Above Image property of PjotrMahh1
via Wikimedia Commons using the CC BY-SA 3.0 Creative Commons License.
A Caribbean Cruise
Western Caribbean Cruise on the Carnival Legend
by Celeste Lipford and Terry Lipford - last updated on 11/16/2024
Our Spring Break cruise ship was the Carnival 'Legend', one of those large cruise ships; 88,500 tons, 963 feet in length, 105.6
feet of width with 2,124 passengers and 930 crew. Comfortable accommodations, we had a balcony stateroom on deck 7 port side. Seasoned
cruisers should note that the Port of Tampa is "height limited" by the Sunshine Skyway bridge, so the truly very large cruise ships are
not able to utilize Tampa.
We were excited about the destinations we were going to visit on this cruise, as none of us had ever visited them previously. And to make it even more interesting, our son Jeremy was going to make his shallow water SCUBA certification dive on Roatan.
NOTE: Click here to view a good description of the Carnival Legend cruise ship on the Carnival Website.
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Cruise Route & Destinations
Click above image to view larger Google Map A cruise from Tampa to the Cayman Islands, Cozumel, Belize, and Roatan Island offers a perfect mix of adventure, relaxation, and cultural exploration. Each stop provides a unique experience, ensuring the journey is filled with excitement and fun:
- Grand Cayman Island: We planned on taking a charter boat out to "Sting Ray City" and then enjoy the beautiful beaches and stroll around town.
- Cozumel: Our primary goal of Cozumel was to go to the Dolphin Discovery Center where Celeste & Jeremy planned to swim with the dolphins. After that, we planned to explore the town.
- Belize: In Belize, We enjoyed a ride out to the country where we went cave tubing and zipline riding.
- Roatan Island: Jeremy and I went for a SCUBA dive so that he could complete his shallow water certification.
Carnival Legend Ship Profile
- Cruise Line: Carnival Cruise Line
- Ship Type: Cruise Ship
- Line Class: Mainstream
- Registry: Malta
- Year Built: 2002
- Year Last Refurbished: 2024
- Capacity: 2,124 passengers
- Decks: 12
- Gross Tonnage: 88,500
- Length: 963 ft
- Beam: 106 ft
- Average Speed: 22 knots
- Inside Cabins: 277
- Outside Cabins: 785
- Nationality of Officers: Italian
- Nationality of Crew: International
- Number of Crew: 930
The Carnival Legend features a spacious and well-designed deck plan that offers a variety of amenities and spaces for relaxation, dining, and entertainment. The ship is designed with several decks, each serving different purposes to enhance your cruising experience. Click here to view the Carnival Legend deck plan page.
Departing Tampa
We departed the Tampa cruise port Sunday 3/11/2012 at 4PM on our way to Grand Cayman. We were excited for the ship to depart, and the views from the Cruise Port to the Sunshine Skyway Bridge were good.
Jeremy and I are observing the ship's progress, as it proceeds towards the Gulf of Mexico. We were both amazed at the distance between the Port of Tampa and the Sunshine Skyway Bridge, it is approximately 30 miles because the cruise ship is required to remain in the "ship channel" as Tampa Bay is shallow in many locations. In addition, the ship channel has "speed restrictions" for safety purposes.
Grand Cayman Island - Sting Ray City Map
We arrived at Grand Cayman Tuesday at 7:00AM, and we were picked up and taken to Captain Marvin's a local company that took us out to the northeast side of the island to a place they call "Sting Ray City". A quck & easy bus ride out to where Captain Marvin's boat was moored, and a short boat ride out to where the sting rays gather.
Sting Ray City is a sand bar, out approximately 8 miles or so from the island, where the sting rays have learned that everyone who shows up, will feed them. So the rays come there by the dozens, and swim about looking for food from each person present. All sizes & shapes, and it was quite an experience. Rays are shark cousins, but have no teeth, and they were were quite docile. The underside of the rays is extremely slick, as it is coated with something that protects them from sea lice and such.
After the sting ray encounter, we snorkeled a nearby reef and then headed back to Grand Cayman. We wandered around the city for a while, and then headed back to the ship for dinner.
