We had a great time for our first holiday cruise. It was nice to see the ship still decorated for Christmas. The crowd on this ship was a little older than I'm used to but I did end up appreciating that a lot. We met some wonderful people and can't wait for our next adventure!
Embarkation
4 out of 5
This process went very fast actually. Once we arrived to the port we pulled around to the drop off section. We unloaded our bags and the porters placed them in the carts they have available. We walked across the street and inside the port. Since I had FTTF my roommate and I were directed to a shorter line to go through the check in section. We were quickly guided to the security line and got through that painlessly as well. There were no lines so everything moved quickly even for my other friends who did not have FTTF. Once they set up their cash accounts we walked right on board and straight to my room to put our stuff down before exploring the ship while we waited for all the rooms to be ready.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
The food was alright. There wasn't really anything that was a must have for me or I had to come back for more (other than the pizza after clubbing lOl.) When we went to dinner in the MDR the waiters and waitresses were great and personable but the service was a bit slow especially on the formal nights. We also ate at the buffet for dinner when we were not trying to wait or the nights we wanted to catch a movie (We watched Toy Story 4 and Maleficent: Mistress of Evil while eating dinner from the buffet on the Lido deck). The food at the buffet was also alright at best for me. My taste buds enjoyed Guys Burger, Pizza Pirate and Blue Iguana more than the MDR and the buffet. One of my friends frequented the Deli and they loved it. Me personally I am not a sandwich type person so I only ate there once(I know it's odd I'll eat a burger no problem but a sandwich not so much). It was good but not something I sought out every day. I wish we would have taken advantage of David's Steakhouse but we did not get a chance to.
I had the drink package and took full advantage of it while on board. I tried different drinks but my favorite will always be the High Seas Tea which can only be purchased at the Casino Bar. The Patron Margaritas were a close second and I did enjoy other drinks because I could.
Ivory Piano Bar
5 out of 5
I had the drink package so I loved going to the Bar lOl. Tip that an experience cruiser gave me while on board: When you have the drink package always ask for top shelf alcohol. It does not cost you anything more to get it when you have the package. That tip came to me on Day 2 and Patron Margaritas were flowing after that lOl.
Butterflies Lounge
5 out of 5
This is where we watched our comedy shows and let me tell you! Those comedians were fabulous! We watched the PG and R rated shows here. One night we also attended Quest and I won't say much about that because what happens at Quest stays at Quest. I will say that my best friend Cinnamon was the star of that show lmaoooo If you were there you know!
Grand Buffet
2 out of 5
The food here was just alright. Breakfast was good but come lunch time it wasn't working well for us. Something didn't sit well with my stomach one night and I ended up throwing up. Then the last night my friend had the late night snacks and he ended up throwing up as well.
Pizza Pirate
5 out of 5
Pizza just hits differently after you have been drinking all day and dancing all night lOl. Every night we were eating pizza after the club and it would hit the spot. I even spent the $5 and had them deliver to my cabin once. I really did enjoy the pizza on the ship.
BlueIguana Cantina
5 out of 5
I really wish they were open longer for lunch. We really enjoyed those taco bowls and would get full from eating the contents and the bowl. I actually wish I ate it more than I did.
Redfrog Rum Pub
5 out of 5
We enjoyed hanging in here. They had karaoke in here and my friends said it was fun. They had the 80's rock and glow party there as well and it look like it was popping!
Guy's Burger Joint
5 out of 5
Let me tell you! The best burgers on the high seas! I love these burgers so much and never had a bad moment there and will continue to eat there every cruise!
BlueIguana Tequila Bar
5 out of 5
Absolutely loved the bar tenders here! They were familiar with my friend and I because we were always there. The drinks were so good! I mean who doesn't love tequila?!
Beauties Dance Club
5 out of 5
We were pretty much in the club every night except the very first night. We had so much fun dancing with everyone and even ran into one of the comedians CeeJay while partying. New Years Eve this was the place to be after the countdown. Everyone migrated there from the deck party on Lido and it was popping. We closed the club out a few times lOl.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
Due to the multiple sea days I wandered the ship often looking for things to do. My favorite spot was in the spa though. The sauna and steam room were absolutely amazing and I went there every sea day. I did not get in the pool at all on the ship but I did enjoy the hot tub in the gym once and the hot tub on serenity after we got back on board the ship at Nassau. The temp was nice for the hot tubs.
We attended the Dive In Movie twice: first to see Toy Story 4 (I cried like a baby at the end lOl.) and Maleficent: Evil Mistress (Loved it! Although it was freezing on the deck watching that).
The Fun Shops
4 out of 5
Pretty good selection of items in the shop. I had one bad encounter with the staff on the last night but other than that I was satisfied with my purchase.
