's menu. All three courses (appetizer, main course, and dessert) are ordered at once.
After being seated our table's waitstaff came by to introduce themselves. The menus were available through a QR code or on the Carnival Hub App, but paper menus were available upon request. The choice of bread for the night was baguette or multigrain cranberry. I have always enjoyed the multigrain cranberry bread on past cruises so I asked for two multigrain cranberry slices. The slices were not large. I ordered two appetizers each night of the cruise. Tonight I had a caesar salad and quesadilla. For my main course I ordered Grilled Mahi Mahi. Since my last time cruising, Carnival implemented a charge for guests who order more than 2 main courses at dinner, but I never ordered more than 1 main course so I did not have to worry about this charge. For dessert I ordered a banana split off the kid's menu. All three courses (appetizer, main course, and dessert) are ordered at once.
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Below are pictures of the food from our table. I enjoyed the food I ate and the dining room service was great. As I write this review, I am hungry seeing these food pictures.
Multigrain Cranberry Bread (Two Pieces)
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Baguette
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Appetizer: Quesadilla
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Appetizer: Shrimp Cocktail
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Appetizer: Smoked Poblano & Corn Soup
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Appetizer: Caesar Salad
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Main Course: Pollo Parmigiana Della Cucina
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Main Course: Sweet & Sour Shrimp
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Main Course: Grilled Mahi Mahi
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Side Baked Potato
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Dessert: Carnival Melting Chocolate Cake
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Dessert: Banana Split (From Kid's Menu)
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After dinner I went outside to walk around Deck 5. I tried to walk each evening of the cruise to burn off some calories from the meal I just ate in the main dining room. While outside, I saw we were passing up the Carnival Vista. The Carnival Vista was on a 7 night cruise. Below are some pictures I took while walking around outside:
View From The Lanai on Deck 5
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Passing Up Carnival Vista - View From Deck 5
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Lanai
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Deck Chairs On The Lanai
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Chess Board On The Lanai Deck Area
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Last Look At The Water Before Heading Inside
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Bingo In The Ovation Theater:
At 8:30pm in the Ovation Theater a game of Welcome Aboard Bingo was taking place. The Bingo host for this cruise was Money Mel. Bingo on Carnival's ships costs money to buy Bingo cards, but there are cash or other prizes for winning. Sometimes prizes are cash, but other times could be jewelry or a free cruise depending on the game of bingo that is being played. I did not play bingo, but watched the game because I wanted to be in the Ovation Theater for a good seat for the Welcome Aboard Show.
At 8:30pm in the Ovation Theater a game of Welcome Aboard Bingo was taking place. The Bingo host for this cruise was Money Mel. Bingo on Carnival's ships costs money to buy Bingo cards, but there are cash or other prizes for winning. Sometimes prizes are cash, but other times could be jewelry or a free cruise depending on the game of bingo that is being played. I did not play bingo, but watched the game because I wanted to be in the Ovation Theater for a good seat for the Welcome Aboard Show.
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Welcome Aboard Show:
The Welcome Aboard Show was scheduled to start at 9:30pm in the Ovation Theater. When the show started our cruise director, Shy, came on-stage to introduce himself. Shy gave us information about the cruise and did a game that resulted in a couple of lucky guests winning Entertainment VIPs for the trip. These guests got to have reserved seats in the Ovation Theater for the nightly shows. Shy was a great cruise director and did an amazing job throughout the trip giving us information, entertaining us, and making announcements. After Shy finished, he introduced us to the Playlist Productions performers. They did a 10 minute show which consisted of a few songs. The Playlist Productions performers on the Carnival Breeze for this cruise were very talented. After the Welcome Aboard Show ended guests were invited to come into the atrium lobby for Rock the Promenade. |
Rocky FWD Stateroom & A Midnight Mistake:
After the Welcome Aboard Show ended I went up to the Lido Marketplace to get some water. I was too tired to do anything else so I went down to my stateroom. Our stateroom was very close to the front and due to this location we were able to hear noise from the ship hitting waves. The wave heights were elevated due to offshore thunderstorms. It sounded like the ship was hitting something big each time we hit a wave! The water in the stateroom toilet was moving back & forth in the bowl and the hangers in the closet were moving. This noise was only on the first night of the cruise and stopped once we were in calmer seas.
Despite the noise and movement in this stateroom I was still able to fall asleep. However, around midnight my stateroom door opened up and light flooded the stateroom from the hallway. I immediately got up and put my hand on the stateroom door to prevent the person from coming in further. It was a crew member asking us to come in to check our A/C. I told him no and that we did not call maintenance. He re-read a stateroom number and it turned out he had the wrong room. He apologized and left. I made sure we had the deadbolt turned on this time around and then had trouble falling asleep. Make sure you use the deadbolt next time you cruise!
After the Welcome Aboard Show ended I went up to the Lido Marketplace to get some water. I was too tired to do anything else so I went down to my stateroom. Our stateroom was very close to the front and due to this location we were able to hear noise from the ship hitting waves. The wave heights were elevated due to offshore thunderstorms. It sounded like the ship was hitting something big each time we hit a wave! The water in the stateroom toilet was moving back & forth in the bowl and the hangers in the closet were moving. This noise was only on the first night of the cruise and stopped once we were in calmer seas.
Despite the noise and movement in this stateroom I was still able to fall asleep. However, around midnight my stateroom door opened up and light flooded the stateroom from the hallway. I immediately got up and put my hand on the stateroom door to prevent the person from coming in further. It was a crew member asking us to come in to check our A/C. I told him no and that we did not call maintenance. He re-read a stateroom number and it turned out he had the wrong room. He apologized and left. I made sure we had the deadbolt turned on this time around and then had trouble falling asleep. Make sure you use the deadbolt next time you cruise!
Overall, the first day on the Carnival Breeze was fun and I had a great time! Please stay tuned for Day 2's sea day review...
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Now Posted: Day 2 Part 1's Sea Day Review!
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