Relaxing Cruise to/from Mexican Riviera Carnival Miracle

We enjoy the sea days more than the ports, so our impressions reflect this preference. We have traveled on this same itinerary or a variation of it over 30 times. West coast cruising fits our needs anytime of year since we live in Utah. We have tried cruises out of Florida to the Caribbean but enjoy the Pacific most of all. 

This was a typical cruise down the Baja, where the first and last days were too cool to spend much time on the balcony. We have been spoiled on previous cruises with warm weather the entire trip. The older ship Miracle does not offer all the options we enjoy on the Splendor (returning to west coast next year) or on most of the Princess ships. Otherwise the weather was great and the ocean was smooth as glass especially on the return to Long Beach. 

With Princess putting all their ships on Alaska itineraries Carnival is the only option for us in the summer. Otherwise we would stick with Princess. 

The staff on the Miracle were friendly and provided great service. Especially impressed with our cabin attendant "Made". Quite a few activities but we preferred our balcony or a quiet spot on the deck to read and enjoy the views. Tried Serenity but the cushions they use were disgusting (although better than last year) with stains on them and in need of a serious cleaning. This is where Sanctuary on Princess is far and above superior although it comes with a cost it is well worth it. 

The food was good and service adequate in the MDR, we only utilized dining options on Lido a couple times. The sea day brunch is great kudos to Carnival on this offering. Enjoyed the Steak House great meal with a huge Cheese Cake dessert that was impressive. Even with over 6 hours of exercise in the gym or walking deck 10 I still gained 5 lbs which I attribute to Carnivals Chocalate Melting Cake. Embarkation and debarkation with our Platinum status is a breeze and we feel better than Princess. Entertainment was ok nothing like Carlos Oscar or Steve Morris on Princess.