I'd been on two other Carnival Cruises that were 5 days. This was a 7 day cruise out of Miami which stopped in Half Moon Cay, Puerto Rico, Grand Turk and St. Thomas. This ship is definitely fun to say the very least. The faces of U.S. American Presidents encircle the lobby of this massive ship. The lobby was considerably smaller than the lobby's of the older ships in which I've traveled in the past, with lower ceilings but the overall size of the ship made up for it. The embarkation was impressively fast considering how many people were trying to board the ship. As soon as we got on, we were able to have a drink in hand right away. Luggage was waiting by the door very shortly after the ship set sail. I had a very opulent oceanview cabin with oodles of natural light. It had a couch and a coffee table and a large vanity area. The safety briefing was a tad lengthy, but that was definitely due to how many people were trying to find the right place to go in case of an Emergency. It was hard to get back into party mode after that.

As far as the clientele, it was nice to ship out of Miami because you have a nice mixture of people of different races and from different parts of the US. Our family is biracial and we appreciate diversity.

I would have to say the best part of the ship was definitely the Serenity adults-only deck. On the Carnival Valor this deck has two stories! It has two hot tubs, which were wonderful to enjoy under a full moon and a clear sky. The deck is away from all the music and activities and has more than enough of the soft lounge chairs for maybe 100 people to enjoy. Read more