Let me preface this review by saying that this is a makeup cruise from Carnival in compensation for the difficult experience we had on the Carnival Splendor that stranded in the middle of the Pacific Ocean due to an engine room fire. Carnival refunded most (but not all) of our expenses from the Splendor experience and gave us an equivalent cruise at no cost. I think Carnival did a great job in handling an unfortunate situation. A note to other seafarers: we had light and air because we had a balcony room and we brought 3 small flashlights. Many others suffered in dark stifling rooms. Balcony rooms may well be worth the extra cost.

The itinerary attracted us to this cruise. We have been to NY and Boston previously but these cities so interesting that you can have a great time regardless. No need for an excursion. The public transportation is excellent and easy to navigate. We had never been to Maine and this part of Canada so we were eager to sign up for excursions and snap away with the camera. Foliage? Well it's always hit and miss. We came at the right time but there had been no cold snap to freeze the color into the leaves. Instead, we saw a lot of muted browns and yellows on the trees. Soon the leaves will fall before they can bring a riot of colors. Oh well, some other year.

We have been on several Carnival cruises. This is one of their bigger ships and we certainly felt the size of the crowd. Example: for the excellent nightly show in the massive Amber Palace theater, you had to come at least 30 minutes early to get a good seat. By 10 minutes to show time, the only seats left were scattered singles or obstructed view seats (there are quite a few support columns). Even the bingo events filled up of the theater. The same is true of the Red Sail buffer, although the really long lines were short lived. However, other than these two venues, the ship did not feel crowded. Read more