Great cruise, too big of ship

Item: Mardi Gras
Rating: 3.3
Author: honeyb2858

Mardi Gras Cruise Review to Caribbean - Eastern

honeyb2858

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Review: 1

Helpful Votes: 12

Overall rating:

3.3 out of 5

7 Night Eastern Caribbean (Port Canaveral Roundtrip)

Sail date: November 06, 2021

Ship: Mardi Gras

Cabin type: Balcony

Cabin number: 12307

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 3 years ago

Review summary

Mardi Gras is a beautiful ship but way too big. Was very hard to get around because of the size.

Embarkation

5 out of 5

Great except that diamond and platinum guests did not have priority embarking

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

4 out of 5

Rudy's seafood was not worth the money for the amount of food that was received. Buffet has the same breakfast daily. Main dining room was great. Didn't have to sit there for 2 hours. Guys pig and anchor was great. Good food. Guys burgers was always great.

Palm Restaurant

5 out of 5

Very good. Didn't have to spend 2 hours for a meal. Edwin was amazing. Ate dinner there more than usual.

Street Eats

1 out of 5

Seemed like it was never open. Some days for only 2 hours

Seafood Shack

1 out of 5

Food was ok. A long wait after ordering

Rudi's Seagrill

1 out of 5

Not worth the price for the amount of food received

Pizzeria del Capitano

2 out of 5

Seemed to always burn the pizza.

Piazza Piani

4 out of 5

Good sandwiches. Sometimes a long line

Lido Marketplace

3 out of 5

Same breakfast foods daily.

JavaBlue Cafe

4 out of 5

Long lines for coffee but had amazing breakfast sandwiches

Guy's Pig & Anchor Smokehouse / Brewhouse

4 out of 5

Very good meats. Sides were kinda bland

Guy's Burger Joint

5 out of 5

As always, very good

Fortune Teller Bar

2 out of 5

Very crowded. Could never get a place to sit.

Cucina del Capitano

5 out of 5

Has awesome lunch bowls.

BlueIguana Cantina

5 out of 5

Only had breakfast but was awesome

Big Chicken by Shaq

5 out of 5

Very good food

Bar della Rosa

2 out of 5

The only bar in the smoking section. Cherie was amazing

Alchemy Bar

5 out of 5

Very entertaining. Nicola was our best bartender. Made amazing drinks.

Onboard Activities

3 out of 5

Always something to do but with the ship being so big and crowded, it was hard to get around.

Atrium

1 out of 5

No atrium. Walk onto center stage

The Fun Shops

1 out of 5

Very small and spread out over 3 floors. Not much merchandise

Mardi Gras Casino

2 out of 5

Smoking side very small. Had only the newer games no quarter games

Serenity Adult-Only area

5 out of 5

Very peaceful. Rarely crowded

Guest Services

5 out of 5

Awesome. Very short wait time.

Cherry on Top

3 out of 5

Very small

Entertainment

5 out of 5

Comedy shows were excellent

Punchliner Comedy Club

3 out of 5

Very good. Seemed a bit smaller and cold inside

Mardi Gras Theater

3 out of 5

Very nice but cold in the theater

Service and Staff

5 out of 5

Great service from the staff. Seemed like they were happier than previous cruises

Ship Quality

1 out of 5

Layout was bad. Too spread out. Shopping was on 3 different floors and the stores were a lot smaller. No atrium on the ship. Walk into center stage. The cleanliness was very good. If you smoke, there's only 2 places outdoors and they are near nothing. On 17 under the bolt which is very noisy and on 8 with nothing around. The casino smoking side is very small.

Cabin / Stateroom

1 out of 5

They changed the layout of the room. The bed was immediately there upon entering the room not by the balcony door. Husband had a scooter rental and had to take the seat and basket off in order to get it in the room to charge and store for overnight. Our room steward was absolutely amazing

Ship tip

Need walking shoes. Very large ship and nothing close.

Thumbs up

Ports of call

Port Canaveral, Florida

5 out of 5

San Juan, Puerto Rico

1 out of 5

Amber Cove (Puerto Plata), Dominican Republic

5 out of 5

Nassau, Bahamas

2 out of 5

Port under construction and getting to the street was about a mile walk! They had about 3 gf carts but were always crowded

Thumbs Up 1

Disembarkation

5 out of 5

Need to figure out a better way of exiting after getting luggage.

8 Comments

izrgreen 3 years ago

Thank you for taking the time to write a review

Thumbs Up 1

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javawoody 3 years ago

Thanks for the review

Thumbs Up 1

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BrianandBilly 3 years ago

Of course the ship is spread out.....its the BIGGEST and best of CCL fleet.

Thumbs Up 4

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CruzeFan 3 years ago

Thanks for the review. People either seem to love or hate the ship layout / design. It appears it’s not for everyone.

Thumbs Up 2

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cruising2004 3 years ago

Thank you for sharing your experience. Agree, the rooms are smaller. We saw several scooters outside of the rooms because they can’t make it past the bed.

Thumbs Up 1

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Curt34 3 years ago

Thanks for the review.

Thumbs Up 1

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mary0909 3 years ago

It sounds like an overall good ship except the size. Did you look into a handicap accessible room for the scooter? They should have some available when booking

Thumbs Up 1

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AuntPinkie 3 years ago

Appreciate your feedback. Sorry this cruise didn’t meet your expectations.

Thumbs Up 0

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