Early Anniversary Celebration

There was a lack of signage on where automobile passengers and drop off passengers should go. Employees working at the four (4) different port access gates did not know where people were supposed to go. Employees working at the passenger assembly point did not understand what was going on. Vehicle flow for those being tested in their cars and then parking on site was a disaster: multiple lanes folded down to a single lane then expanded back to multiple lanes. Way too few medical personnel performing the actual vehicular COVID testing in the parking lot. Employees working at the passenger assembly point were confusion about where those tested in their automobile should go vs. passengers that had been dropped off and had not been tested yet - causing these two (2) populations to get mixed up and some passengers ultimately being sent to the wrong line. Need more clean & warm bathrooms. While waiting outside of building to check-in, there was only one a port-a-potty avilable. Once inside the building, only the men's restroom was open so both men and women had to take turns sharing the same space. Severe confusion inside the warehouse at the pre-covid question screening stations, people being directed to the wrong lines, inefficient use of space available. Way too few medical personnel performing the actual COVID testing inside the warehouse. Way too many non-medical personnel (not performing the actual COVID testing inside the warehouse), many standing around doing nothing, providing no information and when asked a question, they had no idea what the answer was. Incomplete information being provided to passengers about where to find covid test results: people were being told only to check for a text but many passengers received results via email. It is clearly evident that the Charleston port embarkation process is suffering from poor pre-planning, poor use of resources, too many employees doing non-value add jobs, terrible facilities, too few employees at choke points, poor layout, poor line structure, poor process flow, there were multiple bottleneck / choke points. This was the second sailing since the port reopened so hopefully these concerns will be addressed and a better process will be implemented.

Coffee Shop, Deck 5: Hetty & Marija. These ladies make great coffee, are fun & personable. Alchemy Bar, Deck 5: Dusan, Zoltan, Evan. This trio of guys make a fantastic team. Great example of being ambassadors of the Carnival brand. Very knowledgeable, efficient, clean and provide great conversation. They know how to take care of their customers. These guys should receive extra recognition for their hard work and dedication to Carnival and their passengers. Anytime Dining Service Team, Deck 3: Dewa (“D”), Hendra, I Komang. This team was very friendly, easy to speak with, attentive, wanted to make sure our dining experience was the best. They worked together very well and made our dining memorable. Bonsai Sushi, Ji Ji Asian Kitchen and Fahrenheit 555 Steakhouse were fabulous. Fanstastic service and amazing food. These are well worth paying the extra surcharge. Seaday Brunch is always a hit! Plenty of selections to satify your taste buds. The skillet cake and 12 hour french toast are yummy yummy. The team working at the pizzeria were entertaining and accommodating. As there was ususally not a line, they were always able to make a pizza just how I wanted it, four cheese with pepperoni. The Lido Marketplace was good and always had a nice selection. There was plenty of choice and items were retocked often. The Deli provides plenty of alternatives and their truffle fries are the best around. The only complaint was that turkey bacon was used instead of pork bacon but this was not made known ahead of time. You didn't find out until you were eating your sandwich and noticed that the bacon was slightly different. Sandwiches were still enjoyable but it would have been nice to know that turkey bacon was being used prior to ordering. Being able to enjoy free selections from Ji Ji Asian Kitchen and Cucina del Capitano during lunch is always a treat. This makes for a nice change from the buffet. On this ship, the Havana Bar served Cuban appetizers for breakfast and lunch. They were all delicious and we found ourselves going there first to grab a bite before heading to the buffet or main dining room.

The pools and hot tubs were comfortable. All were quite crowded most of the days but we were able to find some down times were we had them to ourselves. The Dive-In movies shown were a good selection and we especially liked the throw back showing of Back to the Future. It would be nice if there were multiple showings each night say at 6pm, 9pm and midnight. The old fashioned horse races were fun and something different. Beware, only cash bets are accepted. Good variety of trivia games and genres.

Jonathan Timpanelli was fantastic! His show was very entertaining and enjoyable. He provided a variety of songs and genres while interacting with the audience. He was humorous and lighthearted. There was only one production show in the main theater. It was the welcome show on the first night. There was no explanation for why other productions were not done. They tried to fill the void with comedian/jugglers and the house band. We did not see any of those shows. The musicians were entertaining and performed a wide variety of music. The was a lot of difficulty with the ship's satellite and getting channels to come through on the television. There were long periods of time where many channels were not available.

We did not have children that participated in programs.

Room Stewards, Deck 6: Komang & Thanka. These guys took really great care of us. Positive attitudes, helpful, accommodating. Yvonne, receptionist in the main dining room, was very friendly and always got us seated at the perfect table. We like to sit at the back where we can view the wake and she delivered every time. All of the staff we encountered were joyous, helpful and engaging.

The ship's layout and design were fine. Everything was meticulously cleaned. This is an older ship and it needs some TLC. Our balcony was very worn. Railings need to be refurbished and painted. Some of the common area bathrooms have very small stalls which made it difficult to close the door without straddling the toilet. The main theater was too warm on several occasions.

We purchased a last minute upgrade to a balcony on deck 6, cabin 6343. It was comfortable but needs some attention. The AC did not blow much air so it was good that we had our own fan. The shower head dripped. The bathroom door did not have any tension so it would swing back and forth easily when the ship was swaying. This caused us to have to put towels down in front of and behind it to keep the door from slamming. The balcony glass needs a deep cleaning and the railings need to be scraped and painted.