Excellent cruise! Not my favorite layout but still great!
Embarkation
2 out of 5
This was the worst embarkation process I have been to. Normally when they check your passports at security on the way in, they will stamp your paper. However, this time, they did not do so and they didn’t tell you to do so until an announcement was made as they begun to call boarding groups. Then they told us you had to go all the way to the back of the waiting area and get it stamped. The line did not move for almost 30 minutes and I think someone said because their computers went down. Our group was called as we were waiting in line. We got on closer to 1pm and I missed my nail appointment, which I guess is my fault for booking it so early but I have never had this problem. Embarkation is normally a lot smoother. This is also our first time leaving from NYC. But In Miami and Jersey they never had these issues!
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
Normal Carnival food but main dining room was on point for the most part. I love carnival food usually, except for the buffet but I only went there once. No complaints!
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
Entertainment
5 out of 5
Piano Bar with Gustavo was my favorite! By far one of our favorites! He was funnier than some of the comedians in my opinion. But overall it was great! I didn’t watch many shows. The welcome show, the club, piano bar, the violinists, and the outside performers were all great. Of course I cannot forget Missy and Gabe! I love them! This is the 3rd cruise we have seen them and they’re always amazing!
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
Service is always great on carnival and the staff are great! Mar-Q was awesome! We had him as our Cruise Director on our first cruise in 2019 and he has always been my second favorite Cruise Director! He was great when we met him and was excited when we told him we had him before!
Ship Quality
3 out of 5
Cleanliness was great. Don’t get me wrong. However, this wasn’t my favorite ship design. I liked the Italian style as I am Sicilian… but it reminded me of the Horizon but not as good.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
The cabin was great especially considering there were 4 of us. I always love the balcony. The Murphy bunk bed was great for my kid! I also loved being on Lido deck made things a lot easier!
Half Moon Cay is hands down one of my top favorite places ever! Had the fish swimming around us because my husband decided to feed them with bread and they were so beautiful! The water is so clear and the sand is so soft! The weather wasn’t great! Chilly at times with the clouds and rained a bit! Thankfully the worst of the rain came after we were back on board!
The disembarkation with the new digital disembarkation was confusing for many apparently. My family and I completely understood but Mar-Q had to make announcements a few times to tell people how to disembark the right way. Then one of the escalators broke so they had to halt disembarkation. We thought we would have to wait forever. However, one amazing staff, I wish I remembered her name, helped us get out faster because we were waiting patiently with a lot of luggage and a child and we got out almost an hour before we would’ve. That made the whole process so much easier!
Thanks for the detailed review. I had confusion and lines at embarkation! I love the new digital debarkation but people just pretend they don’t understand and it slows down the works!
Thanks for the review. Yes most embarkations are pretty quick these days but I would still consider getting on a ship before 1pm to be a success, especially in NY.
My wife & I are going on the same carnival cruise ship in January, I was a little sceptical about this ship because of the reviews, but my wife said she wants to see for herself, so whatever she says goes lol!! We’ve been on 6 cruises & this will be our 7th, we are cruising out of Orlando which we love, New York is to confusing for us. I’m glad you had a great time, hopefully we won’t be disappointed on this cruise ship!!
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