My wife and I decided to go on a cruise just us. When we were married we really didn’t have money for a honeymoon so 17 years later we finally had one, we’ll worth the wait. We had a great time.
Embarkation
4 out of 5
There was a slight delay at first but once they began to let people aboard it moved very quickly. Thankfully my wife was able to get one of the earliest boarding times so we were enjoying the BBQ in no time 😁
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
Had been reading some poor reviews about the food prior to our cruise but in my opinion those were way off base.
Guys Burgers were great as always, fries could have been a bit crispier but other than that fine.
Blue Iguana tacos and breakfast burritos tasty.
We ate at Guys BBQ 3 times, never platters full, just more like samplers. Meats always good, my wife said one time mac n cheese very creamy the other time not as much. I suppose it depends on when you go.
Pizza always hit the spot.
We went to the pasta bar at the Italian restaurant twice for lunch, very tasty each time.
MDR was quite good for the most part. We did anytime dining and ate earlier several nights to avoid long waits. My prime rib one night was cooked perfectly.
Prime Steakhouse
4 out of 5
We decided to treat ourselves to the steakhouse. Service was excellent. Appetizers (pork belly, oysters, French onion soup) were excellent. Side dishes were adequate but nothing special. My wife’s filet was cooked perfectly. My ribeye was a bit overdone, but I like them more on the rare side. I also thought my steak could have used some more butter. Dessert was ok, however we were so full by that time that we weren’t exactly in the mode. Overall a very pleasant meal
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
We had a spa room and took full advantage of the thermal suites, which are in my opinion the best on the dream class ships.
We spent a fair amount of time on serenity and were always able to find a spot. Overall very pleased with the onboard activities we used.
Entertainment
3 out of 5
We went to most of the comedy shows, love and marriage, deal or no deal and the magician. We didn’t go to any of the musical shows as we’ve seen them all before.
Magician was the best performance in our opinion. Comedians were fine, not great.
Frankie was adequate as a cruise director but neither of us felt he was great, just personal taste I guess.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
Our room steward Perry was great, but of course they always are. Yosep and Sandoor in the Red Frog Pub were a lot of fun. Wait staff at the steakhouse were great. Everyone I met in the halls and at dinner was friendly and hardworking, I honestly have no idea what people complaining about the staff are talking about.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
Our two previous cruises were on the celebration, it was enjoyable to get back to the traditional Carnival layout we’re used to, also love those glass elevators.
For a ship that’s almost 15 years old everything is in good shape, only minor wear and tear that I noticed.
Cabin / Stateroom
4 out of 5
We had an interior Spa room that was kept immaculate by our steward Perry.
Bed wasn’t the best I’ve had on Carnival and I’ve gotten used to the bigger TVs on newer ships but those are the only minor complaints.
Ship tip
My wife strongly recommends the Caribbean Cream Cocktail only available in the Red frog pub
We booked a last minute excursion through Carnival, saved some money and had a fun tour of Puerto Plata and beach trip with Big Papi
This was our first time at Amber Cove doing anything other than hanging out at the pool, very enjoyable day.
We had no excursions, got off at the pool area for a bit, checked out the shops. We weren’t really too excited about anything there so we went back to the boat early and had lunch.
We rented a Jeep, I was proud because in my mind I talked him down quite a bit, but probably not. We drove to the Aruba factory and the National Park. The Park was great, we took many nice pictures and saw some beautiful scenery.
We're sailing on the Magic in a couple of weeks. I love the Magic, this will be my 2nd time on her. We will be on a spa balcony. I'll keep a look out for Perry.
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