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It's not my intent to knock the cruise down by any means, as I did not have an unpleasant time on it, quite to the contrary, notwithstanding the room size which was disappointing. A room the same size and configuration as the Grand Suite -- one with a balcony, is basically a balcony room, not a suite, in most cruise ships, and cost much less. A suite, on the other hand, is generally a larger room that have two or more sections -- generally the bed area is one section and the living room is another. Suites also include many other perks in most ships, such as flowers, fruit baskets, and even some alcoholic drinks. This was certainly not the case on the Fantasy.
Furthermore, the VIP treatment I paid for was minimal. My "priority" embarkation and debarkation turned out to be no more than everybody else's. And, just like anyone else, I had to wait in line for dining.
Another drawback that I had was that in order for me to access the Serenity retreat area I have to go through an auditorium, which many times will have their chairs placed in a manner in which I can't get through without disrupting the show that's in progress (I use a power chair and can only get into the retreat through some doors and ramps in that area. Ambulatory people generally walk down a flight of stairs from the Lido deck, while I have to wheel through an auditorium on the promenade deck.)
That being said, I have to admit that the service was magnificent on board the Fantasy. All of the staff members were friendly except the bar servers, who, even for the disabled, will not start anything but bar drinks for which they charge. Sometimes the bar servers are the only staff members there at certain areas, such as the Serenity Retreat, an adult only area located on the aft of the ship. Because of my disability several specialists, servers, matre d''s, and hosts have bent backwards to help me whenever they could.
I can't say enough how magnificent the food was as well as the variety. Whenever someone asks me "what did I eat during the cruise?" I usually respond, "what didn't I eat during the cruise?"
I could not go through even an inch of the ship without carrying my camera -- this was a must! There were very unique items to photograph, and to have photographs taken of me and the fellow I took on the cruise with me. Even the evening buffets have a unique and breathtaking feature that was worth taking pictures of. On Wednesday night they had a nice ice sculpture of which I took photo.
The weather was magnificent throughout most of the cruise, especially at the ports of call we went through. In this cruise it was Grand Turk and the Bahamas. There were three ports of call overall but I could not get off at the second port of call because it was a tendered port at which I was unable to exit because my power chair. But I did take as many pictures as I could from the ship.
Notwithstanding the disappointing size and lack of amenities of my state room, I still have to say the cruise was excellent and a very memorable one. If I can get an accessible room for a lot less money than I paid for this state room, I would certainly consider getting on the Carnival Fantasy for another cruise in the future.
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