Anniversary Trip on the MardiGras

Mardi Gras Cruise Review

Cruises: 4-6 cruises
Reviews: 4
Helpful Votes: 40

Overall rating:

4 out of 5
Mardi Gras

7 Night Western Caribbean (Port Canaveral Roundtrip)

Sail date: October 15, 2022

Ship: Mardi Gras

Cabin type: Balcony

Cabin number: 5284

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 2 years ago

Review summary

I have always enjoyed cruising Carnival but I feel that this ship is extremely understaffed which led to long wait times and subpar food. Hopefully they work all that out because it is a Beautiful Ship!

Embarkation

4 out of 5
Quick and easy, just arrive at your scheduled time and you shouldn’t have any issues

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

3 out of 5
Best meal we had was The Chef’s Table, sushi at Bonsai, and the sandwiches at the Panini place next to the pizza stop. We also ate in the Palm dining room, Cucina, Rudi’s Seafood, and Teppanyaki where the food was okay but nothing to brag about

Brass Magnolia Bar

5 out of 5

Best bar on the ship - great service, beautiful bar, and good music

Cucina del Capitano

3 out of 5

Olive Garden type of food but nice to have this option for free

Bonsai Sushi

5 out of 5

Always Delicious

Rudi's Seagrill

3 out of 5

Service was one of the best but once again, not overly impressed with the food.

Emeril’s Bistro 1396

5 out of 5

Delicious breakfast sandwiches and the beignets were amazing

Redfrog Tiki Bar

1 out of 5

Overcrowded and staff was very overwhelmed, after the first two days we avoided this bar and the lido deck the rest of the trip

The Chef's Table

5 out of 5

Fun experience and loved everything that was served

Piazza Piani

5 out of 5

Great options and all of them are good

Bonsai Teppanyaki

3 out of 5

Basic hibachi - garlic, tons of butter, and soy sauce on everything so it all tastes the same

Big Chicken by Shaq

3 out of 5

I felt it was okay, tasted like Chick-Fil-A to me

Onboard Activities

4 out of 5
Spa was very relaxing, nice gym with plenty of equipment. Bolt was cancelled due to rain

Entertainment

4 out of 5
Shows were wonderful as well as the cruise director

Service and Staff

2 out of 5
Definitely understaffed at all levels

Ship Quality

4 out of 5
I didn’t mind the layout. Ship was clean except on lido - it was always so packed that staff had a hard time keeping up with picking up all the crap that people left. Didn’t help that a lot of the vacationers were rude and left plates and cups all over that area

Cabin / Stateroom

4 out of 5
Loved the location of this cabin and the cove balcony. Unfortunately, room steward was not great.

Ship tip

Anytime Dining - with this option you can check into any of the free restaurants for dinner starting at 530. If you book a specific dinner time, I believe you have to wait until 7 to try and get into anything else besides main dining room.

Ports of call

Costa Maya (Mahahual), Mexico

5 out of 5
First time here, great little port to walk around. We did the bird sanctuary and enjoy it - the views were beautiful

Cozumel, Mexico

5 out of 5
We booked Mr. Sancho’s - service, food, and drinks were top notch. Unfortunately it rained most of the day so we didn’t use the beach much but the food and service made it an enjoyable day

Port Canaveral, Florida

5 out of 5
Easy on and easy off. Employees were very nice

Mahogany Bay, Roatan, Bay Islands, Honduras

5 out of 5
Enjoyed the beach right at the port as well as the food the restaurant served.

Disembarkation

5 out of 5
Off the ship in 10 minutes

Traveler Photos

Bird Sanctuary, $12 a person, right at the port Voodoo Moon Show
Was this review helpful? 9

9 Comments

Cruisers4Lyfe     3 months ago

Thanks for sharing

Gwbigdog    2 years ago

Thanks for sharing your cruise

byhisgrace    2 years ago

Thanks for your review

biv278    2 years ago

We cruised Mardi Gras back in May and had the same opinion on service and food. Way to many people on board.

javawoody    2 years ago

Appreciate the review

WhippetMum    2 years ago

Glad you mainly enjoyed your cruise.

Ramsey1986    2 years ago

Happy Anniversary! 🎉 I am glad that you enjoyed your cruise on the Carnival Mardi Gras. We have not cruised on the Mardi Gras or done a Western Caribbean itinerary so I appreciate your informative feedback. Thank you for taking the time to share your review. 😎

AuntPinkie    2 years ago

Appreciate your feedback. Happy anniversary.

lsbs    2 years ago

Thanks for sharing.

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