Sailed on the Carnival Magic on April 22, 2012, and here is my review:

I traveled with my wife and two daughter's ages (7) and (10), and we stayed in a Starboard balcony stateroom on the Verandah deck (8th deck) midship. While the room was a bit narrow for two people to pass each other around the bathroom and entry way, we actually found the room to be quite roomy for the four of us. I really enjoyed the balcony, especially drinking a cup of coffee in the mornings. However, I'm not sure my family as a whole used it enough to justify the additional expense. I will book an ocean view room next time, and then decide if after that if balconies are in my future. Our room steward was Kelvin, and he his staff were great. The room was always timely made, and it was nice to see fresh towels twice a day. My girls really enjoyed the towel animals which were left each evening. Kelvin was always easy to find, and was invaluable in answering questions we had which were outside his area of responsibility.

I found the food onboard to be very good. I'm not sure what was up with the reviews I had read prior to leaving that said the food was horrible, it was not. I can tell you right now the best kept secret on the ship is the Cucina del Capitano. We ate there for lunch one day, and then my wife and I went back on Wednesday evening for dinner. We had dinner in the Steakhouse the night before, and actually found the Capitano to be a better experience for the price. Don't get me wrong, the Steakhouse was great, but we personally enjoyed the Capitano more. Read more