Bestie’s 25th Bday Cruise

Carnival Conquest Cruise Review

Cruises: 7+ cruises
Reviews: 9
Helpful Votes: 306

Overall rating:

4.4 out of 5
Carnival Conquest

3 Night Bahamas (Miami Roundtrip)

Sail date: April 07, 2023

Ship: Carnival Conquest

Cabin type: Suite

Cabin number: 7239

Traveled as: Singles/Friends

Reviewed: 1 year ago

Review summary

This sailing overall was a good cruise. It’s the shortest sailing I have personally gone on so I’m sure that played a role on my experience. I enjoyed myself but shorter sailings are not for me. I love longer sailings but I do think the Carnival Conquest is a good ship for shorter sailing.

Embarkation

5 out of 5
Our boarding time was between 10:00a and 10:30a. We had a suite so we were directed to the priority boarding area. They had a backdrop that we were able to take out boarding pics. Then it’s an open area for Platinum, Diamond, FTTF and Suite guests. We were able to take pictures ourselves. They were playing line dances and I had a blast dancing while we were waiting. It wasn’t long after we arrived that we were boarding. I completely enjoyed the boarding process. It was smooth, spacious and a great way to start our vacation.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

4 out of 5

Guy's Burger Joint

5 out of 5

I have never experienced a bad burger from Guys Burger joint. I love them so much and I had 3 on this sailing. I could go on and on about the deliciousness but let me just sum it to Y U M!

Monet Restaurant

3 out of 5

We went to the Sea Day brunch after the Dr. Suess breakfast. We arrived at 11:30 so that may contribute to the service we experienced considering they close Brunch at 12. There was a long wait for our server to come and acknowledge us after being seated. At that point there were t many tables full so we didn’t understand the delay. We had to go back to the host to notify our server that we had been waiting. The host got us water while we waited for our server and then we placed our order. My friend requested to order the beignets which are an up charge ($5.00 for 6) The waiter said that they take a while to make and my friend had to say 3 times that she wanted them because each time he had an excuse (took too long to make and we would have to wait, the machine takes a while to warm up) At first we appreciated the heads up but then there was no wait and they came out with all the food we ordered. Then because he was so focused on trying to convence us not to get them he messed up my order and I had to wait for it to be brought back to me corrected. We had Your time dining so most of our meals were in the Renoir but this one trip to Monet was underwhelming and left a mediocre taste in our mouths regarding the dinning hall and staff. I’m unsure if dinner time was a better experience.

Renoir Restaurant

3 out of 5

We had Your Time dining so we are mostly in the Renoir dining room. The food was pretty good for the most part. I enjoyed my meal the first night. The second night I had some pork ribs but it wasn’t my favorite meal. The last night the meal was pretty good and it was my friends birthday so they sang happy birthday. Now the service was not what I recall from cruising Carnival. The waiters weren’t as attentive as I have been used too even with Your Time dining. There is usually a staff member that stands out and I will request their section but on this sailing I didn’t find that. My expectations may have been high but this sailing did not meet that bar consistently as I am used to. I will take into consideration that the dining staff did seem rushed and always on the move. They may have a bit overwhelmed which contributed to the service wait times.

Green Eggs and Ham Breakfast

4 out of 5

I give this experience a 3.5 honestly from my perspective. Now full discloser I did go to this event without children which I believe contributed to how my experience went. We went to the 9:45 seating so there was a bit of a wait for them to clear out the 8:30 crowd and let us in. It was an absolutely beautiful set up. The characters were engaging and I enjoyed the aesthetic. The menu is so cute and themed so well. The wait staff had Thing (Insert number) shirts and engaged well with the families with children. The food fit the theme and was very cute. It was delicious (mind you I played it safe with the eggs, hash browns and Turkey bacon) but not filling so we did go to Sea Day brunch afterwards. Now I fully understand that this experience is directed towards children more than adults however if adults do come without children I believe they should receive the same level of service as families with children. There was me and my friend and then a couple without children and after getting our initial drink and food we were completely ignored. We both had families seated next to us with the same server for us and the family. (My table and one family had a server and the couple and the other family had a server) and both families filled a whole 8 person table so I do take that into consideration as well. But the servers checked on the families repeatedly to get them refills on drinks but completely ignored us. The couple looked extremely annoyed and my friend and I were disappointed. The only time after the initial greeting that we were spoken to was when we finally got up to walk out. So, adults who love Dr. Suess just be mindful that you may not get the same experienced as if you travel with children. Families you should enjoy it but be mindful that you may not feel full and will need to go and get some more food afterwards. The 4 star rating is a combined rating (and because I can’t give it a 3.5) Aesthetics: 5 starsFood: 4 stars Service (for adults only): 2 starsService (with children): 4 stars

Impressions Bar

5 out of 5

The casino bar is the only place to get one of if not my favorite drink at sea: The High Seas Tea (Carnival’s version of a Long Island) conveniently located near the night club.

Pizza Pirate

5 out of 5

Pretty crowded due it being the only spot open late but I enjoyed the pizza. They usually give out half pizzas so you do have to request if you want a full pizza but half a pizza was enough for me.

Onboard Activities

4 out of 5
Serenity Whirlpool: My favorite chilling spot on the ship. Away from the kids and was able to have great adult conversations with different people. It was always a great vibe and beautiful views. Fitness center: It was to my liking and I frequent the gym regularly. We went the morning of the Sea Day and it wasn’t too crowded. The gym echos a bit and there was a young man singing with his headphones in very loudly. It didn’t disrupt my workout but voices travel in the gym. The view is beautiful. It feels like a bit of a maze to get into the gym though. You go through the locker room to get to the gym. I wish I experienced the sauna but I never got around to it but it looked beautiful.

