All in all I love to cruise. There are things that Carnival could work on but the cost is less than others so if you are looking for a inexpensive 7 day getaway somewhere warm it’s great. The people (passengers not crew) are NOT as friendly as I thought they would have been. One of my biggest pieces of advice is people will steal your seats even if you are away for 15 minutes. And you DO NOT have to be the first to get there... anywhere. There is plenty of food, drinks, time, etc.
Embarkation
2 out of 5
I expected to wait to be able to board the ship however we had an excessive wait that was said to be due to the gangway.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
3 out of 5
Main dinning- food was good. Nothing was exceptional even if we were starving or eating something that I knew I loved. It was ok. Also the wait times were ridiculous, not only to get a table but also to get service and food. We were on the anytime dinning and tried different times. Missed seating at a show because our food took so long to get.
Guys burger- again just ok. Way too busy most times anyway.
Blueiguana- this one was very good. I had breakfast burrito and lunch bowl and both were really good.
Pig and anchor - good meats, better than the burgers.
The lido marketplace buffet- I have to say I was thoroughly disappointed with the buffet, the quality was to be expected with food being cooked for the masses but the choices were severely lacking. If you like veggies then don’t go to the buffet, the one and only veggie is a salad. That’s it. They couldn’t even provide broccoli or green beans. and no real change from night to night.
Seaday brunch - don’t bother just go to the lido marketplace. The same menu and same quality there. Except smoked salmon for your bagel and mimosa. Not worth the wait.
I am not a person who normally gives bad reviews but I want people to hear real opinions.
Onboard Activities
2 out of 5
Pools- two pools. Tides pool- packed, especially with kids. People will steal your spot in 10 minutes if you leave the area to get food or even use the rest room, then it’s impossible on a seaday to find two chairs together.
Wave pool- very packed with kids. I don’t mind kids but he pools are small and there is no room for adults to get in. I will make sure if I cruise again to choose a ship with one 18 and over pool.
Water slides were ok. Water park great for kids.
Mini golf, ping pong, billiards, basket ball was nice.
Fitness center looked nice, no group classes that you did not have to pay for.
Walking path- only around part of ship and wet most areas. The exercise stops along the way were nice addition.
Serenity
3 out of 5
It’s the only 18 and over spot on the ship. I was excited to check it out. There are three or four flags on the ship all hung at the rear above sevenity so you do not hear kids but you hear the constant whipping and flapping of the flags...
The Serenity
3 out of 5
Again no kids but the flags make it impossible to have a nice quiet time. They whip and flap in the wind.
Jogging Track
3 out of 5
It is very small and usually very wet. It doesn’t go around the boat.
Entertainment
3 out of 5
Stage shows were ok. The talent was a 3/5. They weren’t bad but wont blow you away. Piano guy was great, there was a couple of obnoxious people there were always there, front and center so that made it annoying but there wasn’t much he could do about it.
MarQ the cruise director was great. The fun squad did a great job. The comedians all were great, trivia was always fun. You must get to comedy show early to get a seat and you will sit with others. I don’t mind that at all but a lot of people did. Dinner showtime in the main dinning room should be stopped. It’s not great add another magician, he was great.
I cannot tell you how the DJ at Vibe was because it was way to smoky. Carnival most smokers are used to going outside to smoke. This ship shouldn’t be any different. In fact it’s a moving ship, out side the air blows it away.
Vibe Nightclub
1 out of 5
Way too smoky, smokers should have to go outside so everyone can enjoy. Also There isn’t really a spot for just two people. No bar seating just lounge chairs so if you are not part of a group you don’t have a place to sit.
Children's Programs
No kids
Service and Staff
4 out of 5
I would love to give this a 5 star review however service was lumped together. The main dining staff most nights was good but one night was terrible and it was generally so slow.
Now big shout out to couple servers in general-
Zothan - bar waitress from tequila bar and punchlines- she was outstanding. From the very first hour we got on that ship she knew our crew. All our names and everytime we saw her she remembered us, our parents and what we wanted. Even if we weren’t where she was she told the other servers to “take care of us”! She is excellent.
