Our first “real” day of the cruise was referred to as a “Fun Day at Sea,” which meant we partied hearty on the ship while we cruised to our first port.
While we cruised, Carnival provided us will a full agenda of activities to keep us busy. A ton of activities were planned every day of the cruise, but even more so on the “Fun Days at Sea.”
Our group participated in a bunch of the activities, including mini golf, free throw and bean bag contests, various themed trivia games, a Battle of the Genders competition, and a Minute to Win It-type contest.
And, the best part, we got medals and trophies (aka “Ship on a Stick”) when we won!
For some reason, we were all about the medals and trophies on this cruise! LOL!
After spending the day at sea, we got ready for Formal Night, which was a chance for everyone to get all dolled up for the evening.
Formal Night was a blast!
In the middle of dinner, our servers got down and boogied.
They actually did this every night, which made dinner a lot of fun for everyone!
The dinners on the cruise were really great and so much better than I expected. Each night there was a choice of two menus: one that never changed with grilled chicken, hamburgers, pasta, and more “traditional” types of food and one menu which changed every night and included more “exciting” options such as lamb, veal, alligator, frog legs, and various types of fish.
I pretty much ordered some sort of seafood dish every night for dinner. I rarely cook fish at home, so I was all about it on this vacation.
The dessert menu was the same as the dinner menu: a few items were available every night with a few new dishes thrown into the mix.
I absolutely loved the Warm Chocolate Melting Cake with vanilla ice cream. I enjoyed it for dessert four or five times during the cruise. It was a warm, semi-cooked, gooey, dark chocolate brownie with melt-y ice cream on it. It was heavenly.
More to come!
70 Comments
You two are one hot couple!! 🙂 I loved formal nights on the cruises I’ve gone on – it’s so fun to get all dressed up after relaxing in the sun all day (and getting a nice tan to show off at night!)
Looks amazing!
Mmmm I love cruise and worry free vacations 🙂
Looks so fun! I’ve never been on a cruise but a guy I used to date was a drummer on a cruise for a few months.
I love your bathing suits!! It looks like you had a ton of fun! I have never been on a cruise – but the thought of being on a boat with no way off kind of intimidates me!
Okay, wow. Carnival is way better than the cruise line I went on in college. We had none of those activities, or any kind of workout stuff other than a track!
Looks like so much fun!!
Looks like an amazing time!! Can’t wait to see more!
I’m so excited you are posting about your cruise!!! I’m going on a 4-day with Royal Caribbean in 3 weeks to the Bahamas!! Yea!!!! It’s my first cruise but by the looks of your trip looks like a GREAT TIME!!!
I would be ALL over those games and competitions! How fun that you guys got medals and trophies.
Oh, and that cake with ice cream sounds AMAZING. I need to recreate that at home somehow….
love hearing about your cruise adventures!! sounds like such a fun time. you and mal look great!
I am terrified of going on a cruise, but this actually looks like fun!
Hahahah I love the dancing waiter on the table! Looks WILD!
Not sure if anyone has ever told you this, but Mal totally looks like Daniel Craig (in the picture of the two of you on the couch).
I said the same thing to him about that photo! He’s a handsome devil! 🙂
@Tina:
Definitely looks like Daniel Craig in that photo – hot husband! 🙂
Ok I have to have this cleared up…I want to take a cruise so bad but my husband has this idea in his mind that you are required to do the itinerary and you can’t just do your own thing on the boat. How does that work? He has this idea of group talks, group therapy, group dinners, group hugs (ok I totally kidding but srsly can you just hang out and enjoy?)
You can totally just hang out! If you don’t want to do the activities, you don’t have to! 🙂
y’all crack me up with your metals! I love it! What a fun day… now I want to go on a cruise.
I had that cake EVERY single night on my last Carnival Cruise, and then came home and recreated it. So darn good!
Please tell me how you recreated it! I’d love to make it at home!
the chocolate brownie was our absolute favorite dessert when we went on our cruise, my husband had 2 in one night. haha!
Hey Tina, would you be able to share where you got your bathing suits from? They’re adorable and super-flattering!
Thanks! They’re all from Target except for the red one, which is from Victoria Secret.
