We chose this cruise because it matched our tight schedule and small-ish budget. I've sailed on Carnival before so I knew what to expect, however this cruise still didn't meet my limited expectations. Here's a pro/con list: Pros: -Value (if you didn't pay for ANY extras which were pushed constantly) -Comfy bed -All of the staff were great! -The ports were fun (Roatan and Cozumel). We didn't pay Carnival for excursions, we got a taxi and explored. Cost about a quarter of what the cruise line charges and there were no crowds or waiting in line. -Guy's Burger Joint is SUPER delicious -The taco stand is not bad -My 6 year old loved the slides -Breakfast delivered to your room in the morning. Just old pastries and cereal but at least the coffee was hot. Cons: -The amount of "down time" on board was far more than I expected. We are a young family with 2 kids (ages 6 and 4) and there was literally nothing to do together except eat meals and try to "swim" in the incredibly packed swimming pool. I feel there was a huge lack of activities if you're not interested in gambling, drinking, and paying extra for baby-sitting to go to the night-clubs which didn't open until 10pm. -Camp Ocean, which provides childcare at certain times during the cruise, was pretty blah. Yeah, you can drop off your kids sometimes. But Carnival makes it sound like it's going to be super exciting with adventurous activities. In reality they just did a LOT of coloring and watching movies. -The kids' dinner menu was pretty limited and even my 6 year old ended up eating mostly off of the adult menu because it was so blah. The chicken nuggets were exactly like McDonald's. Not terrible but certainly nothing fun or special. Same for kids' desserts. Basically just a bowl of melted ice cream. -The adult dining menu was also very limited. There was either exotic items like braised rabbit or plain grilled chicken breast that you can make at home. Not much in between. So for those expecting an upscale steak or seafood option, again you're paying more ($20 fee). -Disappointing 24-hour pizza and ice cream. The kids were super excited about these things. Pizza and ice cream anytime you want!! It's really hard to mess up pizza! We tried each exactly one time. The pizza had razor thin crust, tomato skins in the sauce and a tiny bit of cheese. The "ice cream" was bland soft-serve frozen yogurt-type stuff. No toppings or anything. Again, not disgusting just...sad. -The buffet was either packed at mealtimes or closed in between (except for the sad pizza). No place to get snacks for the kids in the afternoon around 3 o'clock when everyone gets hungry. There was a plate of fruit left out so we ate that most days. So many apples in 5 days! Buffet was closed almost every time we tried to eat there. -The shows were ok but there wasn't nearly enough entertainment. Our evenings left us "all dressed up with no place to go!" Again, after dinner if you're not going to gamble or stay up for the 10 o'clock opening of the night-clubs, you're sort of left wandering the ship. Which is fine for a night or two but after that it was frustrating having to scrounge for something to do. We'd drop off the kids after dinner and then be like...ok now what? There's a 20 minute comedy act and then...nothing at all. The afternoons were even worse. Like, a game of "Friends" trivia at 230 and then...nothing until dinner. Lots of empty time on our hands. There were a few things that were beyond Carnival's control that I'm not including like: delaying departure for an hour due to a lost passenger, diverting to Mexico for a medical emergency (which cancelled a lot of people's shore excursions for the next day), and disembarkation taking 5 hours because of a late arrival due to rough seas and a strong headwind on the way back. It was a mess but not the cruise line's fault. Anyway, I'm not going to do Carnival again. This year our budget and schedules really limited our choices. Our next big vacation I will just save for an extra 6 months and take a Disney Cruise. Read Less

This was my first cruise ever. Did not know what to expect at all. We were on the lower deck all the way in the back. In spite of this, the sailing was rather smooth. Kudos to our cabin Steward, Wayan, who surprised us each night with a different "towel animal" (like Organami with towels) sitting in the middle of the bed. It was really cute and made us look forward to getting back to our cabin in the evening, to see what sort of creature Wayan had left for us. Also, our hats off to our fantastic dining crew, Sudika, Authur and Ketut who kept our stomachs full and our pallets satiated. The food was wonderful, but the service was better. Thanks to our bartender, Rajesh, who kept our glasses full and always strived to deliver drinks the way we wanted. We chose not to go with the Carnival Shore excursions, instead, we googled a Snorkeling beach in the Cayman and a Scuba place, Blue Magic, in Cozumel. Experiencing the local taxis and local cuisine was quite exciting and the instructors at Blue Magic Scuba were amazing! Read Less

