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1st Time Cruiser Review

Carnival Sensation Cruise Review to Caribbean - Eastern

Cruises: 1 cruise (first)
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 37

Overall rating:

3.2 out of 5
Verified Review
Carnival Sensation

5 Night Eastern Caribbean (Miami Roundtrip)

Sail date: September 14, 2019

Ship: Carnival Sensation

Cabin type: Oceanview

Cabin number: U37

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 5 years ago

Review summary

I always dreamed of going on a cruise. Now that I have, I am not sure if I will do it again! Being a first timer may have been my undoing...so maybe a different destination or ship would change my mind, but given the overall experiences of my trip, I am unsure. I do not regret going, because the beaches/water was breathtaking and worth the entire cruise. Total cost incurred for this entire vacation for two was around $3000.00. This includes all charges, even the baggage charge and non-stop flight from Knoxville to Miami, and all the additional charges while in port and onboard. I hope this helps someone make their decision of whether or not to take a cruise a little easier!

Embarkation

3 out of 5
Long lines, disorganized, hard to understand people, and people were rude and pushy going through the lines.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

2 out of 5
We were on the Carnival Sensation......Buffets: lots of options, but I didn't know what a lot of the items were (and couldn't pronounce them), so not really comfortable trying them; the options also were not visually appealing. Buffets were at their best at breakfast! Main dining rooms: Food quality was better than that of the buffet, but selection was limited unless you opted for the additional items that cost $20.00 additional per person. Speciality restaurants: Guy's Burger Joint was hands down the BEST speciality restaurant onboard, with the Cantina being 2nd. Room Service: Fairly limited selection, but again additional options available for additional costs. Availability: Always told there is food 24/7 on a cruise, all you can stand, all the time, however, this is not entirely true....the 2 foods that are always available are Pizza and Soft Serve Ice Cream/Frozen Yogurt. Pizza is small, very thin, but does actually have a decent flavor. Soft serve was good, but I don't I want it as my main dish! In all, the food on my first cruise was NOT at all what I had anticipated...I had based my expectations on frequent cruisers, who were always going on and on about all-you-can-eat, buffets, 24 hrs/ day, and good flavors. Maybe it is just a matter of opinion, but clearly mine varies from most.

Onboard Activities

2 out of 5
We did not participate in very many ship activities, mainly for three reasons....way to crowded,way too much alcohol consumption, and additional expenses often incurred. If you are young, like to party, and have unlimited amounts of money then the cruise life is for you, but if not, then you might want to rethink your vacation options!

Entertainment

2 out of 5
We did get to experience some of the live entertainment onboard. There was one very good performer at the first of the cruise who performed live at the bar on the Promenade Deck. All the others that followed needed some improvement!

Children's Programs

No children accompanied us on our trip.

Service and Staff

5 out of 5
Our room steward was very nice, always knew our names, and provided us with ice after only asking once. We enjoyed him and left him a tip at the end of our cruise. The wait staff at the main dining room was attentive, prompt and entertaining. All the other staff onboard always said hello and smiled as you passed by, which, was very nice.

Ship Quality

4 out of 5
Cleanliness was maintained throughout our cruise and the ship's layout seemed fairly easy to navigate.

Cabin / Stateroom

3 out of 5
Of course, a larger stateroom is always nice I guess, but having said that...mattresses were a lot harder than what I am used to, however, my husband actually enjoyed this...I was achy and sore every morning. We had a king bed, which is two twins pushed together, and as far as space, this was adequate for the two of us. We had packed a small usb powered fan (due to advisement of online sites for 1st time cruisers), but actually the room was very cool and comfortable temperature wise and the fan was not needed.

Ship tip

Take lots of extra cash (unless you are good at saying "No") which , I am not, expect long delays/lines, expect a party time environment 24/7, don't trust the cruise packages (such as "Bottomless Bubbles", etc) they are very deceiving, make sure you have lots of ones for change and tips, and make sure you take sea sickness medication with you.

