4 Days Bahamas from Miami, FL

Good Morning Miami!

We are almost aboard

So far the pros are: beautiful views, mini golf and a very easy boarding process. The cons: no mandatory handwashing before entering the buffet, everyone serving themselves (touching the serving utensils), no social distancing in the buffet and no mask enforcement. We will be extra vigilant and I'll stick to food that is served to me. Burritos and burgers it is!

Another positive. We have two staterooms because it was cheaper than putting all four of us in a single room. The closets are crazy huge and I appreciate the extra long vanity in the bathroom. The beds are raised and the suitcases slide right underneath. The kids appreciate having real beds versus pull down bunks or fold out sofas. This is the perfect size for two people. Four would be a tight squeeze.

And so it begins. The deck party with a song about booties, balls and taking your clothes off. I'm trying to picture Cruise Director Natalie from DCL saying, "Tomorrow when y'all ain't got no internet." Keeping an open mind. It's warm and we aren't at home.

The food at dinner was definitely a thumbs up. I had Caesar salad. It was good. Not out of this world, but I've never had a Caesar salad that blew my mind. It's lettuce, dressing and croutons. The salmon was fantastic. So moist and flaky. The root vegetables were simple, but nice. The chocolate cake was out of this world. Yum! The service was lackluster and it took two hours from the time we were seated until we finished. We spent a lot of time sitting and waiting.

By Michael

We spent the early afternoon finding our way around. Thomas and I played a round of mini golf on the top deck with the port and the Miami skyline behind us. Lisa and Thomas checked out our cabin, two twin beds already made up. In one of the public areas someone had built an elaborate gingerbread village.

By late afternoon we were up on deck as the Conquest pulled away from the dock, passing a docked Disney ship and the cranes of the port. Lisa struck a pose by the ship's tail fin as Miami and South Beach slid past in the golden light, and we got a picture together as a family with the skyline behind us.

Dinner that night included salmon, and back in the cabin the towels had been folded into an animal on the bed. Thomas was tucked in and ready for lights out before long.

Good Morning from the Bahamas. Today we are off to relax, swim and enjoy the beach at Half Moon Cay. With a sunrise like this, how can the day be anything but fabulous?

The food continues to be FABULOUS. The Blue Iguana Cantina's breakfast burrito did not disappoint. Even with our true Midwesterner "ketchup is spicy" taste buds, we loved it. Scrambled eggs, cheese, ham, pico de gallo and hashbrowns in a wheat tortilla. The best part is, no grubby unsanitized hands touched our food. Just the nice crew member wearing gloves and a mask. Thomas and I will both be eating here again (and again and again and maybe again)

Sunny and 83 today. I'll take it.

A super amazing time was had by all. Swimming, sand castles (or sand ships in Lisa's case) and sun! Couldn't have asked for better weather or travel companions.

Glad we had beautiful weather yesterday.

Lisa won the Foosball tournament in Club O2 last night and was awarded this fancy trophy.

Ugh. Working with shore excursions to see how many tickets I need to buy to make Lisa's deep sea fishing gift happen.

Formal night dinner. My rank order for the main dining rooms of the three cruise lines we have tried so far is: 1) Disney by a landslide. They have that perfect combo of theming, presentation and delicious food. 2) Carnival. The taste is there and it rivals Disney on many fronts. The presentation is meh at best. Aesthetically, it lacks the wow factor. 3) Royal Caribbean is a very distant last place, lacking presentation, taste and theming. If cruise line dining departments had a theme, theirs would be "slap that crap on a plate."

Service-wise Disney is the hands-down, runaway leader. Nobody does service better than Mickey's people. Royal is a comfortable second. They are good, but not Mickey stellar. Carnival, like many aspects of our experience is, "You get what you paid for." We knew that going in so my expectations were low. I'm not disappointed. I expect a difference in service level on a $1,000 Carnival cruise vs. a $5,000 Disney cruise.

Good Morning from Nassau! We have put the disappointment of the cancelled deep sea fishing experience behind us and we are ready to do what Rennhacks do best...explore and enjoy another beautiful day.