I’ve never been on a cruise…just wondering if the activities or the dinning are at an additional cost to what you already pay? Or do you just pay one fee upfront, and then you can partake in any of the activities and order whatever you want off the menu? Looks so wonderful!
Mostly all of the activities are free (included in the cruise cost). Some of the exercise classes and all of the alcohol-related activities cost extra though.
How fun! I like that they had two different menus to choose from … so you could decide how adventurous you wanted to be! 😉
I love cruising! All your pix make me want to go book my next cruise asap!
You look great in the bikini and formal dress! So glad the weather is bright and sunny for you 🙂
I’ve heard cruises are all about the food…such great options!
Looks like such a blast! It’s making me so excited for my upcoming cruises!!!
Ohhh my goodness, I LOVE cruises! Your blog has made me want to book one ASAP….now, I gotta get my husband on board (no pun intended!)
Oh that chocolate cake looks good. I don’t know if you have ever been to a Roy’s restaurant but they have the worlds best chocolate soufflé. It’s heaven on a plate. We have one in Philly and I’m sure they have one in Boston.
Looks like fun times!!!
I love Mal’s serious face in the pic on the couch. So GQ of him!!! Haha 😉
Hi Tina! I’m loving your recaps… it looks like you guys had a great time.
I was wondering if you would mind telling me where you got your bathing suit tops from (2nd pic. turq. one)? I’m a bit busty on top and have such a hard time finding the halter top styles that tie at the neck and back. Thanks!
@Kristin: haha! never mind… just saw they’re from target.
I want your abs!!! And the ability to be photographed in a swimsuit and not have my face betray the intense anxiety I’m feeling inside wondering how I will look in the picture. You look amazing!!
Oh my gosh, we just went on a carnival cruise and had the warm chocolate melting pots too. Im not ashamed to say that we committed absolutely royal carnage on those suckers!
Looks like so much fun and all that food is making me hungry!
You look so pretty in the black dress. And relaxed!
I always figured I’d dislike cruises but this seems like so much fun! What’s great is that you can just relax if you want or there seems to be so many activities!
Looks like so much fun! Your hubs kind of looks like one of the doctors on Grey’s Anatomy… the one married to Dr. Yang 🙂
Looks like a wonderful time! Might I say you look A-MAY-ZING in your dress and bathing suit! Rawr! 🙂
Carnival’s cake is amazing! I am still thinking about it 2 years later!
Was the formal night the “captains dinner” thing? Where wine/adult beverages are included at no cost? Or am I thinking of something else?
We didn’t have anything like that on our cruise. We definitely paid for every drink we drank! LOL! But, we did go to a special “steakhouse” dinner that cost $30/person, which was quite a bit nicer and fancier than the Formal Night’s dinner. It was definitely worth the extra dinero! 🙂
Sounds like a great time. I haven’t been on a cruise and now I really want to go on one!
You look great!!! I guess Crossfit is really working for you. Very toned!
I’d gain 10lbs if I went on a cruise! the food looks good.
That cake looks amazing! Check out Mama Pea’s (Peas and Thank You) recipe for Chocolate Lava Cake. It looks exactly like that and is sooooo good!
i love how there’s booze in almost every picture! 🙂 looks like a great vacation!!!
that diet pumpkin pie sounds creepy!
you guys look so gorgeous together on formal night… you both have HOT bodies. omg, i would have totally picked molten lava cake too, it’s my favorite.
Hello 6-pack! You look amazing!
You have the greatest body ever!!! Seriously. Never mind celebrities as inspiration….you are inspiration! I think I need to do Crossfit.
love your cruise recaps. keep em’ coming!
Mmm…I’d be all about the desserts on a cruise like this! Looks like a great time!
You and Mal look great!
Looks delicious! Did you experience any bad weather?
It rained one afternoon for a little bit, but other than that, we had awesome weather! 🙂
you make cruising look so fun! Love the concept of dressing up all fancy one night. It’s a nice change after the bikinis and sun dresses I’m sure 🙂
The only one I’ve been on was with my parents in college, and I got violently ill with food poisoning. My boyfriend has been hinting he wants to try one but I’ve been skeptical. Just maybe we will now!!!!
Wow, looks like you guys had a great time!