The day had finally come. It was 8:00pm on Saturday June 13, 2009 and I headed to SeaTac International Airport for an overnight flight from Seattle to Orlando in preparation for my first ever cruise! I got into Orlando International Airport at 9:30am (Eastern time) on Sunday June 14, 2009 and boarded a private motorcoach to Port Canaveral (where the cruise ships were located) around 10:00am. The drive was pleasant, entertaining, and very scenic. You could just feel the energy from the driver and all other cruise passengers as we got closer and closer to our cruise ship…and before I knew it, there it was, the Carnival Sensation. I always wondered how Carnival Cruise Lines came to the decision to call these ships the “Fun Ships”. 4-nights and 5-days later, I found out exactly why they did.
Day 1: Sunday June 14, 2009 (Port Canaveral, Florida): After getting off the “entertainment motorcoach”, I headed over to Carnival’s information desk and did all the required security check-in and to my surprise the process was very smooth. I received what they call the “Sail & Sign” card which is a cashless onboard credit account where you make purchases towards anything on board and don’t have to worry about swiping your credit card every single time (this is good so you can avoid all the Foreign Transaction Fees). At the end of the cruise, you simply get a statement the morning you leave the ship which lists all your transactions and then they all get charged to your credit card account which is on file – talk about simple!
I have to give a great deal of respect to the service Carnival representatives gave to me for my first ever cruise experience – I was thrilled with how easy everything was. They made it smooth and most importantly, fun! The cruise terminal was packed and it was only 11:00am! 5 hours before departure! I wasn’t too surprised though, I knew people were excited to get on the cruise ship, relax, and head over to the Bahamas and getting there early only meant more time for fun. The Carnival reps were singing, taking pictures, and doing the “wave” in the audience as we all sat waiting for our Zone # to be called to board the ship. It’s hard to describe everything that was done but all I can say is, I was having the time of my life already, and I wasn’t even on the ship yet! Then the time came, Zone 10 boarding, and off I went onto the ship!
I walked over the ramp connecting the terminal to the ship, stepped foot inside, and was immediately blown away by what I saw in front of me. With a grand entrance, it was the Grand Atrium Plaza, with luxurious finishings and just an amazing sight.
There was also an elevator that went up and down those vertical black pillars you see in the middle, but I only had a quick second to take the picture as there were cruisers behind me! And with that, I was officially on the cruise ship, the Carnival Sensation!
I learned that the staterooms were not to be ready until 1:30pm so I still had about an hour or so to burn before I could drop off my carry-on luggage, so what did I do? I did what any cruiser would do right when getting on the ship, I headed to the pool deck for an incredible lunch buffet! You bet people were ready to start their amazing cruise vacation! And the fun was only getting started. One thing you will learn about cruises is that there is an unlimited amount of food to eat! The amount of food available and the times it’s available is unheard of. Imagine a midnight buffet and a 24-hour Pizzeria with frozen yogurt, all free!! And on top of that, you have buffets going on throughout the tday. Was I in heaven or what?
After eating a good-sized lunch *giggles* at 1:30pm, I headed over to my stateroom and wow, it was much larger than I had expected! I got the Category of Oceanview Stateroom, located on the Upper Deck (Deck 6) and the stateroom was U181 – remember this if you ever go on the Carnival Sensation, you can think, John Trivedi stayed in this one! The Oceanview stateroom was very nice.
Imagine waking up and going to bed with this kind of view on a daily basis!
After unpacking a little bit and relaxing on the bed for a few good minutes, I changed into my “tropical” gear and headed straight back out onto the cruise ship deck. I walked around and just observed the ship, the surroundings, enjoyed the music, and saw people having a great time. Let me say that it was extremely hot and humid, easily 95 degrees and I was burning up! And before I knew it, it was already 3:30pm! 30 minutes from embarkation!
But before we could embark on our wonderful journey, there was a very important drill that all cruise passengers had to participate in. It was to prepare everyone in case of an emergency happening during the cruise to ensure we all knew how to put on our life jackets and also which “Muster” station to meet at on the ship based on where your stateroom was located. The drill was successful and we all learned more about where to go just in case anything happened. Of course, if something did happen, you all would have surely known by now 
I’m happy to report that the entire cruise was 100% smooth sailing and we never experienced any kind of problem. Onto the embarkation at 4:00pm!
