Two years ago, we went on the Carnival Mardi Gras which was Carnival's biggest and most ambitious ship yet. Celebration and Jubilee (both names of some of the first original Carnival ships) would follow and are sister ships to the Mardi Gras, so we knew what to expect on the Celebration.
Here's the first Celebration - came out in 1987 , weighed in 47,000 tons and cost $130 million and held 1500 passengers and 670 crew. She was a beauty!
Here's the new Celebration - came out in 2022, weighs in at 183,500 tons, $1 billion to make and holds 6,500 passengers and 1735 crew. What a difference!
Not wanting to celebrate alone, Shelley's sister/husband and niece came with us. (Shauna/Don/Clarissa) and boy did we celebrate!
We flew to Denver (never been there) and then on to Miami
We stayed (for free of course) at the Hyatt Regency Coral Gables which was a pretty nice place.
The breakfast buffet even had fresh honey combs!
Shauna, Don and Clarissa getting the celebrating started!
VIDEO: Of course they have to use this song:
VIDEO: And they always use this one too:
This is "Center Stage" during the night for shows and events
This is Center Stage during the day - the huge LED screens go up into the ceiling and large windows look out to the ocean
One of the evening shows was doing rehearsals
We did the Teppanyaki dinner the first night
Bento dessert box
Of course Bingo - another use for the Center Stage area
VIDEO: During the days at sea, at the pool area, they had a guy playing the steel drums:
After a day and half and two nights of sailing, we made it to Cozumel
Having been here several times before, we decided to do what we did last time - which was rent a car and go to a secluded beach in one of the national parks (Punta Sur - "south point). Last time, it was during Covid, and we were the only ones there pretty much, so we were interested in seeing how it would be this time, especially with SEVEN ships in port this day!
This crocodile watch tower wasn't here last time, so we stopped to take a look
Oh yeah, they were out of Jeeps, so we got this "Buggy" instead. No doors. No hard top. No windows. Apparently, it was VERY windy for those in the back seat!!
It was also VERY windy outside the car too!
These are some ruins of the old lighthouse back in the olden days
Here's the new lighthouse, which is still used occasionally
There are a bunch (134) of stairs to the top in a narrow spiral staircase but the views are amazing
Do you see our buggy? (it's red)
After the lighthouse, a few more miles to the beach area
Uh....nobody's here
Literally........
We were the only ones there!!! Eventually, 4 other people came. It was amazing!!
Back on ship it's dinner time!
I'm not sure what's happening here
Or here......
Can you guess the movie?
Here's the show that was rehearsing that one day
Another day at sea as we sail to Roatan (Honduras)
We went snorkeling at three different reefs. It was very windy here too, so the water wasn't very clear but it was still a nice outing...AND we were the only 5 on the tour!!
After snorkeling a few hours, they took us to this beach front restaurant, that guess what, we were the only ones at. As we were leaving, a few more people came. It was very pretty!
This is Carnival's beach right near the pier with all kinds of activities
Not sure what's going on here......
Deal or No Deal is always fun to watch and play! Don played along with three cards and won 2 Bingo games (didn't win anything) and 1 $30 credit at the casino and he turned that in to $190 with roulette.
What movie?
VIDEO:
At various places around the ship, they have the clocks that shine on the floor as a shadow
The next day we were in Costa Maya - basically a newer port made by the cruise ships. Originally, there was nothing here, and there still isn't much but the port area is huge with pools, shops, parties, more pools and lots and lots of drinks! Most people don't leave the port area as there is nothing else to see or do - only various ruin sites, and they are a ways away.
We chose to go to a ruin site we hadn't been to before - Chaccohoben. We exit the port, walk one street down and turn right at the fake pyramid to find our guide.
Our tour guide was Ismael (pronounced Ishmael) and his 18 year old daughter - he was the owner of the small tour company. The ruins were about a 50 min ride away.
On the way, we stopped at Ismael's village and stopped at his house! He introduced us to his wife, who is Mayan, and some of his other kids and his dog!
We made it to the ruins and Ismael took us on a private guided tour
Chacchoben was first built around 360 - 700 AD it was the largest settlement around and was mainly a ceremonial center where the Gods were prayed to and sacrificed to by the Mayan priests and leaders. Only a few temples have been uncovered, with many others still completely buried. These ruins are older than Chechen Itza and were discovered in 1942 by a farmer building his house. The ruins were excavated fairly recently in 1972 and continue to be excavated today
The landscape here is completely flat..no hills...none. So these mounds are where other buildings are that have not yet been excavated
Here's another one
On the way back, we stopped at Ismael's farm and he had some coconuts he picked the day before. We also stopped at a fresh pineapple stand and he got some freshly picked and sliced pineapple for us. It was so juicy and sweet!!
VIDEO of the party pool:
We made it back!
That evening's show was pretty good
Being platinum level with Carnival, we each get $25 credit at the casino, and chose to play slots. Shelley's was spent in about 2 minutes, but mine lasted a little longer and once I had a "Huge Win" (these were penny slots so this was a big win) of $175 I cashed out.
That camera always takes my photos at the worst time!
Movie Time!
The ship's pretty quiet at night..good time to walk around
Flying home as we neared Salt Lake City
We had a great time Celebrating on the Celebration! It was a great trip!! This was the last (of four) cruises booked during Covid at half off, so we had to make it count!
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