Whirlpool Spa

4 out of 5

We loved the hot tubs on the Serenity deck! Beautiful views and the waiters walking around made it easy to order a drink without leaving the hot tub. We met some fun and interesting people in the hot tub and always had a great conversation!

Entertainment

5 out of 5
The events I attended were so much fun. We went to the sail away party and danced the ship into motion lOl. The cruise director Jasper was so much fun and to my delight we did different versions of common like dances to spice things up. The entertainment crew kept the energy up and partied hard! The comedy show was funny for everyone. I went to the last night and the comedian did a great job involving the crowd in his performance. I only attended the one night but I enjoyed it. The DJs had the party jumping at the events I went too and the night club as well. Very pleased with both DJs on this sailing.

Degas Aft Lounge

4 out of 5

We went to the Degas lounge to see the comedy show on the last night. As usual for the comedy shows it was packed. We did not get there early enough to get a seat so we had to stand. Its a beautiful lounge with art work around the room.

Henri's Dance Club

5 out of 5

The nightclub is always jumping! I only made it the last night but everyone I talked to about the club said they had a great time. I throughly enjoyed my time in the club and ended my trip on a great note! 🕺🏾💃🏽🪩

Service and Staff

4 out of 5
The overall service that I received on this sailing did not meet my expectations consistently having cruised multiple Carnival cruises. My room steward took great care of the room and we saw him in passing and he made sure to greet us and was very pleasant everytime we saw him. He remembered my friends birthday and told her happy birthday when he saw her on Sunday. She was a bit sad that they removed the first towel animal although she set it to the side but I let her know that they may have needed the towels. The wait staff each time we went to eat was slower than expected and not as engaging as I am used to. I mentioned in my specific reviews of each dining room we attended. The bar staff were attentive for the most part but the bar tenders in the casino were selective on their friendliness at times. I witnessed them completely ignore some cruisers more than others and even cut their eyes when some cruisers called them by their name and say nothing until after setving a few other people first. A simple ‘I’ll be with you in a moment’ would have made that experience much better. I noticed multiple bar tenders behave that way and it was off putting a bit but I do take into consideration that the bar was crowded and they were probably exhausted and doing the best they could

Ship Quality

4 out of 5
I’ve sailed the Conquest before and I am familiar with the layout. From what I noticed the ship was clean considering everyone who was constantly using the facilities. The bathrooms I used outside of my cabin were always stocked and clean when I used them.

Cabin / Stateroom

5 out of 5
We had a suite (7239) it is located FWD on the ship. I liked the location of the room in relation to everything. I am a frequent stair taker and it was easy to get to where I was going. The size of the room was great for us and all the stuff we had (yes for a 3 day cruise we packed like we weren’t coming back 😂) multiple outfit changes per day and everything 😂💃🏽✨ loved the bathroom size. This was my first time cruising in a suite so everything was much bigger than I’m used to. The balcony was a nice size but I do with it extended outward more like the AFT balconies but it worked well for us. There is plenty of storage around the room, under the bed and multiple closets and drawers.

Ship tip

I highly recommend getting to the shows early in order to secure a seat in the Degas Lounge. It’s not big enough for the popularity of the comedy show. Also use the ship map near the elevators to get around. The ship itself is a nice size to introduce you to the cruising world if you are a first time cruiser. My friend was able to get around herself quickly.

Ports of call

Miami, Florida

5 out of 5
We flew in the night before our cruise and stayed at Cambria Hotel Blue Lagoon. It’s about a 15 min ride from the airport. The shuttle stops running after 11 I believe so we had to take a taxi. It’s a few dollars cheaper than an Uber. Then we checked into the hotel (you pay when you get there). They don’t have breakfast included but they have al e carte. It’s about a 20 min ride with Miami traffic to the cruise port. We uber es because it’s $20 pp to get a shuttle to the cruise ship vs a $20 Uber ride for how ever many you fit in the car. On debarkation day we did the Best 10 of Miami tour. We experienced FL rain but it wasn’t too bad for the tour. We sent thru South Beach, Little Havana and a few other stops while touring Miami before being dropped off at Miami airport.

Disembarkation

4 out of 5
My disembarkation experience was pretty smooth. We carried our suitcases off ourselves and once we got the elevator it was smooth sailing to exit this ship. We were sad to leave but the process was very easy.
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9 Comments

Itspeace4me    1 year ago

Thank you for your review.

Sogmoore    1 year ago

Thanks for the great review.

Sogmoore    1 year ago

Thanks for the great review.

seaturtlebus    1 year ago

Finally able to read your whole review. It's great!

AuntPinkie    1 year ago

Appreciate your very detailed and informative review. We too prefer longer sailings. Since this sailing was during Spring Break, your crew was probably stretched a little thin. Appreciate your comparisons of Carnival to Carnival . Glad you enjoyed your your friends milestone birthday cruise.

cruising2004    1 year ago

Thank you for sharing your cruising experience. Glad you had a great time!

Gwbigdog    1 year ago

Thanks for sharing

tavo6    1 year ago

Thanks for your review glad you enjoyed your cruise 🛳️

javawoody    1 year ago

Thanks for sharing your experience

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