Well this was my second cruise; my first was with Royal Caribbean. I went with a group of 4 girls and we had a blast! Firstly I was so surprised how quick and easy it was to board the ship; we got there around 11:30 and was onboard around 11:45! wow; pretty sweet. we got onboard; grabbed a drink and walked throughout the ship and also had lunch. At 1:30 we were able to go to our stateroom and I was so surprised at how big it was. My previous cruise our room was so tiny and the bathroom was tiny; the oceanview room we had on the Elation was wonderful with lots of closet space and the bathroom and shower in it was huge. We also had really nice bathrobes in our room which were nice. I was quite impressed. The ship left our port during the safety drill so we weren't able to be all together where we wanted during take off but we were still able to watch it leave port so that wasn't bad. The activities were great; there was so much to do. the shows were fun and enjoyable; although I didn't care much for the show they had the final night; it was mainly a bunch of old people singing (the passengers on the ship) and it lasted way too long; I had to leave during the middle which was about an hour into it. but most of the entertainment was great. Dinner was a fun occasion every night; especially on the 2 formal nights. our wait staff of Anthony and Ricky were great. I really appreciated them and their prompt attention. The food was also good and plentiful. Ports: we stopped in 3 ports; Cabo San Lucas, La Paz and Ensenada. all 3 were great; I didn't do any of the ships excursions; but I took off and had a blast touring the cities and just hanging out and doing shopping; it was easy getting on and off the ship. The Lido deck was great and had a live band playing many times during the day; it was nice and sunny out and so it was a big hang out for most people. the pools were really nice and the waterslide was loads of fun. I also enjoyed all the people taking pictures; It was fun seeing the pictures hanging up; they were a little overpriced; I only bought one but still had fun getting my picture taken and seeing the pictures. All in all I had a blast; I loved the ship and would totally sail Carnival again.