Leaderboard

Finally on July 31, 2021 came the big day for the Mardi Gras inaugural sailing with revenue guests! I was back at Jetty Park to get some pictures of the starboard side of the ship. The Port Canaveral channel lines up East-West and there was a strong sun behind her as she was getting ready to sail. That doesn't make for the best photography but it is what it is. Finally the time came and she left the pier for the first time with guests on board! More crowds came out to see her off. It was so great to see her with guests lining the railings and watching sail away from their balconies. Finally into the Atlantic with guests on board. Bon Voyage!

The morning of July 29, 2021 I had an opportunity to sail past the Mardi Gras as we returned to Port Canaveral aboard Allure of the Seas as we finished up a CDC simulation cruise. As I have been following the videos posted by John Heald I learned that Mardi Gras was in Miami and my hopes of capturing some photos of her as we sailed out of Port Canaveral were dashed. Fortunately Mardi Gras sailed back to Port Canaveral in time for our return and I was up before the crack of dawn to capture a different side of Mardi Gras compared to what I've seen driving past her many times on land. We reached the pilot station at 6am and soon after I started taking pictures. A hint of daybreak started as we snuck up on her. There is a natural desire is to try to find your cabin on any ship you are thinking about booking so I'm putting a bunch of pictures in this post. This is for all those like me looking anywhere and everyone for pictures of this beautiful ship! I also wanted to capture what I could of the activity area and of course the roller coaster Bolt! Some crew were out waving as we passed by. Here is a Port Canaveral sunrise with a silhouette of Mardi Gras.