A completely unplanned, spontaneous day in Nassau. So very un-Rennhack of us

Masks are mandatory in all public places, even walking down the street. All foreign tourists 12 and over are required to be vaccinated. Unvaccinated kids under 12 can only disembark the ship if they are on a cruise line sponsored "bubble tour." Carrying your vaccination card is mandatory. They don't have the medical facilities to handle an outbreak and another shutdown of their borders would decimate the economy that is heavily dependent upon tourism.

Another great dinner. The pork chop and baked Alaska were both stellar. Thomas also enjoyed his baked Alaska. Michael had frog legs as an appetizer. Lisa was appalled.

By Michael

We were back on board before three thirty, in time for the Chocolate Extravaganza dessert spread and some time on the pool deck, Thomas in the hot tub while the ship still sat in port. From the rail that evening we watched the lighthouse and Atlantis slide past again as we headed back out to sea. Kathy showed off a Merry Christmas keepsake at dinner, and afterward we caught the show in the theater.

Enjoyed our airboat tour. Now it's time for the gator show.

Final thoughts on our Carnival cruise now that I'm sitting at the airport and have had some time to process the experience.

First, the things I liked. Our stateroom steward Su was personable, thorough and overall fantastic. Candace from Club O2 (the teen program) knocked it out of the park making sure that Lisa felt included. The food was great from the main dining room to the quick service restaurants to the BBQ on the private island. I also loved having two staterooms. I never felt guilty about going to bed right after dinner or waking up at 5:00 to watch the sunrise. I got the best sleep I have ever had on a ship. The second stateroom was the highlight of my experience.

Now for the detractors. The overall upkeep of the ship left a lot to be desired. Rust everywhere, peeling paint, burned out light bulbs and a run-down feel. Should we expect this from a 20-year-old ship? Disney's Magic and Wonder are actually older and are impeccably maintained, so my answer would be, "No." The Bottomless Bubbles soda package is a pain to redeem. You wait in line at the bar and depending on the time of day, the line may be long and the passengers may be very drunk. Which leads me to the clientele. It was a detractor for me because I am not the target audience. If you are into booze, booty shaking, gambling and a cruise director with horrible grammar (on purpose because he was attempting to appeal to his audience), this could be your jam. The cruise director lost me at, "Tomorrow when you ain't got no internet." The main dining room service was painfully slow. The biggest detractor for me may have been the coffee. Where does the gray water go on a ship? On the Conquest, I think they shot it straight to the coffeemakers. I had better coffee in our hotel the morning of the cruise. I made it with water from the bathroom sink. Michael had the Cheers package (unlimited alcohol and specialty coffee). The specialty coffees were equally horrible. I spent a lot of time missing Disney's Cove Cafe.

Would I do another Carnival cruise? Perhaps. Let's say it would take a ship with a stellar itinerary going to places I have never been and lots of bells and whistles to get me to consider it. At this point, I don't even think the Mardi Gras or Jubilee could draw me in. But, stranger things have happened so I'll keep those options open. I enjoyed spending time with my favorite people, so it's a win in my book.

Love a good sunset at 30,000 feet.

By Michael

From the port we drove out to Everglades Holiday Park for an airboat ride. The boat took us out through the reeds and lily pads, and we saw alligators surfacing right next to us, a bird of prey watching from a bare tree, and iguanas sunning themselves up in the branches. Lisa and I took a selfie out on the water with our masks pulled down for a second. Back at the park under the Gator Boys and Everglades Holiday Park signs, we got a close look at one of the bigger alligators before the four of us posed together holding a small one for a photo.

By Michael

We left the park around midday and headed back to Miami for our flight home. Our American Airlines flight to Chicago O'Hare, AA1159, was delayed, with a new boarding time of 4:50 in the afternoon. We watched the wing out the window as we taxied out, and by the time we were over land the sun was down, city lights strung out below us in the dark, on our way back to Chicago to end the trip.