Carnival Ecstasy Review
Rating by category
Additional details
This is our first cruise as a family so I do not have a comparison cruise. I chose the 7 days cruise with 4 sea days and port of call at Nassau, Half Moon Cay and Grand Turks. I was pleasantly surprised by the ship and her crew after reading the negative previous reviews.
I do not regularly write reviews but the recent reviews that I read definitely do not reflect my experience so I thought it was necessary.
The ship had been through a recent dry dock with updates for Blue Iguana Cantina, Guy Fierri's Grill, Alchemy and the water park. I really could not imagine the ship before these new additions.The Ecstasy was visibly whiter with bolder colors than the much newer sister ship docked beside us at Grand Turks. This ship was clean and cared for. Ecstasy's crew would wash down the decks every single night, the bathrooms were always clean, the staff continuously wiped down the tables, chairs, stairs, and shampooed the carpets. Hourly, I saw an adult or child spill something and simply walk away without making an effort to clean up the mess. Those messes were immediately attended to.
Cabin Review
Balcony
Our cabin was a starboard aft balcony and was tended to well by our steward, named Mr. Suata. We had 2 adults and 2 school aged children so we used the bed and 2 pullman's with space. I did hit myself twice on the pullman's corners and, on a future cruise, I would bring a corner stopper for these edges. The balcony was comfortable and well worth it for morning sunbathing when heading south or afternoon sunbathing when heading back north. It was also a wonderful location from which to look at the flying fish during daytime and the planets, stars and moon at night. Also, the balcony was a nice respite during midday when the decks were packed with people.
Port Reviews
Grand Turk
I did not do an excursion and instead enjoyed the beach and pool which were both within 50 yards of the dock. These locations were extremely convenient. My boys and I spent every possible minute at both locations and had a blast. My wife did a horseback riding excursion and has a less than enthusiastic review.
Half Moon Cay
My family and I enjoyed each of the ports at Nassau, Half Moon Cay or Grand Turk. I can honestly say that Half Moon Cay's sand, crystal clear water and amenities were the best part of the 7 days cruise. We took the 2nd to last tender back to the ship since we knew that it would be a long time before we experienced a beautiful beach like that again.
Charleston
This is a very convenient city for my family to depart from since it is a 2 hour drive away. The city is beautiful and well worth a visit.