We just returned for our first cruise. It was a very good experience. We were fortunate to get room G4 With balcony to the side of the ship in a huge window with the blinds that remotely go up and down that were 6 feet wide. The room was cleaned every day and exceptionally well. Our steward Oakley was very attentive and made sure that we had everything we needed. It was unfortunate that it took several days to get our bottles of water that we ordered (miscommunication with room service and guest services). Luckily we had complementary bottles in our room as well as complementary laundry service which we took advantage of. The frustrations with the elevator was ridiculous we must’ve climbed hundreds of flights of stairs while we’re there I would feel very sorry for people who were not able to negotiate steps because they would be waiting a long time for the elevators if they simply have a car cancel button it would be a lot better. I also thought that I would mention that the karaoke department needs to be reviewed to not allow offensive rappers to sing karaoke which was clearly inappropriate for the multicultural cruise members who were cruising. I have Hispanic, black and Asian friends. There is no place for that Obscene performance. The bar cleared during this obscene performance. Very embarrassing for carnival. It was so fun till that happened. Pros Clean room Good service Destiny restaurant service was excellent. (Roberto and mustafa) Singer Darwin In destiny Embarkation (priority) Guest services Room service though limited was good. They were on time daily Nay & Robert the bartenders! Wine options were excellent Coffee bar lady and Robert head of f&b hooked me up with birthday cake when I did not know I had to order 24+ hours in advance (seriously...thank you ). Cons Need better communication. (The daily Brochures need an overhaul—-we were confused for 3 days) The worst elevators ever (they need a car cancel button) No floor numbers marked as you walk Up/down stairs Water not received from online purchase Small pool Not enough shade on decks Not enough places to cool off. Some bars under-staffed Serenity deck service either great or bad Room service coffee flavor Read Less

I didn't choose this cruise i went with a sick friend whom wanted a companion. I don't even enough strength to even go into how miserable everything was from the accommodations to the food to the service. Absolutely low low class. No air conditioning in room, no coffee pot, shower sprayed all over the floor, do i need to go on? I guess i do. The food was horrible. The same food everyday. Lots of mashed potatoes. If you love potatoes, you'll be in hog heaven. Do not expect gravy on them mashed potatoes though. Half the elevators were out of service. 30 minutes just to get ice. Had i been able to get a flight out of one of the islands, i would have gladly paid the extra money just to get the hell off this ship. Torture Read Less

My husband and I had both cruised as young adults but never as adults that could drink! We travel all the time and were ready for something different and decided on a cruise. We are so glad we did! Because of our work schedules, we were limited on how long and where we could choose. We chose the Western Caribbean cruise out of Tampa on the Carnival Paradise. After reading reviews, I was worried because it is an older, smaller ship. It was recently remodeled and we had a suite, so our room was perfect. We had priority boarding and it was a breeze. Absolutely no complaints about that. The food was as expected on a cruise. My favorite was Guy's Burger Joint. There is only one pool, but several whirlpools. The deck around the pool was crowded at peak times, but that was fine with us. There was plenty to do and plenty to eat/drink. We didn't get the drink package, but probably should have because we spent almost the same amount. We didn't do any official shore excursions but instead went to places recommended on the forums on Cruise Critic. Calico Jack's in Grand Cayman and Mr. Sancho's in Cozumel. Would recommend both. My only complaints are so much smoking--it was in designated areas but the wind carried the smoke and the movement of the ship was VERY noticeable throughout the ship. Fortunately we didn't get seasick but something to keep in mind if you do. We definitely want to cruise again, but will be sure to try a bigger, newer ship. Read Less

This was my third cruise all with carnival. The other two trips were very good but this one was the best. The ship is older but kept cleaned. Everywhere I went there was staff cleaning something whether it was the walls, ceilings or floors. The food was very good and if you do not care for what is on the buffet there are burgers,tacos,pizzas or sandwiches. There is also casual dining and the captains dinner. There was 22 of us including children. There was always different events for everyone to have an enjoyable time. Our favorite was the metal show also the children enjoyed it their ages range from 4 to 17. Everyone was always very friendly and helpful. Now most of the adults enjoyed the casino and I have to say the staff were the greatest especially Hong,Paul,Jette, Oscar and Sandy their service was outstanding and needs to be recognized.They are a big part of what made this trip the best. Everyone that asks about my trip I always tell them I love carnival. And looking forward to taking another cruise soon. Read Less

We have been on 35+ cruises and enjoyed this one as much as any before. The ship, since its 'remodeling' was in great shape. We know companies promote friendliness, but on this trip it all seemed sincere. Dining was good (although we miss the white table cloths). Casino staff was exceptional. The menu was very similar to others, but the preparation was much better. We left port on time, very unusual and had no problems with embarkation or disembarking. We did adventure out on two excursions and even after many visits to the same ports we were able to find wonderful, new experiences. The one we enjoyed the most was in Roatan, 'Roatan Adventure Tours' and a guide named Jeffery Johnson. In Cozumel we did revisit a previous tour, only because it has always been a great time -- Mr. Sancho's all inclusive beach tour. You must try their coconut shrimp and 'Dirty Monkey' drink. Book this ship and you won't be disappointed.. Read Less