Image Credits
- All the above images are the property of Just Traveling Thru, LLC unless otherwise noted.
More Info for Captain Marvin's Tours
Dolphin Discovery Cozumel Island Map
Cozumel Harbor: image is the property of
Ricraider via Wikimedia Commons using the
CC BY-SA 3.0 Creative Commons License 
On Wednesday, the ship pulled into Cozumel, Mexico and we headed ashore to a nearby dolphin encounter. I had done one of these before, and as I wanted to get pics from the pier, Celeste and Jeremy went on the actual encounter. It was a lot of fun for them, and even though I wasn't allowed to take my own pics from the pier, we were able to get a copy of pics their photographer took. We spent the afternoon on the beach there, did some more snorkeling and went back to the ship for dinner.
Image Credits
- All the above images are the property of Just Traveling Thru, LLC unless otherwise noted.
More Info for Dolphin Discovery Cozumel Island
Belize City Map
Thursday, we pulled into Belize, and went to a place about an hour away from the port, where we were able to go "cave tubing" - huge caves and a neat way to cool off from the heat there. After that, we went to a place where they had a series of zip-lines, and we traversed this huge zip-line complex and had a lot of fun.
Belize Cave Tubing is a popular adventure excursion that combines the thrill of river tubing with the exploration of underground caves, offering a unique way to experience the natural beauty of Belize.
We utilized a company that picked us up at the Belize Cruise Port entrance and they transported us to the cave tubing site. Once our cave tubing adventure concluded, we then were taken to a nearby zipline, and then back to the Cruise Port. We had a great time and enjoyed the experiences.
Image Credits
- All the above images are the property of Just Traveling Thru, LLC unless otherwise noted.
More Info for Belize Cave Tubing & Zipline Tours
Roatan Island, Honduras Map
Friday we arrived at Roatan, Honduras and Jeremy and I went to the southwest end of the island for a Scuba dive trip with Tylls Dive Shop. Jeremy had to complete his "junior scuba certification test" first, and then we headed out to the bay for a 45 foot dive (until Jeremy completes his full certification, he is limited to 50 feet dives or less, until the age of 18).
While Jeremy and I were diving, Celeste hiked over to Mahogany Beach near where the ship was moored. The beach is located just a couple of hundred yards from where the ship was moored. Click here for the beach website.
We were the last people to arrive back at the ship, and as soon as we re-boarded, the ship departed. This quite likely means that we were late getting back, but glad we got there before the ship departed !
NOTE: Tylls Dive Shop has gone out of business, the owners decided to return to Europe.
Return to Tampa - Under the Sunshine Skyway Bridge Map
Jeremy and I are amazed at how close the Sunshine Skyway Bridge is going to be to the very top of the ship. Even though the bridge's total height is 430 feet, the distance from under the bridge to the water is 180 feet.
The closer the ship got to the bridge, the more apparent it became that the clearance was going to be tight! As the ship passes underneath the St. Petersburg bridge, you can see for yourself how near the ship is to the bottom of the bridge.
A 2014 Florida Department of Transportation study noted that the Skyway's low bridge clearance prevents larger vessels from using the Port Tampa Bay terminals, but made no recommendation about options as the draft of most new cruise ships exceeds the bridge's height limit at 180 feet .
Waiting for the next Adventure?
Jeremy chilling in the cabin, waiting for the next adventure - gives you a good idea of how comfortable our cabin was eh?
As shown in this image, the cabin size was very good, and the three of us were very comfortable with the cabin and balcony areas.
Friday night and all day Saturday, was an "at sea" day, and the ship pulled back into Tampa in the morning at 8AM. Several "non U.S. citizens" failed to show up at the US Customs meeting, so all passengers were delayed getting off the ship until those people were found and processed. Never did hear what happened, but apparently it got resolved in some manner.
As a side-note, Carnival advertises that the stateroom size for a standard balcony stateroom is 220 square feet, 180 in the cabin itself and 40 more square feet in the balcony area. We found it to be very comfortable.
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