As we started leaving the cruise terminal, everyone was simply in awe of the moment – here we are on a mega-cruise ship about to be sailing to the beautiful Bahamas, and we savored every second of it. The hours just flew by and it was already dinner time. At 6:00pm we headed over the Ectasy Dining Room for our Main Seating dinner, and enjoyed a wonderful meal. We met a really nice couple who were on their honeymoon and their first cruise, how exciting!
After dinner, I wandered around the ship, enjoyed the sunset, took some amazing pictures and then headed back to my stateroom for the finish of the NBA Finals Game which I knew was on. But before I went to my stateroom, I got to witness this…
For those that don’t know, I am a diehard Los Angeles Lakers fan and my team was playing vs the Orlando Magic in Game 5 with the Lakers up 3-1. The first team to win 4 games wins the NBA Championship! I turned the game on with about 2 minutes left in the 3rd quarter and saw the Lakers up 14 points and was going Yes Yes Yes! Totally excited and knowing we were only 14 game minutes away from another NBA Title, I began celebrating and could feel it. Then, it happened.
The buzzer sounded and I JUMPED for JOY along with all the Lakers on TV and started celebrating!!!! The Los Angeles Lakers are the 2009 NBA Champions!! Music to my ears! So exciting, I was so happy and so proud of my team, and especially Kobe Bryant who won his 4th NBA Championship ring. I watched the trophy presentations and then headed back on the deck to celebrate! Talk about an amazing night. Actually make that an amazing day and night. My first ever cruise, I’m going to the Bahamas, having the time of my life, and my team just won the NBA Championship. Life does NOT get better than this!! Congrats again to my Lakers!!
My favorite player, Kobe Bryant holding his 4th NBA Championship Trophy and 1st NBA Finals MVP Award. Congrats Kobe!!
Pau Gasol and Kobe Bryant celebrating the 2009 NBA Championship in LA at the parade!!
Okay so my first day on the cruise was unbelievable and even though I have said quite a bit for the 1st day, words simply don’t do justice. I will be explaining the rest of the cruise in a much more summarized version but all I can say is, I had the TIME OF MY LIFE!!! And you my friend need to go experience a cruise if you haven’t done so already!
Day 2: Monday June 15, 2009 (Freeport, Bahamas): I woke up this morning to a beautiful view outside. We docked the ship around 7am and the activities officially began. I quickly got ready and enjoyed a breakfast buffet in the Seaview Dining Room also located on Deck 10, just behind the Pool Deck. I controlled myself a little bit, but those pancakes and omelettes looked so good! Around 9am or so I headed out of the ship to the location where all cruisers were getting ready for their day’s shore excursions. There were so many to choose from and since I have always wanted to experience clear turquoise waters, white-sandy beaches, and enjoy a nice cold Bahama Mama drink, I did just that by going to the Junkanoo Beach Party. What an amazing experience!
Ah yes, the classic Bahama Mama drink. Everyone was having a great time. From swimming in the amazing warm waters, to sun bathing, to playing a little beach volleyball and of course dancing to some Bahamian music! It was great. The natives there were really nice and so helpful with whatever we needed. I loved their accent too and their fresh island lunch was delicious!
The beach party ended around 2:30pm as we all had to get back to the cruise ship since it was leaving at 4:00pm. I am pretty sure I got a tan/sun burned a little bit even though I put some sunscreen on! The water was very warm but also very salty…I think I may have had a week’s worth of Sodium by accidentally swallowing some of the water. It was an awesome time and I can’t wait to go back there again!
After I boarded the ship, I went straight to the waterpark! Yes that’s right, a waterpark on the ship! It was amazing – who would have thought I could experience water slides while I’m in the middle of an ocean! This was fantastic, and I went on the slides a number of times and had just (as you can already guess) a wonderful time!
