Least relaxing vacation ever...
Carnival Magic Cruise Review to Caribbean - Western
Contributor Level:
Purser
Cruises: 4-6 cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 47
7 Night Western Caribbean (Miami Roundtrip)
Sail date: March 03, 2019
Ship: Carnival Magic
Cabin type: Balcony
Cabin number: 6250
Traveled as: Couple
Reviewed: 5 years ago
Review summary
My husband and I took this cruise in hopes of a low stress, minimal effort, rest filled vacation. What we got was the opposite. We arrived on the ship and entered our room to the disappointment of a walkway directly beneath our balcony. Past cruises our balconies have always been right over the water, and while booking there was no mention of this. We were a little bummed but were excited to be on our way. Then the shows, performance rehearsals, and two performances a day started. Unbeknownst to us, our room was directly above the main stage. The sound insulation on this ship is non existent. (Between rooms as well) This wasn't just muffled music and bass. You could hear EVERYTHING three times a day, and the bass vibrations were unreal. The first night my husband went to guest services and asked if they had any other rooms, they did not and we were given ear plugs and were told that they'd open a complaint. It is so loud and so bass heavy that you could still hear it through the earplugs. I don't understand how they continue to book these rooms. We always reserve balconies because while we enjoy the cruise amenities, we enjoy resting, enjoying the ocean and having the extra space in our room. Perhaps if you are a cruiser who is in your room very minimally this room is for you. But we like to have experiences, do excursions and many of those are early. It is difficult to head to bed early when you have a 45 minute+ performance at 9:30 pm every night. I personally enjoy the shows as well, but when you've already heard the whole thing, sometimes twice depending on when we went to dinner, the joy in going is removed. We enjoyed our excursions as well, but it would have been nice to not be so tired. We have now been home for 5 days and are still recovering, but not in a good way. Guest Services seemed to care for the first half of the cruise as we continued to complain, but you could tell there was nothing they could do. On the 5th day we had a note left for us asking to come to guest services, and they offered something from the shops...not sure how that's helpful, and we declined. After that they seemed irritated that we hadn't accepted the bribe of Carnival gear and made a point of telling us that there were 4 pages of complaints documented. Not sure what they were writing since we didn't go down every night. Bottom line, booking through AA is fine, Carnival Magic is fine, but do your own research and don't think the $25 fee you're paying to makes them your actual travel agent. I feel like a real travel agent would give a warning about room location.Embarkation
Relatively quick and painless
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
Food was fine, as fresh as can be expected. The breakfast in the dining room (NOT sea day brunch) was the best food in my opinion.
Onboard Activities
Sports/games area was fun. Pool, ping pong, ropes course, water slide.
Entertainment
The stage shows were fine, but since we had the pleasure of hearing each and every sound prior to actually attending the show, they were old news. DJs and musicians were great.
Service and Staff
Dining service was the slowest and most lackluster I've ever experienced on a cruise. Particularly in Cucina Capitano, which we paid extra for.
Ship Quality
I'm not really sure why someone would design a ship with such poor insulation above their stage area and then proceed to sell the rooms above that area not at a HEAVY discount and without a disclaimer. We could hear EVERY single word said, not just by performers but by hosts. Every note, the bass was awful, vibrated the whole room.
Cabin / Stateroom
The size, cleanliness, were all fine. But I feel like it should be noted that there is a walk-way directly beneath your balcony. Other balconies I've stayed on overlook only the ocean. I understand that it part of the ships design, but it should be noted since people can stare right at you while you sit on your balcony trying to relax. The main issue with this cabin is the NOISE. There was a rehearsal, a 7:30 performance, and a 9:30 performance that overtook the room every single day. Forget napping after a day of excursions and sun, forget heading to bed early because you have an excursion that leaves at 7:00am. Plus side is, you don't actually need to head down to the performances because you've already heard them twice before you're ready to go watch. There was nothing guest services could do besides give us ear plugs. We contemplated sleeping on the balcony but were told we couldn't do that, and as I mentioned before, people would have been able to see us. Aside from the stage noise, this is also just the loudest ship I've been on. Doors slamming, people walking. And I have to just add, sound doesn't normally bother me or my husband. We're pretty chill, relaxed individuals but it was unbearable and we returned home EXHAUSTED. There needs to be a disclaimer on this room (like the "obstructed view" disclaimer) and it needs to be discounted unless there are people who truly enjoy 3 in room performances per day or plan to never be in their room.
Ship tip
Least favorite ship I've been on, do research since American Airlines isn't going to do it for you.
Thumbs up
0
Ports of call
Beautiful water, white sand. We did the Kayaking and Sting Ray City. We were exhausted from the lack of sleep the night before due to pounding bass until 10:30 pm. And report time for the excursion was at 7:15am. But we muddled through and still enjoyed the experience because hey, it's vacation right?
Mahogany Bay, Roatan, Bay Islands, Honduras
Lovely experience visiting the Lamanai ruins. This excursion also had 7:30 am report time, and again we were kept up by performance bass, but the excursion it self was amazing. Would have been nice to be well rested to enjoy more fully.
Spent the day at Aquarium beach, not an excursion through cruise line as we were thoroughly exhausted by this point. Calm water, lovely activities.
Disembarkation
Relatively quick.