Fabian at Red Frog Pub is another shout out for excellent service. He was always attentive, always offered the discount (which carnival should be very happy about).
The last shout out goes to our room steward Heri. He was outstanding. The room was always clean. He Always got us bucket of ice and had new pool towels. Super nice and fun.
Ship Quality
2 out of 5
All areas were pretty clean. I liked the napkin dispenser by each door.
The layout was a little tougher for me. There were two floors that you could not go the full length of the ship so you pretty much always had to walk through the casino. The casino allows smoking ANYWHERE. The ship map says limited to 5 tables but that is NOT the case. In fact most of this ship is a free for all for smoking. The whole 11th floor is smoking. Vibe night club allows smoking, we walked in and turned right around. I was disappointed because I love to dance.
Cabin / Stateroom
4 out of 5
Cabin was very spacious. We didn’t have any issues. We knew to bring an extension chord and power strip. Bed was comfy and room was clean. The closets and drawers worked fine for us. My only suggestion is the life preservers be kept in their own small compartment. They take up half the closet so hanging items there is difficult. It was just two of us and we are light packers so it didn’t bother us.
Ship tip
People will steal your chairs and sit on your stuff so do not leave your chairs on a sea day. It sucks but mine were stolen and that was the demise of my trip. You will not find two more together on a sea day. I reserved mine early and went to eat (wasn’t even and hour) some rude people stole them and literally were sitting on top of all my stuff.
Miami is busy, getting to the ship was fine. Getting off the ship and getting to our rental car was the worst experience of all vacations put together. The rental place (budget) said it was normal to wait 3 hours for a car. By the time we got our car it was too late to do our excursion for the Everglades.
We actually didn’t get to go to Cayman Islands, a medical emergency landed us in Key West. But I’m giving 5 stars because they didn’t have to let us go anywhere. Key West is so much fun. There isn’t a beach (close by) but Duval Street is a great time.
My favorite. We did taybana beach excursion. I read a lot of reviews and people said the vendors were annoying but they were fine. This beach was fabulous. We snorkeled, swam, walked down to the end. The lunch (buy yourself) was outstanding. We got the grilled whole fish and it was better than expensive restaurants back home. Highly recommend this excursion and island. It is a 45 minute ride to get there tho. But you see a lot of local roatan.
We did the snorkel with lunch excursion. The rendezvous island was awesome. Small coral island. The snorkel is more like a guided tour. You cannot go on your own. We saw many cool fish including a very large eel, star fish, sea urchin. Part of our group went into the Belize city and said it was a dirty, pushy port. Lots of vendors constantly (more then other ports) trying to get you to buy stuff. I give 4 stars only because we didn’t deal with that. But the guides ask for tips every 5 minutes.
We loved Cozumel. Our excursion was cancelled which was a good thing. We weren’t to excited about that excursion anyway. This port is so easy to get all around. You can rent scooters and go around the whole island. We got into a taxi and went to downtown and ate some awesome food and stopped at several really cool beach bars along the walk back. I didn’t think I would like Cozumel but I loved it!
If you can keep your luggage and not have them take it down by all means do it. We waited well over an hour and was told wrong baggage claim area several times. Then once we got it and went through customs we had people fighting to get into shuttle for rental car. We finally sent one of us to go get the car. And that took 3 hours. We eventually payed for an Uber to take the rest of us to the rental car spot. Sat outside some shaded some not, nothing close open yet for breakfast or even a drink. I know that’s not carnival however they could give you some advice that you will be disembarking with multiple ships.
Sea brunch brunch is absolutely awesome. There is not steak and eggs, bagels and lox, special pancakes and french toast, pork chops, etc in the buffet. Chairs are not to be reserved. When you're ready for a chair, take a chair, not before then. That's what causes the issues. There are however large empty comfortable couches available in the sun or shade even on sea days if you know where to look.
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