Hot Tubs
5 out of 5
So relaxing! No other way to say it. I used the Hot Tub in the gym and the one on serenity and aside from being crowded it was nice.
Fitness Center / Aerobics Studio
5 out of 5
I went to the gym to work out once lOl. After that I just went in there to use the sauna and the steam room which were fabulous! I also used the hot tub there and aside from being crowded it was nice :) The first level has mostly cardio machines but when you go upstairs there are weight lifting machines (Found that out our second time there)
The Winners' Club Casino
5 out of 5
Well I only frequented the casino for the High Seas Tea and the bar lOl. People seemed to be having fun though and I saw a few people get excited from winning various games.
Serenity Adult-Only Retreat
5 out of 5
Getting away from the children was so nice :) I went out there at night sometime and enjoyed laying on the chairs looking at the stars. Then after the club I went there to cool down until I was tired enough to go to sleep.
Guest Services / Shore Excursions
4 out of 5
Guest Services was helpful for the most part. Each time I went to put cash on my account it was quick and painless. Then the toilet in my room was backed up twice (ended up being our own fault for flushing wipes...oops) but they sent a gentleman up to fix it and he was very kind and helpful. They weren't as helpful when I told them I was charged for two extra drinks during sea day brunch though. I kept getting the run around for that situation.
Entertainment
5 out of 5
While on board I attended two stage shows: The Welcome Aboard Show and Getaway Island. I enjoyed Getaway Island more than the Welcome Aboard Show. It was alright but for me it did not sound like the performers voices mesh well with one another. During Getaway Island they sounded much better to me.
DJ Oz and DJ Grinzz kept the music playing through out the ship and loved their selections while in the night club. The Good Reverend Dr. E also rocked the house, especially during the Motown Trivia.
Once we attended the comedy show we made it a point to go as often as we could! Ceejay and Alex were hilarious! I really hope I sail with them again because they kept us laughing and really played off the audience very well. We even saw Ceejay in the club one night and he mentioned my friends and I in his R rated show the following night lOl. He took pictures with us and even posted them on his social media.
Carnival Seaside Theater
5 out of 5
We watched Toy Story 4 one night and I cried like a baby. Absolutely loved that movie! The blankets they had kept us warm that night. On the last sea day we watched Maleficent: The Evil Mistress. Another great movie but boy oh boy were we cold! Even with towels and blankets we were freezing out there! The roof over the pool was pulled back a bit and that made a huge difference. I enjoyed the movie but that weather left an impression.
Children's Programs
I did not travel with any children.
Real Virtuality Video Arcade
5 out of 5
We went to the arcade on the second sea day and had fun! I did the VR ride and I enjoyed it. It was $5 per person riding but it was worth it. We also played the air hockey game and that was funny. I was shook when all the pucks dropped on the table but it was fun. We also played Halo and the Jurassic Park game a few times as well. It's a little small but really fun.
Service and Staff
3 out of 5
The service fell a little short for me on this cruise. It wasn't horrible but it wasn't the best(Don't worry I will provide examples of my experiences below). With that being said the staff was amazing though. Our room steward did a fabulous job keeping our rooms tidy and stocked with what we needed. When he saw us around the ship he greeted us by name and always had a smile on his face (A miracle in itself! I work in customer service and I know how difficult it can be to keep a smile on all the time) Because we had "Your Time" Dining we experienced different dining staff. We enjoyed our first dining crew but once we sat in Orlando's area we requested him each time after that even when there was a wait.
Our toilet backed up twice while on board (later found out it was our fault for flushing wipes). I went down to guest services to inform them and it was fixed quickly both times. The young man who came to fix it was friendly and very helpful.
Now for the not so great experiences... My friend and I had the drink package and when we attended Sea Day brunch we ordered 1 mimosa but we were charged for three. I know with the drink package it doesn't "charge" us but that meant there were two less drinks we could get and that was on New Years Eve. My disappointment didn't come from that initially but they did not fix it at all. I went to Guest Services and the bar manager to fix the problem but they just gave us the run around.
Now although the staff were amazing the service in the MDR was very slow. We only ate in there about three times but each time we were sitting for a while waiting for everything. Even when we went for Sea Day Brunch and there weren't many people there we were still waiting around to be served and waited a while for food. Towards the end of the cruise we started eating right before going to the MDR so we didn't get hangry waiting for our food to arrive.
