Not too bad, would recommend to friends. Maybe one extra port coulda made it better.
Embarkation
3 out of 5
Not the best experience but ensuring you had everything ready when it was your turn, it went quick.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
Food sometimes was hit or miss. I had lobster at the seafood restaurant but it was kinda dry and chewy. The rest of the meal was pretty good.
Lobster at the steak house was just right though as was the steak and mac and cheese. The pig and anchor had some great pulled pork (pork butt) and mac and cheese.
The blue iguana made great breakfast burritos.
The coffee shop warmed up pre-made breakfast sandwiches which were good to get before an excursion and minimal time, but the best breakfast I had was in the Italian place.
Ate at ChiBang for lunch one of the sea days and built my own noodle bowl. Really good, way too much for me to eat, dessert was a churro wheel with ice cream and was super tasty.
Entertainment
3 out of 5
Shows were not as good as I was used to but decent.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
Service was fantastic.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
The ship was really beautiful and clean.
Ship tip
Get the basic chat feature for $5. It was super useful to have to get in touch with friends on the ship.
Cozumel is a hit or miss for me for the times I've been there. This time it wasn't too bad but the water wasn't very clear, I think it recently stormed. I went on an independent all inclusion day at nochi cocom. The food and drinks were all really good. They provided chairs and a side table/giant natural looking umbrella that provided a lot of shade. They had a pool as well that had swim up bar service (with stools in the water if you wish to sit). The service was great, the water felt great, the pool water was also great. There was a lot of seaweed on the shore, but to be expected if it just stormed. Getting a taxi was easy and not too expensive, especially if you are sharing the ride. After the taxi ride back to the port, I visited a couple shops for souvenirs and that was my day.
Roatan, I will say that Carnival's private port was quite nice. Felt like I was going to SeaWorld or Busch Gardens with how the little "town" area was set up. We chose the 10 sites to see in Roatan excursion that ended with more than an hour at a beautiful beach with chairs provided. The water was super clear, the beach was super clean, the only drawback was the constant asking if we wanted to buy a bracelet or hummingbird or turtle (handmade items). Every stop we made, they approached us, and multiple times until we could get back on the bus. The rum factory was a quick stop with free tastings of rum and rum cake. Snagged some of the coconut rum to take home. They had a stop at a cameo carving studio. Lots of beautiful items, but they couldn't accept credit cards at that time so not having a lot of cash on hand, meant I could only afford a very simple piece. We visited a chocolate factory and a shop that specializes in making new things out of trash/recycled items. The prices were good and all items were made by someone in the community and money made went back to the community so I found a pair of sea glass earrings to get a souvenir.
Costa Maya, wow, the water was beautiful. We booked a ship excursion to the Blue Lagoon. Met up on time, filled out a waiver and loaded up on a rather new looking bus for about an hour ride out to the lagoon. The excursion was not quite what we were expecting. The water was murky and more green brown than the clear turquoise photo on the excursion description. Walking around into the water, you either stepped on rocks/worn coral, or slimy seaweed. They offered kayaks, not sure if that cost anything or not, we didn't partake.Food and drinks were included. The drinks were made with rum (?) from a clear container. Seemed to be watered down. Beer was also available, poured also from a container, warm and seemed watered down as well. The food wasn't too bad, but they weren't ready with enough food or utensils and the language barrier trying to explain we needed utensils seemed like we were talking to a wall. The music being played by the bartender was a bit too profane for most people's liking, as well as the volume.When asked to change it and turn it down by another guest, he obliged, we came back from the water to more "nasty" music (one of the other guests coined it) and just shook our heads and tried to relax in the provided lounge chairs to start drying off before heading back. Most guests were ready to leave early. Back in port we didn't hit any stores, so no comments on that.
Debarkation for me was pretty easy. I left early so I had all my baggage with me. They had ramps at the port vice waiting for elevators so the wait was very short as be getting through the customs checkpoint went by super easy.
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