We were on a family vacation with daughter, SIL, and 3 grandkids, 4, 18, 21. We had a blast just being together for 5 days. That's the best part. We headed down to Galveston Saturday morning, parked at EZ Cruise, more about that later. We were on board by noon, ate lunch in the buffet and headed to our rooms. We were in 1039 and the kids were in 1064. Great deck, the spa deck! Loved just walking out the door and onto the lido. Very quiet deck even tho it's behind the slide. Never heard anything! Great steward. Only saw him once, but he was in our room 3 times per day and we never ran into him.

The Ship---I didn't see anything that said she was dated. Carpet seemed newer, common rooms were well kept. Not contemporary in decor but still clean and in shape. I had read that only deck 5 went all the way through so that helped us navigate. No problems with the layout of the ship.

The Food---We didn't eat alot in the buffet, just breakfast a few days. Mostly ate in the London dining room at Anytime dining. We were a party of 7 and we never waited for a table. We ate each night between 6-6:30 so maybe that was the key. Good service each night. One lunch in the Paris Dining room was slow, but we noted that the waiters were also busing tables. They seemed short handed that day. I was glad the escargot was back. Enjoyed it and so did one grandson who was trying everything! The Shepherds pie was a vegan dish and it was okay. It was the only one I tried. Had WCMC 3 times and tried the Bitter n Blanc. Loved it! Eggs Benedict great too! Lunch one day at Chopstix was not good. Had heard it was, but not even as good as a Panda Express. Always a long line, but can't understand what all the hoopla was about. The Deli was good. Had Reuben twice. The lobster and shrimp on elegant night was good. DH had prime rib and liked it. Kids had pork ribs, lots of them! Advice for kids: Last evening the comfort food offered was Meatloaf. Sounds bland, but it was really spicy. My 3 grandkids ordered it and didn't eat it. It wasn't the gravy, but the spice in the meat. Kids loved the ice cream, fresh fruit bowls. Had the Chataubriand one evening and it was good. DH ordered it medium well and me medium rare and rare was better! The Grand Marnier Souffle was great too. Room service chocolate cake was to die for. DH had carrot cake at the Vienna Cafe and it was wonderful too. All in all Carnival food isn't bad, but it's not awesome like NCL or Celebrity. Did gain unwanted weight though! Read more