This cruise was a gift, and it was also the first time I have ever been on a cruise. Ahead of the cruise, I decided to book one excursion and also purchase the internet plan. The cabin was quite clean, and I chose to have the room cleaned twice a day. I was glad I did this, because I spent the majority of the cruise in my room. The first afternoon of the cruise, a family with multiple cabins checked into their room. Evidently they thought that the hallway was a perfect playground - the kids were running up and down the hallway yelling and screaming for hours. One positive aspect of the room is that it has more room than I expected, and this was on a small, inner cabin. A definite problem with the room is the amount of noise you get from the hallway. It doesn’t matter if it is children, people talking, or service staff. You might as well just leave your cabin room open. The internet plan let me keep in touch with my wife, who couldn’t make the trip. I purchased the middle internet plan for approximately $10 a day because it said it supported WhatsApp. The text feature worked, but it was impossible to use the voice feature due to the internet speed. Even though WhatsApp is advertised as being supported, most of it wasn’t functional. I should have just purchased the $4 per day value plan, which would have accomplished the same thing. Regarding the food, the sit down dinner was relatively good, and the wait staff was well trained. There were, unfortunately very limited vegetarian options. Most disappointing was tha all soups, even if they were vegetable soups, were chicken stock based. The food on the Lido deck in the casual restaurant was much less appealing. This was cafeteria style food. Fruit was okay, but not great. The lines for the buffet during lunch were acceptable, but there were long lines for breakfast. I tried the omelette station, but after waiting for a long time, I decided it wasn’t worth the effort. The easiest thing to do was to grab yogurt and a banana. Restocking of some of the selections was not done on a timely manner in some instances. The worst thing about the dining was that the tables weren’t picked up in a timely manner, and the tables were never, ever, wiped down. At no time were the tables wiped down during meals at the buffet, even after many hours of service, which is completely disgusting. I sat and had multiple cups of coffee at the outside seating, followed by breakfast, and not one time was a table cleaned. Dishes were removed by staff, and that was the extent of it. If you want any quiet on the ship, plan on staying in your room. The ship has music piped in everywhere onboard, and there is no way to escape it. The only place outside of my room to find some quiet was on the small deck in the back of the ship behind the buffet restaurant. But then you have to be prepared to deal with the never clean, sticky tables. Carnival doesn’t seem to know what type of cruise line it is trying to be. On the website, they provide dress codes for meals. There is no enforcement whatsoever. For example, for the sit down meal service, the dress code prohibits cutoff shorts, sleveless shirts, collarless shirts for men and flip flops. Probably 30% of the guests wore t shirts and I saw numerous examples of all prohibited dress wear, including someone in cutoff shorts, flip flops, and a grubby AC/DC shirt. What is the point of a dress code if you don’t enforce it? The other ridiculous thing about the sit down meal was the photographer that interrupted the meal not once, but twice to beg to take a picture. Really? So no dress code and paparazzi at dinner? How relaxing! I would never go an a cruise again. To spend six days of my life feeling like there is no way to relax, only to have a few hours in port on two of the days is just a waste of time. I tried it but it was an absolute disappointment. Read Less

My husband and I went on this cruise for our honeymoon . The bathrooms were all very dirty and not big enough for the amount of people on the ship . There was always very long lines . The food was absolutely horrible . It was alright on the first day , but the quality seemed to decrease day by day . The food in the nice dining rooms was even nasty . There is one tiny pool where the adults and children are expected to swim together . It’s nearlg impossible to get a drink . When you do manage to get someone to take your drink order , it takes nearly thirty minutes for them to bring it to you . They charged me and my husband $65 apiece in a gratituity that we knew nothing about . When we called , they said it was in our email . We never received an email over it . They refuse to refund the 130 dollars that they took out of our bank account . We will not be going back through them . Next time we cruise , we will be going through royal carribean . This was a horrible experience for a first cruise . The only good thing about the whole cruise was the comedy . Read Less

This cruise fit in with fall break so we planned it with three other families from work. Embarkation was smooth and easy. We flew in and was transported by Carnival. We then walked right into port authority, checked in, and got onto the ship They had plenty of activities although we mainly stayed by the pool. We met up with our friends every night and my time dining sat us together with no problems. The food was very good and on an extra note, my wife was given a gluten free menu every day upon asking to prerecord the next day meals. The staff was very friendly in all parts of the ship. The ship was clean as was our room for our entire stay. My friends had the drink packages and they were very happy with it. I felt the debarkation was probably the easiest I have been through in 15 cruises. Read Less