Very Decent Cruise; Could Have Been Better/Could Have Been Worse

Carnival Magic Cruise Review to Caribbean - Western

Cruises: 2-3 cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 59

Overall rating:

3 out of 5
Verified Review
Carnival Magic

7 Night Western Caribbean (Port Canaveral Roundtrip)

Sail date: October 22, 2016

Ship: Carnival Magic

Cabin type: Inside

Cabin number: 6202

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 8 years ago

Review summary

The Carnival Magic is a large ship with adequate features.  The layout could be improved with more open spaces and outdoor walking areas.  It's somewhat of a maze to go from the front to the back of the ship (where the dining rooms are).  The Lido pool deck has everything you could want, including adequate lounge chairs and activities.  The evening entertainment was pretty terrible.  At every show, they announced they were retiring the shows as if to say "Get excited for this terrible show we've gotten lots of bad feedback on!"  I hope the new shows really are great.  The food and service were par, but nothing to applaud.  We stayed in a 4J cabin at the very front of the boat, which offered tremendous value for the space and features of the room.  I would highly recommend this room if you can handle a little bit more sway while at sea.  I have only ever cruised with Royal Caribbean before this, and I would use them again in a heartbeat before Carnival as long as the prices were comparable.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

3 out of 5

Onboard Activities

3 out of 5
Trivia was a let down! I wanted it to be more competitive and mimic what you might find at a bar on land.

Entertainment

1 out of 5

Children's Programs

3 out of 5

Service and Staff

5 out of 5

Ship Quality

3 out of 5

Cabin / Stateroom

5 out of 5
Very spacious and well appointed! Pictures led us to believe we would have a full tub/shower, but we just had a stall shower. There is a large bench that is great for having other friends come to the room for a drink or to hang out. The TV channel options mirror what you would find in a typical hotel on land. And the "obstructed" window provides plenty of views of what's in front of the ship. Fortunately, the winds were too high for people to go out to the small deck in front of our window, which added to our privacy for the trip. Highly recommend this room!

Ship tip

Aim to stay on floors 6-9. That will allow you to take the stairs everywhere and avoid lengthy elevator wait times.

Ports of call

Costa Maya (Mahahual), Mexico

3 out of 5

Mahogany Bay, Roatan, Bay Islands, Honduras

3 out of 5

Belize City, Belize

1 out of 5

Cozumel, Mexico

5 out of 5

Port Canaveral, Florida

1 out of 5
Was this review helpful? 59

6 Comments

jtrbug0226    8 years ago

To each his own. It's your money so you should spend it where you enjoy yourself.

ToddTheCruiser    8 years ago

I loved Magic

kdlady    8 years ago

I was on the Magic last summer and couldn't agree with you more. This year was my first time on Royal Caribbean, and now I'm spoiled!

stevephipps    8 years ago

Hopefully you did see the fact that deck 5 literally goes completely around the ship outside. All of the Dream class ships have this excellent outside walking area.

kjc123    8 years ago

Hey...I usually slam people for their ridiculous unreadable reviews, but yours was concise and we'll written. Thanks for sharing your experience.

courtneyboyle99    8 years ago

Trip is what you make of it. Everyone else seems to like it.

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