This was a really good cruise. It’s a good ship, the weather was great, I like the southern ports. My favorite places on the ship were the piano bar and the pool at the fantail.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Once we got VeriFLY to work (it did not want to take my Covid test results), everything went very smoothly. The Face ID went very well.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
We ate in the dining room 6 nights. Cruise night 2 was a bit rough, but all was clean for the rest of the cruise. We ate in the steakhouse on night 1, and the food was delicious as usual. I would go just for the wagyu beef burger if they had one. We got a tiny slider of wagyu, and the flavor was out of this world. We had Cucina del Capitano on night three, and it was the best meal of the trip. Chicken parm, gnocchi, fried calamari, and antipasti were all awesome.
Pizzeria del Capitano
5 out of 5
Only complaint here was that a couple of nights they were not ready to be the only food venue open at 11pm. But they had Italian sausage sandwiches and lasagna late night, and they were really good. Also, the venue was not 24 hours, which was different.
Mongolian Wok
4 out of 5
The food was great as always. The reason for four stars was that the cook on the left side (facing the bar) was much slower than the guy on the right.
Northern Lights and Southern Lights Dining Rooms
4 out of 5
Guy’s was Guy’s, great as usual. Burrito bar was nice. Pasta bar for lunch was unexpectedly good. I miss the Taste bar. Coffee bar was nice. Try a coffee milkshake! Reason for 4 stars? Pig and Anchor was not that great. Too much cayenne in everything. Best dish there was the pulled pork.
Play it Again Piano Bar
5 out of 5
I spent most nights in the piano bar. Mark is absolutely great! I’ve done 6 cruises and he was by far the best.
Lido Marketplace
5 out of 5
The fruit was fresh on the bar, and tasted in season. The Sweet Station was OMG! Only complaint here was that lemonade, OJ, and tea machines need a little calibration.
RedFrog Pub
4 out of 5
This was better as a lunch venue. The breakfast buffet was just ok. The bacon is kept separate. The condiment stations are in the wrong place.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
We saw one playlist production, Country Roads, and it was not great. We heard them practicing for the 80s music review, and decided not to go. I spent a lot of time in the piano par. The wife spent a lot of time in the casino. Complaints: the shopping was lacking. There were no shirts in 2x or 3x, the liquor selection was really short (and prices have JUMPED). There is no sports bar. The only sports on TV were in the casino bar. There was the NFL draft, a lot of college baseball and softball, MMA, and World football (soccer). I would have liked more options.
Entertainment
5 out of 5
Mark in the piano bar was the most fun. David Oates, the guitarist, was really good. We were on on a cruise with him 6 years ago, and he has gotten better with the effects in his solo show. The house band was really good. Eighties, nineties, country, they did it all. The violinists put on a good show too.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
Our steward, Arnold, on deck 9, kept our room very nice. We did late morning service, and almost never saw him, and that’s a good sign to me.
Our dining room servers at table 634 had a rough night on night 2 (formal), but were really good the rest of the week. By night 5 they already knew my standard appetizer order. I like that!
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
There were people cleaning constantly. 3am cleaning baseboards. Lunch time keeping the customer side of the food venues neat. Dawn? Cleaning the glass around the pool.
This is the first ship I’ve been on that has The Lanai. I really like the outdoor seating out of the wind and the hot tubs on the deck.
The pool on the fantail of the Lido was well attended.
The smoking area on deck 11 starboard kept the smell away from the Lido, so I liked that.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
This is an interior room, so it’s smaller. There is no couch. The refrigerator is not big enough to hold a leftover plate from dinner. There was plenty of storage and hangers. There are actually two 110v outlets in the main room, but one has the phone plugged into it. Also, remember that the TV has a USB port if you need it. The room stayed at a comfortable temperature. We brought a mini tower fan to move the air and we’re glad we did.
Ship tip
Use the pasta bar at lunch. It’s not normally crowded.
We did an excursion the first time in Grand Turk, and felt it was much better than just going to the beach. The Margaritaville store was tiny, and Jacks Shack shop had been picked over. The beach is beautiful and the water is the prettiest I’ve ever seen.
I do like the later arrival. There is not much to do in the port area. There is shopping and restaurants. Our excursion was the Sunset Catamaran Cruise with open bar. It was worth every penny. We heard from other passengers about them watching the party boat come back, and that was us. A plus is that we also got back in time for late dining in the MDR.
Face ID is a game changer. I was waiting to see customs officers…nope. Scan your face and out the door you go. Only complaint was the elevators when people are trying to get off. I don’t think that will ever change. I wish the had opened the glass elevators for disembarkation.
We love the Magic too and spent a lot of time in the Piano Bar. The layout of the ship is great and the outside decks on Deck 5 off all the bars, casino and Ocean Plaza gives you a lot of space to sit out and enjoy. We go on cruises to get out of doors and enjoy fresh air. ☀️
Had a great time on the April 23 sailing. I hate that they make you use the hub. Could not get on it and this is vacation I am not walking around with my cell phone. We had anytime dinning and every night was a hassle in the norther lights dining.
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