My husband and I booked a 5 night cruise on the Carnival Elation from New Orleans to Cozumel and Progreso. Our oceanview cabin on deck 7 was spacious enough but dated with some obvious wear and tear. The cover on the corner light under the television was falling off and one of the medicine cabinet doors in the bathroom would not stay closed. The safety demonstration seemed a bit disorganized compared to what we had experienced sailing with Norwegian.

We had the 8:15 (late) dining option in the Inspiration. Our headwaiter Fernando was amazing but the other waitstaff were less enthusiastic and the bar waiter had issues each night understanding our drink orders, delivering them to the correct table, and charging our cards when we had already purchased the Cheers drink package. The food was also underwhelming and the portions on certain dishes were sparse. The food served at Tiffany's and by the pool was tasty but the lines were long most of the time.

We liked the comedy club idea but thought both of the comedians were a bit of a disappointment. The rock show in the main theatre was great but we were disinterested in the rest of the line-up. Our favorite entertainment was J.R. Herrera in playing a variety of country/classic rock songs in the Atrium bar. We went to listen to him play each night before dinner and thoroughly enjoyed it. Overall, a majority of the staff we encountered seemed unenthusiastic with the exception of our headwaiter Fernando, and bartenders Savio, Chai, Anna Maria, and Eugene. Read more