Carnival Conquest Cruise Review

As a high school graduation present, my husband, Rick and I took his daughter Stephanie (18) and a girlfriend (19) on a 7-day cruise. Rick's older daughter, Jessica and her husband, Will, flew in from Boston and went on the cruise as well.

This was our 2nd cruise and the rest of our group had never been on a cruise before.

We had decided to drive to New Orleans from Atlanta and started out early Saturday morning arriving at our hotel around noon. We wanted to arrive a day before the cruise so we could have a little time to enjoy New Orleans before we sailed. Rick and I have been to New Orleans before and we really like the city. We had hoped to be able to show the "kids" the sites, as they had never been to New Orleans. The French Quarter is better seen on foot and so after lunch we decided to explore. However, the weather did not cooperate. Between thunderstorms we did manage to visit in the French Market, stroll down Bourbon Street, ride the trolley, purchase our souvenirs and eat some great Cajun food.

One great addition to New Orleans is the mall, Riverwalk, which is built right at the cruise dock. Passengers can get off the ship and go right into this huge mall. If you don't have time to really experience New Orleans this mall will give you a taste of what New Orleans is all about.

Embarkation: Sunday morning Rick and I got up early and went down to the cruise dock to watch the Carnival Conquest unload its passengers from the cruise before us. We wanted to get an idea of when we would be allowed to board. All the luggage porters were really helpful and friendly and advised us that by 8:30 am all the passengers that had flights to catch were already off the ship and that by 11:00 am we probably would be allowed to board. We went back to our hotel and got everybody together and walked to the parking garage where we had left our car & luggage.

Note: If you cruise out of New Orleans and you drive, there is parking at the dock. The cost is $12.00 per day. This parking lot is right next to the cruise ship. The only down side is that when you return from your cruise everybody is trying to get their car out around the same time and there is only one entrance/exit. It was a little congested. Alternative Parking: Fulton Street Garage. Our hotel recommended this when we arrived because their valet parking was full. Fulton Street offers "free" shuttle service for you and your luggage to the cruise dock. The shuttle runs about every 30 minutes. The shuttle is "free" when you return as well. It was very convenient. The cost is $10.00/day and the parking deck is very secure.

We arrived at the dock about 11:00 am and there was already a line to board. We had to wait in a line to get our "sail & sign" card, to get our boarding pass and to go through security. It took about 2 hours and we finally got on board around 1:00pm. Of course, there was already food ready for us to eat. You CANNOT go hungry on a Carnival cruise. You can get something to eat 24 hours a day.

We had all packed a carry-on so we were okay and could change into our swimming suits and go to the pool. But our luggage never showed up in our cabins until after we had eaten dinner around 8:00 pm. When we cruised before (about 5 years ago) our luggage had been delivered to our room in a couple of hours. The delay on this cruise seemed extreme but I guess the luggage of over 3000 people takes time to distribute. We all eventually got our luggage… no missing pieces.

Day 2 and 3: We were at "at sea". We were actually sailing down the Mississippi river and then into the Gulf of Mexico. These two days were wonderful. It gave us an opportunity to explore the ship and do whatever we wanted. There is always something going on. We soaked up the sun, gambled a little in the casino, participated in trivia in the lounge, worked out in the gym, enjoyed the whirlpool or just sipped our rum drinks and watched all the people.

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