Carnival Inspiration, February 2018

Carnival Inspiration

February 26, 2018

Long Beach, CA

Catalina Island, CA

Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico

Our second Carnival Premier Getaway, our 3rd cruise out of Long Beach, Our second short Mexico Cruise. 

This was our 9th cruise on Carnival. When we originally started cruising on Carnival in 2015, our plan was to not repeat the Ship, Embarkation port, or Itinerary. So far, we have not cruise on a Carnival Ship twice. We have done the same itinerary twice, and this was our third cruise out of Long Beach.

We board the Carnival Inspiration and then went to Catalina Island the next day. We decided to take a tour around Catalina Island and get to see some sights. It was a great drive to get to view around the Island. When we had been there before we did something else. 

Our next stop was Ensenada Mexico. This was my third time in Ensenada. Our first time we drove there. From where we are in Northern San Diego County county, it takes about 90 minutes with no traffic to get to the border, and then it is about 2 hrs to get to Ensenada after crossing the border.  The second and third time we visited Ensenada we were on a Carnival Ship.

Ensenada is a fun tourist town. The weather is pretty good all year, so there is a ton to do as far as activities. This trip we did a wine country tour. People do not really think of Baja California as being Wine Country, but it is. Due to the wonderful weather, it is a great place for grapes and olives, not just the infamous Agave for tequila. Our wine country tour included a bottle of wine at the first vineyard. The second vineyard had way more than just wine. It had all sorts of oils, spreads and seasonings. It was a great tour even for those who do not drink. 

Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

Cabo San Lucas, Baja California, Mexico

Cabo, or Los Cabos is one of those legendary places where you hear about the amazing views, the wonderful people, the excellent food and of course The Partying. Traveling on both coasts of Mexico, I have learned that the culture is deep, beautiful and proud. 

We took and Land and Sea Tour to get acquainted with the area. Of course the highlight of the water part of the tour is getting as close to the Arch as possible. There is a small beach in the arch area, one side of the beach opens to the Sea of Cortez and the other side opens to the Pacific Ocean. Its one of a few crazy places like this in the world where one beach can swim in two bodies of water.

Part of our tour went to a glass blowing factory, a restaurant, shopping, and a few other places with some amazing views along the coast.  I was totally fascinated by the glass blowing process. It honestly seemed though that it was more of a tourist thing, like the factory only existed just as something to do for tourists until we got to a restaurant for our lunch and tequila tasting. Then I saw how all of their bar ware had come from the place we just left. It was quite an interesting lesson in zero waste. The restaurant and bar sends the glass blowing factory their beer bottles to recycle and the glass blowing factory made them amazing bar ware. 

Los Cabos is one of a few places where the old meets the new in this balanced way. Its truly someplace that I would love to spend a long amount of time. Its also in my dreams for retirement. 

Carnival Miracle - Mexican Riviera Cruise - February 2016

We started cruising Carnival in January of 2015. We took our first cruise to the Bahamas, followed by a 2nd cruise to the Bahamas, and then a 3rd cruise to the Western Caribbean all in 2015.

In the process of finalizing the check in procedures for our Western Caribbean cruise, I noticed that due to my husband's regular casino playing, he had several free cruise offers that were what Carnival Classifies as a Premier Cruise. We decided to book the Mexican Riviera Cruise out of Long Beach Premier Event since we would have moved to the west coast by then.

So our cruise in February 2016 was many firsts. It was our first Premier Casino Cruise, Our first cruise out of the West Coast, Our First Cruise on Carnival Miracle and Our First Mexican Riviera Cruise.
Needless to say, we knew before we even boarded that Carnival Miracle was going to be a trip we would never forget.