Great cruise to Bermuda!
Carnival Magic Cruise Review to Bermuda
Contributor Level:
Purser
Cruises: 7+ cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 29
5 Night Bermuda (New York Roundtrip)
Sail date: August 31, 2022
Ship: Carnival Magic
Cabin type: Balcony
Cabin number: 9281
Traveled as: Family (older children)
Reviewed: 2 years ago
Review summary
Excellent five-day cruise with two days in Bermuda was excellent! We enjoyed the Carnival Magic with its water slides, ropes course, mini golf and great food options! Burritos on the Lido Deck were amazing, as is Guy's Burgers. Eating in the dining room each night feels like such a fancy dinner out - and all included!!Embarkation
We could not board the ship yet when we arrived (11-11:30am check in slot) and had to wait about 30 minutes before boarding. But other than that, it was efficient checking our paperwork and getting us all ready. Our cabin was ready with room cards just after 1:30pm.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
Excellent food and service in the dining rooms - we enjoyed nightly dinners in the "Northern Lights" dining room and Seaday brunches in the "Southern Lights" dining room.
Onboard Activities
Great amenities on this ship - ropes course was a blast; water-park experience with spraying water, a tipping bucket, and two giant water slides (and two much smaller side-by-side slides that are fun too!). The sports square also has ping-pong, a 9-hold mini-golf that takes you upstairs at the end for the last 3 holes, pool tables and bean bag toss. Disinfectant wipes are available for sports equipment (e.g., ping pong paddles). Pools were busy - but we went early on the last day (8:45am) and had the pool to ourselves. Whirlpools hanging off the ship on Deck 5 are a nice addition too.
Entertainment
Good musical reviews by the singers/dancers in the main theatre most nights. We enjoyed the Welcome Aboard Show and the Country Road Show particularly - great special effects (fireworks, sophisticated screen/lights). There were musical entertainers that were good in various venues - 3 string players (violin and viola) played each evening in the main lobby area and were excellent - modern twists on many popular songs. A steel drummer was good as well for a tropical feel - nice when he was playing outside by the pool. We would have liked to see some evening shows that had more of a plot (like a musical theatre) rather than just a musical tribute, but know that is not Carnival's typical style.
Children's Programs
My daughter was in "Circle C" at age 14 (ages 12-14). She has enjoyed "Camp Ocean" (ages up to 11) before. This time, she went to try a couple of activities - "Jewellery Making" was a lot of kids gathered around one box of beads, so she left (too crowded) and she did go and stay for Bingo, which she enjoyed. It would have been nice to have some more organised events (e.g., "paint night") rather than open time. Also, a lot of the events were REALLY LATE (events at 11pm...my daughter is in bed!) We would have liked to see a few more events during the day, earlier on, that were specific or had a focus - craft, cooking, dance class, artwork, etc.. We did participate in the Family Scavenger Hunt and really enjoyed that!
Service and Staff
Frank (room steward) was excellent - so friendly, got us extra masks when we requested, no problem. He took extra time making towel animals that we got a big kick out of (e.g., putting one standing up in my daughter's running shoes!) Waiters were good - want to especially mention Anthony from India, who was very friendly and took his time to talk to people and get to know them. We also want to mention Claudio (Team Lead Server in the Northern Lights Dining Room) who ran after us and found us in the theatre, in order to return my bottle of hand sanitizer I had left on the table. Above and beyond!
Ship Quality
Yes!! Beautifully clean and great layout, love all the amenities on the Sports Deck area and Water Park area!
Cabin / Stateroom
Different layout than we are used to - we usually have an upper bunk, this time it was a pull-out couch for our daughter, that was left as a bed the whole time. It was a good cabin - more storage space than usual (lots of cupboards). King size bed for the 2 adults by the balcony was nice. Being on deck 9 and only 1 deck below the Lido Deck to get food was amazing in the mornings - a quick walk up the stairs!
Ship tip
To avoid crowded pools, go early in the morning when they first open (9am). Don't miss trying the burritos at the Blue Iguana on the Lido Deck!
Thumbs up
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Ports of call
Great place to visit - we rented bikes for 4 hours in Central Park and that was wonderful! We also walked the Brooklyn Bridge, took in the sites. Highly recommend a visit to Bryant Park as well if you have kids or teenagers. Lots of free, fun things to do there (ping pong, mini putt, games that are free to borrow and play, book area, etc.).
Beautiful Bermuda! We took 2 shore excursions. We did the snorkelling adventure with captain Micheal. He was beyond excellent. It was a rough day, so he took his time to go further to a sheltered bay so we had calm water and great visibility. He docks in close to shore so you can stand in waist-deep water and feel comfortable with the snorkel gear. They have pool noodles to use to float. Great snorkelling and fantastic overall experience. We also did the longer tour on our second day where we visited the aquarium/zoo and Crystal Caves. We were pleased with the stops that the driver made to the Gibb's lighthouse and to the "smallest drawbridge" for fish feeding as well. It would have been nice to have more time at the zoo/aquarium, but it is a long way there and back (45 minute bus ride).
Disembarkation
Time to enjoy food on deck before disembarkation. Smooth process, just remember your patience and enjoy the last minutes on the cruise ship! Note that the arcade did not work that morning, which was disappointing - we had credit we wanted to use, and it is advertised as being open 24 hours.