Carnival cruise – Ultimate Travel Adventures

Private Bungalows at Princess Cays

Princess Cays is irresistible, with a rainbow of boldly colorful bungalows, windswept palm trees, powdery sands, and brilliant aqua waters suitable for scuba or swim. It’s the ultimate hedonistic retreat! Princess Cays in the Bahamas is privately owned by Princess Cruises and Carnival Cruises, and you will find the stop only on these ships’ Caribbean itineraries. The private bungalows available for rent, and housing up to four people, are the perfect retreat from the crowds swarming the buffet and at the other end of the beach around the shops, party vibe, and live music.

My playful pink paradise

With your bungalow rental, you receive four lounge chairs and a beach umbrella, lots of very satisfying snacks (allowing avoidance of the crowded buffet!) including a bounty of fresh fruit, vegetables and dip, and chips with salsa and guacamole, a cooler of sodas, a shower, and an air conditioned haven from the heat and/or rain. There’s also an electrical outlet for gaming and social media addicts (you know who you are!) Scuba gear and floats are also included if you are so inclined.

In the shade of the palm trees life is good

Steps away from the beach, life is tough: having to decide whether to lounge around and soak in the sun on your private lounger, partake in the abundance of snacking delights in the cabana, or cool down in the crystal clear, soothing Bahamian waters. After a stroll to get the lay of the land, I did all three… three times!

If you can avoid the crowds in the area of the beach closest to the tender port, Princess Cays provides an extremely peaceful, relaxing experience. My perky pink cabana home for the day, it was paradise. It was an enviable escape, the perfect place for zen-like meditation, tranquility, and contemplation.

More palm trees than people at this end of the beach

After not nearly enough time, it was time to return to the ship to head towards Freeport, Bahamas, completely relaxed, refreshed, and recharged in this perfectly peaceful place.

Want a tour? You can see it here:

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Next week: Freeport, Bahamas, followed by my trip to Europe with new, upgraded filming equipment in tow! Hope you can come along for the adventure!

Ship from Grand Turk Beach

Inside Cabin

Sushi Bar

Welcome to installment 2 in my Carnival Pride back-to-back cruise series! The Carnival Pride sails out of Baltimore, Maryland. My itinerary included Bermuda the first week, and Bahamas and Turks & Caicos the second week. I previously posted on the back-to-back cruise experience, which you may read here: Back to Back Cruise Experience.

The Pride is a comparatively small cruise ship, and some cosmetic wear and tear is apparent in the form of rust spots and nicks and bumps on the trim and decor. This will bother different people to different extents. Personally this is something that I am bothered by, but it’s superficial, and I still managed to have a great time on the cruise. Customer service and meals were very good, and the entertainment was hit-or-miss. The shows didn’t have a huge production value and elaborate special effects that I have seen on some other ships, but the performers were talented. The Bermuda leg of the trip was cold and rainy – especially when the ship was in the vicinity of Baltimore. April is still quite chilly in Baltimore, so spring is not an ideal time for a sailing out of this port.

The cabin was larger than any other interior cabin I have ever been housed in on a cruise ship, and unlike with the other Carnival cruises I have taken, I actually had a refrigerator in my cabin this time. I was very satisfied with the roominess! I would say the cabins are probably the best asset of the Pride. If a roomy cabin is a high priority for you, this may be a good ship to look into.

The Lido deck was unusual in that there are really 2 neighboring Lido decks: one with a sunroof, that is closed off from the elements, and a second one that is wide open. I have never sailed on a ship with this arrangement before. People generally crowded onto the covered deck when it was chilly or rainy, and the other deck when things warmed up closer to the port destinations.

The Atrium was also unusual. It wasn’t vast and expansive the way I have experienced on other ships. It was a very tall shaft. Decor seemed to be inspired by the renaissance in most areas, and a kind of mermaid theme on the deck and buffet areas. As I have become accustomed to on Carnival, the decor was somewhat tacky in some areas, but there were other areas of the ship that appeared to be more recently remodeled to retreat to.

Meals were usually good. I enjoyed most of the meals I was served in the main dining room. Guy’s Burger Joint and Blue Iguana were always great. The pizza was also fairly good. I can’t rave about the buffet, however. The drinks at the bars were very well prepared. I particularly enjoyed the atmosphere and drinks at Alchemy Bar and Red Frog Pub.

The Serenity deck was large, and included many clamshell loungers and even hammocks. Unfortunately, whenever it wasn’t raining it was absolutely packed! I couldn’t get near the hammocks or clamshell loungers even once over the course of the 2 weeks. (I wanted to go out there in between the 2 cruises when there were only a few other customers on the ship, but it was pouring rain!) This was a big disappointment.

There was definitely room for improvement on the Pride, but a Pride cruise is a fun experience nonetheless. If you’re sailing out of Baltimore, be sure to pack some long sleeves unless it’s summer! Shawls and sweatshirts were the hottest sellers in the shops when I sailed because most of us (myself included!) were not prepared for the weather!

Come back next Monday for the next installment in the series – the first stop: Bermuda! In the meantime, here is my video tour of the Pride on YouTube!:

Donation

I am extremely grateful for your generous donation to help keep the site running! This site and individual posts are not sponsored! A dollar may not be a lot, but every dollar counts!

$1.00