It was our first cruise on Carnival. We chose Carnival this time for its best "value for money" rating. First, the embarkation was easy and quick. It took us about 15 minutes from the check-in terminal to our cabin. We got a balcony room on veranda level, and it was clean and roomy enough (185 sf) for two people with lots of room for storage. There was a small thermostat in the cabin, but is seemed useless. There was only one 110 volt electric outlet in the cabin. The trip was on November and there were few children on board so the ship did not seem to be crowded. Most of the Carnival employees are polite but not friendly. The food on Carnival was a big disappointment (except for the tasty Guy's burger on the Lido deck). The "Nightclub Express" and the "Far from Over" shows on Carnival Valor were awesome (the ship director "Classy Cassie" was excellence). Most of the ship's shore excursions were overpriced.