Carnival Ecstasy Review

3.5 / 5.0
1,057 reviews

Making the Best of an Old Ship

Review for the Bahamas Cruise on Carnival Ecstasy
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Ginamarie
10+ Cruises • Age 40s

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Sail Date: May 2012
Cabin: Balcony

We booked this cruise to the Bahamas as a getaway for my husband and I. We'll have our tenth anniversary this year, and wanted to celebrate, but could only find babysitters in May, so we celebrated early.

Embarkation: We had rented a car from Budget and were shuttled to the pier. Ecstasy is now located at the far (old) pier area. I understand that they're finishing up a new Carnival terminal. It is needed. The terminal is too small, even for a twenty year old ship (which is much smaller than the newer liners). The crowds reached outside of the building and snaked around back and forth. There was no "repeat cruiser" lane, just a line for VIPs, and I saw noone use it. It was hot waiting outside. Once we got inside, we found ourselves in a circular domed building, which reminded me of xanadu. There were two old air conditioners, and you could only cool down by standing directly in front of them if that's where you were in the line. Carnival employees were friendly, but embarkation took too long, basically because the terminal was not set up for that many people.

Cabin: We had previously been on the Carnival Miracle and loved the size of our cabin. The Ecstasy is an older ship, and the cabin sizes reflect that. We originally booked an inside cabin, but were offered an upsell to a balcony cabin for a great price. I'm glad we took it. The cabin was ok. It was on the small side, but usable. There was plenty of storage, especially for a short cruise. The bathroom size was pretty good. It had a stall shower, which was fine for us, but we prefer a bathtub when sailing with the kids. The balcony really added to our space. We enjoyed sitting out there day and night. Our cabin was at the end of the aft balconies, so we had a slightly extended space, which was also nice. Our steward kept the room relatively clean, though sometimes he didn't reach our room until later in the evening, so we couldn't retire as early as we would have liked.

Cabin Review

Balcony

Cabin 8A

E217 is a great room. The balcony is slightly extended because you're at the end of the row, closest to midship. Storage is good. It was relatively quiet. Great location if you want to be near the dining rooms.

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