For Day 3 of the Carnival Paradise 4-day Western Caribbean cruise, guest blogger John shares his experiences stopping in Cozumel – the only port of call during this cruise. From what he says, the day was packed with adventure and discovery, from exploring local shops and savoring unique culinary delights to enjoying entertainment onboard.
Highlights included a visit to the Dufry duty-free shop where the friendly Miguel hooked him up with booze and deals and a memorable trip to Kusam Brewing and the famous “No Name Bar.
So without further delay, let’s turn things over to John for today’s report:
I love this port. First, I had to check out the duty-free shop to see what whiskey and tequila they had. I was greeted by Miguel, who showed me some tequilas I cannot find in the US. I used Google and Total Wine’s website to verify his information, and it seemed he was telling the truth.
Next, I checked out the whiskey, including Jack Daniels Sinatra, priced about $15 less than what I could get it for, but I still wasn’t going to spend that much on it, so I put this on the back burner and told Miguel I’d be back.
Off to catch a cab downtown.
The cab ride was $10, and I threw in an extra $5 tip as well. Let me say how impressed I am with our driver’s driving. I think he was running a trial race for F1 in Vegas next year, nearly missing motorcycles and pedestrians, but I feel like that’s just what you gotta do around here, or you’ll never get to your destination.
After getting dropped off, we walked over to Kusam Brewing. I was very excited for this place as it is a rather new brewery (to my knowledge, the only one in Cozumel) and it was closed last time I was here. They close on Tuesdays for what they say are cleaning and brew days.
They ran out of the Orange Cream Ale and only had 2 others available: a peanut porter, which was delicious and perfect as a light, refreshing porter, and an Imperial IPA. The description on their Facebook said, “most people won’t like this,” I’m guessing IPAs aren’t popular in Mexico because we all really enjoyed it.
I ordered the pineapple bacon guacamole and chips, served with a few different sauces: habanero, chipotle, and garlic. The habanero sauce was incredible, offering great flavor with a burn on the back end, while the chipotle sauce provided a good taste with slightly less burn. The garlic sauce was okay, but I primarily enjoyed the habanero and chipotle sauces.
I highly recommend visiting this place if you’re ever in Cozumel and don’t want to book an excursion. They continuously rotate beers and experiment, having recently visited the US to learn more about brewing. They’re definitely on the right track.
After visiting Kusam, we walked for about 15-20 minutes to reach the No Name Bar, marketed as “the crew hangout” due to its popularity among cruise line crew members. It boasts a fantastic waterfront location adjacent to Hotel Barracuda, decorated with numerous name tags from crew members across various cruise lines, creating a lively atmosphere. It’s a must-visit spot, especially if you’re looking to catch a sports game, with TVs both inside and outside, reinforcing its identity as a sports bar.
I tried a Hibiscus Mezcalita, priced at around $12, which was generously alcoholic. The bartender mentioned that the cashier, who had never made it before but was eager to learn, would prepare my drink. She did an excellent job. The bar clearly has a dedicated following, attracting locals and regulars, including current or former cruise staff, who were warmly welcomed with hugs, contributing to the bar’s overall friendly vibe.
Time to catch a cab back to the port. Our driver this time was not auditioning for F1. The fare was the same, $10, and again an additional $5 tip (don’t forget to tip! I haven’t said that yet in this blog, but I am all about tipping when you get good service). Walking through the shops, I found one that was airbrushing sports logos. I found a Buffalo Bills one, and they wanted $35 for it. My friend found one he wanted, so we asked for a 2 for $20 deal. We settled on 2 for $50. I probably could have bargained him down more, but I was okay with this; they did great work.
Time to head back to see Miguel! I picked out two bottles of Reposado, and he gave me a 10% discount. I also asked him to include a 5-pack of Cuban cigars, priced at $28. He couldn’t discount those, but when I inquired about a deal on the Sinatra if I bought the two bottles of tequila, his eyes lit up. He offered 15% off the Sinatra, bringing its cost to around $130, which is a $40 discount compared to US prices.
