Carnival Cruise - From Los Angeles - Carnival Panorama

 As we start working our way back to the west coast, why not take another cruise in along the way? 

We flew from Cleveland to Los Angeles for a cruise to the Mexican Riviera aboard the Carnival Panorama for 7 nights. We enjoyed 3 days at sea and 3 days in Mexico (Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan, Puerto Vallarta). 

With 3 sea days, we decided this would be the perfect time to check out the spa. We paid for the Thermal Lounge and it was well worth the money. There were steam rooms, saunas, a hydrotherapy pool/hot tub, and the most amazing heated lounge chairs. If you ever find yourself on the Panorama give the Thermal Lounge a look, if you don't want to pay for the Thermal Lounge, you can still go into the spa and in the locker room/changing room, there is a complimentary sauna.  

Our time in Cabo San Lucus was a bit different than our last visit in 2014 for our honeymoon. We had to get off the ship on a mission to find internet because the ship's wifi had been down since the night before.  We took a walk along the pier down to the local Starbucks, enjoyed a caffeinated beverage, got what we needed to do done, and headed back to the ship. 

We decided not to get off the ship in Mazatlan, but we did get off the ship in Puerto Vallarta.  When you get off the ship in Puerto Vallarta, check out Galerias Vallarta shopping mall or look for the large sign that says BEACH and go for it. Bring a blanket or beach towel and spend the day.  There are plenty of people walking up and down the beach willing to bring you a beverage or ask if there is a nearby resort that has an open to the public bar. It was suggested to us, by a nice gentleman on the beach, to go to Playa De Oro but we ended up at Jordin del Sol, which had delicious fresh guacamole and pico de gallo. We watched a very large iguana mosey along the rooftop and around the pool, had some great snacks, and a few drinks then worked our way back down the beach to the ship. The weather in December was a perfect 85 degrees in the afternoon. We couldn't have asked for a better day.

The Carnival Panorama is beautiful and the food was much better than what we experienced on the Carnival Legend. Another tip, if you book on the Carnival Panorama, on sea days check the specialty dining locations for lunch because they are usually open and complimentary. The ship was beautiful, the food was good; I would absolutely take another cruise on this ship!