I never wanted to go on a Carnival cruise. My cruise experiences have been with Celebrity (the vast majority), 2 Holland America, and 1 Royal Caribbean. Carnival was not for me: too loud, too young, too "party atmosphere". I especially didn't want to go on Carnival's oldest ship! My late DH and I went on an older Celebrity ship (Millennium), and found that ship to be quite shabby (and the crew was terrible!).
But, a large group of friends were going, and they convinced me to give Carnival a try.
What a pleasant surprise! Yes, the ship is older, so the amenities are not all there. But my cabin was clean and spacious. True, some of the finishes could be updated, but I had plenty of room! My steward, Farhan, was great, and kept me well stocked in towels.
Spacious, clean, great steward. Could stand a little updating, but very good as it is.
Not very crowded, but they REALLY call out to you to come in their store. One jewelry salesman was a little pushy, but no big deal.
embarkation and disembarkation went very smoothly
Crowded, and I didn't think the deals were great. But then, I wasn't really looking to buy.