I'm 51 and my partner is 42. We have been on 8 Royal Caribbean cruises and 1 NCL cruise in the past few years, but this was our first try with Carnival. My travel agent, whom I trust, recommended that we give Carnival a try. Frankly, I had really heard nothing but negative comments from people I know who have sailed on Carnival, however; I have to admit that I have few friends who have sailed with them. I was pleasantly surprised by Carnival.
We arrived at the cruise terminal about noon. There were very few people there yet and check in took only moments. For some reason, my partner received a gold Sail and Sign Card indicating prior cruise experience with Carnival, which neither of us had. Anyway, the ship was not quite ready so we had to wait in the terminal for about 1/2 hour before we could board.
The boarding process went fairly smoothly. I have read the reviews of the decor on Miracle and I did not find it offensive. Granted, it's not nearly as subdued and elegant as RCCL, but it was pleasant none the less. I did notice that the ceilings seemed unusually low in the public areas which seemed odd. The ship was clean and well maintained.