Carnival Breeze Review
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I wish I could combined bits of the Royal Caribbean cruise we took 3 years ago (awesome food and service, adherence to dress code (cover-ups and shoes required in all areas other than the pools), hand sanitizer use encouraged to all guests entering buffet area) with bits of the Carnival Breeze cruise we took last week (LOVED the PG-rated comedy shows).
Food on the Breeze was average, although we enjoyed Guy's Burgers way too many times (yum!) and also enjoyed our overpriced meal at Farenheit 555 Steakhouse (best cheesecake ever!). As noted above, nobody stopped people who weren't in "dress code" -- girls in bikinis walking barefoot through the buffet lines, "elegant" dress nights not adhered to (dude in jeans and cowboy hat was seated at $35/plate steakhouse which listed "elegent" attire as a requirement). Twice I found hand sanitizer stations at the buffet were empty. (Royal Caribbean had someone standing at the food entrances to "encourage" people to sanitize before entering.)
The required lifeboat drill was ridiculous -- couple of hundred people in a small room, many having to stand. It was hot in there with so many people so close together. Then we had to wait THIRTY minutes before they started because they were missing people from cabins -- 48 cabin numbers were called out as "missing" before they finally started. There needs to be some kind of consequence for people who don't attend, and the rest of us shouldn't have to wait on them. And when they finally started with the instructions, we could barely hear them and couldn't see anything of the demonstration. Waste of time.
Cabin Review
Cove Balcony
Drawers hadn't been wiped out when we arrived, nor had the glass shelves in the bathroom. Take Lysol wipes with you so you can thoroughly clean the areas you plan to use/touch. Nail polish stain on the top of the white comforter reminded us clearly that others had been here before. A small hole in the curtain let the sun leak in, and there was a greasy handprint on the curtain, too. Enjoyed being so close to the water (2nd floor), but the upper view is blocked by lifeboats. Heard noises all night long from the working floor above (clicking heels walking across our ceiling, things being moved on wheels, things being dropped). That was definitely not cool. The last night was the worst, with what I assume was luggage being moved in preparation for the next day's arrival in Galveston. Bring ear plugs if you're any kind of light sleeper!
Port Reviews
Galveston
Used Lighthouse Parking (reserved ahead of time online), and they took us quickly to the port. Had an arrival appointment (set online) and went very quickly through the whole process of getting on board.
Freeport
We got off the ship to wander through the little bit of shopping that's available at the port. Then it poured and we stood under a shelter waiting for it to stop before returning to the ship. We were told ahead of time that there's really nothing to see close to the ship and that it wasn't safe to wander off on our own. Not a pretty port, but I'm sure it's gorgeous further into the island.