Going through (and wrecking into) the Panama Canal was worth the long ten day cruise. The Fantasy is an older and smaller ship with limited balconies (you have to purchase a suite for a balcony).

Item: Carnival Fantasy
Rating: 4
Author: lardbrick

Carnival Fantasy Cruise Review to Panama Canal, Central America

lardbrick

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Review: 1

Helpful Votes: 23

Overall rating:

4 out of 5

10 Night Panama Canal Carnival Journeys (Mobile Roundtrip)

Sail date: September 16, 2019

Ship: Carnival Fantasy

Cabin type: Suite

Cabin number: U80

Traveled as: Large Group

Reviewed: 5 years ago

Review summary

This was a ten day cruise that went to the Panama Canal and to see the process of going through the locks was totally worth the trip. The staff was great but the Fantasy ship is old and has seen better days. The buffet was always sub-par but the dining room food was excellent. They served the best breakfast dish on the very last day - 12 hour French Toast. The entertainment was nothing spectacular or worth missing your nap over most days. We had a suite with a balcony but the perks were limited.

Embarkation

4 out of 5

Although we had priority boarding, you still felt like you were in a herd of cattle.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

4 out of 5

Main dining room at dinner was great. Buffet on Lido deck was a hot mess. Breakfast in the dining rooms was hit and miss with timeliness but the food was better than the buffet.

Guy's Burger Joint

5 out of 5

The smell of the burgers will make you want one! It's fast and good. The french fries are excellent.

Celebration Dining Room

4 out of 5

Ate breakfast in the Celebration dining room most days. The wait time was always long but the quality of food was better than the buffet. The 12 Hour French Toast is excellent!

Windows on the Sea Bar and Grill

1 out of 5

On a cruise with 3,000 passengers and this is one of a few lunch options, it was crowded and made especially crowded by inconsiderate people playing cards at tables in a limited space area. The food selections were not great. The desserts looked fantastic but tasted bland, like there was no flavor to most of them.

Jubilee Dining Room

5 out of 5

The wait staff are great and attentive. Michelle from the Philippines is funny, sweet and very efficient.

Onboard Activities

4 out of 5

Bingo was expensive for three very short games.

Entertainment

3 out of 5

Most of the entertainment on the schedule was not appealing enough to get out of the room most nights.

Universe Main Show Lounge

3 out of 5

Comfortable and easy to get to but I was surprised at how many empty seats there were for most of the shows for a ship with 3,000 passengers. It's not overly large so that just tells you that the quality of shows were not great.....

Service and Staff

5 out of 5

All of the staff were nice and friendly. (The upper echelon were a little snooty! The more bars they wore, the less friendly they were!)

Ship Quality

4 out of 5

It's an older ship prone to leaks and rust but the staff worked tirelessly to keep it as clean and presentable as possible.

Cabin / Stateroom

5 out of 5

It was nice but not much larger than a regular balcony cabin on other cruise lines that costs much less.

Ship tip

Be prepared for an older ship with limited perks.

Thumbs up

Ports of call

Mobile, Alabama

4 out of 5

Embarkation was okay but Debarkation was a nightmare.

Thumbs Up 0

Panama Canal (Cruise Into Canal)

5 out of 5

Puerto Limon, Costa Rica

1 out of 5

Did not feel safe at this port. There was a large area to buy souvenirs but they were all made in China - all of the booths had the same stuff. We walked halfway down the first street and turned around and went back to the ship.

Thumbs Up 2

Mahogany Bay, Roatan, Bay Islands, Honduras

3 out of 5

Small port. Everything overpriced including the sky ride.

Thumbs Up 0

Cozumel, Mexico

5 out of 5

More store options for shopping.

Thumbs Up 6

Disembarkation

1 out of 5

When you have to walk, stop, walk stop, a hundred times before getting to the terminal, the process is not working!

1 Comment

cruiseplayer 5 years ago

If Carnival would spend more money for more customs agents when getting off the ship things would move a lot faster . And if they had a customs agent come on the ship , like they used to for back to back passengers , things would move even faster .

Thumbs Up 0

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Other reviews of this sailing

Fantastic

Great trip to the Panama Canal