We chose the Carnival Vista for our Mom & Daughter cruise! We wanted a stress free vacation to celebrate high school graduation and time together before everyone is off doing their own thing. As first time cruisers, we had an absolute blast! The weather was great, the ports were exciting, onboard dining and activities were amazing. Perfect vacation!
Embarkation
5 out of 5
To make sure there were no hiccups, we arrived the day before. Our pre-arranged transportation dropped us off at Port Canaveral. Smiling faces of Carnival team members helped us get onboard in 15-20 minutes!
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
5 out of 5
As a first time cruiser, we had to get used to leaving our dishes on the table! We enjoyed trying different cuisines in the dining room! Your time dining was amazingly convenient and the dining and specialty restaurant teams were super friendly and accommodating to those in our party that had food allergies. The afternoon tea was also a nice surprise to spend time with family! We sampled food from almost all of the specialty restaurants - everything was tasty 😋. If you have foodies in the family, we highly recommend The Chefs Table.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
There is so much to do onboard and you simply cannot do it all. The Carnival Hub app was great to keep up with what is happening on the ship and update your planner with activities of interest. The Hub chat feature ($5/person) is highly recommended! The Cloud 9 Spa was a perk with our cabin and we visited the thermal spa every day! Be ready for the upsale of product and services at the Spa. Even us BIG kids got to play on the water slides... pools were busy with kids most days so the Serenity deck was my personal escape to enjoy the sights, sun, and music.
Entertainment
5 out of 5
Hands down, the entertainment was fantastic! The performers were so talented, from the theater shows, Piano Bar, comedy shows, deck parties, and even the karaoke 🎤.
Children's Programs
No children in our party.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
Even when it looked like controlled chaos, the Carnival team maintained professionalism and smiling faces. Being a first time cruiser, I am certain we asked some silly questions and got turned around more than once trying to find activities and dining. Our room steward, Hamid, was pleasant and helpful!
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
Carnival team members were out and about cleaning and squeegeeing the deck constantly. Maintenance team members just blended in and did what they needed to do. It took until day 2 to finally get a handle on the ships layout. Only issue we had were times we walked through the casino - yucky lingering 🤮 cigarette smoke within the corridor.
Cabin / Stateroom
4 out of 5
So glad we read up on some great cruise tips to bring multi-port extension cord for our electronics, magnetic hooks, over the door shoe holder, and pop-up hamper! Really helped us keep our room organized. There is ample drawer and closet space for our clothes and to stow our suitcases. The spa perks and balcony view were well worth it. Only issue we had was that we booked two side-by-side cabins and thought our balcony door would open to enjoy larger space. Unfortunately, it could not be opened since it would interfere with the exit door to the balcony for one of our rooms. So, double check that when booking!
Ship tip
Very much a FUN ship! Early risers get to enjoy the ship and beautiful sunrise with breakfast and coffee 😉 .
We enjoyed the Stingray Adventure and Horseback Riding excursions. Easy to get around the island. With the heat, drinks don't stay cool or frozen long. Recommend packing ice in refillable containers.
We enjoyed the dolphin, sea lions, and shark encounter excursion. OceanWorld takes pictures for you so that you can enjoy the experiences. The picture package orice is very reasonable.
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