We had been taking yearly cruises until the last one in 2014. Happily we could go again and signed up The Magic. It is the sister ship of the Dream in which we took in 2012 and enjoyed.
Embarkation and disembarkation went well. We stayed in a balcony room and enjoyed morning coffee and room service on our deck each morning. This ship is very clean and kept pretty well (some touch up paint here and there needed). The decor was understated and not as I remember with art on other ships. As usual we travel in February to avoid many kids but not so this trip with many young children aboard. At times it made finding a seat in a quiet place hard and we retreated to our room. Still there was kids in the hot tub below our deck screaming in fun. Oh, well.
The Dining room had good service and a nice staff however the closeness of the tables for two left absolutely no room for intimate conversation and felt cramped. Still we did have some great table "partners". Our particular waiters were rushed and we did not get to talk with them which we usually enjoy on cruises. We felt the food was not up to par compared to other Carnival Cruises but maybe that is so you will go to the specialty pay restaurants.