Around 6:30pm I headed back to my stateroom to shower and freshen up in preparation for tonight’s elegant dinner. It was great seeing all men dress up in suits, nice dress shirts and slacks, and the women in their gowns and lovely dresses. It made the evening all that much more special when Carnival waiters/waitresses performed a dance and sang during our dinner. It’s hard to explain what it was in words but it was awesome! They even dimmed the lights back and forth to make it a full effect and wow, what an experience. The food was delicious. I was craving Indian food as always and they actually had a “secret” dish that wasn’t even on the menu since Indian food wasn’t commonly ordered on the ship but was readily available for people who wanted it. I went for it and had one of the best curries and rice ever! I never imagined how good cruise food would be but through the first few days, everything I ate was exceptional. The Chefs and crew members on board are from all over the world, I believe they represented 54 international countries, and yes, the head Chef was from India! I made a lot of friends who were in the kitchen during the cruise since I’m vegetarian and they made special foods just for us vegetarians!
Overall, the day was incredible again. I can only express so much in words as to what it was really like but I was having the time of my life, this was a dream vacation and it’s been a wonderful experience so far. Later on this evening I attended some fun events at their main lounge called Fantasia Lounge for some Bingo, comedy shows, dancing, and entertainment. It goes on and on!
Day 3: Tuesday June 16, 2009 (Nassau, Bahamas – Capitol City): I woke up this morning and got a wonderful visit from my stateroom steward who delivered breakfast in bed bright and early. I had some of the world’s best Frosted Flakes (they’re grreat!), a bagel, orange juice, toast, and some fruit (see I don’t eat THAT much!). I quickly got ready and headed straight down to get ready for my next shore excursion, Atlantis (Paradise Island, Bahamas) Aquaventure. I was originally going to do Blackbeard’s Beach Break but I realized that the excursion was similar to the Junkanoo Beach Party which I experienced the day before, so I went ahead and said, Atlantis here I come! And am I so glad I chose this excursion.
I boarded the shuttle with all other Atlantis Aquaventurers and headed to Paradise Island – it was awesome knowing I was going there. Once I got there, got a wonderful traditional Bahamian welcome and entered into the resort. What’s amazing about Atlantis is, well everything. This enormous resort consists of some of the best hotels you’ll ever see, picturesque surroundings, both for water and marine life, the best food, and also one of the best water parks you will ever see – that is what Atlantis Aquaventure was. I was having the time of my life. Going down slides, one was even called the “Leap of Faith”, going inner tubing through fun slides, and also even going through a shark tank! Imagine that, inner tubing through a shark tank full of great whites and hammerheads, fun day!
I also got to experience an intense tropical rain storm. I was eating lunch with friends under a beach umbrella when it downpoured like crazy. We could not leave the umbrella for 30 minutes or we would have been super soaked! I had the time of my life here and I am sure to come back here in the future for more than just 1 day. Next time it will be atleast a 5-6 day vacation to beautiful Paradise Island, Bahamas.
One of the main hotels in the Paradise Island resort. I would love to get a room right smack dab in the middle of the bridge looking section.
After a fun-filled day at Atlantis, I headed back to the cruise ship around 6:30pm in preparation for another evening full of fun. Dinner was wonderful as always, entertainment was fantastic and enjoyed another spectacular view of the sunset. This cruise just kept getting better and better by the day, which made it real hard knowing it was almost over! Knowing that this was the last day “on land” for the cruise, I enjoyed every moment of it and am truly glad I got to experience such an exotic and fascinating place. Onto the “Fun Day at Sea.”
Day 4: Wednesday June 17, 2009: One of the beautiful things about the cruise ship, Carnival Sensation, is that it, like many cruise ships out there, has activities for everyone at all levels. Whether you’re a kid, a teen, a young adult, or a “little” bit older, there is guaranteed to be something for you to do! This alone is one of the main reasons why cruises are becoming so popular for the ultimate vacation experience for singles, couples, and families. Not to mention that the vacation value is the best out there, you simply can’t beat the value you get out of a cruise! With being said, our “Fun Day at Sea” was exactly just that, fun. We entertained ourselves at various shows, performances, comedy acts, and even got to participate in a fun activity for creating towel animals!