My last service disappointment came when I went to purchase alcohol on board the ship. Now I waited until the last night to purchase the two bottles I wanted. There were two sales people in the store while I was in there. One was walking around and the other was handing out alcohol purchases that had been made prior. Since there was a line forming there I stood in line with the two bottles I wanted to purchase and behind me a young lady also had some items to be purchased. The young lady who was on the floor walked in front of me, looked at the items in my hand but said nothing. After waiting in the line (maybe three people in front of me) the young man who was handing out the boxes to people informs me that he could not complete my sale. My frustration came from the fact that the lady who had looked at me and said nothing had to come complete the transaction. She could have told me and the person behind me that she was going to have to complete our sale when she saw us instead of letting us stand in that line for 10 minutes. That really set me off and as my last encounter with the staff left a bad taste in my mouth. The lady behind me was equally upset and I will not lie I made a small scene due to my frustration. I am not proud as to how I responded at all but in the moment I expressed my displeasure with that. I do appreciate how the young lady let me vent and did not get upset with me the entire time. She never apologized for the wait but I do respect her for not snapping back at me. I would have deserved it but knowing me it would have created a bigger scene.
So all in all I had good moment with the staff and some not so good moments. I didn't let the bad moments ruin my cruise or my desire to cruise again tho :)
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
The layout of this ship worked well for me once I figured it out. I hardly ever got lost. My biggest issue was getting to my cabin which was at the back of the ship. Many times I found myself towards the front of the ship so it was a long walk back to the room. In hind sight I probably needed the walk anyway after all I ate lOl.
The common ares for the most part were clean. Very few times did I see dirty dishes on the Lido Deck tables but the staff made sure they weren't there for long.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
My cabin was comfortable and decent size. My best friend and I had no complaints about the size of the room. Two people in the room is a good fit so long as you do not over pack. The fridge in the room worked very well and I kept my wine in there. I also put waters and the ginger ale I brought on board in there as well. Our room steward kept our room clean and we felt very comfortable being in this cabin.
Ship tip
If your sailing has multiple sea days I advise bringing card games or download games to your phone prior to entertain yourself.
We live in MD so we just boarded the ship here. The cruise port is not difficult to get to and easy to navigate. My mom dropped us off and the drop off section was right out front. After we dropped off our bags we walked across the cross walk and right inside. The lines moved quickly to get everyone checked in and through security. Then guest services was right beyond security so if you need to set up your cash account you can do so (Apparently when you add your card online it apply's a $100-$200 hold but when you add your card when you get there it only apply's a $10 hold. The young lady could not give me an explanation for that) I'm not sure if that is just for sailing out of Baltimore or if that is a cruise line rule.
This was our first port and let me tell you we were just happy to finally see land lOl. This is a tender port so it was a bit of a wait to fill the tender ship to go to the island. Well, it felt like a long wait because we were one of the first few people on. The ride over was painless and short. It felt so good to feel the sun on my skin again. We spent the day at the beach and took pictures. The water was clear but not Half Moon Cay clear. The beach was very rocky and there was a lot of seaweed where we were. The water was very cold and took us some time to adjust but once you did it wasn't too bad. The buffet on the island was decent. I just wish the drink package could be applied on the island. It was a beautiful day although there was a rain cloud in the area it did not rain while we were there. This was my first time going to Princess Cay and I would visit again if given the chance.
This was probably my favorite port because of the excursion we did. We purchased the Adrenaline Jetboat excursion through Carnival and we loved it. We did this excursion back in January 2019 but it was two of my friends first time and they loved it. A good way to wake yourself up too because you get completely soaked! My friend lost her ear sea sickness patch but she still had a good time and was able to make through the rest of the cruise with just Dramamine. After our excursion we went to Fat Tuesday for lunch and drinks. We were asked, no exaggeration, six times about purchasing an ATV or Moped to ride around the island. We kindly declined each time and weren't hassled much after saying no. It was a great experience at Fat Tuesday and the staff there was amazing and very friendly. They played good music and the drinks are good. After we left Fat Tuesday we walked around and shopped. We got some good souvenirs from this one shop where everything was $5. We even got our passports stamped while here before getting back on the ship.
For a short time on this island we had a blast! We did wish we had waited to get souvenirs here instead of at Nassau. There were a lot of shops set up with some cool items. We spent most of our day at Senor Frog and loved it! We got free shots and danced. We were the only ship in port so it wasn't too crowded or anything.
I will start this on a positive note. It was a beautiful day when we debarked although it was cold but the sun was out and not raining like how it was when we embarked. The process to get off the ship was so long though. I appreciated not having to leave the cabin until 9am so we slept in a bit. My friend got sick that morning so that may have contributed to our displeasure with this process so just take this aspect with a grain of salt. We carried our bags off ourselves (First time I've ever done that and it wasn't too bad). We were out of our rooms at 9 but we did not start heading off the ship until 10:40ish. We just sat by the elevator on our deck while we waited for the announcement since it was so crowded on Lido and he wasn't feeling well. Now that I think about it the waiting around was the worse part for us. Once we were able to debark it went very quickly. We walked right out and my mom picked us up. My other friends set their luggage out the night before so it was about another half hour before they came out with there stuff but it was just as easy to leave the port as it was to get there.
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