Carnival Magic Review

Magic Spa Balcony October 2014

Review for the Western Caribbean Cruise on Carnival Magic
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Shaded Lady
6-10 Cruises • Age 60s

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Sail Date: Oct 2014
Cabin: Spa Balcony

The following is part of a blog that I did for our trip... if you want to see all the pre-cruise planning go to my thread entitled Making Magic - Cruise Review October 19 - 26, 2014. There are pictures there if you're interested.

Once we got to the Galveston port it only took about 5 minutes to drop off our suitcases with the porters. That taken care of ----- OH WAIT ----- DON’T FORGET! If you have FTTF make sure you see the porters put the orange tags on your bags, otherwise they might not make it into the bins for earliest delivery! So back to our story, I drove with DH to the parking lot and then we both walked back across the street with our carry-ons to the cruise terminal.

We waited about 45 minutes in the FTTF line to go through security. They check EVERY bottle & can to make sure you aren’t smuggling booze.

Cabin Review

Spa Balcony

Cabin 8S

We had FTTF so we went straight to our cabin, 12015, 12th floor forward, starboard side (translates as front of the ship, right hand side!). Our first balcony, and first time in a spa cabin. I had a ton of questions about this room so I’ll take a few minutes here (and include a few pics) to let you know what a spa cabin with a balcony on the 12th floor is all about!We were the 7th balcony from the front of the ship. Size-wise it’s about the same as all the others we’ve had but is laid out more nicely than the Fantasy-class ships we’ve been on. It had a sofa, an ice bucket and a fridge, although we brought a cooler and used it plus the ice bucket all week, never touched the fridge. DH opened it and felt one of the drinks to confirm what everyone says- it was cool but not cold.The spa balconies on 12 are not covered. There is about a 12 inch overhang from above then metal rails (see pics). What this means is that the balcony is useless in the rain. But when it’s not, the balcony is just great! We used it a lot, night and day! It rarely got so hot from full sun exposure that it was uncomfortable… so while it wasn’t a big deal, if I did it again I’d go for a cabin on the 11th floor, so I’d have the protection from the rain.What comes with a spa cabin? Here’s the list…• Upgraded robes to borrow (way too heavy for me, I never used mine)• 2 pairs of slippers to keep (one size fits all which means they’re probably too big for most women and too small for most men)• 4 oz bottle of linen spray that we used on the pillows every night- LOVED this stuff! I asked in the spa if I could buy some and they told me they don’t sell it! So I asked our steward Chris where I might get some… two hours later I had 3 more bottles! (more about Chris later!)• Elemis spa shampoo & conditioner, body wash and lotion- 4 oz samples only… the stuff you get in the dispensers in the shower are the same as all the other cabins on the ship.• 6 round soaps in the container that the Breathe Right and toothpaste samples used to be in- we got nothing this cruise besides the soaps, I’m not sure if it’s because we were in a spa cabin or if everyone on the cruise was the same.• There’s a note in your room that tells you to also pick up your free Elemis body scrub in the spa… don’t forget to ask for it at the spa because they won’t ask you! You have a choice of 4 scents… I remember one was lavender but I could hardly smell it. I don’t remember the other two, but the one I picked was the Chocolate Peppermint body scrub- it comes in a little gift package with a mini-loofah. It made a great tchotchke for my daughter. The spa amenities were good and we used them quite a bit. The Thalasso pool is like a big hot tub (although mostly just warm) that is supposed to be full of minerals that will relax and rejuvenate those aches and pains. We liked it and it did help a bit, but I’m not sure it’s a magic pill for what ails you! I found that I couldn’t lay on the submerged loungers at all- the bubbles forced me to float and it wasn’t comfortable at all. But I was able to hang out at the end where you enter the pool and I really liked it.The other advantage to the spa cabin is the Cloud 9 Thermal Suites… there are 2 steam rooms- one has a strong mint scent and is very hot (called the Aroma Steam bath), the second is called the Oriental Steam bath and is just a steam room. The other 2 rooms were my favorite. The Tepidarium can be warm and it had tiled loungers that faced the windows, giving you a terrific view. The Laconium also had the loungers, and you reclined more in them and I found them more comfortable. All the loungers in both rooms were heated and were absolutely lovely! Grab a towel from the Thalasso pool area and roll it up under your head as a pillow… but make sure you have someone who can come wake you up after a while!Only note I want to make here is that if you use any of these facilities first thing in the morning (say, around 8 AM) you might find that they’ve just turned things on and they’re not really warm/hot/ready as they will be later in the day.

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