Everyday after you come back in your stateroom after a nice day full of activities, your stateroom steward would create some sort of animal towel for you. What’s an animal towel you ask? It’s exactly what you think, it’s an animal that has been designed out of 2 pairs of towels! One large and one small. Getting to the fun activity I participated in, we got to learn how to create these cotton creatures! There was a huge turnout and everyone was on stage in the famous Fantasia Lounge, and off we went! The animals that I created out of towels were an elephant and a dog. Don’t believe me? As they say, seeing is believing!
Elephant with some cool looking shades!
Even the dog needed some shades due to all the sun outside!
I had so much fun doing this and it was hilarious to see how everyone’s animals looked somewhat different. Just imagine, these were created out of towels! Yes the same kind we use to dry ourselves after a nice hot shower! I’m just excited that I can create these at home now and surprise my family with them one day.
The rest of the day was filled with fun and excitment as you can imagine. I knew there could be no way I finish this cruise without experience one of those classic umbrella drinks. So what did I do? I went ahead and got me an umbrella Bahama Mama drink! It was sooo good!! And holding it made me truly feel I was living the good life and in paradise. Ah…..the Bahamas, one of the most beautiful regions in the world and my dream vacation destination! I was having the time of my life
As you can imagine, the time flew by and before I knew it, it was the last night of my cruise…people were still partying and having a great time even though it was late. I fell asleep on one of the beach chairs located in the Adult Only Retreat area in the back of the ship for a good hour or two. Believe me, if you ever want to fall asleep on a cruise ship outside, it will not take you long to do so, the feeling is just so soothing and unbelievable. At night I took one last picture of this magnificent cruise ship before I said farewell the next morning.
And of course, here are a few more fun pics of me.
Me trying to block out the sun
Enjoying a Bahama Mama in the Grand Atrium Plaza on the last day of the cruise!
Day 5: Thursday June 18, 2009 (Port Canaveral, Florida): And before I knew it, the cruise had come to an end! After we docked at 6:00am, everyone on the ship started preparing for disembarkation and the final call to head off the ship. I was all ready by 7:30am and ready to roll as that is when I knew our cabin floor would be called. Carnival did a great job preparing all passengers for exit and it was done very smoothly. They have a program called “self-assist” where if you do not have any checked-in luggage you would be called before 8:00am to exit the ship. However if you did have checked-in luggage, it would have to be ready the night before by 11:00pm so crew members could come by your stateroom and get it prepared for the next day. In other words, make sure you kept everything you need for the next day because you wouldn’t see your luggage until you got off the motorcoach at the airport or wherever your next destination was going to be! This process was very well organized and I was quite impressed.
Since my flight time wasn’t until 6:00pm, I knew I had 8 hours to burn before I headed out from Orlando. So what did I do? Another excursion of course! But this time it wasn’t in the Bahamas, it was near Port Canaveral and I visited the Kennedy Space Center. I have always been fascinated by astronomy, space, and the world out there so I knew this would be a great opportunity. I got to experience some amazing things during my visit here, saw some real life rockets, a space shuttle, and even a Saturn 5 rocket which was said to be the most highly sophisticated machine ever built – makes sense considering what it does! Here are some pics…
Don’t let this image fool you. This rocket was much bigger than this one simple shot. Imagine this big piece here, but 4-5 of them all put together. This Saturn 5 rocket was enormous, but most of it was further down in the show room (PS: This is a real rocket).
Shows you the real power of the amazing Saturn 5 rocket.
Final words…
Overall, I have to admit that this vacation experience was the best one I have ever had in my life and I cannot say enough about how well Carnival treated me and how much fun I truly had during these past 5 days on my first ever cruise! The experience was out of this world and I seriously cannot wait to go back on another one! Carnival treated all its passengers with great respect, had an incredible sense of humor and really showed everyone what having a great time on vacation is all about.
I hope my experience encourages you to take your first cruise as well, be it in the Bahamas or anywhere else in our beautiful world. Bottom line is this, if you have not experienced a cruise yet (80% of the population in the U.S.), you are missing out on the time of your life, trust me. You have to go experience one!!
Thanks again for reading. I will end this great experience with a few more memorable pictures from my first ever cruise. Enjoy!
Your friend in cruising,
John Trivedi
View from the front of the ship heading to the Bahamas!
Glittering water.
View from our dining table.
Let the fun begin!
Moments that take your breathe away.
