Very Stessfull

Item: Carnival Magic
Rating: 3.4
Author: CndCruiser

Carnival Magic Cruise Review

CndCruiser

Contributor Level: Purser

103 Days Till Next Cruise

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Reviews: 2

Helpful Votes: 66

Overall rating:

3.4 out of 5

6 Night Eastern Caribbean (Ft. Lauderdale Roundtrip)

Sail date: March 08, 2020

Ship: Carnival Magic

Cabin type: Balcony

Cabin number: 9468

Traveled as: Family (older children)

Reviewed: 4 years ago

Review summary

Cruise started out great. But as the coronavirus issues started ramping up we started to really feel the stress of being “trapped” on a cruise ship. Carnival did a good job of not mentioning anything ever about what was happening in the outside world. Good to a point I guess, but I think they should have tried to shut down all the rumours of what might happen to us when returning to the US. Maybe they didn’t know either? But the communication was very poor from the start of the cruise. They switched a port for us but didn’t tell us. People with excursions booked from a 3rd party were scrambling to cancel.

Embarkation

5 out of 5

Had FTTF. Was very fast. From start to getting on board was 10 minutes. Although our room ready immediately, our luggage didn’t arrive for several hours.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

1 out of 5

Food was just OK. Been on several RC cruises and they have a much better dining room atmosphere and food is much better. Our server was ok. She basically did as very little as she could. The bread guy came around at the beginning of dinner, gave no choice of bread just put something on your plate. Not once did I get asked if I wanted a drink. Absolutely terrible wait service.

Lido Marketplace

2 out of 5

Buffet was terrible. Food was cold, very little to choose form. We decided to skip the dinning room one night because we didn’t like the options. Went to Buffet and it was the same options...only cold.

Onboard Activities

4 out of 5

Back pool was fun. Not too loud, could usually find a chair. Main pool was busy. If you wanted music and activities this is the place to be.

Entertainment

5 out of 5

Entertainment was good. Simon LONDON was the CD and he was full of energy. Shows in the theatre have a lot of talented singers and dancers. The best though was Scott the piano player in Play It Again lounge. Best one man show I’ve ever seen on a cruise ship. Outstanding job!

Service and Staff

4 out of 5

Our room guy, Romney was very good. Room was spotless every afternoon. See my description for our dinner service. It was THE WORST we’ve ever had on a cruise ship. 1 star at best. The 4 star is for our room clerk. He was excellent.

Ship Quality

4 out of 5

Ship design is different from our past experience. Very cool ship with a great atmosphere. They worked diligently to keep it spotless. Great job by all the cleaners.

Cabin / Stateroom

4 out of 5

Room seemed bigger than other ships we’ve been on. Bed was comfy. Couch was NOT.

Ship tip

They are terrible at communicating what’s happening with port changes.

Thumbs up

Ports of call

Amber Cove (Puerto Plata), Dominican Republic

3 out of 5

Ft. Lauderdale (Port Everglades), Florida

3 out of 5

Disembarkation

4 out of 5

We had FTTF so it helped us get off early. Other than that it’s the same as any cruise. Hurry up and wait to clear customs.

Traveler Photos

11 Comments

GerryBCruisin 3 years ago

Thank you for taking the time to share your review of the Carnival Magic.

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cruisereckoning 4 years ago

Thanks for the review.

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Cruiserike0322 4 years ago

Be glad when everything is back to normal

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crusinfun5 4 years ago

Too much communication would have caused panic and miscommunication among the guests. Information is changing hour by hour. This was and is an unheard of in terms of this virus. I am sure some of the wait staff were preoccupied and concerned about family members as well. Really kind of a harsh review considering when you went.

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AuntPinkie 4 years ago

Sorry this cruise didn’t meet your expectations! I am somewhat surprised by the service in the dining room as that is not what we have come to expect. Welcome back!

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mclainmd 4 years ago

Welcome back! As you may have noticed, the world is a different place than when you left a week ago. Things have been changing daily, if not hourly, and it is hard to discern fact from fiction (that part hasnt changed). So im not surprised information was hard to come by on the ship. Im sure they did the best they could to keep you safe.

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bussdiekerbirthday 4 years ago

We had the same dining experience on the magic in Feb.

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SRAlbritton 4 years ago

All in all it seems like it was still a good cruise. Always remember even a bad day at sea is better than a good day at work. Happy cruising!

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willwork4cruz 4 years ago

Well, with full knowledge of other ships with coronavirus outbreaks, being denied entry to ports at the very last minute, being quarantined, etc and still going on the cruise, I would say you were very lucky. To expect a flawless experience and that the crew could even predict what was going to happen in order to satisfy people with "good communication" is a little rediculous under the circumstances. Count your blessings that you made it back and hope you didn't bring an unwanted souvenir.

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Workingdiva 4 years ago

Maybe you should stick to the other cruise line. Remember this is a trying time for everyone and all cruise lines are affected.

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ronnyclicks 4 years ago

Was there any extra screening while you disembarked today?

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