August 22 sailing out of New Orleans started off with a much longer than usual embarkation process lines. Our motto is there is no such thing as a bad cruise; some are just better than others. We've been on approx. 30 cruises, 7 with Carnival and were just looking for a quick get-a-way. First and foremost, the crew was friendly and helpful. Our table mates were fantastic. The cruise goes downhill from here. Aside from the starters and desserts (chocolate melting cake!), I can say the food was sub-par. Not one meal was memorable and some entrees were barely eaten. At a table for ten, the concensus was the same around the table. Entertainment was mixed. Good comedy, amateurish dancers-always thought they were suppose to be in synch with their steps, silly me. Tried to avoid the photographers after a whilethey are EVERYWHERE. Casino is on the small side; too many $1 and $5 machines which were barely used and people had to line up and wait for the nickel machines. Seems the casino would do more business by eliminating the high end machines on ecconomy cruise ships and put in more low end machines which would be utilized much more. Sorry this ship is moving to Mobile as we've enjoyed a couple cruises on the Carnival Holiday where the food was excellent! Maybe when you are the smallest, you try harder. The Fantasy needs to be retired. The larger Carnival ships have been very enjoyable.