Thumbs up

Ports of call

Miami, Florida

5 out of 5
Miami is beautiful, but very crowded. Airport restaurants very good and plenty of selection/variety. No excursions.
Thumbs Up

Nassau, Bahamas

4 out of 5
We did the Discover Atlantis/Beach Day excursion....Atlantis is gorgeous, but expensive. Nice casino, beautiful beaches and pools, and good restaurants within the resort (these are all additional costs). The Aquarium was beautiful architecturally, however, the actual sea life was not all that impressive and the water was murky/cloudy. It was difficult to see some of the fish. The pools and beaches were gorgeous, but expect to be immediately approached by a local selling goods, especially on the beaches. I had barely gotten my toes in the sand and spent $20 for a shell necklance and $7 for two very small braids in my hair. I DO NOT recommend the coconut drinks on the beach for 4 reasons: Cost- $40 for 2 (1 refill each), size- maybe just over 2 oz. of fluid (literally one sip through the straw), coconut fibers- feels like hair/dirt in your mouth when you drink, and birds- there were many birds on the sand and if you set your drink down (even for a second) they would move in and start eating the coconut! Restrooms, a little hard to find, but well maintained.
Thumbs Up

Half Moon Cay, Bahamas (Private Island)

1 out of 5
We did the Eco Lagoon Tour, which was o.k., but that's about it. Pretty on the lagoon and tour guide tried to explain the ecology of the island. Most interesting part was seeing the "Village" left behind from previous natives (I assume it was natives, this was not addressed by the tour guide at all). Water was beautiful and clear around the boat, but the vessel had a small glass bottom, which was poor in visibility for anything under the boat. **Included "Beach Barbeque"- Not at all worth it! Food did not look appetizing, very crowded, and when we sat down to try and eat, we were attacked by bugs....we both came home with over 50 bug bites! We are still itching like crazy! Was somewhat entertaining to watch the loose chickens run from the traffic on the island though! Beach was still beautiful, however, extremely crowded. Restrooms on the island were not well maintained.
Thumbs Up

Grand Turk Island

4 out of 5
We did the Glass Bottom Boat Tour. Rum Punch offered free on this tour ( 4 oz. size "Dixie" cups, but with all you want refills), glass bottom more visible than that of the Eco Lagoon Tour from Half Moon Cay, but water was more choppy/wavy due to being in the ocean vs. the lagoon environment. Half way through the tour, I became sea sick (which I have never done, nor, had I done up until this point of the trip). The driver of the boat moved some items over and let me vomit off the side and offered me some paper towels and cold bottle of water. I vomited again (all the water) before we could get off the boat at the shoreline. They were very nice about it, both staff and other vacationers, and one couple even provided me with some Dramamine, although it did not help! Even with being sick on this island, it was still our favorite! We enjoyed the beaches, the music and the shopping!
Thumbs Up

Disembarkation

2 out of 5
Meeting place was established and we arrived to it early, however, this apparently put us into the incorrect group...when we got off the ship and down to the customs area, we ended up having to wait over an hour (with no seats in sight) for our luggage to come. Then we made it through customs and got to our transfer bus (we paid extra prior to our sail date for transfers from airport/port and port/airport, $16.95 per person each way), but it was full. We waited another 35 mins for the next bus to arrive.
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5 Comments

cruisegirl16    5 years ago

Going on my 13th cruise in October, love cruising! But you have to research everything so your not going in blind. A cruise is what YOU make it.
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JustCruz    5 years ago

If you decide to return to the Seas you might consider doing Google or what ever search engine you choose to explore your destination. Also ask questions on Shipmate. If you choose Carnival see what each ship has to offer, different eating venues, Seaside theater. Also look into Faster to the Fun. This can help with some of the waiting. Hope to see you out there sometime.
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ronnyclicks    5 years ago

1 Star at half moon? The most highly enjoyed beach? You should have done a little research and you would have known no excursion needed. Just a towel to lay down and enjoy the incredible sand and water. Maybe renting a cabana would have helped. Too bad it wasn't a more enjoyable time
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Ricdalek    5 years ago

I wish you had come away with a better feeling from your vacation. However you have a solid view of the "mass market" cruise experience. Great entry-level price but with many options to make the vacation yours. Sensation is a small vessel by today's standards and you might be better served by a larger ship and/or different line. Before you give up on cruising, try a larger vessel. I would recommend one of Royal Caribbeans Voyager, Freedom or Oasis class ships. I would also consider a Norwegian Breakaway class ship. I'm not anti Carnival but you have already done a Carnival cruise.
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CruzeFan    5 years ago

Sorry you didn’t enjoy it. Most people love cruising, but it’s not for everyone. As far as food, we love the option to try foods we have never had and maybe have never heard of. We also always find a good variety and good quality in the main dining room. We rarely spend more on board than the base cruise fare and tips and have a great time. We usually book excursions independently rather than through the ship, but do lots of research and only book through those with good reviews. We love the beach and water, snorkeling, catamaran sails, etc.
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