Sold!
I still received the 10% on the tequila as well. He mentioned that if I wanted any other bottle, he would combo it with the Sinatra for 15% off. I didn’t need anything else but was happy with my purchase. The advice is to be friendly, loyal to the employees, return to the same person, and always ask if they can offer a better price when buying multiple items.
Once back on board, I spent some time relaxing and jotting down notes for the blog. Without my laptop, managing this all on my phone has been challenging, but I’ll be better prepared next time.
I decided to give the main dining room another try tonight. We were seated promptly at around 7:40 PM, with bread served and orders taken within minutes. My French onion soup arrived at 7:52 PM, marking a smooth and efficient dining experience.
The soup was not as hot as I prefer, as I enjoy my coffee and soup to be almost too hot to consume. However, I’ll give them a pass since it was not cold and probably the perfect temperature for most people.
At 8:12 PM, the entrees arrived, starting with pepper steak accompanied by sliced onion and cheesy potato straws.
Now, I don’t know what you see there, but I see crinkle-cut french fries on top of the steak, which was in a sauce that tasted like something from a school lunchroom cafeteria. I did not enjoy this, so I’m glad I ordered a second entrée.
Entrée #2: Artichoke and potato cheesecake with weak chipotle sauce and potato relish.
I had to see what this was about, considering it’s one of the vegetarian options. I am so glad I ordered this, and it definitely made up for the lackluster pepper steak topped with crinkle-cut fries (or as Carnival calls them, “potato sticks”). The flavor was fantastic all around. I would order this one again!
For dessert, I went to the coffee shop for a Spirit of Kentucky Milkshake.
This delicious vanilla and caramel milkshake contains Benchmark Bourbon. I might try making this at home!
Time for some entertainment! I’ve never watched a Love and Marriage show and have definitely been missing out. Three married couples are selected: a newlywed couple, a couple married for about 5-15 years, and a couple married for 20+ years. They answer 10 very personal questions honestly, and then the answers are revealed. It’s very entertaining with fun couples. I can imagine some couples might not follow the rules, but these three couples were fully engaged.
I went back to catch the late night comedy show. It was Alex Elkin again. He did a different set and was just as funny as the first night. Unfortunately, at the big booth I was at there were 4 girls who sat down there and talked amongst themselves the whole time. Every time Alex told a joke if it related to them they had to cackle and explain how “that sounds like so and so!” And “OMG that’s so you!” And then continue to talk. At one point Alex pointed at our section and said “I guess they are having their own show up there”.
I almost got up and left but to me that’s also disrespectful to the performer. If Alex was a hack comedian, I would have left but I didn’t want to show disrespect to a good comedian by getting up and leaving. Some advice everyone, please do not act like this at a comedy show or any other show. It’s rude to others enjoying the performance and it is very disrespectful to the performer.
After the show, I stopped at the casino bar for a drink. I sat there for 25 minutes with a near-empty bar and 4 bartenders until I finally got served. I had my sail card in front of me and nobody even greeted me, not a hello or anything. Finally, I got a hello and I asked for a drink the girl I asked though was just bar backing and cleaning up so she could not serve me. I waited another 5 minutes before someone finally asked if I needed anything in the form of a “are you trying to get something?”
The bar service has been terrible but I still gave them all the benefit of the doubt and I was still tipping. Especially because it was mostly 1 bartender at a full bar for most of the cruise. But tonight – wow. I left no additional tip at the casino bar tonight. I wasn’t the only one, there were probably 6 or 7 others sitting there not being served as well. This was for every drink and since it was the only bar open at this point it was the only option. 4 bartenders, completely ignoring every guest.
Thanks for the Day 3 report, John. Looking forward to hearing about your final day onboard the Carnival Paradise tomorrow, as you wrap up this 4-day Western Caribbean cruise!